Experimental investigation of the member buckling of cold-rolled aluminium alloy 5052 channel columns

Abstract

In recent years, BlueScope Permalite in Australia has used the existing rolling system for cold-formed steel sections to successfully roll-form aluminium alloy sections. In comparison with the conventional extrusion method, the roll-forming process is faster, more cost-effective and may enhance the strength of the aluminium alloy. This paper presents a series of compression tests on cold-rolled aluminium alloy 5052 lipped channels subjected to member buckling. A total of 28 tests of three commercially available sections including C10030, C25025 and C40030 were conducted. Two end boundary condition configurations were designed for test rigs. In the first configuration, the end sections of the specimens rotate freely about the major axis whereas rotation about the minor axis is restrained. In contrast, for the second configuration, restrained and free rotation conditions are used for major and minor axes respectively. Both flexural-torsional buckling and local-global interaction buckling failure modes were observed during the tests. The experimental results are compared with the predictions in Specification for Aluminum Structures 2015 by The Aluminum Association.