Compressive behaviour of concrete elliptical columns confined by single hoops

The compressive behaviour of short concrete members having elliptical cross-sections and confined with single steel hoops is investigated. An analytical model is given for calculation of the stress-strain curves of compressed members also including the valuation of the ultimate stress corresponding to formation of a complete failure plane in the concrete core. The model is able to evaluate the confining pressure due to steel hoops referring to a fictitious reduced area of the confined core and to the effective stresses in the hoops, which are variable along the perimeter; moreover, it makes it possible to determine the maximum compressive strength and the corresponding strain of the confined concrete member. The analytical results derived using the proposed approach are compared with experimental values available in the literature and also with the analytical results obtained by some existing models, showing good agreement.