Tests and design of aluminum tubular sections subjected to concentrated bearing load

This paper presents a series of tests on high strength aluminum square hollow sections subjected to concentrated bearing load. A total of 64 web-bearing tests was conducted. The test specimens were fabricated by extrusion using 6061-T6 heat-treated aluminum alloy. The tests were carried out under end and interior loading conditions, where the specimens were seated on a fixed solid steel base plate. These tests closely simulated the support condition of the floor joist members seated on solid foundation. The test results were compared with the design strengths obtained using the American Aluminum Design Manual and European code for aluminum structures. It was shown that the design strengths predicted by these codes are either quite conservative or unconservative. Furthermore, the Australian Standard AS4100 and British Standard BS5950 Part 1 were used for aluminum square hollow section with sharp corners. The design rules of steel codes were modified to predict the web-bearing strength based on this study. It was shown that the design strengths calculated using the modified web-bearing design rules are generally conservative and agree well with the experimental results. Furthermore, the critical values of web slenderness were proposed beyond which web buckling governs. © 2009 ASCE.