Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

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Applied Mathematical Modelling

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/apm

Static response and free vibration analysis of FGM plates using higher
order shear deformation theory
Mohammad Talha, B.N. Singh *
Department of Aerospace Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur 721 302, India

a r t i c l e

i n f o

Article history:
Received 14 July 2009
Received in revised form 24 February 2010
Accepted 30 March 2010
Available online 18 April 2010
Keywords:
Functionally graded material
Higher order shear deformation theory
Finite element method
Independent eld variables

a b s t r a c t
Free vibration and static analysis of functionally graded material (FGM) plates are studied
using higher order shear deformation theory with a special modication in the transverse
displacement in conjunction with nite element models. The mechanical properties of the
plate are assumed to vary continuously in the thickness direction by a simple power-law
distribution in terms of the volume fractions of the constituents. The fundamental equations for FGM plates are derived using variational approach by considering traction free
boundary conditions on the top and bottom faces of the plate. Results have been obtained
by employing a continuous isoparametric Lagrangian nite element with 13 degrees of
freedom per node. Convergence tests and comparison studies have been carried out to
demonstrate the efciency of the present model. Numerical results for different thickness
ratios, aspect ratios and volume fraction index with different boundary conditions have
been presented. It is observed that the natural frequency parameter increases for plate
aspect ratio, lower volume fraction index n and smaller thickness ratios. It is also observed
that the effect of thickness ratio on the frequency of a plate is independent of the volume
fraction index. For a given thickness ratio non-dimensional deection increases as the volume fraction index increases. It is concluded that the gradient in the material properties
plays a vital role in determining the response of the FGM plates.
2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
Composite materials have been successfully used in aircraft and other engineering applications for many years because of
their excellent strength to weight and stiffness to weight ratios. Recently, advanced composite materials known as functionally graded material have attracted much attention in many engineering applications due to their advantages of being able to
resist high temperature gradient while maintaining structural integrity [1]. The functionally graded materials (FGMs) are
microscopically inhomogeneous, in which the mechanical properties vary smoothly and continuously from one surface to
the other. They are usually made from a mixture of ceramics and metals to attain the signicant requirement of material
properties.
Due to the increased relevance of the FGMs structural components in the design of aerospace structures, their static and
vibration characteristics have attracted the attention of many scientists in recent years. It is observed from the literature that
the amount of such work carried out for isotropic plates are considerable, and limited literature is available on composite
plates. However, the literature on the analysis of the FGMs plate is very few. Reddy [2] presented theoretical formulation
and nite element models based on third order shear deformation theory for static and dynamic analysis of the FGM plates.

* Corresponding author. Tel.: +91 3222 283026; fax: +91 3222 255303.
E-mail address: bnsingh@aero.iitkgp.ernet.in (B.N. Singh).
0307-904X/$ - see front matter 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.apm.2010.03.034

3992

M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

He obtained Navier solutions for a simply supported square plate under sinusoidally distributed load including the effect of
shear deformation.
Vel and Batra [3] presented a three-dimensional analytical solution for free and forced vibrations of simply supported
FGM rectangular plates. Roque et al. [4] performed the free vibration analysis of the FGM plates by using the multiquadric
radial basis function method, i.e., meshless method and a higher order shear deformation theory (HSDT). Efraim and Eisenberger [5] derived the equations of motion for annular plates using the rst-order shear deformation theory (FSDT) which
includes the effect of shear deformations to solve vibration frequencies and modes for various combinations of boundary
conditions.
Abrate [6] analyzed the problems of free vibrations, buckling, and static deections of the FGM plates. The analysis of
these problems is made using the classical laminated plate model, the FSDT model, and the HSDT model. Batra and Jin [7]
used the rst-order shear deformation theory coupled with the nite element method to study the free vibrations of rectangular anisotropic FGM plate. Malekzadeh [8] presented the free vibration analysis of thick FGM plates supported on twoparameter elastic foundation.
Fazelzadeh et al. [9] investigated the applicability of differential quadrature method for vibration analysis of aero-thermoelastic thin-walled blades made of FGM materials. First-order shear deformation theory is used to solve the governing
equations of beams which include the effects of the rotary inertias and the blade presetting angle. Navazi and Haddadpour
[10] analytically investigated the aero-thermoelastic stability margins of FGM panels in thermal environment. They employed piston theory of aerodynamics to model quasi-steady aerodynamic loading.
Ng et al. [11] presented the parametric resonance of FGM rectangular plates under harmonic in-plane loading. The problem is formulated using Hamiltons principle and the material properties are graded according to a simple power-law distribution in the thickness direction only. It is concluded that the origin of the instability regions can be easily controlled by
correctly varying the power-law exponent. Reddy and Cheng [12] studied the harmonic vibration problem of FGM plates
by means of a three-dimensional asymptotic approach, and the formulation is based in terms of transfer matrix. Nguyen
et al. [13] have proposed the FSDT model in which transverse shear factors is obtained through these plate models by using
energy equivalence methods.
Park [14] derived the frequency equation for the in-plane vibration of the clamped circular plate of uniform thickness
with an isotropic material in the elastic range. Zenkour [15] studied the static response of a simply supported functionally
graded rectangular plate subjected to a transverse uniform load using the generalized shear deformation theory.
Uymaz and Aydogdu [16] presented three-dimensional vibration solutions for rectangular FGM plates with different
boundary conditions based on the small strain linear elasticity theory. Chebyshev polynomials based on Ritz energy approach have been used in the analysis. Li et al. [17] studied free vibration of FGM sandwich rectangular plates with simply
supported and clamped edges, and the formulation is based on the three-dimensional elasticity theory. Ferreira et al. [18]
have used collocation multiquadric radial basis functions to analyse static deformations of simply supported functionally
graded plate modelled by a higher order shear deformation theory.
The determination of accurate behavior of the FGMs largely depends on the theory used to model the structure because in
the FGMs, material properties vary continuously as a function of position in the preferred direction. Various concepts have
been developed to inculcate the appropriate analysis of the FGM plates. The classical Kirchhoff plate theory neglects transverse shear deformation and gives acceptable results for relatively thin plates. In order to circumvent this problem an earlier
attempts were made by Reissner [19] and Mindlin [20]. However, a shear-correction factor must be incorporated to overcome the problem of a constant transverse shear stress distribution and its value depends on various parameters, such as
applied loads, boundary conditions and geometric parameters, etc. The inaccuracy occurs due to neglecting the effects of
transverse shear and normal strains in the plate [21]. Due to continuous variation in material properties, the rst-order shear
deformation theory and higher order shear deformation theory may be conveniently used in the analysis. It is noted that the
rst-order shear deformation theory proposed by Mindlin [20] does not satisfy the parabolic variation of transverse shear
strain in the thickness direction. Subsequently, many higher order theories were proposed, notable among them are [22
25]. The higher order theories assume the in-plane displacements as a cubic expression of the thickness coordinate and
the out-of-plane displacement to be constant. Thus, the development of higher order shear deformation theory to assimilate
the behaviour of FGM structures has been of high importance to the researchers.
Therefore, keeping this view point in mind the present study aims to develop a higher order shear deformation theory
with a special modication in the transverse displacement which contributes additional freedom to the displacements
through the thickness and fundamentally eradicates the over-correction. To implement this theory a suitable C0 continuous
isoparametric nite element with 13 degrees of freedom (DOFs) per node is proposed in order to reduce the computational
efforts required in the formation of element matrices without affecting the solution accuracy. It is assumed that the plate is
made of an isotropic material and its properties varying only through the thickness direction according to a simple powerlaw function of the position. Numerical results have been presented for ceramicmetal graded plates with different boundary and loading conditions. The convergence and comparison studies manifest the accuracy and precision of the present
proposed method. The effects of aspect and thickness ratios, volume fraction index, various boundary and loading conditions
on free vibration and static responses are investigated. Some results are presented in the form of tables and gures, which
can suit as a benchmark for the future research.
The paper is organised as follows. Section 2 gives the brief description of geometric conguration and material properties
of the plate. Theoretical formulations of the problem are given in Section 3. In Section 4 solution methodology is presented

