Abstract
Except the case of a loaded free edge, follower forces remaining normal to the shell-surface during the deformation do have a load potential. So far as the C 1 continuity of the geometry is ensured there is an infinite number of equivalent expressions for this potential. However, most finite element models do not satisfy the C 1 continuity of the geometry at the element junctions. It is shown that only one expression of the potential remains valid in these conditions. Within static buckling analysis, the load stiffness functional has to be taken into account if the wave length of the buckling mode is not small with respect to the radius of curvature. Several numerical examples compare the results of thin and thick shell elements as well as isoparametric volume elements. In the case of a loaded free edge, a perturbation process allows to assess the influence of the nonsymmetric part of the pressure load functional on the static buckling load of the associate conservative problem. It is shown that this last buckling load is a lower bound to the actual one if this influence is small.
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