Free vibration characteristics of thin walled panels attached to Zee-stiffeners

Very limited data is available in the published literature to illustrate the dynamic response of panels attached to Zee-stiffeners. This type of steel construction is extensively used in commercial and industrial facilities. Unfortunately, little design guidance is available for the steel practitioners to optimize and control their dynamic response. The paper shed the light on the dynamic characteristics of panels with Zee-stiffeners. A numerical procedure is first presented for the analysis of the structure. The sensitivity the natural frequency to the stiffener sizes and configurations is illustrated. It is shown that the rate of increase in natural frequency (λ) is largely influenced by the stiffening configuration. A slow increase, however, is observed in the natural frequency when using the Zee profile, compared to Tee or rectangular stiffening. It is also shown that the rate of change in maximum natural frequency (λmax) decreases as the number of transverse stiffeners increases. Up to 60% increase can be achieved by using appropriate number of longitudinal and transverse stiffeners. It is shown that the dynamic response of the structure can be effectively controlled by adjusting the stiffeners configuration. The paper provides useful tools that can be utilized by steel designers to provide cost-effective stiffened panels that can be used for varieties of applications.