Long-term non-linear behaviour and buckling of shallow concrete-filled steel tubular arches

This paper presents a theoretical analysis for the long-term non-linear elastic in-plane behaviour and buckling of shallow concrete-filled steel tubular (CFST) arches. It is known that an elastic shallow arch does not buckle under a load that is lower than the critical loads for its bifurcation or limit point buckling because its buckling equilibrium configuration cannot be achieved, and the arch is in a stable equilibrium state although its structural response may be quite non-linear under the load. However, for a CFST arch under a sustained load, the visco-elastic effects of creep and shrinkage of the concrete core produce significant long-term increases in the deformations and bending moments and subsequently lead to a time-dependent change of its equilibrium configuration. Accordingly, the bifurcation point and limit point of the time-dependent equilibrium path and the corresponding buckling loads of CFST arches also change with time. When the changing time-dependent bifurcation or limit point buckling load of a CFST arch becomes equal to the sustained load, the arch may buckle in a bifurcation mode or in a limit point mode in the time domain. A virtual work method is used in the paper to investigate bifurcation and limit point buckling of shallow circular CFST arches that are subjected to a sustained uniform radial load. The algebraically tractable age-adjusted effective modulus method is used to model the time-dependent behaviour of the concrete core, based on which solutions for the prebuckling structural life time corresponding to non-linear bifurcation and limit point buckling are derived.     

Non-linear in-plane postbuckling of arches with rotational end restraints under uniform radial loading

This paper presents a thorough and comprehensive investigation of non-linear buckling and postbuckling analyses of pin-ended shallow circular arches subjected to a uniform radial load and which have equal elastic rotational end-restraints. The differential equations of equilibrium for non-linear buckling and postbuckling are established based on a virtual work approach. Exact solutions for the non-linear bifurcation, limit point and lowest buckling loads are obtained; in particular, exact solutions for the non-linear postbuckling equilibrium paths are derived. The criteria for switching between fundamental buckling and postbuckling modes are developed in terms of critical values of a geometric parameter for an arch, with exact solutions for these critical values of geometric parameter being obtained. Analytical solutions of non-linear buckling and postbuckling problems for arches with rotational end-restraints are of great interest, since they constitute one of the very few closed-form analyses of buckling and postbuckling behaviour of continuous structural systems. These exact solutions are a contribution to the non-linear structural mechanics of arches, as well as providing useful benchmark solutions for verifying non-linear numerical analyses.     

Non-linear in-plane analysis and buckling of pinned–fixed shallow arches subjected to a central concentrated load

This paper is concerned with an analytical study of the non-linear elastic in-plane behaviour and buckling of pinned–fixed shallow circular arches that are subjected to a central concentrated radial load. Because the boundary conditions provided by the pinned support and fixed support of a pinned–fixed arch are quite different from those of a pinned–pinned or a fixed–fixed arch, the non-linear behaviour of a pinned–fixed arch is more complicated than that of its pinned–pinned or fixed–fixed counterpart. Analytical solutions for the non-linear equilibrium path for shallow pinned–fixed circular arches are derived. The non-linear equilibrium path for a pinned–fixed arch may have one or three unstable equilibrium paths and may include two or four limit points. This is different from pinned–pinned and fixed–fixed arches that have only two limit points. The number of limit points in the non-linear equilibrium path of a pinned–fixed arch depends on the slenderness and the included angle of the arch. The switches in terms of an arch geometry parameter, which is introduced in the paper, are derived for distinguishing between arches with two limit points and those with four limit points and for distinguishing between a pinned–fixed arch and a beam curved in-elevation. It is also shown that a pinned–fixed arch under a central concentrated load can buckle in a limit point mode, but cannot buckle in a bifurcation mode. This contrasts with the buckling behaviour of pinned–pinned or fixed–fixed arches under a central concentrated load, which may buckle both in a bifurcation mode and in a limit point mode. An analytical solution for the limit point buckling load of shallow pinned–fixed circular arches is also derived. Comparisons with finite element results show that the analytical solutions can accurately predict the non-linear buckling and postbuckling behaviour of shallow pinned–fixed arches. Although the solutions are derived for shallow pinned–fixed arches, comparisons with the finite element results demonstrate that they can also provide reasonable predictions for the buckling load of deep pinned–fixed arches under a central concentrated load.     

