A new kind of mixed elements for shells of revolution subjected to arbitrary loads

In this paper a generalized variational principle with two-field variables is derived from the Reissner principle of elasticity in the curvilinear coordinates of a revolution shell, based on which, a new kind of mixed elements with independent transverse rotations is formulated for revolution shells subjected to harmonic external loads. The resultant-stress interpolations are carefully selected so that the shear part of the element stiffness contains the Kirchhoff hypothesis for thin shells and element stiffness matrices have correct ranks. The elements are free from shear locking and spurious kinematic modes. Numerical examples show that the new elements have good generality and high accuracy for thin and moderately-thick revolution shells.