Buckling analysis of laminated composite elliptical shells using the spline finite strip procedure.

According to the first order shear deformation plate assumption, current paper numerically investigates the buckling problem of cylindrical shells with oval cross-section under simply supported boundary condition subjecting to uniform and non-uniform loads via spline finite strip method. Equilibrium governing equations are generated based upon the virtual work's principle. Shell displacement function is assumed to be as dual development of degree 3 spline functions and Lagrange polynomial functions. The analysis method used at any time with any type of loading can calculate deformation and buckling. The step-by-step critical load is calculated using the determinant of the stiffness matrix. In the present paper, it is supposed that the applied linear elastic materials consist of isotropic and non-isotropic materials. Numerical studies are performed to indicate the effects of shell geometry, materials, and layered materials on the buckling load. For the validation purpose, the results of current research are compared with those of previous researches and ABAQUS software.