Failure probability of reinforced concrete columns under stochastic loads

This paper deals with a technique to calculate the time-variant failure probability of reinforced concrete columns under the combined actions of bending moment and axial force when the applied loads are stationary or nonstationary stochastic processes. An outcrossing rate formulation is applied. Also the limit state surface for the structure is nonlinear. The technique presented is a simple approach suitable for checking the structural reliability of reinforced concrete columns. It avoids the use of multidimensional integration in the computation of the outcrossing rate; this is achieved by piecewise linearization of the limit state surface and the use of Gaussian processes. An example is given to illustrate the approach.