STABILITY OF BUILT-UP COLUMNS

The buckling of columns with finite shear stiffness such as built-up and laced columns is investigated. The methods of analysis associated with Engesser and Haringx are compared. The difference between the methods can be traced to the direction of the axial force and the shear force used in the analysis. It is concluded that when the usual shear stiffness of the column is used, the Engesser method is the correct one for columns modeled as continuous Timoshenko shear beams. The appropriate method to use for helical springs is not investigated. The effect of the shear stiffness on the column buckling load for the usual standard boundary conditions is also presented analytically, and in the form of graphs.