Abstract
This paper is concerned with the optimization of laminated composite flat plates and circular cylindrical shells for buckling. The plates and shells are composed of N orthotropic layers. Each layer is assumed to have the same thickness and an equal number of fibers in the + αi, and －αi directions with respect to the reference axis. The directions of the fibers in all layers are sought which give the highest buckling load. A mathematical optimization technique (Powell's method) is applied to this problem. The numerical calculation is made for boron/epoxy composite.
