Ultra-High Strength Concrete Filled Composite

Columns for Multi-Storey Building Construction

J.Y. Richard Liew* and D.X. Xiong

Department of Civil Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore

Abstract: A test programme was carried out to investigate the performance of

27 axially loaded column specimens, including 18 steel tubes infilled with ultra-high
strength concrete (UHSC) of compressive strength close to 200 MPa, 4 steel tubes
infilled with normal strength concrete (NSC) and 5 hollow steel tubes. Steel fibres
were added into the UHSC to study their effect in enhancing the ductility and strength.
Concrete filled double-tube columns were also investigated for potential application in
multi-storey and high-rise constructions. Test results showed that UHSC filled tubular
columns achieved ultra-high load-carrying capacities, but they could become brittle
after the maximum load was attained. In addition, the ductility and strength of
composite columns infilled with UHSC was improved by applying load only on the
concrete core, adding steel fibres into the concrete core or increasing the steel
contribution ratio. Comparison of test results with Eurocode 4’s predictions indicates
that the Eurocode 4 method could be safely extended to predict the compressive
resistance of UHSC filled composite stub columns. On average, Eurocode 4 approach
underestimated the resistance by 14.6% if the confinement effect was not considered
and by 3.5% if the confinement effect was considered for all the specimens involving
UHSC. However, to ensure sufficient ductility, it is recommended that a minimum
steel contribution ratio of 0.30 or 1% steel fibres should be used. Furthermore, strength
enhancement due to confinement effect should be ignored in estimating the ultimate
strength of concrete filled composite columns with Class 3 steel sections.

Key words: composite columns, confinement effect, concrete-filled steel tube, double-tube column, ductility, high
strength concrete, multi-storey building, steel fibre.

1. INTRODUCTION storey composite building in which concrete is pumped

Concrete filled steel tubular columns have been used
widely for the construction of multi-storey buildings,
bridge piers, and other supporting structures. They have
significant advantages over conventional reinforced
concrete and pure steel columns as they can improve
space efficiency by using smaller columns, utilize
synergistic material advantages due to composite action,
result in savings in fabrication and construction costs,
and prevent the premature local failure (Saw and Liew
2000). Figure 1 shows a typical multi-storey building
with internal core wall providing lateral bracing to the
structural steelwork during construction. Figure 2 shows
the tubular steel columns at the perimeter of the building
before concrete is pumped into the columns. Figure 3
illustrates a general construction sequence of a multi-
into the hollow steel tubes after several floors above
them have been constructed.
It has been found that ultra high strength concrete
(UHSC) is an attractive alternative to normal strength
concrete (NSC) for high-rise building construction as
smaller column size can be achieved (Liew et al. 2008).
However, current design guides are only applicable to
normal strength concrete. For example, Eurocode 4
limits the concrete strength class only up to C50/60.
Additional work should be done to extend current
design guidelines to high strength concrete (HSC) with
compression strength higher than C50/60 and to UHSC
with strength higher than C120/135.
In recent years, some experimental works have
provided an important insight into the behaviour of HSC

*Corresponding author. Email address: ceeljy@nus.edu.sg; Fax: +65-6779-1635; Tel: +65-6516-2154.