Nonlinear in-plane thermal buckling of rotationally restrained functionally graded carbon nanotube reinforced composite shallow arches under uniform radial loading

The nonlinear in-plane instability of functionally graded carbon nanotube reinforced composite (FG-CNTRC) shallow circular arches with rotational constraints subject to a uniform radial load in a thermal environment is investigated. Assuming arches with thickness-graded material properties, four different distribution patterns of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are considered. The classical arch theory and Donnell’s shallow shell theory assumptions are used to evaluate the arch displacement field, and the analytical solutions of buckling equilibrium equations and buckling loads are obtained by using the principle of virtual work. The critical geometric parameters are introduced to determine the criteria for buckling mode switching. Parametric studies are carried out to demonstrate the effects of temperature variations, material parameters, geometric parameters, and elastic constraints on the stability of the arch. It is found that increasing the volume fraction of CNTs and distributing CNTs away from the neutral axis significantly enhance the bending stiffness of the arch. In addition, the pretension and initial displacement caused by the temperature field have significant effects on the buckling behavior.     

In-plane stability of arches

Classical buckling theory is mostly used to investigate the in-plane stability of arches, which assumes that the pre-buckling behaviour is linear and that the effects of pre-buckling deformations on buckling can be ignored. However, the behaviour of shallow arches becomes non-linear and the deformations are substantial prior to buckling, so that their effects on the buckling of shallow arches need to be considered. Classical buckling theory which does not consider these effects cannot correctly predict the in-plane buckling load of shallow arches. This paper investigates the in-plane buckling of circular arches with an arbitrary cross-section and subjected to a radial load uniformly distributed around the arch axis. An energy method is used to establish both non-linear equilibrium equations and buckling equilibrium equations for shallow arches. Analytical solutions for the in-plane buckling loads of shallow arches subjected to this loading regime are obtained. Approximations to the symmetric buckling of shallow arches and formulae for the in-plane anti-symmetric bifurcation buckling load of non-shallow arches are proposed, and criteria that define shallow and non-shallow arches are also stated. Comparisons with finite element results demonstrate that the solutions and indeed approximations are accurate, and that classical buckling theory can correctly predict the in-plane anti-symmetric bifurcation buckling load of non-shallow arches, but overestimates the in-plane anti-symmetric bifurcation buckling load of shallow arches significantly.     

几何缺陷浅拱的动力稳定性分析

研究了几何缺陷对粘弹性铰支浅拱动力稳定性能的影响。从达朗贝尔原理和欧拉-贝努利假定出发推导了粘弹性铰支浅拱在正弦分布突加荷载作用下的动力学控制方程,并采用Galerkin截断法得到了可用龙格-库塔法求解的无量纲化非线性微分方程组。同时引入能有效追踪结构动力后屈曲路径的广义位移控制法,对含几何缺陷浅拱的响应曲线进行几何、材料双重非线性有限元分析。用这两种方法分析了前三阶谐波缺陷对浅拱动力稳定性能的影响,其中动力临界荷载由B-R准则判定。主要结论有:材料粘弹性使浅拱动力临界荷载增大且结构响应曲线与弹性情况差别很大;二阶谐波缺陷影响显著,它使动力临界荷载明显下降且使得浅拱粘弹性动力临界荷载可能低于弹性动力临界荷载。     

Non-linear in-plane buckling of rotationally restrained shallow arches under a central concentrated load

This paper investigates the non-linear in-plane buckling of pin-ended shallow circular arches with elastic end rotational restraints under a central concentrated load. A virtual work method is used to establish both the non-linear equilibrium equations and the buckling equilibrium equations. Analytical solutions for the non-linear in-plane symmetric snap-through and antisymmetric bifurcation buckling loads are obtained. It is found that the effects of the stiffness of the end rotational restraints on the buckling loads, and on the buckling and postbuckling behaviour of arches, are significant. The buckling loads increase with an increase of the stiffness of the rotational restraints. The values of the arch slenderness that delineate its snap-through and bifurcation buckling modes, and that define the conditions of buckling and of no buckling for the arch, increase with an increase of the stiffness of the rotational end restraints.     

