Buckling analysis of structures containing cutouts using non-uniform spline finite strip method

Abstract

Cutouts are commonly found in engineering structures for purposes such as transportation and access. The existence of cutouts disrupts the overall stiffness distribution and structural integrity, posing a threat to the buckling resistance of thin-walled structures. In this paper, a new and unique non-uniform spline finite strip method (N-u SFSM) for buckling analysis of perforated structures is developed. The incorporation of non-uniform spline functions effectively overcomes the inherent absence of local modification in the traditional finite strip method (FSM), enabling precise modeling and local mesh refinement of cutouts for accurate predictions of buckling behaviors. The convergence and validation studies confirm the accuracy of the developed N-u SFSM for buckling analysis of structures featuring cutouts. Furthermore, by optimizing the spline interpolation points, the number of knots is reduced, and the computational efficiency is significantly improved compared to the existing spline finite strip method (SFSM). The versatility of the method is demonstrated by its effective use in both the perforated plates and cylinders, where diverse configurations of cutouts in terms of size, shape, quantity, and location are analyzed. In conclusion, the present study presents a highly efficient and applicable finite strip method that can be locally refined for analyzing the buckling characteristics of perforated structures.