COLUMNS

Mechanics of Material

Topics
Buckling and stability

Critical Load
Ideal Column with Pin Supports
Columns Having Various Supports

BUCKLING AND STABILITY

CRITICAL LOAD

Bars Under Axial Compression - Buckling

Euler, Leonard (1741)
For bars or columns under compressive loading, we may witness a sudden
failure, known as buckling.

This is a form of instability.

Consider load, P, plotted against

horizontal displacement, v.
Point of Bifurcation

Short, Thick

Long, Slender

Consider a long slender bar under axial compression:

y
v

P
y
x

P
L

Mxz=-P.v

From the Engineering Beam Theory:

d2 v
EI z 2 Mxz P v
dx
d2 v
EI z 2 P v 0
dx
Let

P

EI z
2

d2 v
2

v0
2
dx

Euler Equation

d
b

d2 v
2

v0
2
dx

General Solution:

Boundary Conditions:

v A Sinx B Cosx

(i) @ x=0

v0

(ii) @ x=L

v0
dv)
0
dx

(Also, (iii) @x=L/2,

0 A Sin 0 B Cos 0

From (i):

B0

v A Sinx
From (ii):

0 A SinL

If A=0, v=0 for all values of x

(i.e. The bar remains straight NO BUCKLING)

If A=0, then Sin L=0

L 0, , 2 , 3 , ...

The Lowest Real Value:

Since

P
2

EI z

PC
2
L
EIz

Where PC is the Critical or Euler Buckling Load.

For buckling (i.e. at point of bifurcation):
P

PC

L 2

2EI z
L2

(Iz is the smallest 2nd

Moment of Area)

P
v

L
P

Points of
Bifurcation

4 2EI z
PC
L2
PC

2EI z
L2

P
C C
A

Let

2 EI z
AL2

L
Iz
Let rz (Radius of Gyration)
, and S (Slenderness Ratio)
rz
A
2

2
L
S2 2
rz

S2

Unstable

Yield

Short,
Thick

2 E

Empirical
Euler Stress
Material
Yielded

Long,
Slender

Stable
S

End Constraints:

Free or Pinned Ends

P

PC

L
L/2

2 EI z
L2

Fixed Ends

P
L
2L

4 2 EI z
PC
L2
One End Free
& One End Fixed

P
L

P
L

4L2

One End Pinned

& One End Fixed

2L

PC

2 EI z

22 EI z
PC
L2

Example: Find the shortest length L of a Pin-Ended strut, having a

cross-section of 60mm x 100mm for which the Euler
Equation applies. Assume E=200 Gpa and Yield=250 MPa

Euler Eqn.,
Iz

Min. value,

i.e. Iz

Yd

100 60

12

AL2
1.8 10 6 mm4

2 200 109 1.8 106

250 10 0.1 0.06

6

Euler
Theory

=250 MPa

2 EI z

Note:

90

L
rz

1.54 m

Iz
& r
A
2
z

1.54
1.8 10
0.1 0.06

90

COLUMN WITH PIN

SUPPORT

COLUMN HAVING VARIOUS

TYPE OF SUPPORT