M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

3993

followed by the convergence and validation studies in Section 5. Section 6 explains the results and discussion and Section 7
accomplishes the conclusions.
2. Geometric conguration and material properties
Here we consider an FGM plate of length a, width b and total thickness h made from a mixture of metal and ceramics, in
which the composition is varied from the top to the bottom surface as shown in Fig. 1. The top surface (Z = h/2) of the plate is
ceramic-rich, whereas the bottom surface (Z = h/2) is metal rich. All formulation are conned here with the assumption of a
linear elastic material behavior and small displacements and strains.
The elastic material properties vary through the plate thickness according to the volume fractions of the constituents.
Power-law distribution is commonly used to describe the variation of material properties (Fig. 2), which is expressed as

Pz Pc  Pm V c Pm ;

n
z 1

V c z
0 6 n 6 1;
h 2

1
2

where P denotes the effective material property, Pm and Pc represents the properties of the metal and ceramic, respectively,
Vc is the volume fraction of the ceramic and n is the volume fraction exponent. The effective material properties of the plate,
including Youngs modulus E, density q vary according to Eq. (1) and m is assumed to be constant.
3. Theoretical formulation
3.1. Displacement eld and strains
In the present study, system of governing equations for FGM plate is derived by using variational approach. The origin of
the material coordinates is at the middle of the plate as shown in Fig. 1. For accurate analysis of transverse shear effects in
the mathematical formulation the HSDT model has been used with a special modication in the transverse displacement.
 for the plate are assumed as,
; v
 and the transverse displacement w
The in-plane displacements u

x; y; z; t u0 x; y; t zwx x; y; t z2 nx x; y; t z3 qx x; y; t;
u

v x; y; z; t v 0 x; y; t zwy x; y; t z2 ny x; y; t z3 qy x; y; t;

 y; z; t w0 x; y; t zwz x; y; t z2 nz x; y; t;
wx;
; v
 denote the displacements of a point along the (x, y, z) coordinates. u0, v0, and w0 are corresponding dis and w
where u
placements of a point on the mid-plane. wx and wy are the rotations of normal to the mid-plane about the y-axis and x-axis,
respectively. The functions nx, ny, qx and qy are the higher order terms in the Taylor series expansion dened in the mid-plane
of the plate. The higher order terms are determined by vanishing the transverse shear stresses sxz = s4 and syz = s5 on the top
and bottom surfaces of the plate and by applying this boundary condition the displacement eld is modied as

 u0 f1 zwx f2 zax f3 zbx f4 zhx ;

u

v v 0 f1 zwy f2 zay f3 zby f4 zhy ;

 w0 f5 zwz f6 zaz ;
w

z
h 2
h 2
Fig. 1. Geometry and dimensions of the plate.

3994

M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

Fig. 2. Variation of the volume fractions Vc through the thickness.

where f1(z) = C1z  C2z3, f2(z) = C3z2, f3(z) = C4z3, f4(z) = C5z3, f5 = C1z, f6 = C1z2, C1 = 1, C2 = C4 = 4/3h2, C3 = 1/2, C5 = 1/3 and
nz = az.
To assure the eld variables are continuous within the element for C0 continuous nite element modelling, the out of
plane derivatives are replaced by incorporating the following relations in Eq. (4) as:

ax

owz
;
ox

bx

ow
;
ox

hx

onz
;
ox

ay

owz
;
oy

by

ow
;
oy

hy

onz
:
oy

However, the above substitution (Eq. (5)) imposes an articial constraints which are enforced variationally through a penalty approach [26] as:

owz
 ax 0;
ox

owz
 ay 0;
oy

ow
 bx 0;
ox

ow
 by 0;
oy

onz
on
 hx 0 z  hy 0:
ox
oy

From Eq. (4), the eld variables (basic unknowns) are interpreted as u, v, w, wx, wy, wz, ax, ay, az, bx, by, hx and hy for structural deformation. Mathematically, it can be represented as


T
fKg u; v ; w; wx ; wy ; wz ; ax ; ay ; az ; bx ; by ; hx ; hy ;

where {K} is named as displacement vector.

