Abstract
Cylindrical shells under compressive loading are highly sensitive to boundary conditions. Considering that these structures are connected by surrounding structural components with finite stiffness, an accurate evaluation of the effects of their boundary stiffness is crucial in their design. As such, this work investigates the effect of elastic boundary conditions on the linear buckling behaviour of cylindrical shells under compressive loading. To achieve this goal, a virtual testing investigation on the effect of translational and rotational constraints to the linear buckling response of a quasi-isotropic cylinder subjected to axial compression is performed. Subsequently, the effect of many kinds of constraints on linear buckling behaviour is discussed and interesting insights regarding a significant coupling effect between the radial and tangential translational constraints are given. Results obtained from virtual testing show that seven recurrent buckling mode shapes occur with seven corresponding similar linear buckling loads. Therefore, based on these similarities, seven groups of classical boundary conditions are introduced to classify all possible linear buckling behaviours exhibited by the cylinder under consideration. Finally, these findings can support the development of theoretical models for cascade, or flange, designs of multiple connecting cylinders.
Highlights
Thin-walled cylindrical shells are highly efficient structures used in many practical applications for aerospace, mechanical and civil engi neering
The main source of this deviation was due to geometrical imperfections which was later quan tified by Koiter [3]
This study aims to provide a better understanding of sensitivity of linear buckling load to wider variations of boundary conditions with emphasis on the relatively short shells
Summary
Thin-walled cylindrical shells are highly efficient structures used in many practical applications for aerospace, mechanical and civil engi neering. To further understand the discrepancies between theoretical and classical buckling loads Tahir and Mandal [30] used an artificial neural network to predict the buckling load of thin cylindrical shells under axial compression They trained, tested, and validated 390 test data using two networks with eight and ten neurons. The physics behind the formation of individual mode shapes corresponding to each boundary condition as well as the effects of composite anisot ropy in a quasi-isotropic lamination on the linear buckling behaviour is discussed.
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