Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

Elastic local buckling strength of sti!ened plate

considering plate/sti!ener interaction and welding
residual stress
Masahiko Fujikubo *, Tetsuya Yao

Faculty of Engineering, Hiroshima University, 1-4-1, Kagamiyama, Higashi-Hiroshima, Hiroshima, Japan

Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University Suita, Osaka, Japan
Received 4 May 1999; received in revised form 19 November 1999; accepted 30 November 1999

Abstract
An analytical formula for estimating elastic local buckling strength of a continuous sti!ened
plate subjected to biaxial thrust is derived considering the in#uence of plate/sti!ener interaction
and welding residual stresses. Through a comparison of calculated results with those by FEM
eigenvalue analysis, high accuracy of the proposed formula is demonstrated. A series of
buckling strength analyses is performed on the deck and bottom plating of actual ships. It has
been found that:
(1) In the case of sti!ened plates in ordinary ships, an increase in the elastic local buckling
strength as a result of sti!ener torsional rigidity is almost compensated for by the in#uence
of welding residual stresses.
(2) For a thin plate under transverse thrust, higher elastic buckling strength can be expected
than that speci"ed in the classi"cation societies' rules by selecting an appropriate size for
the sti!ener.  2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Buckling strength formula; Sti!ened plate; Biaxial thrust; Plate/sti!ener interaction; Welding
residual stress

1. Introduction
Sti!ened plates in ship structures are designed so that local panel buckling between
sti!eners takes place prior to overall buckling and local sti!ener buckling. In general,
* Corresponding author. Tel.: #81-824-24-7811; fax: #81-824-22-7194.
E-mail address: fujikubo@naoe.hiroshima-u.ac.jp (M. Fujikubo)
0951-8339/99/$ - see front matter  2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
PII: S 0 9 5 1 - 8 3 3 9 ( 9 9 ) 0 0 0 3 2 - 5

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M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

the buckling strength of a local panel is evaluated assuming that the local panel is
simply supported along edges. However, in actual sti!ened plates, the local buckling
strength is expected to increase due to the in#uence of the torsional rigidity of the
sti!eners. In some classi"cation societies' rules, such sti!ener e!ect is taken into
account in the buckling formula. According to DNV [1], the buckling strength of
a rectangular plate under transverse thrust can be increased by multiplying a magni"cation factor c"1.05}1.21 depending on the type of the sti!ener. A similar factor is
considered by ABS [2] also. In these rules, however, neither the size of the sti!ener nor
the sti!ness ratio of the sti!ener to the plate is considered explicitly.
Another factor which in#uences the local buckling strength of a sti!ened plate is
the welding residual stress produced by the "llet welding along the panel/web
intersection. For the case of fabricated tee-bar sti!eners, the "llet welding along the
web/#ange intersection also produces residual stresses. These residual stresses generally reduce the local buckling strength of a sti!ened plate. Much research has been
undertaken into the in#uence of welding residual stresses on the buckling strength of
an isolated plate. However, very few have examined the in#uence of welding residual
stresses on the local interactive buckling between panels and sti!eners.
With the recent trend to widely use high tensile strength steel in ship structures,
the plate is becoming thinner. On the other hand, the spacing of sti!eners cannot be
reduced so much from the fabrication aspect. These factors make the sti!ened plate
members more vulnerable to buckling. With this background, there is a growing
interest in the development of a rational buckling criterion considering the in#uences
of plate/sti!ener interaction and initial imperfections [3}8].
In the present paper, attention is focused on the elastic local buckling strength of
a sti!ened plate as the most fundamental case. First, an analytical expression is
derived for the calculation of local buckling strength of a sti!ened plate subjected to
biaxial thrust considering plate/sti!ener interaction and welding residual stresses. The
buckling strength estimated by the proposed formula is compared with the results of
FEM eigenvalue analysis, and the accuracy of the proposed formula is examined.
Then, a series of buckling strength analyses is performed for the deck and bottom
plating of actual ships, and the in#uence of plate/sti!ener interaction and welding
residual stresses on the elastic local buckling strength is discussed including their
combined e!ects.

