Behaviour and design of composite columns incorporating compact high-strength steel plates

© 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Concrete filled steel tubular columns (CFSTCs) are finding increasing use in modern construction practice throughout the world. The efficiency of CFSTCs can be further improved if high-strength materials are used. High-strength steel provides attractive alternatives to normal-strength steel for multi-storey and high-rise construction applications. This paper presents an extensive experimental investigation into the axial load behaviour of square composite columns incorporating compact high-strength steel plates. The test parameters include the concrete strength (f′c = 21-55 N/mm2), depth-to-thickness ratios in the range of 16-40, as well as length-todepth ratios in the range of 2.60-2.85. Furthermore, a simplified confining pressure versus depth-to-thickness ratio model, appropriate confined concrete constitutive models, and an accurate finite element model which incorporates the effects of initial local imperfections and residual stresses has been developed using the commercial programABAQUS. The predictions of the behaviour, ultimate strengths, and failure modes are comparedwith the experimental results to verify the accuracy of the models developed. Additionally, comparisonswith the prediction of axial load capacity by using the Australian Standards, Eurocode 4, and American Institute of Steel Construction code provisions for composite columns are also carried out.