Stability of Cantilever Shells under Wind Loads

Static stability analysis of clamped-free cylindrical shells subjected to wind pressure is presented, using the energy theory of buckling. The criterion used is the vanishing of the second variation of potential energy, i.e., expressed in terms of prebuckling membrane strains and the assumed virtual displacement components. The prebuckling analysis has been carried out using Donnell's linear shell theory. Numerical results are presented for various shell geometries. Supporting experimental evidence is also provided. The effect of relaxing the axial displacement and rotation at the clamped base has also been theoretically studied. Current engineering practice of determining buckling load for maximum uniform pressure condition is shown to be conservative.