The chaotic response of a fluttering panel: The influence of maneuvering

The influence of maneuvering on the chaotic response of a fluttering buckled plate on an aircraft has been studied. The governing equations, derived using Lagrangian mechanics, include geometric non-linearities associated with the occurrence of tensile stresses, as well as coupling between the angular velocity of the maneuver and the elastic degrees of freedom. Numerical simulation for periodic and chaotic responses are conducted in order to analyze the influence of the pull-up maneuver on the dynamic behavior of the panel. Long-time histories phase-plane plots, and power spectra of the responses are presented. As the maneuver (load factor) increases, the system exhibits complicated dynamic behavior including a direct and inverse cascade of subharmonic bifurcations, intermittency, and chaos. Beside these classical routes of transition from a periodic state to chaos, our calculations suggest amplitude modulation as a possible new mode of transition to chaos. Consequently this research contributes to the understanding of the mechanisms through which the transition between periodic and strange attractors occurs in, dissipative mechanical systems. In the case of a prescribed time dependent maneuver, a remarkable transition between the different types of limit cycles is presented.Nomenclature a plate length - a_r u_r/h - D plate bending stiffness - E modulus of elasticity - g acceleration due to gravity - h plate thickness - j₁,j₂,j₃ base vectors of the body frame of reference - K spring constant - M Mach number - n 1 + ₀/g - N₁ applied in-plane force - p–p aerodynamic pressure - P pa⁴/Dh - q ₀/2 - Q_r generalized Lagrangian forces - R rotation matrix - R₄ N, a²/D - t time - kinetic energy - u plate deflection - u displacement of the structure - u_r modal amplitude - v₀ velocity - x coordinates in the inertial frame of reference - z coordinates in the body frame of reference - Ka/(Ka+Eh) - - elastic energy - 2qa³/D - a/_mh - Poisson's ratio - material coordinates - air density - _m plate density - - _r prescribed functions - _r sin(r z/a) - angular velocity - a/v₀ - skew-symmetric matrix form of the angular velocity