An elastic two-strand ply theory

E.L. Starostin & G.H.M. van der Heijden

We present a new theory to describe a wide class of equilibrium configurations of a ply made of two Cosserat rods. The rods, of circular cross-section, are assumed to be in continuous contact. The axis of the ply is free to adopt any spatial configuration under the action of end loads. Local interaction of the rods (e.g., of electrostatic nature) is incorporated into the formulation. The theory is illustrated on two examples that allow for analytical treatment. Applications to plectonemic DNA are discussed.

Proc. of the 7th European Nonlinear Dynamics Conference (ENOC 2011), 24-29 July 2011, Rome, Italy, D. Bernardini, G. Rega, F. Romeo (eds) (Department of Structural and Geotechnical Engineering, Sapienza University of Rome, 2011), 2 pages, ISBN 978-88-906234-2-4