2. Formulation
2.1. Model for analysis and assumed buckling mode
In order to formulate the buckling strength of a continuous sti!ened plate, a
double-span/double-bay model shown by the shaded area in Fig. 1 is taken as
representative of the sti!ened plate. The panel and the sti!ener web are treated as a
plate, and the sti!ener #ange as a beam-column.
An idealised distribution of welding residual stresses incorporated in the analysis
is shown in Fig. 2. The "llet welding along transverse frames as well as that along

M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

545

Fig. 1. Continuous sti!ened plate.

longitudinal sti!eners is considered. For the fabricated tee-bar sti!eners, the residual
stresses produced by "llet welding along the web/#ange intersection are also taken
into account. For the #at-bar and angle-bar sti!eners, it is assumed that h "b "0


and p "p .
VA
VA
When a continuous sti!ened plate is accompanied by the welding residual stresses,
overall bending of the sti!ener is generally produced. But here, the sti!ener de#ection
is constrained as shown in Fig. 1, and only the local panel buckling between sti!eners
and the torsional buckling of the sti!ener about the panel/web intersection are
considered.
The buckling mode of the transverse cross section and the bending/torsional
moment produced along the panel/web and web/#ange intersections are shown in
Fig. 3, together with the notation for cross-sectional geometries. Considering the
de#ection and bending/torsional moment in Fig. 3, the buckling mode of a local panel
between sti!eners is assumed as

mpx
py =
mpx
2py
w"= sin
sin #  sin
1!cos
,

a
b
2
a
b

(1)

where m is the number of half waves in buckling mode in the longitudinal direction.
The "rst term of Eq. (1) corresponds to the buckling mode of a simply supported plate.
The second term represents the de#ection when the longitudinal edges of the panel are
clamped, and this produces the bending moment transferred to the sti!ener web.
The buckling mode of a sti!ener web is assumed as follows:

z
mpx
mpx
pz
mpx
pz
v"<
sin
#< sin
1!cos
#< sin
sin
.
(2)
h


a
a
2h
a
2h
U
U
U
The "rst term represents a rigid-body rotation about the line of attachment of
panel and sti!ener web. The second and third terms produce the bending moment
transferred to the panel and #ange, respectively. These de#ection components are
illustrated in Fig. 4.

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M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

Fig. 2. Assumed welding residual stresses (in case of tee-bar sti!ener).

It is assumed that the buckling mode is not in#uenced by the welding residual
stresses.
2.2. Boundary condition
The following boundary conditions are considered in the formulation:
(1) Continuity condition for rotation along panel/web intersection
*v
*z

X

*w
"
*y

W

(3)

M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

547

Fig. 3. De#ection and bending/torsional moment at transverse cross section.

Fig. 4. Assumed components of bucking mode in sti!ener web.

(2) Equilibrium condition for bending/torsional moment along panel/web intersection

*v
*v
D
#l
U *z
*x

X

*w
*w
#2D
#l
N *y
*x

where
Et
Et
U , D "
N
D "
.
U 12(1!l)
N 12(1!l)

W

"0,

(4)

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M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

(3) Equilibrium condition for bending/torsional moment along web/#ange intersection considering continuity of rotation
*v
GJ
D *x*z

!D

XFU

*v
*v
#l
U *z
*x

"0,

(5)

XFU

where GJ is Saint Vennant's torsional sti!ness of the #ange.

D
Substituting Eqs. (1) and (2) into Eqs. (3)}(5), the following relationships are
obtained:
< #k < !k = "0,

 
 

(6)

< #k = "0,

 

(7)

k < #k < #k < "0,

 
 
 

(8)

where
p
ph
k " , k " U,
 2

b
D 16h
U,
k " N
 D b
U









GJ
k " D l! D

U
h
U

mp 
,
a

pGJ
D
k " D l!
U

2h
U

mp 
,
a

mp 
p 
k "D l
#
.

U
a
2h
U
From Eqs. (6)}(8), < , < and < can be expressed in terms of = and = as
 



< "g = #g = ,

 
 
< "g = ,

 
< "g = #g = ,

 
 
where
g "k k /(k !k k ),

  
 
g "k k k /(k k !k ),

    


(9)

M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

549

g "!k ,


g "k k /(k k !k ),

   

g "k k /(k !k k ).

