Bearing strength of slabs on grade supporting a cold-formed steel wall in low-rise building

The main objective of this research project was to develop a better understanding of the bearing strength of slabs on grade supporting load-bearing walls made of cold-formed steel studs and tracks used in residential and commercial multistory constructions. A total of 60 specimens were manufactured with four different configurations of stud-track assembly: single stud, single-stud wall, back-to-back, and back-to-back wall. The test results showed that the bearing strength was affected by the configurations of the stud-track assembly, and that the bearing strength gradually increased as the stud-track assembly was located at the inner side from the edge of the slab due to the confinement effect of the surrounding concrete. An analytical study using a finite-element model was performed to develop the analytical equations used to predict the bearing area of the stud-track assembly. Design guidelines were proposed based on the test results and the analytical study, which included the equations to compute the design bearing capacity of slabs on grade at varying distances from the edge of the slab to the stud-track assembly.