Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Journal of Constructional Steel Research

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jcsr

Experimental study of seismic behavior of confined CFST columns at

end zone
Peng Qin a, *, Xiaowei Li b, Yan Xiao c, Weijian Yi a, Renpeng Chen d
a
College of Civil Engineering, Hunan Provincial Key Lab on Damage Diagnosis for Engineering Structures, Hunan University, Changsha, China
b
College of Civil Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, China
c
Zhejiang University-University of Illinois Joint Institute, Zhejiang University, Haining, China
d
Research Center for Advanced Underground Space Technologies of Hunan University, Key Laboratory of Building Safety and Energy Efficiency of Ministry of Education,
College of Civil Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, China

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Keywords: In this paper, the seismic behavior of confined concrete-filled steel tube (CFST) columns was investigated
Concrete-filled steel tube (CFST) experimentally. Seven columns, including three conventional CFST columns and four CFRP confined CFST col­
CFRP-confined concrete-filled steel tube umns were tested subjected to cyclic loading under constant axial load. The effect of confined method and
(CCFST)
loading sequences on the hysteretic behavior (failure mode, degeneration performance, ductility and energy
Experiment of cyclic loading
dissipation) was studied. Experimental results indicated that appropriate confined method improves the seismic
Confined method
performance and mechanical property of concrete-filled steel tube. It was shown that two-direction confinement
method by setting cushion layer could largely increase the confined area and improve deformation of specimens.

1. Introduction performance.
Through the force analysis of the confined region in steel tube con­
Concrete-filled steel tube, owing to the synergistic interaction be­ crete, it is evident that additional lateral confinement results in a plastic
tween concrete and steel, possesses notable advantages such as high hinge region of the steel tube experiencing biaxial compressive stress,
load-bearing capacity, good ductility, excellent seismic performance, located in the third quadrant of the coordinate axis. In contrast, tradi­
and ease of construction. These merits led to its application in civil en­ tional steel tube concrete columns have their plastic hinge region steel
gineering over a century ago [1]. In the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake in tube subject to biaxial tensile-compressive stress states, situated in the
Japan, the damage to steel tube concrete structures was not significant, fourth quadrant of the coordinate axis. Clearly, the operational state of
prompting increased attention to their exceptional seismic performance, the confined steel tube concrete column is more effective [3]. Building
leading to widespread adoption in engineering. Following the 1995 upon this concept, many scholars initially conducted research on the
Great Hanshin Earthquake, the superior seismic resilience of steel tube axial compressive performance. The research results indicate that
concrete became even more apparent, resulting in extensive research additional confinement can significantly enhance the mechanical per­
and widespread application. However, research indicates that steel tube formance of circular section members. The load-carrying capacity in­
concrete column ends are prone to experiencing plastic flexural buckling creases with the addition of confinement fibers, while the ductility
under seismic forces, forming a“elephant leg”bucking. Furthermore, due decreases. The effectiveness of additional confinement on square section
to the internal concrete damage reducing the effective height, this ex­ members is limited, but it can improve their ductility performance
acerbates the damage to non-structural components, leading to insta­ [4–6]. To enhance the working efficiency of confinement materials,
bility in the structural hysteresis loading capacity [2]. Based on the Sundarraja and Prabhu [7–11] applied a strip spacing method for
failure characteristics of steel tube concrete, Xiao et al. [3] proposed the confining concrete-filled steel tubes. They proposed the correlation be­
concept of confined concrete-filled steel tube (CCFT) in 2003. The tween the quantity and spacing of carbon fiber reinforcements and the
design philosophy involves applying effective lateral confinement to the failure mode of the specimens. Based on experimental findings, Teng
critical zones of the steel tube concrete column or arch footings, con­ et al. [12] proposed an incremental iterative concrete active confine­
trolling local buckling of the steel tube to enhance its mechanical ment model to calculate the load-carrying capacity of CFRP-confined

* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: [email protected] (P. Qin).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcsr.2024.108579
Received 17 January 2024; Received in revised form 25 February 2024; Accepted 26 February 2024
Available online 2 March 2024
0143-974X/© 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

concrete-filled steel tube. This model provides a computational specimen fabrication process is as follows: Steel tubes are formed into
approach for assessing the structural performance. Building upon cylinders using a rolling machine, and then welded longitudinally using
existing research findings, the Nanjing Ring Expressway adopted the a groove weld to create straight-seam steel tubes. To ensure a rigid
structural form of FRP-constrained concrete-filled steel tubes [13]. This connection between the steel tube and the base plate, four rib plates are
marks the inaugural application of confined concrete-filled steel tubes in welded at the bottom end of the steel tube and perforated to allow the
practical engineering. With the extensive application of the confined reinforcement bars of the base to pass through, strengthening the
concrete-filled steel tube structural form, the seismic performance of this connection between the steel tube and the base plate. The base of the
system has drawn significant attention from scholars [14–17]. The specimen is made of reinforced concrete to ensure rigidity and prevent
additional confinement provided by fiber materials can effectively damage during testing, with ample reinforcement provided to meet
improve and delay the occurrence of elephant-leg type local buckling these requirements. For convenience of test loading, a reinforced con­
failure in concrete-filled steel columns under seismic loads. It addresses crete column head is designed at the top of the column. To ensure the
issues such as cyclic fatigue fractures at column ends and insufficient rigidity of the column head, ample reinforcement is provided in the
confinement of the core concrete, enhancing their seismic performance. reinforcement design. After the formation of the specimens, CFRP is
However, the experimental results from Qin [18,19] indicate that applied to the confined concrete-filled steel tube columns before testing.
adopting traditional fiber bonding methods can lead to inter-layer The fabrication details of the specimens are illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3.
damage of carbon fibers during the loading process, affecting the During the specimen fabrication process, to consider the impact of
effectiveness of confinement. This paper starts by studying the different confinement methods on structural performance, four bonding
confinement methods of concrete-filled steel tubes, compares the approaches were adopted (as shown in Fig. 4):
seismic responses of various confined specimens, and proposes the
optimal carbon fiber confinement method. (1) Directly paste four layers of horizontal carbon fiber sheets onto
the surface of the steel tube.
2. Experimental program (2) Adhere four layers of horizontal and vertical fibers alternately on
the surface of the steel tube. The vertical fibers do not contribute
2.1. Specimen design to the confinement effect; their presence is intended to enhance
the overall performance of the carbon fiber.
Under horizontal loads such as earthquakes and wind, the distribu­ (3) Incorporate a 1 mm-thick foam plastic layer between the steel
tion of loads and the stiffness distribution of different lateral resistance tube and carbon fiber as a cushioning layer to delay the
components play a crucial role in the structural performance. In frame involvement of carbon fibers, aiming to fully utilize the steel
structures, when the beam-column stiffness ratio is greater than 3, it can tube’s confining effect.
be assumed that the column’s flexural point is located at half the length (4) Comparing the restraining effects of carbon fiber and steel on the
of the column. In practical engineering, to meet seismic requirements, local buckling of the steel tube, two steel liners are placed on the
floor slabs are typically constructed using cast-in-place methods, cushioning layer. The steel liners, each consisting of 50 mm-high
resulting in very high in-plane stiffness. It can be approximately steel plates, are rolled into a circular ring along the circumference
considered that the in-plane stiffness is infinite. Hence, it can be of the specimen. The ring is then cut into three equal parts and
assumed that the beam stiffness is infinite, and the upper and lower arranged along the circumference. To ensure that the steel liners
cross-sections of the column ends in the plane essentially satisfy parallel do not generate circumferential constraint forces, a 150 mm gap
boundary conditions. Therefore, based on the symmetry of the structure, is maintained between the three segments of the circular ring,
half of the column height is selected as the model, creating a cantilever and the ends of the rings are perforated and connected with thin
column test model (as shown in Fig. 1) to simulate the functionality of steel wires to ensure they are in the same plane. Afterward, four
the entire frame column. layers of horizontal carbon fiber are applied.
A total of 7 concrete-filled steel tube specimens were designed, with
4 specimens having carbon fiber sheets bonded in the potential plastic Table 1 displays various parameters of the specimens, defined as
hinge zone (within a distance of 300 mm from the base [20]). The follows: “D” represents the diameter of the specimen; “t” represents the

Fig. 1. Moment diagram of frame column and simplified model.

