Static analysis of laminated reinforced composite plates using a simple first-order shear deformation theory

Abstract

This paper aims to present an analytical model to predict the static analysis of laminated reinforced composite plates subjected to sinusoidal and uniform loads by using a simple first-order shear deformation theory (SFSDT). The most important aspect of the present theory is that unlike the conventional FSDT, the proposed model contains only four unknown variables. This is due to the fact that the inplane displacement field is selected according to an undetermined integral component in order to reduce the number of unknowns. The governing differential equations are derived by employing the static version of principle of virtual work and solved by applying Navier\'s solution procedure. The non-dimensional displacements and stresses of simply supported antisymmetric cross-ply and angle-ply laminated plates are presented and compared with the exact 3D solutions and those computed using other plate theories to demonstrate the accuracy and efficiency of the present theory. It is found from these comparisons that the numerical results provided by the present model are in close agreement with those obtained by using the conventional FSDT.