Advanced Structural Design - Lecture Note 03

6102BEUG- Lecture Note:
03
12/15/15
Design of Composite
Columns
Introduction
Steel-concrete composite columns are compression members in the
form of concrete encased H-sections or concrete-filled hollow sections.
Typical cross sections of some type of composite columns are shown
below.
The early development of composite columns was based on the need
to provide effective fire protection by encasing steel stanchions in
concrete. Increase in strength and stiffness due to concrete
encasement were ignored, although it was recognized that the
buckling resistances of encased columns were increased.
The advantages of composite columns are:
increased resistance for a given member size, leading to economy
in the use of the steel sections.
increased stiffness, leading to reduced slenderness and increased
buckling resistance.
improved connection behaviour with attachments made via the
steel sections
good fire resistance
excellent corrosion protection of encased columns
Prepared by: Eng. Chamil Duminda
Mahagamage
International
College of Business
and resistance
enhanced
seismic
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Prepared by: Eng. Chamil Duminda

Mahagamage

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Design of composite columns
Clause 6.7 of EC4-1-1 presents the design of composite columns and

composite compression members with concrete fully and partially
encased H-sections, and concrete filled rectangular and circular hollow
sections. It is applicable to columns and compression members with
steel grades S235 to S460 and normal weight concrete of strength
classes C20/25 to C50/60.
In general, a composite column should be checked at the ultimate limit
state for:
geometric limits of various elements of the steel sections against
local buckling under compression.
Resistances of cross-sections and members to internal forces and
moments.
buckling resistance of the members, depending of their effective
slenderness.
local resistances to interfacial shear forces between the steel
sections and the concrete.
local resistances of the cross sections
atby:
load
introduction
points.
Prepared
Eng. Chamil
Duminda Mahagamage

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Design methods
Two methods of design for isolated composite columns in braced or
non-sway frames are given in EC4-1-1, Clause 6.7.
- general design method for composite columns applicable to both
prismatic and non-prismatic members with either symmetrical or nonsymmetrical cross-sections.
- simplified design method specifically developed for prismatic
composite columns with doubly symmetrical cross-sections.
Note-: when the limits of applicability of simplified method are not
satisfied, the general design method should be used.
Fire resistance
In general, composite columns possess much higher fire resistances
than the parent steel columns. Composite columns are usually
designed in the normal (cool) state and then checked under fire
conditions.
Design guidance on the fire resistances of composite columns may be
found in EC4-1-2.
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Simplified Design method

The simplified method has been developed specifically for prismatic
composite columns with doubly symmetrical cross-sections with hot
rolled, cold formed or welded steel sections.
To prevent local buckling, the width to thickness ratio of various
elements in the steel sections in compression must satisfy the
following limits as given in Table 6.3 of EC4-1-1.
For fully encased sections, local buckling in the steel sections is not
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of hence,
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possible,
and
verification
for
local
buckling is not B.Sc.Eng
necessary.
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Compression resistance of cross-sections

The plastic resistance of a composite cross-section in compression
represents the maximum load that can be applied to a short column
which does not exhibit member buckling. It should be noted that, in
concrete-filled hollow sections, a higher compression resistance is
achieved in the concrete owing to the confinement provided by the
hollow section. Moreover,
further
strength
enhancement
is
achieved
in concrete-filled circular hollow sections owing to the
development of circumferential action in the circular hollow section.
Concrete encased H-sections and concrete-filled rectangular
hollow sections
The plastic resistance of a concrete-encased H-section or a concretefilled rectangular or square hollow section in compression is given by
the sum of the resistances of the components in compression, defined
in EC4-1-1, Clause 6.7.3.2, as follows:

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Below figure shows the idealised stress distribution which the above
equation is based. An important design parameter is the steel
contribution ratio, which is defined as follows. It is important to note
that should lie within 0.2 and 0.9.
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Concrete-filled circular hollow sections
For composite columns with concrete-filled circular hollow sections,

the increased compression resistance of the concrete due to the
confinement
provided
by the circular hollow section should be
included. It should be noted that these enhancement effects depend
on the slenderness of the columns, and they are only significant in
stocky columns. In addition, the eccentricity, e, of the applied load
should not exceed 0.1d where d is the outer dimension of the circular
hollow section.
The plastic resistance of concrete-filled circular hollow sections in
International
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and Clause 6.7.3.2(6) is given by:
compression
toBusiness
EC4-1-1
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Bending resistances of cross-sections

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Shear resistance of cross-sections
In general, the applied shear force, VEd, may be conservatively

assumed to be resisted entirely by the steel section. No reduction to
the resistances of the cross section in compression and in bending are
needed when VEd is smaller than half of the shear resistance of the
steel section, i.e. 0.5Va,Rd
However, when VEd > 0.5Va,Rd, the resistances of the cross-section in
compression and in bending should be evaluated according to a
reduced design strength (1 - ) fyd in the shear area, Av of the steel
section in accordance with Clause 6.2.2.4(2), and is given by:

