The Influence of Geometrical Parameters on the Buckling Behavior of Conical Shell by the Single Perturbation Load Approach

Since the development of the first theories to predict the buckling induced by axial compression in shells sensitive to imperfections, a significant discrepancy between theoretical and experimental results has been observed. Donnell and Koiter are among the first authors demonstrating, for these structures, the relevant influence of the geometrical imperfections on the reduction of the buckling load. Currently, the preliminary design of imperfections sensitive shell structures used in space applications is carried out according to the NASA SP-8007guideline. However, several studies have proven that this guideline leads to over-conservative design configurations when considering the geometrical and material imperfections existing in real cones. Since the pioneer work of Arbocz, alternative methods have been investigated to overcome this issue. Among the different approaches, in this paper, the Single Perturbation Load Approach (SPLA), originally developed byHuhne as a deterministic way to calculate the knock-down factor of imperfection sensitive shells, is further studied. Indeed, a numerical investigation about the application of the SPLA to the simulation of the mechanical behavior of imperfection sensitive composite conical structures under axial compression is presented. This study is related to part of the work performed in the frame of the European Union (EU) project DESICOS.