C-3 Plastic Analysis and Design

3-Plastic Analysis and Design
Most structural materials undergo an elastic state before a plastic state is reached. This applies to
both material behavior of a cross section and the structure as a whole.
The plastic method of analysis is concerned with predicting the ultimate load carrying capacity
of steel structures. The plastic design method is a (ultimate) limit-state design procedure for the
derivation of ‘plastic moments’ for given design loads, followed by the selection of steel sections
matching these moments. Plastic theory can be applied to many types of structures made of
ductile materials such as structural mild steel. This chapter will be restricted to beams and frames
only.
Stress-strain behavior of a cross section

The plastification process is important for steel in plastic design as it ensures that the material
has adequate ductility for the cross section to sustain loading beyond its elastic limit.
Plastification of a cross-section:
Load-deflection curve for simply supported beam
Load-deflection curve for fixed-end beam

Load-deflection curve for a clamped portal frame
Load-deflection curve for a clamped rectangular RC slab

The basic assumptions considered in the plastic theory are listed as follows:
(a) The material has the capacity to undergo considerable plastic deformation without danger of
fracture.
(b) Ductility of steel (that is, a long yield plateau) is important for the development of plastic
zones (plastic hinges).
(c) Rigid connections must be proportioned for full continuity and must be able to transmit the
calculated plastic moment.
(d) No instability (buckling) must occur prior to the formation of a sufficient number of plastic
hinges, to transform the structure into a mechanism.
(e) The ratio between the magnitudes of different loads remains constant from the formation of
the first plastic hinge to the attainment of the mechanism.
(f ) Frame deformations are small enough to be neglected in the analysis.
Plastic analysis of indeterminate structures is based on the conditions of equilibrium, mechanism

and plastic moment limit:
(i) Equilibrium. As for elastic design.
(ii) Mechanism condition. Discontinuities in the deflected shape of the structure form at points
where plastic deformations lead to formation of plastic hinges, allowing the structure to
deform as a mechanism.
The mechanism method is based on a rigid–plastic approach because the structure
is assumed to be rigid until collapse occurs.
(iii)Plastic moment limit. No bending moment in the structure may ‘exceed’ the maximum
moment capacity (plastic moment—i.e. the strength limit state design section moment
capacity).
Collapse mechanism of beams
Statically determinate beams
A statically determinate beam will fail if one plastic hinge developed. Pn represents the
theoretical maximum load that the beam can support.
Statically indeterminate beams

For statically indeterminate beams to fail, there should be formation of more than one
plastic hinge.
Generally speaking, although a plastic hinge may have formed in a statically

indeterminate structure, the load can still be increased without causing failure if the
geometry of the structure permits. Once a plastic hinge is formed, it will act like a real
hinge as far as the increased loading is concerned. As the load is increased, there is a
redistribution of moment because the plastic hinge can resist no more moment. As more
plastic hinges are formed in the structure, there will eventually be a sufficient number of
them to cause collapse. Actually, some additional load can be carried after this time
before collapse occurs as the stresses go into the strain hardening range. However,
deflections that would occur are too large to be permissible in design.
Beam plastic collapse mechanisms
Plastic analysis methods

There are various methods that can be used to perform plastic analysis for a given
structure. Two satisfactory plastic analysis methods are
Equilibrium method
Virtual-work method (Energy principle)
In this course, we will mainly focus on the virtual-work method.
The virtual-work method

