Analysis of laminated composite plates using a higher-order shear deformation theory

A higher-order shear deformation theory is used to analyse laminated anisotropic composite plates for deflections, stresses, natural frequencies and buckling loads. The theory accounts for parabolic distribution of the transverse shear stresses, and requires no shear correction coefficients. A displacement finite element model of the theory is developed, and applications of the element to bending, Vibration and stability of laminated plates are discussed. The present solutions are compared with those obtained using the classical plate theory and the three-dimensional elasticity theory.     

Vibration analyses of laminated composite beams using refined higher-order shear deformation theory

The objective of the paper is to analyze the free vibration of laminated composite beams using a refined higher-order shear deformation theory. The influences of parabolic transverse shear strain, transverse normal strain and Poisson effect are included in the present formulation. The governing differential equations of motion for coupled vibrations of laminated beams are derived using the Hamilton’s principle. In the case of simply supported composite beams, the closed-form solutions for the natural frequency of free harmonic vibration are obtained. The correctness and accuracy of the present theory are validated by comparing the present results with those previously published in the literature and ANSYS solutions.     

Dynamic stability of laminated FGM plates based on higher-order shear deformation theory

This paper conducts a dynamic stability analysis of symmetrically laminated FGM rectangular plates with general out-of-plane supporting conditions, subjected to a uniaxial periodic in-plane load and undergoing uniform temperature change. Theoretical formulations are based on Reddys third-order shear deformation plate theory, and account for the temperature dependence of material properties. A semi-analytical Galerkin-differential quadrature approach is employed to convert the governing equations into a linear system of Mathieu–Hill equations from which the boundary points on the unstable regions are determined by Bolotins method. Free vibration and bifurcation buckling are also discussed as subset problems. Numerical results are presented in both dimensionless tabular and graphical forms for laminated plates with FGM layers made of silicon nitride and stainless steel. The influences of various parameters such as material composition, layer thickness ratio, temperature change, static load level, boundary constraints on the dynamic stability, buckling and vibration frequencies are examined in detail through parametric studies.This work was fully supported by grants from the Australian Research Council (A00104534) and from the Research Grants Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China (Project No. CityU 1024/01 E). The authors are grateful for this financial support.     

Bending of a bimodulus laminated plate based on a higher-order shear deformation theory

This paper presents an exact flexural analysis of rectangular simply supported single-layer and two-layer cross-ply plates of bimodulus materials. The governing equations of a bimodulus plate based on a higherorder shear deformation theory are simplified from the composite plate. The present analysis of displacements in flexure is compared with Bert's results and Turvey's results which are based on Mindlin plate theory. The in-plane stress and bending stress are included in the present study. All the present numerical results are compared with the Mindlin plate theory (first-order plate theory) results. From those comparisons, the effects of higher-order shear deformation terms on the neutral surface locations and the flexure displacements can be observed.     

Static and dynamic analysis of laminated composite and sandwich plates and shells by using a new higher-order shear deformation theory

A new higher order shear deformation theory for elastic composite/sandwich plates and shells is developed. The new displacement field depends on a parameter “m”, whose value is determined so as to give results closest to the 3D elasticity bending solutions. The present theory accounts for an approximately parabolic distribution of the transverse shear strains through the shell thickness and tangential stress-free boundary conditions on the shell boundary surface. The governing equations and boundary conditions are derived by employing the principle of virtual work. These equations are solved using Navier-type, closed form solutions. Static and dynamic results are presented for cylindrical and spherical shells and plates for simply supported boundary conditions. Shells and plates are subjected to bi-sinusoidal, distributed and point loads. Results are provided for thick to thin as well as shallow and deep shells. The accuracy of the present code is verified by comparing it with various available results in the literature.     

Static and dynamic analysis of laminated composite and sandwich plates and shells by using a new higher-order shear deformation theory

A new higher order shear deformation theory for elastic composite/sandwich plates and shells is developed. The new displacement field depends on a parameter “m”, whose value is determined so as to give results closest to the 3D elasticity bending solutions. The present theory accounts for an approximately parabolic distribution of the transverse shear strains through the shell thickness and tangential stress-free boundary conditions on the shell boundary surface. The governing equations and boundary conditions are derived by employing the principle of virtual work. These equations are solved using Navier-type, closed form solutions. Static and dynamic results are presented for cylindrical and spherical shells and plates for simply supported boundary conditions. Shells and plates are subjected to bi-sinusoidal, distributed and point loads. Results are provided for thick to thin as well as shallow and deep shells. The accuracy of the present code is verified by comparing it with various available results in the literature.     

