Hybrid FRP-concrete-steel double-skin tubular columns: Cyclic axial compression tests

Hybrid FRP-concrete-steel double-skin tubular columns (hybrid DSTCs) are a new form of hybrid columns recently developed at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. A hybrid DSTC consists of an inner steel tube, an outer FRP tube and a concrete infill between the two tubes. Hybrid DSTCs possess many important advantages over existing column forms, including their excellent corrosion resistance and excellent seismic resistance. While a large amount of research has been conducted on the monotonic behavior of this novel form of columns, only a limited amount of work has been conducted on their behavior under cyclic loading. This paper presents the first experimental study on hybrid DSTCs under cyclic axial compression, with a particular emphasis on the effect of different cyclic loading schemes and on the behavior of the confined concrete. Hybrid DSTCs are shown by these tests to be very ductile under cyclic axial compression, with an envelope axial load-strain curve being almost the same as the axial load-strain curve of a corresponding DSTC under monotonic compression. It is also shown that repeated unloading/reloading cycles have a cumulative effect on the permanent strain and the stress deterioration of the confined concrete in hybrid DSTCs.