Nonlinear free vibration analysis of single/doubly curved

composite shallow shell panels

Vijay K. Singha, Subrata K. Pandab,*
a,b
Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Rourkela-769008, Odisha

Abstract

Large amplitude free vibration behaviour of doubly curved composite shell panels has been analysed

using nonlinear finite element method in this article. The nonlinear mathematical model is derived

using Green Lagrange type geometric nonlinearity in the framework of a higher order shear

deformation theory. The present formulation includes all higher order terms arising from nonlinear

strain displacement relations. The nonlinear governing equations of free vibrated shell panel are

derived using Hamiltons principle and solved numerically using direct iterative method. The

developed panel model has been validated by comparing the responses with those available numerical

results. Finally, some new numerical experimentation (orthotropicity ratio, stacking sequence,

thickness ratio, amplitude ratio and support conditions) have been done to show the importance and

the effectiveness of the developed mathematical model.

Keywords: Geometrical nonlinearity, Doubly curved shell panels, HSDT, Nonlinear finite element

method

1. Introduction

Laminated composite doubly curved shell panels have been using extensively in many

engineering applications especially in aerospace, civil and marine from the last three decades

due to their outstanding mechanical properties, such as high strength to weight ratio, excellent

*
Corresponding author at: Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Institute of Technology,
Rourkela-769008, Odisha
E-mail addresses: pandask@nitrkl.ac.in, call2subrat@gmail.com

1
corrosion resistance and very good fatigue characteristics. In civil engineering construction

hyperbolic paraboloidal (among the anticlastic) and the elliptic paraboloidal (among the

synclastic) shells are used as roofing units to cover large column free areas. It is well known

that, these structures are very often subjected to large amplitude vibration however, the

deformed and undeformed shapes are substantially different. Hence, it is important to define

the state variables with proper explanation and it is not inevitable using linear strain

displacement relations. It is because of the fact the total deformation of the structural

component is significantly larger than the linear strains. In addition to the above laminated

composites are prone to fail under shear as compared to normal stress, the mid-plane kinematics

need to be modelled based on higher order shear deformation theory (HSDT) to count the exact

flexure of the laminated structures.

A considerable amount of literature is available on the nonlinear free vibration behaviour of

the laminated composite panels (flat/curved) in von-Karman sense with and without taking the

transverse shear effects into account. Shin [1] investigated large amplitude vibration behaviour

of laminated moderately thick doubly curved shallow open shells using von-Karman type

geometric nonlinearity in the framework of first order shear deformation theory (FSDT). Kant

and Swaminathan [2] solved analytically free vibration responses of laminated composite and

sandwich plates. Reddy [3] first time developed higher order shear deformation theory for

laminated composite plate which accounts parabolic distribution of the transverse shear strains

through the thickness and using the same investigated the vibration, static deflection and

corresponding stresses. Nanda and Bandyopadhyay [4] presented nonlinear free vibration

behaviour of laminated composite cylindrical shells with cutouts and the mathematical model

has been developed based on the FSDT mid-plane kinematics with von-Karman geometric

nonlinearity. Chakravorty et al. [5] investigated numerically linear free vibration behaviour of

thin shallow doubly curved shell panel by taking the effect of various geometrical and/or

2
material properties. They have developed the mathematical model based on the FSDT mid-

plane kinematics. Reddy and Liu [6] developed first time a general HSDT shell model for

elastic laminated shells of orthotropic layers and presented the exact solutions of the bending

and vibration responses of cylindrical/spherical shells using Naviers method. Pradyumna and

Bandyopadhyay [7] developed a C0 finite element model (FEM) based on the HSDT to predict

the static and dynamic responses of laminated shells. Naidu and Sinha [8] investigated the large

deflection bending behaviour of composite cylindrical shell panels subjected to hygrothermal

environments using finite element formulation which includes Green-Lagrange strains. Zaouk

and Dym [9] evaluated the effects of curvature, material orthotropy and internal pressure upon

the nonlinear vibration of shallow shells. Tornabene [10] applied Generalized Differential

Quadrature (GDQ) method to study the dynamic behaviour of moderately thick laminated

composite doubly-curved shells using FSDT displacement field and compared GDQ results

with those obtained by using commercial programes Abaqus, Ansys, Nastran, straus and

Pro/Mechanica. Alijani and Amabili [11] reviewed some literatures on geometrically non-

linear free and forced vibrations of shells subjected to normal and in-plane excitations. Varadan

and Ganapathi [12] dealt with large-amplitude nonlinear free flexural vibrations of laminated

composite cylindrical shells using formulation based on FSDT and Lagranges equation of

motion. Amabili [13] studied geometrically nonlinear forced vibrations of laminated circular

cylindrical shells and compared numerical results obtained by using the AmabiliReddy

higher-order shear deformation theory to those obtained by using an higher-order shear

deformation theory retaining only nonlinear term of von Krmn type and the Novozhilov

classical shell theory. He also used an energy approach based on Lagrange equations to obtain

the equations of motion. Nayak [14] et al. used two new C0 strain finite element formulations

of Reddys higher-order theory to determine the natural frequencies of isotropic, orthotropic

and layered anisotropic composite and sandwich plates. They also showed the effects of

3
different design parameters on the natural frequencies. Sathyamoorthy [15] presented a shallow

shell theory for geometrically nonlinear dynamic analysis of moderately thick orthotropic

spherical shells by incorporating transverse shear deformation and rotatory inertia effects into

nonlinear equations of motions. He solved nonlinear equations using Galerkins method and

obtained solutions by employing the numerical Runge-Kutta integration procedure. Reddy [16]

presented a higher-order shear deformation theory of plates taking von-Karman strains into

account which predicts the deflections, stresses and frequencies more accurately when

compared to first order shear deformation(FSDT) and classical plate theory(CPT). Lee and