2
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

400

250
500
250

200

1500
CFST
1500
2220

6#22@60
Ribbed plate
6#22@75

Reinforcing hole 6#22@60

420
Base
Bottom plate 420

600

2000

(a) (b)
Fig. 2. Detailed design drawing of the model column: (a) Steel tube processing details; (b) Detail drawing of reinforcement of member.

Fig. 3. Fabrication of confined concrete-filled steel tube column.

thickness of the steel tube; “L” represents the height of the specimen; and basically linear with that of single-layer carbon fiber. When calculating
“M” represents the method of specimen reinforcement. For the specimen the tensile strength of multiple layers of carbon fiber, it can be computed
numbering, “CFST” represents concrete-filled steel tube specimens, and using the following formula:
“CCFST” represents carbon fiber-constrained concrete-filled steel tube
ft = 0.95nft1 (1)
specimens; The first group of numbers represents the diameter-to-
thickness ratio. The first “S” indicates the loading regime as standard Where ft1 is the tensile strength layer of carbon fiber, and n is the
loading; “V” represents variable amplitude loading; “U” denotes unidi­ number of layers of carbon fiber, n ≥ 2.
rectional confinement; “D” represents bidirectional confinement in both
longitudinal and transverse directions; “G” represents the inclusion of a 2.3. Loading device and test method
cushion layer. The second “S” indicates the presence of non-load-bearing
rigid plates between the carbon fiber and the cushion layer. The experiment was conducted in the Structural Testing Laboratory
of Hunan University, using a self-developed device as shown in Fig. 6.
2.2. Material behavior The entire setup consists of a vertical loading section, a horizontal
restraining section, and a reaction steel frame section. The axial pressure
Table 1 displays the material test results for steel and concrete on the specimen is applied through two hydraulic jacks at the top of the
properties. The confinement material selected is carbon fiber with the column, while the lateral force is provided by the horizontal restraint
model HITEX-C300. Experiments were conducted with single-layer, device. Fig. 7 shows a photo of the loading device on-site.
double-layer, and longitudinally and transversely orthogonal configu­ According to the seismic design standard of “resistant to small
rations based on the confinement method. The failure modes are shown earthquakes, repairable after moderate earthquakes, and not collapsing
in Fig. 5, and the experimental results are presented in Table 2. From the during major earthquakes,” when a structure is subjected to near-field
experimental results, it can be observed that there is a small difference in seismic waves with significant velocity pulses, higher demands are
tensile strength between the single-layer test and the orthogonal test, placed on its structural response in terms of displacement. At the same
indicating that longitudinal carbon fibers do not provide circumferential time, when a structure is subjected to irregular low-cycle alternating
constraint forces. The tensile strength of double-layer carbon fiber is loads, there is a process from the small local damage of components to

3
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

Fig. 4. Reinforcement form: (a) Plane diagram of confined specimen; (b) Bidirectional carbon fiber; (c) Cushioning layer; (d) Cushioning layer and unstressed
steel sheet.

Table 1
Specimens parameters.
Specimen number D×t×L fy fcu,k N0 N0/Nu
(mm) (MPa) (MPa)

CFST61-S 336 × 5.47 × 1500 293 38.6 1300 0.21

CFST61-V 336 × 5.41 × 1500 293 37.9 1300 0.21
CFST94-S 336 × 3.56 × 1500 305 38.3 1000 0.18
CCFST94-S-U 336 × 3.58 × 1500 310 42.3 1000 0.17
CCFST93-S-D 336 × 3.60 × 1500 304 40.2 1000 0.18
CCFST96-S-GUS 336 × 3.51 × 1500 352 41.1 1000 0.17
CCFST95-S-GD 336 × 3.53 × 1500 298 45.4 1000 0.16

Notes: fy: Yield strength of steel tube; fcu,k: Standard compressive strength of
concrete cubes N0: The applied axial load; Nu: The design value of axial Fig. 5. Failure modes of carbon fiber: (a) Unidirectional fiber; (b) Double fiber
compressive load capacity of the specimens, calculated according to GB in the same direction; (c) Double layer heterotropic fiber.
50936–2014 [23].

Table 2
the overall collapse of the structure. That is, the structure undergoes
Carbon fiber force properties.
several or multiple cycles under elastic-plastic deformation conditions
before collapsing. This is the cumulative damage and failure of the Paste method t ft Et (MPa) εu (με)
(mm) (MPa)
structure during the loading process. In accordance with the relevant
provisions and requirements of the JGJ/T 101–2015 [21], and consid­ Single-layer fiber 0.167 3518 237,000 14,500
Double-layer fibers 0.324 6180
ering the reasons mentioned above, this study adopts two test loading – –
Bidirectional fibers 0.324 3419 – –
regimes to simulate different seismic force effects, as shown in Fig. 8.
The tests are conducted using displacement control, achieved by bi- Notes: t: The thickness of carbon fiber; fy: Tensile strength of carbon fiber; Et:
directional reciprocating loading with varying lateral displacement elastic modulus; εu : The ultimate strain of carbon fiber.
rates at the column ends to implement experimental control.
In accordance with the requirements of the JGJ/T 101–2015 [21],
the following provisions are made for the load and deformation char­
acteristics of the specimens:

4
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

hydraulic jacks
Loading beam
2×1500kN Horizontal actuator 500kN

Specimen

Reaction frame

Fig. 6. Loading device diagram.

Fig. 7. Field loading device diagram: (a) Front view; (b) Side view.

