Finite Element Vibration Analysis of Damped Composite Sandwich Beams

Abstract

In this study, a finite element model for the vibration analysis of cross-ply laminated sandwich beams is presented. This formulation is an extension of our previous work on predicting the acoustic and vibration responses of sandwich beams and plates with homogeneous elastic faces and a viscoelastic core. The formulation is based on a layerwise linear axial displacement through the beam thickness. The formulation assumes the classical lamination theory for the faces and Timoshenko theory for the core. The governing equations of motion are obtained using Hamilton’s principle. A finite element method and a beam element are further developed to predict the natural frequencies and modal loss factors. In order to validate the proposed model, several free vibration analyses of composite sandwich beams with different boundary conditions, length-to-thickness ratios and face laminations are presented. The results are then compared with solutions available in the literature and with those obtained by the PATRAN/NASTRAN finite element software package. These results show the validity of the present formulation. Finally, the effects of ply-stacking sequence, core-to-face stiffness ratio and core-to-face thickness ratio upon the natural frequencies and modal damping are investigated.