Kim [17] carried out the nonlinear vibration analysis of laminated hybrid composite plates

using Lagrangian equation and compared fundamental frequency of the analytical results with

that of the ABAQUS finite element methods (FEM) analysis. They investigated the effects of

different design parameters like stacking sequence, aspect ratio, number of layers, number of

modes and elastic properties on nonlinear vibration. Ngo-Cong et al. [18] presented a new

effective radial basis function (RBF) collocation technique for the vibration analysis of

laminated composite plates using the first order shear deformation theory (FSDT). They also

compared the obtained results with the exact solutions and numerical results by other

techniques to investigate the performance of the proposed method. Tornabene et al. [19]

determined the explicit fundamental operators, useful for the Equivalent Single Layer (ESL)

and Layer Wise (LW) approach. They also provided a general formulation of a 2D higher-order

equivalent single layer theory for free vibrations of thin and thick doubly-curved laminated

composite shells and panels with different curvatures. Huang and Zheng [20] presented the

significant effects of foundation stiffness and initial in-plane loads on the nonlinear vibration

and dynamic response of shear deformable laminated plates using formulations based on

Reddys HSDT and general von Karman-type equation, which includes the plate foundation

interaction. Panda and Singh [21] presented a nonlinear finite element model for geometrically

4
large amplitude free vibration analysis of doubly curved composite spherical shell panel using

HSDT. Dash and Singh [22] studied nonlinear free vibration characteristic of laminated

composite plate bonded with piezoelectric layers. The mathematical model has been developed

based on the HSDT and Green-Lagrange type deriving nonlinear governing equations in sense

in the framework of. Chien and Chen [23] investigated nonlinear vibration behaviour of

initially stressed cross-ply plate using Runge-Kutta method. The plate model is developed

based on Mindlin plate theory including the rotary inertia and supported on Pasternak/Winkler

elastic type foundations.

It is evident from the review that the nonlinear free vibration analysis of the laminated

composite shell panel has been studied by many researchers. It is also important to mention

that, the mathematical model based on HSDT and GreenLagrange nonlinear strains for

laminated doubly curved shells exposed to large amplitude vibration are very few. Hence, in

the present study an effort has been made to predict such a complex problem by taking the

linear variation of displacement along thickness including all the nonlinear higher order terms

in the mathematical model. The governing equation of the vibrated curved panel has been

derived using the Hamiltons principle and discretised using nonlinear FEM steps. The

nonlinear fundamental frequencies are computed using direct iterative method. The

linear/nonlinear responses are obtained using the developed model and competency of the

model has been checked by comparing the responses with those of available literatures. New

results are obtained for different orthotropicity ratios, stacking sequences, thickness ratios,

amplitude ratios, symmetric and unsymmetrical lamination schemes (cross-ply and angle ply)

and support conditions to show the significance of the present analysis.

5
 2. Mathematical formulations

2.1. Displacement field

The displacement field within the laminate is assumed to be based on third order shear

deformation theory. This field represents that, the in plane displacements are expanded as cubic

functions of thickness coordinate while the transverse displacement varies linearly through the

laminate thickness.

u x, y, z , t u0 x, y z x x, y z 2x x, y z 3 x x, y
v x, y, z , t v0 x, y z y x, y z 2 y x, y z 3 y x, y (1)
w x, y, z , t w0 x, y z z x, y

where, t is the time u, v and w denote the displacements of a point along the (x, y, and z)

coordinates. u0, v0 and w0 are corresponding displacements of a point on the mid plane.

x and y are the rotations of normal to the midsurface i.e. z=0 about the y and x-axes

respectively. The functions x , y , x , y and z are the higher order terms in the Taylor series

expansion.

2.2. Straindisplacement relation

The nonlinear GreenLagrange straindisplacement relation for the laminated doubly curved

shell panel can be expressed as follows [8]:

6

w w u
2
u w v
2 2

u w
x Rx x Rxy x Rx
x Rx
2 2 2


u w v w w v
v w
y Ry y Rxy y Ry y Ry
xx
w
u
2
v
2
w
2


yy

z
zz
1 z z z


v w v 2
u u v v w w w v
yz
w
xz z y Ry 2

z y Rxy z y Ry z y Ry
xy
u w u
u u w v v w w w u
z x Rx 2
z x R x z x Rxy z x R x

u v 2w
y x Rxy u w u w v w v w w v w u
2 y R x R y R x R y R x R

xy x y xy y x

(2a)

The total strain vector {} is the summation of the linear strain vector {L} and nonlinear strain

vector {NL}

L NL (2b)

Now, substituting Eq. (1) in Eq. (2a) the total strain can be expressed in terms of displacement

and conceded as:

1l0 1nl0 k1l1 k1nl1 k1l2 k1nl2

l0 nl0 l1 nl1 l2 nl2

2
2 k
2 k 2 k
2 k2
0 1 k3 1 k3nl2
3 0
1
3 0
nl
2 0
l nl 1

L NL = l0 nl0 + z k l1 2k nl1 z k l2 2k nl2

4 2 2 4 4 2 4 4 2 4
5 0
l 2 5 0
nl k5 1
l 2k5 1
nl l2 2k5 nl2
k5
l0 nl0 l nl l nl
2k6 2
6 6
2
k6 2k6 k6
1 1 2

k1l3 k1nl3 k1nl4 k1nl5 k1nl6

l3 nl3 nl4 nl5 nl6
k2 k2 k2 k2 k2
1 k nl3 nl4 nl5
0 3 1 3
k 1 3
k 1
z 3 l3 nl3 z 4 nl4 z 5 nl5 z 6 0 (3)
k 4 2 2k 4 2 k4 2 2k 4 2 0
l3 nl3 nl4 nl5 0
k5 2 k5 k5 2 k5
nl6
k l3 nl3
nl4
nl5
2k6
6 6
2 k 6
k 6
2 k

7
Now the above straindisplacement relation can be rearranged in matrix form as follows:

L NL T L L
1 NL
T NL (4)
2

where,

T
L 1
l0
2l 3l 4l 5l 6l k1l k2l k4l k5l k6l k1l k2l k4l k5l k6l k1l k2l k4l k5l k6l
0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 3
and

1nl0 2nl0 3nl0 4nl0 5nl0 6nl0 k1nl1 k2nl1 k3nl1 k4nl1 k5nl1 k6nl1 k1nl2 k2nl2 k3nl2 k4nl2 k5nl2 k6nl2 k1nl3

NL nl nl3 nl nl3 nl3 nl nl nl nl nl nl nl nl nl nl5 nl5 nl nl nl6
k2 k3 k4 k5 k6 k1 k2 k3 k4 k5 k6 k1 k2 k4 k5 k6 k1 k2 k6
3 3 4 4 4 4 4 4 5 5 5 6 6

are the mid-plane linear and nonlinear strain terms. Similarly, T L and T NL are the function

of thickness co-ordinate matrices for linear and nonlinear cases, respectively. The terms

containing superscripts l0, l1, l2-l3in L and nl0, nl1, nl26in are
NL the

membrane, curvature and higher order strain terms, respectively.

