Experimental and Theoretical Studies on Shear Performance of Corrugated Steel–Concrete Composite Arches Considering the Shear–Compression Ratio

Corrugated steel–concrete (CSC) composite arches, an innovative structural system with simplified construction and enhanced stiffness, are widely used in bridge and tunnel modular engineering. However, insufficient research on their shear performance limits prefabricated applications. Similarly to beams, their shear behavior is significantly affected by loading location. Specifically, as a parameter significantly affected by the loading location, the shear–compression ratio exerts a notable influence on the shear bearing capacity of CSC arches by altering the development pattern of cracks and the inclination angle of shear cracks. To investigate the influence mechanism of the loading location, this study is the first to systematically link shear–compression ratio variation to load location in CSC arches. In this context, shear performance tests were conducted on two CSC specimens with different loading locations (mid-span and quarter-point) to investigate the influence of loading locations on the shear behavior of CSC arches. To further investigate the impact of key parameters on the shear bearing capacity of CSC arches, a validated finite element model was employed to support the parametric analysis. The parameters involved include the span-to-rise ratio, shear connector spacing, strength and thickness of corrugated steel, as well as strength and thickness of concrete. Theoretical calculations for internal forces under varying rise-to-span ratios and loading methods are conducted, proposing an analytical solution method. Validation using 2 experiments and 96 finite element results show that a modified method is applicable, with a mean value of 1.066, corresponding to a standard deviation of 0.071, and all relative errors within 15%. By introducing the shear–compression ratio, this study extends existing methods to make them applicable under single-point loading, thereby enabling their use for guiding engineering. Similarly, the internal force analysis method proposed herein can serve as a theoretical foundation, providing a valuable reference for future research on shear capacity calculation methods for CSC arches with varying cross-sectional configurations and those where bending moments play a more significant role.