Global sensitivity analysis of steel beam resistance using finite element simulations.

The analysis of the influence of random initial imperfections on the static resistance of a hot-rolled steel beam with IPE cross-section is presented in the article. The resistance of the investigated IPE beam is exposed to the effects of lateral-torsional buckling resulting from the bending moment acting about its major principal axis. The resistance of the hot-rolled steel beam is studied using global sensitivity analysis. Initial geometrical and material imperfections are considered as random variables in the determination of the variability of the resistance. The SHELL finite elements and geometrical and material non-linear computational methods of the ANSYS software are used for the evaluation of the resistance. Sensitivity analysis is used to examine the influence of initial imperfections and residual stresses on the resistance (model output). The variance of the model output is evaluated using the Latin Hypercube Sampling method. The sensitivity order of the imperfections based on their influence on the resistance is then determined in the presented case study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]