ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the application of the finite element method to the analysis of shell structures with cutouts and cracks. Reliable and efficient procedures for the solution of such problems are identified as are some of the shortcomings in the currently available analysis. It is concluded that acceptable methods of analysis are at the disposal of engineers and that improvements in these methods can be achieved. Numerical results are presented to demonstrate the accuracy and efficiency of the selected finite element models and the direction for some future work is also given.
Shell structures with cutouts and cracks are problems of the utmost importance in aerospace applications, pressure vessel and piping technology and nuclear engineering. The development of efficient finite elements for modelling shell structures has been, and continues to be, an active research area.1,2 Considerable advances have also been made in the application of some of the elements in order to predict static, dynamic and stability characteristics of a variety of shell types. This chapter will restrict its review to such works where the finite element method (FEM) is applied to the determination of the stress concentration around cutouts and the stress intensity factors at crack tips.
