Structural performance of steel-concrete-steel sandwich composite structures

This paper investigates the structural performance of steel-concrete-steel (SCS) sandwich structures comprising a lightweight concrete core sandwiched in between two steel plates. Different types of mechanical shear connectors such as stud shear connectors and Bi-Steel bar connectors are reviewed and their uses in SCS sandwich construction are discussed. Special J-hook connectors are developed and their uses are not restricted by the concrete core thickness. Direct shear (push-out test) and tension tests have been carried out on J-hook connectors to investigate their performance in transferring shear and tension forces between steel and concrete. The structural performance of SCS sandwich beams and slabs with J-hook connectors subjected to static and dynamic loads is also investigated and test results show that SCS sandwich structures with the J-hook connectors are capable of resisting impact with less degree of damage in comparison with the sandwich structures with overlapping stud shear connectors. The plastic capacity of the sandwich beams and slabs can be predicted with reasonable accuracy using the plastic analysis described in this paper.