Analysis of functionally graded plates using an edge-based smoothed finite element method

An edge-based smoothed finite element method (ES-FEM) with stabilized discrete shear gap (DSG) technique using triangular meshes (ES-DSG) was recently proposed to enhance the accuracy of the existing FEM with the DSG for analysis of isotropic Reissner/Mindlin plates. In this paper, the ES-DSG is further formulated for static, free vibration and buckling analyses of functionally graded material (FGM) plates. The thermal and mechanical properties of FGM plates are assumed to vary across the thickness of the plate by a simple power rule of the volume fractions of the constituents. In the ES-DSG, the stiffness matrices are obtained by using the strain smoothing technique over the smoothing domains associated with the edges of the elements. The present formulation uses only linear approximations and its implementation into finite element programs is quite simple. Several numerical examples are given to demonstrate the performance of the present formulation for FGM plates.     

Bending,buckling and vibration of size-dependent functionally graded annular microplates

The bending, buckling and free vibration of annular microplates made of functionally graded materials (FGMs) are investigated in this paper based on the modified couple stress theory and Mindlin plate theory. This microplate model incorporates the material length scale parameter that can capture the size effect in FGMs. The material properties of the FGM microplates are assumed to vary in the thickness direction and are estimated through the Mori–Tanaka homogenization technique. The higher-order governing equations and boundary conditions are derived by using Hamilton’s principle. The differential quadrature (DQ) method is employed to discretize the governing equations and to determine the deflection, critical buckling load and natural frequencies of FGM microplates. A parametric study is then conducted to investigate the influences of the length scale parameter, gradient index and inner-to-outer radius ratio on the bending, buckling and vibration characteristics of FGM microplates with hinged–hinged and clamped–clamped supports. The results show that the size effect on the bending, buckling and vibration characteristics is significant when the ratio of the microplate thickness to the material length scale parameter is smaller than 10.     

Levy Solution for Buckling Analysis of Functionally Graded Rectangular Plates

In this article, an analytical method for buckling analysis of thin functionally graded (FG) rectangular plates is presented. It is assumed that the material properties of the plate vary through the thickness of the plate as a power function. Based on the classical plate theory (Kirchhoff theory), the governing equations are obtained for functionally graded rectangular plates using the principle of minimum total potential energy. The resulting equations are decoupled and solved for rectangular plate with different loading conditions. It is assumed that the plate is simply supported along two opposite edges and has arbitrary boundary conditions along the other edges. The critical buckling loads are presented for a rectangular plate with different boundary conditions, various powers of FGM and some aspect ratios.     

薄板弯曲和振动分析的区间B样条小波有限法

基于二维张量积区间B样条小波及小波有限元理论,研究了用于薄板静动力学分析的区间B样条小波有限元法。在小波有限元用于薄板分析的列式过程中,采用区间B样条小波尺度函数对横向位移场逼近,从矩形和斜形薄板静动力学势能泛函出发,由变分原理得到小波有限元求解方程。该方法具有B样条函数数值逼近精度高和多种用于结构分析的小波基函数的特点。数值算例表明:区间B样条小波有限元法能以很少的计算自由度获得与其它方法同样的计算精度。     

Nonlinear analysis of sandwich plates with FGM face sheets resting on elastic foundations

Nonlinear vibration, nonlinear bending and postbuckling analyses are presented for a sandwich plate with FGM face sheets resting on an elastic foundation in thermal environments. The material properties of FGM face sheets are assumed to be graded in the thickness direction according to a simple power law distribution in terms of the volume fractions of the constituents. The governing equation of the plate that includes plate-foundation interaction is solved by a two-step perturbation technique. The thermal effects are also included and the material properties of both FGM face sheets and homogeneous core layer are assumed to be temperature-dependent. The numerical results reveal that the foundation stiffness and temperature rise have a significant effect on the natural frequency, buckling load, postbuckling and nonlinear bending behaviors of sandwich plates. The results also reveal that the core-to-face sheet thickness ratio and the volume fraction distribution of FGM face sheets have a significant effect on the natural frequency, buckling load and postbuckling behavior of the sandwich plate, whereas this effect is less pronounced for the nonlinear bending, and is marginal for the nonlinear to linear frequency ratios of the same sandwich plate.     