倒三角形截面板管连接式钢圆弧拱在平面内的稳定承载力研究

采用理论推导与数值模拟相结合的方法,对倒三角形截面板管连接式钢圆弧拱在平面内的弹性屈曲和弹塑性屈曲进行了深入研究。首先,理论推导了拱的截面剪切刚度,并提出了拱在全跨均布径向荷载作用下的弹性屈曲公式。此外,还提出了避免连接板和弦杆在拱发生整体弹性失稳之前发生局部失稳的限制条件。然后,分别研究了在全跨均布径向荷载和全跨均布竖向荷载作用下,拱的整体弹塑性失稳机理。结果表明,在全跨均布径向荷载下,拱在1/4跨和3/4跨附近的弦杆会发生屈服,最终发生拱的整体弹塑性失稳。基于数值结果,建立了拱在全跨均布径向荷载作用下的稳定曲线,并针对拱发生整体弹塑性屈曲提出了相应的稳定承载力设计公式。在全跨均布竖向荷载作用下,钢拱发生整体失稳时,在拱脚两端附近的下弦杆会进入屈服。同样地,本文也提出了拱在全跨均布竖向荷载作用下,发生整体弹塑性失稳时的稳定极限承载力设计公式。本文所建议的公式与有限元结果符合得较好,可供实际工程设计参考。     

钢管混凝土圆弧桁架拱平面内徐变稳定分析

核心混凝土的徐变会增加钢管混凝土拱肋的屈曲前变形,降低结构的稳定承载力,因此只有计入屈曲前变形的影响,才能准确得到钢管混凝土拱的徐变稳定承载力。基于圆弧形浅拱的非线性屈曲理论,采用虚功原理,建立了考虑徐变和剪切变形双重效应的管混凝土圆弧桁架拱的平面内非线性平衡方程,求得两铰和无铰桁架拱发生反对称分岔屈曲和对称跳跃屈曲的徐变稳定临界荷载。探讨了钢管混凝土桁架拱核心混凝土徐变随修正长细比、圆心角和加载龄期对该类结构弹性稳定承载力的影响,为钢管混凝土桁架拱长期设计提供理论依据。     

Nonlinear dynamic buckling of pinned–fixed shallow arches under a sudden central concentrated load

The structural behavior of a shallow arch is highly nonlinear, and so when the amplitude of the oscillation of the arch produced by a suddenly-applied load is sufficiently large, the oscillation of the arch may reach a position on its unstable equilibrium paths that leads the arch to buckle dynamically. This paper uses an energy method to investigate the nonlinear elastic dynamic in-plane buckling of a pinned–fixed shallow circular arch under a central concentrated load that is applied suddenly and with an infinite duration. The principle of conservation of energy is used to establish the criterion for dynamic buckling of the arch, and the analytical solution for the dynamic buckling load is derived. Two methods are proposed to determine the dynamic buckling load. It is shown that under a suddenly-applied central load, a shallow pinned–fixed arch with a high modified slenderness (which is defined in the paper) has a lower dynamic buckling load and an upper dynamic buckling load, while an arch with a low modified slenderness has a unique dynamic buckling load.     

复合材料层合板的二次屈曲和二次分枝点分析

为了研究复合材料层合板的二次分叉特性 ,利用能量变分原理和非线性几何方程建立了具有弹性约束的复合材料层合板在面内载荷作用下的非线性稳定性控制方程组。控制方程组用广义傅立叶级数法进行求解 ,并得到载荷 -挠度曲线。基于分叉理论中的 Lerray-Schaulder定理 ,采用小挠动法 ,直接导出了复合材料层合板的二次失稳方程。研究结果表明 ,非对称层板也可能存在分叉 ,弹性转动支持系数和铺层等因素对二次分叉有很重要的影响。随着弹性系数的增大 ,二次失稳载荷值与初次失稳载荷值之比下降     

Post-buckling behavior of a fixed arch for variable geometry structures

The behavior of a bistable strut for variable geometry structures was investigated in this paper. A fixed shallow arch subjected to a central concentrated load was used to study the equilibrium path of the bistable strut. Based on a nonlinear strain–displacement relationship, the critical loads for both the symmetric snap-through and asymmetric bifurcation buckling modes were obtained. Moreover, the principal of virtual work was also used to establish the post-buckling differential equilibrium equations of the arch in the horizontal and vertical directions. Therefore, the whole mechanical behavior before and after the buckling of fixed arches is investigated.     

