Lateral Load effects on buckling of cracked plates under tensile loading

• Tensile buckling load decreases with increasing crack length and orientation.
• Lateral tensile load increases buckling load with respect to only lateral support.
• Minimum tensile buckling load due to change of crack orientation can be altered by lateral load.
• Usually lateral load does not alter the first mode of buckling.

Fractured thin plates may be buckled locally due to applying the tensile loads in certain conditions. Sometimes the buckling mode can occur before fracturing or collapsing. Lateral loads can affect the buckling loads and modes. In thin cracked plates, compressive stress region near the crack or defect can be changed due to the lateral loads, so critical local buckling loads can be increased or decreased. Experimental and numerical study of the buckling load of plates with central crack under axial tensile loading is done. Effects of lateral load and constraint, relative crack length and its direction are investigated.