The linear strains corresponding to the displacement eld as given in Eq. (4) is expressed as
T
fg fxx ; yy ; zz ; cyz ; cxz ; cxy g ;

or, it may be written as

8 19
8 29
8 39
k1 >
>
>
k1 >
>
>
>
>
>
k1 >
>
>
>
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1>
>
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2>
3>
>
>
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>
k
k2 >
>
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2>
k
>
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2>
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> >
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>
1>
>
>
>
>
<0>
< k3 =
<0=
=
2
3

z
;
z
z
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
2
>
>
>
>
>
>
cyz >
k4 >
e04 >
>
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>
> k14 >
>
>
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>
0
>
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> >
> 2>
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0>
>
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1
c
e
>
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>
>
xz >
k
0
5>
>
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k
5
>
> >
>
> 5>
> >
>
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>
:c >
: 0>
:
>
>
; >
;
>
>
3;
:
:
;
;
2
e
1
xy
k
6
k
6
k6
6
8
9
exx >
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> eyy >
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
e
< zz >
=

where

8 9
>
e01 >
>
>
>
> >
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> e02 >
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> >
>
>
0>
>
< e3 >
=

M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

3995

ov 0
ow0
ow0
ou0 ov 0
; e03 wz ; e04 wy
; e05 wx
; e06

;
oy
oy
ox
oy
ox
owy
owy
ow
ow
ow
1
1
1
1
1
k2
; k3 2az ; k4 z  ay ; k5 z  ax ; k6 x
;
oy
oy
ox
oy
ox
ow
oay
oaz
oaz
2
2
2
2
k1 C 3 x ; k2 C 3
; k4
 hy  3C 2 wy by ; k5
 hx  3C 2 wx bx ;
ox
oy
oy
ox






owy oby
oax oay
owx obx
ohx
ohy
2
3
3
k6 C 3

; k1 C 2

 C5
; k2 C 2

 C5
;
oy
ox
ox
ox
ox
oy
oy
oy




owx owy obx oby
ohx ohy
3
k6 C 2

 C5

:
oy
ox
oy
ox
oy
ox

ou0
;
ox
ow
1
k1 x ;
ox

e01

e02

3.2. Constitutive relations

The linear constitutive relations are [27]

8
rxx 9
>
>
>
>
>
> ryy >
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
<
=

Q 11

Q 12

Q 13

6Q
6 12
6
6 Q 13
rzz
6
6 0
>
ryz >
>
>
6
>
>
>
>
6
>
>
>
> 4 0
r
xz
>
>
>
>
:
;
rxy
0

Q 22

Q 23

Q 23

Q 33

Q 44

0
0

0
0

0
0

Q 55
0

0
Q 66

9
38
exx >
>
>
>
>
>
7>
> eyy >
>
>
>
>
7>
>
>
>
7>
7< ezz =
7
7> c >;
7>
> yz >
>
>
7>
>
>
5>
c >
>
> xz >
>
>
:c >
;

10

xy

where

Ez1  m2
;
1  3m2  2m3
Ezm1 m

;
1  3m2  2m3
Ez

:
21 m

Q 11 Q 22 Q 33
Q 12 Q 13 Q 23
Q 44 Q 55 Q 66

11

The modulus E and the elastic coefcients Qij vary through the plate thickness according to Eqs. (1) and (2).
3.3. Strain energy
The strain energy of the FGM plate is given by,

Z
1
fegTi frgi dV:
2 v

12

3.4. Kinetic energy

The kinetic energy of the FGM plate can be expressed as

1
2

 T  
q u_ u_ dV;

13

 g are the density and global displacement vector of the plate. The global displacement eld model as given by
where q and fu
Eq. (4) may be represented as,

 
g N fKg;
fu

14

 
where {K} is as dened in Eq. (7) and the function of thickness coordinate N is dened as

2
1 0 0
  6
N 40 1 0
0

0 1

f1 z

f2 z

f3 z

f4 z

f1 z

f2 z

f3 z

f5 z

f6 z

7
f4 z 5;

15

by substituting Eq. (14) into Eq. (13), the kinetic energy becomes

1
2

Z Z
A

Z n oT n o
n o T  T  n o 
_ dz dA 1
N N K
K_ m K_ dA:
2 A

q K_

16

3996

M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

Fig. 3. Node number for nine-noded rectangular element in natural coordinate system.
Table 1
Properties of the FGM components.
Material

Properties
E (N/m2)
9

Aluminium (Al)
Alumina (Al2O3)
Zirconia (ZrO2)
Silicon carbide (SiC)
Ti6Al4V
Stainless steel (SUS304)
Silicon nitride (Si3N4)

70  10
380  109
151  109
427  109
105.7  109
207.78  109
322.27  109

q (kg/m3)

0.30
0.30
0.30
0.17
0.298
0.3177
0.24

2707
3800
3000
3210
4429
8166
2370

Table 2
q
 x 121  v 2 qc x2l a2 b2 =p4 Ec h2 for various boundary conditions, n = 5 for (Al/ZrO2) square plate with different mess size.
Comparison of linear frequency x
Mesh size

Boundary conditions
SSSS

CCCC

SCSC

Present (2  2)
Present (3  3)
Present (4  4)
Present (5  5)
Uymaz and Aydogdu [16]

1.4564
1.4321
1.4222
1.4165
1.4106

2.5371
2.2669
2.1944
2.1540
2.1447

2.1457
2.0260
1.9287
1.8161
1.8055

Percentage difference

0.416

0.431

0.583

Table 3


 xa2 =h qm 1  m2 =Em 1=2 with volume fraction index n of (Ti6Al4V/ZrO2) square plate for simply supported (SSSS)
Comparison of linear frequency x
boundary condition, with different mess size.
Mesh size

Volume fraction index (n)

ZrO2

0.5

Ti6Al4V

Present (2  2)
Present (3  3)
Present (4  4)
Present (5  5)
Huang and Shen [30]

