A Simple Locking-Alleviated 4-Node Mixed-Collocation Finite Element with Over-Integration,for Homogeneous or Functionally-Graded or Thick-Section Laminated Composite Beams

In this study, a simple 4-node locking-alleviated mixed finite element (denoted as CEQ4) is developed, for the modeling of homogeneous or functionally graded or laminated thick-section composite beam structures, without using higher-order (in the thickness direction) or layer-wise zig-zag theories of composite laminates which are widely popularized in current literature. Following the work of [Dong and Atluri (2011)], the present element independently assumes a 5-parameter linearly-varying Cartesian strain field. The independently assumed Cartesian strains are related to the Cartesian strains derived from mesh-based Cartesian displacement interpolations, by exactly enforcing 5 pre-defined constraints at 5 pre-selected collocation points. The constraints are rationally defined to capture the basic kinematics of the 4-node element, and to accurately model each deformation mode of tension, bending, and shear. A 2 by 2 Gauss quadrature is used when each element is used to model a piece of a homogeneous material or structure, but over-integration (using a higher-order Gauss Quadrature, a layer-wise Gauss Quadrature, or a simple Trapezoidal Rule in the thickness direction) is necessary if functionally-graded materials or thick-section laminated composite structures are considered. Through several numerical examples, it is clearly shown that the present CEQ4 is much more accurate than the well-known Pian-Sumihara (1984) element as well as the primal four-node element, for the modeling of homogeneous beams. For functionally-graded materials, the presently-developed element can accurately capture the stress distribution even when very few elements are used; but the Pian-Sumihara element fails, because the assumption of linearly-varying stressfield is generally invalid unless a very fine mesh is used in the thickness direction. For thick-section laminated composite beams, reasonably accurate solutions (for axial as well as transverse stresses) are obtained even when only one CEQ4 element is used in the thickness direction. Without using higher-order theories or layer-wise zig-zag assumptions for displacement or stress fields in the thickness direction, for thick-section laminates, the present method can accurately compute the jumps in axial stresses at the interfaces of layers. Extension of the present CEQ4 concept to C0 elements of higher-order, for plates and shells as well as for multi-physics will be pursued in future studies.     

A Simple Locking-Alleviated 3D 8-Node Mixed-Collocation C0 Finite Element with Over-Integration,for Functionally-Graded and Laminated Thick-Section Plates and Shells,with & without Z-Pins

Following previous work of [Dong, El-Gizawy, Juhany, Atluri (2014)], a simple locking-alleviated 3D 8-node mixed-collocation C0 finite element (denoted as CEH8) is developed in this study, for the modeling of functionally-graded or laminated thick-section composite plates and shells, without using higher-order or layer-wise zig-zag plate and shell theories which are widely popularized in the current literature. The present C0 element independently assumes an 18-parameter linearly-varying Cartesian strain field. The independently assumed Cartesian strains are related to the Cartesian strains derived from mesh-based Cartesian displacement interpolations, by exactly enforcing 18 pre-defined constraints at 18 pre-selected collocation points. The constraints are rationally defined to capture the basic kinematics of the 3D 8-node C0 element, and to accurately model each basic deformation mode of tension, bending, shear, and torsion. A 2x2x2 Gauss quadrature is sufficient for evaluating the stiffness matrix of CEH8 C0 3D elements for homogeneous materials, but over-integration (with a higher-order Gauss Quadrature, a layer-wise Gauss Quadrature, or a simple Trapezoidal Rule in the thickness direction) is used for functionally-graded materials or thick-section laminated composite structures with an arbitrary number of laminae. Through several numerical examples, it is clearly shown that the present CEH8 3D C0 element can accurately capture the stress distribution of FG and thick laminated structures with an arbitrary number of laminae even when only one element is used in the thickness direction. In stark contrast to the higher-order or layer-wise zig-zag plate and shell theories, with assumptions for displacement or stress fields in the thickness direction, which may require complicated C1 finite element, the present C0 element can accurately compute the jumps in bending stresses at the interfaces of layers, while the out-of plane normal and shear stresses can be accurately recovered by exploring the equilibrium equations of 3D linear elasticity. By adding the contributing stiffness of z-pins into the stiffness matrix of CEH8, it is also demonstrated that the presently developed method can be used to study the effect of using z-pin reinforcements to reduce the inter-laminar stresses of composite structures, in a very simple and computationally-efficient manner.     

