AN APPROXIMATE APPROACH TO NONLINEAR THERMAL BENDING OF SHALLOW SANDWICH SHELLS AND FLAT PLATES

By extending the well-known Berger approach for single-layer isotropic elastic plates, an approximate method of analysis for the nonlinear bending of shallow sandwich shells is proposed. Governing field equations are derived for shallow sandwich shells subjected to mechanical as well as thermal effects. Numerical calculations are carried out for large deflections of shells and flat plates due to a temperature difference between the upper and lower faces, and the applicability of the approximate field equations is discussed.