1

CIV3207 DESIGN OF STEEL STRUCTURES (Formerly CIV3203:

STRUCTURAL DESIGN II -STEEL)

Credit Lecture Tutorial Practical Contact Weighted Weighted Weighted

Units Hours Hours Hours Hours Total Exam Continuous
Mark Mark Assessment
Mark
CU LH TH PH CH WTM WEM WCM
4 45 15 0 60 100 60 40

Course Description:
The course deals with design principles of steel members and connections that are used in
Civil infrastructure under different possible modes of loading.

Objectives:

 Create appreciation of the importance of steel as a structural material

 Create appreciation of the shortcomings of steel and how to overcome them

 Design various structural steel elements (tensile, compressive, bending members)

 Design steel member connections, both bolted and welded

 Read at ease BS EN 1993 Eurocode 3 and apply the guidance therein.

Learning Outcome: On completing the course the student should be able to carry out
structural steel design in simple construction.

Test Date: Tuesday 7th April 2020

Reading/Reference Materials

1. Lam, D., McGinley, T.J., Ang,T.C., Chiew, S-P.,Structural Steelwork Design to

Limit State Theory, 3rd Edition, Butterworth Heinemann, 2004
2. McKenzie, W. M. C., Design of Structural Steelwork to BS 5950 and C-EC3
Macmillan, 1998
3. Steel Designers’ Manual, Blackwell publishing,2003
4. Structural design of steel work to EN1993 and EN1994 by L.H.Martin & J.A
Purkiss,3rd edition, Elsevier(2008)

Steel design RAK 2019/2020

 2

5. Eurocode 0 (EN 1990)

6. Eurocode 1 (EN 1991)
7. Eurocode 3 (EN 1993)
8. L. Gardner and David Nethercot, Designers' Guide to EN 1993-1-1 Eurocode 3:
Design of Steel Structures. ICE Publishing

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
History of Steel structures
The introduction of structural steel in the 19th century provided an additional building
material to stone, brick, timber, wrought iron and cast iron. Before then, man had been
searching for the perfect building material to construct his dwellings, bridges across
rivers and to make his tools.
Until the manufacture of steel, all other materials discovered and used in construction had
proved to be either too weak (wood), too bulky (stone), too temporary (mud and twigs) or
too deficient in resisting tension, fracture and bending (stone and concrete).
Prior to 1779, the most important materials for load bearing structures were masonry and
timber. Ferrous materials were only used for fastenings and chains. The earliest use of
cast iron columns in factory buildings enabled large span floors to be constructed. Due to
disastrous fires in the late 18th century, timber beams were replaced by cast iron. Cast
iron however is weak in tension and therefore was used mainly for compression
members. Large span cast iron beams were impractical and on occasions disastrous.
To overcome the tensile weakness of cast iron, wrought iron was introduced in the late
18th century. Steel was first produced in 1740 but was not available in large quantities
until 1856 with the invention of a converter. Riveting was one of the first popular
connection until the 1950’s when it was superseded by welding.

Advantages of steel as a structural material

 High strength
Today, steel comes in various strengths designated by its yield strength or ultimate tensile
strength. Even steel of the lowest strength can claim a higher ratio of strength to unit
weight or volume than other common materials in current use. This enables it to span

Steel design RAK 2019/2020

 3

long distances economically. The long spanning of steel enables creation of large areas of
unobstructed space in multi-storey buildings. Fewer columns make it easier to subdivide
and customise office space. In warehouses or manufacturing facilities, fewer columns
mean less restrictions on the location of fixed equipment as well as less restrictions for
forklifts and other moving equipment.

 Tightness
This is because of a high-density index. Therefore, steel can be used for reservoirs, tanks
and conveyance systems.

 Good ductility
This property enables steel to withstand extensive deformations under high tensile
stresses without failure. In extreme wind and earthquake zones, we need a material that is
ductile and flexible. Steel naturally flexes under extreme loads rather than crushing or
crumbling.

 Relative ease of fabrication and Speed of construction

The speed at which a building is built is critical. Fast construction also lowers financing
costs and overhead expenses for construction management. Because structural steel is
lighter than other framing materials, it needs a smaller and simpler foundation. This
reduces on cost and the time spent on construction; no need for curing, etc. Steel
construction allows almost all members to be prefabricated, leaving only erection for the
field.

 Durability
Steel is very durable and can last for decades if properly protected.

 Uniformity
The properties of steel as a material and as structural shapes are so rigidly controlled in
mills that engineers can expect the members to behave reasonably as expected. This
implies lower material safety factors can be used in design.

 Adaptability

Steel design RAK 2019/2020

 4

Building owners are faced with the challenge of modifying existing spaces to meet
changing needs e.g. a new staircase, column-free space or even raising or lowering a
ceiling. Steel is the only material that allows the strength of the material to be increased
economically once it is built. Additional steel may be bolted or welded on existing steel
beams, steel beams can be made composite, connections can be strengthened, etc

 Recyclability and Sustainability

Steel is a sustainable material. Construction must be seen to be socially and
environmentally responsible as well as economically viable. Recycling and reuse can
contribute to the sustainability cause. Steel is the most recyclable material in the world
and in developed countries, recycling accounts for almost half of the steel produced.