实体退化板单元及其在板的振动分析中的应用

经典板壳单元是由板壳理论构造出来的,而经典的板壳理论是在空间弹性理论的基础上考虑板壳的基本假定得来的。在空间等参数单元的基础上,直接引入板壳的基本假定,修改空间等参数单元的弹性矩阵,从而构造出适合于厚薄板壳分析的20结点实体退化板单元,并将其应用于开口圆柱薄壳的静力分析和厚薄板的固有振动分析。数值算例表明,该单元收敛快,稳定性好,具有较高的精度。此外,该单元还可以用于曲边变厚度板、壳体及层合板的振动分析。     

Impact analysis of laminated composite plates and shells by super finite elements

A super finite element method that exhibits coarse-mesh accuracy is used to predict the transient response of laminated composite plates and cylindrical shells subjected to non-penetrating impact by projectiles. The governing equations are based on the classical theories of thin laminated plates and shells taking into account the von Karman kinematics assumptions for moderately large deflections. A non-linear Hertzian-type contact law accounting for curvatures of the colliding bodies is adopted to calculate the impact force . The theoretical basis of the present finite element model is verified by analysing impact-loaded laminated composite plate and shell structures that have previously been studied through analytical or other numerical procedures. The predictive capability of the present numerical approach is successfully demonstrated through comparisons between experimentally-measured and computed force-time histories for impact of carbon fibre-reinforced plastic (CFRP) plates. The current computational model offers a relatively simple and efficient means of predicting the structural impact response of laminated composite plates and shells.     

Finite element analysis of laminated composite plates using zeroth-order shear deformation theory

In this paper a generalized finite element model is developed for static and dynamic analyses of laminated composite plates using zeroth-order shear deformation theory (ZSDT). The theory ensures the parabolic distribution of transverse shear stresses across the plate thickness. A four-noded plate element is considered in this model and the generalized nodal variables are expressed using Lagrangian linear interpolation functions and Hermitian cubic interpolation functions. The solutions of the finite element model have been compared with the existing solutions for symmetric and antisymmetric laminated composite plates. The comparison confirms that the ZSDT can be efficiently used for finite element analysis of both thin and thick plates with high accuracy.     

Vibration and stability of cross-ply laminated composite plates according to a global higher-order plate theory

Natural frequencies and buckling stresses of cross-ply laminated composite plates are analyzed by taking into account the effects of shear deformation, thickness change and rotatory inertia. By using the method of power series expansion of displacement components, a set of fundamental dynamic equations of a two-dimensional higher-order theory for thick rectangular laminates subjected to in-plane stresses is derived through Hamilton's principle. Several sets of truncated approximate theories are applied to solve the eigenvalue problems of a simply supported thick laminated plate. In order to assure the accuracy of the present theory, convergence properties of the lowest natural frequency and buckling stress are examined in detail. Numerical results are compared with those of the published existing theories and FEM solutions. The modal displacement and stress distributions in the thickness direction are obtained and plotted in figures. It is noticed that the present global higher-order approximate theories can predict the natural frequencies, buckling stresses and stresses of thick multilayered composite laminates as accurately as three-dimensional solutions.     

