Study of the stability of composite shells with allowance for the cracked state of components of the material

An approximate method is described for determining the effective strain characteristics of composite materials with allowance for the presence of plane microcracks in the components. The character of the effect of such defects on the critical loads is illustrated by examining the problem of the stability of a conical shell. S. P. Timoshenko Institute of Mechanics, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Kiev. Translated from Prikladnaya Mekhanika, Vol. 35, No. 11, pp. 46–54, November, 1999.