The interaction of two parallel Mode-I limited-permeable cracks in a functionally graded piezoelectric material

In this paper, the interaction of two parallel Mode-I limited-permeable cracks in a functionally graded piezoelectric material was investigated by using the generalized Almansi's theorem. In the analysis, the electric permittivity of the air inside the crack was considered. The problem was formulated through Fourier transform into two pairs of dual integral equations, in which unknown variables are jumps of displacements across the crack surface. To solve the dual integral equations, the jumps of displacements across the crack surfaces were directly expanded as a series of Jacobi polynomials. The solution of the present paper shows that the singular stresses and the singular electric displacements at the crack tips in functionally graded piezoelectric materials carry the same forms as those in homogeneous piezoelectric materials; however, the magnitudes of intensity factors depend on the electric permittivity of the air inside the crack and the gradient parameter of functionally graded piezoelectric material properties. It was also revealed that the crack shielding effect is also present in functionally graded piezoelectric materials.     

Stochastic analysis of a thermoelastic problem in functionally graded plates with uncertain material properties

The statistics (i.e., mean and variance) of temperature and thermal stress are analytically obtained in functionally graded material (FGM) plates with uncertainties in the thermal conductivity and coefficient of linear thermal expansion. These FGM plates are assumed to have arbitrary nonhomogeneous thermal and mechanical properties through the entire thickness of plate and are subjected to deterministic convective heating. The stochastic temperature and thermal stress fields are analysed by assuming the FGM plate is multilayered with distinct, random thermal conductivity and coefficient of linear thermal expansion in each layer. Vodicka’s method, which is a type of integral transform method, and a perturbation method are employed to obtain the analytical solutions for the statistics. The autocorrelation coefficients of each random property and cross-correlation coefficients between different random properties are expressed in exponential function forms as a non-homogeneous Markov random field of discrete space. Numerical calculations are performed for FGM plates composed of partially stabilised zirconia (PSZ) and austenitic stainless steel (SUS304), which have the largest dispersion of the random properties at the place where the volume fractions of the two constituent materials are both 0.5. The effects of the spatial change in material composition, thermal boundary condition and correlation coefficients on the standard deviations of the temperature and thermal stress are discussed.     

The dynamic behavior of two parallel symmetric cracks in functionally graded piezoelectric/piezomagnetic materials

The dynamic behavior of two parallel symmetric cracks in functionally graded piezoelectric/piezomagnetic materials subjected to harmonic antiplane shear waves is investigated using the Schmidt method. The present problem can be solved using the Fourier transform and the technique of dual integral equations, in which the unknown variables are jumps of displacements across the crack surfaces, not dislocation density functions. To solve the dual integral equations, the jumps of displacements across the crack surfaces are directly expanded as a series of Jacobi polynomials. Finally, the relations among the electric, magnetic flux, and dynamic stress fields near crack tips can be obtained. Numerical examples are provided to show the effect of the functionally graded parameter, the distance between the two parallel cracks, and the circular frequency of the incident waves upon the stress, electric displacement, and magnetic flux intensity factors at crack tips.     

Electromagnetoelastic behaviors of functionally graded piezoelectric solid cylinder and sphere

Analytical studies on electromagnetoelastic behaviors are presented for the functionally graded piezoelectric material (FGPM) solid cylinder and sphere placed in a uniform magnetic field and subjected to the external pressure and electric loading. When the mechanical, electric and magnetic properties of the material obey an identical power law in the radial direction, the exact displacements, stresses, electric potentials and perturbations of magnetic field vector in the FGPM solid cylinder and sphere are obtained by using the infinitesimal theory of electromagnetoelasticity. Numerical examples also show the significant influence of material inhomogeneity. It is interesting to note that selecting a specific value of inhomogeneity parameter β can optimize the electromagnetoelastic responses, which will be of particular importance in modern engineering designs. The project supported by China postdoctoral science foundation (20060390260) and Hunan Postdoctoral Scientific Program. The English text was polished by Yunming Chen.     

Bending of functionally graded cantilever beam with power-law non-linearity subjected to an end force

A realistic beam structure often exhibits material and geometrical non-linearity, in particular for those made of metals. The mechanical behaviors of a non-linear functionally graded-material (FGM) cantilever beam subjected to an end force are investigated by using large and small deformation theories. Young's modulus is assumed to be depth-dependent. For an FGM beam of power-law hardening, the location of the neutral axis is determined. The effects of depth-dependent Young's modulus and non-linearity parameter on the deflections and rotations of the FGM beams are analyzed. Our results show that different gradient indexes may change the bending stiffness of the beam so that an FGM beam may bear larger applied load than a homogeneous beam when choosing appropriate gradients. Moreover, the bending stress distribution in an FGM beam is completely different from that in a homogeneous beam. The bending stress arrives at the maximum tensile stress at an internal position rather than at the surface. Obtained results are useful in safety design of linear and non-linear beams.     