 Ease of maintenance
Today’s modern coatings protect steel-framed structures for more than 30 years. The
open and readily accessible steel frame simplifies surface inspection and maintenance.

 Appearance
Steel structures can be constructed with a variety of exterior architectural cladding
systems. Designers can achieve virtually any desired effect. Functional and aesthetic
colour schemes provide a cleaner, brighter, friendlier appearance on the interior and
exterior.

Disadvantages of steel structures

1. Corrosion in humid conditions
Steel corrodes in most outdoor atmospheres. Steel rusts in a moist environment.
Corrosion of steel reduces the cross section of members and thus affects safety. Corrosion
which occurs on the surface of steel is a chemical reaction between iron, water and
oxygen, which produces a hydrated iron oxide called rust.
The elimination of water and oxygen reduces the rate of corrosion. In contrast, pollutants
in the air for example sulphur dioxides from industrial atmospheres and salt from marine
atmospheres, increase the electrical conductivity of water and accelerate the corrosion
reaction.

Steel design RAK 2019/2020

 5

Protective measures should be undertaken and the common ones are:-

Covering of steel member surfaces. This can be done by:-
a. Concrete embedment: Encasing steel in concrete provides an alkaline
environment and no corrosion will take place unless water diffuses through the
concrete carrying with it S02 and C02 gases from the air.
b. Anti-corrosive paint coating: The most common, and cheapest form of protection
process is to clean the surface by sand or blasting, and then to paint with a lead
primer, generally in the workshop prior to delivery on site. On site, steel is
erected and protection is completed with an undercoat and finishing coat or coats
of paints.
c. Hot dip galvanising. This involves coating the surface of the steel with a
corrosion resistant metal, usually zinc. Like paint, Zinc provides barrier
protection. Secondly, it provides galvanic protection i.e. zinc will sacrifice itself
to protect steel.
d. Electroplating-where a layer of weather resistant metal, usually chromium is
deposited on the steel metal surface.
e. Spray galvanizing-involves deposition of molten zinc or aluminium on to a
prepared surface.
Using rust-resistant alloy steels such as stainless steels: stainless steel contains a
minimum of 11% chromium that provides a thin protective oxide film on the surface that
protects the material from corrosion. If damaged, the layer simply reforms.
Cathodic protection: Steel is placed in contact with another more easily eroded metal to
act as the anode of the electrochemical cell.
2. Low fire resistance
Steel will begin to lose its load-carrying capacity at 3000C and will have little strength
left at 6500C. Steel work for multi-storey buildings faces the severest competition from
concrete largely because concrete meets fire regulations far better than steel. The
vulnerability of steel to fire temperatures was starkly demonstrated in the destruction on
11th September 2001 of the World Trade Centre in New York.

Steel design RAK 2019/2020

 6

Steel that could be exposed to such temperatures in fire situations must be protected and
this can be achieved by:-
a. A sprayed-on coating of a cementitious material: spray protection is very cheap,
it is easy to cover complex details, durable, and some sprays can be applied to
unpainted steel work. Unfortunately, such sprays are not visually appealing.
b. Full concrete embedment: these tend to be used where resistance to impact
damage, abrasion and weather exposure are important. This is however expensive,
is time consuming on-site, large protection thicknesses take up valuable space
around columns, weight is also increased considerably.
c. Encasement by fire-resistant materials such as gypsum board
d. Flexible/blanket systems: Cheap-comparable to cheap boards, application is dry
although its appearance impacts aesthetics.
e. Thin film intumescent coatings: these are paint-like substances which are inert at
low temperatures but provide protection by swelling to provide a charred layer of
low conductivity materials at temperatures of 200-250 degrees. It allows shape of
steel to be expressed and decorative finishes are possible. It is however expensive,
it is a wet trade and have limited fire resistance (30 to 60 minutes).

3. Lack of flexibility
It is difficult to make non-rectangular structures in steel compared to, say concrete.
4. Need for skilled labour: steel structures need skilled labour to fabricate.

5. Fatigue
Fatigue is the progressive and localised structural damage that occurs when a
material is subjected to cyclic loading. This is very important in bridges where there
are vibrations.

Steel design RAK 2019/2020

 7

Manufacture of steel sections:

The manufacture process of standard steel sections can be divided in to three stages

 Iron production: Chemically reducing iron ore in a blast furnace using coke and
crushed limestone, resulting in cast iron which is high in carbon, sulphur and
phosphorous. The diagram below shows an illustration how a blast furnace works.

 Steel production: Batch process that consists of reducing the carbon, sulphur and
phosphorous levels and adding where necessary, manganese, chromium, nickel,
vanadium.

