Finite element simulations of residual stresses in roller bent wide flange sections

Curved structural wide flange steel sections are frequently used in buildings or bridges. These sections are usually curved at ambient temperatures with a roller bending machine. This process alters the residual stress distribution, which may affect the elasto-plastic buckling behavior of arches. This paper presents a numerical modeling technique to estimate residual stresses in curved wide flange sections manufactured by the pyramid roller bending process. The technique incorporates material non-linearity, geometrical non-linearity and contact modeling. Numerically obtained residual stresses are compared to experimental results and good agreement was found for the top flange. Only moderate agreement was observed for the web but very good coherence was realized for the bottom flange. It is concluded that a finite element analysis can be used to estimate residual stresses in roller bent wide flange sections.