Table of contents

1 INTRODUCTION

2 AREA OF APPLICATION

Typical rectangular plates

Arbitrary geometries and boundary conditions

3 CALCULATION METHODS AND SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS

Overview of calculation methods

Linear analysis

Linear buckling analysis

Material nonlinear analysis

Geometric nonlinear analysis including imperfections (GNIA)

Geometric and material nonlinear analysis including imperfections (GMNIA)

Software requirements

4 MODELLING (PREPROCESSING)

Material properties

Mesh discretisation

Boundary conditions

Imperfections

5 SOLUTION SETTINGS

General

Importance of large deformations

Prestress effect

Solver selection

Setting the convergence criterion

Time increment settings

Overcome convergency problems

Solution printout

6 EVALUATION AND VERIFICATION (POSTPROCESSING) AND INTERPRETATION OF RESULTS

Evaluation

Verification

Interpretation

7 BENCHMARK EXAMPLES

Longitudinally stiffened panel under normal force

Longitudinally stiffened panel subjected to shear force

Web in bending with weak stiffeners

Transversally stiffened steel plate girder subjected to patch loading

8 WORKED EXAMPLES

Bottom plate with trapezoidal stiffeners

Web subjected to shear and bending

Patch loading verification of a box girder bridge

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

REFERENCES