Experimental and numerical investigation of steel-concrete composite beams with demountable bolted angle shear connectors

Date

2025-10-15

Author

Karakuş, Berk
Arıkoğlu, Pınar
Topkaya, Cem

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Demountable bolted angle shear connectors have been developed for use in composite beams to promote more sustainable construction practices. Their performance was evaluated through horizontal pushout tests to determine their load–slip behavior. A key advantage of these connectors is their higher shear load-carrying capacity, which enables the use of fewer connectors per beam. However, existing literature lacks experimental validation of these innovative connectors within composite beams, as well as reliable theoretical methods for calculating their load-bearing capacity. This paper presents, for the first time, the results of a combined experimental and numerical study investigating the flexural behavior of both fully and partially composite beams incorporating bolted angle shear connectors. Four full-scale composite beams were tested under three-point bending in two phases: the first examined the beams’ elastic behavior, while the second assessed their ultimate load-carrying capacity. Key variables studied included the degree of composite action, hole tolerance, and bolt thread condition. The experimental results were used to evaluate the applicability of the design methods specified in the AISC360 Specification. Findings indicate that composite beams using bolted angle shear connectors exhibit behavior comparable to that of conventional composite beams. Moreover, their ultimate strengths can be accurately predicted using the plastic stress distribution method outlined in AISC360. Specimens with only three connectors per half-span achieved a compositeness ratio of 30 %. Additionally, a hole tolerance of 2 mm was found to have no adverse effect on beam performance. The demountability of the composite beams was successfully demonstrated following failure-level loading. Validated finite element models were developed based on the test data and used to investigate beam behavior with varying numbers of shear connectors beyond the scope of the experimental program.

Subject Keywords

Angle section, Beam test, Bolt, Demountable shear connectors, Recycling, Steel-concrete composite construction, Sustainability

URI

https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?partnerID=HzOxMe3b&scp=105009286294&origin=inward
https://hdl.handle.net/11511/115301

Collections

Department of Civil Engineering, Article