Shell elements with through-the-thickness variable kinematics for the analysis of laminated composite and sandwich structures

Several efforts have been made in the last years to improve the efficiency and the effectiveness of structural models for the analysis of laminated shell structures. Among the others, many recent and past works in the literature have been aimed at formulating theories of structures that maximize the accuracy of analysis meanwhile reducing the computational costs. In this paper, this objective is pursued by implementing advanced shell theories with through-the-thickness variable kinematic capabilities. By employing the Carrera Unified Formulation (CUF), the proposed shell model is obtained by expressing the displacement field as an arbitrary and, eventually, hierarchical expansion of the primary unknowns along the thickness. Thus, Equivalent-Single-Layer (ESL), Layer-Wise (LW) models as well as variable kinematic models which combine ESL and LW approaches within the shell thickness can be obtained in a straightforward and unified manner. After the unified shell model is formulated, the governing equations and the related finite element arrays are obtained by employing the principle of virtual work. A nine node finite element is implemented to approximate the solution field, and the Mixed Interpolation of Tensorial Components (MITC) method is used to contrast the membrane and shear locking phenomena. Some numerical examples are discussed, including three- and ten-layered cross-ply shells under bi-sinusoidal load and simply-supported boundary conditions, a multilayered spherical panel subjected to bi-sinusoidal load and a sandwich cylinder undergoing bi-sinusoidal pressure. Moreover, various thickness and radius-to-thickness ratios are considered. Whenever possible, the results are compared with those from the literature and from exact elasticity solutions. The analysis of the results clearly shows the enhanced capabilities of the present variable-kinematic shell element, which allows the analyst to opportunely reduce the computational costs and enhance the accuracy of the model only in those regions of the thickness domain where an accurate evaluation of the stress/strain field is needed.