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 Ultra-High Strength Concrete Filled Composite Columns for Multi-Storey Building Construction
Central core wall
Steel columns
and steel beams
Metal decking
Castin of concrete
Composite beams
Comosite floor slab
Composite columns
Figure 1. A high-rise steel-concrete composite building in
construction (Liew 2004)
Figure 2. Hollow circular steel tubes before casting concrete
(Liew 2004)
which would have a strong impact on the application of
concrete-filled steel tubular columns in multi-storey and
high-rise constructions. Yu et al. (2008) carried out tests
on 28 thin-walled hollow square and circular steel tubes
infilled with self-compacting concrete with cube strength
of 120 MPa. The results showed that Eurocode 4 predicted
conservatively the ultimate strength of circular sections
but overestimated the strength of square sections by 6%.
Lue et al. (2007) reported tests on 24 concrete filled square
tubes with HSC of cylinder strengths between 29 MPa and
84 MPa. It was revealed that Eurocode 4 provided
conservative predictions. Liu (2004, 2005, 2006)
1488
Temporary
framing
bracing
Core
Hollow
steel
tubes
Steel framing
Bracing
deck concrete
framing
Level of
Floors of
complete
concrete
Max. preload
filled
on columns
column
in this floor
Figure 3. Fast track construction of a typical steel-concrete
composite building (Liew and Xiong 2009)
performed a series of tests on HSC filled rectangular steel
tubular columns subjected to concentric and eccentric
loading. The cylinder strengths of the HSC were about
60 MPa and 90 MPa. It was concluded that Eurocode 4
underestimated the concentrically loaded columns by 1%
but overestimated the eccentrically loaded columns by less
than 5%. Liu et al. (2003, 2005) conducted some tests on
axially loaded concrete filled rectangular hollow steel
sections involving HSC with cylinder strength ranging
from 55 MPa to 106 MPa. It was shown that Eurocode 4
could predict the column strength accurately on the
average but within a range of −20% and +10%. Han et al.
(2005) tested 50 circular and square hollow structural steel
stub columns infilled with self-compacting concrete of
cube strengths between 50 MPa and 90 MPa. The
comparison showed that Eurocode 4 overestimated the
ultimate strength by 0.6% for circular sections and 2.7%
for square sections. Gho and Liu (2004) studied the
flexural behavior of 12 concrete filled rectangular steel
hollow section specimens infilled with HSC of cylinder
strengths between 56.3 MPa and 90.9 MPa. It was shown
that Eurocode 4 underestimated the flexural strengths by
11%. Varma et al. (2002, 2004) conducted a series of tests
on the seismic behavior of HSC filled square beam
columns subjected to constant axial load and cyclically
varying flexural loading. The cylinder strength of the HSC
in the tests was up to 110 MPa. The results showed that the
elastic flexural section stiffness under cyclic loading
decreased rapidly due to tension cracking of concrete and
local buckling of steel tubes. The total dissipated energy
was dominated by the dissipated flexural energy in the
plastic hinge region. Varma et al. (2002) also
investigated the flexural force-deformation behavior of
several 110 MPa HSC filled square steel tubes subjected to
Advances in Structural Engineering Vol. 15 No. 9 2012
J.Y. Richard Liew and D.X. Xiong
axial load and monotonically increasing flexural loading.
The moment capacity could be accurately predicted by the
American Concrete Institute code provisions. Based on
the above review, those investigations showed the
outstanding unique advantage of high resistance that HSC
resulted in. However, the drawback of brittleness was not
investigated and the ductility was not assessed. In
addition, all of the concrete strengths used in previous
researches were limited up to 120 MPa. No prior work has
been done on composite columns with ultra high strength
concrete (up to 200 MPa), and the present investigation
takes a pioneer step towards the research on ultra high
strength composite columns.
In this study, an experimental investigation was
carried out on 27 axially loaded circular specimens,
including 18 steel tubes infilled with UHSC of
compressive strength close to 200 MPa, 4 steel tubes
infilled with NSC and 5 hollow steel tubes. Steel fibres
were added into the UHSC to study their effect in
enhancing the ductility and strength. Two of the UHSC
filled steel tubes were loaded only on the UHSC cores to
investigate the performance of UHSC subjected to high
tri-axial compression. Concrete filled double-tube
columns were also investigated with different concrete
strengths for potential application in high-rise
constructions. The test results were analyzed with
respect to ultimate strengths, failure modes, load-
displacement behaviour and ductility requirements. The
test results were also compared with the predictions by
Eurocode 4 method. Finally, important findings with
regard to the use of UHSC and NSC as infilling materials
for tubular composite columns were highlighted.
2. DESIGN OF COMPOSITE COLUMNS
BASED ON EUROCODE 4 METHOD
According to Eurocode 4, the characteristic value of the
plastic resistance to compression of a composite cross-
section without steel reinforcement may be estimated by
N pl , Rk = Aa f y + 0.85 Ac fck
Eqn 1 applies for concrete encased and partially
concrete encased steel sections without reinforcement.
For concrete filled sections, the coefficient 0.85 may be
replaced by 1.0, i.e.
N pl , Rk1 = Aa f y + Ac fck
Table 1. Mix proportions of NSC
Water
Water/Cement (kg/m3)
0.5 225
Advances in Structural Engineering Vol. 15 No. 9 2012
For axially loaded concrete filled tubes of circular
–
cross-section with relative slenderness λ ≤ 0.5, account
may be taken of increase in strength of concrete caused
by confinement effect as
 t fy 
N pl , Rk 2 = ηa Aa f y + Ac fck  1 + ηc (3)
 d fck 
where ηa and ηc are given by the following expressions,
( )
ηa = 0.25 3 + 2λ ( but ≤ 1.0 ) (4)
ηc = 4.9 − 18.5λ + 17λ 2 ( but ≥ 0 ) (5)
There is no need to consider the overall buckling for
axially loaded
– composite columns with relative
slenderness, λ , less than 0.2. Local buckling can be
ignored when the diameter to thickness ratio satisfies
following condition,
d 235 (6)
≤ 90
t fy
Eurocode 4 method is limited to columns and
compression members with steel grades between S235
to S460, NSC of strength classes C20/25 to C50/60, and
steel contribution ratio, δ, in the range of 0.2 to 0.9. As
follows, the experimental investigation work was
described in detail with an aim to extend the Eurocode 4
method to tubular sections infilled with UHSC of
compression strength up to 200 MPa.
3. EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATION
3.1. Material Properties
The materials included NSC, UHSC, steel fibres and hollow
structural steel tubes. For each batch of concrete, at least
three concrete cylinder specimens (100 mm × 200 mm) were
(1) tested to obtain their mechanical properties. For each type of
steel sections, three steel coupon samples were tested.
3.1.1. Normal strength concrete (NSC)
The NSC was made from ordinary Portland cement,
sand, coarse aggregates with maximum size 10 mm, and
water. For the investigation, only one batch of NSC was
(2) cast. The mix proportions are shown in Table 1.
Cement Sand Coarse aggregate
(kg/m3) (kg/m3) (kg/m3)
450 625 1005
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 Ultra-High Strength Concrete Filled Composite Columns for Multi-Storey Building Construction
Table 2. Mix proportions of UHSC
Water
Water/Pre-blended mixture (kg)
0.076 1.9
Table 3. Properties of steel fibre
Diameter Length
(mm) (mm) Aspect ratio
0.16 13 80
3.1.2. Ultra-high strength concrete (UHSC)
The UHSC was made from a commercial pre-blended
mixture comprising cementitious material, super
plasticizer and fine aggregates with maximum sizes less
than 4.75 mm. Since no coarse aggregate was used, it
was actually a kind of “mortar” material rather than
“concrete” material. However, the term of “concrete” is
still used in this paper for convenience. For the present
investigation, three batches of UHSC were cast. The mix
proportions are shown in Table 2.
3.1.3. Steel fibre reinforced UHSC
High tensile strength steel fibres, as shown in Figure 4,
were used to improve the performance of UHSC. Their
basic mechanical properties are shown in Table 3. For
the investigation, two batches of steel fibre reinforced
UHSC were cast, one with 1% steel fibres in volume and
the other with 0.5%.
Compression tests carried out on concrete cylinder
specimens showed that NSC had lower strength but
better ductility than UHSC. Figure 5 compares the
failure modes of various types of concrete specimens.
UHSC cylinders were crushed into pieces after their
maximum loads were reached whereas NSC and fibre-
Figure 4. Steel fibre-SF 13/80
1490
Pre-blended mixture Concrete volume
(kg) (liters)
25 9.4
Tensile Elastic
Specific strength modulus
gravity (MPa) (GPa) Coating
7.85 2300 200 Brass
reinforced UHSC specimens exhibited some post-peak
ductility. Loud cracking noise was heard during the
testing of UHSC and steel fibre reinforced UHSC. It was
found that steel fibres improved the ductility of UHSC.
The mechanical properties obtained from the concrete
cylinders are summarized in Table 4, where fck,100 is the
compressive strength obtained from testing the 100 mm
diameter concrete cylinders, and fck is the compressive
strength based on 150 mm diameter concrete cylinder
which is estimated to be fck,100 /1.05.
3.1.4. Steel tubes
Four sizes of S355 hot finished circular hollow sections,
114 mm × 3.6 mm, 114 mm × 6.3 mm, 219 mm × 5.0 mm
and 219 mm × 10 mm were used in the tests. The
“exact” dimensions were measured and the mechanical
properties were obtained by coupon tests as shown in
Table 5. The sections were classified according to
Eurocode 3.
3.2. Test Specimens
There were 27 specimens comprising 5 hollow steel
tubes, 18 concrete filled single-tube columns and 4
concrete filled double-tube columns, as shown
schematically in Figure 6. The specimens were further
classified into three series.
Series 1 comprised 11 specimens with column height
250 mm, nominal tube diameter 114 mm, and tube
thicknesses 3.6 mm and 6.3 mm, including three hollow
steel tubes, six UHSC filled tubes and two steel fibre
reinforced UHSC filled tubes. The specimen details are
given in Table 6. The– design plastic resistance, Npl, Rd, the
relative slenderness, λ , and the steel contribution ratio, δ,
are also shown in Table 6. Specimens S1-2-1(a) and
S1-2-1(b) were axially loaded only on the concrete cores
and the other specimens were loaded simultaneously on
both of the steel tubes and concrete cores as shown in
Figure 7. Series 1 was tested to observe the performance
of the UHSC filled single-tube columns under different
loading conditions and with different steel contribution
ratios, δ.
Advances in Structural Engineering Vol. 15 No. 9 2012
J.Y. Richard Liew and D.X. Xiong

