• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.217-247
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• 2016

Five extended cylindrical reticulated shells are proposed by changing distribution rule of diagonal rods based on three fundamental types. Modeling programs for fundamental types and extended types of cylindrical reticulated shell are compiled by using the ANSYS Parametric Design Language (APDL). On this basis, conditional formulas are derived when the grid shape of cylindrical reticulated shells is equilateral triangle. Internal force analysis of cylindrical reticulated shells is carried out. The variation and distribution regularities of maximum displacement and stress are studied. A shape optimization program is proposed by adopting the sequence two-stage algorithm (RDQA) in FORTRAN environment based on the characteristics of cylindrical reticulated shells and the ideas of discrete variable optimization design. Shape optimization is achieved by considering the objective function of the minimum total steel consumption, global and locality constraints. The shape optimization for three fundamental types and five extended types is calculated with the span of 30 m~80 m and rise-span ratio of 1/7~1/3. The variations of the total steel consumption along with the span and rise-span ratio are analyzed with contrast to the results of shape optimization. The optimal combination of main design parameters for five extended cylindrical reticulated shells is investigated. The total steel consumption affected by distribution rule of diagonal rods is discussed. The results show that: (1) Parametric modeling method is simple, efficient and practical, which can quickly generate different types of cylindrical reticulated shells. (2) The mechanical properties of five extended cylindrical reticulated shells are better than their fundamental types. (3) The total steel consumption of cylindrical reticulated shells is optimized to be the least when rise-span ratio is 1/6. (4) The extended type of three-way grid cylindrical reticulated shell should be preferentially adopted in practical engineering. (5) The grid shape of reticulated shells should be designed to equilateral triangle as much as possible because of its reasonable stress and the lowest total steel consumption.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.849-862
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• 2016

This paper investigates the static buckling behaviours of Functionally Gradient Polymeric Material (FGPM) shells in the form of hemispherical segment. A new FGPM model based on experimental was considered to investigate the buckling problem of thin-walled spherical shells loaded by the external pressure. The spherical shells were formed by FGPM which was produced adding the two types of graphite powders into epoxy resin. The graphite powders were added to the epoxy resin as volume of 3, 6, 9, and 12%. Halpin-Tsai and Paul models were used to determine the elastic moduli of the parts of FGPM. The detailed static buckling analyses were performed by using finite element method. The influences of the types and volume of graphite powders on the buckling behaviour of the FGPM structures were investigated. The buckling loads of hemispherical FGPM shells based on Halpin-Tsai and Paul models were compared with those determined from the analytical solution of non-graphite condition existing for homogeneous material model. The comparisons between these material models showed that Paul model was overestimated. Besides, the critical buckling loads were predicted. The higher critical buckling loads were estimated for the PV60/65 graphite powder due to the compatible of the PV60/65 graphite powder with resin.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.28 no.6
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• pp.735-748
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• 2018

In this study, the semi-analytical finite strip method is adopted to examine the free vibration of cylindrical shells made up of functionally graded material. The properties of functionally graded shells are assumed to be temperature-dependent and vary continuously in the thickness direction according to a simple power law distribution in terms of the volume fraction of ceramic and metal. The material properties of the shells and stiffeners are assumed to be continuously graded in the thickness direction. Theoretical formulations based on the smeared stiffeners technique and the classical shell theory with first-order shear deformation theory which accounts for through thickness shear flexibility are employed. The finite strip method is applied to five different shell theories, namely, Donnell, Reissner, Sanders, Novozhilov, and Teng. The approximate procedure is compared favorably with three-dimensional finite elements. Finally, a detailed numerical study is carried out to bring out the effects of power-law index of the functional graded material, stiffeners, and geometry of the shells on the difference between various shell theories. Finally, the importance of choosing the shell theory in simulating the functionally graded cylindrical shells is addressed.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.45 no.3
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• pp.349-367
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• 2022

In this research, an approach combining a semi-analytical method and an analytical method is presented to investigate the static and dynamic post-buckling behavior of the sandwich functionally graded (FG) porous cylindrical shells exposed to external pressure. The sandwich cylindrical shell considered is composed of a viscoelastic core and two FG porous (FGP) face layers. The viscoelastic core is made of Kelvin-Voigt-type material. The material properties of the FG porous face layer are considered continuous through each face thickness according to a porosity coefficient and a volume fraction index. Two types of sandwich FG porous viscoelastic cylindrical shells named Type A and Type B are considered in the research. Type A shell has the porosity evenly distributed across the thickness direction, and Type B has the porosity unevenly distributes across the thickness direction. The FG face layers are considered in two cases: outside metal surface, inside ceramic surface (OMS-ICS), and inside metal surface, outside ceramic surface (IMS-OCS). According to Donnell shell theory, von-Karman equation, and Galerkin's method, a discretized nonlinear governing equation is derived for analyzing the behavior of the shells. The explicit expressions for static and dynamic critical buckling loading are thus developed. To study the dynamic buckling of the shells, the governing equation is examined via a numerical approach implementing the fourth-order Runge-Kutta method. With a procedure presented by Budiansky-Roth, the critical load for dynamic post-buckling is obtained. The effects of various parameters, such as material and geometrical parameters, on the post-buckling behaviors are investigated.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.68 no.3
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• pp.313-323
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• 2018