Limit load analysis of a spring-supported shallow arch of variable thickness given by a power-law,exponential, or logarithmic formula

Thin shallow arches may become unstable under transverse loading as the built-up internal compressive forces reach a limiting value beyond which the structure undergoes a sudden large displacement towards a new stable configuration. This phenomenon could be both desirable (in toggle switches) and disastrous (collapse of a dome or truss). Hence, it is important to carry out the so-called snap- or limit-load analysis to reveal the factors influence the phenomenon and to give guidelines in designing structures to behave favorably. Although energy methods are a common means of this analysis, the phenomenon could also be analyzed by considering the equations governing the displacement of the arch and by monitoring the load-displacement characteristic of the structure until it reaches the limit point. This is the procedure adopted here. Researches on the subject mostly consider constant thickness arches with common pin-ended or fixed supports. Here the thickness is varied along the arch in three forms: power-law, exponential, and logarithmic. The supports are considered to be nonrigid fixed; i.e., pinned ends are equipped with torsional springs with constant stiffness. By changing these stiffnesses, various combinations of pinned and/or fixed states, or an intermediate state at each end could be developed. By considering the analytical solution for the transverse displacement for the general power-law case, the limit-load is obtained by numerical solution of the limit-load condition, which is a highly complicated function of the derived displacement field. Several parameter studies, such as that of the effects of shallowness and slenderness of arch and spring stiffnesses on the critical load, are carried out. The results are verified by those of simpler cases available in the literature, as well as those from a finite-element approach.     

弹性支持扁拱动力稳定性分析和变压器内线圈短路动稳定分析

本文采取脉冲载荷激励下弹支扁拱弹性动力稳定性的理论模型分析电力变压器内线圈短路动稳定问题.首先导出了脉冲载荷激励下弹支扁拱非线性运动积分微分方程级数解,给出了各平衡位置(奇点)的局部稳定(不稳定)性证明,导出弹支扁拱抗跳跃失稳的稳定性充分条件、判别公式和临界载荷;其次导出了短路载荷与脉冲载荷的相当关系,考虑内线圈各线匝(铜条)短路电动力到内线匝的传递,给出了内线圈短路动稳定临界电动力计算公式和动稳定判别方法;最后作出与实验结果的比较和算例.     

Optimal Forms of Shallow Arches with Respect to Vibration and Stability

Shallow, linearly elastic arches of unspecified form but with given uniform cross section and material are considered. For given span and length of the arch, two different optimization problems are formulated and solved. In the first, we determine the form of the arch which maximizes the fundamental vibration frequency. The corresponding vibration mode turns out to be either symmetric or antisymmetric. In the second, a static load with given spatial distribution is considered, and the critical value of the load magnitude for snap-through instability is maximized. This instability may occur at a limit point or a bifurcation point. Optimal forms are determined for sinusoidal loading, uniform loading, and a central concentrated load. In both types of problems, arches with simply supported or clamped ends are considered, and the maximum frequencies and critical loads obtained are compared to those for a circular arch with similar end conditions. In all the cases with simply supported ends, it is found that a circular arch is almost optimal. For clamped ends, however, it turns out that the optimal arches have zero slope at the ends and that they are much more efficient than a circular arch.     

In-plane buckling of prismatic funicular arches with shear deformations

The in-plane buckling behavior of funicular arches is investigated numerically in this paper. A finite strain Timoshenko beam-type formulation that incorporates shear deformations is developed for generic funicular arches. The elastic constitutive relationships for the internal beam actions are based on a hyperelastic constitutive model, and the funicular arch equilibrium equations are derived. The problems of a submerged arch under hydrostatic pressure, a parabolic arch under gravity load and a catenary arch loaded by overburden are investigated. Buckling solutions are derived for the parabolic and catenary arch. Subsequent investigation addresses the effects of axial deformation prior to buckling and shear deformation during buckling. An approximate buckling solution is then obtained based on the maximum axial force in the arch. The obtained buckling solutions are compared with the numerical solutions of Dinnik (Stability of arches, 1946) [1] and the finite element package ANSYS. The effects of shear deformation are also evaluated.     