(a) NSC (b) UHSC (c) SF reinforced UHSC

Figure 5. Failure modes of different concrete

Table 4. Basic mechanical properties of different batches of concrete

Batch fck,100* fck* Ecm Density

No. Type (MPa) (MPa) (GPa) νc (kg/m3) Specimens
B1 UHSC 173 165 63 0.24 S1-2-1(a, b), S1-3-1(a, b),
S1-3-3(a, b)
B2 UHSC + %1 SF 184 175 63 0.24 S1-3-2(a, b)
B3 NSC 54 51 28 0.20 2317 Specimens containing
NSC
B4 UHSC 175 167 66 0.23 2704 S3-1-2, S3-1-3, S3-2-2
B5 UHSC 185 176 66 0.23 2717 S2-1-3, S2-2-2, S3-2-3
B6 UHSC + 0.5% SF 193 184 67 0.25 2703 S2-1-4, S2-2-4,
S3-1-4, S3-2-4
*f
ck,100 representsthe strengths obtained by testing cylinders of dimension 100 mm diameter × 200 mm height
fck represents the strengths based on cylinders of dimension 150 mm diameter × 300 height, estimated by fck = fck, 100 /1.05

Table 5. Basic mechanical properties of steel tubes

Measured dimension fy fu Ea d fy Section

Circular hollow sections d (mm) t (mm) (MPa) (MPa) (GPa) t 235 class
CHS114 × 3.6 114.67 3.54 406 505 213 56 (< 70) 2
CHS114 × 6.3 114.33 6.13 428 521 209 34 (< 50) 1
CHS219 × 5 219.43 4.87 377 511 205 72 (< 90) 3
CHS219 × 10 219.43 9.69 381 509 212 37 (< 50) 1

fck fy fck2 fy2 fy1

fy

fck1

(a) Hollow section tube (b) Concrete filled single-tube (c) Concrete filled double-tubes

Figure 6. Three types of test specimens

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 Ultra-High Strength Concrete Filled Composite Columns for Multi-Storey Building Construction

Table 6. Specimen details for test Series 1: Concrete filled tubes

L Section fy fck,100 Npl,Rd

No. (mm) no (MPa) (MPa) (kN) λ δ
S1-1-1(a) 250 CHS114 × 3.6 406 502 0.088
S1-1-2(a) 250 CHS114 × 6.3 428 892 0.094
S1-1-2(b) 250 CHS114 × 6.3 428 892 0.094
S1-2-1(a)* 200 CHS114 × 6.3 428 173 1836 0.105 0.486
S1-2-1(b)* 200 CHS114 × 6.3 428 173 1836 0.105 0.486
S1-3-1(a) 250 CHS114 × 3.6 406 173 1550 0.142 0.324
S1-3-1(b) 250 CHS114 × 3.6 406 173 1550 0.142 0.324
S1-3-2(a)** 250 CHS114 × 3.6 406 184 1617 0.145 0.310
S1-3-2(b)** 250 CHS114 × 3.6 406 184 1617 0.145 0.310
S1-3-3(a) 250 CHS114 × 6.3 428 173 1836 0.132 0.486
S1-3-3(b) 250 CHS114 × 6.3 428 173 1836 0.132 0.486
* Loaded only on the concrete core which was 200 mm in length; the steel tubes were 250 mm in length
** The UHSC in the two specimens was reinforced by 1% SF

Series 2 comprised 8 specimens with column height

600 mm, and nominal tube diameter 219 mm and
thicknesses 5 mm and 10 mm, including 2 hollow steel
20 mm tubes, 2 NSC filled tubes, 2 UHSC filled tubes and 2
steel fibre reinforced UHSC filled tubes. The specimen
details are shown in Table 7 and Figure 8(a). All the
specimens were loaded simultaneously on both of the
steel tubes and concrete cores. Series 2 was tested to
210 mm
verify the behavior of axially loaded UHSC filled
single-tube columns, compared to NSC filled columns.
Series 3 comprised 8 concrete filled double-tube
specimens with the length 600 mm and nominal overall
diameter 219 mm, including 2 specimens infilled with
20 mm
NSC, 2 specimens infilled with UHSC, 2 specimens
infilled with UHSC core and NSC in between tubes, and
(a) Loading applied only on the concrete core 2 specimens infilled with steel fibre reinforced UHSC
core and NSC in between tubes. The specimen details
are shown in Table 8 and Figure 8(c). All the specimens
were loaded simultaneously on both of the steel tubes
Actuator
and concrete cores. Series 3 was tested to investigate the
behavior of axially loaded UHSC and NSC filled
25 mm double-tube columns.
Hoop ring stiffener

3.3. Test Setup

250 mm

Four post yield strain gauges, placed at 900 apart, were

3~5 mm
(b) Loading applied on both the concrete core and steel tube
Figure 7. Different loading conditions for Series 1 specimens
attached to the external surface at the mid-height of the
steel tube, as shown in Figure 9. Each strain gauge consists
of two components, one aligned in the longitudinal
direction and the other in the circumferential direction.
The axial shortening displacements were measured by
four linear varying displacement transducers (LVDTs)
which were also placed at 90° apart. The axial load was
applied by a displacement control actuator with a
maximum capacity of 10,000 kN. To avoid premature

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J.Y. Richard Liew and D.X. Xiong

Table 7. Specimen details for test Series 2: Concrete filled tubes

L Section fy fck Npl,Rd

No. (mm) no. (MPa) (MPa) (kN) λ δ
S2-1-1 600 CHS219 × 5 377 1238 0.108
S2-1-2 600 CHS219 × 5 377 51 2412 0.141 0.513
S2-1-3 600 CHS219 × 5 377 176 5290 0.187 0.234
S2-1-4* 600 CHS219 × 5 377 184 5474 0.190 0.226
S2-2-1 600 CHS219 × 10 381 2433 0.109
S2-2-2 600 CHS219 × 10 381 51 3501 0.129 0.695
S2-2-3 600 CHS219 × 10 381 176 6121 0.166 0.397
S2-2-4* 600 CHS219 × 10 381 184 6288 0.168 0.387

