Influence of slenderness on axially loaded square tubed steel-reinforced concrete columns

This paper aims to investigate the axial load behavior and stability strength of square tubed steel-reinforced concrete (TSRC) columns. Unlike concrete filled steel tubular (CFST) column, the outer steel tube of a TSRC column is mainly used to provide confinement to the core concrete. Ten specimens were tested under axial compression, and the main test variables included length-to-width ratio (<i>L/B</i>) of the specimens, width-to-thickness ratio (<i>B/t</i>) of the steel tubes, and with or without stud shear connectors on the steel sections. The failure mode, ultimate strength and load-tube stress response of each specimen were summarized and analyzed. The test results indicated that the axial load carried by square tube due to friction and bond of the interface increased with the increase of <i>L/B</i> ratio, while the confinement effect of tube was just the opposite. Parametric studies were performed through ABAQUS based on the test results, and the feasibility of current design codes has also been examined. Finally, a method for calculating the ultimate strength of this composite column was proposed, in which the slenderness effect on the tube confinement was considered.