Large displacement model for the nonlinear behaviour of the face plate component

This paper deals with the face plate component in steel joints and addresses the full characterization of the nonlinear behaviour of the face plate component. An equivalent beam strip model is proposed that tackles the connection of a beam to the column web of open I-sections in a minor axis joint or the face of tubular columns, covering endplate or fin plate joint typologies. Closed-form analytical solutions are obtained for the elastic large displacement and the elastic-plastic large displacement behaviour of the equivalent beam strip. Criteria for the establishment of the design resistance using the continuous strength method are also proposed. It was concluded that the model is easy to apply, was validated against a large parametric study using finite element beam models, leads to accurate solutions and demonstrates the need to consider membrane effects in design.