* The UHSC in the two specimens was reinforced by 0.5% SF

LVDT Strain
gauges

Actuator

3∼5 mm
+ =
Hoop ring stiffener Hoop ring

Specimen

LVDT

(a) Infilled (b) Internal tube with (c) Infilled Strain gauges
single-tube shear connectors double-tubes Strain
gauges
Figure 8. Concrete filled single-tube and double-tube columns

local failure at both ends due to stress concentration, two

Hoop ring stiffener
pairs of hoop ring stiffeners made of high tensile steel
were provided to clamp the ends of the specimens so as to
induce failure near the central height of the specimens. Figure 9. Test setup and locations of strain gauges and LVDTs

3.4. Loading Procedure respectively up to 10% of its capacity estimated by Eqn 2;

A quasi-static loading procedure was introduced in four (2) unload at a rate of 0.5 mm/min and 1.0 mm/min
steps: (1) preload at a rate of 0.2 mm/min for 250 mm long respectively for the two different lengths of specimens; (3)
specimen and 0.3 mm/min for 600 mm long specimen reload at the same rate as in Step 1 to 60% ~ 70% of its

Table 8. Specimen details for test Series 3: Concrete filled double-tube system

L External Internal fy1** fy2** fck1** fck2** Npl,Rd

No. (mm) section section (MPa) (MPa) (MPa) (MPa) (kN) λ δ
S3-1-1 600 CHS219 × 5 CHS114 × 3.6 377 406 51 51 2871 0.146 0.606
S3-1-2 600 CHS219 × 5 CHS114 × 3.6 377 406 167 167 5447 0.183 0.319
S3-1-3 600 CHS219 × 5 CHS114 × 3.6 377 406 51 167 3575 0.165 0.487
S3-1-4* 600 CHS219 × 5 CHS114 × 3.6 377 406 51 184 3678 0.168 0.473
S3-2-1 600 CHS219 × 10 CHS114 × 6.3 381 428 51 51 4322 0.137 0.769
S3-2-2 600 CHS219 × 10 CHS114 × 6.3 381 428 167 167 6592 0.164 0.504
S3-2-3 600 CHS219 × 10 CHS114 × 6.3 381 428 51 176 5004 0.150 0.664
S3-2-4* 600 CHS219 × 10 CHS114 × 6.3 381 428 51 184 5048 0.151 0.659
*The UHSC in the internal tubes of the two specimens was reinforced by 0.5% SF
**f and fy2 are the yield strengths of external and internal steel tubes respectively;
y1
fck1 and fck2 are the strengths of the concrete filled in-between tubes and the center core respectively

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 Ultra-High Strength Concrete Filled Composite Columns for Multi-Storey Building Construction

capacity, and then decrease the rate to 0.1 mm/min and 3000
S1-3-1 (a)
0.2 mm/min respectively until the peak load was reached; S1-3-1 (b)
(4) finally in the post-peak range, increase the rate to 2500
0.5 mm/min and 1.0 mm/min respectively until visible
2000
deformation was observed.

Load (kN)
1500
3.5. Test Results and Observations
3.5.1. Series 1: performance of small scale stub 1000
columns under different loading
conditions 500
The load-axial displacement curves obtained from
Series 1 test specimens are shown in Figures 10–14. 0
0 10 20 30 40
Figure 10 shows that specimen S1-1-1(a), which was a
Axial shortening (mm)
CHS 114 × 3.6 steel tube with Class 2 section, could
almost reach the expected plastic resistance but it Figure 12. Load-shortening curves for specimens S1-3-1(a) and
unloaded immediately after that; while Specimens S1-3-1(b)
S1-1-2(a) and S1-1-2(b), which were of Class 1
3000
S1-3-2 (a)
1200 S1-3-2 (b)
S1-1-1 (a) 2500
S1-1-2 (a)
1000 S1-1-2 (b) 2000

800 Load (kN)

1500
Load (kN)

600
1000

400 500

200
0
0 10 20 30 40
0 Axial shortening (mm)
0 10 20 30 40
Axial shortening (mm) Figure 13. Axial load-shortening curves for specimens S1-3-2(a)
and S1-3-2(b)
Figure 10. Axial load-shortening curves for specimens S1-1-1(a),
S1-1-2(a) and S1-1-2(b) 3000

3000 2500
S1-2-1 (a)
S1-2-1 (b)
2000
2500
Load (kN)

1500
2000 1200
1000
Load (kN)

900
1500
500
S1-3-3 (a)
600 S1-3-3 (b)
1000 0
Interfacial bond 0 10 20 30 40
300 Axial shortening (mm)
suddenly failed
500 Figure 14. Axial load-shortening curves for specimens S1-3-3(a)
0
0 1 2 3 4
and S1-3-3(b)
0
0 10 20 30 40
sections, could achieve the expected plastic resistances
Axial shortening (mm)
but also developed hardening effect after yielding.
Figure 11. Axial load-shortening curves for specimens S1-2-1(a) Figure 11 shows the load-displacement curves for
and S1-2-1(b) S1-2-1(a) and S1-2-1(b) which were loaded only on the

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J.Y. Richard Liew and D.X. Xiong

UHSC cores as shown in Figure 7(a). At the initial loading
stage, the steel tube was resisting the load together with
the UHSC core due the interfacial bond between the two
materials. The bond was subsequently broken due to the
relative slip occurred; subsequently, the load was mainly
resisted by the UHSC core and the load-displacement
curve became softer. After that, when the axial shortening
displacement of the UHSC core was increasing at a rate
faster than the steel tube, significant confinement effect
and friction forces were developed due to the expanding of
concrete core. Thus some load was transferred from the
core to the steel tube, and the load-displacement curve
became stiffer. Finally, the steel tube and concrete core
were compressed together again.
Larger relative slip between the steel and concrete
occurred in S1-2-1(a) than S1-2-1(b) and thus higher
confinement stress would be produced at the peak load.
This explains the reason why the ultimate strength of
S1-2-1(a) was higher than S1-2-1(b) as shown in
Figure 11, although they were identical specimens. At the
peak load, the UHSC core was crushed and its strength
was degraded rapidly, leading to rapid softening of the
loading curve. The confinement stress was increased
quickly due to the dilation effect of the UHSC core. The
residual strength of S1-2-1(a) was almost kept constant
for a continuous period of axial deformation up to 40 mm.
Residual strength is defined as the remaining strength
beyond 15% yield strain (see Eqn 11). For S1-2-1(b),
there was some strength recovery at about 10 mm
displacement. Since the maximum confinement strength
of steel tube was the same for the two specimens, the
residual strengths of both the specimens were almost
identical, i.e., 2317 kN for S1-2-1(a) and 2293 kN for
S1-2-1(b). The ductility of the UHSC core were enhanced
significantly due to much higher tri-axial compression in
specimens S1-2-1(a) and S1-2-1(b), compared with the
other composite specimens where both of the steel tubes
and concrete cores were loaded simultaneously and thus
lower confinement stresses were produced on the UHSC
cores as shown in Figures 12–14. These figures show that
the UHSC cores were cracked suddenly at smaller axial
displacements, and the load dropped sharply after the
peak load. Comparing the load displacement curves in
Figures 12–14, it is shown that S1-3-2(a) & (b) in which
the concrete cores were reinforced with 1% steel fibres,
and S1-3-3(a) & (b) which had higher steel contribution
ratios had higher ultimate loads and higher residual
strengths than specimens S1-3-1(a) & (b) which did not
have such strong enhancement.
The test values of the ultimate strength, Ntest,u, and the
residual strength, Ntest,r, are summarized in Table 9 for test
series 1. The residual strength to ultimate strength ratio,
Ntest,r/Ntest,u, was the lowest for S1-3-1(a) & (b) at about
71% on average, higher for S1-3-2(a) & (b) at about 79%
and for S1-2-1(a) & (b) at about 85%, and the highest for
S1-3-3(a) & (b) at about 92%. Therefore, the ductility and
strength of the composite column can be improved if steel
fibres are added, the steel contribution ratio is increased, or
stronger triaxial confinement is provided to the concrete
cores. On the contrary, the ultimate strength of a
composite column may reduce if some axial preload is
imposed only on the steel tube (Liew and Xiong 2009).
3.5.2. Series 2: performance of NSC and UHSC
filled single-tube columns
The axial-load displacement curves for Series 2
specimens are shown in two groups as Group S2-1 in
Figure 15 and Group S2-2 in Figure 16. The specimens

