CONSTRAINED FINITE ELEMENT METHOD FOR THE ANALYSIS OF SHEAR BUCKLING OF THIN-WALLED MEMBERS

In this paper a new method for the modal decomposition of thin-walled members is presented. The method is based on the finite element method, by using a specific shell finite element. The specific finite element makes it possible to perform modal decomposition essentially identically as in the constrained finite strip method. The method, therefore can be termed us constrained finite element method. In the paper the method is briefly presented, then it is applied for various buckling problems, focusing primarily on the shear behavior. The numerical examples prove the applicability of the method, as well demonstrate that by the proposed constrained finite element method clearer understanding of the complex behavior can be achieved for cases not well explored yet.