An electromechanically coupled intrinsic, mixed variational formulation for geometrically nonlinear smart composite beam

The work presented in this article is the outcome of a combined strategy of a mathematical tool for 2D cross-sectional analysis, i.e., Variational Asymptotic Method (VAM) as well as the 1D exact beam analyzer, i.e., the intrinsic mixed variational formulation for modeling and analysis of Piezoelectric-laminated composite beams. This work talks about a novel approach of mixed variational formulation to analyze a two-way electromechanically coupled piezoelectric composite beam. In a classical intrinsic mixed variational approach for a passive structure, the 1D exact beam model deals only with mechanical degrees of freedom. In the present case, an extra 1D electrical degree of freedom has been incorporated. A computational code is developed based on the present theory to solve the two-way coupled electromechanical beam problem. In the present case, we have validated the static results for sensor application. Both linear and nonlinear results have been discussed. Results obtained are very promising and are helpful in building a platform where design, optimization and nonlinear analysis of composite 'smart' beams in a multibody framework can be done faster while maintaining acceptable accuracy.