Determining regularities in the stressed-strained state of a glass dome

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15587/1729-4061.2026.355671

Keywords:

glass dome, stressed-strained state, Siemens Simcenter Femap, Martian structures, structural behavior of glass structures

Abstract

Two thin-walled glass domes in the form of a spherical segment with a truncated apex have been considered in this study. The task addressed relates to the lack of experimentally confirmed data on their stressed-strained state and fracture mechanisms, which compromises the reliability of numerical models and limits practical application.

This paper reports experimental results from testing glass dome models subjected to uniformly distributed loading, as well as and their numerical verification using the finite element method implemented in Siemens Simcenter Femap with NX Nastran (USA). The deformation behavior, ultimate load levels, and brittle explosive failure mechanism with crack initiation in the apex zone were identified. The maximum experimental vertical displacement reached 3.1 mm, while the discrepancy between numerical and experimental results did not exceed 12.9%, confirming the adequacy of the numerical model.

The results made it possible to identify tensile stress concentration zones and demonstrated consistency between numerically predicted critical regions and the experimentally observed failure pattern. This was achieved through a combined approach integrating controlled laboratory testing and detailed spatial FEM analysis. The results are attributed to the predominantly membrane behavior of the dome and local stress concentration in the load application zone.

The findings could be applied in the design of transparent dome structures as well as annealed and additively manufactured glass shells intended for special operating conditions, including prospective hermetic modules for extraterrestrial environments such as Mars

Author Biographies

Bogdan Demchyna, Lviv Polytechnic National University

Doctor of Technical Sciences, Professor

Department of Building Constructions and Bridges

Institute of Civil Engineering, Infrastructure and Life Safety

Roman Tkach, Lviv Polytechnic National University

PhD, Assistant

Department of Strength of Materials and Structural Mechanics

Institute of Civil Engineering, Infrastructure and Life Safety

Roman Kotselko, Sklo Forma

PhD, Engineer, Director

Khrystyna Demchyna, Lviv Polytechnic National University

PhD, Senior Lecturer

Department of Construction Production

Institute of Civil Engineering, Infrastructure and Life Safety

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Determining regularities in the stressed-strained state of a glass dome

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Published

2026-04-30

How to Cite

Demchyna, B., Tkach, R., Kotselko, R., & Demchyna, K. (2026). Determining regularities in the stressed-strained state of a glass dome. Eastern-European Journal of Enterprise Technologies, 2(7 (140), 21–27. https://doi.org/10.15587/1729-4061.2026.355671

Issue

Vol. 2 No. 7 (140) (2026): Applied mechanics

Section

Applied mechanics

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Copyright (c) 2026 Bogdan Demchyna, Roman Tkach, Roman Kotselko, Khrystyna Demchyna

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