The nonlinear stability of axisymmetric functionally graded material annular spherical shells under thermo-mechanical load.

The authors of this article investigate the nonlinear stability of axisymmetric functionally graded annular spherical shells with temperature-dependent material properties subjected to thermo-mechanical loads and resting on elastic foundations. Equilibrium and compatibility equations are derived by using the classical thin shell theory in terms of the shell deflection and the stress function. Approximate analytical solutions are assumed to satisfy simply supported boundary conditions and Galerkin method is applied to obtain the closed-form of load–deflection paths. An analysis is carried out to show the effects of material and geometrical properties and combination of loads on the stability of the shells. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]