9 Steel Construction Flashcards
Basic properties of steel
Strongest building material
Non rotting, resistant to aging, dimensionally stable
Consistent
Relatively expensive but strength and variety allows for less quantity to be used
Ductile
Capable of being bent shaped or drawn out
Lower carbon content of steel compared to iron allows it to
Be shaped due to it being less brittle and more ductile
Cold rolled steel is used for members that
Have a thin cross section, such as floor decking and wall studs
Two disadvantages of steel
Rusts
Loses strength when heated by fire
At 1200 degrees f steel loses what percent of strength
Appx 72%
Amount of expansion when heated for slender steel members such as columns and beams, can be determined by a property known as
The linear coefficient of thermal expansion
Linear coefficient of thermal expansion, unrestrained steel beam 20’ long is heated from 70 to 1000 degrees uniformly, it would expand
1.4 inches, if restrained it would expand less
Heating of steel members is not uniform in fires, therefor the expansion is
Not uniform
Cast iron fronts were used in old buildings cast iron cracks from impact load rather than yielding like steel. It’s concerning because
A crack could cause collapse of cast iron building front
Steel Beams and columns are connected on two ways
Welding or bolting, riveting was once used but not practical any more.
Beam and girder steel frames can be classified as
Rigid, simple, or semi rigid.
Rigid frame steel building
Connections between beams and columns designed to resist bending forces from load and lateral force
Girder
Large horizontal member used to support joists and beams at isolated points along their length
Simple steel frame
Joints designed primarily to support vertical force. Beams and trusses frequently supports by masonry
Semi rigid
Possess enough rigidity to provide some diagonal support. May use sheer walls or diagonal bracing
Steel trusses provide a structural member that can carry loads
Across a greater distance than beams
In three dimensional space frames, steel stresses are known as
Delta trusses because they resemble the triangular Greek delta
Two common applications of basic trusses
Open web joist and joist girder
Bar joist
Open web truss entirely of steel with steel bars as web members