Seismic behavior and mechanism of rectangular steel-concrete composite column with three cavities

Abstract

This paper proposes a rectangular steel-concrete composite column (RSCC) with three cavities, which has a good architectural function. The composite column consists of steel tubes at both ends, steel plates in the middle, and concrete in the cavity. Five RSCC with three cavities were tested to investigate the seismic performance of the column width and headed studs. It was found that the specimens all exhibited flexural damage in the form of flexural tearing of the steel tube/plate and crushing of the concrete in the steel tube cavity. As the column width increases, the load bearing ratio and the percentage of shear displacement in the middle cavity of the specimen increase. The use of headed studs in RSCC with three cavities delay the stiffness degradation of the specimens, and the ductility of the specimens with column width of 400 mm and 500 mm set with headed studs increased by 10.1% and 4.6%, respectively, compared to that of the specimens without headed studs. In addition, a finite element model of the RSCC with three cavities was established, and the finite element analysis results matched well with the experimental hysteresis curves and damage characteristics. A simplified lateral force calculation method was established, and the average error between the predicted values and the corresponding test results for each specimen was 6.1%, which verified the applicability of the calculation model and provided a reference for the engineering application of the RSCC which has good function and performance.