(1) The maximum horizontal load borne by the specimen during the steel tube. Define the S direction as the positive displacement and lateral
test, along with the corresponding horizontal displacement, is force direction; the N direction is defined as the negative displacement
defined as the maximum peak load and peak deformation. After and lateral force direction. Along the column height, regions are
reaching the peak deformation, the horizontal load of the spec­ numbered 1 to 8, where regions 1 to 5 correspond to the steel tube
imen decreases with an increase in the number of cycles. When surface, and regions 6 to 8 correspond to the carbon fiber surface. The
the horizontal load reaches 85% of the peak load, or when other carbon fiber strain gauges are positioned identically to the steel tube
factors that significantly affect the specimen’s load-bearing ca­ strain gauges. Strain gauges on the steel tube surface: No. 1 represents
pacity occur, it is considered that the specimen has reached the circumferential strain, No. 3 represents longitudinal strain, and No. 2
ultimate limit state. The corresponding load and deformation at shear strain is used to correct the longitudinal and circumferential
this point are defined as ultimate load and ultimate deformation. strains of the steel tube. On the carbon fiber surface, only circumfer­
(2) When the horizontal load on the specimen reaches the ultimate ential strain gauges are applied. This arrangement is used to measure the
load, it is considered that the specimen has experienced damage collaborative behavior between the steel tube and carbon fiber.
but has not lost its ability to continue bearing the load. To further Using freely rotating fisheye ball joints, four LVDTs are evenly ar­
study the seismic performance of the specimen, the test continues ranged in the circumferential direction of the specimen to measure the
until there is a significant degradation in the specimen’s hori­ curvature of the plastic hinge region. As shown in Fig. 10, this study
zontal load-carrying capacity (reaching 70% of the peak load), or primarily measures the average curvature of the confined section of the
until the specimen exhibits obvious damage, loses axial load- plastic hinge and the upper non-confined section of the plastic hinge.
bearing capacity, and the test is stopped. The testing height for both regions is set at 300 mm. The curvature
changes in these two areas reflect the deformation of the steel tube. The
Fig. 9 illustrates the measurement scheme for the specimens. Strain curvature in the measurement region is calculated using the following
gauges are arranged along the axial height and circumferential direction equation:
of the specimen to measure the axial and circumferential strains of the

5
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

Fig. 8. Experimental loading regime: (a) Standard loading regime; (b) Variable amplitude loading regime.

Strain zone of number 5

Strain zone of number 4

Strain zone of number 3 and 8



NO. 4 Strain of NO.1

Strain zone of number 2 and 7


Strain zone of number 1 and 6



NO. 1 NO. 3

N S
 

N S
Strain of NO.2

NO. 2 Strain of NO.3

Fig. 9. The strain gauge identification number for specimens: (a) Numbering along the column height zones; (b) Planar Identification Number; (c) Strain
Gauge number.

(Δ2 − Δ1 ) exhibited by specimens subjected to different seismic sequences. This

Φ= (2)
(2L + D)H also illustrates the limitation of the Park-Ang damage model, which
associates the ultimate hysteresis energy dissipation of specimens solely
Where Φ represents the curvature of the measurement region, Δ1 and
with the maximum displacement, independent of the defined loading
Δ2 are the displacement change values of the corresponding LVDTs on
path [22].
two sides. L represents the horizontal distance from the fisheye ball joint
To observe the failure of the core concrete, the steel tube of the CFST
to the steel tube wall; D is the diameter of the steel tube, and H is the
specimens were cut open, as shown in Fig. 12. For specimens subjected
vertical distance between the centerlines of the anchor rods.
to standard loading regime, the failure pattern of the core concrete is
generally consistent. Taking CFT61-S as an example, the failure range of
3. Experimental phenomena and analysis the core concrete is from 0 to 30 cm. In the plastic hinge region, where
significant bending moments are experienced, the concrete exhibits a
3.1. Failure characteristics of concrete-filled steel tube columns (CFST) powdered failure. Above the plastic hinge, the repeated tension-
compression actions during loading lead to surface spalling of the con­
CFST specimens subjected to different loading regimes exhibit crete. For specimen subjected to variable amplitude loading regime, the
distinct failure characteristics. CFST94-S and CFST61-S exhibit fatigue failure of the core concrete is concentrated at the plastic hinge location,
failure of the column-end steel tube, both showing the occurrence of exhibiting a powdered failure. This indicates that the failure of the core
“elephant leg” phenomenon. However, CFST61-V shows tensile tearing concrete is closely related to the loading regime. In comparison between
failure of the steel tube in the plastic hinge region at the bottom of the specimens subjected to standard loading regime and those subjected to
column. As shown in Fig. 11. From the experimental process, it can be variable amplitude loading, the former undergo more cyclic cycles, and
observed that the cyclic cycles and amplitudes of CFST61-V are lower the ultimate failure of the specimen is determined by the fatigue life of
than those of CFST94-S and CFST61-S. This indicates that there are the steel tube. With an increase in the number of cycles, the height and
significant differences in the failure modes and seismic performance

6
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

/ /

freely rotating fisheye ball joints

+ +
/ /
/9'7

+ +

(a)

(b)
Fig. 10. Curvature measurement of plastic hinge area: (a) Curvature measurement details; (b) LVDT layout.

extent of damage to the core concrete continuously grow. For specimens entire plastic hinge region underwent expansion deformation. Due to the
subjected to variable amplitude loading regime, the specimen undergoes presence of carbon fiber, additional confinement is provided to the
fewer cyclic cycles, resulting in less cumulative damage to the concrete. specimen, partially restraining the deformation of the steel tube in the
This concentrates the concrete failure mainly in the plastic hinge region, plastic hinge region. This increases the overall stiffness of the plastic
without extending significantly along the height. hinge region, transferring the energy acting on the confined area to the
non-confined area, resulting in local buckling of the steel tube in the
3.2. Failure characteristics of CFRP-confined concrete-filled steel tube non-confined region. But the bottom of the column bears the maximum
columns (CCFST) moment, and the steel tube fails first.

The fundamental failure process of confined concrete-filled steel tube 2. Failure mode of carbon fiber:
columns under seismic loads is: Local buckling of the steel tube in the
plastic hinge region→ Fiber rupture→ Fatigue fracture at the local Depending on the different confinement methods, the failure of
buckling site of the steel tube. The final failure mode of the confined carbon fiber mainly exhibits two types of failure modes: The first type of
specimens has similarities with the contrast specimen (CFST94-S), but failure is characterized by the interlayer rupture occurring after the
there are also differences. Due to variations in the confinement method, fracture of a single carbon fiber, ultimately forming a failure ring. This
the failure mode of the CFRP-confined concrete-filled steel tube differs. type of failure is mainly concentrated in specimens with unidirectional
The comparative analysis is as follows: confinement, namely CCFST94-S and CCFST96-S-GUS, as shown in
Fig. 14.
1. Local buckling of the steel tube in the plastic hinge region: The second type of failure is characterized by the rupture of carbon
fibers on the tension-compression face, with the rupture locations of
Fig. 13b) depicts the typical buckling deformation of the CFRP- each fiber being generally consistent. Eventually, this results in the
confined concrete-filled steel tube column. Compared to the contrast formation of vertical voids. This type of failure primarily occurs in
specimen, the confined specimen not only exhibits buckling failure at specimens with bidirectional confinement, as illustrated in Fig. 15. The
the bottom but also shows a more pronounced “elephant leg” phenom­ occurrence of these two failure modes is related to the manufacturing
enon in the non-confined region. Although the specimens are marked by process of carbon fibers. The existing manufacturing process allows
the local buckling and fracture of the bottom steel tube as signs of fail­ carbon fibers to withstand circumferential tension but is unable to
ure, it was observed during the experiment that the steel tube in the accommodate longitudinal deformation. This makes the longitudinal

7
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

Fig. 11. Failure condition of CFST specimens: (a) CFST61-S; (b) CFST94-S; (c) CFST61-V:S; (d) CFST61-V:N.

