Cumulative buckling deformation of stiffened panel under cyclic loading

In this study, the cumulative process of buckling deformation is evaluated for a stiffened panel sub jected to uniaxial cyclic loading. The impact of cyclic loading on the ultimate strength of the panel is then estimated. It is noted that the arising of permanent deflection could be simulated by finite element method analysis using a suitable model able to capture the strain components properly. The results show that the structure accumulates a deformation that seems to grow almost linearly hence, as a consequence, is realistic to expect that if a large number of load cycles of such magnitude is imposed, the accumulated plastic strain can be quite severe. In addition, it is revealed that such residual deformations, caused by a cyclic load magnitude lower than the design limit, affects the ultimate strength of the stiffened panel. Finally, effects on the numerical evaluation of the ultimate strength of the structure are shown.