On the Unsymmetric Eigenproblem for the Buckling of Shells Under Pressure Loading

Consideration of the dependence of hydrostatic pressure on the displacements may result in significant changes of calculated buckling loads of thin arches and shells in comparison with loads calculated without consideration of this effect. The finite element method has made it possible to quantify these changes. On the basis of a shell theory of small displacements but moderately large rotations, this paper derives consistent incremental equilibrium equations for tracing, via the finite element method, the load-displacement path for thin shells subjected to nonuniform hydrostatic pressure and establishes the buckling condition from the incremental equilibrium equations. Within the framework of the finite element method, the character of hydrostatic pressure as one of a follower load is represented in the so-called pressure-stiffness matrix. For shells with loaded free edges, this matrix is unsymmetric. The principal objective of the present paper is to demonstrate that symmetrization of the pressure stiffness matrix resulting from linearization of the buckling condition yields buckling loads that are identical to the eigenvalues resulting from first-order perturbation analysis of the unsymmetric eigenproblem. A circular cylindrical shell with a free and a hinged end, subjected to hydrostatic pressure, is used as an example of the admissibility of symmetrizing the pressure stiffness matrix and for assessing its effect.