Secondary buckling of a flat plate under uniaxial compression: Part 2. Analysis of clamped plate by F.E.M. and comparison with experiments

In Part 1, a theoretical analysis was used to study the secondary buckling of a simply supported plate. In Part 2, a clamped plate is analysed by the finite element method. The stability criterion for a non-linear post-buckling equilibrium state is evaluated by the sign of the determinant of the stiffness matrix. It should be noted that the secondary buckling loads of clamped plates are unexpectedly smaller than those of simply supported plates and are only one and a half times the primary buckling loads. In previous analyses, only a quarter segment of the plate was considered by assuming a stable equilibrium state with symmetrical mode. However, instability can also be predicted by considering the unsymmetrical mode over the whole plate. Results of experimental analysis of secondary instability of clamped square plates under uniaxial compression agreed with the numerical results.