Free vibration analysis of functionally graded cylindrical shells with different shell theories using semi-analytical method

Abstract

In this study, the semi-analytical finite strip method is adopted to examine the free vibration of cylindrical shells made up of functionally graded material. The properties of functionally graded shells are assumed to be temperature-dependent and vary continuously in the thickness direction according to a simple power law distribution in terms of the volume fraction of ceramic and metal. The material properties of the shells and stiffeners are assumed to be continuously graded in the thickness direction. Theoretical formulations based on the smeared stiffeners technique and the classical shell theory with first-order shear deformation theory which accounts for through thickness shear flexibility are employed. The finite strip method is applied to five different shell theories, namely, Donnell, Reissner, Sanders, Novozhilov, and Teng. The approximate procedure is compared favorably with three-dimensional finite elements. Finally, a detailed numerical study is carried out to bring out the effects of power-law index of the functional graded material, stiffeners, and geometry of the shells on the difference between various shell theories. Finally, the importance of choosing the shell theory in simulating the functionally graded cylindrical shells is addressed.