Deep Column Sections In Steel Special Moment Frame Systems

摘要

The steel special moment frame (SMF) is a commonlyrnselected lateral force-resisting system in many modernrnbuildings. The primary advantage of the system is thernfreedom afforded to architectural design. The lack ofrnstructural walls or diagonal bracing provides the buildingrnwith an unobstructed floor plan and an aesthetic exteriorrnexpression. The tradeoff for these benefits is that momentrnframes can be more expensive to construct than braced framernor shear wall structures. The additional costs result from thernuse of heavier steel frame sections. Therefore, economy inrnmoment frame design is an important consideration for bothrnthe practicing engineer and the steel fabricator. In practice,rnusing W14 frame columns to satisfy code prescribed driftrnlimitations results in unnecessarily heavy sections. Givenrntheir increased in-plane flexural stiffness, the use of lighterrnand deeper column sections can provide an economicrnincentive for limiting drift. This study, as part of the inrnprogress SEAONC 2010 Special Projects Initiative,rninvestigates the use of deep column sections to reduce overallrnmoment frame material weight when compared withrnconventional W14 column sections.