Reliability of corroded steel members subjected to elastic lateral torsional buckling

Abstract

Structural steel members are subjected to corrosion due to environmental condition. As a result, there is decreasing in the cross-section properties of the member. This causes different stability problems and reduction in the load carrying capacity of members. Then, the probability of failure, P-f increases due to corrosion. The need arises to determine expected level of safety for such members and systems. Besides, reliability of the steel structure is also effected by the structural stability problems that result decreasing in the resistance. Lateral torsional buckling is one of the most encountered problems in steel members and affected by the critical moment which is a function of lateral and torsional stiffness. Critical moment depends on the material properties, boundary conditions, unbraced length, load pattern, and the member's cross section. Under the corrosion, it is inevitable to observe changing in some of properties. In this study, a damage model to determine the reliability of a corroded I-shape steel member under linear moment gradient is developed considering corrosion exposure time. Uniform and varying thickness loss models are considered to show the corrosion effect. Influence of environmental condition on the load carrying capacity of the members is considered and their effects on member design is evaluated. As a result, it is concluded that load carrying capacity of steel members degrades and safety of them adversely effected. With presented formulas, it is ensured that the load carrying capacity and reliability indices of the steel members can be calculated practically under the examined situations