8.6061
8.3961
8.3245
8.2877
8.273

7.4217
7.2380
7.1758
7.1440
7.139

6.9653
6.7907
6.7319
6.7022
6.657

6.5789
6.4143
6.3589
6.3310
6.286

5.6446
5.5066
5.4596
5.4102
5.400

Percentage difference

0.17

0.07

0.67

0.71

0.18

Table 4
 xa2 =hqc =Ec 1=2 with volume fraction index n of (SUS304/Si3N4) square plate for simply supported (SSSS) boundary
Comparison of linear frequency x
condition, with different mess size.
Mesh size

Volume fraction index (n)

0

0.5

10

Present (2  2)
Present (3  3)
Present (4  4)
Present (5  5)
Zhao et al. [31]

5.8914
5.7841
5.6769
5.6523
5.6148

4.1041
4.0223
3.9870
3.9201
3.8947

3.6913
3.4910
3.4894
3.4415
3.4242

3.2603
3.1696
3.1411
3.1062
3.0813

2.9539
2.8728
2.8472
2.8210
2.8058

2.8500
2.7721
2.7476
2.7258
2.7129

2.8099
2.7331
2.7089
2.6973
2.6768

Percentage difference

0.663

0.647

0.502

0.801

0.538

0.473

0.760

3997

M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

Table 5
Comparison of the centroidal deection of a simply supported (SSSS) (Al/ZrO2) square plate for various volume fraction index n and a/h = 5, with different mess
size.
Mesh size

Volume fraction index (n)

Ceramic

0.5

Metal

Present (2  2)
Present (3  3)
Present (4  4)
Present (5  5)
Ferreira et al. [18]

0.0285
0.0352
0.0269
0.0250
0.0247

0.0357
0.0439
0.0336
0.0319
0.0313

0.0394
0.0487
0.0373
0.0358
0.0351

0.0430
0.0536
0.0409
0.0393
0.0388

0.0596
0.0738
0.0564
0.0541
0.0534

Percentage difference

1.20

1.88

1.81

1.27

1.29

Fig. 4. Comparison of the computed non-dimensional center deection of an Al/SiC plate with [32].

Table 6
q
 x 121  v 2 qc x2l a2 b2 =p4 Ec h2 with the volume fraction index n for (CCCC) square (Al/ZrO2) FGM plates (a/h = 10).
Variation of the frequency parameter x
Boundary condition

Mode

CCCC

1
2
3
4
5

n
Ceramic

0.5

10

Metal

3.4173
6.7029
6.7029
9.4603
11.6199

3.0897
6.0788
6.0788
8.5930
10.5751

2.9436
5.7875
5.7875
8.1787
10.0627

2.7191
5.2956
5.2956
7.4474
9.1182

2.6461
5.1529
5.1529
7.2463
8.8667

2.4849
4.8682
4.8682
6.8670
8.4264

Table 7
q
 x 121  v 2 qc x2l a2 b2 =p4 Ec h2 with the volume fraction index n for (SSSS) square (Al/ZrO2) FGM plates (a/h = 10).
Variation of the frequency parameter x
Boundary condition

SSSS

Mode

1
2
3
4
5

n
Ceramic

0.5

10

Metal

1.9362
4.7231
4.7231
7.2780
9.1111

1.7566
4.2631
4.2631
6.5850
8.2711

1.6853
4.0609
4.0609
6.2752
7.8766

1.5692
3.7653
3.7654
5.7862
7.0493

1.5189
3.6664
3.6666
5.6308
6.8266

1.4099
3.4363
3.4367
5.2921
6.5701

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M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

3.5. Work done due to transverse load

The external work done on the plate by uniformly applied load p0 may be written as

W ext

1
2

p0 x; yfwg dA:

17

Table 8
q
 x 121  v 2 qc x2l a2 b2 =p4 Ec h2 with the volume fraction index n for (CCCC) square (Al/ZrO2) FGM plates (a/h = 20).
Variation of the frequency parameter x
Boundary condition

Mode

CCCC

1
2
3
4
5

n
Ceramic

0.5

10

Metal

3.7343
7.8219
7.8219
11.4172
14.9035

3.3670
7.0664
7.0664
10.3233
13.5009

3.2102
6.7349
6.7349
9.8377
12.8641

2.9929
6.2424
6.2424
9.0950
11.8399

2.9124
6.0737
6.0737
8.8488
11.5115

2.7185
5.6899
5.6899
8.3029
10.8283

Table 9
q
 x 121  v 2 qc x2l a2 b2 =p4 Ec h2 with the volume fraction index n for (SSSS) square (Al/ZrO2) FGM plates (a/h = 20).
Variation of the frequency parameter x
Boundary condition

Mode

SSSS

1
2
3
4
5

n
Ceramic

0.5

10

Metal

1.9943
5.0388
5.0392
7.9752
10.3318

1.8074
4.5415
4.5417
7.1971
9.3352

1.7348
4.3322
4.3322
6.8699
8.9029

1.6215
4.0467
4.0467
6.4057
8.2691

1.5693
3.9372
3.9375
6.2286
8.0441

1.4530
3.6695
3.6698
5.8072
7.5198

Table 10
p
 xa2 =h qc =Ec with the volume fraction index n for (CCCC) square (SUS304/Si3N4) FGM plates (a/h = 10).
Variation of the frequency parameter x
Boundary condition

Mode

CCCC

1
2
3
4
5

n
Ceramic

0.5

10

Metal

10.1599
19.9367
19.9367
28.1367
34.6017

7.0202
13.7978
13.7978
19.4845
23.9945

6.1489
12.0812
12.0812
17.0625
20.9992

4.9816
9.7440
9.7440
13.7350
16.8507

4.7457
9.2841
9.2841
13.0873
16.0556

4.4410
8.7107
8.7107
12.2919
15.1084

Table 11
p
 xa2 =h qc =Ec with the volume fraction index n for (SSSS) square (SUS304/Si3N4) FGM plates (a/h = 10).
Variation of the frequency parameter x
Boundary condition