2.3. Stressstrain relations:

The constitutive relation of any general kth orthotropic composite lamina for an arbitrary fibre

orientation angle with reference to the coordinate axes (1, 2 and 3), is expressed as:

k k
x 1 Q11 Q12 Q13 0 0 0
k
1 k 1 k
Q
y 2 12 Q22 Q 23 0 0 0 2 2
z 3 Q13 Q23 0
3 + 3
Q33 0 0
= = (5)
yz 4 0 0 0 Q 44 0 0 4 4
xz 5 0 0 0 0 Q55 0 5
5
xy 6 0 0 0 0 0 Q55 6 L 6 NL

k
Q
where, {} , {} and are the corresponding stress tensor, strain and transformed
k k

reduced elastic constant matrix for any orthotropic kth layer.

8
 2.3. Strain energy of the laminate:

The total strain energy of the laminated shell panel can be obtained by substituting the values

of stresses and strains from the Eqs. (4) and (5) presented as follows:

1 1
U i i dV L NL i Q L NL i dV
T T
(6)
2V 2V

1
D1 L i L i D2 NL i
T T

1 L i 2
dA
2 A 1 1
NL i D3 L i NL i D4 NL i
T T

2 4

Zk T Zk T
N N

where,
D1 T Q T L dz
,
D2 T Q T NL dz

k 1 Z k 1 k 1 Z k 1
L L

Zk T Zk T
N N
D3 T Q T L dz
and D4 T Q T NL dz

k 1Z k 1 k 1 Z k 1
NL NL

2.5. Kinetic energy of the vibrating shell:

The kinetic energy expression of a vibrated shell panel can be expressed as:

1
dV
T

2 V
T= (7)

where, , and are the density, displacement and first order differentiation of

displacement with respect to time, respectively.

Again, the global displacement vector can be expressed as:

u


v f (8)
w

where, [ f ] is the function of thickness coordinate.

9
The kinetic energy for N number of orthotropic layered composite shell panel will be

1 N Zk
f k f dz dA
1
2 A
m dA
T

2 A k 1 Zk 1
T
V
T
(9)

N
where, m f k f dz is elemental inertia matrix.
Zk T
Z k 1
k 1

3. Solution technique

In this study the nonlinear vibration responses of laminated composite curved panel have

been obtained numerically by using FEM steps. The FEM has been proved to be one of the

most reliable numerical methods in complex structural analysis.

3.1. Nonlinear finite element formulation:

The displacement vector can be conceded to the form by employing the FEM:

Ni i B , A G
, L
i
L i i
NL
i i i i
(10)

Now, substituting the interpolation functions of a nine noded isoparametric Lagrangian

element from Eq. (10) the total strain energy will be given as follows:

T 1 T
i BL i D1 BL i i i BL i D2 Ai G i i
T T

1 2
U dA (11)
2 A 1 T T T 1 T T T
i G i Ai D3 BL i i i G i Ai D4 Ai G i i
2 4

where, [Ni] is the nodal interpolation function and i is the node number. [BL] is the product

form of the differential operator and nodal interpolation function in the linear strain terms.

Similarly, [A] and [G] are the individual uncoupled matrix of the nonlinear strain where, [A]is

the function of the displacements and [G] is same as the [BL].

10
3.2. System of governing equation:

The final form of governing equation of laminated curved panel is obtained using Hamiltons

principle can be expressed as follows:

t2

V U 0 (12)
t1

M K L KN1 KN 2 0
1 1
(13)
2 3

where, u0 w0 x y z x y x y is the displacement vector, [M]
T
v0

and [K]L are the global mass matrix and global linear stiffness matrix, respectively. [KN1] and

[KN2] are the linear and quadratic nonlinear mixed stiffness matrices that depend on the

displacement vector linearly and quadratically, respectively.

The Eq. (13) is now being solved numerically using direct iterative method based on the steps

as shown in the Fig. 2. Finally, the nonlinear vibration responses of the curved panel are

obtained as a function of frequency ratio (nonlinear frequency to linear frequency).

4. Numerical results and discussion

The linear/nonlinear responses have been computed through a homemade MATLAB code

based on the nonlinear finite element mathematical model as discussed earlier. The accuracy

and applicability of the present formulation has been demonstrated by solving several

numerical examples and compared with those available published results. The effects of

different design parameters such as the curvature ratios (R/a), the thickness ratios (a/h), the

lamination schemes, the support conditions and the amplitude ratios (Wmax/h), on the free

vibration responses have been examined.

11
The material properties of the laminates for the present analysis are given below. The material

properties are same for whole computation unless specified otherwise.

E1/E2=40, G12= G13=0.6E2, G23=0.5E2, 12= 13= 23=0.25

The following nondimensionalisation formula has been used throughout the analysis:

L b2 / E2 h2 2
1

The following support conditions are used for the present analysis:

(a) All edges simply supported (SSSS): v=w=y= z =y=y=0, at x=0, a

u=w=x= z = x = y =0, at y=0, b

(b) All edges clamped (CCCC): u=v=w=y=x= z = x = y = y = x =0,

at x=0, a and at y=0, b

4.1. Convergence and validation study :

The convergence behaviour of the developed mathematical model has been checked for the

nondimensional linear frequencies and the frequency ratios NL / L are obtained and

discussed. The nondimensional fundamental frequencies for four cross ply symmetric and

antisymmetric lamination ([00/900], [00/900/00], [00/900]2, [00/900] s) of square flat panels (R1=,

R2= and R12 = ) are obtained. The responses are computed for three different support

conditions (SSSS and CCCC and SCSC) and presented in Fig. 3. Similarly, the frequency

ratios for different amplitude ratios are obtained and presented in Fig.4. The material and

geometrical properties are same as reference [1] and [2] for frequency ratios and

nondimensional frequencies, respectively.

