A vibration analysis of stiffened plates under heavy fluid loading by an energy finite element analysis formulation

An energy finite element analysis (EFEA) formulation for high frequency vibration analysis of stiffened plates under heavy fluid loading is presented. The added mass effect and the radiation damping effect due to the fluid loading are incorporated in the derivation of the EFEA governing differential equations. In addition, the fluid loading effect and the presence of a stiffener are accounted when computing the power transfer coefficients through plate/stiffener junctions. The effect of the fluid on power transfer coefficients of a plate/stiffener junction is analyzed and discussed. The new formulation is validated by comparing EFEA results to solutions by very dense finite element models for several plate/stiffener assemblies, which include two coplanar plates connected by a stiffener, two plates connected at a 45° angle by a stiffener, and a section of a typical naval structure. All plates are considered in contact with dense fluid from one side. The energy ratios between the receiving sections of the plates and the excited sections of the plates are computed and good correlations are observed between the EFEA and the very dense FEA results.