NONLINEAR ANALYSIS OF ORTHOTROPIC PLATES

The large deflection of a rectangular orthotropic plate subjected to the combined action of edge compression and transverse load is investigated on the basis of von Karman-type large-deflection equations. The edges of the plate are assumed to be either all clamped or all simply supported. A solution is obtained in the form of double Fourier series consisting of beam eigenfunctions for both transverse deflection and force function. The postbuckling of the plate is treated as a special case. Taking the first nine terms in each truncated series, numerical results in load-deflection relations and bending moments are graphically presented for three types of fiber-reinforced composite plates with various apsect ratios. The three types of transverse load considered in the combined loading are central patch load, eccentric patch load and hydrostatic pressure. The present results for postbuckling and large deflection of isotropic and orthotropic plates are in good agreement with available data.