Buckling Response of Symmetric Laminated Plates

ABSTRACT A numerical study is presented on the stability of rectangular laminated composite plates with clamped conditions along the loaded ends and simply supported conditions along the unloaded edges (C-S-C-S). The study includes the effect of the slacking sequence and the aspect ratio of the plate on the stability behavior of fourteen-ply symmetric laminated composite plates. Extensive experimental study using TV-laser holography and strain gauge measurements was carried out lo complement the theory presented and to verify the predicted results. The experimental data presented correlate well with the predicted results. Results obtained using a finite element method are also presented for comparison