Mode

SSSS

1
2
3
4
5

n
Ceramic

0.5

10

Metal

5.7523
14.0336
14.0354
21.6188
27.1449

3.9701
9.6890
9.6906
14.9404
18.7691

3.4845
8.4903
8.4918
13.0959
16.4526

2.8351
6.8941
6.8952
10.6102
13.3057

2.6973
6.5669
6.5680
10.1053
12.6668

2.5154
6.1361
6.1370
9.4515
11.8664

Table 12
p
 xa2 =h qc =Ec with the volume fraction index n for (CCCC) square (SUS304/Si3N4) FGM plates (a/h = 20).
Variation of the frequency parameter x
Boundary condition

CCCC

Mode

1
2
3
4
5

n
Ceramic

0.5

10

Metal

11.0932
23.2389
23.2389
33.8879
44.3223

7.6528
16.0474
16.0474
23.4088
30.6566

6.7074
14.0622
14.0622
20.5156
26.8554

5.4592
11.4138
11.4138
16.6363
21.7155

5.1991
10.8706
10.8706
15.8439
20.6790

4.8513
10.1598
10.1598
14.8146
19.3671

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M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

4. Solution methodology
4.1. Finite element model
4.1.1. Introduction
 and v
 involve the derivatives of out-of-plane disFrom Eq. (4), it is seen that the expressions for in-plane displacement u
placement w0. As a result of this, second order derivatives would be present in the strain vector, thus necessitating the
employment of C1 continuity for nite element analysis. The complexity and difculty involved with making a choice of
C1 continuity is well known, and C0 continuity permits easy isoparametric nite element formulation and consequently
can be applied for non-rectangular geometries as well. Here in the present study, the derivatives are assumed as independent
eld variables by treating ax, ay, bx, by, hx and hy as a separate DOFs. In this process, DOFs increase from 11 to 13 for the HSDT.
However, the strain vector will be having only the rst-order derivatives, and hence a C0 continuous element would be sufcient for the present model. However, articial constraints are imposed which can be enforced variationally through a penalty approach in order to satisfy the constraints emphasized in Eq. (6).

Table 13
p
 xa2 =h qc =Ec with the volume fraction index n for (SSSS) square (SUS304/Si3N4) FGM plates (a/h = 20).
Variation of the frequency parameter x
Boundary condition

Mode

SSSS

1
2
3
4
5

n
Ceramic

0.5

10

Metal

5.9240
14.9636
14.9651
23.6605
30.6973

4.0853
10.3158
10.3158
16.3181
21.1826

3.5865
9.0439
9.0439
14.3108
18.5757

2.9237
7.3701
7.3712
11.6551
15.1021

2.7815
7.0188
7.0198
11.0973
14.3809

2.5910
6.5449
6.5456
10.3487
13.4247

Table 14
Non-dimensional center deection with aspect ratio (b/a) for clamped-free (CFCF) Al/ZrO2 FGM plate.
Aspect ratio (b/a)

0.5
1.0
1.5
2.0
2.5
3.0

wc
n=0

n = 0.5

n=1

n=2

n=5

n = 10

0.1153
0.5189
0.9742
1.3412
1.5923
1.7557

0.1447
0.6556
1.2343
1.7016
2.0217
2.2301

0.1626
0.7352
1.3832
1.9062
2.2644
2.4976

0.1814
0.8135
1.5254
2.0984
2.4904
2.7452

0.2026
0.8966
1.6724
2.2948
2.7196
2.9953

0.2158
0.9545
1.7804
2.4430
2.8951
3.1886

Fig. 5. Variation of frequency parameter with volume fraction index n and a/h ratio for clamped (CCCC) Al/Al2O3 square plate.

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M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

A nine-noded isoparametric element is employed for nite element modeling. In the nite element, the domain is discretized into a set of nite elements. Over each of the elements, the displacement vector and element geometry of the model is
expressed by

fKg

NN
X

Ni fKgi ;

i1

NN
X
i1

N i xi ;

NN
X

Ni yi ;

18

i1

where Ni is the interpolation function (shape function) for the ith node, {K}i is the vector of unknown displacements for the
ith node, NN is the number of nodes per element and xi and yi are Cartesian coordinate of the ith node. The shape functions
which are used in the nite element approximation are mentioned below [28] and the node numbering are shown in Fig. 3.

1 2
1
n  n g2  g ; N2 1  n2 g2  g ;
4
2

1
1
N3 n2 n g2  g ; N4 n2  n 1  g2 ;
4
2

1
N5 1  n2 1  g2 ; N6 n2 n 1  g2 ;
2

1
1
N7 n2  n g2 g ; N8 1  n2 g2 g ;
4
2

1
N9 n2 n g2 g :
4

N1

4.1.2. Strain energy of the plate

The strain energy of the FGM plate is given by,

NE
X

U e :

19

e1

Here NE is number of elements used for messing the plate U(e) is the elemental strain energy which can be obtained using
Eqs. (10), (12) and (14) and expressed as

NE
1X
T
fKge Ke fKge :
2 e1

20

Here [K](e) and {K}(e) are dened as linear stiffness matrix and displacement vector for the eth element, respectively.
4.1.3. Kinetic energy of the plate
P
e
Summing over total number of element NE, kinetic energy of vibrating plate may be written as T NN
e1 T , where

Fig. 6. Variation of frequency parameter with volume fraction index n and a/h ratio for clamped (CCCC) Al/Al2O3 rectangular plate.

M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

T e

1
2

Z
A

n oeT
n oe
_
K_
me K
dA:

4001

21

Here [m](e) is the inertia matrix of element.

4.1.4. Work done due to external transverse load
The work done by external uniformly applied mechanical load p0(x, y) is given by

V W ext

1
2

p0 x; yw dA:

22

Using the nite element notation model, above equation may be written as

NE
X

V e ;

23

e1

where V e 

Ae

fKgT fPg dA fKgeT fPge with {P}(e) = (0 0 p0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0)T(e).

Fig. 7. Variation of frequency parameter with volume fraction index n and a/h ratio for simply supported (SSSS) Al/Al2O3 square plate.