Exact solution for stability analysis of moderately thick functionally graded sector plates on elastic foundation

In this article, an exact analytical solution for buckling analysis of moderately thick functionally graded (FG) sector plates resting on Winkler elastic foundation is presented. The equilibrium equations are derived according to the first order shear deformation plate theory. Because of the coupling between the bending and stretching equilibrium equations of FG plates, these plates have deflection under in-plane loads lower than the critical buckling load acting on the mid-plane. The conditions under which FG plates remain flat in the pre-buckling configuration are investigated and the stability equations are obtained based on the flat plate assumption in the pre-buckling state. The stability equations are simplified into decoupled equations and solved analytically for plates having simply supported boundary condition on the straight edges. The critical buckling load is obtained and the effects of geometrical parameters and power law index on the stability of functionally graded sector plates are studded. The results for the critical buckling load of moderately thick functionally graded sector plates resting on elastic foundation are reported for the first time.     

Asymmetric flexural vibration and thermoelastic stability of FGM circular plates using finite element method

Here, asymmetric free vibration characteristics and thermoelastic stability of functionally graded circular plates are investigated using finite element procedure. A three-noded shear flexible plate element based on the field-consistency principle is used. Temperature field is assumed to be a uniform distribution over the plate surface and varied in thickness direction only. Material properties are graded in the thickness direction according to simple power law distribution. For the numerical illustrations, aluminum/alumina is considered as functionally graded material. The variation in critical buckling load is highlighted considering gradient index, temperature, radius-to-thickness ratios, circumferential wave number and boundary condition of the plate.     

Static and free vibration analysis of multilayered functionally graded shells and plates using an efficient zigzag theory

Accurate zigzag theory is presented for static and free vibration analysis of multilayered functionally graded material (FGM) cylindrical shells and rectangular plates by approximating inplane displacements as a combination of linear layerwise and cubic global terms. Governing equations of motion are derived using Hamilton’s principle. The theory yields accurate results for displacements, stresses and natural frequencies in simply-supported functionally graded multilayered cylindrical shell panels and rectangular plates. Effect of changing the volume fraction ratio, aspect ratio and thickness of FGM layer between two homogeneous layers are investigated for a number of multilayered shell and plate laminates.     

A new inverse trigonometric shear deformation theory for isotropic and functionally graded sandwich plates

A new inverse trigonometric shear deformation theory is proposed for the static, buckling and free vibration analyses of isotropic and functionally graded (FG) sandwich plates. It accounts for a inverse trigonometric distribution of transverse shear stress and satisfies the traction free boundary conditions. Equations of motion obtained here are solved for three types of FG plates: FG plates, sandwich plates with FG core and sandwich plates with FG faces. Closed-form solutions are obtained to predict the deflections, stresses, critical buckling loads and natural frequencies of simply supported plates. A good agreement between the obtained predictions and the available solutions of existing shear deformation theories is found to demonstrate the accuracy of the proposed theory.     

A Size-Dependent Functionally Graded Higher Order Plate Analysis Based on Modified Couple Stress Theory and Moving Kriging Meshfree Method

A size-dependent computational approach for bending, free vibration and buckling analyses of isotropic and sandwich functionally graded (FG) microplates is in this study presented. We consider both shear deformation and small scale effects through the generalized higher order shear deformation theory and modified couple stress theory (MCST). The present model only retains a single material length scale parameter for capturing properly size effects. A rule of mixture is used to model material properties varying through the thickness of plates. The principle of virtual work is used to derive the discrete system equations which are approximated by moving Kriging interpolation (MKI) meshfree method. Numerical examples consider the inclusions of geometrical parameters, volume fraction, boundary conditions and material length scale parameter. Reliability and effectiveness of the present method are confirmed through numerical results.     

Thermal buckling of various types of FGM sandwich plates

The sinusoidal shear deformation plate theory is used to study the thermal buckling of functionally graded material (FGM) sandwich plates. This theory includes the shear deformation and contains the higher- and first-order shear deformation theories and classical plate theory as special cases. Material properties and thermal expansion coefficient of the sandwich plate faces are assumed to be graded in the thickness direction according to a simple power-law distribution in terms of the volume fractions of the constituents. The core layer is still homogeneous and made of an isotropic material. Several kinds of symmetric sandwich plates are presented. Stability equations of FGM sandwich plates include the thermal effects. The thermal loads are assumed to be uniform, linear and non-linear distribution through-the-thickness. Numerical examples cover the effects of the gradient index, plate aspect ratio, side-to-thickness ratio, loading type and sandwich plate type on the critical buckling for sandwich plates.     

