Browsing by Author "Vasquez, Jorge"

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    A Simple Stepped-Column Buckling Model and Computer Algorithm
    (AMER INST STEEL CONSTRUCTION, 2011) Vasquez, Jorge; Riddell, Rafael
    The paper presents a solution to the problem of obtaining the effective length ratios needed for the design of stepped columns. The formulation of a discrete model is presented, and a numerical algorithm is implemented to solve it as a matrix eigenvalue problem. The method is an alternative to using tabulated results, which have been obtained from closed-form solutions for a number of ideal boundary conditions, which in most practical cases is cumbersome and almost always unpredictably inaccurate. A MATLAB coding of the algorithm is provided, and examples illustrating its use are included.