Fig. 8. Variation of frequency parameter with volume fraction index n and a/h ratio for simply supported (SSSS) Al/Al2O3 rectangular plate.

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M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

4.2. Governing equation

The governing equation for free vibration and static problem of FGM plate can be derived using variational principle,
which is generalisation of the principle of virtual displacement. Lagrange equation for a conservative system can be written
as [29]

8
3 9
2

2
owz 2
>
>
z
>
>
a
bx  ow
x  ox
>
>
ox
>
>
>
>


Z 6

2 7
<
7
6

2
d
oT
oU
o
c 6 h  onz a  owz 7 = oV
d

v
0;


x
y
7
6
ox
oy
7 > ofqg
6
dt ofq_ i g
ofqi g ofqi g >
2
>

2 
2 5 >
>
>
4
>
>
>
>
z
:
;
by  ow
hy  on
oy
oy

24

for i = 1, 2, . . ..
Here {qi} and fq_ i g are the generalized coordinates and generalized velocities, respectively, and c is the penalty parameter
that enforces constraints, as stated in Section 3.1 (Eqs. (5) and (6)). The equilibrium equation for free vibration and static

Fig. 9. Variation of frequency parameter with volume fraction index n and a/h ratio for simply supported and clamped (SSCC) Al/Al2O3 square plate.

Fig. 10. Variation of frequency parameter with volume fraction index n and a/h ratio for simply supported and clamped (SSCC) Al/Al2O3 rectangular plate.

M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

4003

analysis with small deformation (i.e., small displacements and strain relation) can be obtained by substituting Eqs. (20), (21)
and (23) in Eq. (24) as follows:

g K cK c fqg fFg;
Mfq

25

g and {F} are global mass matrix, global linear stiffness matrix, global linear stiffness matrix arising
where [M], [K], [Kc] {q}, fq
due to constrains, global displacement, global acceleration and force vector, respectively.
The generalized governing equation (24) can be employed to study the free vibration and static analysis by dropping the
appropriate terms as:
1. Generalized eigenvalue problem for a system vibrating in principle mode with natural frequency x, can be expressed as

K cK c fqg kMfqg;

26

with k = x , where x is dened as frequency of natural vibration.

2. Linear static analysis

K cK c fqg fFg:

Fig. 11. Non-dimensional center deection vs. volume fraction index n for clamped (CCCC) Al/Al2O3 square plate.

Fig. 12. Non-dimensional center deection vs. volume fraction index n for simply supported plate (SSSS) Al/Al2O3 square plate.

27

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M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

5. Numerical results
The free vibration and static responses of the FGMs plate are computed using the proposed mathematical model in conjunction with FEM. A computer programme has been developed in MATLAB 7.5.0 (R2007b) environment. The validation and
efcacy of the proposed algorithm is examined by comparing the results with those available in the literature. A nine-noded
Lagrange isoparametric element, with 117 degrees of freedom per element for the present HSDT model has been used for
discretizing the plate. For the computation of results full integration schemes (3  3) are used for thick plates and selective
integration schemes (2  2) for thin plates.
In the present analysis, various boundary conditions are used to check the efcacy of the model. However, the formulation and code do not put any limitations. Table 1 shows the properties of the FGMs constituents given at room temperature
(300 K), which have been used for the computation of the results throughout the study, unless specied otherwise. Fig. 2
shows the volume fraction of the ceramic phase through the dimensionless thickness. It is assumed that the materials are
perfectly elastic throughout the deformation. The boundary conditions used in the analysis are as follows:
Simply supported (SSSS):
u0 = w0 = wy = ax = az = by = hx = 0, at x = 0 and a.
v0 = w0 = wx = ay = az = bx = hy = 0, at y = 0 and b.

Fig. 13. Non-dimensional center deection vs. volume fraction index n for simply supported and clamped (SSCC) Al/Al2O3 square plate.

Fig. 14. Non-dimensional center deection vs. volume fraction index n for clamped (CCCC) Al/Al2O3 rectangular plate.

M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

4005

Clamped (CCCC):
u0 = v0 = w0 = wx = wy = wz = ax = ay = az = bx = by = hx = hy = 0, at x = 0, a and y = 0, b.
Simply supported and clamped (SSCC):
u0 = w0 = wy = ax = az = by = hx = 0, at x = 0 and a.
u0 = v0 = w0 = wx = wy = wz = ax = ay = az = bx = by = hx = hy = 0, at y = 0, b.
Clamped-free (CFCF):
u0 = v0 = w0 = wx = wy = wz = ax = ay = az = bx = by = hx = hy = 0, at x = 0, and y = 0.
u0 v0 w0 wx wy wz ax ay az bx by hx hy 0, at x = a and y = b.
Simply supported-clamped (SCSC):
u0 = w0 = wy = ax = az = by = hx = 0, at x = 0 and y = 0.
u0 = v0 = w0 = wx = wy = wz = ax = ay = az = bx = by = hx = hy = 0, at x = a, y = b.
5.1. Convergence and validation study
To make certain the accuracy and prociency of the present nite element formulation, three test examples have been
analyzed for free vibration of the FGM plates.

Fig. 15. Non-dimensional center deection vs. volume fraction index n for simply supported (SSSS) Al/Al2O3 rectangular plate.

Fig. 16. Non-dimensional center deection vs. volume fraction index n for simply supported and clamped (SSCC) Al/Al2O3 rectangular plate.

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M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

5.1.1. Free vibration analysis

Example 1. We rst consider the accuracy of the present nite element formulation by comparing the results with those
given by Uymaz and Aydogdu [16] which is based on the small strain linear elasticity theory. A convergence study is also
presented. A FGM plate with different boundary conditions is analyzed with the proposed nite element formulation. In this
example, the analysis is performed with n = 5, aspect ratio a/b = 1 and thickness ratio a/h = 5, where n is the volume fraction
index and h is the thickness of the plate as dened earlier. The top face of the plate is ceramic-rich, whereas the bottom face
is metal rich. The plate is comprised of metal (aluminium) and ceramic (zirconia). The material properties as given in [16],
are Eb = 70  109 N/m2, qb = 2702 kg/m3 for aluminium, and Et = 151  109 N/m2, qt = 3000 kg/m3 for zirconia. The Poissons
ratio m is assumed to be constant as 0.3. The non-dimensional frequency parameters are obtained by applying three 2 121  m2 qc x2 a2 b2 =p4 Ec h2 . Based on the convergence, it is concluded that (5  5)
dimensional continuum method as: x
mesh is acceptable for free vibration analysis of the FGM plate. The accomplished results are in good agreement with the
published results, as shown in Table 2.

