Load transfer of circular reinforced composite dowel connector: a comparison of existing analytical equations

Abstract The effectiveness of headed studs for shear transfer in the steel‐concrete interface of composite columns is questionable when important load needs to be transferred. Circular reinforced composite dowel (CRCD) connectors are known for their high initial stiffness and significant load‐bearing capacity. This paper presents the different types of CRCD connectors and the available analytical equations to determine their shear resistance, as well as a database of 52 experimental specimens to study their performance. The results show that the equations developed by Wang et al . 2014, He et al . 2016 and Zhao et al . 2016 provided the best performance, with 76% of the predictions falling within the error bounds of +/−15%. Further research is recommended to understand the behaviour of CRCD connectors on H‐shaped steel profiles and to develop analytical equations to calculate their resistance.