Buckling analysis and test of composite shells under hydrostatic pressure

The main objective of this paper is to investigate the validity of the finite element method (FEM) on the buckling and post-buckling behavior of laminated composite cylindrical shells that have been subjected to an external hydrostatic pressure. In addition, a buckling pressure equation that is based on the ASME and American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) bucking equation and customized to USN125 composite material is also presented. In order to determine an application for composite material under external hydrostatic pressure, material tests were conducted for carbon-epoxy ply composite URN300 and USN125. The strength and stiffness of the fiber and resin of two composites were determined. Cylindrical panel tests were performed to investigate the behavior of post-buckling under vertical line load. Finite element analyses, using ABAQUS 6.6 code, have been performed, using a linear buckling model based on the solution of the eigenvalue problem, and a non-linear model based on the arc-length method for various cases. Furthermore, an external hydrostatic pressure test was conducted to verify numerical analysis. These results were compared with the previous results obtained by FEM on the buckling. Difference between FEM and the test result is expected to be approximately 18%. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.