Buckling of triangular plates with elastic edge constraints

Summary This paper presents the first-known investigation on the buckling behavior of triangular plates with both translational and rotational elastic edge constraints. The energy functional of a general triangular plate with elastic edge supports is derived, and thep-Ritz method is utilized to derive the governing eigenvalue equation for the buckling problem. Convergence and comparison studies are carried out to verify the validity and accuracy of the solution method. Extensive buckling factors are presented for several selected isosceles and right-angled triangular plates of various edge support conditions and subjected to isotropic inplane compressive load. The influence of elastic edge supports on the buckling factors for triangular plates of various vertex angles (aspect ratios) and boundary conditions is examined.