Table 9. Comparison of test results with Eurocode 4 for test Series 1

Eurocode 4 predictions Test results Ntest,u Ntest,u Ntest,r Ntest,r

No. Npl,Rk1 (kN) Npl,Rk2 (kN) Ntest,u (kN) Ntest,r (kN) N pl,Rk 1 N pl,Rk 2 N pl,Rk 1 Ntest,u

S1-1-1(a) 502 486 0.969

S1-1-2(a) 892 1039 1.165
S1-1-2(b) 892 990 1.110
S1-2-1(a) 2307 2721 2866 2317 1.242 1.053 1.004 0.809
S1-2-1(b) 2307 2721 2595 2293 1.125 0.954 0.994 0.883
S1-3-1(a) 2075 2283 2422 1695 1.168 1.061 0.817 0.700
S1-3-1(b) 2075 2283 2340 1689 1.128 1.025 0.814 0.722
S1-3-2(a) 2175 2379 2497 1903 1.148 1.049 0.875 0.762
S1-3-2(b) 2175 2379 2314 1884 1.064 0.973 0.866 0.814
S1-3-3(a) 2307 2661 2610 2309 1.131 0.981 1.001 0.884
S1-3-3(b) 2307 2661 2633 2518 1.141 0.989 1.091 0.957
Mean* 1.130 1.013
Standard Deviation* 0.035 0.037
*Only for the last 6 specimens which were loaded simultaneously on the tubes and concrete cores

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10000
S2-1-1
in Group S2-1 consisted of CHS219 mm × 5 mm and
S2-1-2 specimens in Group S2-2 consisted of CHS219 mm ×
S2-1-3 10 mm. CHS219 mm × 5 mm was a Class 3 section and
8000 S2-1-4
it could not develop the full plastic resistance after
yielding, whereas CHS219 mm × 10 mm, which was a
Load (kN)

6000
Class 1 section, developed the full plastic resistance
4000 and hardening effect, as shown in Figure 16. Similar
effect could also be observed from the NSC filled tubes
2000
S2-1-2 and S2-2-2; however, compared with S2-1-1
and S2-2-1 respectively, S2-1-2 developed higher
0
plastic resistance and S2-2-2 achieved its ultimate
0 20 40 60 80 strength at a larger displacement due to the
Axial shortening (mm) confinement effect provided by the steel tube and the
constraint afforded by the concrete core. The other
Figure 15. Axial load-shortening curves for specimens in Group
four specimens in Series 2 achieved higher ultimate
S2-1 of Series 2
resistances due to the presence of UHSC. However, the
post-peak load-displacement behavior was more brittle
than NSC filled specimens. The UHSC core was
10000
S2-2-1 cracked suddenly and the unloading occurred sharply.
S2-2-2
S2-2-3
The ultimate load, Ntest,u, and the residual strength,
8000 S2-2-4 Ntest,r, are summarized in Table 10. The concrete core
of specimen S2-1-4 was reinforced with 0.5% steel
fibres and thus it had higher maximum strength than
6000 S2-1-3. Specimen S2-2-3 had higher steel contribution
Load (kN)

ratio and thus it had higher residual strength ratio

Ntest,r /Ntest,u than S2-1-3. This series of tests confirms
4000
the fact that steel fibres and higher steel contribution
ratio help to improve the strength and ductility of
2000 composite columns.

3.5.3. Series 3: performance of NSC and UHSC

0 filled double-tube columns
0 20 40 60 80
For concrete-filled double-tube specimens in Series 3,
Axial shortening (mm)
the axial load shortening curves are shown in two groups
Figure 16. Axial load-shortening curves for specimens in Group as Group S3-1 in Figure 17 and Group S3-2 in Figure 18.
S2-2 of Series 2 Group S3-1 specimens consisted of an external steel tube

Table 10. Comparison of test results with Eurocode 4 for test Series 2

Eurocode 4 predictions Test results Ntest,u Ntest,u Ntest,r Ntest,r

No. Npl,Rk1 (kN) Npl,Rk2 (kN) Ntest,u (kN) Ntest,r (kN) N pl,Rk 1 N pl,Rk 2 N pl,Rk 1 Ntest,u

S2-1-1 1238 1190 0.961

S2-1-2 2999 3535 3118 1.040 0.882
S2-1-3 7316 7710 7837 3803 1.071 1.017 0.520 0.485
S2-1-4 7592 7978 8664 5691 1.141 1.086 0.750 0.657
S2-2-1 2433 3050 1.254
S2-2-2 4036 5060 5241 1.299 1.036
S2-2-3 7965 8775 9085 7353 1.141 1.035 0.923 0.809
S2-2-4 8216 9014 9187 7479 1.118 1.019 0.910 0.814
Mean* 1.118 1.039
Standard Deviation* 0.033 0.032
* Only for S2-1-3, S2-1-4, S2-2-3 and S2-2-4 which contain UHSC

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10000
S3-1-1
developed much higher ultimate strengths than the NSC
S3-1-2 filled specimens S3-1-1 and S3-2-1. However, they
S3-1-3 unloaded sharply after the peak load due to the
8000 S3-1-4 brittleness of UHSC core. The other four specimens
were infilled with NSC in between the external and
6000 internal tubes and with UHSC in the internal tubes. They
Load (kN)

demonstrated significant ductility after the peak load.

