ABSTRACT
This paper addresses thick-walled composite tubes under axisymmetric loading (axial
and torsional). A thick-walled tube is manufactured from glass/epoxy composite
material, having thickness to outer diameter ratio greater than 0.1. For this highly
thick-walled tube, a developed test rig is built to apply a pure torsional load and
measure the torsional stiffness of the tube. Adding to that, the tube is tested under a
compressive axial load. This is done to validate the existence of the axial-torsional
coupling and to experimentally complete the understanding of the tube structural
behavior under axisymmetric loading conditions. The testing results are also used to
validate the available theoretical methods used in analysis and design of composite
tubes under torsion.