Transient analysis of FGM and laminated composite structures using a refined 8-node ANS shell element

In this paper, we investigate the vibration analysis of functionally graded material (FGM) and laminated composite structures, using a refined 8-node shell element that allows for the effects of transverse shear deformation and rotary inertia. The properties of FGM vary continuously through the thickness direction according to the volume fraction of constituents defined by sigmoid function, but in this method, their Poisson’s ratios of the FGM plates and shells are assumed to be constant. The finite element, based on a first-order shear deformation theory, is further improved by the combined use of assumed natural strains and different sets of collocation points for interpolation the different strain components. We analyze the influence of the shell element with the various location and number of enhanced membrane and shear interpolation. Using the assumed natural strain method with proper interpolation functions the present shell element generates neither membrane nor shear locking behavior even when full integration is used in the formulation. The natural frequencies of plates and shells are presented, and the forced vibration analysis of FGM and laminated composite plates and shells subjected to arbitrary loading is carried out. In order to overcome membrane and shear locking phenomena, the assumed natural strain method is used. To validate and compare the finite element numerical solutions, the reference solutions of plates based on the Navier’s method, the series solutions of sigmoid FGM (S-FGM) plates are obtained. Results of the present theory show good agreement with the reference solutions. In addition the effect of damping is investigated on the forced vibration analysis of FGM plates and shells.     

Vibration of laminated orthotropic plates using a simplified higher-order deformation theory

Assuming a constant in-plane rotation tensor through the thickness in Reddy's higher-order plate theory it is shown that a simpler higher-order theory can be obtained with the reduction of one variable without significant loss in the accuracy. This simple higher-order shear deformable plate theory is then used for predicting the natural frequencies of simply-supported isotropic, orthotropic and laminated composite plates. The results obtained for isotropic, orthotropic and laminated plates compare favourably with Reddy's results and other 3D results.     

On the validity of nonlinear shear deformation theories for laminated plates and shells

This paper addresses the validity of the recently introduced so-called nonlinear shear deformation theories for laminated composite plates and shells. The finite element method is used to determine the maximum stresses for a wide range of statically loaded plate and shell panels. Various thickness ratios are included. This paper concludes that for the vast majority of composite materials and for moderately thick plates and shells. stresses normally reach the maximum allowable stress before nonlinear terms can become important. This has been demonstrated by showing that for the limiting case of shear deformation theories (in which the minimum span length (or radius) to thickness ratio is 20), the material usually fails before the maximum deflection reaches the magnitude of the thickness (where nonlinear terms start to become significant). Therefore, the nonlinear shear deformation theories, which are considerably more complicated than linear ones, have limited applications.     

复合材料层板的拟协调罚单元*

本文在文献提出的多变量拟协调元和罚函数相结合的方法基础上构造了考慮耦合和剪切效应的十五自由度三角形层合板单元。此单元适用于薄和中厚层合板的强度分析,具有收敛和应用范围广的优点。文中以各向同性和复合材料层合板多组数例证明了该单元的有效性,同时还讨论了跨厚比L/h和弹性模量比E₁/E₂与剪切效应的关系,得出了一些有意义的结论。     

A higher-order facet quadrilateral composite shell element

A C⁰ finite element formulation of flat faceted element based on a higher-order displacement model is presented for the analysis of general, thin-to-thick, fibre reinforced composite laminated plates and shells. This theory incorporates a realistic non-linear variation of displacements through the shell thickness, and eliminates the use of shear correction coefficients. The discrete element chosen is a nine-noded quadrilateral with five and nine degrees of freedom per node. A comparison of results is also made with the 2-D thin classical and 3-D exact analytical results, and finite element solutions with 9-noded first-order element. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Stiffened plate bending analysis in terms of refined triangular laminated plate element

Based on the higher-order global–local theories, a finite element model is proposed to study the bending behavior of stiffened laminated plates. The proposed model treats the embedded stiffeners as the part of laminated plate, so that the compatibility of displacements and stresses between the plate and the stiffeners can be automatically satisfied. Distributions of the displacements and stresses through the thickness of laminates were also given for the first time, which can serve as references for future investigations as such information is lacking in the published literature. In addition, the impact of the stiffeners on the bending response of the stiffened laminated plates is also studied in terms of the quantity, the collocation and the geometry of stiffeners. Numerical results showed that the higher-order global–local theories are more suitable for predicting the bending response of thick and moderately thick stiffened laminated plates compared to the first order theory commonly used in engineering. By varying the quantity, the collocation and the geometry of stiffeners, the stiffness and the strength of stiffened laminated plates can be remarkably improved.     

