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What is an H-Beam?
H-beams are shaped like an H. H-beam is a structural beam made of rolled steel. It is incredibly strong. It gets its name because it looks like a capital H over its cross section.
What is an I-Beam?
An l -beam is shaped like an I. The I beam consists of two horizontal planes, known as flanges, connected by one vertical component, or the web. I-beam has tapered edges and it gets its name from the fact that it looks like a capital I when you see it from its cross section. With an I-beam, the height of the cross section is higher than the width of its flange.
Difference Between I-Beams and H-Beams
| I-Beams | H-Beams |
| I-Beams are steel beams fabricated by milling or rolling steel in an I-shape. It is made of a single piece of metal or aluminum throughout the unit. | H-Beams are steel beams made of rolled steel in the shape of the alphabet "H." They are fabricated as built-up units. The flanges are welded to the web to form the H-section. H-beams are also called wide flange beams. |
| The web of I-beams is thinner than H-beams. | H-beams have greater web thickness compared to I-beams. This increased thickness gives strength to H-beams. |
| The flanges of I-beams are tapered with an inclination of 1:10 for better load-bearing capacity. Their thickness is less than that of H-beam flanges. | The flanges of H-beams have equal thickness and are parallel to each other. They are longer, wider, and heavier than I-beams. |
| The cross-section of I-beams is typically deeper in height than its width, which gives them resistance against local buckling. | The cross-section of H-beams is more optimized than I-beams, giving it a reasonable strength-to-weight ratio, i.e., more strength per unit area. They possess a greater surface area on the cross-section, hence high strength. |
| The moment of inertia of I-beams is less than H-beams, making them less efficient in resisting bending. | The wider flanges of H-beams gain a greater moment of inertia and high lateral stiffness. Hence, they have better bending resistance than I-beams. |
| I-beams are used for spans from 33 to 100 feet. | H-beams are used for spans of up to 330 feet that can be built up to any size and height. |
| I-beams are lightweight compared to H-beams. | H-beams are heavier than I-beams. |
| I-beams withstand direct and tensile loads. But they cannot withstand twisting loads due to their smaller cross-sections. | H-beam section can withstand direct loads and tensile loads. Its broad cross-section allows it to withstand twisting loads. |
| I-beams are suitable for making support frames and columns for elevators, trailers, trolley ways, hoists, structural steel buildings, and bridges. | H-beams are used as load-bearing columns for commercial buildings, for platforms, bridges, etc. Wide flange beams are commonly used for residential projects. |
H-beams, compared to I-beams, provide better mechanical properties and are hence considered an economical option for construction. Generally, I-beams are used as beams, and H-beams are used as load-bearing columns.
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