  
 
2.3. Buckling strength formula
When a continuous sti!ened plate is subjected to combined longitudinal and
transverse thrust, the total potential energy at the instance of buckling can be
expressed as
D
%" N
2

  

?

@

\? \@

D
# U
2

  

?

FU

\? 

 

dx dy

 

dx dz

*w *w 
*w *w
*w 
#
!2(1!l)
!
*x
*y
*x *y
*x*y
*v *v 
*v *v
*v 
#
!2(1!l)
!
*x *z
*x *z
*x*z

 

 



1 ?
1 ?
*v
*v
EI
dx#
GJ
dx
#
D *x
D *x*z
2
2
\?
XFU
\?
XFU

 



 



1 ? @
1 ? @
*w 
*w 
!
N
dx dy!
N
dx dy
NV *x
NW *y
2
2
\? \@
\? \@

 


 
 


1 ? FU
*v 
1 ?
*v
!
N
dx dz!
N
dx dy,
D *x
U *x
2
2
\? 
\? @D
XFU

(10)

where
N "t +p #pN (y),,
NV
N V
VP
N "t +p #pN (x),,
NW
N W
WP
N "t +p #pU (z),,
U
U V
VP
N "t +p #pD (y),,
D
D V
VP
where p and p are the applied stresses due to external loads in the longitudinal and
V
W
transverse directions, respectively (positive for compression). pN (y) and pN (x) are the
VP
WP
welding residual stresses in the panel, and pU (z) and pD (y) those in the web and #ange
VP
VP
of the sti!ener, respectively.
Substituting Eqs. (1) and (2) into Eq. (10), and eliminating the coe$cients < , <
 
and < using Eq. (9), the total potential energy P can be expressed in terms of the


550

M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

coe$cients = and = . Then, the principle of minimum potential energy is applied



as
*P
*P
"0,
"0.
*=
*=



(11)

The results are given in the form

c !p c !p c

V 
W 
c !p c !p c

V 
W 

c !p c !p c

V 
W 
c !p c !p c

V 
W 

 

=
 "+0,.
=


(12)

From the condition that non-zero values of = and = exist, the elastic buckling


interaction equation is "nally derived in the following form:
i p#i p p #i p!i p !i p #i "0.
 V
 V W
 W
 V
 W


(13)

The coe$cients c and i are given in the appendix.

G
G
2.4. Estimation of welding residual stresses
The magnitude of welding residual stresses generally depends on the heat input in
welding. In the present study, the maximum heat input, *Q (Cal/cm), in multi-pass
"llet welding is estimated by the following equation based on the measured results [9]:
*Q"78.8;f ,

(14)

where f (mm) is the leg length of the "llet weld.

According to the results of thermal elastoplastic analysis on a sti!ened plate with
#at-bar sti!eners as well as measured results, the breadths a , b and h (Fig. 2) where
 

tensile residual stress is produced can be evaluated as [10]
a "t #0.52*Q/(2t #t ),

RP
N
RP
b "t #0.52*Q/(2t #t ),

U
N
U
h "(t /t );0.26*Q/(2t #t ),

U N
N
U

(15)

where t represents the web thickness of the transverse frames. Eq. (15) is based on
RP
the assumption that the welding heat #ows into the web and the panel on both sides of
the weld line in proportion to their thickness. The same assumption is made also for
the web/#ange intersection as
b "t #0.52*Q/(2t #t ),

U
D
U
h "(t /t );0.26*Q/(2t #t ).

U D
D
U

(16)

M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

551

The tensile residual stress is taken equal to the yield stress of the material. Assuming
that the compressive residual stresses in the panel, web and #ange are of the same
magnitude, and considering the self-equilibrium condition of axial forces in the whole
cross-section, the compressive residual stresses are calculated as
b t p #(h #h )t p #b t p
 N 7.

