Chaos in one-dimensional structural mechanics

Notwithstanding the presence of some books summarizing specific research bodies on structural systems, reviews on nonlinear dynamics and chaos in mechanical systems and structures are quite few. This paper aims at giving a first contribution in this direction, focusing on chaos in one-dimensional structural mechanics, and reviewing fundamental studies and main outcomes obtained for macromechanical systems and applications in classical areas of mechanical, aeronautical and civil engineering. Research material is presented according to a tentatively comprehensive perspective, by suitably framing the overviewed complex dynamic phenomena of a given class of structures within the underlying continuous/reduced modelling context and the regular phenomena from which they ensue. This is a demanding perspective, which also entails leaving a number of important topics aside. Chaos in cable, beam/arch, and coupled cable-beam structures is reviewed, as highlighted in both engineering-oriented studies and theoretically driven ones, paying attention also to some relevant applications.