Numerical Investigations of Notched C-Profile Compressed Members with Initial Imperfections

This article contains the results of numerical investigation of compressed columns made of cold-formed notched C-profile in order to find their ultimate bearing capacity. Numerical investigations of compressed member were held in two stages: investigations of stability in elastic stage in order to define the prevalent form of buckling and the corresponding value of buckling force; investigations of member postcritical behavior in non-linear position with due consideration of physical and geometrical nonlinearity as well as initial imperfections in order to discover the factors influencing bearing capacity. In order to reach the goals of our research a required number of models were made, namely: 28 models of Solid section C-profile (SCP) and 28 models of Notched C-profile (NCP), totally 56 models with the length from 1 000 mm up to 4 000 mm, cross section height h 150 and 200 mm, thickness t 1.5 and 2.0 mm. Numerical investigations were held with the help of software package PLM Femap 10.1 Nastran. Compressed members of solid section C-profile are the most sensitive to initial imperfections, members of notched Cprofile have big postcritical reserve.