An empirical formulation for predicting the ultimate compressive strength of stiffened panels

The aim of the present study is to empirically derive a simple and reasonably accurate expression for predicting the ultimate strength of longitudinally stiffened panels under uniaxial compression for use in the context of parametric structural reliability studies of ship hull girder global behavior. Existing test data on the ultimate compressive strength for stiffened panels were used as the starting point for the formulation A study of the collected data indicated that the data needed supplementation in order for the derived formula to be applicable to a desired wide range of panel dimensions. Hence a series of 12 longitudinally stiffened plates having three different plate slenderness values were in the present study tested up to the collapse state under uniaxial compression. On the basis of the previously collected and newly developed test data, an useful empirical expression for predicting the ultimate compressive strength of stiffened panels, expressed in terms of the plate slenderness ratio and the column (stiffener) slenderness ratio, was derived, The formula implicitly includes the influence of initial imperfections at a moderately large level. All test data (previous and new) are documented.