OPTIMIZATION OF SHEAR-DEFORMABLE LAMINATED PLATES UNDER BUCKLING AND STRENGTH CRITERIA

A shear deformable laminated theory is used to study the optimal desig n of rectangular plates under biaxial compressive loads. Such loads le ad to plate failure by buckling or material failure which corresponds to the violation of the selected strength criterion. The minimum of th e two loads (buckling load or material failure load) determines the cr itical failure load for a given set of problem parameters. At the opti mum values of the ply angles, buckling or both failure criteria may be operational depending on the laminate thickness. The present study in vestigates the effect of laminate thickness on the optimal design and gives numerical results for symmetrically laminated angle-ply plates. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.