Influence of boundary constraints on the appearance of asymmetrical equilibrium states in circular plates under normal pressure

Unsymmetrical buckling of nonuniform circular plates with elastically restrained edge and subjected to normal pressure is studied in this paper. The unsymmetric part of the solution is sought in terms of multiples of the harmonics of the angular coordinate. A numerical method is employed to obtain the lowest load value, which leads to the appearance of waves in the circumferential direction. The effect of material heterogeneity and boundary on the buckling load is examined. It is shown that if the outer edge of a plate is elastically restrained against radial deflection, the buckling load for unsymmetrical buckling is larger than for a plate with a movable edge. The elasticity modulus decrease away from the center of a plate leads to sufficient lowering of the buckling pressure if the outer edge can move freely in the radial direction.