Experiments on dented cylindrical shells under peripheral pressure

• Dent imperfection affected buckling mode of the present specimens.
• Dent imperfection decreased the buckling capacity of such structures.
• Horizontal dent had more effect on the buckling capacity.
• After horizontal dent, vertical and inclined dents affected the buckling.

In spite of numerous papers in the literature on the buckling behavior of cylindrical shell structures, the effect of local large imperfections caused by physical contacts has not been exhaustively examined yet. To this end, this paper reports on an experimental program on the buckling and post-buckling response of thin cylindrical shells with local dent imperfections under uniform external pressure. The results of this study can be used in practical structures with similar geometric features, i.e. D/t ratio.