Axial-flexural interaction in circular FRP-confined reinforced concrete columns

External confinement by fibre reinforced polymers (FRPs) is now a widely implemented technique to strengthen reinforced concrete (RC) columns. To date, the vast majority of experiments on FRP-confined concrete have considered short, unreinforced, small scale concrete cylinders, with aspect ratios of less than three and tested under concentric axial load. In practice, RC columns invariably have aspect ratios larger than three and are subjected to inadvertent load eccentricities or combined axial-flexural (P-M) loading. Limited available research suggests that the effectiveness of FRP confinement is reduced under P-M loading. This paper presents the results of a systematic test program on circular FRP-confined RC columns of realistic slenderness under eccentric axial loads to study the mechanics and performance of these types of members. Test data are compared against theoretical P-M interaction diagrams, as well as against recently published design guidelines for P-M interaction in FRP-confined RC columns. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.