Innovative composite steel-timber floors with prefabricated modular components

Abstract

8An innovative steel-timber composite floor for use in multi-storey residential buildings is presented. The research 9 demonstrates the potential of these steel-timber composite systems in terms of bearing capacity, stiffness and method of 10 construction. Such engineered solutions should prove to be sustainable since they combine recyclable materials in the 11 most effective way. The floors consist of prefabricated ultralight modular components, with a Cross-Laminated Timber 12(CLT) slab, joined together and to the main structural system using only bolts and screws. Two novel floor solutions are 16steel beams. Specifically, the first proposed composite system is assembled using mechanical connectors whereas the 17 second involves the use of epoxy-based resin. In the paper, a FEM model is provided in order to extend this study to 18 other steel-timber composite floor solutions. In addition, the paper contains the design model to be used in 19 dimensioning the developed systems according to the state of the art of composite structures. 20

Composite Behaviour of Cold‐formed Steel ‐ Timber Floors

“…It can also be observed that the experimental flexural stiffness for specimens C-150-A (EIexp = 2823 kN.m 2 ± 4.2%) almost coincides with the analytical flexural stiffness obtained assuming full composite action, indicating that the specimen is nearly fully composite and that a high shear transfer occurs using such connection detail. Table 3 presents predictions of the flexural stiffness of the tested floors derived using existing models in [1], [6] and [9] as well as their deviation from experimental data. For each connection type, the analytical flexural stiffness was determined using results from the average pushout tests (in particular, k0.75).…”

“…Cold-formed steel (CFS) and timber-based flooring systems have become increasingly popular in the construction industry due to their attractive high strength-to-weight ratio, buildability and sustainability [1,2]. While, the composite design of such floors provides an attractive solution for increasing the efficiency of lightweight floors and minimising the use of resources, the beneficial effect of the timber board (often referred to as floor boards or decking) on the floor structural performance is often ignored, leading to a more conservative design.…”

“…While a remarkable number of documents and design guides are available on the performance of hot-rolled steel-concrete, timber-concrete or engineered timber composite floors, which have become relatively common technologies [1], only few research articles can be found on the performance of composite CFS joist-timber board flooring systems [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8]. Overall, the existing research shows that significant improvements in floor flexural performance can be achieved by mobilising the interaction between the timber floor boards and CFS joists.…”

New Steel‐timber Composite Beam, Nordic System

“…These systems have been developed in Italy [3,[5][6][7][8], in Canada [4,[9][10][11][12][13], in the UK [1,14] and in Austria [15]. Similar systems as in [4] have been developed in Australia but using LVL (Laminated Veneer Lumber) instead of CLT (Cross Laminated Timber) [16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24].…”

Experimental Study of Timber–timber Composite Members

“…The structural performance of timber-to-steel composite joints and beams has been comprehensively studied by Hassanieh et al [3]- [5] and Loss and Davison [6] and Loss et al [7], but research on timber-to-timber connections mainly focuses on the behaviour, analysis and modelling of dowel type connectors and the structural performance of lap and/or edge joints [8], [9], with less attention being paid to the structural behaviour of timber-totimber composite connections [10], [11]; in particular to CLT-LVL and CLT-Glulam composite connections for the development of prefabricated timber-timber composite (TTC) floors. Recently, Branco et al [12] investigated the in-plane behaviour of traditional timber floors strengthened with CLT panels using SFS, HBS and VGZ screws installed normal and inclined (at 45°) to the shear plane.…”