Fig. 12. Damage to the core concrete: (a) CFST61-S; (b) CFST61-V.

connections between fibers susceptible to damage. To address this issue, 3. The delayed effect of carbon fiber confinement:
two reinforcement methods are employed in this study: first, the use of
non-load-bearing steel plates to increase the load-bearing area of carbon Applying carbon fiber to the plastic hinge region of the specimen
fibers, namely specimen CCFST96-S-GUS; The other method is to bond aims to provide additional confinement to improve the mechanical
longitudinal fibers, making the entire confinement bidirectional in both performance. However, the traditional bonding method involves
the longitudinal and transverse directions, enhancing the connection directly attaching carbon fibers to the surface of the concrete-filled steel
force between fibers. This is illustrated in Fig. 4b), namely specimens tube. This results in the additional confinement exerting its effect when
CCFST93-S-D and CCFST95-S-GD. the steel tube begins to confine the concrete, limiting the full

8
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

Fig. 13. Comparison of steel tube buckling failure: (a) CFST specimens; (b) CCFST specimens.

Fig. 14. Interlayer rupture of carbon fiber: (a) CCFST94-S-U; (b) CCFT96-S-GUS.

Fig. 15. Carbon fiber fracture: (a) CCFST93-S-D; (b) CCFST95-S-GD.

effectiveness of the steel tube’s restraint. To delay the onset of additional displacement cycles. In this regard, the presence of the cushion layer can
confinement, this study added non-load-bearing foam plastic between effectively delay the time of carbon fiber cracking, enhance the
the carbon fiber and the steel tube. This approach ensures the full uti­ confinement capacity of carbon fibers, and improve the load-bearing
lization of the steel tube’s restraining effect while ensuring that the performance of the specimens.
additional confinement actively participates in the process in a timely
manner. Through experimental comparison, it was found that the car­ 4. Failure condition of the core concrete:
bon fiber cracking in specimens CCFST96-S-GUS and CCFST95-S-GD
with a cushion layer occurred at around 5% lateral displacement cy­ In order to compare the cracking and damage conditions of the
cles. In contrast, specimens CCFST94-S-U and CCFST93-S-D without a plastic hinge region of the core concrete in different specimens, the steel
cushion layer experienced carbon fiber cracking at around 4% lateral tubes were cut open after the test, as shown in Fig. 16.

9
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

Fig. 16. Core concrete damage: (a) CFST94-S; (b) CCFST94-S-U; (c) CCFST93-S-D; (d) CCFST96-S-GUS; (e) CCFST95-S-GD.

Fig. 16a) shows the failure of the core concrete in the plastic hinge 4. Test results and analysis
region of specimen CFST94-S. From the figure, it can be observed that
the concrete failure of this specimen mainly occurred at the bottom of 4.1. Lateral load- lateral displacement (P-Δ) relationship
the column, where the concrete was crushed. The concrete at other lo­
cations remained largely intact, with no apparent cracks observed. The lateral load-lateral displacement curves of the concrete-filled
Additionally, the interface between the concrete and the steel tube steel tube (CFST) specimens are illustrated in Fig. 17. Overall, the P-Δ
remained intact, and no sliding phenomenon was observed. curves of the specimens exhibit a full and spindle-shaped profile, indi­
Fig. 16b) to 16e) depict the core concrete failure scenarios of the cating excellent seismic energy dissipation capacity of the concrete-
constrained specimens. Overall, the core concrete at the bottom of each filled steel tube columns. Before yielding, the overall deformations of
specimen was completely crushed, with the confined region concrete the two specimens are relatively small, with little difference between the
remaining intact. The contact between the steel tube and concrete was in loading and unloading stiffness, resulting in an indistinct hysteresis
good condition, and no obvious slipping phenomenon was observed. loop. However, as the loading stiffness decreases, the curve exhibits a
However, the damage to the core concrete in the unconfined region noticeable necking phenomenon. In comparison to specimen CFST61-S,
varied depending on the confinement method. Specimens in Fig. 16b) specimen CFST61-V exhibits a pronounced decrease in loading stiffness
and 16d) were subjected to a unidirectional fiber confinement method. at the small deformation stage (1% lateral displacement), indicating its
In comparison to the bidirectional fiber confinement specimens earlier entry into the elastic-plastic phase. Residual deformation is
(Fig. 16c) and 16e)), the primary distinction lies in the different damage observed in the steel tube. Additionally, both the cyclic period and cyclic
observed in the unconfined region concrete: the bidirectional fiber displacement of specimen CFST61-V are smaller than those of specimen
confinement specimens exhibited a certain degree of damage in the CFST61-S, suggesting that undergoing a significant seismic event will
unconfined region core concrete. This suggests that the bidirectional significantly reduce its fatigue life and seismic performance.
orthogonal fiber confinement method is conducive to enhancing the The lateral load-lateral displacement curves of the CFRP-confined
overall confinement capability of carbon fibers in the plastic hinge zone concrete-filled steel tube specimens (CCFST) are illustrated in Fig. 18.
and, to some extent, expanding the working range of the plastic hinge From Fig. 18, it can be observed that the deformations of the confined
zone. concrete-filled steel tube specimens within the elastic range are essen­
In summary, the additional carbon fiber can effectively enhance the tially consistent with the contrast specimen. This is because the addi­
seismic performance of concrete-filled steel tube columns, but the im­ tional confinement has not yet come into play at this stage, and the steel
provement’s effectiveness depends on the confinement method. The tube in the plastic hinge zone remains mostly elastic, no significant
bidirectional confinement method with a cushioning layer introduced in expansion deformations have occurred. As the displacement and num­
this paper can enhance the overall restraining effect of carbon fibers, ber of cycles increase, the confining effect of carbon fiber on the speci­
thereby expanding the working range of the plastic hinge zone. mens continuously strengthen. During the unloading phase, the residual
deformation of the confined specimen is relatively small compared to
the reference column. The difference in deformation and the rate of load

10
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

Fig. 17. Lateral load- lateral displacement (P-Δ) relationships of CFST: (a) CFST61-V; (b) CFST61-S.

