Buckling of Orthotropic Cylinders Due to Wind Load

Abstract

In many practical problems, e.g., storage bins, oil tanks, missile shells, launch vehicles, etc., cylindrical shells are subjected to unsymmetrical lateral external load. These shells are usually made of thin sheets of metal; therefore, in many instances these structures have failed due to buckling. In this paper, the stability of cylindrical shells under the action of wind load is investigated. Often these shells are constructed of corrugated steel sheets; therefore, the shells are analyzed by considering the material as orthotropic. This analysis can also be used for other orthotropic materials. The principle of minimum potential energy in conjunction with Ritz's approach is used. The buckling loads, as well as the buckling configurations, are obtained for short cylinders made of corrugated steel sheets subjected to wind pressure. The present study is made on cylindrical shells of various dimensions, which are simply supported at the base and are open or closed at the top. For practical use, buckling load curves for these shells are given for different length‐to‐radius and radius‐to‐thickness ratios.