ABSTRACT
The trends illustrated by the yardstick example are true for any column: the longer or thinner the column. the easier it is to cause the column to fail by buckling. The shorter or thicker the column. the more likely it is to fail by crushing. Most columns fall somewhere between the two extremes and fail due to a combination of buckling and crushing. Fe' the base allowable design value for compressive stress, represents only the crushing strength of a material. It must be adjusted for the un braced length of the column relative to its weakest axis. Structural engineers have spent many years attempting to formulate equations which accurately correlate material and section properties to column failure.