Based on the convergence it is understood that a (6x6) mesh is sufficient to compute the

responses hence a (6x6) mesh is used to compute the results throughout the study. In order to

verify the robustness of the developed mathematical model, the linear and nonlinear vibration

responses are computed. As a first step, the nondimensional fundamental frequency for

12
 laminated flat panel are obtained using the same material and geometrical properties of the

reference [2] and [3] and presented in Table 1.

In continuation to the above, Table 2 shows the frequency ratios for positive and negative

amplitude ratios of laminated spherical and cylindrical panel and compared with reference

[1]. It is also observed that the present values are showing good agreement with those

reference values. Here, the positive and negative values of Wmax imply that the vibration

amplitude may be inward or outward direction from the reference plane. The differences are

more prominent when Wmax/h is negative i.e., the nonlinearity induced in the present model

is more dominating for the inward vibration than that of the outward vibrations. It is also

important to mention that the difference between the results are existing because the present

model is developed based on the HSDT with Green-Lagrange nonlinearity and the reference

study is based on the FSDT and von-Karman nonlinearity. Hence, the notable difference

between the two results necessitates the development of the present model.

The curvature ratio (R/a) defines the type of shell i.e., deep to shallow and it is well known

that as the shell becomes deep its stretching energy is high as compared to bending energy. In

addition to that the nonlinear frequency is not only the function of stiffness and mass but also

the amplitude ratio. Hence, in this section the effect of curvature on the frequency ratios are

obtained for four different geometrical configurations and presented in Fig. 5. The figure

shows the nonlinear vibration behaviour of simply supported square cross ply thin (a/h=100)

shallow shell panels. It is also observed that the frequency ratio increases monotonically with

the amplitude ratios for all shell (spherical/cylindrical/hyperboloid/elliptical) configurations. It

is interesting to note that the frequency ratios and the nondimensional fundamental frequencies

are higher for elliptical shell panel as compared to all other cases.

13
 The aspect ratio is one of the important factors for stable configuration and stiffness of the

thin structure. Hence, it is necessary to understand the effect of aspect ratio on the frequency

ratio and nondimensional fundamental frequency. Fig. 6, presents the responses of 4-layer

symmetric cross ply thin shallow shell panel for three different aspect ratios (a/b=1, 1.5 and

2.0). It is clear from the figure that the frequency ratios increase with the amplitude ratios for

a particular aspect ratio and also increases with the increase in aspect ratio for a specific

amplitude. In addition to that the nondimensional linear frequency values are also increasing

as aspect ratio increases.

The vibration behaviour is well dependent on the support condition and it is well known that

as the number of constraint increases the frequency value increases. It is because of the fact

that the increase in constraint increases the stiffness of the structure. Table 3 presents the

nondimensional fundamental frequency and the frequency ratios for three different support

conditions (SSSS, SCSC and CCCC). The responses are within the expected line except few

points. This deviation is due to the softening type of behaviour of shell panel.

In this example the effect of thickness ratio on frequency ratio of orthotropic four layer

symmetric cross ply square shell panels are computed using the developed model and presented

in Table 4. It is noticed that the frequency ratio decreases with the increase in thickness ratio

for a specific amplitude ratio. It is also important to mention that, the hyperboloid panel shows

a deviation at lower amplitude ratio and it is because of the fact that the small strain and large

deformation cases the responses may not increase and/or decrease monotonically.

The orthotropic laminate material property greatly depends on the lamination scheme and

subsequently their stiffness changes which in turn affects their whole performance. In this

present numerical experimentation, effect of lamination scheme and number of layers for four

different types of shell panel have been analysed and presented in Table 5. It is observed that

14
the frequency ratio increases as the maximum deflection increases but the linear values

decreases with the increase in number of layers due to the change in stiffness property of the

laminate as discussed earlier.

5. Conclusion

Nonlinear free vibration behaviour of doubly curved laminated composite shell panels (i.e.

cylindrical/spherical/paraboloid/ellipsoid) is analysed by developing a general mathematical

model in the framework of the HSDT by taking the Green-Lagrange type geometric

nonlinearity. All the nonlinear higher order terms are taken in the mathematical model to count

the flexure of the structure correctly when exposed to large deformation and/or rotation. The

governing differential equation of the panel model has been obtained through Hamiltons

principle and discretised using nonlinear finite element steps. A homemade computer code is

developed in MATLAB based on the mathematical model and solved using direct iterative

method. Finally, some sets of numerical examples have been solved for different geometrical

parameters and there effects on the nondimensional fundamental frequency and the frequency

ratios of laminated doubly curved panel have been discussed in detail. Few important

observations are discussed in the following line after examining the developed model for

different parameters.

(a) Frequency ratios become more prominent as vibration amplitude increases.

(b) Among all shell panels elliptical has the largest value of linear fundamental frequency

in all cases.

(c) The curvature ratio, thickness ratio, aspect ratio, amplitude ratio, lamination scheme

and different support conditions have significant effect on the nonlinear responses of shell

panels in terms of frequency ratio.

15
Acknowledgement- This work is under the project sanctioned by the department of science

and technology (DST) through grant SERB/F/1765/2013-2014 Dated: 21/06/2013. Authors are

thankful to DST, Govt. of India for their consistent support.

