Slender Concrete Columns Subjected to Sustained and Short-Term Eccentric Loading

A test series examining the structural behavior of six slender reinforced concrete columns subjected to short-term and sustained loading is presented. The columns had cross sections 200 x 200 mm and were 4 m long. Concrete strengths used were 35 and 92 MPa with a load eccentricity of 20 mm. Key parameters such as concrete strength, concrete and steel strains, cracking, midheight deflection, and loading rate were studied. The high-strength concrete (HSC) columns subjected to short-term loading displayed less ductility and more sudden failures than the normal strength concrete (NSC) columns. Furthermore, the tests conducted indicated that the structural behavior of the HSC is favorable under sustained loading, i.e., the HSC column exhibited less tendency to creep and could sustain the axial load without much increase in deformation for a longer period of time. An analysis based on a simplified stability analysis, using a stress-strain relation for concrete that includes creep, aging, and the confining effect of the stirrups was carried out. The model was shown to simulate the load-deflection curves satisfactorily for all of the concrete columns.