increase is not significant, resulting in a more complete P-Δ curve. the stiffness difference between the specimens is relatively small.
However, the differences among different confined specimens also However, in the reverse loading phase, the specimen subjected to vari­
become more noticeable. able amplitude loading exhibits a noticeable hardening stage. This is
Specimen CCFST94-S-U, confined with unidirectional fiber, exhibits because the specimen subjected to variable amplitude loading enters a
the most pronounced necking phenomenon in its P-Δ curve. This in­ plastic state in the first loading cycle, with cracking occurring in the
dicates that under the same loading conditions, specimen constrained tensile side concrete and both the tensile and compressive sides of the
with unidirectional fiber exhibit the most pronounced plastic deforma­ steel tube entering the yielding stage. During the reverse loading pro­
tion, essentially implying that the effectiveness of unidirectional fiber cess, lateral forces must first overcome the local deformation of the steel
confinement is the weakest. In comparison, the necking effect of spec­ tube under compression, leading to stiffness enhancement. It can also be
imen CCFST93-S-D is relatively minor. Although specimen CCFST93-S-D observed from Table 3 that for the specimen subjected to variable
exhibits expansion deformation in the plastic hinge zone, it does not amplitude loading, the yield displacement during reverse loading is
result in severe overall damage to the carbon fibers. The local defor­ significantly smaller.
mation of the steel tube is relatively small, and the plastic deformation of Table 3 presents the numerical values of various characteristic points
the core concrete is also relatively minor. Therefore, this specimen has a on the envelope curves of the confined specimens. Compared with the
half-cycle more in its cyclic period compared to the unidirectional fiber- contrast specimen, the yield displacement of the confined specimens is
constrained specimen. essentially the same. This indicates that the contribution of additional
As mentioned earlier, due to the stress and deformation character­ confinement to the steel tube in the elastic stage is limited. Specimens
istics of the steel tube and concrete, the time of carbon fibers providing CCFST94-S-U, CCFST93-S-D, and CCFST96-S-GUS exhibit ultimate
confinement is particularly crucial in improving the performance of displacement and bearing capacity that are generally consistent with the
confined concrete-filled steel columns. Specimens shown in Fig. 18c) contrast specimen. In contrast, specimen CCFST95-S-GD shows greater
and Fig. 18d) both utilized a cushioning layer to delay the time at which ultimate displacement and ultimate bearing capacity than the contrast
additional confinement comes into play. Through comparative analysis specimen. This indicates that carbon fibers maintain a good working
of the diagrams, it is evident that, whether in terms of cycle period and state in the elastic-plastic stage of the concrete-filled steel column.
amplitude or hysteresis necking, both have achieved quite satisfactory Simultaneously, the presence of the cushioning layer ensures coordi­
results. Especially in specimen CCFT95-S-GD, when the lateral nated deformation among the steel tube, concrete, and carbon fibers,
displacement reached 7%, the seismic performance was significantly fully exploiting their mutual interactions.
enhanced. The hysteresis loop appeared full and exhibited a distinct Fig. 20 presents a comparative chart of envelope curves for speci­
spindle shape, indicating excellent ductility and energy dissipation ca­ mens subjected to different confinement methods. The comparative re­
pabilities. There was minimal necking phenomenon during the sults indicate that the initial stiffness of each specimen within the elastic
unloading phase, effectively reducing stiffness degradation. range is essentially consistent, and the envelope curves are generally
straight lines. However, with changes in the confinement method, there
4.2. Lateral load- lateral displacement envelope curve is a gradual increasing trend in stiffness. As the specimens yield and
enter the elastic-plastic stage, there is not much change in the forward
The lateral load-displacement envelope curves of the CFST speci­ stiffness, but a significant strengthening stage appears in the reverse
mens are shown in Fig. 19. Positive load values indicate forward loading, and there are notable differences among the various con­
loading, while negative values indicate reverse loading. From Fig. 19, it strained specimens. Specimen CCFST94-S-U exhibits an envelope curve
can be observed that there is a certain difference in the forward load- that is essentially consistent with the contrast specimen, and their
carrying capacity between the two specimens. This is because spec­ bearing capacities are relatively close. Specimens CCFST93-S-D and
imen CFST61-V experienced earlier failure and underwent fewer cyclic CCFST96-S-GUS show a certain strengthening trend in the reverse
periods compared to specimen CFST61-S. Comparing the elastic stiffness loading phase, with an increase in ultimate load. Compared to the
of the specimens, it can be observed that in the forward loading phase, contrast specimen, specimen CCFST95-S-GD displays a noticeable

11
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

Fig. 18. Lateral load- lateral displacement (P-Δ) relationships of CCFST: (a) CFST94-S vs. CCFST94-S-U; (b) CFST94-S vs. CCFST93-S-D; (c) CFST94-S vs. CCFST96-S-
GUS; (d) CFST94-S vs. CCFST95-S-GD.

strengthening phenomenon in both forward and reverse loading,

resulting in a significant improvement in ultimate load and ductility.
The above results indicate that the additional confinement effect of
carbon fibers has little impact on the stress conditions of concrete-filled
steel tube in the elastic stage. The main influence is observed in the
elastic-plastic stage, which is consistent with the inherent stress char­
acteristics of concrete-filled steel tube. The addition of longitudinal fi­
bers, while not increasing the circumferential restraint force on the
specimen, can improve the overall stress state of the confining fibers,
preventing interlayer damage of the transverse force fibers. The addition
of a cushioning layer can delay the involvement of additional confine­
ment in the early loading stages, allowing the full utilization of the steel
tube’s confining effect.

4.3. Strength degradation curve

The strength degradation curve is an important indicator for

assessing the changes in strength and deformation performance during
Fig. 19. Lateral load- lateral displacement envelope curve of CFST. the cyclic loading process of specimens. It can not only determine the
strength degradation at each loading level but also evaluate the overall

12
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

Table 3
Loading characteristic points of the specimen.
Specimen number Yield point Peak point Limit point

Δy (mm) Py (kN) Δmax (mm) Pmax (kN) Δu (mm) Pu (kN)

12.8 172.4 45.0 244.8 90.0 197.9

CFST61-S
− 14.2 − 181.4 − 55.0 − 284.9 − 90.0 − 242.6
17.0 173.8 45.0 210.4 75.0 155.1
CFST61-V
− 9.3 − 173.5 − 45.0 − 279.7 − 75.0 − 257.9
10.7 163.4 43.6 224.0 91.2 186.3
CFST94-S
− 11.2 − 139.6 − 59.5 − 187.0 − 91.6 − 172.3
11.4 152.6 44.6 211.3 91.9 181.3
CCFST94-S-U
− 11.5 − 126.3 − 60.8 − 192.0 − 92.9 − 130.3
11.1 151.3 46.2 211.3 89.1 159.3
CCFST93-S-D
− 11.3 − 135.4 − 60.2 − 203.3 − 90.1 − 154.8
11.4 151.2 45.3 213.3 87.9 166.8
CCFST96-S-GUS
− 12.3 − 144.8 − 73.4 − 214.8 − 87.7 − 184.0
11.5 164.2 77.7 230.8 103.3 192.3
CCFST95-S-GD
− 11.4 − 151.7 − 76.0 − 222.3 − 100.6 − 161.0
P

P
P

Fig. 20. Lateral load- lateral displacement envelope curve of CCFST: (a) CFST94-S vs. CCFST94-S-U; (b) CFST94-S vs. CCFST93-S-D; (c) CFST94-S vs. CCFST96-S-
GUS; (d) CFST94-S vs. CCFST95-S-GD.

characteristics of strength degradation. The strength degradation coef­

Fji
ficient η at each loading level during the specimen loading process can ηj = (3)
be calculated using the following formula: Fj1

Fig. 21 depicts the comparative situation of strength degradation for

13
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

Fig. 21. Strength degradation curve: (a) CFST61-S vs. CFST61-V; (b) CFST94-S vs. CCFST94-S-U; (c) CFST94-S vs. CCFST93-S-D; (d) CFST94-S vs. CCFST96-S-GUS;
(e) CFST94-S vs. CCFST95-S-GD.

