Analysis of Thick Laminated Composite Plates on an Elastic Foundation with the Use of Various Plate Theories

In this study, various theories of composite laminated plates are extended to rectangular composite laminates resting on an elastic foundation. First, an analysis based on the classical theory of laminated plates is employed. Then the first-order Reissner-Mindlin theory is used for analyzing the laminates. At last, the Reddy shear deformation theory, which allows for the transverse shear strains, is applied to the bending analysis of the laminates. In the analysis, the two-parameter Pasternak and Winkler foundations are considered. The accuracy of the present analysis is demonstrated by solving problems numerical results for which are available in the literature. Some numerical examples are presented to compare the three methods and to illustrate the effects of parameters of the elastic foundations on the bending of shear-deformable laminated plates. __________ Russian translation published in Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 41, No. 5, pp. 663–682, September–October, 2005.     

Analysis of laminated composite plates using higher-order shear deformation plate theory and node-based smoothed discrete shear gap method

This paper presents a novel finite element formulation for static, free vibration and buckling analyses of laminated composite plates. The idea relies on a combination of node-based smoothing discrete shear gap method with the higher-order shear deformation plate theory (HSDT) to give a so-called NS-DSG3 element. The higher-order shear deformation plate theory (HSDT) is introduced in the present method to remove the shear correction factors and improve the accuracy of transverse shear stresses. The formulation uses only linear approximations and its implementation into finite element programs is quite simple and efficient. The numerical examples demonstrated that the present element is free of shear locking and shows high reliability and accuracy compared to other published solutions in the literature.     

Geometrically nonlinear bending analysis of laminated composite plate

In this work, a transverse bending of shear deformable laminated composite plates in Green–Lagrange sense accounting for the transverse shear and large rotations are presented. Governing equations are developed in the framework of higher order shear deformation theory. All higher order terms arising from nonlinear strain–displacement relations are included in the formulation. The present plate theory satisfies zero transverse shear strains conditions at the top and bottom surfaces of the plate in von-Karman sense. A C⁰ isoparametric finite element is developed for the present nonlinear model. Numerical results for the laminated composite plates of orthotropic materials with different system parameters and boundary conditions are found out. The results are also compared with those available in the literature. Some new results with different parameters are also presented.     

Bending of thick functionally graded plates resting on Winkler–Pasternak elastic foundations

The static response of simply supported functionally graded plates (FGP) subjected to a transverse uniform load (UL) or a sinusoidally distributed load (SL) and resting on an elastic foundation is examined by using a new hyperbolic displacement model. The present theory exactly satisfies the stress boundary conditions on the top and bottom surfaces of the plate. No transverse shear correction factors are needed, because a correct representation of the transverse shear strain is given. The material properties of the plate are assumed to be graded in the thickness direction according to a simple power-law distribution in terms of volume fractions of material constituents. The foundation is modeled as a two-parameter Pasternak-type foundation, or as a Winkler-type one if the second parameter is zero. The equilibrium equations of a functionally graded plate are given based on the hyperbolic shear deformation theory of plates presented. The effects of stiffness and gradient index of the foundation on the mechanical responses of the plates are discussed. It is established that the elastic foundations significantly affect the mechanical behavior of thick functionally graded plates. The numerical results presented in the paper can serve as benchmarks for future analyses of thick functionally graded plates on elastic foundations.     

A new sinusoidal shear deformation theory for bending,buckling, and vibration of functionally graded plates

A new sinusoidal shear deformation theory is developed for bending, buckling, and vibration of functionally graded plates. The theory accounts for sinusoidal distribution of transverse shear stress, and satisfies the free transverse shear stress conditions on the top and bottom surfaces of the plate without using shear correction factor. Unlike the conventional sinusoidal shear deformation theory, the proposed sinusoidal shear deformation theory contains only four unknowns and has strong similarities with classical plate theory in many aspects such as equations of motion, boundary conditions, and stress resultant expressions. The material properties of plate are assumed to vary according to power law distribution of the volume fraction of the constituents. Equations of motion are derived from the Hamilton’s principle. The closed-form solutions of simply supported plates are obtained and the results are compared with those of first-order shear deformation theory and higher-order shear deformation theory. It can be concluded that the proposed theory is accurate and efficient in predicting the bending, buckling, and vibration responses of functionally graded plates.     