Static and free vibration analyses of carbon nanotube-reinforced composite plates using finite element method with first order shear deformation plate theory

This paper mainly presents bending and free vibration analyses of thin-to-moderately thick composite plates reinforced by single-walled carbon nanotubes using the finite element method based on the first order shear deformation plate theory. Four types of distributions of the uniaxially aligned reinforcement material are considered, that is, uniform and three kinds of functionally graded distributions of carbon nanotubes along the thickness direction of plates. The effective material properties of the nanocomposite plates are estimated according to the rule of mixture. Detailed parametric studies have been carried out to reveal the influences of the volume fractions of carbon nanotubes and the edge-to-thickness ratios on the bending responses, natural frequencies and mode shapes of the plates. In addition, the effects of different boundary conditions are also examined. Numerical examples are computed by an in-house finite element code and the results show good agreement with the solutions obtained by the FE commercial package ANSYS.     

Thermomechanical bending analysis of functionally graded sandwich plates with both functionally graded face sheets and functionally graded cores

The bending response of functionally graded material (FGM) sandwich plates subjected to thermomechanical loads is investigated using a four-variable refined plate theory. A new type of FGM sandwich plate, namely, both FGM face sheets and an FGM hard core, is considered. Containing only four unknown functions, the governing equations are deduced based on the principle of virtual work and then these equations are solved via the Navier approach. Analytical solutions are obtained to predict the deflections and stresses of simply supported FGM sandwich plates. Benchmark comparisons of the solutions obtained for a degradation model (functionally graded face sheets and homogeneous cores) with ones computed by several other theories are conducted to verify the accuracy and efficiency of the present approach. The influences of volume fraction distribution, geometrical parameters, and thermal load on dimensionless deflections and normal and shear stresses of the FGM sandwich plates are studied.     

A novel five-variable refined plate theory for vibration analysis of functionally graded sandwich plates

In this article, a new five-variable refined plate theory for the free vibration analysis of functionally graded sandwich plates is developed. By dividing the transverse displacement into bending, shear, and thickness stretching parts, the number of unknowns and governing equations of the present theory is reduced, and hence, makes it simple to use. Indeed, the number of unknown functions involved in the present theory is only five, as opposed to six or more in the case of other shear and normal deformation theories. The theory accounts for hyperbolic distribution of the transverse shear strains, and satisfies the zero traction boundary conditions on the surfaces of the plate without using a shear correction factor. Two common types of functionally graded material (FGM) sandwich plates, namely, the sandwich with FGM facesheet and homogeneous core and the sandwich with homogeneous facesheet and FGM core, are considered. The equations of motion are obtained using Hamilton's principle. Numerical results of the present theory are compared with three-dimensional elasticity solutions and other higher-order theories reported in the literature. It can be concluded that the proposed theory is accurate and efficient in predicting the free-vibration response of functionally graded sandwich plates.     

Benchmark solution for free vibration of functionally graded moderately thick annular sector plates

In the present article, an exact analytical solution for free vibration analysis of a moderately thick functionally graded (FG) annular sector plate is presented. Based on the first-order shear deformation plate theory, five coupled partial differential equations of motion are obtained without any simplification. Doing some mathematical manipulations, these highly coupled equations are converted into a sixth-order and a fourth-order decoupled partial differential equation. The decoupled equation are solved analytically for an FG annular sector plate with simply supported radial edges. The accurate natural frequencies of the FG annular sector plates with nine different boundary conditions are presented for several aspect ratios, some thickness/length ratios, different sector angles, and various power law indices. The results show that variations of the thickness, aspect ratio, sector angle, and boundary condition of the FG annular sector plates can change the vibration wave number. Also for an FG annular sector plate with one free edge, in opposite to the other boundary conditions, the natural frequency decreases with increasing the aspect ratio for small aspect ratios. Moreover, the mode shape contour plots are depicted for an FG annular sector plate with various boundary conditions. The accurate natural frequencies of FG annular sector plates are presented for the first time and can serve as a benchmark solution.     

