Ultimate Bearing Capacity of Hollow Spherical Joints Welded with Circular Pipes under Eccentric Loads

The hollow spherical joints welded with circular pipes applied to the National Swimming Center of China are subjected to large bending moments, but the influence of bending moments is not considered in the design equations in Technical Specification for Latticed Shells. Based on the von Mises yield criterion, multilinear isotropic hardening rule and associated flow rule, the elasto-plastic finite element model is put forward to analyze the behavior of the joints, and a calculation method for the joints under bending moments or eccentric loads is proposed. It is shown by the analytical results of joint that the stiffening rib can improve the ultimate bearing capacity by 10% for joints under axial tensile load, by 40% for joints under axial compressive load, and by 50% for joints under bending moment. The unified calculation equations for joints with or without stiffening rib are put forward, which can be applied to calculating the ultimate bearing capacity of the hollow spherical joints with circular pipes under eccentric loads.