 U 75
 D 7$
p "p "p "
, (17)
VA
VA
VA (b!b )t #(h !t !h !h )t #(b !b )t
 N
U
D

 U
D
 D
p "a /(a!a )p ,
(18)
WA

 7.
where p , p
and p are the yield stresses of the panel, the web and the #ange,
7. 75
7$
respectively.

3. Finite element analysis

Elastic local buckling strength of a continuous sti!ened plate subjected to biaxial
thrust is calculated using Eq. (13), and the results are compared with those obtained
by a FEM eigenvalue analysis.
The computer code EBUCK developed by the authors is used for the FEA.
A four-node quadrilateral shell element characterised as a bilinear degenerated shell
element with reduced integration is employed. The shear deformation is considered
based on the Hencky}Mindlin plate theory. The hourglass control sti!ness [11] is
added to the element sti!ness.
When the number of buckling half waves in the longitudinal direction, m, is an odd
number, the local buckling behaviour can be simulated considering the region
between ab and cd in Fig. 5 and imposing the symmetry conditions along the boudaries.
On the other hand, when m is an even number, the region between ab and ef in
Fig. 5 should be selected [12]. In this case, the periodical continuous conditions

Fig. 5. Modelling of continuous sti!ened plating.

552

M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

are imposed at the same y coordinates along the longitudinal boundaries, i.e.
+u, "+u, ,
(19)
?@
CD
where +u, is the nodal displacement along the boundary ab. The symmetry condi?@
tion is imposed along the boundaries ace and bdf . This triple-span double-bay model
completely satisfy the continuity condition for the deformation along the longitudinal
boundaries.
A more simple approach to simulate the local buckling mode with even half waves
is to consider the region between ab and cd (double-span model) and impose the
anti-symmetry conditions along the longitudinal boundaries of the panel and web, i.e.
only the rotation about the boundaries is allowed for the boundaries ab, cd, gh and ij,
and the free boundary is assumed for the #ange. Though this model cannot completely
satisfy the continuity condition for the deformation of the #ange, according to the
preliminary analysis, the results obtained by this model were found to be almost
identical with those obtained by the triple-span model. In the present study, however,
the triple-span double-bay model is employed to calculate the local buckling strength
of a continuous sti!ened plate as accurately as possible.
The transverse member is not modelled, but the displacement in the z-direction is
constrained along the transverse members. Since only local buckling behaviour is
being considered, the de#ection of the longitudinal sti!eners is constrained.
The example "nite element meshes are shown in Figs. 7 and 11. Unless otherwise
speci"ed, the length of the one buckling half-wave is divided by 10 elements. When
accompanied by the welding residuals stresses, the breadths a , b and b (Fig. 2) are
 

modelled by two elements and h and h by one element, as shown in Fig. 11.


4. Results and discussions
4.1. Inyuence of stiwener
The buckling strength interaction curves obtained for the bottom plating of a bulk
carrier (handy size) and a VLCC are shown in Fig. 6. Welding residual stress is not
considered here. The solid line represents the buckling strength obtained by the
proposed formula, and the dotted line that of a simply supported plate. The buckling
strength estimated by Eq. (13) is in good agreement with the results of FEA. It is also
shown that the buckling strength of a local panel is signi"cantly increased by the
in#uence of the sti!ener.
The dashed lines in Fig. 6 represent the estimated buckling strength when the
de#ection component, < , of the sti!ener is not considered. The estimate for this case

gives a higher buckling strength than the results of FEA when the longitudinal thrust
is dominant. In addition, the di!erence in buckling strength is larger for the VLCC
panel than that for the BC panel. This is due to the following reason.
Fig. 7 shows the buckling mode of the VLCC panel under longitudinal thrust
obtained by the FEA. The sti!ener web of this panel is very slender (h /t "44.6),
U U
while the #ange is relatively stocky. As a result, the web deforms signi"cantly, but it

M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

553

Fig. 6. Comparison of predicted buckling strength with that by FEA (Sti!ened plates with no welding
residual stress): (a) Bulk carrier; (b) Tanker (VLCC).

