Geometrically nonlinear nite element analysis of sandwich plates using

normal deformation theory

Madhukar S., M.K. Singha

Department of Applied Mechanics, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, New Delhi 110 016, India
a r t i c l e i n f o
Article history:
Available online xxxx
Keywords:
Sandwich plate
Normal deformable theory
Bending
Vibration
Nonlinear nite element
a b s t r a c t
The geometrically nonlinear bending and vibration behavior of soft core sandwich plates is investigated
here using higher order nite element model incorporating transverse shear and normal deformation.
The geometric nonlinearity, based on von Krmns assumption is introduced and the nonlinear govern-
ing equations of motion are derived considering in-plane and rotary inertia. The nonlinear governing
equation is solved by NewtonRaphson iteration technique for the nonlinear bending problem, whereas,
the harmonic balance method is employed to obtain the frequency versus amplitude relationships for the
large amplitude free and forced vibration of sandwich plates. The results obtained from the normal defor-
mation theory are compared with the results of rst-order and third-order shear deformation theories.
Limited parametric study is conducted to examine the inuences of span-to-thickness ratio and core-to-
face sheet thickness ratio of soft core sandwich plates.
2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
1. Introduction
Composite materials are increasingly used in structural compo-
nents of aircrafts, automobile, submarines, and other high perfor-
mance application areas because of their high stiffness-to-weight
and strength-to-weight ratios. Further, sandwich panels with the
addition of a thick soft core provide higher bending rigidity, ther-
mal and noise isolations and overall damping characteristics of
the structure. These sandwich panels are sometimes subjected to
dynamic loads and oscillate with large amplitude. Hence, the geo-
metrically nonlinear bending and vibration characteristics of sand-
wich plates are important problems to be investigated for the
effective design of such structures.
Several analytical and nite element investigations are reported
in the literature on the bending, buckling and free vibration behav-
ior of sandwich plates. Bending and vibration characteristics of soft
core sandwich plates has been investigated using three-dimen-
sional elasticity solutions [13] and two dimensional plate bending
theories [417]. The commonly employed two-dimensional theo-
ries are the rst-order shear deformation theory (FSDT), third order
shear deformation theory (TSDT), trigonometric shear deformation
theory, zig-zag theory and several versions of higher order shear
and normal deformation theory (HSDT). The efciencies of the
above theories for the static and dynamic analysis of sandwich
plates have been critically reviewed by Mallikarjuna and Kant
[18], Hu et al. [19] and Carrera and Brischetto [20].
It is observed from the literature that most of works have dealt
with the linear bending and vibration behavior of sandwich plates
and geometrically nonlinear analysis of sandwich plates is limited.
Rajagopal et al. [21] employed a rectangular nite element having
ve degrees of freedom at each node for the non-linear free vibra-
tion analysis of a three-layered sandwich plates. Cheng et al. [22]
reported an analytical study on the nonlinear vibration behavior
of rectangular Reissner sandwich plates. Ganapathi et al. [23] em-
ployed higher-order theories for the nonlinear dynamic analysis of
thick composite and sandwich plates. Du and Ma [24] studied the
nonlinear vibration and buckling behavior of circular sandwich
plates, whereas, Chakrabarti and Bera [25] studied the large ampli-
tude exural vibration of elliptical sandwich plates. Yongqiang et
al. [26,27] reported analytical studies on the nonlinear free vibra-
tion characteristics of simply supported and clamped symmetric
rectangular honeycomb sandwich panels based on third order
shear deformation theory, whereas, Chandrashekhar and Ganguli
[28] employed Reddys third order plate theory for the nonlinear
vibration analysis of sandwich plates with random material
properties.
In the present paper, a four node shear exible rectangular plate
bending element is developed (similar to Refs. [29,30]) to study the
geometrically nonlinear static and dynamic behavior of sandwich
plates made with soft core. Here, nonlinear nite element model
is developed based on higher order displacement model incorpo-
rating shear and normal deformation (ND). The developed nite ele-
ments are free from shear locking and any spurious zero energy
modes. Two additional models similar to the rst order shear defor-
mation theory (FSDT) and third-order shear deformation theory
0263-8223/$ - see front matter 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.compstruct.2012.10.034

Corresponding author. Tel.: +91 11 2659 6445; fax: +91 11 2658 1119.
E-mail address: maloy@am.iitd.ac.in (M.K. Singha).
Composite Structures xxx (2012) xxxxxx
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Please cite this article in press as: Madhukar S, Singha MK. Geometrically nonlinear nite element analysis of sandwich plates using normal deformation
theory. Compos Struct (2012), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.compstruct.2012.10.034