Cylindrical Shell Subject to Longitudinal Line Load

The utilization of a single Fourier series provides a solution to the problem of a simply-supported, closed circular cylindrical shell subjected to a varying longitudinal line load. Few of the previous studies of stresses and deformations of such a shell lead to practical results. One useful method for solving the problem under consideration is to first obtain an exact closed form solution for a sinusoidal line load by applying singularity functions. Next, a single Fourier series is formed to furnish a solution for a line load with an arbitrary intensity. The Novozhilov's equation of cylindrical shells is the most suitable for these procedures. Improvement of the convergence of the series for a segmental line load shorten the process of evaluating the critical stresses. Included in the article are mathematical proof of the convergence of the improved series, an estimate of error, and some numerical results.