 Rolling: from the converter, the steel is ‘teemed’ into ingots that are then passed
onto rolling mills for successive reduction in size until the desired shape is
attained.

Composition of steel
The steel used in structural engineering is a compound of approximately 98% iron and
small percentages of carbon, silicon, manganese, phosphorous, sulphur, niobium and
vanadium.

Steel design RAK 2019/2020

 8

Steel can be defined as an alloy of carbon and iron. Increasing the carbon content
increases the strength and hardness but reduces ductility and toughness. Carbon content
therefore is restricted to between 0.25% and 0.2% to produce steel that is weldable and is
not brittle. The niobium and vanadium are introduced to raise the yield strength of the
steel. Manganese improves corrosion resistance. The phosphorous and sulphur are
impurities.
Alloys with higher carbon content are known as cast iron. Steel containing only carbon,
iron and impurities is called carbon steel; when alloy elements are added, it is called alloy
steel (alloying elements can be introduced to produce special properties). Alloying
elements include chromium & Copper (to produce weather-resistant steels that do not
require corrosion protection), nickel, molybdenum. Steel with high carbon content is
called high carbon steel, and that with low carbon content called low carbon or mild or
ductile steel.

Classification of steel
Steels are grouped in to the 5 main classifications: -
a) Carbon steels: these make up more than 90% of all steels. They contain varying
amounts of carbon and not more than 0.65% manganese, 0.6% silicon and 0.6%
copper. They are used in bed springs, buildings, machines, motor vehicle bodies.
b) Alloy steels: These have a specified composition, containing certain percentages
of vanadium, molybdenum as well as large amounts of manganese and copper
than do the regular carbon steels. They find application in motor vehicle gears and
axles, carving knives, etc.
c) High strength low-alloy steels: Newest of the families of steel. They cost less
than alloy steels because they contain only a small amount of the expensive
alloying elements. They are processed to have much more strength than carbon
steels of the same weight.
d) Stainless steel: Contain chromium, nickel and other alloying elements that keep
them bright and rust resistant in spite of the moisture or the action of corrosive

Steel design RAK 2019/2020

 9

acids and gases. Because of this, architects often use them for decorative
purposes. Used for the pipes and tanks of petroleum refineries and chemical
plants, surgical instruments, in kitchens and are used to patch or replace broken
bones.
e) Tool steels: These steels are fabricated into tools or into the cutting and shaping
parts of power-driven machinery. They contain tungsten, molybdenum and other
alloying elements to give them extra strength, hardness and resistance to wear.

Structural Steel sections:

Steel construction favours the use of structural steel elements with standard cross sections
and common bar length of 12m or 15m. Billets of steel are hot-rolled to form bars, flats,
plates, angles, tees, channels, I-sections and hollow sections as shown below;

The most common structural sections are: -

a) Hot rolled sections:

Steel design RAK 2019/2020

 10

These are standard shapes moulded while the metal is hot and possibly molten. The
common hot-rolled shapes include: -

 Universal beams (UB) for resisting bending moments about major axis
 Universal columns (UC) for resisting axial loads
 Channels(C) for beams, bracing members, truss members and as compound
sections
 Angles (L) for bracing members, truss members, purlins, sheeting rails.
 Tees for truss members, ties and light beams.
 Hollow sections: may be circular (CHS), square (SHS) or rectangular (RHS)
 Solid sections (rounds, squares and rectangles)
 Sheet metal
PS: Whereas concrete reinforcement is almost always steel, it is not considered
structural steel

b) Compound sections: these are made by either combining separate rolled

sections or by welding plates on to a rolled section to form a stronger member.

c) Built-up sections: Made by welding plates together, e.g. plate and box girders,
box and built-up columns.

d) Cold-rolled sections: These are thin plates rolled, when cold, in to various
shapes. The commonest are the zed (Z), Sigma (∑) and the Channel sections. Cold
rolled sections are mostly used for purlins and sheeting rails. While cold rolling

Steel design RAK 2019/2020

 11

increases the hardness and strength of a metal, it also results in a large decrease in
ductility. Thus metals strengthened by cold rolling are more sensitive to the
presence of cracks and are prone to brittle fracture.
Mechanical properties of structural steel
The material properties that are of most importance for structural design using steel are
strength and Young’s modulus. Other properties that are of lesser importance are
hardness, impact resistance and melting point.
Determination of the mechanical properties of steel is usually done by special tests on
steel samples. The most common and simplest test is the tensile test. The properties tested
are strength and ductility. A test piece is clamped in a testing machine and subjected to
tension. A graph of stress versus relative elongation is plotted and a typical plot for mild
(low-carbon) steel is shown below:-

Steel design RAK 2019/2020

 12

The extended post-yield behaviour is indicative of high ductility.

High carbon steels have less ductility with a stress-strain curve that has no definite yield
stress. In this case, the yield stress is approximated equal to the 0.2% proof stress, which
is defined as the stress that will produce 0.2% permanent extension of a tensile test piece.

Steel design RAK 2019/2020