An evaluation is undertaken of currently used discretization procedures in numerical analysis of structures. Emphasis is on the nonlinear behavior of thin shells and plates. It is found that the computer economy is extremely sensitive to the choice of element configuration. A proper balance between the order of the approximations of inplane and lateral displacements is important. The best finite element procedures are superior to finite differences for bifurcation buckling and for moderate nonlinearity. However, for shell collapse analysis the finite differences approach is quite superior to the finite elements. Suggestions are made for improvement of finite element technology for structures undergoing large rotations.

Plate and Shell Structures: Selected Analytical and Finite Element Solutions Maria Radwañska, Anna Stankiewicz, Adam Wosatko, Jerzy Pamin Cracow University of Technology, Poland Comprehensively covers the fundamental theory and analytical and numerical solutions for different types of plate and shell structures Plate and Shell Structures: Selected Analytical and Finite Element Solutions not only provides the theoretical formulation of fundamental problems of mechanics of plates and shells, but also several examples of analytical and numerical solutions for different types of shell structures. The book contains advanced aspects related to stability analysis and a brief description of modern finite element formulations for plates and shells, including the discussion of mixed/hybrid models and locking phenomena. Key features: 52 example problems solved and illustrated by more than 200 figures, including 30 plots of finite element simulation results. Contents based on many years of research and teaching the mechanics of plates and shells to students of civil engineering and professional engineers. Provides the basis of an intermediate-level course on computational mechanics of shell structures. The book is essential reading for engineering students, university teachers, practitioners and researchers interested in the mechanics of plates and shells, as well as developers testing new simulation software.

A numerical method is presented for the stress analysis of stiffened-shell structures of arbitrary cross section under nonuniform temperature distributions. The method is based on a previously published procedure that is extended to include temperature effects and multicell construction. The applicationof the method to practical problems is discussed and an illustrative analysis is presented of a two-cell box beam under the combined action of vertical loads and nonuniform temperature distribution.

Presenting recent principles of thin plate and shell theories, this book emphasizes novel analytical and numerical methods for solving linear and nonlinear plate and shell dilemmas, new theories for the design and analysis of thin plate-shell structures, and real-world numerical solutions, mechanics, and plate and shell models for engineering appli

Shells are basic structural elements of modern technology and everyday life. Examples are automobile bodies, water and oil tanks, pipelines, aircraft fuselages, nanotubes, graphene sheets or beer cans. Also nature is full of living shells such as leaves of trees, blooming flowers, seashells, cell membranes, the double helix of DNA or wings of insects. In the human body arteries, the shell of the eye, the diaphragm, the skin or the pericardium are all shells as well. Shell Structures: Theory and Applications, Volume 3 contains 137 contributions presented at the 10th Conference “Shell Structures: Theory and Applications” held October 16-18, 2013 in Gdansk, Poland. The papers cover a wide spectrum of scientific and engineering problems which are divided into seven broad groups: general lectures, theoretical modelling, stability, dynamics, bioshells, numerical analyses, and engineering design. The volume will be of interest to researchers and designers dealing with modelling and analyses of shell structures and thin-walled structural elements.