A meshfree radial point interpolation method for analysis of functionally graded material (FGM) plates

A meshfree model is presented for the static and dynamic analyses of functionally graded material (FGM) plates based on the radial point interpolation method (PIM). In the present method, the mid-plane of an FGM plate is represented by a set of distributed nodes while the material properties in its thickness direction are computed analytically to take into account their continuous variations from one surface to another. Several examples are successfully analyzed for static deflections, natural frequencies and dynamic responses of FGM plates with different volume fraction exponents and boundary conditions. The convergence rate and accuracy are studied and compared with the finite element method (FEM). The effects of the constituent fraction exponent on static deflection as well as natural frequency are also investigated in detail using different FGM models. Based on the current material gradient, it is found that as the volume fraction exponent increases, the mechanical characteristics of the FGM plate approach those of the pure metal plate blended in the FGM.     

Experimental and numerical investigations of low velocity impact on functionally graded circular plates

This paper addresses low-velocity impact behaviour of functionally graded clamped circular plates. An experimental work was carried out to investigate the impact behaviour of FG circular plates which is composed of ceramic (SiC) and metal (Al) phases varying through the plate thickness by using a drop-weight impact test system. The influence of the compositional gradient exponent and impactor velocity on the contact forces and absorbed energies was concentrated on the tests. The explicit finite element method, in which a volume fraction based elastic–plastic model (the TTO model) was implemented for the functionally graded materials, was used to simulate their drop-weight impact tests. Effective material properties at any point inside FGM plates were determined using Mori–Tanaka scheme. The experimental and numerical results indicated that the compositional gradient exponent and impactor velocity more effective on the elasto-plastic response of the FG circular plates to a low-velocity impact loading. The comparison at the theoretical and experimental results showed that the use of the TTO model in modelling the elasto-plastic behaviour of FG circular plates results in increasing deviations between the numerical and experimental contact forces for ceramic-rich compositions whereas it becomes more successful for metal-rich compositions.     

A new wavelet-based thin plate element using B-spline wavelet on the interval

By interacting and synchronizing wavelet theory in mathematics and variational principle in finite element method, a class of wavelet-based plate element is constructed. In the construction of wavelet-based plate element, the element displacement field represented by the coefficients of wavelet expansions in wavelet space is transformed into the physical degree of freedoms in finite element space via the corresponding two-dimensional C₁ type transformation matrix. Then, based on the associated generalized function of potential energy of thin plate bending and vibration problems, the scaling functions of B-spline wavelet on the interval (BSWI) at different scale are employed directly to form the multi-scale finite element approximation basis so as to construct BSWI plate element via variational principle. BSWI plate element combines the accuracy of B-spline functions approximation and various wavelet-based elements for structural analysis. Some static and dynamic numerical examples are studied to demonstrate the performances of the present element.     

Nonlinear Free Vibration of In-Plane Functionally Graded Rectangular Plates

Nonlinear free vibration of functionally graded (FG) plates with in-plane material inhomogeneity subjected to different boundary conditions is presented. The nonlinear equations of motion and the related boundary conditions are extracted based on the classical plate theory. Green's strain tensor together with von Kármán assumptions is employed to model the geometrical nonlinearity. The differential quadrature method as an efficient and accurate numerical tool is employed to discretize the governing equations in spatial domain. After validating the presented approach, parametric studies are performed to clarify the effects of different parameters on the nonlinear frequency parameters of the in-plane FG plates.     

湿-热-机-弹耦合FGM梁的稳定性及振动特性

研究了初始轴向机械载荷作用下Winkler-Pasternak弹性地基上功能梯度材料（FGM）梁在湿-热环境中的稳定性及振动特性。假设温度和湿度沿梁厚度方向稳态分布,材料的物性依赖于温度且按Voigt混合幂律模型连续分布。首先,基于一种扩展的n阶广义梁理论,应用Hamilton原理,统一建立了以轴向位移、弯曲变形项挠度及剪切变形项挠度为基本未知函数FGM梁的屈曲及自由振动方程,采用Navier解法获得了FGM简支梁静动态响应的精确解。其次,通过算例验证并给出了该广义梁理论阶次n的理想取值,丰富梁理论的同时,可供验证或改进其他各种剪切变形梁理论。最后,着重探讨了3种湿-热分布下湿度与温度增加、初始轴向机械载荷、跨厚比、地基刚度、梯度指标等诸多参数对FGM梁稳定性和振动特性的影响。