The Shear Failure Mechanism of Curved Girder

Parametric studies have been carried out to investigate the shear failure mechanism of curved I-shape steel plate girders. The finite element software ABAQUS is used for modeling; its accuracy was controlled through comparison with experimental and numerical results of other researchers. According to the results, the presence of the residual stress will not be effective on load-displacement behavior in the elastic range. Yet, the effect of residual stress is visible with no linearizing the behavior of structures. The results show that by considering the reduction in shear strength due to residual stresses, one can determine the shear strength of curved plate girders with reasonable accuracy. The regulations of AASHTO predict reasonably the shear strength of curved plate girders with regard to tension field action