A higher-order polynomial shear deformation theory for geometrically nonlinear free vibration response of laminated composite plate

In this paper, a nonlinear analysis for large amplitude free vibration of laminated composite plates is developed using higher-order shear deformation theory. The effect of all higher-order terms arising from nonlinear strain-displacement relations are included in the formulation and present plate theory exhibits traction-free surface of the laminated plate in von-Karman sense. A finite element procedure considering a C° continuous isoparametric nine-node rectangular element is implemented for nonlinear model. The accuracy of the theory is validated with some available theory for different aspect ratio, modular ratio, number of layers, ply orientations, etc. through some numerical examples.     

Postbuckling analysis of stiffened laminated composite panels,using a higher-order shear deformation theory

The investigation aims at: (i) constructing a modified higher-order shear deformation theory in which Kirchhoff's hypotheses are relaxed, to allow for shear deformations; (ii) validating the present 5-parameter-smeared-laminate theory by comparing the results with exact solutions; and (iii) applying the theory to a specific problem of the postbuckling behavior of a flat stiffened fiber-reinforced laminated composite plate under compression.The first part of this paper is devoted mainly to the derivation of the pertinent displacement field which obviates the need for shear correction factors. The present displacement field compares satisfactorily with the exact solutions for three layered cross-ply laminates. The distinctive feature of the present smeared laminate theory is that the through-the-thickness transverse shear stresses are calculated directly from the constitutive equations without involving any integration of the equilibrium equations.The second part of this paper demonstrates the applicability of the present modified higher-order shear deformation theory to the post-buckling analysis of stiffened laminated panels under compression. to accomplish this, the finite strip method is employed. A C ²-continuity requirement in the displacement field necessitates a modification of the conventional finite strip element technique by introducing higher-order polynomials in the direction normal to that of the stiffener axes. The finite strip formulation is validated by comparing the numerical solutions for buckling problems of the stiffened panels with some typical experimental results.     

A generalized layerwise higher-order shear deformation theory for laminated composite and sandwich plates based on isogeometric analysis

This paper presents a generalized layerwise higher-order shear deformation theory for laminated composite and sandwich plates. We exploit a higher-order shear deformation theory in each layer such that the continuity of the displacement and transverse shear stresses at the layer interfaces is ensured. Thanks for enforcing the continuity of the displacement and transverse shear stresses at an inner-laminar layer, the minimum number of variables is retained from the present theory in comparison with other layerwise theories. The method requires only five variables, the same as what obtained from the first- and higher-order shear deformation theories. In comparison with the shear deformation theories based on the equivalent single layer, the present theory is capable of producing a higher accuracy for inner-laminar layer shear stresses. The free boundary conditions of transverse shear stresses at the top and bottom surfaces of the plate are fulfilled without any shear correction factors. The discrete system equations are derived from the Galerkin weak form, and the solution is obtained by isogeometric analysis (IGA). The discrete form requires the C¹ continuity of the transverse displacement, and hence NURBS basis functions in IGA naturally ensure this condition. The laminated composite and sandwich plates with various geometries, aspect ratios, stiffness ratios and boundary conditions are studied. The obtained results are compared with the 3D elasticity solution, the analytical as well as numerical solutions based on various plate theories.     

Analysis of isotropic and multilayered plates and shells by using a generalized higher-order shear deformation theory

This paper introduces a generalized 5 degrees of freedom (DOF) higher-order shear deformation theory (HSDT) to study the bending and free vibration of plates and shells, which may be used to create other HSDTs. It also introduces a new HSDT for shells that is more accurate than many available HSDTs despite having the same 5DOF, and which is also able to reproduce the well-known Soldatos’ HSDT as special case. The governing equations and boundary conditions of the generalized formulation are derived by employing the principle of virtual work. These equations are solved via Navier-type closed-form solutions. Static and dynamic results are presented for plates and cylindrical and spherical shells with simply supported boundary conditions. Panels are subjected to sinusoidal, distributed and point loads. Results are provided for thick to thin as well as shallow and deep shells. Results from the new and well-known HSDTs introduced and reproduced based on the present generalized 5DOF HSDT are compared with the exact three-dimensional elasticity solution. The present new HSDT for plates and shells is found to be more accurate than the well-known HSDTs developed by other authors, for analyzing the static and free vibration of isotropic and multilayered composite plates and shells.     

