An experimental study on the structural behaviour of laminated glass members under combined axial compression and in-plane bending

Laminated glass (LG) is increasingly being used as load carrying components in modern buildings thanks to its relatively good safety performance and aesthetic benefits. This paper presents an experimental study into the applicational scenario of structural LG beam-columns subjected to combined axial compression and in-plane bending, such as LG fins supporting glass facade. The investigated LG specimens consisted of annealed float glass plies bonded together by SentryGlas interlayer. A total of 17 tests were carried out, from which the structural behaviour in terms of load carrying capacity, failure mode, post-breakage strength and deformability of the LG beam-columns were investigated in detail. Through the tests, the failure modes and corresponding mechanisms were identified; the influence of axial compression, laminate number and slenderness ratio on the structural behaviour were assessed; and the major stress components resulting in fracture of glass were analyzed. Based on the test and analytical results, a design N–M interaction domain was proposed to facilitate strength checking of LG beam-columns, and recommendations were made to improve the post-breakage performance. The results obtained are expected to provide supplementary information that is currently lacking in existing literature.