High strength steel for constructions

De cursus High strength steel for constructions gaat in op de resultaten van onderzoek dat de laatste jaren is uitgevoerd naar hoge sterkte staal (HSS) en de toepassing daarvan. 

De cursus wordt in het Engels gegeven; de toelichting hieronder is daarom in het Engels.

The interest in using higher strength steels is constantly increasing. Hot rolled plates and H-sections are today available in the steel grades S420 and S460 as thermo-mechanically (TM) rolled. Plates of quenched and tempered (QT) steel are available in grades even higher than S700, which is the highest steel grade in EN1993 standards. The growing interest in HSS is based on possible economic benefits and reduced environmental footprint. These benefits are achieved by reduced thickness of the cross-section, leading to lower transport and execution costs. TM-steels and QT-steels with low alloy contents are easy to weld, even in steel grades higher than S700, which significantly increases the competiveness of HSS.

Aim and subjects of the course

The aim of the course is to learn to deal with higher strength steels, tackling the main aspects of production and fabrication processes, design and execution.

The state of art knowledge in research and design practices for a variety of constructions, where specific requirements of lighter and slender structures are imposed, will be presented.

Newer production processes, such as thermo-mechanical rolling with accelerated cooling process, lead to a novel type of sustainable ultra-high strength steel UHSS (steel grade higher than S700) with ferritic bainitic microstructure. Lower production costs provide new commercial opportunities.

The leaner structures and therefore higher elastic stresses necessarily lead to changes in design concepts compared to the same structures in conventional steels. Challenging tasks related to deflection requirements, local and global buckling, and connections will be addressed in the course.

The course also discusses the application of European standards for the design and testing of steel structures. Welding of high strength steel generally requires more attention, because of the reduced toughness of the weld metal and the adjacent base material. Such aspects will be discussed from material and structural point of view.

Sustainability issues will be addressed from the economic and environment perspective, presenting results of case studies where comparison between the mild steel and higher strength steels is made. For the sake of inspiration, examples of using hybrid girders combined with the concrete deck in carpark applications and trusses for large span structures will be shown.

Finally, experience of using of higher strength steels in the Netherlands where S460 has recently been used for high rise buildings and in Scandinavia where steel with yield strength of 900MPa for special structural components was used will be presented.

The course will be provided by researchers, experienced in projects focusing on innovative application of higher strength steels, and by practitioners who have already used HSS in daily practice.

Deal with higher strength steels

• The knowledge of the material properties and welding technologies of high-strength steels will be gained focusing on practical examples.
• Benefits of high strength steels in structural applications, based on recently finished research and engineering projects, will be presented.
• You will learn the main aspects of the design and construction of higher-strength steels in buildings, bridges and towers for wind turbines.
• You will receive the latest information from welded and bolted connections based on research results and existing design standards.

Intended for

• Designers and fabricators - of steel structures in various applications in buildings, bridges, cranes, supporting structures for wind energy technologies and offshore structures.
• Project managers and consultants from engineering companies.
• Teachers at MBO, HBO and universities.