This book originally appeared as a text prepared for the Defense Nuclear Agency to summarize research on dynamic pulse buckling, by the authors and their colleagues at SRI International, during the period from 1960 to 1980. The original printing of 300 copies by the DNA Press was followed shortly by a small second printing to meet the demand by readers who heard of the book from the primary recipients. This supply was also quickly exhausted, to researchers and practicing engineers outside the DNA community and to academics who wanted to include the material in courses on elastic and plastic stability of structures. Commercial publication by Martinus Nijhoff Publishers was therefore undertaken to meet the needs of this broader community. The objective of the book was to gather into a cohesive whole material that had been published in reports and the open literature during the two decade period. In the process of knitting this material together, a substantial amount of new work was done. The book therefore contains many new results never published in the open literature.

This monograph brings together research results on dynamic buckling from reports and technical papers produced during the past two decades by the authors and their co-workers at SRI International (formerly Stanford Research Institute). Much of the original research was sponsored by DNA, either directly or through the Air Force Weapons Laboratory. We focus on buckling from intense loads, well above static buckling loads, but of short enough duration that the buckle amplitudes can be small and cause no serious damage. We present a systematic development of dynamic pulse buckling, from simple elastic buckling of bars to the most recent developments in biaxial plastic flow buckling of shells. Emphasis is on developing an understanding of the buckling processes and on making available practical theory that can be used for estimating buckling strengths of structural elements (bars, plates, rings, shells) under a variety of pulse loadings. Familiarity with static buckling in these elements is assumed, but most derivations are made from fundamental principles so that the monograph can be used as a graduate level textbook. Each chapter is written to be understood independently so that the practicing engineer can go directly to the theory and experiment most appropriate to a specific problem. (Author).

* Edited by Josef Singer, the world's foremost authority on structural buckling. * Time-saving and cost-effective design data for all structural, mechanical, and aerospace engineering researchers.

This book is for engineers and students of aerospace, materials and mechanical engineering. It covers the transition from aluminum to composite materials for aerospace structures and includes advanced analyses used in industries. New in the 2nd Edition is material on morphing structures, large deflection plates, nondestructive methods, vibration correlation technique for shear loaded plates, vibrations to measure physical properties, and more.