Steel Beam Cope

[Hot Sauce]

I have a situation where a steel beam has a square cope instead of having a rounded profile. I know the web is weakened because of this, but I am having trouble finding a reduction coefficient. Does anyone have a reference they can share?

Thank you.

 

[KootK]

Is the cope on the tension side or the compression side? I don't know where to find a reduction coefficient but, if your cope is on the compression side, I'd be inclined not to worry about it.

I like to debate structural engineering theory -- a lot. If I challenge you on something, know that I'm doing so because I respect your opinion enough to either change it or adopt it.

 

[Heldbaum]

HotSauce, you can find tables with those coefficients in AISC Manual Ed.14 in Section 9

 

[JoshPlumSE]

I'm not seeing what Heldbaum alluded to. Or, maybe the information there isn't as helpful as he thought it would be.

Section 9 (of the 14th edition manual) has a section on coped beam strength. But, it does't talk about the detailing of that cope at all (i.e. rounded vs square).

It also has a section on Copes, Blocks and Cuts which talks about the preferred method of sequencing the coping cuts. But, it doesn't talk much about the consequences of a poor cut (in terms of loss of capacity), it just talks about a potential notch.

It does give a few suggestions on how to reinforce a coped beam. But, the tables giving the properties of a coped beam, don't really tell how they would be affected by poor coping.

My suggestion would be the following:
If this is a low stress region, it's probably okay.
However, if it makes you uncomfortable, you can reinforce it.
Not something I've done, but I wonder if you guy just grind out a radius in that area to change the nature of the "fracture mechanics" in that area.

 

[thaidavid40]

Use a coring-type drill bit on a mag-base drill motor to make a rounded oversize hole in the sharp corner.
Dave

Thaidavid

 

[vmirat]

Look at Roarke's for stress concentration formulas.