Flexural behaviour and design of extruded aluminium claddings

Extruded aluminium panels are commonly used in building construction but their structural performance under strong winds has yet to be investigated. In the Southeast and Far north of Queensland, strong winds can cause potential damage to these cladding panels. Hence, a research project has been established at Griffith University to examine the response of extruded aluminium panels subjected to static wind loading. The current paper aims to investigate the flexural capacity and serviceability of extruded aluminium panels subjected to positive and negative wind loadings. The influence of the interlocking of panels on the ultimate capacity and serviceability is also investigated. Further, to reduce the time and the cost involved in practical testing, a numerical model is proposed that can precisely predict the performance of extruded panels under static wind loading. A good agreement was found between the experimental and numerical results confirming the robustness of the proposed model. A sensitivity analysis was conducted to find the influence of various structural-related parameters on the flexural capacity and serviceability of these panels. Augmenting the thickness of the panels was observed to enhance both the ultimate capacity and serviceability, while an increase in width was found to have negative effects. In addition to this, the applicability of the existing design guidelines was investigated to assess whether they can be used to predict the ultimate capacity and serviceability of extruded aluminium panels. A strong concurrence was found between BS 5427–1:1996 predictions and experimental results, suggesting its suitability for determining the serviceability of extruded aluminium cladding panels exposed to wind loading. Furthermore, the study also recommended adopting the AISI's design methodology to forecast the ultimate capacity of extruded aluminium cladding panels. •Experimental and numerical studies were conducted to investigate the flexural strength and serviceability of extruded aluminium cladding panels.•Narrower extruded aluminium panels were found to be more efficient as building facades than wider panels.•The design rules given by AISI are recommended to conservatively predict the ultimate capacities of extruded aluminium panels.•The serviceability limit of S/90 given by BS 5427–1:1996 is recommended to accurately predict the serviceability loads.