is rotationally constrained along the web/#ange intersection. Such web deformation

cannot be simulated without considering the de#ection component < . This implies

that the three components of de#ection, < , < and < , must be considered for the
 

sti!ener web in general.
A series of buckling strength calculations is performed for the continuous sti!ened
plates changing the panel thickness t and sti!ener size. The ratio of the calculated
N
buckling strength, p , to that of a simply supported plate, pQ , is shown in Fig. 8 for
AP
AP

554

M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

Fig. 7. Buckling mode obtained by FEA (VLCC panel).

both the transverse and the longitudinal thrust. The aspect ratio of the local panel, a/b,
is taken as 3.0. Four sizes of angle-bar sti!ener are considered. For the case of very
thin plates, the de#ection component clamped along the sti!ener line (= in Eq. (1)) is

considered to be large. To simulate this component accurately, the breadth of the
panel is divided by 18 elements in the FEA.
As shown, the buckling strengths estimated by the present formula are in good
agreement with those by the FEA. For the thin plates under the longitudinal thrust,
however, the present formula overestimates the buckling strength. This is probably
because of the error in the assumed buckling mode.
It is observed that an increase in buckling strength, p /pQ , due to sti!eners is higher
AP AP
for the thinner plate, when the same sti!ener is provided. Because of the rotational
constraint along the panel/web intersection, the number of half-waves in the buckling
mode, m, obtained for a thinner plate under longitudinal thrust is larger than that for
a simply supported isolated plate (m"3) as shown in Fig. 8(b).
In the case of transverse thrust, the buckling strength obtained for the sti!ened plate
with an angle-bar sti!ener of 350IA is almost the same as that with 300IA. For
longitudinal thrust, the buckling strength obtained for the sti!ened plate with anglebar sti!ener of 350IA is less than that for angle-bar sti!ener of 250IA or 300IA. That
is, with an increase in sti!ener size, the e!ect of the sti!eners reaches a maximum at
a certain level and then starts to decrease depending on the web slenderness. An
optimum sti!ener size therefore exists from the viewpoint of elastic local buckling
strength. p /pQ is higher for the transverse thrust than that for the longitudinal thrust.
AP AP
This is because the sti!ener is not subjected to thrust in the former case.
4.2. Combined inyuence of stiwener and welding residual stress
The elastic local buckling strength of a continuous sti!ened plate under biaxial
thrust is calculated with the proposed formula and by FEM considering the in#uence
of welding residual stresses. The leg length of the "llet weld f in Eq. (14) is taken as
70% of the smaller thickness of panel/web or web/#ange, but not more than 6 mm.
This almost complies with the requirement of the NK rule [13] for the sti!ened plates
considered here. The breadth a is assumed to be equal to b in Eq. (15).



M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

555

Fig. 8. In#uences of sti!eners on local buckling strength of continuous sti!ened plates with no welding
residual stress: (a) Transverse thrust; (b) Longitudinal thrust.

The results with and without considering the in#uence of welding residual stresses
obtained for the bottom plating of the bulk carrier and the VLCC are plotted in Fig. 9,
together with the buckling strength of a simply supported plate. The compressive
welding residual stresses calculated by Eqs. (17) and (18) are indicated in the "gure.
The buckling strengths estimated by the proposed formula are in good agreement
with those obtained by the FEA. It is found that the buckling strength which is
increased by the sti!ener is considerably decreased by the in#uence of welding
residual stresses. As a result, in the case of the BC panel, the buckling strength considering both sti!ener and welding residual stresses almost coincides with that of a

556

M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

Fig. 9. Comparison of predicted buckling strength with that by FEA (Sti!ened plates with welding residual
stresses): (a) Bulk carrier; (b) Tanker (VLCC).

simply supported plate with no residual stress. The same holds for the VLCC panel
having a fabricated tee-bar sti!ener when longitudinal thrust is dominant. However,
when transverse thrust is dominant and buckling takes place in one half-wave
longitudinally, the in#uence of the welding residual stresses on the VLCC panel is
small. This is partly because the residual stress in the transverse direction is smaller
than that for the BC panel, and partly because the tensile residual stresses exist near

M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

557

the web/#ange intersection of the sti!ener where the maximum horizontal de#ection
of the sti!ener occurs.
Fig. 10 shows the relationships between the buckling strength and the panel
thickness, t , obtained for the sti!ened plates with four di!erent sizes of angle-bar
N
sti!ener. The "nite element mesh used for Fig. 8 is again applied. The estimated
buckling strengths are in good agreement with the FEM results. For the very thin
plates subjected to longitudinal thrust, the proposed formula slightly overestimates
the buckling strength also in this case.

