Design Buckling Curves for Clamped Orthotropic Laminated Plates

Non-dimensional design buckling curves for clamped rectangular orthotropic plates are presented in this study. These curves provide the critical buckling load of thin, symmetric, cross-ply laminated plates as a function of the laminate's rigidities and aspect ratio for the following seven configurations of the applied in-plane loads: uniform uniaxial compression, triangular uniaxial compression, uniaxial in-plane bending, pure shear, uniform uniaxial compression combined with shear, triangular uniaxial compression combined with shear, and uniaxial in-plane bending combined with shear. Approximate mathematical formulae are also provided. The Classical Lamination Theory, in conjunction with the Rayleigh-Ritz method, has been used for the determination of the critical buckling load. The validity of the study is confirmed by comparing its results with other both theoretical and numerical ones.