Design Consideration of Mid-Gusset Weld Connection in Chevron-Braced Frame

摘要

In a chevron-braced frame, the brace ends are connected tothe steel frame by corner gusset plates, or by a mid-gusset plateat the mid-span of a beam. The gusset plate weld connectionsmust be properly designed because they are required to transferthe maximum force of the braces. In current design practice ofJapan, the mid-gusset weld connection is usually regarded aspure shear weld connection for the simplification. However, theeccentricity between the beam axis and weld line will causesignificant bending stress acting on the weld connection, whichmakes the mid-gusset weld connection under combined shearand bending. This study discusses the necessity of consideringthe combination effects of shear and bending for some situationsof the mid-gusset weld connection design.