Appendix. A

Various matrices and nonlinear coupled terms presented in the main text are as follows:

u0 w0 u w v w v w w u w v
u, x , u, y 0 0 , v, x 0 0 , v, y 0 0 , w, x 0 0 , w, y 0 0 ,
x Rx y Rxy x Rxy y Ry x Rx y Ry

x
x, x , x ,y x , y, x y , y,y y , x, x x , x,y x , y, x y , y,y y ,
x y x y x y x y

x
x, x , x ,y x , y, x y , y,y y ,
x y x y

Values of individual terms in matrix A3827

[A] 1_1=*u,x , [A] 1_3= *v,x , [A] 1_5=*w, x [A] 2_2=*u, y [A] 2_4=*v, y [A] 2_6=*w,y

[A] 3_21=*x; [A] 3_22=*y ; [A] 3_23=*z ; [A] 4_2= x ; [A] 4_4= y; [A] 4_6= z ; [A] 5_1=

x [A] 5_3= y; [A] 5_5=z; [A] 6_1= u,y; [A] 6_3= v,y; [A] 6_5= w,y;[A] 7_1= x x;[A] 7_3= y,x; [A]

7_5= z,x; [A] 7_21= w,x /Rx; [A] 7_23=u, x/Rx +v, x /Rxy; [A] 8_2= x,y; [A] 8_4= y,y; [A] 8_6= z,y; [A]

8_22= -1/Ry*w, y; [A] 8_23 = u, y /Rxy +v, y /Ry; [A] 9_24= 2x; [A] 9_25= 2y; [A] 10_2= 2x; [A] 10_4=

2y; [A] 10_8= x; [A] 10_10= y; [A] 10_12= z; [A] 10_23= x/Rxy; [A] 11_1= 2x;[A] 11_3= 2y;

[A] 11_7= x; [A] 11_9= y; [A] 11_11= z; [A] 11_23= y/Rxy; [A] 12_1= z/Rxy; [A] 12_2= z /Rx; [A]

12_3= z /Ry; [A] 12_4= z /Rxy; [A] 12_5= -y /Ry; [A] 12_6= -x /Rx ; [A] 12_7= u,y; [A] 12_8= u,x;

[A] 12_9= v,y; [A] 12_10= v,x; [A] 12_11=w,y; [A] 12_12= w,x; [A] 13_1=x,x /2; [A] 13_3= y,x /2; [A]

13_5= -x /2Rx; [A] 13_7= x, x; [A] 13_9= y,x; [A] 13_11= z,x; [A] 13_21=x/Rx2; [A] 14_2= x,y;

[A] 14_4= y,y; [A] 14_6= - y /Ry; [A] 14_8=1/2 (x, y+ z /Rxy); [A] 14_10= 1/2 (y, y+ z /Ry); [A]

14_12= 1/2 (z, y - y /Ry); [A] 14_22=y/ 2Ry2); [A] 14_23= z/2(Ry2+ Rxy2); [A] 15_24= 2x; [A] 15_25=

2y; [A] 15_26= 3x; [A] 15_27= 3y; [A] 16_8= 2x; [A] 16_10= 2y; [A] 16_14= x; [A] 16_16= y;

16
[A] 16_23= y /Ry; [A] 16_24= 2z/Rxy; [A] 16_26= 3u,y; [A] 16_27= 3 v,y; [A] 17_1= 3x; [A] 17_3= 3y;

[A] 17_7= 2x; [A] 17_9= 2y; [A] 17_21= x,x; [A] 17_22= y,x; [A] 17_23= -x/Rx; [A] 17_24= 2z /Rx

; [A] 17_25= 2z/Rxy; [A] 18_1= x,y; [A] 18_2= x,x; [A] 18_3= y,y ; [A] 18_4= y, x ; [A] 18_5= - y/Ry

; [A] 18_6= - x/Rx ; [A] 18_7=( x,y +z /Rxy) [A] 18_8= z /Rx ; [A] 18_9= z /Ry ; [A] 18_10= (y, x

+z /Rxy); [A] 18_11= (z , y y/Ry) ; [A] 18_21= (y/ Rx* Ry - z , y/ Rx) ; [A] 18_23= z /Rxy ( 1/Rx

+1/Ry) ; [A] 19_1= x,x ; [A] 19_3= y,x ; [A] 19_5= -x/Rx; [A] 19_7= x,x ; [A] 19_9= y, x ; [A] 19_11=

- x/Rx ; [A] 19_21= x/Rx2 ; [A] 19_23= ( x,x /Rx +y ,x /Rxy); [A] 20_2= x,y ; [A] 20_4= y,y ; [A] 20_6=

-2y/ Ry; [A] 20_12= - y/Ry ; [A] 20_14= =( x,y +z /Rxy); [A] 20_16==( y,y +z /Ry) ; [A] 20_25= y

/Ry2 ;[A] 21_26= 6 x; [A] 21_27= 6y; [A] 22_8=3x ;[A] 22_10=3y ;[A] 22_14=2 x;[A] 22_16=2 y;[A]

22_18= x; [A] 22_20= y;[A] 22_23= -y/ Ry; [A] 22_26=3z /Rxy; [A] 22_27=3z /Ry;[A] 23_13=2 x ;[A]

23_15=2 y;[A] 23_17=3x; [A] 23_19=3y ; [A] 23_21= x,x ;[A] 23_22= y,x ;[A] 23_23=-x/Rx ;[A]

23_26=3z /Rx ; [A] 23_27=3z /Rxy;[A] 24_1 = x,y ; [A] 24_2 = x,x ;[A] 24_3 = y,y ;[A] 24_4 = y,x ;[A]

24_5 = - y/ Ry; [A] 24_6 = -x/ Rx; [A] 24_7 = x,y ; [A] 24_8= x,x ; [A] 24_9 = y,y; [A] 24_10 = y, x ;

[A] 24_11 = - y/Ry; [A] 24_12 = - x/Rx ;[A] 24_13 =z /Rxy;[A] 24_14 =z /Rx; [A] 24_15 =z /Ry; [A] 24_16

=z /Rxy;[A] 24_21 = y/Rx* Ry; [A] 24_22 = x/ Rx*Ry;[A] 25_7 = x,x ; [A] 25_9 = y,x ; [A] 25_11 = -

x/ Rx; [A]25_13 =1/2*x,x; [A] 25_15 =1/2*y,x;[A]25_17 =z/Rx;[A] 25_19 = z/Rxy ;[A]25_24=x/2Rx2

