BEHAVIOUR OF PLATES WITH CIRCULAR CUTOUT

Steel plates are often used as the main components of steel structures such as webs of plate girders, box girders, ship decks and hulls and platforms on oil rigs. Perforations are often included in the stressed skin c over of air plane wings. In plates, cut-outs are provided to decrease the self-weight, to provide access, services and even aesthetics. When these structures are loaded, the presence of cut outs will cause changes in the member mechanical properties, consequently there will be change in the buckling characteristics of the plate as well as on the ultimate load capacity of the structure. In marine and offshore structures, t he perforated panels are used to make a way of access or to reduce the total weight of the structure.