Fig. 10. In#uences of sti!eners and welding residual stresses on local buckling strength of continuous
sti!ened plates: (a) Transverse thrust; (b) Longitudinal thrust.

3200;850;18.5
2500;820;16.5
2400;800;14.5
4000;800;20.5
3100;854;18.0
3270;880;15.5
5630;955;20.5
5630;955;22.0
5095;850;18.0
4000;795;22.0

Type & no.

BC1
BC2
BC3
CS1
CS2
CS3
TK1
TK2
TK3
TK4

250;25
300;90;10/16
250;90;10/16
300;90;13/17
350;100;11/17
350;100;12/17
400;11#150;19
700;14#200;25
650;13.5#150;25
330;25

Sti!ener
(mm)
313.6
352.8
313.6
352.8
313.6
313.6
313.6
313.6
313.6
235.2

p
7
(MPa)
353.7
301.3
244.4
488.6
333.7
232.1
342.9
395.0
333.7
569.8

p (MPa)

1.226
1.101
1.162
1.103
1.076
1.161
1.059
0.889
0.918
1.023

p /p
 

Longitudinal thrust

1.159
1.022
1.064
1.063
1.025
1.080
0.988
0.950
0.996
0.996

p /p
 
101.0
92.4
75.4
132.1
95.7
66.4
90.7
104.5
88.1
153.9

p (MPa)


1.124
1.140
1.192
1.034
1.117
1.182
1.028
1.093
1.111
1.063

p /p
 

Transverse thrust

1.059
1.048
1.078
1.000
1.058
1.093
1.004
1.072
1.087
1.040

p /p
 

Note: BC: Bulk carrier, CS: Container ship; TK: Tanker; p : buckling strength of simply supported plate; p : buckling strength considering sti!eners;


p : buckling strength considering sti!eners and welding residual stresses.


Panel
(a;b;t mm)
N

Table 1
Local buckling strength of continuous sti!ened plates considering in#uences of sti!eners and welding residual stresses

558
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M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

559

The increase of buckling strength due to the sti!ener torsional rigidity is smaller
than that in Fig. 8 ignoring the welding residual stresses. In the case of transverse
thrust, p /pQ increases with a decrease in the panel thickness, whereas in the case of
AP AP
longitudinal thrust, it increases to a certain level and then starts to decrease. This is
because the compressive welding residual stress is larger for a thinner panel.
In the DNV and ABS rules, the buckling strength of a local panel under transverse
thrust can be increased by multiplying a magni"cation factor c"1.05}1.21. The
increased buckling strength for the angle-bar sti!ener is shown in Figs. 8(a) and 10(a).
It is found that, for a thinner plate, a larger increase in buckling strength can be
expected than that speci"ed in the rules, even when the in#uence of welding residual
stresses is taken into account. Contrary to this, as shown in Fig. 10(a), the present rules
overestimate the sti!ener e!ect for a smaller size of sti!ener like 200IA. A more
rational buckling design becomes possible by using the proposed formula.
Finally, a series of buckling strength estimates is performed with the proposed
formula, choosing 10 sti!ened plates from the deck and bottom plating of existing
bulk carrier, container ship and tanker. The results are summarised in Table 1.
In most cases, the increase in buckling strength due to the sti!eners is only slightly
larger than the decrease due to welding residual stresses, and the resulting buckling
strength is close to that of a simply supported plate with no residual stress for both
cases of longitudinal and transverse thrust. It can be concluded from these results that
as far as sti!ened plates in ordinary ships are concerned, the traditional calculation of
elastic buckling strength of plates assuming simply supported edges is valid from the
viewpoint of practical application. In other words, it is proved that the reduction of
buckling strength due to the in#uence of welding residual stresses is compensated for
by the in#uence of sti!eners.
In sti!ened plates having a long span and a tee-bar sti!ener with a deep web (TK2
and TK3), which are taken from the bottom plating of tankers, the elastic buckling
under longitudinal thrust takes place in a tripping mode as shown in Fig. 11. The
buckling strength of these sti!ened plates is lower than that for a simply supported
local panel. Furthermore, since the tensile residual stresses exist at the sti!ener top
where the maximum horizontal de#ection occurs at buckling, the buckling strength is
increased by the in#uence of welding residual stresses.

