Probing the buckling of axially compressed cylindrical shells: Stability landscape and nondestructive prediction

The buckling capacity of cylindrical shells depends on the underlying imperfections, which are generally unknown. As a result, cylindrical shells are designed conservatively using the knockdown factor approach to accommodate the uncertainties associated with underlying imperfections. Nevertheless, the quest for inexpensive high-fidelity estimates of the buckling capacity of cylindrical shells has been continued for a long time. In this study, a non-destructive method is proposed to predict the buckling capacity of cylindrical shells without measuring the underlying imperfections. This method is based on the stability landscape that is obtained by probing axially compressed cylindrical shells in the radially inward direction. The proposed method is implemented both computationally and experimentally, and we found that the predictions are accurate if the probing is done near the dominating imperfection. Moreover, the effects of probing location, imperfection amplitude, and background imperfections on the accuracy of the prediction are also investigated. Overall, this study reveals important aspects of the probing of axially compressed cylinder shells: 1) probing can be used to predict the buckling capacity, 2) the probing location plays a crucial role in the accuracy of the prediction, and 3) a framework can be developed for nondestructive experiments to predict the buckling capacity of shells.

Learning Objectives:

1. probing can be used to predict the buckling capacity
2. the probing location plays a crucial role in the accuracy of the prediction
3. a framework can be developed for nondestructive experiments to predict the buckling capacity of shells

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