Stability investigation of local buckling behavior of tubular polygon columns under concentric compression

This paper presents experimental tests conducted to investigate the local buckling behavior of thin-walled tubular polygon steel columns. The experimental program consists of six stub columns with three different cross-sections, octagonal (eight-sided), dodecagonal (twelve-sided) and hexdecagonal (sixteen-sided), tested under concentric compression. For each cross-section, two values of the plate slenderness ratio (plate width-to-thickness ratio) are considered. Accurate measurements of geometrical imperfections are taken prior to the test. The experimental results show that the local buckling mode of failure depends on the type of the cross-section. Moreover, the plate slenderness ratio is the main factor controlling the local buckling capacity. Design equations provided in the ASCE 48-05, the EC3 and Migita and Fukumoto to predict the local buckling capacity of tubular polygons are evaluated against experimental results of 22 polygons tested under concentric compression available in the literature. Based on drawbacks observed in the design equations, the Loovʹs equation developed on basis of the ultimate stress concept is adjusted with new fitting parameters to fit for tubular polygon columns. The accuracy of the new equation is evaluated through a comparison with the experimental results.