Free-edge stress analysis of general composite laminates under extension, torsion and bending

In this study, based on the reduced form of elasticity displacement field for a long laminate, an analytical method is established to exactly obtain the interlaminar stresses near the free edges of generally laminated composite plates subjects to extension, torsion, and bending. The constant parameters being in the displacement field, which describe the global deformation of a laminate, are appropriately calculated by using the improved first-order shear deformation theory. Reddy’s layerwise theory is subsequently employed for analytical and numerical examinations of the boundary layer stresses within arbitrary laminated composite plates. Various numerical results are developed for the interlaminar normal and shear stresses along the interfaces and through the thickness of laminates near the free edges. Finally the effects of end conditions of laminates and geometric parameters on the boundary-layer stress are studied.     

Two new hyperbolic shear displacement models for orthotropic laminated composite plates

Two hyperbolic displacement models, HPSDT1 and HPSDT2, are developed for a bending analysis of orthotropic laminated composite plates. These models take into account the parabolic distribution of transverse shear stresses and satisfy the condition of zero shear stresses on the top and bottom surfaces of the plates. The accuracy of the analysis presented is demonstrated by comparing the results with solutions derived from other higher-order models and with data found in the literature. It is established that the HPSDT1 model is more accurate than some theories of laminates developed previously, and therefore the analysis can be expanded to laminated composite shells.     

Thermoelastic stability analysis of laminated composite plates: An analytical approach

The paper presents Chebyshev series based analytical solutions for the postbuckling response of the moderately thick laminated composite rectangular plates with and without elastic foundations. The plate is assumed to be subjected to in-plane mechanical, thermal and thermomechanical loadings. In-plane mechanical loading consists of uniaxial, biaxial, shear loadings and their combinations. The temperature induced loading is due to either uniform temperature or a linearly varying temperature across the thickness. The mathematical formulation is based on higher order shear deformation theory (HSDT) and von-Karman nonlinear kinematics. The elastic foundation is modeled as shear deformable with cubic nonlinearity. The thermal and mechanical properties of the composites are assumed to be temperature dependent. The quadratic extrapolation technique is used for linearization and fast converging finite double Chebyshev series is used for spatial discretization of the governing nonlinear equations of equilibrium. The effects of plate parameters and foundation parameters on buckling and postbuckling response of the plate are presented.     

复合材料层合板的弯曲与振动

本文应用应力杂交有限元方法分析了复合材料层合板的弯曲与振动.在本文中,首先根据修正的余能变分原理,构造了一个适合于复合材料层合板特点的矩形应力杂交板弯曲单元.在单元内,分层假设应力参数,在单元的边界上,根据YNS理论的假设确定边界位移场.这样使得构造出来的单元不仅能够考虑横向剪切变形的影响和局部扭曲效应,而且具有较少的自由度数.其次,用此单元求解了层合板的弯曲与振动问题,并将计算结果与精确解进行了比较,比较表明二者非常接近.这说明了在计算方面本文单元具有较高的精确度.     

Free vibration of functionally graded rectangular plates using first-order shear deformation plate theory

The main objective of this research work is to present analytical solutions for free vibration analysis of moderately thick rectangular plates, which are composed of functionally graded materials (FGMs) and supported by either Winkler or Pasternak elastic foundations. The proposed rectangular plates have two opposite edges simply-supported, while all possible combinations of free, simply-supported and clamped boundary conditions are applied to the other two edges. In order to capture fundamental frequencies of the functionally graded (FG) rectangular plates resting on elastic foundation, the analysis procedure is based on the first-order shear deformation plate theory (FSDT) to derive and solve exactly the equations of motion. The mechanical properties of the FG plates are assumed to vary continuously through the thickness of the plate and obey a power law distribution of the volume fraction of the constituents, whereas Poisson’s ratio is set to be constant. First, a new formula for the shear correction factors, used in the Mindlin plate theory, is obtained for FG plates. Then the excellent accuracy of the present analytical solutions is confirmed by making some comparisons of the results with those available in literature. The effect of foundation stiffness parameters on the free vibration of the FG plates, constrained by different combinations of classical boundary conditions, is also presented for various values of aspect ratios, gradient indices, and thickness to length ratios.     

