Axial Compression Performance of Square Thin Walled Concrete-Filled Steel Tube Stub Columns with Reinforcement Stiffener under Constant High-Temperature

This study investigated the axial compressive performance of six thin-walled concrete-filled steel tube (CFST) square column specimens with steel bar stiffeners and two non-stiffened specimens at constant temperatures of 20 °C, 100 °C, 200 °C, 400 °C, 600 °C and 800 °C. The mechanical properties of the specimens at different temperatures were analyzed in terms of the ultimate bearing capacity, failure mode, and load–displacement curve. The experiment results show that at high temperature, even though the mechanical properties of the specimens declined, leading to a decrease of the ultimate bearing capacity, the ductility and deformation capacity of the specimens improved inversely. Based on finite element software ABAQUS, numerical models were developed to calculate both temperature and mechanical fields, the results of which were in good agreement with experimental results. Then, the stress mechanism of eight specimens was analyzed using established numerical models. The analysis results show that with the increase of temperature, the longitudinal stress gradient of the concrete in the specimen column increases while the stress value decreases. The lateral restraint of the stiffeners is capable of restraining the steel outer buckling and enhancing the restraint effect on the concrete.