Both local and overall buckling must be considered simultaneously to prevent collapse when designing round tubes to resist compressive stresses. It is important to consider all potential collapse mechanisms, such as snap-through or plastic collapse, and to ensure that the tube material has sufficient strength and ductility. Snap-through is a type of sudden buckling failure where the structure undergoes a rapid and violent transition from a stable state to a highly deformed and unstable state.
Local buckling occurs when the diameter-to-thickness ratio exceeds a certain value, the support conditions and cross-section geometry of the tube must be designed to resist the applied loads. Note that contrary to other geometries, there is no post-critical resistance after buckling has occurred in round tubes. To prevent local buckling, the tube's slenderness ratio must be limited and imperfections in the form of geometric deviations and residual stresses must be minimized.
Global buckling occurs mainly as a result of the tube’s material, length, support conditions, and bending stiffness, which is determined by the cross-section geometry.