A new approach to the identification of distortion modes of thin-walled structures based on plate/shell theory

Abstract

In this paper, a new approach to identify cross-section deformation modes is presented and utilized in the establishment of a high-order beam model for dynamic analyses of thin-walled structures. Towards this end, a systematic procedure to extract cross-section in-plane vibration shapes for a thin-walled cross-section is developed based on elastic plate/shell theory. Then the distortion shapes are separated from vibration shapes by removing the components of classic modes involved with the minimum value problem of 2-norm. Sequentially, curve fitting method is utilized to approximate the distortion shape functions along the cross-section midline. It should be noticed that these distortion modes are arranged in hierarchy consistent with the order that they are identified and the number of distortions to be identified depends on the required model precision. Based on this, Hamilton's principle is applied to formulate the dynamic governing equations of the beam by constructing its displacement field with the linear superposition of the cross-section mode shapes including distortions. Numerical examples are also presented to validate the new approach and to demonstrate its efficiency in the reproduction of three-dimensional behaviours of thin-walled structures in dynamic analyses.