A refined analysis of laminated plates by finite element displacement methods—I. Fundamentals and static analysis

This and a companion paper (Computers and Structures 26, 915–923, 1987) present a local finite element model based on a refined approximate theory for thick anisotropic laminated plates. The three-dimensional problem is reduced to a two-dimensional case by assuming piecewise linear variation of the in-plane displacements u and ρ and a constant value of the lateral displacement w across the thickness. By using a substructuring technique the present model is demonstrated to be practical and economical. The static bending stresses, transverse shearing stresses and in-plane displacements are predicted in the present paper. The vibration and buckling analyses will be presented in the second paper. Comparison with both exact three-dimensional analysis and a high-order plate bending theory shows that this model provides results which are accurate and acceptable for all ranges of thickness and modular ratio.