CHAPTER 5

BUCKLING OF COMPRESSION
MEMBERS
Chapter 5 Buckling of compression members
5.1. Introduction to Effective length, radius of
gyration, slenderness ratio.
• The more general terms compression members are
sometimes used to refer to columns, walls, and
members in concrete trusses or frames.
• These may be vertical, inclined, or horizontal.
• A column is a special case of a compression member
that is vertical.
• Stability effects must be considered in the design of
compression members.
Chapter 5 Buckling of compression members
• If the moments induced by slenderness effects weaken a
column appreciably, it is referred to as a slender
column or a long column.
• The great majority of concrete columns are sufficiently
stocky that slenderness can be ignored.
• Such columns are referred to as short columns.
• The strength of the structure, i.e., its ability to support a
specified load should be without experiencing excessive
stress and the ability of the structure to support a
specified load must be without undergoing unacceptable
deformations.
Chapter 5 Buckling of compression members
• Buckling and Stability
• As the load is applied, the column will buckle; instead
of remaining straight, it will suddenly become sharply
curved.
 Chapter 5 Buckling of compression members
• Will the system return to its original equilibrium position, or
will it move further away from that position?
• In the first case, the system is said to be stable, and in the
second case, it is said to be unstable.
• Bucking is failure due to instability of a member or structure
under perfectly axial compression and without transverse load.
• It is a sudden large deformation of structures due to a slight
increase of existing load under which a structure had exhibited
little, if any, deformation before the load was increased.
• It is the result of unstable equilibrium
Chapter 5 Buckling of compression members
Chapter 5 Buckling of compression members
Chapter 5 Buckling of compression members
Chapter 5 Buckling of compression members
• Buckling load is the load at which buckling occurs.
For isolated elastic members it is synonymous with the
Euler load.
• Effective length is a length used to account for the
shape of the deflection curve; it can also be defined as
buckling length.
• The stability of the structure is the ability to support a
given load without experiencing a sudden change in its
configuration.
Chapter 5 Buckling of compression members
5.2. Euler’s theory, buckling and stability
• The expression of Euler’s formula:

• The critical stress is found as:

• The quantity Le/r is referred to as the effective slenderness ratio

of the column.
Chapter 5 Buckling of compression members
• 5.3. Derivatives for different boundary conditions
• The effective lengths corresponding to the various end
conditions are:
Chapter 5 Buckling of compression members
Chapter 5 Buckling of compression members
Example 1
• An aluminum column
made of 2 cm square bar
stock is loaded as a pin-
connected column.
Calculate the Euler critical
load for this column if the
length is 3 m. E = 70 GPa
Chapter 5 Buckling of compression members
Solution
• The moment of inertia of a solid square is:
 Chapter 5 Buckling of compression members
Example 2
• A 3m column with a cross section
shown below is constructed from
two pieces of timber. The timbers
are nailed together so that they act
as a unit. Determine
a) The slenderness ratio
b) The Euler buckling load(E=13
Gpa for timber)
c) The axial stress in the column
when the Euler load is applied
Chapter 5 Buckling of compression members
Chapter 5 Buckling of compression members
Chapter 5 Buckling of compression members

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