Progressive Collapse Simulation of a Spatial Steel Frame

The progressive collapse of building structures subjected to abnormal loadings has been a serious threat to the public safety. To study progressive collapse potential of structure and redistribution mechanism of the internal force, this paper uses the alternate path method recommended by Unified Facilities Criteria to simulate the progressive collapse of a spatial steel frame. Dynamic nonlinear analysis is conducted by explicit finite element software LS-DYNA, and the result of simulation is discussed. The result shows that: the steel frame designed according to the code has good resistance performance to progressive collapse in the case of a single vertical component failure; the corner column should be considered as the key element in the progressive collapse assessment.