Dynamic buckling of a shallow arch under shock loading considering the effects of the arch shape

In this paper, the influence of the initial curvature of thin shallow arches on the dynamic pulse buckling load is examined. Using numerical means and a multi-dof semi-analytical model, both quasi-static and non-linear transient dynamical analyzes are performed. The influence of various parameters, such as pulse duration, damping and, especially, the arch shape is illustrated. Moreover, the results are numerically validated through a comparison with results obtained using finite element modeling. The main results are firstly that the critical shock level can be significantly increased by optimizing the arch shape and secondly, that geometric imperfections have only a mild influence on these results. Furthermore, by comparing the sensitivities of the static and dynamic buckling loads with respect to the arch shape, non-trivial quantitative correspondences are found.     

Linear and geometrically nonlinear analysis of non-uniform shallow arches under a central concentrated force

In this paper an integral equation solution to the linear and geometrically nonlinear problem of non-uniform in-plane shallow arches under a central concentrated force is presented. Arches exhibit advantageous behavior over straight beams due to their curvature which increases the overall stiffness of the structure. They can span large areas by resolving forces into mainly compressive stresses and, in turn confining tensile stresses to acceptable limits. Most arches are designed to operate linearly under service loads. However, their slenderness nature makes them susceptible to large deformations especially when the external loads increase beyond the service point. Loss of stability may occur, known also as snap-through buckling, with catastrophic consequences for the structure. Linear analysis cannot predict this type of instability and a geometrically nonlinear analysis is needed to describe efficiently the response of the arch. The aim of this work is to cope with the linear and geometrically nonlinear problem of non-uniform shallow arches under a central concentrated force. The governing equations of the problem are comprised of two nonlinear coupled partial differential equations in terms of the axial (tangential) and transverse (normal) displacements. Moreover, as the cross-sectional properties of the arch vary along its axis, the resulting coupled differential equations have variable coefficients and are solved using a robust integral equation numerical method in conjunction with the arc-length method. The latter method allows following the nonlinear equilibrium path and overcoming bifurcation and limit (turning) points, which usually appear in the nonlinear response of curved structures like shallow arches and shells. Several arches are analyzed not only to validate our proposed model, but also to investigate the nonlinear response of in-plane thin shallow arches.     

Dynamic stability of shallow arch with elastic supports—application in the dynamic stability analysis of inner winding of transformer during short circuit

In this paper, the dynamic stability of a shallow arch with elastic supports subjected to impulsive load is used as a theoretical model to investigate the dynamic stability problem of inner windings of power transformer under short-circuit condition. Firstly, the series solution representing the equilibrium configurations of a shallow arch is obtained by solving the corresponding non-linear integration-differential equation. The local stability of each equilibrium configuration is discussed, and the sufficient condition for stability of the shallow arch system as well as the critical load against snap-through is obtained. Secondly, the equivalent relation between short-circuit load and impulsive one, and the electrical forces transferred pattern between the coils of inner windings are assumed. Then the results of the shallow arch model are applied to the case of the inner winding of transformer and the formulas for computing critical electromagnetic force and the dynamic stability criterion of the inner windings are established. Finally, examples are offered and the theoretical results are shown to agree well with the experimental ones.     

Stability of a pipeline section with an elastic support

We systematically study the stability of a pipeline section filled with a moving nonviscous fluid. The computational scheme of the pipeline is a rod one of whose ends is rigidly fixed and the other is elastically supported. For the problem parameters we take the fluid relative mass, the fluid flow rate, and the rigidity of the elastic support. We study the dynamic buckling frequencies and modes for various critical values of the parameters and the behavior of characteristic exponents on the complex plane. We also analyze the influence of the elastic support on the position of the stability region boundaries and on the type of buckling in the transition to a critical state.