Dimple Ji is a Master. Sc. candidate at the University of Alberta under the supervision of Professor Robert Driver, a Fellowship recipient himself in 1993.
Dimple Ji’s research examines lateral-torsional buckling capacity of welded wide flange girders through large-scale physical testing. The main objective of the research is to evaluate and improve the existing design standards. While the relative constancy of the current S16 equation may speak to its satisfactory performance over time, it also indicates a need to reassess the basis on which the equation was developed and seek room for improvement. The use of a unified equation has been questioned in existing literature and experimental testing may be the missing component to accept the need for its redevelopment.
Upon completion, the research will provide a basis of comparison to the existing database of tests, give indication of the accurateness of the existing numerical models for predicting lateral torsional buckling capacity in welded sections as well as provide an improved standard that gives practicing engineers a better toolset to design.