14
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

each specimen. In general, the strength degradation coefficient η of the stiffness could not fully recover. However, under small deformation
specimens decreases with the increase of displacement load. Due to the conditions, the deformations of both the steel tube and the core concrete
use of variable amplitude loading in specimen CTF61-V, not only is the were relatively small, leading to less noticeable stiffness degradation. As
displacement load reduced, but also a significant strength degradation the displacement increased further, the stiffness of the two specimens
occurs in the failure stage due to the tearing of the steel tube. As for became similar. The stiffness degradation curves of the confined speci­
CCFST specimens, the strength degradation coefficient of CCFST speci­ mens and the contrast specimen, as shown in Fig. 22 b) to e), exhibit
mens decreases gently before failure. Furthermore, through comparison similar overall profiles and basic characteristics. With the increase in
with the contrast specimen, it can be observed that the strength degra­ load and number of cycles, the degradation becomes evident. This in­
dation curve of CCFST specimens is more stable before failure. This in­ dicates that there is little difference in stiffness between the confined
dicates that the involvement of additional confinement can effectively concrete-filled steel tube columns and the contrast concrete column.
improve the stress performance of the steel tube and core concrete, From the graph, it can be observed that the slope of the positive stiffness
delaying the strength degradation of the specimen within a certain curve of the concrete-filled steel tube column is significantly greater
range, thereby enhancing its seismic performance. than that of the negative stiffness. This is because during the reverse
In the Fig. 21, another phenomenon can be observed: before the loading process, the tensile side of the steel tube and concrete experi­
specimen fails, the load-carrying capacity of the first loading in each enced the previous positive loading, leading to deformations and
cycle level is greater than the load-carrying capacity of the last loading cracking, resulting in a decrease in stiffness. The degradation curves of
in the previous cycle level. However, the stiffness of the specimen de­ the confined concrete-filled steel tube specimens effectively mitigate
creases with the increase in displacement and number of cycles (see the this phenomenon, and they vary with the change in confinement
next subsection). This indicates that the strength degradation of the methods, with specimen CCFST95-S-GD exhibiting the most notable
specimen does not rely solely on the degradation of stiffness. Analyzing improvement. Analyzing from the perspective of the force mechanism, it
from the perspective of the force mechanism, after the formation of the can be argued that the additional confinement comes into play, pre­
plastic hinge in the specimen, the rotation of the plastic hinge causes the venting the expansion deformation of the steel tube during deformation.
section to primarily undergo flexural deformation. As the section At the same time, it enhances the confined strength of the core concrete,
moment remains constant, repeated loading leads to continuous reducing the difference in stiffness degradation during both positive and
grinding and wear on the crack surfaces of the core concrete, resulting in negative loading processes. Furthermore, despite the contrast specimen
a gradual reduction in the interlocking effect of aggregates. With exhibiting significant stiffness effects under small deformation condi­
increased displacement and load, the deformation in the plastic hinge tions, as the displacement and load increase, their stiffness degradation
zone increases, the moment increases, and the crack surfaces experience becomes greater than that of the confined specimens under larger de­
slipping, forming new interlocking surfaces. Enhanced aggregate inter­ formations. For confined specimens, employing different confinement
locking results in increased load-bearing capacity. For confined speci­ methods also exhibits this characteristic in terms of stiffness variation.
mens, the lateral confinement of carbon fibers come into play after the This indicates that under seismic loading, confined concrete-filled steel
yielding of the specimens. With increasing displacement and load, the columns can more effectively utilize their ductility, primarily because
confining effect of carbon fibers on the steel tube strengthens, resulting the presence of additional confinement delays or hinders the deforma­
in an enhanced load-bearing capacity of the specimens. This leads to the tion of the steel tube, improving its stress performance and restricting
specimens’ strength being higher than the last loading of the preceding the development of cracks in the core concrete. When the bending cracks
cycle. However, in the later stages of loading, the tearing of carbon fibers in the core concrete reach a certain degree of development, the crack
causes the additional confinement to fail, resulting in steel tube failure. growth is limited only by increasing the width of the cracks until the
This phenomenon may become less noticeable or disappear. additional lateral confinement loses its restraining effect, allowing the
cracks to further develop.
4.4. Stiffness degradation curve
4.5. Specimen energy dissipation capacity
Under seismic loads, the stiffness degradation index of concrete-
filled steel tube columns is a crucial parameter affecting their seismic To express the energy dissipation capacity of the specimen, the
performance. In this study, the average stiffness K is employed to closed area formed by the loading curve and the displacement axis
examine the stiffness variation of each specimen, calculated using the represents the absorbed or dissipated energy, while the area enclosed by
following formula: the unloading curve and the displacement axis represents the released
∑
n energy. The total energy dissipated by the specimen can be represented
Fij by the hysteresis loop area for one loading cycle, as shown in Fig. 23.
i=1
Ki = ∑n (4) The area enclosed by ABCDA represents the total energy consumed by
Δij the specimen during that loading cycle. The equivalent viscous damping
coefficient β is used to measure the energy dissipation efficiency of the
i=1

Where Ki represents the average stiffness during the i-th loading specimen under each loading cycle. β satisfies the following equation,
cycle; Fij corresponds to the peak load during the j-th cycle of the i-th and a higher value indicates higher energy dissipation efficiency.
loading; Δij denotes the peak displacement during the j-th cycle of the i-
1 SABCDA
th loading, and n is the number of loading cycles. βi = ⋅ (5)
2π SΔOBE + SΔODF
The stiffness degradation of the specimens is shown in Fig. 22. The
stiffness degradation of CFST specimens is depicted in Fig. 22a). Spec­ Where β represents the energy dissipation coefficient during the i-th
imen CFST61-V, subjected to variable amplitude loading, exhibits lower loading cycle, SABCDA is the area enclosed by the hysteresis loop and
stiffness in the initial two lateral drift ratios compared to the specimen displacement during the i-th loading cycle (as shown in Fig. 23), and
CFST61-S subjected to standard loading. However, in the later stages, SΔOBE and SΔODF are the triangular areas formed by the peak load and
the stiffness degradation of the two specimens is not significantly displacement during the i-th loading cycle.
different. This is because specimen CFST61-V experienced a large Fig. 24 presents the total energy dissipation of each specimen. For
displacement amplitude in the first loading, causing significant defor­ CFST specimens, those subjected to variable amplitude loading exhibit
mation in the steel tube and cracking in the core concrete. As a result, significantly lower energy dissipation capacity than those subjected to
there was substantial stiffness degradation. Even when the displacement standard loading procedures. This indicates that the seismic perfor­
amplitude decreased in subsequent loading cycles, the specimen’s mance of the structural columns is significantly reduced under near-field

15
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

Fig. 22. Stiffness degradation curve: (a) CFST61-S vs. CFST61-V; (b) CFST94-S vs. CCFST94-S-U; (c) CFST94-S vs. CCFST93-S-D; (d) CFST94-S vs. CCFST96-S-GUS;
(e) CFST94-S vs. CCFST95-S-GD.

16
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

dissipation coefficients are essentially equivalent, and the curves of the

confined specimens and the contrast specimen overlap. With increasing
displacement, the energy dissipation coefficients of the confined speci­
mens show a significant increase at a lateral drift of 2%. At this point, the
steel tube exhibits noticeable expansion deformation, and the additional
confinement starts to take effect. This clearly demonstrates the contri­
bution of additional confinement to the energy dissipation capacity of
the specimens. Upon comparing specimens with different confinement
methods, it is observed that the energy dissipation coefficient of spec­
imen CCFST94-S-U is the smallest. This is primarily attributed to the fact
that this specimen is confined unidirectionally by fibers. When the fibers
fracture, localized buckling of the steel tube mainly occurs at the fiber
failure location. In contrast, specimens subjected to other confinement
methods exhibit comprehensive fiber failure, enhancing the overall
restraining capability of the fibers. This facilitates the transfer of energy
from the confined region of the steel tube to the unconfined region,
increasing the deformation range of the steel tube. Consequently, there
is a noticeable increase in plastic energy dissipation, thereby raising the
Fig. 23. Hysteretic energy dissipation curve. energy dissipation coefficient.

