Seismic performance of stiffened steel members with rectangular section under high compressive axial force

It is reported that steel members such as arch ribs and towers of suspension bridges may be subjected to high compressive axial force during the huge earthquake like the Kobe Earthquake. However, little is known about the seismic performance of steel members under high compressive axial force. So it is very important to grasp the seismic performance of steel members under high compressive axial force. In this study, cyclic loading experiments and FEM analysis were conducted and the effect of the compressive axial force, the aspect ratio of the section, width-thickness ratio parameters and the other buckling parameters on the seismic performance were evaluated. Furthermore, the seismic evaluation method of the stiffened steel members under high compressive axial force is proposed and the validity of the proposed method was confirmed by comparing the experimental and analysis results including the previous studies with calculated results by the proposed evaluation method.