Files
Abstract
The industry standard for designing the moment-resisting connection of a cold-formed knee-wall is to provide a light gauge clip angle at the location of the connection. Because of the cantilevering nature of a knee-wall, clip angles provide additional rotational stiffness to effectively resist the moment that accumulates at the base. The purpose of this research initiative was to qualitatively and quantitatively measure the effects of a laterally loaded cold-formed knee-wall without the use of a light gauge clip angle. The experimental program included 18 full-scale tests. The three stud gauges, 18-, 16-, and 14-gauge, were tested under two base connection configurations: a structural steel channel and metal deck. Using the data obtained from the testing, the moment capacity of the unclipped knee-wall connection was calculated and compared to the published values for connections with a light gauge clip. Screw capacity tests were conducted to show why different connection limit states controlled for certain knee-wall tests. The testing showed that the Hillman machine screws can achieve a higher tensile rupture capacity than the generic machine screws, causing the stud-to-track connection to fail first by tear out. The tests performed on the metal deck base material did not produce as consistent results as the steel channel tests because of the constructability base connections. The tests attaching to the structural steel channel base material resulted in higher bending capacity because the rupture capacity of the machine screws is greater than the pullout capacity of the self-drilling screws.