Response of elliptical composite cylinders to a spatially uniform temperature change

Abstract

The normal, circumferential, and axial displacements of elliptical composite cylinders due to a spatially uniform temperature change are discussed. Three graphite–epoxy laminates, a quasi-isotropic [±45/0/90] S laminate, an axially stiff [±45/0 2] S laminate, and a circumferentially stiff [±45/90 2] S laminate, 0° being the axial direction, are studied. The laminates are considered specially orthotropic. The thermally induced displacement response is determined using an approximate approach based on the Kantorovich technique and minimization of total potential energy. A specific cross-sectional geometry having a ratio of minor to major diameters of 0.7 is considered. It is shown that the displacements are characterized by the presence of a circumferential component, and a strong dependence on the lamination sequence and the boundary conditions at the ends of the cylinders. It is also illustrated that the characteristic length for the effects of the boundary on the circumferential displacement is quite different than the characteristic length associated with the normal displacement.