Volume 4, No. 2, 2010
Received: 2010/03/09, Accepted:
Authors:
Husam Al-Qablan; Hazim Dwairi; Nasim Shatarat; Taleb Rosan; Tamara Al-Qablan;
Abstract:
Buckling of simply supported square orthotropic plates with multi-blade stiffeners is addressed herein. An
approximate, semi-analytical model for such plates subjected to in-plane loading is derived. The optimal
buckling load of simply supported laminated composite blade-stiffened panels with circular cutouts is
predicted using Finite Element Analysis. In this optimization, the design variables were the cutout size, cutout
location, fiber orientation angles, number and locations of stiffeners. Three types of in-plane loading were
considered; namely, uniaxial, biaxial and shear loading. Based on the model studies, the total increase in the
buckling load due to the presence of cutouts and stiffeners can reach up to 5 times in uniaxial loading, 7 times
in biaxial loading and 2 times in shear loading compared to perfect plates. Several other imperative findings
are identified based upon the various parameters influencing the buckling behavior. Guidelines for the
optimal stiffeners' configurations and cutouts' proportioning are developed.
Keywords:
Buckling, Stiffened panels, Cutouts, FE analysis, Composite structures