Non-homogeneous response of cross-ply laminated elastic plates using a higher-order theory

A consistent formulation for the bending of cross-ply laminated composite plates that possess non-homogeneous elastic properties is presented. Based on a third-order shear deformation plate theory, the governing equations are obtained using the principle of virtual work. With the help of the small parameter method, a wide variety of results are presented for the symmetric and antisymmetric analysis of non-homogeneous rectangular laminated plates. The influence of non-homogeneity, lamination schemes, aspect ratio and material anisotropy on the deflections and stresses is investigated. The new results for non-homogeneous response of composite plates should serve as bench marks for future comparisons.     

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.     

Low velocity impact analysis of composite sandwich shells using higher-order shear deformation theories

In the present investigation, higher-order and conventional first-order shear deformation theories are used to study the impact response of composite sandwich shells. The formulation is based on Donnell’s shallow shell theory. Nine-noded Lagrangian elements are used for the finite element formulation. A modified Hertzian contact law is used to calculate the contact force. The results obtained from the present investigation are found to compare well with those existing in the open literature. The numerical results are presented to study the changes in the impact response due to the increase of core depth from zero to some specified value and the changes in core stiffness for a particular core depth.     

On higher order shear deformation theory of laminated composite panels

In this paper we examine the suitability of higher order shear deformation theory based on cubic inplane displacements and parabolic normal displacements, for stress analysis of laminated composite plates including the interlaminar stresses. An exact solution of a symmetrical four layered infinite strip under static loading has been worked out and the results obtained by the present theory are compared with the exact solution. The present theory provides very good estimates of the deflections, and the inplane stresses and strains. Nevertheless, direct estimates of strains and stresses do not display the required interlaminar stress continuity and strain discontinuity across the interlaminar surface. On the other hand, ‘statically equivalent stresses and strains’ do display the required interlaminar stress continuity and strain discontinuity and agree very closely with the exact solution.     

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.     

Vibrations of axially compressed laminated orthotropic cylindrical shells,including transverse shear deformation

Summary The free vibrations, buckling and the effect of initial prestress upon the frequency spectrum of orthotropic composite cylindrical shells are examined in the context of a theory that includes transverse shear deformation. Results obtained are compared with the predictions of refined Love-type theory and simplified Donnell-type theory that do not consider shear deformation.The calculated examples indicate that transverse shear deformation can be significant not only for short composite shells but even for longer shells possessing low shear moduli.

---

Schwingungen axial gedrückter, laminierter, orthotroper zylindrischer Schalen einschließlich Querschubverformung

Zusammenfassung Es werden die freien Schwingungen, das Beulen und der Einfluß einer Anfangsvorspannung auf das Frequenzspektrum orthotroper, kompositer, zylindrischer Schalen im Rahmen einer Theorie, die die Querschubverformung mitberücksichtigt, untersucht. Die erhaltenen Resultate werden mit den Vorhersagen der verbesserten Loveschen Theorie und der vereinfachten Donnellschen Theorie, welche keine Querschubverformung in Betrach ziehen, verglichen.Die durchgerechneten Beispiele zeigen, daß die Querschubverformung nicht nur für kurze, komposite Schalen sondern sogar für längere Schalen mit niederem Schubmodul Bedeutung gewinnen kann.