4.6. Curvature analysis

Fig. 26 presents the experimental moment-curvature relationships

for the plastic hinge confinement zone and the upper non-confined zone
of typical specimens. The curvature was obtained through LVDT-
collected displacement data calculated using Eq. (2). A comparison re­
veals that the curvature of the plastic hinge zone in the CFST specimen
increases rapidly with the growth of displacement, while the upper part
of the plastic hinge zone generally exhibits a linear relationship, as
shown in Fig. 26 a). For the confined specimens without a cushion layer,
the necking effect in the moment-curvature curves of the plastic hinge
zone has been somewhat improved, with curvature growth smaller than
that of the CFST specimen. However, in the upper non-confined zone of
the plastic hinge, the curvature increases rapidly. Especially, specimen
CCFST93-S-D exhibits a noticeable deviation in the curvature of the
upper part, indicating that the additional confinement of carbon fibers
has altered the force transmission path of the steel tube, significantly
affecting its deformation capacity.
Fig. 24. The total energy dissipation of specimens. Fig. 27 shows a comparison of curvature-displacement for typical
specimens. From the figure, it can be observed that the involvement of
seismic actions. Furthermore, the graph also provides a comparison of additional confinement has a significant impact on the deformation of
the total energy dissipation between CCFST specimens and contrast the non-confined zone of the steel tube. Regardless of the confinement
specimen. As seen in Fig. 24, the total energy dissipation of the con­ method used, the curvature of the specimens increases significantly with
strained specimens is consistently greater than the energy dissipation the growth of displacement, surpassing that of the CFST specimen.
capacity of the reference columns. This indicates that the additional Among them, the unbuffered unidirectional fiber-restrained specimen
confinement provided by carbon fibers effectively enhances the energy has the smallest curvature growth, indicating the limited effectiveness of
dissipation capacity of the specimens, improving their seismic perfor­ traditional unidirectional fiber restraint. Among them, the unidirec­
mance. Through the comparison of cumulative energy dissipation in tional fiber-confined specimen without cushion layer has the smallest
constrained specimens, it is evident that different confinement methods curvature growth, indicating the limited effectiveness of traditional
have a significant impact on the energy dissipation capacity of the unidirectional fiber restraint. The bidirectional fiber-confined specimen
specimens: CCFST94-S-U shows a 9.5% increase compared to the without a cushion layer shows the greatest curvature variation, and
contrast specimen, while CCFST93-S-D and CCFST96-S-GUS exhibit significant residual deformation is observed after the buckling defor­
similar increments of 25.8% and 25.6%, respectively. CCFST95-S-GD mation of the steel tube. The curvature and displacement of specimen
demonstrates the highest increase, reaching a proportion of 68%. The CCFST95-S-GD exhibit a linear relationship, indicating that the bidi­
above comparative results indicate that the confinement method using rectional fiber confinement with a cushion layer is most effective in
bidirectional carbon fibers with a cushioning layer can substantially improving the deformation performance of the steel tube. In terms of the
enhance the energy dissipation capacity of the concrete-filled steel tube curvature variation in the plastic hinge zone, the curvature values of the
columns, further improving their seismic performance. confined specimens are smaller than those of the contrast specimen,
Fig. 25 compares the relationship between the energy dissipation suggesting that the additional carbon fiber confinement has reduced the
coefficient and lateral drift for CCFST specimens and the CFST specimen. deformation of the steel tube to some extent.
The comparative results indicate that in the early stages of loading, the
confining effect of carbon fibers are not prominent due to the small 4.7. Comparison of test results with calculated values from the codes
plastic deformation of the specimen. This results in a minimal difference
in deformation between the steel tube and core concrete of the confined This paper compares the test results with the specified load-carrying
specimens compared to the contrast specimen. Therefore, the energy capacity calculations in the current Chinese code (GB 50936–2014)
[23], the American steel structure code (AISC 360–22) [24], and the

17
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

Fig. 25. Comparison of energy dissipation of specimens: (a) CFST94-S vs. CCFST94-S-U; (b) CFST94-S vs. CCFST93-S-D; (c) CFST94-S vs. CCFST96-S-GUS; (d)
CFST94-S vs. CCFST95-S-GD.

European code (EC4) [25]. 5. Conclusion

The experimental flexural load is calculated according to the
following formula: This study conducted low-cycle reciprocating tests on three CFST
specimens to investigate the influence of loading regimes on their
Mexp = PL + NΔmax (6)
seismic performance. Building upon these findings, seismic tests were
Comparisons between the test results of specimens and predicted conducted on four CFRP-confined CFST columns, analyzing the differ­
values by codes are shown in Table 4, in which Mexp represents the ences in force mechanisms and seismic performance indicators resulting
experimentally measured ultimate bending moment strength of the from various confinement methods. The following conclusions were
specimens. MGB, MAISC, and MEC are the moment strength predicted drawn:
using the current GB 50936–2014, AISC 360–22 and EC4 code pro­
visions. The purpose of the comparison is to assess the accuracy of the (1) Under seismic loads, concrete-filled steel tube columns typically
current specifications in predicting the flexural load-carrying capacity of experience local buckling failure of the steel tube, known as
both CFST specimens and CCFST specimens. In this paper, the axial “elephant leg” failure. However, different loading protocols can
compression ratio for CFST specimens is 0.21, while for CCFST speci­ result in variations in the failure modes of both the steel tube and
mens, it is 0.17. The comparative results indicate that the bending the core concrete.
moment predicted by the EC4 code is fairly accurate, while the pre­ (2) The additional confinement provided by CFRP can effectively
dictions from the Chinese code and the American code are more con­ improve the local buckling of the steel tube, thereby enhancing
servative. The provisions of the American code significantly the structural performance of the specimen. However, the effec­
underestimate the flexural strength of the specimens. All three codes tiveness of this improvement depends on the method of
exhibit conservative predictions for the CCFST95-S-GD specimen. confinement. Through comparison, it is found that the

18
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579
M

Fig. 26. The experimental moment-curvature relationships: (a) CFST94-S; (b) CFST94-S-U; (c) CCFST96-S-GUS; (d) CCFST95-S-GD.

bidirectional fiber confinement method with a cushion layer can Regardless of the confinement method used, the curvature
prevent local interlayer damage of the transverse carbon fibers, growth with increasing displacement is noticeably higher than
enhance the overall working capacity of the carbon fibers, and that of the steel tube-concrete column. In specimen CCFST93-S-D,
increase the working range of the plastic hinge zone, achieving there is a noticeable deviation in the curvature of the upper part,
optimal confinement effects. suggesting that the presence of bidirectional confinement can
(3) The use of the bidirectional confinement method with a cushion effectively improve the force transmission path of the steel tube.
layer significantly increases the specimen’s cyclic cycles and For specimen CCFST95-S-GD, the curvature shows a linear rela­
improves the necking effect of the P-Δ curve. Through the tionship with displacement, indicating that the bidirectional fiber
introduction of parameters such as strength degradation coeffi­ confinement with a cushion layer provides the optimal
cient, stiffness degradation coefficient, energy dissipation coef­ improvement in the deformation of the steel tube.
ficient, etc., the seismic performance of different specimens was (5) The comparison between experimental results and code calcula­
analyzed. A comparison revealed that the bidirectional fiber tions indicates that the Chinese code and EC4 code can reason­
confinement method with a cushion layer can greatly enhance ably predict the flexural load-carrying capacity of the specimens,
the specimen’s load-bearing capacity and energy dissipation ca­ but the predicted results tend to be conservative. The provisions
pacity, with the latter increasing by up to 68%, further improving of the American code significantly underestimate the load-
the specimen’s ductility. carrying capacity of the specimens. For the prediction of spec­
(4) The comparison of curvature between the plastic hinge confine­ imen CCFST95-S-GD, all three codes exhibit conservative results.
ment zone and the upper non-confined zone indicates that the
involvement of additional confinement has a significant impact
on the deformation of the non-confined zone of the steel tube.

