PSI - Issue 78

Alessandro Mei et al. / Procedia Structural Integrity 78 (2026) 120–127

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Fig. 4. (A) Instrumentation and LVDT locations. (B) Relative rotations involved in the beam-to-upright connection

The bending moment M has been evaluated as: = ⋅

(1)

where P is the actuator load and a is the distance between the centre of the beam support and the outer edge of the upright (400 mm). It is possible to separate the components contributing to the total deformation into three main parts (Fig. 4B): Φ : deformation contribution of the beam-to-upright connector, Φ : contribution from the rotation of the upright, Φ : contribution from the rotation of the pallet-beam. Considering the LVDTs, the rotation Φ can be calculated as: Φ= 1 − 2 12̅̅̅̅ , (2) where 1 and 2 are the horizontal displacements of LVDTs and 12̅̅̅̅ is their relative distance. The upright contribution can be evaluated as: Φ c = 3 − 5 35̅̅̅̅ , (3) where 3 and 5 are the horizontal displacements of LVDTs and 35̅̅̅̅ is their relative distance. 3. Monotonic tests The resultant moment-rotation curves are reported in Fig. 5 together with limits recommended by EN1993-1-8 for hinged and rigid joints as dashed and solid black lines, respectively; hence, the tested joints can be considered semi rigid joints. Results have been nondimensionalized, and the moment has been normalized to the resisting elastic moment of the beam in accordance with EN1993-1-3 (2005). To better analyze the increase in terms of stiffness and ultimate moment of the connection, Fig. 6 presents bar charts showing the EN 15512 stiffness normalized to the unreinforced configuration, as well as the moment capacity, also normalized to the unreinforced connection.