Finite Element Analysis of Functionally Graded Sandwich Plates

Computational methods become a necessity at places where the fields of testing as well as lab model testing poses problems or situations demanding large number of test results at low cost. The accuracy of the computational model can be adjusted by convergence study. The present study uses finite element method for finding static behaviour of sandwich plates having functionally graded core. Power law is employed for quantification of the material properties and zig-zag theory is utilized for the analysis. Hamilton’s theorem is exploited for deriving the equation which is resolved by FEM by taking nine-node C-0 iso-parametric FE having 11 DOF/node. Aspect ratio, power law coefficient and skewness of plate are used as variables to study the bending response of the plate. Present results are found to be consistent with the published ones and new results are also presented.