An asymptotically correct model for initially curved and twisted thin-walled composite beams

Abstract

The variational–asymptotic method has been applied to develop an asymptotically correct model for initially curved and twisted, thin-walled, composite beams of arbitrary cross-sectional shapes and arbitrary anisotropic materials. In a two-step asymptotic reduction procedure, the three-dimensional strain energy is asymptotically reduced first to a two-dimensional shell strain energy and then to a one-dimensional beam strain energy. This is a new attempt where initially curved and twisted, thin-walled, composite beams, with open or closed sections, have been modeled in an asymptotically correct unified framework.