A Case Study - Investigation of Rounded Corners Effect on Corrugated Bulkheads

Corrugated bulkheads are widely used in ship and offshore structures giving higher load carrying capacity compared to the flat plates. As a case study this paper attempts to investigate the effect of rounded corners on corrugated bulkheads with respect to buckling strength. Non-linear finite element analysis using ABAQUS is utilized. Rounded and sharp comers are being compared for a typical geometry with three different plate-thicknesses in order to find out if the rounded corners give additional strength and therefore can be used to reduce the flange-width. It is shown that the linear buckling load is larger for round cornered bulkheads. However, the ultimate strength is smaller than for a similar bulkhead with sharp comers. The results and insights derived from the present work are drawn .