Approximate-numerical and finite element solutions for nonlinear vibrations of laminated composite plates under blast load

Advanced laminated composites are used in several engineering fields. With the advent of the new composite material structures there is a need to reconsider the problem of the nonlinear dynamic behavior of laminated composite plates exposed to time-dependent pulses, such as sonic boom and blast loadings. Several studies related to the effects of air blast loading on the panel structures are investigated in the literature. However, only a few studies in the nonlinear response of simply supported laminated composite plates subjected to blast loading are investigated. Present work includes in-plane stiffness and inertia effects on the motion of a laminated composite plate under blast load. The geometric nonlinearity effects are taken into account with the von Kármán large deflection theory of thin plates. All edges simply supported boundary conditions are considered. The equations of motion for the plate are derived by the use of the virtual work principle. Approximate solutions are assumed for the space domain and substituted into the equations of motion. Then the Galerkin Method is used to obtain the nonlinear differential equations in the time domain. The finite difference method is applied to solve the system of coupled nonlinear equations. The results of theoretical analyses are obtained.