Fig. 17. Non-dimensional deection due to uniformly applied load vs. non-dimensional length for Al/ZrO2 rectangular FGM plate (a/h = 5) with simply
supported-clamped (SCSC) boundary condition.

Fig. 18. Non-dimensional deection due to uniformly applied load vs. non-dimensional length for Al/ZrO2 rectangular FGM plate (a/h = 10) with simply
supported-clamped (SCSC) boundary condition.

M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

4007

Example 2. In this example, we consider the free vibration analysis of a square FGM plate made of zirconium oxide (ZrO2)
and titanium alloy (Ti6Al4V), as given by Huang and Shen [30]. The top surface of the plate is assumed to be ceramic-rich,
whereas the bottom surface is metal rich. The side and thickness of the square plate are a = 0.2 m and h = 0.025 m, respectively. Poissons ratio m is assumed to be constant and is equal to 0.3. Youngs modulus and mass density listed in Table 1. The
 xa2 =h
plate is simply supported at all edges and non-dimensional frequency parameter are dened as: x

1=2
2
qm 1  m =Em . The calculated frequency parameters are compared with Ref. [30], as shown in Table 3, again a good
agreement between the results are accomplished.
Example 3. In this example, we consider the FGM plate made of silicon nitride (Si3N4) and titanium alloy (SUS304), as given
by Zhao et al. [31] for free vibration. They employed rst-order shear deformation plate theory to account for the transverse
shear strain and rotary inertia. Mesh-free kernel particle functions are used to approximate the two-dimensional displacement elds. The side to thickness ratio (a/h) is equal to 10. The Poissons ratio for Si3N4 and SUS304 is assumed as 0.24 and
0.3117, respectively. Youngs modulus and mass density are listed in Table 1. The plate is simply supported at all four edges
 xa2 =hqc =Ec 1=2 . The calculated frequency parameters are
and non-dimensional frequency parameter are dened as: x
compared with Ref. [31], as shown in Table 4, again a good agreement between the two results are obtained.
These three comparison studies show that the present result matches very well with the established one.

Fig. 19. Non-dimensional deection due to uniformly applied load vs. non-dimensional length for Al/ZrO2 rectangular FGM plate (a/h = 15) with simply
supported-clamped (SCSC) boundary condition.

Fig. 20. Non-dimensional deection due to uniformly applied load vs. non-dimensional length for Al/ZrO2 rectangular FGM plate (a/h = 20) with simply
supported-clamped (SCSC) boundary condition.

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M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

5.1.2. Static analysis

Two test examples have been analyzed for static analysis of the FGM plates to check the accuracy and prociency of the
present nite element formulation.
Example 1. Here we consider the square FGM plate simply supported at all four edges with the proposed nite element
formulation. In this example, the analysis is performed for thickness ratio (a/h) = 5, and aspect ratio a/b = 1 with different
volume fraction indices n = 0, 0.5, 1, 2 and 1, where a and b are the sides of the plate and h is the thickness of the plate. For
this problem, the convergence along with validation is also conducted. The various non-dimensionalized parameters used
4
are: central deection, w/h, load parameter p0 p=Em h and thickness coordinate, z z=h. The analysis is carried out for
FGM plate made of aluminium and zirconia. The obtained results with the present outlined approach are presented in Table
5 and compared with that of Ferreira et al. [18] that is based on the collocation multiquadric radial basis functions by a third
order shear deformation theory. It is observed that both results agree well. Based on the convergence, it is observed that
(5  5) mesh is sufcient for static analysis. Hence for all computation, a (5  5) mesh is adopted.

Fig. 21. Non-dimensional deection due to uniformly applied load vs. non-dimensional length for Al/ZrO2 rectangular FGM plate (a/h = 5) with clampedfree (CFCF) boundary condition.

Fig. 22. Non-dimensional deection due to uniformly applied load vs. non-dimensional length for Al/ZrO2 rectangular FGM plate (a/h = 10) with clampedfree (CFCF) boundary condition.

M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

4009

Example 2. In this example, the numerical and analytical solutions for the centroid transverse deection of the plate is compared with Qian et al. [32]. The top face of the plate is loaded by a normal pressure given by q0sin px/asin py/a. The plate is
comprised of Al/SiC with side to thickness ratio a/h = 5 and all edges are simply supported. The transverse displacement w
3

mh
 100E
w; z 2z
. The non-dimensional center deecand thickness coordinate z have been non-dimensionalized as: w
h
12a4 1m2 q
m

tions with volume fraction index n along with the gure layout are preferred as used in Ref. [32] for direct comparison. Again,
a good agreement is observed between the two results as shown in Fig. 4.

6. Results and discussion

Based on the analysis of foregoing sections it is observed that (5  5) mesh has been found to give good convergence for
the FGM plates as mentioned earlier. These have been used for accomplishing the results, unless otherwise stated. Tables 6
and 7 show the variation of non-dimensional frequency parameter with the volume fraction index n for the Al/ZrO2 square
FGM plate. Choosing n = 0 and 1 corresponds to the frequency of the ceramics and metallic components, respectively. The

Fig. 23. Non-dimensional deection due to uniformly applied load vs. non-dimensional length for Al/ZrO2 rectangular FGM plate (a/h = 15) with clampedfree (CFCF) boundary condition.

Fig. 24. Non-dimensional deection due to uniformly applied load vs. non-dimensional length for Al/ZrO2 rectangular FGM plate (a/h = 20) with clampedfree (CFCF) boundary condition.