A numerical study is performed to investigate the impacts of thermal loading on the vibration and buckling of functionally graded carbon nanotube-reinforced composite (FG-CNTRC) conical shells. Thermo-mechanical properties of constituents are considered to be temperature-dependent. Considering the shear deformation theory, the energy functional is derived, and applying the variational differential quadrature (VDQ) method, the mass and stiffness matrices are obtained. The shear correction factors are accurately calculated by matching the shear strain energy obtained from an exact three-dimensional distribution of the transverse shear stresses and shear strain energy related to the first-order shear deformation theory. Numerical results reveal that considering temperature-dependent material properties plays an important role in predicting the thermally induced vibration of FG-CNTRC conical shells, and neglecting this effect leads to considerable overestimation of the stiffness of the structure.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.389-401
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• 2018

An isoparametric six-node triangular element is utilized for geometrically nonlinear analysis of functionally graded (FG) shells. To overcome the shear and membrane locking, the element is improved by using strain interpolation functions. The Total Lagrangian formulation is employed to include the large displacements and rotations. Finding the nonlinear behavior of FG shells via laminated modeling is also the goal. A power function is employed to formulate the variation of elastic modulus through the thickness of shells. The results are presented in two ways, including the general FGM formulation and the laminated modeling. The equilibrium path is obtained by using the Generalized Displacement Control Method. Some popular benchmarks, including hyperbolical shell structures are solved to declare the correctness and accuracy of proposed formulations.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.19 no.6
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• pp.1355-1367
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• 2015

Steel conical shells have long been used in various parts of different structures. Sensitivity to the initial geometrical imperfection has been one of the most significant issues on the stability of these structures, which has made them highly vulnerable to the buckling. Most attention has been devoted to structures under normal fabrication related imperfections. Notwithstanding, the challenges of large local imperfections - presented herein as dent-shaped imperfections - have not been a focus yet for these structures. This study aims to provide experimental data on the effect of such imperfections on the buckling capacity of these shells under axial compression. The results show changes in the buckling mode and the capacity for such damaged thin specimens as is outlined in this paper, with an average overall capacity reduction of 11%.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.163-180
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• 2019

A semi analytical method is employed to analyze free vibration characteristics of uniform and stepped functionally graded circular cylindrical shells under complex boundary conditions. The analytical model is established based on multi-segment partitioning strategy and first-order shear deformation theory. The displacement functions are handled by unified Jacobi polynomials and Fourier series. In order to obtain continuous conditions and satisfy complex boundary conditions, the penalty method about spring technique is adopted. The solutions about free vibration behavior of functionally graded circular cylindrical shells were obtained by approach of Rayleigh-Ritz. To confirm the dependability and validity of present approach, numerical verifications and convergence studies are conducted on functionally graded cylindrical shells under various influencing factors such as boundaries, spring parameters et al. The present method apparently has rapid convergence ability and excellent stability, and the results of the paper are closely agreed with those obtained by FEM and published literatures.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.509-519
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• 2019

In this paper, an analytical approach for the free vibration analysis of spiral stiffened functionally graded (SSFG) cylindrical shells is investigated. The SSFG shell is resting on linear and non-linear elastic foundation with damping force. The elastic foundation for the linear model is according to Winkler and Pasternak parameters and for the non-linear model, one cubic term is added. The material constitutive of the stiffeners is continuously changed through the thickness. Using the Galerkin method based on the von $K\acute{a}rm\acute{a}n$ equations and the smeared stiffeners technique, the non-linear vibration problem has been solved. The effects of different geometrical and material parameters on the free vibration response of SSFG cylindrical shells are adopted. The results show that the angles of stiffeners and elastic foundation parameters strongly effect on the natural frequencies of the SSFG cylindrical shell.

• Advances in nano research
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.141-153
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• 2023

The main objective of this paper is to develop the finite element study on the nonlinear free vibration of functionally graded nanocomposite spherical shells reinforced with graphene platelets under the first-order shear deformation shell theory and von Kármán nonlinear kinematic relations. The governing equations are presented by introducing the full asymmetric nonlinear strain-displacement relations followed by the constitutive relations and energy functional. The extended Halpin-Tsai model is utilized to specify the overall Young's modulus of the nanocomposite. Then, the finite element formulation is derived and the quadrilateral 8-node shell element is implemented for finite element discretization. The nonlinear sets of dynamic equations are solved by the use of the harmonic balance technique and iterative method to find the nonlinear frequency response. Several numerical examples are represented to highlight the impact of involved factors on the large-amplitude vibration responses of nanocomposite spherical shells. One of the main findings is that for some geometrical and material parameters, the fundamental vibrational mode shape is asymmetric and the axisymmetric formulation cannot be appropriately employed to model the nonlinear dynamic behavior of nanocomposite spherical shells.