---

Nomenclature a radius of reference surface of cylindrical shell - A _i amplitudes of displacements - A _ij elastic area - B _ij elastic statical moment - D _ij elastic moment of inertia - E _ij elastic stiffness modulus - h shell thickness - k ₄₄,k ₅₅ shear correction factors - l length of cylindrical shell - L _ij functional operator - m number of half-waves in axial direction - M ,M ,M axial, circumferential and twisting moments, respectively - n number of circumferential waves - N ⁰ axial compression force - N ,N ,N axial, circumferential and shear forces, respectively - Q ,Q transverse shear forces - R ₀,R ₁,R ₂ inertia terms - t time - T matrix defined in Eq. (25) - u, v, w displacements in axial, circumferential and radial directions, respectively - U _i time-independent displacement or rotation - nondimensional axial wave parameter - , , axial, circumferential and shear strains, respectively - radial coordinate, taken positive inward - polar angle - , , curvature changes - circular frequency - nondimensional axial coordinate - density - , , , , stress components - , rotations of normal to undeformed midsurface With 6 Figures     

General higher-order layer-wise theory for free vibrations of doubly-curved laminated composite shells and panels

ABSTRACT

The present article illustrates a general formulation for a higher-order layer-wise theory related to the analysis of the free vibrations of thick doubly-curved laminated composite shells and panels. The theoretical framework relates to the dynamic analysis of shell structures by using a general displacement field based on the Carrera Unified Formulation (CUF), including the stretching effect for each layer. The order of the expansion along the thickness direction is taken as a free parameter. The starting point of the present general higher-order layer-wise formulation is to propose a kinematic assumption, with an arbitrary number of degrees of freedom. The main aim of this work is to determine the explicit fundamental operators that can be used for the layer-wise (LW) approach. These fundamental operators are obtained for the first time by the author and are related to motion equations of doubly-curved shells described in an orthogonal curvilinear co-ordinate system. The free vibration shell and panel problems are computationally solved using the generalized differential quadrature (GDQ) and generalized integral quadrature (GIQ) techniques. The numerical results are compared with recent papers in the literature and commercial finite element codes.     

A new higher order shear deformation theory for sandwich and composite laminated plates

A new shear deformation theory for sandwich and composite plates is developed. The proposed displacement field, which is “m” parameter dependent, is assessed by performing several computations of the plate governing equations. Therefore, the present theory, which gives accurate results, is relatively close to 3D elasticity bending solutions. The theory accounts for adequate distribution of the transverse shear strains through the plate thickness and tangential stress-free boundary conditions on the plate boundary surface, thus a shear correction factor is not required. Plate governing equations and boundary conditions are derived by employing the principle of virtual work. The Navier-type exact solutions for static bending analysis are presented for sinusoidally and uniformly distributed loads. The accuracy of the present theory is ascertained by comparing it with various available results in the literature.     

A Computationally viable higher-order theory for laminated composite plates

A variational higher-order theory involving all transverse strain and stress components is proposed for the analysis of laminated composite plates. Derived from three-dimensional elasticity with emphasis on developing a viable computational methodology, the theory is well suited for finite element approximations as it incorporates both C⁰ and C^?1 continuous kinematic fields and Poisson boundary conditions. From the theory, a simple three-node stretching-bending finite element is developed and applied to the problem of cylindrical bending of a symmetric carbon/epoxy laminate for which an exact solution is available. Both the analytic and finite element results were found to be in excellent agreement with the exact solution for a wide range of the length-to-thickness ratio. The proposed higher-order theory has the same computational advantages as first-order shear-deformable theories. The present methodology, however, provides greater predictive capabilities, especially, for thick-section composites.     

Bending and free vibration analysis of isotropic and multilayered plates and shells by using a new accurate higher-order shear deformation theory

Bending and free vibration analysis of multilayered plates and shells by using a new accurate higher order shear deformation theory (HSDT) is presented. It is one of the most accurate HSDT available in the literature, mainly because new non-polynomial shear strain shape functions (combination of exponential and trigonometric) used in the present theory are richer than polynomial functions, and free surface boundary conditions can be guaranteed a priori. The present HSDT is able to reproduce Touratier’s HSDT as special case. The governing equations and boundary conditions are derived by employing the principle of virtual work. These equations are then solved via Navier-type, closed form solutions. Bending and dynamic results are presented for cylindrical and spherical shells and plates for simply supported boundary conditions. Panels are subjected to sinusoidal, distributed and point loads. Results are provided for thick to thin as well as shallow and deep shells. The present results are compared with the exact three-dimensional elasticity theory and with several other well-known HSDT theories. The present HSDT is found to be more precise than other several existing ones for analyzing the bending and free vibration of isotropic and multilayered composite shell and plate structures.