Inter-laminar stresses in a laminated shallow shell panel

The evaluation of inter-laminar shear stresses in laminated shells using 2D finite element models involves cumbersome post-processing techniques. In this paper, a simple and efficient method has been proposed for accurate evaluation of transverse shear stresses in laminated composite shells by using a displacement-based C⁰ FE model derived from higher-order shear deformation theory (HSDT) and a least square error (LSE) method. In order to include the effect of three curvature terms in the strain components of composite shells, Sander’s approximations are followed. In this model, the first derivatives of transverse displacement have been treated as independent variables to overcome the problem of C¹ continuity in the FE implementation associated with the present shell theory (HSDT). The LSE method is applied at the post-processing stage, after in-plane stresses are calculated by using the present FE model based on HSDT. Thus, the proposed method is quite simple compared to the usual method of integrating the 3D equilibrium equations for the calculation of transverse stresses in laminated composite shells. The accuracy of the method is demonstrated in the numerical examples by comparison of the present results with those obtained from different models based on HSDT, exact analytical and 3D elasticity solutions.     

Free and forced vibration analysis of laminated composite plates and shells using a 9-node assumed strain shell element

The natural frequencies of isotropic and composite laminates are presented. The forced vibration analysis of laminated composite plates and shells subjected to arbitrary loading is investigated. In order to overcome membrane and shear locking phenomena, the assumed natural strain method is used. To develop a laminated shell element for free and forced vibration analysis, the equivalent constitutive equation that makes the computation of composite structures efficient was applied. The Mindlin-Reissner theory which allows the shear deformation and rotary inertia effect to be considered is adopted for development of nine-node assumed strain shell element. The present shell element offers significant advantages since it consistently uses the natural co-ordinate system. Results of the present theory show good agreement with the 3-D elasticity and analytical solutions. In addition the effect of damping is investigated on the forced vibration analysis of laminated composite plates and shells.     

A critical review and some results of recently developed refined theories of fiber-reinforced laminated composites and sandwiches

A critical review of literature pertinent to the subject matter of this paper was carried out under the following two broad headings: free vibration and transient dynamics. Each of these groups describes the various theoretical developments in fiber reinforced laminated composite and sandwich plates. The theoretical developments are further classified according to the refinement/accuracy of the theories developed, such as the classical theory, the first-order shear deformation theory, and the three-dimensional elasticity/higher-order shear deformation theories. The present literature review is limited to linear free vibration and transient dynamic analyses, and geometric nonlinear transient response of multilayer sandwich/fiber-reinforced composite plates. A comparative study of recently developed refined theories in conjunction with the C° isoparametric finite element formulation has been made and the conclusions were drawn based on the literature review and the refined theories results. In order to compare the present results with the available results and to provide an easy means for future comparisons by other investigators, the numerical results are presented in tabular form.     

Refined global–local higher-order theory for angle-ply laminated plates under thermo-mechanical loads and finite element model

To analyze angle-ply laminated composite and sandwich plates coupled bending and extension under thermo-mechanical loading, a refined global–local higher-order theory considering transverse normal strain is presented in this work. Hitherto, present theory for angle-ply laminates has never been reported in the literature, and this theory can satisfy continuity of transverse shear stresses at interfaces. In addition, the number of unknowns in present model is independent of layer numbers of the laminate. Based on this theory as well as methodology of the refined triangular discrete Kirchhoff plate element, a triangular laminated plate element satisfying the requirement of C¹ continuity is presented. Numerical results show that the present refined theory can accurately analyze the bending problems of angle-ply composite and sandwich plates as well as thermal expansion problem of cross-ply plates, and the present refined theory is obviously superior to the existing global–local higher-order theory proposed by Li and Liu [Li XY, Liu D. Generalized laminate theories based on double superposition hypothesis. Int J Numer Meth Eng 1997;40:1197–212]. After ascertaining the accuracy of present model, the distributions of displacements and stresses for angle-ply laminated plates under temperature loads are also given in present work. These results can serve as a reference for future investigations.     

