Stresses in a Pressurized Box

Considering each of the six sides of a closed, pressurized box as a thin plate subjected to an unknown distribution of edge moments, the latter may be found by assuming that the rotations of adjacent edges of the plates are the same. The effect of tensile end loads on the bending of the plates is ignored, and the edges of the plates are kept straight. If the box is square-based, this leads to a doubly infinite set of equations in the Fourier coefficients of the edge moments, which may be conveniently solved by means of a digital computer after suitable truncation of the series. Numerical values of the deflections and stresses of the plates found in this manner are tabulated for five different height-to-width ratios. A similar procedure for a generalized box leads to the triply infinite set of equations which are included.