Abstract <p>The Discrete Element Method (DEM) is a numerical technique proposed for solving mechanics problems of non-continuous media. However, applications of DEM in continuous media structures are relatively limited. In this manuscript, a modification of the torsional spring stiffness coefficient of the simply supported boundary contact element is proposed based on our previous work. Then, the plate DEM based on modifying the torsional spring stiffness coefficient is adopted to solve the load-bearing problems of cylindrical shells. This study aims to investigate the validity of using the plate DEM based on modification of the torsional spring stiffness coefficient for nonlinear large deformation analysis of shell-type structures. Compared to traditional methods, continuity of displacement and deformation coordination are not required for the plate DEM, and there is no need to assemble a stiffness matrix, so matrix non-convergence problems are evitable. To evaluate accuracy of the developed plate DEM, several popular benchmark problems of geometric nonlinearity for shells are solved by adopting the plate DEM. The results demonstrate that the proposed numerical method can obtain highly accurate solutions in the nonlinear large deformation numerical calculations of shells, which further confirms the feasibility of the plate discrete element method in solving the geometric nonlinear problems of plate and shell structures.</p>