19
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

Fig. 27. Comparison of curvature-displacement for typical specimens: (a) Curvature of the upper position of the plastic hinge; (b) Curvature of the plastic
hinge position.

[3] Y. Xiao, W.H. He, X.Y. Mao, et al., Confinement design of CFT columns for
Table 4 improved seismic performance, in: Proceedings of the International Workshop on
Comparisons between the test results of specimens and predicted values by Steel and Concrete Composite Construction (IWSCCC-2003), Taipei, R. China,
codes. 2003, pp. 217–226.
[4] Z. Tao, L.H. Han, Behaviour of fire-exposed concrete-filled steel tubular beam
Specimen number Mexp Mu/MGB Mu/MAISC Mu/MEC columns repaired with CFRP wraps, Thin-Walled Struct. 45 (1) (2007) 63–76.
[5] Z. Tao, L.H. Han, L.L. Wang, Compressive and flexural behaviour of CFRP-repaired
CFST61-S 425.70 1.34 3.17 1.12 concrete-filled steel tubes after exposure to fire, J. Constr. Steel Res. 63 (8) (2007)
CFST61-V 374.10 1.16 2.82 1.12 1116–1126.
CFST94-S 379.60 1.57 4.22 1.09 [6] Z. Tao, Z.B. Wang, L.H. Han, et al., Fire performance of concrete-filled steel tubular
CCFST94-S-U 361.55 1.66 3.72 1.15 columns strengthened by CFRP, Steel Compos. Struct. 11 (4) (2011) 307–324.
CCFST93-S-D 363.15 1.40 3.81 1.17 [7] M.C. Sundarraja, G.G. Prabhu, Experimental study on CFST members strengthened
CCFST96-S-GUS 365.25 1.41 3.37 1.14 by CFRP composite under compression, J. Constr. Steel Res. 72 (1) (2012) 75–83.
CCFST95-S-GD 423.90 1.73 4.57 1.21 [8] G.G. Prabhu, M.C. Sundarraja, Behaviour of concrete filled steel tubular (CFST)
short columns externally reinforced using CFRP strips composite, Constr. Build.
Mater. 47 (2013) 1362–1371.
[9] M.C. Sundarraja, G.G. Prabhu, Behaviour of CFST members under compression
CRediT authorship contribution statement
externally reinforced by CFRP composites, J. Civ. Eng. Manag. 19 (2) (2013)
184–195.
Peng Qin: Writing – review & editing, Supervision, Methodology, [10] M.C. Sundarraja, S. Sivasankar, Behaviour of CFRP iacketed HSS tubular members
under compression an experimental investigation, J. Struct. Eng. (India) 39 (5)
Conceptualization. Xiaowei Li: Writing – original draft, Validation,
(2013) 574–582.
Methodology, Investigation. Yan Xiao: Writing – review & editing, [11] M.C. Sundarraja, G.G. Prabhu, Investigation on strengthening of CFST members
Conceptualization. Weijian Yi: Writing – review & editing, Conceptu­ under compression using CFRP composites, J. Reinf. Plast. Compos. 30 (15) (2011)
alization. Renpeng Chen: Writing – review & editing, 1251–1264.
[12] J.G. Teng, Y.M. Hu, T. Yu, Stress-strain model for concrete in FRP-confined steel
Conceptualization. tubular columns, Eng. Struct. 49 (2013) 156–167.
[13] C.L. Zhai, Y. Wei, G.F. Li, X. Cao, Design and application research on FRP-steel
composite tube concrete bridge piers, Highway 1 (2012) 83–87.
Declaration of competing interest [14] X.Y. Mao, Y. Xiao, Seismic behavior of confined square CFT columns, Eng. Struct.
28 (10) (2006) 1378–1386.
[15] Z. Tao, L.H. Han, J.P. Zhuang, Cyclic performance of fire-damaged concrete-filled
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial steel tubular beam-columns repaired with CFRP wraps, J. Constr. Steel Res. 64 (1)
interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence (2008) 37–50.
the work reported in this paper. [16] C. Zhu, Y. Zhao, D. Wang, Numerical study on concrete filled GFRP-steel tube
under cyclic loading, Adv. Mater. Res. 368-373 (2012) 1003–1009.
[17] T. Yu, M.Y. Hu, et al., FRP-confined circular concrete-filled steel tubular columns
Data availability under cyclic axial compression, J. Constr. Steel Res. 94 (1) (2014) 33–48.
[18] P. Qin, Y. Xiao, Behavior of CFRP Confined Circular Concrete-Filled Steel Tube
Columns, in: Proceedings of the 10th International Conference on Advances in
Data will be made available on request.
Steel Concretes Composite and Hybrid Structures, Singapore, 2012, pp. 597–604.
[19] P. Qin, Y. Xiao, Y. Zhou, et al., Experimental study on low-cycle reversed loading of
Acknowledgment confined steel tube concrete columns, Earthq. Eng. Eng. Dynam. 33 (5) (2013)
190–196.
[20] Y. Xiao, W. He, K. Choi, Confined concrete-filled tubular columns[J], J. Struct. Eng.
The authors sincerely acknowledge the financial support provided by 131 (3) (2005) 488–497.
the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NO. 52090082). [21] JGJ/T 101–2015, Code for seismic testing of buildings, in: Ministry of Housing and
Urban-Rural Development, People’s Republic of China, 2015.
[22] Y.H. Chai, K.M. Romstad, S.M. Bird, Energy-based linear damage model for high-
References intensity seismic loading, J. Struct. Eng. ASCE 121 (5) (1995) 857–864.

[1] S.T. Zhong, The Concrete-Filled Steel Tubular Structures, Tsinghua University
Press, 2003.
[2] K. Sakino, M. Tomii, Hysteretic behavior of concrete filed square steel tubular
beam- columns failed in flexure, Trans. Japan Concrete Inst. 3 (1981) 65–72.

20
P. Qin et al. Journal of Constructional Steel Research 216 (2024) 108579

[23] GB 50936–2014, Technical Code for Concrete Filled Steel Tubular Structures, [25] Eurocode 4, Design of Composite Steel and Concrete Structures. Part 1.1, General
Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, People’s Republic of China, Rules and Ruless for Buildings (with UK National Application Document), British
2014. Standards Institution, London, 2004.
[24] AISC 360–22, Specification for Structural Steel Buildings, American Institute of
Steel Construction, Chicago, Illinois, August 1, 2022.

21