Bending and buckling of inflatable beams: some new theoretical results

Anh Le Van (1) , Christian Wielgosz (1)

1 GeM - Institut de Recherche en Génie Civil et Mécanique

The non-linear and linearized equations are derived for the in-plane stretching and bending of thin-walled cylindrical beams made of a membrane and inflated by an internal pressure. The Timoshenko, beam model combined with the finite rotation kinematics enables one to correctly account for the shear effect and all the non-linear terms in the governing equations. The linearization is carried out around a pre-stressed reference configuration which has to be defined as opposed to the so-called natural state. Two examples are then investigated: the bending and the buckling of a cantilever beam. Their analytical solutions show that the inflation has the effect of increasing the material properties in the beam solution. This solution is compared with the three-dimensional finite element analysis, as well as the so-called wrinkling pressure for the bent beam and the crushing force for the buckled beam. New theoretical and numerical results on the buckling of inflatable beams are displayed.

Mots clés: Inflatable beam; Thin walled beam; Membrane structure; Follower force; Bending; Buckling

Domaines: Mécanique [physics.med-ph]; Matériaux

Anh Le Van, Christian Wielgosz. Bending and buckling of inflatable beams: some new theoretical results. Thin-Walled Structures, 2005, 43 (8), pp.1166-1187. ⟨10.1016/j.tws.2005.03.005⟩. ⟨hal-01005290⟩