The drop in load after the peak was not too abrupt and it
4000 recovered soon. The second peak load was even higher
than the first peak load, as shown for specimens S3-2-3
and S3-2-4 in Figure 18.
2000
Loud cracking/crushing noise emanating from the
specimens was heard around the peak load during the
0 testing of the specimens with UHSC. A sharp drop in
0 20 40 60 80 the load-displacement curves after the peak load was
Axial shortening (mm) observed as shown in Figures 10–16. Soon after the
Figure 17. Axial load-shortening curves for specimens in Group load drop, visual inspection was carried out on the
S3-1 of Series 3 specimens and no visible deformation was observed.
Therefore, the noise is thought to be originated from
10000
the cracking/crushing of the UHSC core. The external
steel tubes of the failed specimens were removed to
reveal the inner UHSC core as shown in Figure 19.
8000 For S1-2-1(a) which was loaded only on the UHSC
core, its UHSC core remained intact, showing some
form of structural integrity. For specimens S1-3-1(a)
6000
and S1-3-2(b), which were loaded simultaneously on
Load (kN)

both of steel tubes and the UHSC cores, their UHSC

4000
cores were cracked apart, showing brittleness of the
concrete core. Figure 20 shows all the test specimens
S3-2-1 after the tests.
2000 S3-2-2
S3-2-3
S3-2-4
0
0 20 40 60 80
Axial shortening (mm)

Figure 18. Axial load-shortening curves for specimens in Group

S3-2 of Series 3

CHS219 mm × 5.0 mm and an internal steel tube (a) S1-2-1(a) loaded only on UHSC core
CHS114 mm × 3.6 mm, and Group S3-2 specimens
consisted of an external steel tube CHS219 mm × 10 mm
and an internal steel tube CHS114 mm × 6.3 mm. The
NSC filled specimen S3-1-1 developed significant plastic
plateau as shown in Figure 17, although both the external
and internal steel tubes were of large diameter-to-
thickness ratios. The other NSC filled specimen S3-2-1
in Series 3 developed higher plastic resistance and
hardening effect, since the external and internal tubes
were of smaller diameter-to-thickness ratios. (b) S1-3-1(a) without SF (b) S1-3-2(b) with 1% SF
Comparison between Figures 17 and 18 shows that Figure 19. Failure modes of UHSC core
the UHSC filled specimens S3-1-2 and S3-2-2

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S2-1-2 by 11.8% and S3-1-1 by 7.9%. It should be noted

that these two NSC filled specimens had Class 3 cross-
sectional steel tubes. The comparison of test results with
predictions is also shown in Figure 21 and Figure 22 for
all the composite specimens except the hollow steel tube
specimens. In conclusion, the Eurocode 4 approach can be
safely extended to predict the resistance of UHSC filled
steel tubular columns. On average for all the composite
specimens involving UHSC, Eurocode 4 approach
underestimated the resistance by 14.6% if confinement
effect was not considered and by 3.5% if confinement
effect was considered. However, it may over-predict the
confinement effect for NSC filled steel tubes with Class 3
sections and thus the confinement effect should be
ignored. Furthermore, for composite specimens only
involving UHSC, it is recommended that the confinement
effect should also be ignored, since the ultimate strengths
Figure 20. Failure of specimens after tested
were reached almost at elastic stage and thus no significant
confinement effect should have developed.
4. EVALUATION OF TEST RESULTS
4.1. Comparison with Eurocode 4’s Predictions
12000
Eqns 2 and 3 were used to predict the resistances and they
were compared with the test results as shown in Tables 9
10000
to 11. It should be noted that the values of fck,100, instead of
fck, were used in both equations for all the composite
Test results, Ntest,u (kN)

specimens in Series 1, because the concrete cores in these 8000

specimens were almost of the same size as the standard
concrete cylinder of 100 mm diameter and 200 mm height. 6000
Comparison with test results indicates that Eqn 2, without
considering the confinement enhancement, conservatively 4000
predicted the compression resistance of hollow steel tubes
S1-1-2(a), S1-1-2(b) and S2-2-1 and all the composite
2000 Series 1
specimens, but it slightly overestimated the compression Series 2
resistance of hollow steel tubes S1-1-1(a) by 3.1% and Series 3
S2-1-1 by 3.9%. Eqn 3, considering the confinement 0
0 2000 4000 6000 8000 10000 12000
effect, conservatively predicted the resistance for most of Predictions by eurocode 4, Npl,Rk1 (kN)
the composite specimens, but it overestimated the
resistance for some UHSC filled tubes in Series 1 by less Figure 21. Comparison of test results with predictions without
than 5%, and for two NSC filled composite specimens confinement effect

Table 11. Comparison of test results with Eurocode 4 for test Series 3

Eurocode 4 predictions Test results Ntest,u Ntest,u Ntest,r Ntest,r

No. Npl,Rk1 (kN) Npl,Rk2 (kN) Ntest,u (kN) Ntest,r (kN) N pl,Rk 1 N pl,Rk 2 N pl,Rk 1 Ntest,u

S3-1-1 3438 3939 3626 1.055 0.921

S3-1-2 7300 7684 8529 5069 1.168 1.110 0.694 0.594
S3-1-3 4492 4931 4968 4830 1.106 1.008 1.075 0.972
S3-1-4 4647 5077 5239 4171 1.127 1.032 0.898 0.796
S3-2-1 4821 5678 6300 1.307 1.110
S3-2-2 8226 8928 9817 6951 1.193 1.100 0.845 0.708
S3-2-3 5844 6627 7022 7022 1.201 1.060 1.201 1.000
S3-2-4 5909 6687 7160 7160 1.212 1.071 1.212 1.000
Mean* 1.168 1.063
Standard Deviation* 0.043 0.039
*S3-1-1 and S3-2-1, which do not contain UHSC, are not considered.

