Characteristics of Columns with Uncertain End Restraint
Publication: Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 116, Issue 6
Abstract
This paper develops exact and approximate probabilistic characteristics of the buckling strength of end‐restrained metal columns. The exact probability density function of the strength is developed from the transcendental equation that governs the buckling condition by nonlinear transformation of random variables. It can only be evaluated by numerics. On the other hand, closed‐form solutions can be obtained if the transcendental equation is approximated by a smooth and differentiable analytic function. A simple analysis procedure based on this approximation is proposed to predict the strength of metal columns with uncertain end restraints. The procedure uses the conventional effective length factor for columns and incorporates the mean and standard deviation of the end restraint in formulation. The end restraint is modeled with two identical rotational springs at the ends of the column. The spring constant for these springs is assumed to be a Weibull‐distributed random variable with known parameters. Results in this work show that the characteristics of the column strength, such as the mean and standard deviation, vary significantly with the degree of uncertainty of the end restraint. It is assumed in this work that the column is slender and free of imperfections and residual stresses.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 116 • Issue 6 • June 1990
Pages: 1522 - 1534
Copyright
Copyright © 1990 ASCE.
History
Published online: Jun 1, 1990
Published in print: Jun 1990
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