A mechanical innovative approach for studying the buckling behavior of composite beams

In this paper a geometrically nonlinear model for studying the lateral global buckling problem of a generic thin-walled composite beams is presented. The model is based on a full second-order deformable beam theory and accounts for axial, flexural, shear, torsional and warping displacements as well as web/flange distortional ways of deformation. Governing nonlinear equations are derived from the Principle of Virtual Displacements. The first numerical results for thin-walled open GFRP profiles under flexural/torsional loads are presented.