剪切变形对直线型正交异性层合圆板大幅度受迫振动的影响*

本文研究了计及横向剪切变形的直线型正交异性层合圆板在简谐载荷q₀cosωt作用下的非线性受迫振动问题.采用伽辽金方法得到强振频率与振幅关系的解析解.最后,分析了横向剪切对板振动的影响,并给出了板的非线性自由振动的非线性周期对线性周期的比值.     

Nonlinear vibration of hybrid laminated plates resting on elastic foundations in thermal environments

This paper deals with large amplitude vibration of hybrid laminated plates containing piezoelectric layers resting on an elastic foundation in thermal environments. The motion equation of the plate that includes plate-foundation interaction is based on a higher order shear deformation plate theory and solved by a two-step perturbation technique. The thermo-piezoelectric effects are also included and the material properties of both orthotropic layers and piezoelectric layers are assumed to be temperature-dependent. The numerical illustrations concern nonlinear vibration characteristics of unsymmetric cross-ply and antisymmetric angle-ply laminated plates with fully covered or embedded piezoelectric actuators under different sets of thermal and electrical loading conditions. The results show that the foundation stiffness and stacking sequence have a significant effect on the nonlinear vibration characteristics of the hybrid laminated plate. The results also reveal that the temperature rise reduces the natural frequency, but it only has a small effect on the nonlinear to linear frequency ratios of the hybrid laminated plate. The results confirm that the effect of the applied voltage on the natural frequency and the nonlinear to linear frequency ratios of the hybrid laminated plate is marginal except the plate is sufficiently thin.     

A new refined simple TSDT-based effective meshfree method for analysis of through-thickness FG plates

In this paper a novel numerical method based on the Moving Kriging (MK) interpolation meshfree method, integrated with a simple higher-order shear deformation plate theory for analysis of static bending, free vibration and buckling of functionally graded (FG) plates is presented. In the proposed technique, the shape functions are built by the Kriging technique which possesses the property of Kronecker delta function which makes it easy to enforce essential boundary conditions. The present formulation is based on a refined simple third-order shear deformation theory (R-STSDT), which is based on four variables and it still accounts for parabolic distribution of the transverse shearing strains and stresses through the thickness of the plate present in the original simple third-order shear deformation theory (STSDT). In this theory, instead of assuming a specific distribution for the displacement field, the theory of elasticity is used for obtaining the kinematics of the plate deformation. We first propose the formulation, and then several numerical examples are provided to show the merits of the proposed approach.     

Development of a higher order finite element on a Winkler foundation

Analyzing thick plates as a construction component has been of interest to structural engineering research for several decades. In particular, thick plates resting on elastic foundations are more specific. Mindlin's plate theory for thick plate analysis and the Winkler theory for elastic foundation analyses have wide applications. The current research considers analysis of isotropic plates on a Winkler foundation according to Mindlin's plate theory. The analysis uses a higher order plate element to avoid shear locking phenomena in the plate. The main features of this element are representation of real displacement functions of the plate perfect and shear locking do not occur at the plates modeled with this element. Derivation of the equations for finite element formulation for thick plate theory uses fourth-order displacement shape functions. A computer program using the finite element method, coded in C++, analyzes the plates resting on an elastic foundation. The analysis involves a 17-noded finite element. The study's graphs and tables assist engineers' designs of thick plates resting on elastic foundations. The study concludes with the computer-coded program, which allows effective use for the shear locking-free analysis of thick Mindlin plates resting on elastic foundations.     

Finite element dynamic analysis of unsymmetric composite laminated beams with shear effect and rotary inertia under the action of moving loads

The finite element dynamic response of an unsymmetric composite laminated orthotropic beam, subjected to moving loads, has been studied. One-dimensional finite element based on classical lamination theory, first-order shear deformation theory, and higher-order shear deformation theory having 16, 20 and 24 degrees of freedom, respectively, are developed to study the effects of extension, bending, and transverse shear deformation. The theories also account for the Poisson effect, thus, the lateral strains and curvatures can be expressed in terms of the axial and transverse strains and curvatures and the characteristic couplings (bend–stretch, shear–stretch and bend–twist couplings) are not lost. The dynamic response of symmetric cross-ply and unsymmetric angle-ply laminated beams under the action of a moving load have been compared to the results of an isotropic simple beam. The formulation also has been applied to the static and free vibration analysis.     

