Effect of Concrete Age and Creep on the Behavior of Concrete-Filled Steel Tube Columns

Abstract

The influence of concrete age and creep on the ultimate axial loading capacity of concrete-filled steel tube (CFST) columns is experimentally and numerically investigated. After validation of numerical models, a parametric study is conducted and the results are used to formulate empirical formulas for predicting the ultimate axial load-bearing capacity of the columns. Formulas are also proposed for predicting both the composite creep and aging coefficients of the CFST columns, which consider the confinement action of steel tubes on concrete. Then, the proposed formulas are validated independently by comparing their predictions with existing test results performed by other researchers. The comparisons show that the empirical formulas have the potential to be used in the practical design of CFST columns.