The structure under consideration is assumed to be loaded to its plastic capacity, Mp.
Then it is assumed to deflect through a small additional displacement after the ultimate
load is reached. The work performed by the external loads during this displacement is
equated to internal work absorbed by the hinges.
External work = Internal work
Wext = Wint
For this case, the small-angle theory (i.e. Sin θ = tan θ = θ, expressed in radians) is used.
The value for the collapse/plastic load P is the smallest when expressed in terms of Mp.
Or the plastic moment capacity Mp is the largest when expressed in terms of P.
Example-1: A fixed-end beam, of length L and plastic moment capacity Mp, is subject to a point
load P as shown in the figure below. Determine the collapse load P = Pw.
Solution: The first step is to guess the possible collapse mechanism. In this case, it is obvious
that the collapse mechanism is induced by the formation of three plastic hinges at A, B, and C
shown in Figure b.
From Figure b, the load displacement can be related approximately to the angles of plastic
rotation by
Example-2: Determine the collapse load factor P = Pw for the continuous beam shown in the
figure below. The plastic moment of the beam is Mp.
Solution: For left span AB, the plastic hinge occurs at mid-span and B as shown in the figure.
The virtual work equation is
Similarly, for right span BC with two plastic hinges shown in the figure below, the virtual work
is
Example-3: A fixed-end beam ABC is subjected to a UDL of 10α kN/m being applied along AB
as shown in the figure below. Mp = 100kNm for the beam. Determine the collapse load factor α
= αc.
Application to Portal Frames
A portal frame usually involves high degrees of indeterminacy. Therefore, there are always a
large number of partial and complete collapse mechanisms that can be combined to form new
collapse mechanisms. For complex frames, it requires substantial judgment and experience in
using this method to identify all possible partial and combined collapse mechanisms. For simple
portal frames, the following types of collapse mechanisms should be identified:
Beam mechanism,
Sway mechanism and
Combined mechanism.
a) Beam mechanism—when vertical loads are applied to beams and horizontal loads to
columns to form partial collapse mechanisms
b) Sway mechanism—when horizontal loads are applied to form complete collapse

mechanisms
c) Combined mechanism—a combination of beam and sway mechanisms only if unloading

occurs to one or more plastic hinges
Example-4: A fixed-base portal frame is subject to a vertical load of 2P and a horizontal load of P
as shown in the figure below. The length of the beam is 6L and of the column is 4L. Find the
collapse load P = Pw:
Solution: The portal frame has 3 degrees of indeterminacy. Therefore, a complete collapse
mechanism requires four plastic hinges.
i. Beam mechanism:
ii. Sway mechanism:

iii. Combined mechanism of (i) and (ii)
Example-5: A fixed-base portal frame is subject to two horizontal loads of 2P and 3P as shown in
the figure below. Find the collapse load P = Pw.
Solution: The three possible collapse mechanisms are shown below:
i. Beam mechanism:
ii. Sway mechanism:

iii. Combined mechanism of (i) and (ii)
Calculation of Member Forces at Collapse

When a complete collapse occurs to a structure, it is still possible to calculate the member forces
at collapse because the structure is reduced to a determinate one due to the formation of plastic
hinges. This statement is not valid for structures failed by partial collapse.
Free-body diagrams of the frame from example-4 with plastic hinges

Application to frames with sloping members
When a frame includes one or more sloping members, no new considerations are introduced
other than the possibility of alternative collapse mechanisms. However, there may be a certain
additional difficulty in determining the rotations and displacements in the virtual-work equation.
Example-6: The pitched roof frame shown below has a uniform section with a full plastic
moment of 300 kNm. Find the load factor at collapse.
Solution:
Mechanism-1
Mechanism-2
Mechanism-3

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3-Plastic Analysis and Design

Stress-strain behavior of a cross section

Load-deflection curve for fixed-end beam

Load-deflection curve for a clamped rectangular RC slab

Plastic analysis of indeterminate structures is based on the conditions of equilibrium, mechanism

Statically indeterminate beams

Generally speaking, although a plastic hinge may have formed in a statically

Plastic analysis methods

The virtual-work method

Sway mechanism and

b) Sway mechanism—when horizontal loads are applied to form complete collapse

c) Combined mechanism—a combination of beam and sway mechanisms only if unloading

ii. Sway mechanism:

Solution: The three possible collapse mechanisms are shown below:

ii. Sway mechanism:

Calculation of Member Forces at Collapse

Free-body diagrams of the frame from example-4 with plastic hinges

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