Principle and Application of Complementary Energy Method for Thin Homogeneous and Sandwich Plates and Shells With Finite Deflections

Note presenting the principle of complementary energy in the nonlinear elasticity theory, which is shown to be derivable from the principle of potential energy by a Legendre type of transformation. The expression of the complementary energy is derived for homogeneous and sandwich plates and shells with large deflections. The stress-strain relations are derived for homogeneous shells, sandwich plates, and sandwich shells.