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Resistances of cross-sections in combined compression and

bending
The resistance of composite cross-sections to combined compression,

N, and uniaxial bending, M, and the corresponding non-linear N-M
interaction curve are evaluated according to rectangular stress
blocks in various components of the cross-sections.
It should be noted that in a typical N-M interaction curve of a steel
section, its moment resistance undergoes an almost linear reduction
with increasing axial load, as shown in Figure 23.4( a). However, as
shown in Figure 23.4(b), a composite
cross section may exhibit
significant increases in its moment resistance in the presence of axial
load. This is because,
under
some favourable
conditions,
the
compressive axial load will prevent concrete cracking, and enable
the composite cross-section to be more effective in resisting
moments.
Such a non-linear N-M interaction curve for a composite cross-section
may be readily simplified into a multi-linear interaction curve with
3 to 5 key points, as shown in Figure 23.5.
The coordinates of these key points of the multi-linear interaction
Prepared
by: Eng.
Chamil
Duminda Mahagamage
curve are determined from the internal
forces
and
moments,
based
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on the rectangular
stress blocks of the various elements
of
the
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Point A defines the plastic compression

section:NA =Npl
resistance
of the cross-
Point B corresponds to the plastic bending resistance of the crosssection: MB=Mpl,Rd
At Point C, the plastic resistances

of the cross-section
in
compression and in bending are given respectively as follows:
Nc = Npm,Rd(or Nc,Rd ) = Acfcd
Mc
= Mpl,Rd
The expressions may be obtained by combining the stress distributions

of the cross section at Points B and C. The compression area of the
concrete at Point B is equal to the tension area of the concrete at Point
C. The moment resistance at Point C is equal to that at Point B since the
stress resultants from the additionally compressed parts nullify each
other in the central region of the cross-section. It may be shown that the
additionally compressed regions create an internal axial force which is
equal to the plastic resistance of the concrete in compression, N pl,Rd or
Nc,Rd.
At Point D, the plastic
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neutral axis

B.Sc.Eng (Hons),axis
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coincides with the centroidal
of
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In general, Point D is less important than Point C in design. Point E

is mid-way between Points A and C. It is often required for highly
non-linear interaction curves, but is generally not needed for encased
H-sections subject to moments about the major axis.
It is important to note that the positions of the neutral axes for Points
B and C, hn can be determined from the difference in stresses at Points B
and C. The resulting axial forces, which are dependent on the position of
the neutral axis of the cross-section, hn, can be easily determined, as
shown in Figure 23.7. The sum of these forces is equal to Npm,Rd. This
calculation enables the equation defining hn to be determined, which is
different for various types of sections.

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Buckling resistance of columns
Composite columns may fail in buckling due to the second-order or

'P-' effects, and it is possible to evaluate their member resistances
through the conventional use of buckling curves. In this approach, the
conventional
column buckling concept as given in BS EC3-1-1 is
adopted, and the member resistance of a composite column depends
on its relative slenderness and use of an appropriate column buckling
curve. Hence, the buckling resistance of the composite column is
Critical
Buckling
determined
as a load
reduction to the plastic resistance of the composite
It
is importantaccording
to evaluate
the
elastic critical buckling load, Ncr , of the
cross-section,
to its
slenderness.
composite column which is defined in EC4-1-1, Clause 6.7.3.3(3), as
follows:

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In general, the buckling length, l of an isolated non-sway composite

column may conservatively be taken as its system length, L.
Alternatively, the buckling length may be determined using Annex E of
EC3-1-1.
Moreover, for slender composite columns under long-term loading,
creep and shrinkage of concrete may cause a reduction in the effective
flexural stiffness of the composite
columns, thereby reducing its
buckling resistance. In such cases, Ecm should be reduced by multiplying
by the following factor:
where i is the creep coefficient , NEd is the total design compression

force, and NG,Ed is the part of NEd that is permanent. As a simple rule,
the long-term effects should be considered in a composite column if its
buckling length-to-depth ratio exceeds 15.
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Resistance of members in combined compression and bending

Under combined compression and bending, slender composite columns
may fail primarily in lateral buckling under the second order, or 'P-'
effects. Hence, it is necessary to evaluate the internal forces and
moments of slender columns accurately.
Direct evaluation approach

