Nonlinear vibrations of functionally graded cylindrical shells

In this paper, the nonlinear vibrations of functionally graded (FGM) circular cylindrical shells are analysed. The Sanders–Koiter theory is applied to model the nonlinear dynamics of the system in the case of finite amplitude of vibration. The shell deformation is described in terms of longitudinal, circumferential and radial displacement fields. Simply supported, clamped and free boundary conditions are considered. The displacement fields are expanded by means of a double mixed series based on Chebyshev orthogonal polynomials for the longitudinal variable and harmonic functions for the circumferential variable. Both driven and companion modes are considered; this allows the travelling-wave response of the shell to be modelled. The model is validated in the linear field by means of data retrieved from the pertinent literature. Numerical analyses are carried out in order to characterise the nonlinear response when the shell is subjected to a harmonic external load; a convergence analysis is carried out by considering a variety of axisymmetric and asymmetric modes. The present study is focused on determining the nonlinear character of the shell dynamics as the geometry (thickness, radius, length) and material properties (constituent volume fractions and configurations of the constituent materials) vary.

► Nonlinear vibrations of FGM circular cylindrical shells are analysed.
► The shell is excited by an external modally distributed radial load.
► Different geometries, material distributions and boundary conditions are considered.
► A low-order nonlinear expansion gives wrong softening results (the actual behaviour is hardening).
► A circumferential travelling wave occurs close to the (1, 6) resonance.