;[A] 25_26 = x /Rx2 ;[A] 26_8 =x,x ;[A] 26_10 = y,y ;[A] 26_12 = - y/ Ry ;[A] 26_14 = 1/2* x,y ;[A] 26_16

=1/2* y,y ;[A] 26_17 = z /Rxy ; [A] 26_20 = z /Ry; [A] 26_25 = y/2Ry2;[A] 26_27 = y /Ry2 ;[A] 27_26 =

9x/2; [A] 27_27 =9y /2[A] 28_14 =3x;[A] 28_16 =3y;[A] 28_18 =2 x; [A] 28_20 =2y;[A] 29_13

=3x;[A] 29_15 =3y; [A] 29_17 =2 x;[A] 29_19=2y;[A] 30_7= x,y ;[A] 30_8= x,x ;[A] 30_9= y,y ;[A]

30_10= y,x;[A] 30_11= - y/ Ry ;[A] 30_12= -x/ Rx;[A] 30_14= x, x ;[A] 30_15= y, y;[A] 30_17= z /Rxy

;[A] 30_18= z/Rx; [A] 30_19= z /Ry;[A] 30_20= z /Rxy;[A] 30_26= y /Rx* Ry; [A] 30_27= x /Rx* Ry;

[A] 31_13= x,x ;[A] 31_15= y,x ; [A] 31_24= x/Rx2;[A]32_14= x, y ;[A] 32_16= y,y ;[A] 32_25= y/ Ry2;

[A] 33_18=3x;[A] 33_20 =3y;[A] 34_17=3x; [A] 34_19=3y; [A] 35_13= x, y ; [A] 35_14= x,x ;[A]

35_15= y,y ;[A] 35_16= y,x; [A] 35_26= - y/Rx* Ry; ;[A] 35_27= - x/Rx* Ry; [A] 36_17= x,x/2;[A] 36_18=

17
y,x/2;[A] 36_26= x/ Rx2 ; [A] 37_18= x, y/2;[A] 37_20= y, y/2;[A] 37_27= y/2Ry2; [A] 38_17= x, y;[A]

38_20= y,x;[A] 38_26= y/Rx* Ry; and rest [A]i_j is zero.

Values of individual terms in matrix [G] 27x10

=
[G]1_1= , [G]1_3= 1 = 1 = = 1
x Rx , [G]2_1 y , [G]2_3 Rxy ,[G]3_2 x , [G]3_3 Rxy ,

[G]4_2= ,[G]5_1= 1 = =
, [G]4_3= 1
Rx , [G]5_3 x [G]6_2 Ry , [G]6_3 y , [G]7_4
, = 1 =
y Ry

, [G]8_4= , [G]9_5= , [G]10_5= , [G]11_6= , [G]12_6= , [G]13_7= ,

x y x y x y x

[G]14_7= ,
[G]15_8= , [G]16_8= , [G]17_9= , [G]18_9= , [G]19_10= ,
y x y x y x

[G]20_10= ,
[G]21_4=1, [G]22_5=1, [G]23_6=1,, [G]24_7=1, [G]25_8=1, [G]26_9=1, [G]27_10 =1;
y

Nomenclature

(X,Y,Z) Cartesian coordinate axes

(u,v,w) displacements along X,Y and Z directions

(u0,v0,w0) the displacements of a point on the mid-plane of the panel along X,Y and Z

direction

Rx, Ry principal radii of curvature of shell panel along the corresponding material line

a, b, h Length , breadth and thickness of panel

x , y the rotations with respect to y and x direction respectively

z , x, y , x , y higher order terms of Taylor series expansion

{L}, {NL} linear and nonlinear strain vector

{} displacement vector

E Youngs modulus

G shear modulus

18
 Poissons ratio

[K]L,[KN1],[KN2] linear and nonlinear stiffness matrices

[T] , [ f ] function of thickness coordinate

U Total Strain energy

V Total Kinetic energy

Wmax maximum central deflection of the shell panel

Wmax/h amplitude ratio

L and NL Linear and nonlinear frequency

NL/L frequency ratio, nonlinear frequency to linear frequency

Reference

[1] Shin DK. Large amplitude free vibration behavior of doubly curved shallow open

shells with simply-supported edges. Comput Struct.1997; 62(1):35-49.

[2] Kant T, Swaminathan K. Analytical solutions for free vibration of laminated composite and

Sandwitch plates based on a higher-order-refined theory. Compos Struct. 2001; 53:73-85.

[3] Reddy JN. A simple higher order theory for laminated composite plates. ASME J Appl

Mech. 1984; 51:745-52.

[4] Nanda N, Bandyopadhyay JN. Nonlinear free vibration analysis of laminate composite cylindrical

shells with cutouts. J. Reinf. Plast. Compos. 2007; 26(14):1413-1427.

[5] Chakravorty D, Bandyopadhyay JN, Sinha PK. Finite element free vibration analysis of

doubly curved laminated composite shells. Journal of Sound and Vibration.1996;

191(4):491-504.

[6] Reddy JN, Liu CF. A higher-order shear deformation theory of laminated elastic shells. Int.

J Engg. Sci. 1985; 23(3):319-330.

[7] Pradyumna S, Bandyopadhyay JN. Static and free vibration analyses of laminated shells

using a higher order theory. J. Reinf. Plast. Compos. 2008; 27: 167-186.

19
[8] Naidu NVS, Sinha PK. Nonlinear finite element analysis of laminated composite shells in

hygrothermal environments. Compos Struct. 2005; 69: 387395.

[9] El-Zaouk BR, Dym CL. Non-linear vibrations of orthotropic doubly-curved shallow shells.

Journal of Sound and Vibration. 1973; 31(1): 89-103.

[10] Tornabene F. Free vibrations of laminated composite doubly-curved shells and panels of

revolution via the GDQ method. Comput. Methods Appl. Mech. Engrg. 2011; 200:931-

952.

[11] Alijani F, Amabili M. Non-linear vibrations of shells: A literature review from 2003 to

2013. International Journal of Non-Linear Mechanics.2014; 58: 233257.

[12] Varadan TK, Ganapathi M. Nonlinear free flexural vibrations of laminated circular

cylindrical shells. Compos Struct.1995; 30: 33-49.

