Answer:
With plastic hinges, the nonlinear behavior of steel structures under load can be simulated in RFEM 6 or RSTAB 9. You can model a plastic hinge by arranging a hinge with nonlinear properties at the end of a member. Proceed as follows:
- Select the member or members to which you want to assign the hinge.
- Open the 'Edit Member' dialog by double-clicking on the member or via the member context menu.
- Check the Hinges option in the 'Basic' tab.
- In the 'Hinges' tab, click on the button
for the start or end of the member to define a new hinge type. - In the 'New Member End Hinge' dialog, select one of the four plastic options for the relevant degree of freedom in the Nonlinearity list, such as a plastic hinge according to FEMA 356 or a bilinear hinge according to EN 1998-3.
- In the second tab, set the yield characteristics, acceptance criteria, and yield limits. The parameters are usually preset based on the member properties and standards. Adjust them if necessary to describe the hinge behavior, for example, the bilinear yield curve including the yield and hardening areas.
- Click OK to save the hinge.
- With another OK in the 'Edit Member' dialog, assign the hinge to the member end.