Short Steel Thin-walled Columns Subjected to Eccentric Axial Loads

A simple analytic solution for the stresses and displacements of short thin-walled columns of open bisymmetric cross-sections subjected to eccentric axial loads is proposed. The theory of bending and torsion with influence of shear is applied. An analytic closed form solutions are obtained both for the stresses and displacements. The normal stresses are expressed by the compression component, the bending components in two principal planes and the torsion component with respect to the principal pole (the shear centre). The displacements are expressed with respect to the principal axes and the principal pole. The deflections and the angle of torsion are given by the bending and torsion components according to the classical theories of bending and torsion [8] and the additional components due to shear in bending and torsion according to the theory of bending and torsion with influence of shear [4, 6]. The results are compared and discussed to the results of the finite element analyses by using shell elements.