[13] Amabili M. Nonlinear vibrations of laminated circular cylindrical shells: Comparison

of different shell theories. Compos Struct. 2011; 94: 207220.

[14] Nayak AK, Moy SSJ, Shenoi RA. Free vibration analysis of composite sandwich plates

based on Reddys higher-order theory. Composites: Part B. 2002; 33: 505519.

[15] Sathyamoorthy M. Nonlinear vibrations of moderately thick orthotropic shallow spherical

shells. Comput Struct.1995; 57: 59-65.

[16] Reddy JN. A refined nonlinear theory of plates with transverse shear deformation. Int. J.

Solids structures.1984; 20(9/10):881-896.

[17] Lee YS, Kim YW. Analysis of nonlinear vibration of hybrid composite plates. Comput

Struct.1996; 61(3): 573-578.

[18] Ngo-Cong D, Mai-Duy N, Karunasena W, Tran-Cong T. Free vibration analysis of

laminated composite plates based on FSDT using one-dimensional IRBFN method.

Comput Struct. 2011; 89: 113.

20
[19] Tornabene F, Viola E, Fantuzzi N. General higher-order equivalent single layer theory for

free vibrations of doubly-curved laminated composite shells and panels. Compos

Struct.2013; 104: 94117.

[20] Huang XL, Zheng JJ. Nonlinear vibration and dynamic response of simply supported

shear deformable laminated plates on elastic foundations. Engg. Struct..2003; 25: 1107

1119.

[21] Panda SK, Singh BN. Nonlinear free vibration of spherical shell panel using higher order

shear deformation theory A finite element approach. Int. J. of Press. Vesl. and Pip. 2009;

86: 373383.

[22] Dash P, Singh BN. Nonlinear free vibration of piezoelectric laminated composite plate.

Finite Elements in Analysis and Design. 2009; 45: 686 -694.

[23] Chien RD, Chen CS. Nonlinear vibration of laminated plates on an elastic foundation.

Thin-Walled Structures. 2006; 44: 852860.

[24] Reddy JN. Mechanics of laminated composite plates and shells. 2nd ed. CRC Press; 2004.

[25] Cook RD, Malkus DS, Plesha ME, Witt RJ. Concepts and applications of finite element

analysis. 4th ed. Wiley; 2009.

Figure Legend:

Fig. 1. Geometry and pictorial presentation of hyperboloid and ellipsoid composite shell

panels.

Fig. 2. Steps of solution method.

Fig. 3. Convergence study of linear fundamental frequency for a cross ply square laminate

having SSSS and CCCC boundary conditions with different stacking sequences.

21
Fig. 4. Convergence study for frequency ratio of square laminated composite spherical [0] s

shell panel.

Fig. 5. Frequency ratios of 4-layer symmetric cross ply [00/900]s thin shallow shell panels for

different curvature ratios (R/a).

Fig. 6. Effect of aspect ratio (a/b) on frequency ratio of 4-layer symmetric cross ply [00/900]s

thin shallow shell panels.

Table Legend:

Table 1. Comparison of nondimensional linear fundamental frequencies

L b 2 / E2 h 2 2 for a simply supported antisymmetric cross ply square

1

laminated plate.

Table 2. Comparison of frequency ratios NL / L of square angle ply [45]S spherical

(R1=R2=R) and cylindrical shell (R1=R and R2= ) panels for SSSS boundary

condition.

Table 3. Frequency ratios of 4-layer symmetric cross ply [00/900]s thin square shallow

shell panels for different support conditions.

Table 4. Effect of thickness ratio (a/h) on frequency ratios of simply supported 4-layer

symmetric cross ply [00/900]s square shell panels.

Table 5. Frequency ratios of thin square shallow shell panels for different lamination

scheme.

X, 1
b
22
 X, 1

Rxx a (b) Ellipsoid

Z, 3

Y, 2

Ryy
b

Fig. 1. Geometry and pictorial presentation of hyperboloid and ellipsoid composite shell panels.

23
 Start

Evaluation of elemental stiffness and mass matrices using the FEM

steps

Global stiffness and mass matrix evaluation using the assembly step

Linear eigenvalue problem has been solved

Extraction of eigenvector using general eigenvector

extraction algorithm.

The eigenvector is normalized and scaled up using the

amplitude ratio to obtain the modified nonlinear matrices

The nonlinear frequency parameter is obtained through direct

iterative method by setting convergence criteria

Repeat
No
previous () ith -( )(i+1)th <=0.001
steps

Yes
Nonlinear fundamental
frequency/ frequency
ratio

End

Fig. 2. Steps of solution method

24
 40

35 0 0 0 0
[0 /90 ] SSSS [0 /90 ]2SSSS

Nondimensional fundamental frequency(L)

s
0 0 0 0 0
30 [0 /90 /0 ]SSSS [0 /90 ]SSSS
0 0 0 0 0
[0 /90 ]sCCCC [0 /90 /0 ]CCCC
25
0 0 0 0
[0 /90 ]2SCSC [0 /90 ]sSCSC

20

15

10

2x2 3x3 4x4 5x5 6x6 7x7

Mesh Divison

Fig. 3. Convergence study of nondimensional frequency for a cross ply square laminate having SSSS and CCCC
boundary conditions with different stacking sequences.

1.3

Wmax/h =0.2
Wmax/h = 0.4
1.2
Frequency Ratio(NL/L)

Wmax/h =0.6
Wmax/h =0.8

1.1

1.0

0.9
2x2 3x3 4x4 5x5 6x6 7x7

Mesh Size

Fig. 4. Convergence study for frequency ratio of square laminated composite spherical
[0]s shell panel for a/b=1, a/h=10, R/h=100

25
 Cylindrical Spherical
1.11 R/a=5,L=52.68 R/a=5,L=58.08
R/a=20,L=50.99 R/a=20,L=51.36
Frequency Ratio(NL/L)

R/a=100,L=50.88 R/a=100,L=50.89
1.08 Ellipsoid
Hyperboloid R/a=5,L=65.77
R/a=5,L=51.88
R/a=20,L=51.95
R/a=20,L=50.94
1.05 R/a=100,L=50.92
R/a=100,L=50.88

1.02

0.99
0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0

Amplitude ratio (Wmax/h)

Fig. 5. Frequency ratios of 4-layer symmetric cross ply [00/900]s thin shallow shell panels for different curvature
ratios (a/b=1, a/h=100).

