Project Objective:

• Development of Design guidelines for considering the bracing effect of sheathing in the design of cold-formed steel (CFS) structural members

• Determining the minimum sheathing requirements to inhibit the lateral torsional buckling (LTB) of the hat-shaped cold-formed steel  member subjected to out-of-plane loading

• Formulation of expression for determining the stiffness of the sheathing board with respect to the geometric properties of the CFS stud and failure modes 

Existing Design Specifications:

• Section C2.2 of AISI (American Iron and Steel Institute) (2022). “North American Cold-Formed Steel Specification for the Design of Cold-Formed Steel Structural Members.” AISI-S100-20, DC.

• Section C2.3 of AISI (American Iron and Steel Institute) (2022). “North American Cold-Formed Steel Specification for the Design of Cold-Formed Steel Structural Members.” AISI-S100-20, DC.

• Section I6.1 of AISI (American Iron and Steel Institute) (2022). “North American Cold-Formed Steel Specification for the Design of Cold-Formed Steel Structural Members.” AISI-S100-20, DC.

• Section B4 of AISI (American Iron and Steel Institute) (2012). "North American standard for cold-formed steel framing-floor and roof system design." AISI-S210-07; 2012.

• Section E5 of AISI (American Iron and Steel Institute) (2015). "North American standard for cold-formed steel framing-floor and roof system design." : 2015 edition with Supplement 1. AISI-S400-15 w/S1-16. 

• AISI (American Iron and Steel Institute) (2017). Test Standard for Determining the Fastener-Sheathing Rotational Stiffness of Sheathed Cold-Formed Steel Assemblies, S918-17.

• AISI, (American Iron and Steel Institute). (2012) North American Standard for Cold-Formed Steel Framing – Wall Stud Design, 2012. S211-07 Edition with Supplement 1 (Reaffirmed 2012).

• AISI, (American Iron and Steel Institute). Test Standard for Determining the Rotational-Lateral Stiffness of Beam-To-Panel Assemblies, 2017, pp. S901-S917.

• AISI. (American Iron and Steel Institute) (2013). “Sheathing Braced Design of Wall Studs.” RP13-1. 

Parameters considered:

• Various slenderness of the cold-formed steel wall studs

• Various shapes of CFS studs - C section, Z section and Hat Section

• Different sheathing types (Gypsum Board | Plywood | Particle Cement Board | Fiber Cement Board | Light gauge steel sheeting)

Nature of the work:

Full-scale experiments | Numerical (Finite element analysis) | Development of New Experimental test setup to investigate the failure modes of the sheathing fastener connections | Development of the mathematical expression for design

Total number of Full-Scale Experiments Carried out:  176

Total number of experiments carried out on sheathing fastener connections: 108

International Journal Publications:

17. Direct Stiffness-Strength Method: An Alternative Design Approach to AISI for Sheathed Cold-Formed Steel Z‑Section Structural Members subjected to bending.

Sivaganesh Selvaraj and Madhavan, M. (2023). Journal of Structural Engineering (ASCE), In Press. DOI: 10.1061/JSENDH/STENG-12340 

16. Application of Direct Stiffness-Strength Method for Design of Gypsum and Plywood Sheathed CFS Wall Panels Subjected to Bending.

Sivaganesh Selvaraj, and Madhavan, M. (2022). Thin-Walled Structures, 180, 109874. Link

15. Sheathing-Fastener Connection Strength-Based Design Method for Sheathed CFS Point-symmetric Wall Frame Studs. 

Sivaganesh Selvaraj, Madhavan, M. and Lau. H.H. (2021). Structures. 33, 1473-1494. Link 

14. Direct Stiffness-Strength Method Design for Sheathed Cold-formed Steel Structural Members - Recommendations for the AISI S100. 

Sivaganesh Selvaraj and Madhavan, M. (2021). Thin-Walled Structures. Link

13. Criteria for Selection of Sheathing Boards in Cold-formed Steel Wall panels subjected to Bending: Construction Applications and Performance-based evaluation.

Sivaganesh Selvaraj and Madhavan, M. (2021). Practice Periodical on Structural Design and Construction (ASCE), 26(1) 04020044. Link

12. Recommendations for Design of Sheathing Bracing Systems for Slender CFS Structural Members. 

Sivaganesh Selvaraj and Madhavan, M. (2020). Journal of Constructional Steel Research, 170, 106116. Link

11. Influence of sheathing‑fastener connection stiffness on the Design Strength of Cold‑formed Steel Wall Panels.

Sivaganesh Selvaraj and Madhavan, M. (2020). Journal of Structural Engineering (ASCE), 146(10), 04020202. Link

10. Structural Behaviour and Design of Plywood Sheathed Cold-Formed Steel Wall Systems subjected to out-of-plane loading.

Sivaganesh Selvaraj and Madhavan, M. (2020). Journal of Constructional Steel Research, 166, 105888. Link

9. Flexural Behaviour and Design of CFS Wall Panels Sheathed with Particle Cement Board.

Sivaganesh Selvaraj and Madhavan, M. (2019). Journal of Constructional Steel Research, 162, 105723. Link

8. Behaviour of Gypsum Sheathed Point symmetric Cold formed Steel members: Assessment of AISI design method. 

Sivaganesh Selvaraj and Madhavan, M. (2019). Structures, 22, 76-97. Link

7. Sheathing Braced Design of Cold-formed Steel Structural Members Subjected to Torsional Buckling. 

Sivaganesh Selvaraj and Madhavan, M., (2019). Structures, 20, 489-509, Elsevier. Link

6. Investigation on sheathing-fastener connection failures in cold-formed steel wall panels.

Sivaganesh Selvaraj and Madhavan, M., (2019). Structures, 20, 176-188. Elsevier. Link

5. Bracing effect of sheathing in point-symmetric cold-formed steel flexural members. 

Sivaganesh Selvaraj and Madhavan, M., (2019). Journal of Constructional Steel Research, 157, 450-462. Link

4. Sheathing Bracing Requirements for Cold-formed Steel Wall Panels: Experimental Investigation. 

Sivaganesh Selvaraj and Madhavan, M., (2019). Structures, 19, 258-276. Elsevier. Link

3. Investigation on sheathing effect and failure modes of gypsum sheathed cold-formed steel wall panels subjected to bending.

Sivaganesh Selvaraj and Madhavan, M., (2019). Structures, 17, 87-101. Elsevier. Link

2. Improvements in AISI Design Methods for Gypsum-Sheathed Cold-Formed Steel Wall Panels Subjected to Bending. 

Sivaganesh Selvaraj and Madhavan, M., (2018). Journal of Structural Engineering (ASCE), 145(2), 04018243. Link

1. Studies on cold-formed steel stud panels with gypsum sheathing subjected to out-of-plane bending. 

Sivaganesh Selvaraj and Madhavan, M., (2018). Journal of Structural Engineering (ASCE), 144(9), 04018136. Link