Experimental and numerical investigation into the load-carrying capacity of aluminium alloy H-sectional stocky columns under axial compression

Aluminium alloys are being increasingly used in practical engineering as lightweight and highperformance building materials. An H-sectional stocky column is one of the most common aluminium alloy structures. Current design methodologies for H-sectional aluminium alloy stocky columns have not considered the contribution of the strain-hardening effect to the load-carrying capacities of the stocky column, which could result in underestimation of the capacities. In this study, a series of axial compression experiments including 12 aluminium alloy stocky columns are conducted to investigate the actual load-carrying capacities. The continuous strength method (CSM) is introduced to predict the load-carrying capacities of the aluminium alloy columns. Based on the comparison of load-carrying capacities obtained from the experimental investigation, CSM calculation, and code estimation, it is demonstrated that the CSM is more accurate for the loadcarrying capacity calculation of H-sectional aluminium alloy stocky columns than other methods. The results of this study can assist the future design of this type of member.