横向剪切对双模量复合材料叠层矩形板非线性弯曲的影响

本文探讨了动力松弛(DR)法在双模量复合材料叠层矩形板非线性弯曲问题中的应用。在分析中分别采用叠层板大挠度经典理论和计及大转动(在Von Karman意义上)的复合材料叠层板剪切变形理论。我们发现,对于考虑横向剪切变形的非线性弯曲问题,如何计算虚拟密度以控制数值计算的稳定性,仍然需要进一步研究。本文提出了一种虚拟密度的计算方法,从而保证了本课题数值计算的稳定性。文中介绍了用DR法求解双模量复合材料叠层板非线性弯曲的主要步骤,给出了由轻度双模量材料(Born-Epxy(B-E))和高度双模量材料(Aramid-Rubber(A-R)和Polyester-Rubber(P-R))的两层正交叠层简支矩形板在正弦分布载荷及均布载荷作用下的非线性弯曲特性的数值结果。将所得结果和小挠度分析结果及普通复合材料的结果作了比较,并分析了横向剪切变形对无量纲中心挠度的影响。     

Nonlinear flexural response of laminated composite plates under hygro-thermo-mechanical loading

The paper deals with Chebyshev series based analytical solution for the nonlinear flexural response of the elastically supported moderately thick laminated composite rectangular plates subjected to hygro-thermo-mechanical loading. The mathematical formulation is based on higher order shear deformation theory (HSDT) and von-Karman nonlinear kinematics. The elastic foundation is modeled as shear deformable with cubic nonlinearity. The elastic and hygrothermal properties of the fiber reinforced composite material are considered to be dependent on temperature and moisture concentration and have been evaluated utilizing micromechanics model. The quadratic extrapolation technique is used for linearization and fast converging finite double Chebyshev series is used for spatial discretization of the governing nonlinear equations of equilibrium. The effects of Winkler and Pasternak foundation parameters, temperature and moisture concentration on nonlinear flexural response of the laminated composite rectangular plate with different lamination scheme and boundary conditions are presented.     

A simple four-unknown refined theory for bending analysis of functionally graded plates

In the present paper, a refined trigonometric higher-order plate theory is simply derived, which satisfies the free surface conditions. Moreover, the number of unknowns of this theory is the least one comparing with other shear theories. The effects of transverse shear strains as well as the transverse normal strain are taken into account. The number of unknown functions involved in the present theory is only four as against six or more in case of other shear and normal deformation theories. The bending response of FG rectangular plates is presented. A comparison with the corresponding results is made to check the accuracy and efficiency of the present theory. Additional results for all displacements and stresses are investigated through-the-thickness of the FG rectangular plate.     

Post buckling response of laminated composite plate on elastic foundation with random system properties

This paper deals with second order statistics of post buckling load of shear deformable laminated composite plates resting on linear elastic foundation with random system properties. The formulation is based on higher order shear deformation plate theory in general von Karman sense, which includes foundation effect using two-parameter Pasternak model. The random system equations are derived using the principal of virtual work. A finite element method is used for spatial descretization of the laminate with a reasonable accuracy. A perturbation technique has been the first time successfully combined with direct iterative technique by neglecting the changes in nonlinear stiffness matrix due to random variation of transverse displacements during iteration. The numerical results for the second order statistics of post buckling loads are obtained. A detailed study is carried out to highlight the characteristics of the random response and its sensitivity to different foundation parameters, the plate thickness ratio, the plate aspect ratio, the support condition, the stacking sequence and the lamination angle on the post buckling response of the laminate. The results have been compared with existing results and an independent Monte Carlo simulation.     

Delamination growth of laminated circular plates under in-plane loads and movable boundary conditions

An investigation is made on interlaminar delamination growth of composite laminated circular plates under in-plane loads and movable delamination boundary conditions. A four-dissociated-region model is developed on the basis of von-Karman plate theory. The model is geometrically nonlinear and the laminated circular plate considered is subjected to axisymmetrical delamination. The effects of transverse shear deformation and contact effect of the delamination on the laminated plates are taking into account in the development of the governing equations of the laminated circular pates with random axisymmetrical delamination. The formulas for describing the total energy release rate and its individual mode components along the delamination front are also derived with considerations of Griffith criterion for fracture. Based on the model established, the delamination growth is numerically studied; and the influences of the parameters such as delamination radii and depths, together with material properties of the plates on the energy release rate are analyzed in detail.