Analysis of Composite Laminated Plates and Shells Using Finite Element Method

Abstract

This paper presents a shear deformable finite element method for the static analysis of composite laminated plates and shells. The finite element based on the Mindlin shear deformation theory of plates. The flat triangular shell element is formulated considering the anisotropic behavior of composite materials with the assumption that the out-of-plane shear strain is constant in two directions within an element. The element consists of three displacements and three rotations as the generalized degree-of-freedom per node. The validity of the present formulation is determined via problems for which the exact solutions and numerical results are available. Excellent accuracy and fast convergence are observed.