Large deformation and postbuckling behavior of an initially deformed rod (Q580002)

Analytical and experimental procedures are used to investigate the large deformation of an initially deformed elastic rod subject to longitudinal and gravitational loads. The ends of the rod rest on simple supports and are connected by a linear spring. Predictions of the system's large deformation behavior, including snap-through from a buckled configuration to a lower-energy equilibrium state, are obtained through a direct application of the minimum potential energy principle. The minimization is performed using Powell's optimization routine [\textit{M. J. D. Powel}, Comput. J. 7, 155-162 (1964; Zbl 0132.117)]. Analytically determined values of displacement are compared with the exact solution for the special case of an ideal column, and with experimental results for various rod/spring configurations. A simplified approach for predicting snap-through is described in the Appendix.