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M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

results are computed only for the rst ve modes with side to thickness ratios a/h = 10 for CCCC and SSSS boundary conditions. It is observed that as the volume fraction index increases the frequencies in all ve modes decrease. This is due to the
fact that, the larger volume fraction index means the plate has a smaller ceramic component and hence the stiffness is reduced. It is also observed that increasing constraints on the boundaries increase the frequency parameter.
Variation of the frequency parameter with the volume fraction index of Al/ZrO2 FGM plate for a/h = 20 with CCCC and
SSSS boundary condition is presented in Tables 8 and 9, respectively. It is noticed that frequency parameter decreases with
the increase of volume fraction index n as expected. It is anticipated that there is approximately 9% rise in frequency parameter for CCCC boundary condition as a/h ratio changes from 10 to 20 and nearly 3% rise for SSSS boundary condition.
In Tables 1013, the frequency characteristics for square SUS304/Si3N4 FGM plates are investigated for ve modes only at
a/h = 10 and 20 for CCCC and SSSS boundary conditions. It is observed that the frequency parameter decreases as volume
fraction index n increases, as expected. This decrease is different for CCCC and SSSS boundary conditions considered. The
considerable decrease is found for CCCC boundary conditions. Table 14 shows the non-dimensional center deection of CFCF,
Al/ZrO2 FGM plates with volume fraction index n for aspect ratio (a/b) ranges from 0.5 to 3. The plates are subjected to a
sinusoidal load and side to thickness ratio (a/h) is equal to 5. It is found that the deection increases as volume fraction index
n increases. This is due to the fact that the bending stiffness is the maximum for fully ceramic plate, i.e., (n = 0) and degrades
gradually as n increases.
Fig. 5 illustrates the effect of volume fraction index and side to thickness ratio (a/h) on the fundamental natural frequency
parameter of Clamped square Al/ZrO2 FGM plates. It is observed that with a particular volume fraction index, the frequency
parameter increases as the side to thickness ratio increases. The rise in frequency parameter is observed up to around a/
h = 20, beyond this no changes in frequency parameter are distinguished. Fig. 6 shows the variation of fundamental natural
frequency parameter with a/h ratio and volume fraction index n for CCCC boundary conditions of rectangular Al/ZrO2 FGM
plates. Bestowing to this gure the frequency parameter increases with increasing side to thickness (a/h) ratio, for (a/h) less
than 20 as observed in Fig. 5.
Figs. 7 and 8 show the inuence of volume fraction index and side to thickness ratio on the fundamental frequency
parameters for SSSS square and rectangular Al/Al2O3 plates, respectively, and inuence of volume fraction index and side
to thickness ratio on the fundamental frequency parameters for SSCC square and rectangular Al/Al2O3 plates are shown in
Figs. 9 and 10, respectively. It is found that the similar frequency parameter behavior is noticed to those obtained in
Fig. 5. It is therefore accomplished that effects of the side to thickness ratio on the natural frequency parameter of plates
is independent of the variation in the volume fraction index.
Figs. 1113 represent the variation of the non-dimensional central deection with volume fraction index for the aluminiumalumina square plates having CCCC, SSSS and SSCC boundary conditions. The load parameter is taken as (+1). It can be
ascertain that all of the curves that represent the various boundary conditions show a similar behaviour with the deection
enhances as the volume fraction index increases. This is due to the fact that the larger volume fraction index means the plate
has a smaller ceramic component and hence the stiffness is reduced. Figs. 1416 show the effects of volume fraction index
and side to thickness ratio on the non-dimensional central deection for CCCC, SSSS and SSCC rectangular Al/Al2O3 plates. It
is observed that the rectangular plates have slightly higher central deection than square plate for same boundary conditions
and material properties.
Figs. 1720 show the non-dimensional deection due to uniformly applied load vs. non-dimensional length for rectangular plates (a/b = 0.5) with varying volume fraction index n. The FGM plate is made up of Al/ZrO2 and the side to thickness
ratio (a/h) of the plate is varying from 5 to 20. Simply supported-clamped boundary conditions have been used in the analysis. It is perceptible from the gure that the plate deection lies between those made of ceramic and metal. The variation of
the non-dimensional deection due to uniformly applied load vs. non-dimensional length for rectangular plates (a/b = 0.5)
with varying volume fraction index n is described in Figs. 2124. The plate is comprised of Al/ZrO2 and the side to thickness
ratio (a/h) of the plate is varying from 5 to 20 with CFCF boundary condition. The deection characteristics shown in these
four gures are similar to those in Figs. 1720.
7. Conclusions
An extensive study of the free vibration and static analysis of square and rectangular functionally graded plates is presented, which is based on the higher order shear deformation theory with a special modication in the transverse displacement in conjunction with nite element models. The systems of algebraic equations are derived using variational approach
for the free vibration and static problem. A C0 isoparametric Lagrangian element with 117 degrees of freedom per element is
developed and implemented for both the problems. Convergence and validation studies have been carried out to inculcate
the accuracy of the present formulation. The obtained result shows a good agreement with those available in the literature
ranging from thin to thick plates. The following conclusions are noted from the typical results obtained for different volume
fraction indices, the aspect ratios, the thickness ratios and different combinations of the boundary conditions.
 The frequency parameter increases with the increase in plates aspect ratio (a/b) and smaller side to thickness (a/h) ratio.
 The frequency parameter decreases with the increases of volume fraction index, n.

M. Talha, B.N. Singh / Applied Mathematical Modelling 34 (2010) 39914011

4011

 The frequency parameter increases with increasing (a/h) ratio for a/h 6 20 and becomes approximately insensitive to a/h
ratio greater than 40.
 There is an increases in frequency parameter as support condition changes from all edges simply supported (SSSS) to all
edges clamped (CCCC).
 The non-dimensional central deection for a given thickness ratio increases as the volume fraction index n increases.
 The non-dimensional central deection decreases with the increase of plates aspect ratio (a/b).
 The non-dimensional central deection with non-dimensional length shows that the plates with intermediate properties
undergo corresponding intermediate values of center deection.

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