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2
$ (4)
The coefcient of the series are the derivatives of the vector of displacements with
respect to
a
1
a/ a
2
2
a/
2
(5)
The new form of displacements is substituted in the total potential energy of the
system. Then the equilibrium conditions result as a function of . Terms which are
multiplied by with alike powers are grouped together, leading to a polynomial
expansion of . Because can take values from 0 to other values, then the coefcients
of need to be zero in order to satisfy the equilibrium condition. These are linear
conditions, that lead to a
1
, a
2
, etc.
An application of the above procedure is shown in Fig. 8, for a circular plate
under in-plane load. The plate has a geometric damage in the central part, and the
problem is to obtain the stress redistributions due to damage. The damage mechanism
in this case is not of interest.
Results using perturbation/nite element techniques are shown in Fig. 9. The
results plotted are limited to the membrane stress resultants and for one case, because
of limitations of space. However, a more thorough discussion of the results is
presented by the author elsewhere [27].
10. Damageload interaction
Our next excursion illustrates a problem in which damage of the structure produces
a change in the load acting on the system. Consider a metal silo structure, lled with
cereal. Damage in metal silos is very common in the form of changes in the
Fig. 8. Plate with geometric damage.
199 L.A. Godoy/ Thin-Walled Structures 32 (1998) 181206
Fig. 9. Membrane stress resultants in a plate with geometric damage (from [27]).
geometry, with height equal to the height of the plates used in the construction. The
origin of such damage is usually associated to wind action, often buckling of the
empty silo. Can this damage affect the pressures due to the bulk stored material on
the silo walls? It does, as rst noticed by Eibl et al. [28].
The problem arises when the silo is discharged by gravity ow, because the new
modied geometry induces perturbations to the ow. But now we need to model the
ow, not (only) the structure.
The model of the ow of solid granular material stored in silos has been studied
by the author and co-workers using uid ow models, with non-Newtonian properties
[29,30]. A pseudo-viscosity is dened based on the cohesion, the friction and uidity
of the material. This viscosity is employed in a two dimensional nite element discre-
tization of the domain. The problem is non-linear due to the constitutive material.
The process of discharge is stimulated as a steady-state, in order to avoid the com-
plexities of the rst seconds of transient response.
As an example, consider a silo shown in Fig. 10, with the dimensions and the
material taken from [31]. This is a small silo, with 0.8 m diameter and 2.55 m height,
tested in a laboratory. The geometric damage is assumed to have an axisymmetric
shape in order to simplify the already complex computations. The location of the
change is in the cylindrical part of the silo, because parametric studies indicated this
to be the worst location for modication of pressures on the walls. The maximum
amplitude produced by damage is 10% of the radius of the shell, and the ratio
between the height of the damaged zone and the amplitude is 5.
The results are plotted as pressures on the walls of the silo during the discharge,
for different elevations measured from the silo outlet. Consider rst the dotted line
in Fig. 11. Between elevations 0 and 1.30 m there is a smooth increase in the press-
ures. At the junction between the conical and the cylindrical parts there is a peak
in the pressures, which is independent of the damage in the shell. The changes in
pressures due to the damaged zone are seen to be concentrated in the zone of damage
itself, with a high peak of overpressure and another peak of negative pressure that
alleviates the bottom of the damaged zone. The overpressure in this problem is about
ve times the pressures in the perfect structure.
200 L.A. Godoy/ Thin-Walled Structures 32 (1998) 181206
Fig. 10. Dimensions of a silo with a geometric imperfection, after [31].
Fig. 11. Pressures on the walls during discharge.
The dotted curve was computed using a discontinuity function (yield surface) for
the granular material as given by [32], while the solid curve represents values com-
puted using a cap model, similar to those employed in soil mechanics [30]. The
differences between constitutive models affect more the ow pressures in the perfect
structure than in the structure with damage.
Damage was assumed in this case to move the shell towards the inside of the silo.
201 L.A. Godoy/ Thin-Walled Structures 32 (1998) 181206
For damage in the opposite direction, the changes in pressures are less dramatic than
in Fig. 11.
In the studies of Figs 10 and 11 we have assumed that the walls of the structure
are rigid. This may be a reasonable assumption for reinforced concrete silos, but in
the case of metal silos one should take into account the deformations of the walls
due to the peak pressures associated to imperfections. One could solve the two prob-
lems coupled at the level of the formulation; however, a simpler alternative would
be to perform an iterative analysis between pressures on the bulk stored material on
the wall and deections of the thin-walled structure.
11. The future in this eld
This is an imperfect world. As engineers, we also construct an imperfect part of
the world, and our constructions are in turn modied by external agents. Nothing is
exactly the way we thought it would be. No matter how accurate we try to construct
a thin-walled structure, there is always the event of imperfections or accidental dam-
age that may involve large amplitude distortions to a shell.
