Design of normal- and high-strength concrete columns

Research by Khalil to verify and develop Beal's graphical method of bucklin g analysis confirms that Beal's method is accurate and effective, giving re sults which agree well with experimental data. The method provides a powerf ul analytical tool, allowing fast determination of the column capacity for a wide range of slenderness and loading conditions. It is used here to inve stigate the behaviour of normal- and high-strength concrete columns under b oth axial and eccentric loads and with a variety of slenderness ratios and reinforcement proportions. The results of this accurate analysis are used a s a benchmark for the assessment of code of practice design rules. Existing BS 8110 design rules are found to give poor agreement with both the theore tical analysis and experimental results. New design rules which give more c onsistent and accurate results are proposed.