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J.Y. Richard Liew and D.X. Xiong

12000 500 1

10000 400 0.8

σa
Test results, Ntest,u (kN)

Poisson's ratio
Stress (MPa)
8000
300 0.6

νa
6000
200 0.4

4000 Stress (test)

100 Stress (FEM) 0.2
Poisson's ratio (test)
2000 Series 1
Poisson's ratio (FEM)
Series 2 0 0
Series 3 0 0.004 0.008 0.012 0.016 0.02
0
Longitudinal compressive strain
0 2000 4000 6000 8000 10000 12000
Predictions by eurocode 4, Npl,Rk2 (kN) Figure 23. Variation of Poisson’s ratio with longitudinal stresses
Figure 22. Comparison of test results with predictions with for steel tube S2-2-1
confinement effect
60 2
Stress (test)
4.2. Interaction Mechanics between Concrete Stress (FEM)
Poisson's ratio (test)
Core and Steel Tube 48 σc Poisson's ratio (FEM) 1.6
4.2.1. Effect of Poisson’s ratio
Poisson’s ratio, defined as the absolute value of the ratio

Poisson's ratio
Stress (MPa)

36 1.2
of transverse strain to longitudinal strain under uniaxial
loading, plays a significant role in analyzing the load νc
sharing mechanism between the concrete core and the 24 0.8
steel tube.
For mild steel, the Poisson’s ratio value is about 0.3 12 0.4
before yielding, and then it increases rapidly
approaching to 0.5 after yielding. For NSC, it is at about
0.2 under low compressive stress level and it increases 0 0
0 0.004 0.008 0.012 0.016 0.02
rapidly after reaching 80% to 90% of the ultimate Longitudinal compressive strain
strength due to the initiating of micro-cracks, and finally
approaches a value of about 0.5 at the ultimate strength. Figure 24. Variation of Poisson’s ratio with longitudinal stresses
The value exceeds 0.5 after the ultimate strength due to for NSC
dilation effect. The Poisson’s ratio for the UHSC used in 200 2
this study was about 0.25, slightly higher than that of
NSC, under low compressive stress level. σc
The longitudinal stress-strain curve for the hollow 160 1.6
steel tube S2-2-1 is plotted in Figure 23, together with Stress (test)
the Poisson’s ratio measured as the ratio of Stress (FEM)
Poisson's ratio
Stress (MPa)

120 1.2
circumferential strain to longitudinal strain. The Poisson's ratio (test)
Poisson's ratio (FEM)
measured Poisson’s ratio value was decreasing instead
of increasing right after yielding, mainly due to the 80 0.8
influence of the hoop ring stiffeners and imperfections.
Figure 24 and Figure 25 show the variations of νc
Poisson’s ratios for NSC and UHSC, respectively, 40 0.4
derived from the concrete cylinder tests. Unlike NSC,
the stress-strain curve for UHSC was almost linearly
0 0
elastic up to the maximum load. Once the ultimate load 0 0.005 0.01 0.015 0.02
was reached, the concrete cylinder was cracked and Longitudinal compressive strain
fractured into pieces. However, in composite columns,
macro cracks may be delayed or even prevented due to Figure 25. Variation of Poisson’s ratio with longitudinal stresses
the confinement stress offered by the steel tube showing for UHSC

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a gradual softening of post peak stress-strain behaviour.
The corresponding idealized true stress strain curves
with softening portions are also shown in Figures 23–25
as references. It should be noted that the true stress and
strain values from the tests are converted from the
nominal values and they are shown in the three figures
for comparison.
Figure 26 shows a simplified model for a concrete
filled tube subjected to longitudinal compressive strain
εz. Assuming that there is no interaction at the interface
which means that the concrete core and steel tube are
free to expand, the tensile strains at a point “P” at the
interface in circumferential and radial directions are
 εθp,c = ε rp,c = vc ε z ( based on the propertiesof concreete )
 p p
εθ ,a = ε r ,a = va ε z ( based on the propertiesof steel )
The displacements at point “P” in the radial direction
of the concrete and steel materials are
 p d  p d 
 ur ,c =  2 − t  ε r ,c = vc  2 − t  ε z urp,c vc
 ⇒ p =
ur ,a va
u p =  d − t  ε p = v  d − t  ε
 r ,a  2  r ,a a
 2  z
d
θ r
0 concrete and values of εθ ,a / ε z will be greater than the
P
Considering the displacement compatibility at point
“P”, urp,c ≤ urp,a, it further implies that
 v < v : separationor tensile debodingoccurs
 c a
 vc = va : concreteandsteel tube are in contact but no int eraction

 vc > va : concrete core is confined bysteel tube
(9)
Thus, confinement effect can be produced only if the
Poisson’s ratio value of concrete is greater than that of
steel, unless effective transverse restraints are imposed
on steel tubes.
For axially loaded concrete filled composite columns
with steel materials between S275 and S460, the steel
tube will yield first before the concrete achieves its
(7) ultimate strength. Therefore, the effective concrete
confinement stresses can only start before the concrete
reaches its ultimate strength. Before that, tensile stresses
or separation may occur at the steel and concrete
interface since νc<νa. Figure 27 shows the general
p
variations of longitudinal stresses and εθ / ε zp at point
“P” of the model shown in Figure 26. The values are
compared with the variations of uniaxial stresses and
Poisson’s ratios of mild steel and NSC. Initially, the
(8)
Poisson’s ratio value of concrete is less than that of
steel. The concrete core and steel tube are transversely
expanding freely and hence the ratios of circumferential
strain to longitudinal strain are respectively equal to
their Poisson’s ratios. After that, the Poisson’s ratio
value of concrete is increasing and exceeds that of steel.
The concrete core will be confined by steel tube. Values
p p
of εθ ,c / ε z will be less than the Poisson’s ratio values of
p p
Poisson’s ratio values of steel. To ensure compatibility,
εθP,c εθP,a
≈ P . The confinement effect improves the
ε zP εz

500 1.5
Debonding Bonding

Z t 400 σa 1.2
εz
Longitudinal stress (MPa)

σ pa
ε pθ,c/εz
300 ε pθ,a/εz 0.9
νc
ε θ /εz

P r
0
200 0.6

νa
100 σ pc 0.3

σc
0 0
0 0.004 0.008 0.012 0.016 0.02
Longitudinal compressive strain

Figure 26. A concrete filled tube subjected to uniaxial compression Figure 27. Variation of stresses and εθ/εz in composite columns

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J.Y. Richard Liew and D.X. Xiong