According to EC4-1-1Clause 6.7.3.5, structural adequacy of a slender
composite column to combined compression and bending may be
verified using second-order analysis with member imperfections. This
approach may be referred to as the Direct Evaluation Approach in which
structural adequacy of a composite column is assessed by direct
comparison of its cross-section resistances against the applied forces and
moments at large deformations. In this method, an initial geometrical
imperfection, io, is specified for the column according to Table 6.5 of
EC4-1-1, or to Table 23.2 for direct evaluation of the second-order
moment, M under the applied load, NEd, i.e. Mi = Ned io, as shown in
Figure 23.9. This moment Mi is combined with the applied moment
MEd
for direct comparison against the bending resistance of the
composite cross-section in the presence of the applied load, M pl,N,Rd, by
using the N-M interaction curve of the composite
cross-section.
Prepared by: Eng.
Chamil Duminda Mahagamage
22
B.Sc.Engstructural
(Hons), C Eng,
In general, for typical structural forms with well established
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Depending on the slenderness of the column, amplification factors, k,

may be applied to these 'first-order' forces and moments to account for
any second-order effect as necessary.
However, for structures with irregular member configurations and very
slender columns and beams, accurate internal forces and moments
should be obtained through the use of appropriate
advanced
structural analysis software including both geometrical and material
non-linearities. In such cases, the important considerations are the initial
geometrical and mechanical imperfections of the members, interfacial
shear behaviour between steel sections and concrete, crushing and
cracking of concrete, flexural rigidities of the beam-column joints and
column splices, and the behaviour of the concrete under long term
loads.

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Check for structural adequacy

As shown in Figure 23.11, EC4-1-1, Clause 6.7.3.6 considers that the
design is adequate when the following condition is satisfied:

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Resistances of members in combined compression and bi-axial

bending
For the design of a composite column under combined compression and biaxial bending, the value of d should be calculated separately for each
axis. Imperfections should be considered only in the plane in which failure
is expected to occur. If it is not evident which plane is the more critical,
checks should be made for both planes.
After the evaluation of the moment resistance ratios dy and dz for
both axes, the interaction of the moments should also be checked
according to Clause 6.7.3.7(2) at various positions along the member
length against the resistance of the cross section in bending in the
presence of axial load, as follows:

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Advanced Structural Design - Lecture Note 03

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6102BEUG- Lecture Note:

B.Sc.Eng (Hons), C Eng,

6102BEUG- Lecture Note:

International College of Business and

Prepared by: Eng. Chamil Duminda

6102BEUG- Lecture Note:

Design of composite columns

Clause 6.7 of EC4-1-1 presents the design of composite columns and

International College of Business and

B.Sc.Eng (Hons), C Eng,

6102BEUG- Lecture Note:

Prepared by: Eng. Chamil Duminda Mahagamage

6102BEUG- Lecture Note:

Simplified Design method

6102BEUG- Lecture Note:

Compression resistance of cross-sections

International College of Business and

Prepared by: Eng. Chamil Duminda Mahagamage

6102BEUG- Lecture Note:

Prepared by: Eng. Chamil Duminda Mahagamage

6102BEUG- Lecture Note:

Concrete-filled circular hollow sections

For composite columns with concrete-filled circular hollow sections,

6102BEUG- Lecture Note:

International College of Business and

Prepared by: Eng. Chamil Duminda Mahagamage

6102BEUG- Lecture Note:

Bending resistances of cross-sections

International College of Business and

Prepared by: Eng. Chamil Duminda Mahagamage

6102BEUG- Lecture Note:

Shear resistance of cross-sections

In general, the applied shear force, VEd, may be conservatively

International College of Business and

Prepared by: Eng. Chamil Duminda Mahagamage

6102BEUG- Lecture Note:

Resistances of cross-sections in combined compression and

The resistance of composite cross-sections to combined compression,

6102BEUG- Lecture Note:

International College of Business and

Prepared by: Eng. Chamil Duminda Mahagamage

6102BEUG- Lecture Note:

International College of Business and

Prepared by: Eng. Chamil Duminda Mahagamage

6102BEUG- Lecture Note:

Point A defines the plastic compression

Point B corresponds to the plastic bending resistance of the crosssection: MB=Mpl,Rd

At Point C, the plastic resistances

The expressions may be obtained by combining the stress distributions

Prepared by: Eng. Chamil Duminda Mahagamage

6102BEUG- Lecture Note:

In general, Point D is less important than Point C in design. Point E

International College of Business and

Prepared by: Eng. Chamil Duminda Mahagamage

6102BEUG- Lecture Note:

Buckling resistance of columns

Composite columns may fail in buckling due to the second-order or

International College of Business and

Prepared by: Eng. Chamil Duminda Mahagamage

6102BEUG- Lecture Note:

In general, the buckling length, l of an isolated non-sway composite

where i is the creep coefficient , NEd is the total design compression

Prepared by: Eng. Chamil Duminda Mahagamage

6102BEUG- Lecture Note: