Combined effects of in-plane boundary conditions and stiffening on buckling of eccentrically stringer-stiffened cylindrical panels☆

Abstract Donnel type stability equations for buckling of stringer stiffened cylindrical panels under combined axial compression and hydrostatic pressure are solved by the displacement approach of [6], The solution is employed for a parametric study over a wide range of panel and stringer geometries to evaluate the combined influence of panel configurations and boundary conditions along the straight edges on the buckling behavior of the panel relative to a complete “counter” cylinder (i.e. a cylinder with identical skin and stiffener parameters). The parametric studies reveal a “sensitivity” to the “weak in shear”, N x = N xφ = 0, along the straight edges, SS1 boundary conditions type where the panel buckling loads are always smaller than those predicted for a complete “counter” cylinder. In the case of “classical”, SS3 B.Cs., there always exist values of panel width, 2 φ 0 , for which ρ = 1, i.e. the panel buckling load equals that of the complete “counter” cylinder. For SS2 and SS4 B.Cs. types, the nature by which the panel critical load approaches that of the complete cylinder appears to be panel configuration dependent. Utilization of panels for the experimental determination of a complete cylinder buckling load is found to be satisfactory for relatively very lightly and heavily stiffened panels, as well as for short panels, ( L / R ) = 0.2 and 0.5. Panels of moderate length and stiffening have to be debarred, since they lead to nonconservative buckling load predictions.