Buckling of composite plates by global-local plate theory

The bifurcation buckling problem of laminated composite plates is formulated within the framework of a multilength scale plate theory. This theory is a combination of single-layer and layer-wise theories. It is generated by representing the displacement as the sum of global and local effects that introduce a coupling between the two length scales. Comparisons between the presently predicted buckling loads of homogeneous and orthotropic laminated plates and the exact solutions show a very good correlation. Furthermore, the theory accurately predicts the buckling load of symmetric cross-ply plates as compared with the results of a layer-wise approach. This accuracy is achieved with reduced computation expense. The global-local plate theory is general enough to incorporate delamination effects. As a result of the inclusion of these effects, the buckling loads of plates with imperfect interlaminar bonding are predicted.