1.15 Cylindrical Spherical Hyperboloid

a/b=1,L a/b=1,L a/b=1,L
a/b=1.5,L a/b=1.5,L a/b=1.5,L
Frequency Ratio(NL/L)

a/b=2.0,L a/b=2.0,L a/b=2.0,L

1.10
Ellipsoid
a/b=1,L
a/b=1.5,L
a/b=2.0,L
1.05

1.00

0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8

Amplitude ratio (Wmax/h)

Fig. 6. Effect of aspect ratio (a/b) on frequency ratio of 4-layer symmetric cross ply [00/900]s thin shallow
shell panels in the function of amplitude ratio (Wmax/h) for R/a=5, a/h=100.

26

1
Table 1. Comparison of non-dimensional fundamental frequencies L b 2 / E2 h 2 2
for a simply
supported antisymmetric cross ply square laminated plate with a/h=5.

Orthotropicity Kant and

Ratio Swaminathan [2] Reddy [3] Present
(E1/E2) [00/900]3 [00/900]5 [00/900]3 [00/900]5 [00/900]3 [00/900]5
10 8.3372 8.468 8.4041 8.5126 10.0666 10.0955
20 9.8012 10.0107 9.9175 10.0674 10.560 10.6229
30 10.6853 10.9945 10.8542 11.0197 10.9964 11.0904
40 11.2838 11.5789 11.5007 11.673 11.3914 11.5127

Table 2. Comparison of frequency ratios NL / L of square angle ply [45] S spherical (R1=R2=R) and
cylindrical shell (R1=R and R2= ) panels for SSSS boundary condition.

Shin[1] Present %Difference

Wmax/h Spherical Cylindrical Spherical Cylindrical Spherical Cylindrical
0.2 1.026 1.028 1.054 1.035 2.658 0.676
0.4 1.089 1.096 1.126 1.093 3.303 -0.210
0.6 1.194 1.202 1.217 1.170 1.890 -2.726
0.8 1.328 1.337 1.313 1.270 -1.127 -5.293
1.0 1.481 1.490 1.4147 1.374 -4.701 -8.473
-0.2 1.024 - 0.970 - -5.503 -
-0.4 1.076 - 0.969 - -11.087 -
-0.6 1.160 - 0.994 - -16.724 -
-0.8 1.270 - 1.036 - -22.613 -
-1.0 1.401 - 1.103 - -26.995 -

27
Table 3. Frequency ratios of 4-layer symmetric cross ply [00/900] s thin square shallow shell panels for different
support conditions (R/a=5, a/h=100).

Shell Support Wmax/h Nondimensional

geometry conditions 0.2 0.4 0.8 1 fundamental
frequency (L)
SSSS 1.0046 1.0118 1.0343 1.049 52.6837
cylindrical SCSC 1.0239 1.0486 1.0033 0.991 94.9837
CCCC 1.0243 1.0501 1.0042 0.989 95.1707
SSSS 1.0064 1.0148 1.0381 1.0527 58.0867
spherical SCSC 1.0234 1.0478 1.0993 1.014 96.5136
CCCC 1.0267 1.0539 1.012 1.005 125.0837
SSSS 0.9981 0.999 1.0088 1.0175 51.889
Hyperboloid SCSC 1.0209 1.0429 1.0906 1.0338 97.6214
CCCC 1.0013 1.0081 1.0148 1.0363 134.1526
SSSS 1.0069 1.0154 1.0367 1.0506 65.7758
Ellipsoid SCSC 1.0221 1.0447 1.093 1.1183 99.7266
CCCC 0.9994 0.9984 0.9966 0.996358 135.4464

Table 4. Effect of thickness ratio (a/h) on frequency ratios of simply supported 4-layer symmetric cross ply
[00/900]s square shell panels for different thickness ratios (a/b=1, R/a=5).

Shell Thickness Wmax/h Nondimensional

Geometry Ratio (a/h) 0.2 0.4 0.8 fundamental
frequency (L)
10 1.1371 1.4168 1.8669 5.6122
Cylindrical 50 1.0118 1.034 1.1058 26.3948
100 1.0046 1.0118 1.0342 52.6814
10 1.1373 1.3917 1.5701 6.1207
Spherical 50 1.0148 1.038 1.1066 29.0922
100 1.008 1.0161 1.036 58.0867
10 1.0833 1.3297 2.0177 5.5241
Hyperboloid 50 0.999 1.0084 1.0557 25.9972
100 0.9981 0.999 1.0085 51.889
10 1.1264 1.3492 1.5208 6.8447
Ellipsoid 50 1.0151 1.0372 1.0966 32.9294
100 1.0069 1.0154 1.0367 65.7758

28
Table 5. Frequency ratios of thin square shallow shell panels for different lamination scheme (R/a=5, a/h=100).

Nondimensional
Shell Lamination Wmax/h fundamental
geometry scheme 0.2 0.4 0.8 1 frequency (L)
00/900/00 1.0046 1.012 1.0345 1.0494 52.7294
Cylindrical 00/900/00/900 1.0045 1.0119 1.0342 1.0488 52.687
00/900/00 1.0064 1.0151 1.0387 1.0534 58.2349
Spherical 00/900/00/900 1.0066 1.015 1.0382 1.0532 58.1133
00/900/00 0.9981 0.9989 1.0086 1.0172 51.9161
Hyperboloid 0 /900/00/900
0
0.9982 0.999 1.0089 1.0168 51.8858
00/900/00 1.0069 1.0152 1.0376 1.0509 66.0545
Ellipsoid 00/900/00/900 1.0071 1.0157 1.0376 1.05 65.8327

29