Article
Article
Structural stability
Article By:
Lui, Eric M. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York.
Last reviewed:January 2020
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.800390
A structure's ability to resist compressive stress without compromising its load-carrying capacity. When a structure is subjected to a sufficiently high compressive force (or stress), it has a tendency to lose its stiffness, experience a noticeable change in geometry, and become unstable. Examples of structural instability include the buckling of a column under a compressive axial force, the lateral torsional buckling of a beam under a transverse load, the sideways buckling of an unbraced frame under a set of concentric column forces, and the buckling of a plate under a set of in-plane forces. See also: Beam; Column; Loads, transverse; Stress and strain; Structural deflections; Torsion
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