A Continuum Solution to the Problems of Composite Laminate Analysis

Abstract

In this paper, a method of solution and some numerical results of free vibration and buckling of composite laminates are presented. All the edges of the laminates are assumed as simply supported. Ritz's method of solution is used with deflection surface expressed in terms of double series in Chebyshev polynomials satisfying the simply supported laminate boundary conditions. The numerical results obtained using the present analysis for isotropic as well as orthotropic plate cases, are compared with the available results. A detailed investigation on ht unnatural frequencies and mode shapes of fourlayered, simply supported composite laminates made up of graphite FRP is then undertaken. Numerical results for the first few frequencies and the critical buckling values of symmetric and antisymmetric laminates so obtained, are presented here