Large-rotation snap-through buckling in laminated cylindrical panels

Abstract The large-rotation snap-through characteristics of laminated cylindrical panels are investigated using a finite element method incorporating the “constant arc length” technique and Newton-Raphson method based on the assumption of through-the-thickness parabolic transverse shear strains. Comparisons with solutions obtained from the corotational stags code (i.e., a nonlinear finite element code which can follow large displacement/rotation for plate and shell structures without considering through-the-thickness transverse shear deformation) demonstrate the validity, accuracy and advantage of the present development. The nonlinear response for several laminated cylindrical panels are traced using the present method and the effects of anisotropy, fiber orientation, and stacking sequence, on the significance of large-rotation snap-through buckling are studied.