Nonlinear dynamics of axially loaded shells: experimental study

In this paper recent experiments on nonlinear dynamics of shells are described, such experiments were focused to circular cylindrical shells subjected to axial loads. Different types of axial loads were considered: inertial loads due to rigid bodies connected to the shell; static and dynamic loads induced by direct shell excitation. The latter type of loading allows to study the effect of pre-compression, which typically induces natural frequency variation and changing of the dynamic scenario. The experiments show an extremely complex dynamic scenario, which needs a deep analysis to be interpreted and explained. The goal of the present work is twice: describe experimental evidence of complex dynamics and furnish explanation when possible.