Abstract
Abstract The influence of single and multiple imperfection cases on the load carrying capacity of mild steel cone subjected to axial compression was considered through numerical simulation in the current paper. Three different imperfection techniques were considered, which are: i) uneven axial length (sinusoidal/square waves), ii) crack, and iii) single load indentation (SLI) imperfection. Abaqus 6.19 FE was used to carry out the numerical simulation. The axial compressive load was applied at the small radius of the cone. Results showed that the buckling load of axially compressed mild steel cone depends on the imperfection approach implemented. The buckling load of cones were seen to be heavily affected by uneven axial length imperfection for both single and multiple imperfection. Also, the effect of multiple imperfection is more noticeable at higher r1/t.
Highlights
The presence of imperfection has long been acknowledged to have a significant influence on the reduction of the buckling load of thin-walled conical shell structures
This paper addressed the problem through the combination of i) single load indentation (SLI) + crack, ii) Single load indentation (SLI) + uneven axial length, and iii) crack + uneven axial length on mild steel conical shells when subjected to axial compression
It can be seen that the cone with uneven axial length imperfection generally have has the worst buckling load in comparison to other single imperfection cases
Summary
The presence of imperfection has long been acknowledged to have a significant influence on the reduction of the buckling load of thin-walled conical shell structures. There is a vast amount of literatures that can be found concentrating on the effect of geometric imperfection on the buckling behaviour of certain structures such as conical and cylindrical shells. While the influence of imperfections in shell finite element collapse simulations has long been the subject of research, only a few literatures exist on modelling their combined effect. The study addressed the impact of residual stresses as the result of the welding process and/or geometric imperfection on the combined conical tanks’ buckling performance through numerical simulations. The combination of residual stresses and geometric imperfection causes the maximum buckling load reduction for this type of structure ranging from 40.3% to 48.6%. There is a significant gap to be filled in on the subject of the influence of multiple imperfections on the buckling behaviour of conical shells.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
