BIFURCATION OF INFLATED CIRCULAR-CYLINDERS OF ELASTIC-MATERIAL UNDER AXIAL LOADING .2. EXACT THEORY FOR THICK-WALLED TUBES

Bifurcation from a circular cylindrical configuration of an elastic tube of finite wall thickness is examined when the loading is that of an axial force combined with internal or external pressure. This extends the analysis given by D.M. Haughton and R.W. Ogden (1979), (Part I of this series), for membrane cylinders. The relative importance of prismatic, axisymmetric and asymmetric bifurcations for axial tension and compression combined with internal or external pressure is discussed. In particular, the dependence on wall-thickness, ratio of length to radius, and magnitude of the axial stretch is detailed. Some analytical results are presented for a general form of incompressible isotropic elastic strain-energy function. For the most part, however, it is necessary to solve the equations numerically. This is done for specific forms of the strain-energy function. © 1979.