Guide to Design of RCC Columns

Reinforced Concrete Columns

A column is a very important component in a structure. It is like the legs on which a structure stands. It is designed to resist axial and lateral forces and transfer them safely to the footings in the ground.

You can manually calculate the superimposed loads on a column in a structure using a simple process outlined in this linked article.

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Columns support floors in a structure. Slabs and beams transfer the stresses to the columns. So, it is important to design strong columns.

Reinforced Cement Concrete Column Plan and Section
Reinforced Cement Concrete Column Plan and Section

A column is defined as a compression member, the effective length of which exceeds three times the least lateral dimension. Compression members whose lengths do not exceed three times the least lateral dimension, may be made of plain concrete.

The axial load carrying capacity of a column is deduced from the formula

axialload
Please see the link for formulas to calculate axial loads in columns. I would recommend using advanced structural design software like ETabs or Staad Pro for design of structures. Column design does not depend only on axial loads, but also on many other factors. There are bending moments and tortional forces induced due to beam spans, wind loads, seismic loads, point loads and many other factors.

In this article, we are going to discuss in detail the basis of classification of columns and different types of reinforcement required for a certain type of column.

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