Abstract

The shell deformation under Kirchhoff-Love constraints is decomposed into a rigid-body translation, a pure stretch along principal directions of strain and a rigid-body rotation. Some formulae for the finite rotations are given. The shell equilibrium equations, geometric boundary conditions and  energetically compatible with them static boundary conditions are derived in terms of Lagrangean quantaties and consistently simplified under small elastic strains and bending theory. The basic shelf equations are expressed in terms of either strains and changes of curvature, or strains and finite rotations, or displacements only.