Fig. 11. Buckling mode obtained by FEA (TK2).

560

M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

5. Conclusions
In order to obtain an improved understanding of buckling behaviour of sti!ened
plates and hence to evaluate more accurate buckling strength, an analytical formula
to estimate the elastic buckling strength of a continuous sti!ened plate under bi-axial
thrust has been derived considering the in#uences of plate/sti!ener interaction and
welding residual stresses. A series of buckling analysis has been performed applying
the proposed formula, and the following "ndings have been obtained:
(1) The proposed buckling strength formula gives estimates which are in good
agreement with the buckling strengths obtained by a FEM eigenvalue analysis.
(2) The elastic buckling strength of a local panel between sti!eners is increased by the
presence of sti!eners.
(3) Welding residual stresses produced by "llet welding of a sti!ener to a panel
generally reduce the elastic local buckling strength.
(4) As a result of compensation of the in#uence of sti!eners and that of welding residual
stresses, the elastic local buckling strength of a sti!ened plate in ordinary ships almost
the same as that of a simply supported plate with no welding residual stress.
(5) For a thinner plate under transverse thrust, higher elastic buckling strength can
be expected than that speci"ed in the classi"cation societies' rules by selecting an
appropriate size for the sti!ener.
Although only the elastic buckling behaviour has been discussed in the present study,
the proposed formula of the elastic buckling strength is considered to be useful for the
estimation of the ultimate strength of sti!ened plates also. For example, for the case of
the sti!ened plates with slender #at-bar sti!eners, the consideration of the
plate/sti!ener interaction is essential to evaluate the tripping behaviour of the
sti!ener. Regarding the welding residual stresses, there are basically two in#uences of
the compressive residual stresses on the buckling/plastic collapse behaviour of the
sti!ened plates under thrust; decreasing the elastic buckling strength and enhancing
the yielding. The "rst e!ect can be considered by the proposed formula. Application of
the proposed formula to estimate the ultimate strength of sti!ened plates remains as
future work.

Acknowledgements
The authors are grateful to Dr. Balu Varghese for his help in performing this study.
This research was performed under the support of Class NK.
Appendix
i "c c !c , i "c c #c c !2c c ,

 


 
 
 
i "c c !c , i "c c #c c !2c c ,

 


 
 
 

M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

i "c c #c c !2c c , i "c c !c ,


 
 
 

 

c "a #a !a ,




c "a #a !a ,




c "a #a !a ,





mp t b
N #t h t #t b t
c "
,

U U 
D D 
2a
2




mp 16t b
N #t h t #t b t
c "
,
U U 
D D 

4a
3p
mp 3t b
N #t h t #t b t
c "
,

U U 
D D 
2a
8
pt a
2pt a
pt a
c " N , c " N , c " N .



4b
3b
4b
Flat bar:

I "J "0,
D
D

Angle bar: I "b t /3, J "b t /3,

D
D D
D
D D
Tee bar:

I "b t /12, J "b t /3,

D
D D
D
D D

D pab m
1 
a " N
#
,

4
a
b
D ap
D lmp
D mph
Ut # U
t # U
t
a " U




2a
4h
ah
U
U
EI mp
GJ mp
(1!l)D mp
U
t # D
t # D
t ,
#



ah
2a
2ah
U
U

2D abp m
1 
a " N
#
,

3
a
b
D mph
D ap
D lmp
Ut # U
a " U
t # U
t ,




4a
8h
2ah
U
U
D (1!l)mp
EI mp
GJ mp
# U
t # D
t # D
t ,



2ah
4a
4ah
U
U

561

562

M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

D abp 3m
2
m
a " N
# #
,

8a
2
b ab
D mph
D ap
D lmp
D (1!l)mp
Ut # U
a " U
t # U
t # U
t





2a
4h
ah
ah
U
U
U
EI mp
GJ mp
# D
t # D
t ,


2a
2ah
U
t mp
t p
t mp
C #N C #U
(g C #g C #2g g C )
a "N

 
 
