Equivalent RHS approach for the design of EHS in axial compression or bending

The use of steel elliptical hollow sections (EHS) has grown steadily, but the implementation of EHS has been done without appropriate design guidelines or procedures. A pragmatic objective has been to develop a section conversion method to transform the EHS into an equivalent shape for which design equations and guidelines already exist. This paper further explores the equivalent RHS (rectangular hollow section) approach for member design. By using the equivalent RHS approach to convert the EHS into an equivalent RHS, the validity of existing RHS cross-section classification limits and member design equations are demonstrated for EHS columns subjected to axial compression that buckle about the major axis and the minor axis, and EHS beams subjected to bending about the major axis and the minor axis. The equivalent RHS approach is a single consistent and rational procedure, and it is shown to be a viable method for designing EHS compression members and flexural members.