Thus we need to be able to handle problems of assessing the real shape of a
structure, and the response of imperfect structures to further load. The author under-
stands that new trends in this eld will occur within the next ve to ten years as a
consequence of new applications of shells and folded plate structures, advances in
modeling techniques; improvements in experimental mechanics; all within a frame-
work of increasing computing facilities and easier access to high performance com-
puting.
Only eight trends are listed below, and other researchers could possibly add a few
topics to this list based on their different experiences in this eld.
11.1. Non-deterministic structural analysis
A deterministic approach has been followed in most studies reported in the litera-
ture regarding damage and imperfections in shells. An alternative is to consider a
non-deterministic analysis, in which one computes probabilistic displacements and
stresses based on probabilistic information about imperfections. A stochastic analysis
requires large sets of information about real imperfections and damage forms in the
specic class of structural component studied, so that this is not just a problem of
introducing a new form of carrying out the computations. With the advent of data
banks, it is expected that stochastic analysis will produce meaningful information
about expected shell behavior.
11.2. Data banks
Data banks were mentioned in this paper, and are already available for some
structural components in the aerospace and aeronautical industries. Through them it
is possible to proceed with identication of relevant parameters that characterize an
202 L.A. Godoy/ Thin-Walled Structures 32 (1998) 181206
imperfect shell. The future trends in this eld may include new data banks for other
structural forms. Cooling towers are a good candidate to provide information for a
data bank, specially because there have been major efforts towards measuring
geometry and cracks in such shells in England [19,20]. Another eld in which they
can be available is in cylindrical shells employed in the off-shore industry [43,61,62].
Will they be freely available as scientic information? Perhaps not, and there is a
good chance that you will be able to buy data banks for your application in a not-
so-distant future.
The data will be enhanced by current developments in experimental mechanics
and instrumentation techniques, so that easier and more sophisticated information on
the surface of a shell will be available. But data banks need not be solely based on
actual measurements of real structures. Because we can understand how imperfec-
tions are generated, or the way damage occurs associated to certain external agents,
then a large amount of information can be generated using computer simulations.
This would be a much more economic way to have information on possible geometric
distortions, specially for cases in which only a few measurements are available.
11.3. Damage into the software
Today computer packages provide a choice to the analysts in a number of para-
meters of a structure, including material models. Describing the shape with local
distortions and appropriate nite element meshes to produce a meaningful result is
not easy, as has been shown by the failure of numerous direct nite element analysis
in the past. One can envisage that tomorrow there may be libraries of imperfections
and damage available for different applications, and included in computer packages.
11.4. The combination of damage mechanics and geometric degeneracies
Models of geometric distortion are today considered for elastic materials. How-
ever, material damage accompanies the distortion of the geometry in many cases,
specially in damage-induced geometric deviations. An area in which limited progress
has been made is to follow the redistribution of stresses in conjunction with the
degradation of the material properties of the structure. With new computational facili-
ties becoming available to the engineer at a design ofce, it may soon be the case
that we can perform more complete studies about non-elastic redistributions of loads
and stresses associated to geometric distortions.
11.5. Dynamic response of imperfect structures
Another limitation that we witness today is that most studies are restricted to static
loads acting on the system. Information about the inuence of imperfections and
damage on the dynamic response of shells and plates may be very important, speci-
ally because real structures are subject to dynamic actions, such as wind, earthquake,
ambient vibrations, etc. It is expected that distortional damage does not modify the
203 L.A. Godoy/ Thin-Walled Structures 32 (1998) 181206
mass of a structure, or its damping properties, so that the inuence on the dynamic
response will be made through the stiffness.
11.6. The impact of more computational power
Many of the current limitations have to do with our limited capacity to provide
an accurate answer using direct nite element techniques of analysis. The limitations
emerge because one tries to model a large system in which local effects should also
be considered. This combination of local damage/global response leads to either
simplications by means of ad-hoc assumptions, or to large computer requirements
to solve the problems. With new generations of personal computers and workstations,
one will be able to solve problems faster, not being afraid of dealing with a very
large number of elements, non-linear analysis, local mesh renements, all at once.
11.7. Different levels of computer environments
The increasing capability of computer modeling does not mean that simple sol-
utions are not required. On the contrary, the interpretation of a large set of results,
including variations of stresses, displacements, call for a thorough understanding of
the basic mechanics of the problems in hand. Thus, it is expected that simple models
based on equilibrium and compatibility will still be a vital ingredient of a serious
investigation of the safety of an imperfect or damaged structure.
11.8. Better data acquisition and visualization
The ability to show information about the geometry of a structure may be
important in many cases, specially if one is trying to understand the generation of
damage or imperfections due to a known agent. Examples are the shape distortions
due to settlement of foundations in large exible shells, for which numerical models
can predict levels of out-of-plane distortions associated to specic local settlements.
New facilities for rapid visualization will make an impact in this area and will
accompany the impact of more computational power.
Acknowledgements
This work was supported by a grant from NSF-EPSCoR on Behavior of structures
with damage. The author is indebted to Dr S. Elaskar, who performed the compu-
tations for the silo structure in Section 10.
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