Geometrically non-linear transient analysis of laminated composite and sandwich shells with a refined theory and C finite elements

A C⁰ continuous finite element formulation of a higher order shear deformation theory is presented for predicting the linear and geometrically non-linear, in the sense of von Karman, transient responses of composite and sandwich laminated shells. The displacement model accounts for the non-linear cubic variation of the tangential displacement components through the thickness of the shell and the theory requires no shear correction coefficients. In the time domain, the explicit central difference integrator is used in conjunction with the special mass matrix diagonalization scheme which conserves the total mass of the element and includes effects due to rotary inertia terms. Numerical results for central transverse deflection and stresses are presented for composite and sandwich laminated shells with various boundary conditions subjected to different types of loads and are compared with the results from other sources. Some new results are also included for future reference.