Effects of Crossed Stiffeners on the Ultimate Strength of Steel Plate Girders

Articles in Press

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors
Azher Basim Mohsin Alshaher
Abbas Rezaeian
Mojtaba Labibzadeh
Sina Farahani
Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Architecture, Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Ahvaz, Iran
10.22055/jacm.2025.48673.5415
Abstract
This research evaluates the flexural behavior of steel plate girders with crossed stiffeners under static loading. Using ABAQUS finite element software, 22 simply supported steel plate girders were modeled and analyzed up to failure. The investigation focused on the effect of several parameters on ultimate strength: stiffener inclination angle (30°, 45°, 60°, 75°), in addition to the yield strength and thickness of the stiffeners, web, and flanges. The results demonstrate a substantial enhancement in the ultimate load as the stiffener inclination angle increased from 30° to 75°, with a considerable rise from 43% to 93% observed, noting that significant improvements were most pronounced beyond 60° inclinations. Furthermore, the ultimate capacity increased by 93-95% through an elevation of yield strength, 93-99% via stiffener thickening, 93-111% with web augmentation, and 93-97% through flange thickening. The comparative performance analysis established that cross-stiffened girders demonstrate marked improvements, with the Pareto-optimal G75D configuration achieving a maximum stiffness with a 38% enhancement and an energy absorption with a 98% increase over the baseline model. This configuration achieved superior integrated performance by maximizing strength, stiffness, and energy absorption, thereby establishing a validated design methodology for enhancing stiffened plate girders in demanding long-span bridge and structural applications.
Keywords
Crossed stiffeners
Steel plate girders
Parametric investigation
Ultimate strength
Finite element analysis
Subjects

Publisher’s Note Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

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Journal of Applied and Computational Mechanics

Articles in Press, Corrected Proof
Available Online from 12 December 2025