Crack in a 2D beam lattice: Analytical solutions for two bending modes

We consider an infinite square-cell lattice of elastic beams with a semi-infinite crack. Symmetric and antisymmetric bending modes of fracture under remote loads are examined. The related long-wave asymptotes corresponding to a continuous anisotropic bending plate are also considered. In the latter model, the symmetric mode is characterized by the square-root type singularity, whereas the antisymmetric mode results in a hyper-singular field. A solution for the continuous plate with a finite crack is also presented. These closed-form continuous solutions describe the fields in the whole plane. The main goal is to establish analytical connections between the ‘macrolevel’ state, defined by the continuous asymptote of the lattice solution, and the maximal bending moment in the crack-front beam, that is, to determine the resistance of the lattice with an initial crack to the crack advance. The solutions are obtained in the same way as for mass-spring lattices. Considering the static problems we use the discrete Fourier transform and the Wiener-Hopf technique. Monotonically distributed bending moments ahead of the crack are determined for the symmetric mode, and a self-equilibrated transverse force distribution is found for the antisymmetric mode. It is shown that in the latter case only the crack-front beam resists to the fracture development, whereas the forces in the other beams facilitate the fracture. In this way, the macrolevel fracture energy is determined in terms of the material strength. The macrolevel energy release is found to be much greater than the critical strain energy of the beam, especially in the hyper-singular mode. In both problems, it is found that among the beams surrounding the crack the crack-front beam is maximally stressed, and hence its strength defines the strength of the structure.     

Basic solution of a mode-I limited-permeable crack in functionally graded piezoelectric materials

In this paper, the basic solution of a mode-I crack in functionally graded piezoelectric materials was investigated by using the generalized Almansi’s theorem. In the analysis, the electric permittivity of air inside the crack were considered. To make the analysis tractable, it was assumed that the shear modulus, piezoelectric constants and dielectric constants vary exponentially with coordinate parallel to the crack. The problem was formulated through Fourier transform into two pairs of dual integral equations, in which the unknown variables are jumps of displacements across the crack surfaces. To solve the dual integral equations, the jumps of displacements across the crack surfaces were directly expanded as a series of Jacobi polynomials. The solution of the present paper shows that the effects of the electric boundary conditions on the electric displacement fields near the crack tips can not be ignored. Simultaneously, the solution of the present paper will revert to a closed form one when the functionally graded parameter equals to zero.     

Cohesive modeling of low-velocity impact damage in layered functionally graded beams

Numerical analysis of the low-velocity impact damage of a layered composite beam with a functionally graded core is performed using the multiple-isoparametric cohesive volume finite element (MCVFE) scheme. A mixed-mode intrinsic cohesive zone model is used to simulate the spontaneous damage initiation and growth in this work. The inhomogeneous Young’s modulus variation is assumed to be symmetric about the neutral plane. Our parametric simulations showed that the energetics of damage is altered by the presence of a functionally graded core. The effect of including a functionally graded core is to advance the time of fracture initiation compared to a cross-ply (90°) core. The assumed symmetry and linear inhomogeneity leads to the energetics for the graded core to be similar to those observed for a 45° core ply-orientation.     

Wave characteristics in functionally graded piezoelectric hollow cylinders

Based on linear three-dimensional piezoelasticity, the Legendre orthogonal polynomial series expansion approach is used for determining the wave characteristics in hollow cylinders composed of the functionally graded piezoelectric materials (FGPM) with open circuit. The displacement and electric potential components, expanded in a series of Legendre polynomials, are introduced into the governing equations along with position-dependent material constants so that the solution of the wave equation is reduced to an eigenvalue problem. Dispersion curves for FGPM and the corresponding non-piezoelectric hollow cylinders are calculated to show the piezoelectric effect. The influence of the ratio of radius to thickness is discussed. Electric potential and displacement distributions are used to show the piezoelectric effect on the flexural torsional mode. The influence of the polarizing direction on the piezoelectric effect is illustrated. For the radial and axial polarization, the piezoelectric effect reacts mostly on the longitudinal mode. For circumferential polarization, the piezoelectric effect reacts mostly on the torsional mode. In the FGPM hollow cylinder, piezoelectricity can weaken the guided wave dispersion.     

From Non-Linear Elasticity to Linearized Theory: Examples Defying Intuition

Material frame indifference implies that the solution in non-linear elasticity theory for a connected body rigidly rotated at its border is a rigid, stress-free, deformation. If the same problem is considered within linear elasticity theory, considered as an approximation to the true elastic situation, one should expect that if the angle of rotation is small, the body still undergoes a rigid deformation while the corresponding stress, though not zero, remains consistently small. Here, we show that this is true, in general, only for homogeneous bodies. Counterexamples of inhomogeneous bodies are presented for which, whatever small the angle of rotation is, the linear elastic solution is by no means a rigid rotation (in a particular case it is an “explosion”) while the stress may even become infinite. If the same examples are re-interpreted as problems in an elasticity theory based upon genuinely linear constitutive relations which retain their validity also for finite deformations, it is shown that they would deliver constraint reaction forces that are not in equilibrium in the actual, deformed, state. This furnishes another characterization of the impossibility of an exact linear constitutive theory for elastic solids with zero residual stress.