Steel Moment Connections To Column Webs

MOMENT CONNECTIONS
TO COLUMN WEBS
By M. Thomas Ferrell
This article will present

details that will accommodate
mill and shop tolerances of struc-
tural members, as well as provid-
ing for material ductility. It will
also present limit state strength
considerations for both moment
connections with field welded
beam flanges and field bolted
flange plates.
MOMENT CONNECTION
WITH FIELD WELDED
BEAM FLANGES
(FIGURE 1)
1. The connection plates must be
the same grade of material as
the weak axis moment beam.
2. The connection plate has been
extended ¾” minimum beyond
the column flange to provide bet-
ter toughness and ductility.
AISC’s Manual of Steel
Construction (LRFD) Volume
II—Connections, pages 10-60
through 10-65, has summarized
results of nine simulated weak
axis FR moment connection tests
performed by Driscoll, et. al., to
aid in selection of details to
ensure ductility.
3. The top connection plate
thickness is equal to tf plus ¼”.
This additional thickness is nec-
essary to accommodate toler-
ances for fabrication and beam
flange tilt. Note that the bottom 4. The bottom connection plate ble overrun/under-run in the
of this connection plate is thickness is equal to tf plus 3/8”. beam depth. Note that the cen-
aligned with the bottom of the This is necessary to accommo- terline of this connection plate is
beam top flange. date tolerances for fabrication aligned with the centerline of the
and beam flange tilt plus possi- bottom flange of the beam.
Modern Steel Construction / March 1998

nection plates must be designed
for shear stresses due to the
eccentricity from the neutral
axis of the bolt group to the edge
of the column flange. If a column
web doubler is required due to a
strong axis moment beam, then
the additional stresses from the
shear plate must be considered
in determining the thickness of
the web doubler plate.
MOMENT CONNECTIONS
WITH BEAM FLANGE
PLATES (FIGURE 2)
1. It is not necessary for the
flange plates to be the same
grade of material of the weak
axis moment beam.
2. Oversized holes should be
used in the flange plates to allow
for mill tolerances in the column
beam. These connections with
oversized holes must be designed
as slip critical. If tension control
bolts are used, if possible use a
bolt gage that will allow bolts at
the bottom flange to be tightened
from inside of the beam flange.
In many cases, this is not possi-
ble due to beam flange widths
and beam depths.
3. Shims must be provided at the
top or bottom flanges to accom-
modate fabrication and mill tol-
erances for flange tilt plus possi-
ble overrun/under-run in beam
depths. Fabricators normally
5. The welds for connection 6. Bolts for the shear plate to prefer the shims to be at the bot-
plates to the column flanges beam web are normally located tom flange due to restrictions on
must be designed for shear outside of the column flanges. programming of shop equipment.
forces. These welds may also be This practice simplifies beam If shims are provided at the top
subjected to tensile/compression erection and allows access to flange, the detail can be provided
and shear forces when these tighten the bolts with use of an to serve as a deck support (figure
plates serve as stiffener plates impact wrench. Short slots 3).
for a strong axis moment beam. should be used in the plate and
Use fillet welds where possible. standard holes in the beam web. 4. The flange plates must be
It is good practice to deduct Flange welds should be complet- designed for tension yielding,
twice the weld size from the ed before the bolts are tightened. tension rupture, and compres-
length of plate available for The short slots will “hold” top of sion strength.
welding so that the welds do not beam elevation and allow for 5. The flange bolts must be
terminate at the edges of the weld shrinkage to occur at the designed for shear strength.
plate or column flange. If calcu- flange welds. The bolts are
lated stresses are transferred designed for shear forces only 6. The beam design flexural
through the welds at the column (no eccentricity). The welds for strength with regard to net sec-
web, then back-up stiffener the shear plate-to-column web tion must be determined to
plates must be provided. are designed for shear only. The assure that the net beam section
welds for the shear plate-to-con- is adequate without reinforcing.
Modern Steel Construction / March 1998

7. The welds for the flange plates
to the column flanges/webs are
designed using the same criteria
used for the connection plates for
the field welded flange moment
beams in figure 1.
8. The web shear plate design is
the same as for the field welded
flange moment beams.
This article is adapted from a
paper by M. Thomas Ferrell,
P.E., for the 1998 National Steel
Construction Conference. Ferrell
is President of Ferrell
Engineering, Inc., a specialty
structural engineering firm locat-
ed in Birmingham, AL.

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MOMENT CONNECTIONS

This article will present

Modern Steel Construction / March 1998

Modern Steel Construction / March 1998

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