longitudinal compression strength of concrete, but
reduces the longitudinal compression strength of steel
tube since the tensile stress is produced in the
circumferential direction of the tube section.
The model presented so far considers the worst case
scenario. In practice, there may be some initial
confinement stresses before loading due to self-
expanding of concrete, circumferential restraint boundary
conditions and so on. Some of the initial confinement
stresses could be released at the initial stage of loading
when the Poisson’s ratio of concrete is less than that of
steel; however, if they are not released completely, tensile
debonding stresses may not occur and the effective
confinement stress could start earlier. On the other hand,
initial imperfections, such as loading eccentricity,
geometrical imperfections and concrete shrinkage may
also affect the performance of confined concrete.
4.2.2. Effect of Class 3 section on composite
stub column strength
Specimen S2-1-1, which was a Class 3 steel tube section
according to Eurocode 3, developed an axial resistance
which was 4% less than the estimated squash load. This
is probably due to some difference in the tensile strength
of the tube and that from the coupon tests and also due to
some initial imperfections which led to eccentricity of
load. For Class 3 sections, once yielding occurs, they are
susceptible to inelastic local buckling. Figure 28 shows
the history curves of the measured vertical strains at the
middle height of columns, the applied load and axial
shortening of steel tubes S2-1-1 of Class 3 section and
S2-2-1 of Class 1 section. If there is no local buckling, the
vertical strains should keep increasing as long as the axial
shortening displacements are increasing. However, the
vertical strain of S2-1-1 decreased once yielding
occurred, which means that inelastic local buckling
occurred. On the contrary, S2-2-1 could develop the full
plastic resistance with subsequent strain hardening effect.
For concrete filled tubes of Class 3 sections, separation
or tensile stresses may occur at the interface even after
yielding, which means that the concrete core cannot
provide effective restraint to prevent local buckling of the
steel tube. Figure 29 shows the history curves of the
measured vertical strains at the middle height of columns,
applied load and axial shortening of NSC filled tubes S2-
1-2 of Class 3 section and S2-2-2 of Class 1 section.
Better than the pure steel specimen S2-1-1, the vertical
strain of S2-1-2 was increasing after yielding, but local
buckling of the tube occurred at vertical displacement less
than 20 mm, which was much smaller than that of the
pure steel specimen S2-2-2 which occurred at about
40 mm. Therefore, Eqn 3 should be used only to calculate
the compression capacity of concrete filled columns with
Class 1 and Class 2 sections, and only Eqn 2, without the
consideration of confinement effect, is applicable to
columns with Class 3 section.
4.3. Ductility Requirements
Structures members are usually required to have
sufficient ductility to undergo large deformations
without collapse when subjected to accidental actions.
For axially loaded composite columns, an axial
shortening limit similar to the value of the structural
steel ultimate strain is defined in Eurocode 3 as
∆Llim fy
ϕ lim = = 15 (10)
L Ea
Deformations beyond the limit are significant, and
the remaining strength beyond this limit is regarded as
the residual strength. To meet ductility requirements,

0.04 500 0.06 6000

0.05 5000
0.032 400
Measured vertical strain
Measured vertical strain

0.04 4000
Load (MPa)

0.024 300
Load (kN)

0.03 3000
0.016 200
0.02 2000
S2-1-1 strain S2-1-2 strain
0.008 Yielding 100
S2-2-1 strain S2-2-2 strain 1000
point 0.01
S2-1-1 load S2-1-2 load
S2-2-1 load Yielding
S2-2-2 load
0 0 0 0
0 15 30 45 60 0 20 40 60 80
Axial shortening (mm) Axial shortening (mm)

Figure 28. Measured strains and load-shortening curves for hollow Figure 29. Measured strains and load-shortening curves for NSC
tubes S2-1-1 and S2-2-1 filled tubes S2-1-2 and S2-2-2

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1 of concrete, can be used with confidence for the

S1-3-3 design of concrete filled steel tubular sections.
S2-2-4 (a, b) However, the equation may overestimate the
S1-3-2
Residual strength ratio Ntest,r /Ntest.u

0.8
(a, b)
S1-3-1
S2-1-4
(a, b)
0.6
S2-1-3
0.4
0.2
0 should be higher than NSC filled tubes for the
0 0.2
Steel contribution ratioδ
Figure 30. Residual strength ratios for UHSC filled
single-tube columns
the residual strength should not be less than the actions
under serviceability limit state. For concrete filled tubes,
the service load should be less than 70% of the column
ultimate strength. Therefore, to ensure a conservative
design, the residual strength should be at least equal to
70% of the column ultimate strength.
The test results of residual strength for composite
columns with UHSC are shown in Tables 9–11. Most of
the composite columns achieved their ultimate strengths
at quite small deformations, especially for the UHSC
filled single-tube columns loaded simultaneously on the
top of tubes and concrete cores. The residual strength
ratios are plotted against the steel contribution ratios for
all the specimens as shown in Figure 30. It is observed
that higher steel contribution ratio and higher steel fibre
volume increase the residual strength ratio. To meet the
ductility requirements and to ensure residual strength
ratio of at least 0.7, the steel contribution ratio should be
at least 0.30, or steel fibre volume of at least 1% should
be added to UHSC filled tubes.
5. CONCLUSIONS
Based on the test results and analyses, some significant
conclusions can be drawn as follows:
(1) Limited test evidence indicates that the
Eurocode 4 limitation on concrete cylinder
strength could be safely extended to 200 N/mm2
(cylinder strength). The circular column sections
with ultra high strength concrete of 200 N/mm2
compression strength were safe though more
tests with such high strength concrete for longer
column length are needed to justify this.
(2) For concrete filled steel tubes with Class 1 or
Class 2 sections, Eqn 3, considering confinement
S2-2-3 strength of NSC filled steel tubes with Class 3
cross-sections. For such cases, Eqn 2, which does
not consider the confinement effect, should be
used.
(3) Material Poisson’s ratio is one of the important
parameters that affect the load distribution in
concrete filled column. Before cracks are
developed in the concrete core under the applied
UHSG
compression force, the value of Poisson’s ratio for
UHSG + 0.5%SF UHSC is found to be higher than NSC and thus the
UHSG + 1%SF concrete confinement effect for UHSC filled tubes
0.4 0.6
same stress ratio. The ductility and strength of
UHSC core, as well as NSC core, can be enhanced
due to the effective confinement of the steel tube.
(4) The ductility and strength of UHSC filled
composite columns can be further improved if
the load is imposed only on the concrete core
where tri-axial confinement effect is the
maximum or by adding at least 1% volume of
steel fibres into the core materials.
(5) UHSC filled steel tubular columns can achieve
ultra-high compression capacities, but their post
peak load behaviour is quite brittle, in
particularly when the steel contribution ratio is
low. To ensure sufficient ductility, the limitation
on minimum steel contribution ratio should be
increased to 0.30 or a minimum of 1% volume
of steel fibres should be added to the UHSC.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The research is sponsored by Densit Asia, Yongnam
Holdings Ltd and Continental Steel Pte Ltd, and funded
by A*STAR (Grant No. P0820166). Their financial
supports are gratefully acknowledged.
REFERENCES
Eurocode 3 (2005). Eurocode 3: Design of Steel Structures - Part 1-1:
General Rules and Rules for Buildings, European Committee for
Standardization, Brussels, Belgium.
Eurocode 4 (2004). Eurocode 4: Design of Composite Steel and
Concrte Structures - Part 1.1: General Rules and Rules for
Buildings, European Committee for Standardization, Brussels,
Belgium.
Gho, W.M. and Liu, D.L. (2004). “Flexural behaviour of high-strength
rectangular concrete-filled steel hollow sections”, Journal of
Constructional Steel Research, Vol. 60, No. 11, pp. 1681–1696.
Han, L.H. and Yao, G.H. (2003). “Behaviour of concrete-filled
hollow structural steel (HSS) columns with pre-load on the steel
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J.Y. Richard Liew and D.X. Xiong

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