On load interaction in the non linear buckling analysis of cylindrical shells

The elastic stability of shells or shell-like structures under two independent load parameters is considered. One of the loads is associated to a limit point form of buckling, whereas the second is a bifurcation. A simple one degree of freedom mechanical system is first investigated, for which an analytical solution is possible. Next, a cylindrical shell under the combined action of axial load and localised lateral pressure is studied via a non linear, two-dimensional, finite element discretization. It is shown that both problems display the same general behaviour, with a stability boundary in the load space which is convex towards the region of stability. The results show the need of performing a full non-linear analysis to evaluate the stability boundary for the class of interaction problems considered.