  

2b 
2a
2a
t mp
t C ,
#D
 
2a
t mp
4pt
t mp
a "N
C # NC #U
(g g C #g g C #g g C



  
  
  
4a
3b
2a
t mp
#g g C #g g C #g g C )# D
t C ,
  
  
  
 
4a
t mp
pt
t mp
C # NC #U
(g C #g C #g C
a "N

 
 
 

2b 
2a
8a
t mp
#2g g C #2g g C #2g g C )# D
t C ,
  
  
  
 
2a
8
g g
t " # # g g ,

2
p  
3

2
4
8
2
8
t " g g #g g # 1! #
g g # g g # (g g #g g ),
 3  
 
 
p p   p   p  



g
3 4
g
4
8
8
2
t "  # ! g #  # 1! #
g g # g g # g g ,

3
2 p 
2
p p   p   p  
p
p
g g
t " g , t " g g !   ,
 16 
 8  
4
p
p
g g
t " g # g !   ,
 16  16 
4



p
t " g #g g ,

 
8 

p
p
t " g g # 1! g g #g g #g g ,


 
 

4
2  

M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

563



p p
p
p
t "
! g # g # 1! g g #g g ,

 
8
2 
8 
2  
p
t "g # g #2g g ,
 


8 
p
p
t "2g g # g g #2g g # g g #2(g g #g g ),

 
  2  
 
 
4  
p
p
p
t "g # g # g #2g g # g g #2g g ,




 


8
2  
8
t "(g #g ), t "2(g #g ) (g #g #g ),





 


t "(g #g #g ), t "g ,








p
p
t "2g g # g , t " g # g ,

  2 

 2 
b
b
C " p ! (p #p ) (k p!sin k p)
VR V
V
 2 VA 2p VA
3b
b
C " p ! (p #p ) (6k p!8 sin k p#sin 2k p),

VA
VR
V
V
V
2
4p VA

8b
b
k p
3k p
C "! p # (p #p ) 9 cos V !cos V ,
VR

2
2
3p VR 3p VA
a
a
C " p !
(p #p ) (mk p!sin mk p),
 2 WA 2mp WA
WR
W
W
h
C "! U +(p #p )k !(p #p ) (1!k )#p ,,

VR
VA X
VA
VR
X
VR
3

h
k p
C " U !(p #p ) 3k p!8 sin X #sin k p
 2p
VA
VR
X
X
2

k p
! (p #p ) 3k p#8 cos X !sin k p #3pp #8p
,
VA
VR
X
X
VA
VR
2
h
C " U +pp !(p #p )(k p!sin k p)
 2p
VA
VA
VR X
X
!(p #p ) (k p#sin k p),,
VA
VR X
X

564

M. Fujikubo, T. Yao / Marine Structures 12 (1999) 543}564

h
k p
k p
C "! U (p #p ) k p!4k p sin X !8 cos X

VR
X
X
2p VA
2
2

k p
k p
! (p #p ) (1!k )p!4(1!k )p cos X !8 sin X
VA
VR
X
X
2
2

# 8p #(p!4p)p
,
VR
VR

k p
h
C " U (p #p ) 4 cos X !cos k p
VA
VR
X
 2p
2

k p
!(p #p ) 4 sin X #cos k p !3p #p
,
VA
VR
X
VR
VR
2

2h
k p
k p
C " U (p #p ) k p cos X !2 sin X

VA
VR X
p
2
2

k p
k p
!(p #p ) (1!k )p sin X !2 cos X !2p ,
VA
VR
X
VR
2
2
C "p (b !b )!p b ,

VA D

VR 
b
a
h
h
k " , k " , k " , k " .
V
W
X h
X h
b
a
U
U
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