| This thesis presents new analytical solutions pertaining to the calculation of the lateral-torsional buckling loads of simply supported and cantilevered fiber-reinforced polymeric I-beams subjected to various loading conditions. The solutions are based upon force-deformation constitutive equations for thin composite plates in which the strain component in the contour direction is not neglected. Numerical results generated from the present work are shown to predict very well those determined experimentally by various investigators. Finally, a recommended design method is presented for estimating the lateral-torsional buckling loads where both the moment gradient and the load position with respect to the centroid of a cross section are accounted for. |
