NONLINEAR MECHANICAL BENDING OF FUNCTIONALLY GRADED MATERIAL PLATES UNDER TRANSVERSE LOADS WITH VARIOUS BOUNDARY CONDITIONS

Abstract

Nonlinear mechanical bending of functionally graded material (FGM) plates under transverse loads with various boundary conditions are presented. The material properties of the FGM plates are graded in the thickness direction according to a simple power-law distribution in terms of the volume fractions of the constituents. The theoretical nonlinear finite element formulations are based on the higher-order shear deformation theory, with a special modification in the transverse displacement in order to estimate the parabolic distribution of transverse shear strains through the plate thickness. The Green–Lagrange nonlinear strain–displacement relation with all higher-order nonlinear strain terms is included to account for the large deflection response of the plate. The fundamental equations for FGM plates with traction-free boundary conditions on the top and bottom faces of the plate are accomplished using variational approach. Results have been achieved using a C0continuous isoparametric Lagrangian finite element with 13 degrees of freedom per node. Convergence and comparison studies have been performed to ascertain the effectiveness of the present model. Numerical results are highlighted for different thickness ratios, aspect ratios, and role played by the constituent volume fraction index with different boundary conditions.