Analysis of laminated composite beams using layerwise displacement theories

Within the displacement field of a layerwise theory, two laminated beam theories for beams with general lamination are developed. In the first theory, an existing layerwise laminated plate theory is adapted to laminated beams. The procedure used in the second theory is simple and straightforward and similar to the one used in the development of plate and shell theories. These theories can also be used in developing simpler theories such as classical, first, and higher-order shear deformation laminated beam theories. Equations of motions are obtained by using Hamilton’s principle. For the assessment of the accuracy of these theories, analytical solutions for static bending and free vibration are developed and compared with those of an existing three-dimensional elasticity solution of cross-ply laminates in cylindrical bending and with the three-dimensional finite element analysis for angle-ply laminates.     

Advanced variable kinematics Ritz and Galerkin formulations for accurate buckling and vibration analysis of anisotropic laminated composite plates

Accurate free-vibrations and linearized buckling analysis of anisotropic laminated plates with different lamination schemes and simply supported boundary condition are addressed in this paper. Approximation methods, such as Rayleigh-Ritz, Galerkin and Generalized Galerkin, based on Principle of Virtual Displacement are derived in the framework of Carrera’s Unified Formulation (CUF). CUF widely used in the analysis of composite laminate beams, plates and shells, have been here formulated both for the same and different expansion orders, for the displacement components, in the thickness layer-plate direction. An extensive assessment of advanced and refined plate theories, which include Equivalent single Layer (ESL), Zig-Zag (ZZ) and Layer-wise (LW) models, with increasing number of displacement variables is provided. Accuracy of the results is shown to increase by refining the theories. Convergence studies are made in order to demonstrate that accurate results are obtained examining thin and thick plates using trigonometric approximation functions. The effects of boundary terms, upon frequency parameters and critical loads are evaluated. The effects of the various parameters (material, number of layers, fiber orientation, thickness ratio, orthotropic ratio) upon the frequencies and critical loads are discussed as well. Numerical results are compared with 3D exact solution when available from the open literature.     

Advanced variable kinematics Ritz and Galerkin formulations for accurate buckling and vibration analysis of anisotropic laminated composite plates

Accurate free-vibrations and linearized buckling analysis of anisotropic laminated plates with different lamination schemes and simply supported boundary condition are addressed in this paper. Approximation methods, such as Rayleigh-Ritz, Galerkin and Generalized Galerkin, based on Principle of Virtual Displacement are derived in the framework of Carrera’s Unified Formulation (CUF). CUF widely used in the analysis of composite laminate beams, plates and shells, have been here formulated both for the same and different expansion orders, for the displacement components, in the thickness layer-plate direction. An extensive assessment of advanced and refined plate theories, which include Equivalent single Layer (ESL), Zig-Zag (ZZ) and Layer-wise (LW) models, with increasing number of displacement variables is provided. Accuracy of the results is shown to increase by refining the theories. Convergence studies are made in order to demonstrate that accurate results are obtained examining thin and thick plates using trigonometric approximation functions. The effects of boundary terms, upon frequency parameters and critical loads are evaluated. The effects of the various parameters (material, number of layers, fiber orientation, thickness ratio, orthotropic ratio) upon the frequencies and critical loads are discussed as well. Numerical results are compared with 3D exact solution when available from the open literature.     

Static and free vibration analysis of composite shells by radial basis functions

The higher-order shear deformation theory of laminated orthotropic elastic shells of Reddy accounts for parabolic distribution of the transverse shear strains through the thickness of the shell. The Reddy shell theory allows the fulfillment of homogeneous conditions (zero values) at the top and bottom surfaces of the shell. This paper deals with a meshless solution of the Reddy higher order shell theory in static and free vibration analysis. The meshless technique is based on the asymmetric global multiquadric radial basis function method proposed by Kansa. This paper demonstrates that this truly meshless method is very successful in the static and free vibration analysis of laminated composite shells.