International Conference on Recent Advances in Mechanical Engineering and Interdisciplinary Developments [ICRAMID - 2014]

Thermal Stress and Buckling Analysis of

Functionally Graded plates.
Monslin Sugirtha Singh ,

Kari Thangaratnam

Research Scholar, Dept. of Civil Engg.

Sathyabama University, Chennai, India

Dean, Dept. of Civil Engineering,

DMI College of Engineering,
Chennai, 600123, India

Tel.9500081507, Email: jmsugirtha@gmail.com.

Tel. +914443590187, Email: drkari@yahoo.com

Abstract Finite element formulation for Functionally Graded
Material (FGM) square plates subjected to Thermal loads are
presented. The plate is assumed to be having linear temperature
rise through the thickness. The power law distribution model is
assumed for the composition of the FGM material along the
thickness. A software program COMSAP has been developed
using Semiloof shell element formulation and validation checks
are carried out using the results available in the related
literature. Results for thermal stress and thermal buckling
analysis of functionally graded plates are reported.
Key words: Functionally Graded plate, Thermal Stress, Thermal
Buckling. Semiloof shell element.

III. MATERIAL MODELING

The effective material property P, the Youngs Modulus E, density
, can be expressed as P=Po Vc +Pi Vm.
(1)
Po= Temperature dependent properties of outer surface of shell
made up of metal
Pi = Temperature dependent properties of inner surface of shell
made up of metal
Vc and Vm are ceramic and metal volume fractions and are related
by
Vc + Vm =1
(2)
For a shell with a uniform thickness h and a reference surface at its
middle surface, the volume fraction can be written as


 = 


Where n is the power law exponent,
0n

I. INTRODUCTION
Functionally graded materials (FGMs) are inhomogeneous materials
in which the mechanical properties vary smoothly and continuously
through the thickness microscopically . Birman and Byrd [1]
reviewed papers dealing with various aspects of FGM published in
recent years and one of the important conclusion is that the effects
of temperature on the stress, stability against buckling and vibration
problems should also be accounted.
II. LITERATURE REVIEW
Matsunaga [2], using 2D higher order deformation theory
investigated the stress analysis of FG plates subjected to thermal
and mechanical loadings. Na and Kim [3], using 3D FEM studied
the mechanical Stress analysis of FGM plates. Zhao et al. [4]
studied the buckling behavior of FGM Plates subjected to uniaxial
compressive pressure or uniform temperature load and adopted the
transformation method to impose necessary boundary conditions.
Matsunaga [5] adopted the 2D global higher order deformation
theory for thermal buckling of plates made of functionally graded
material. Mahdavian [6] performed the buckling analysis of
functionally graded rectangular plate and presented the buckling
coefficient for different types of loads. Oyekoya et al. [7] studied
the buckling analysis of plates using FEM and found the maximum
critical buckling load for Optimum design. Matsunaga [8] analyzed
the buckling problems of FGM cylindrical shell according to a
higher order deformation theory. Zenkour and Daount [9] presented
the thermal buckling response of functionally graded plate using
sinusoidal shear deformation plate theory for different values of
power law index and aspect ratio. From the above literature review,
very few papers are available in the area of FEM for thin plates and
shells subjected to thermo mechanical Loading. Hence Semiloof
shell element which is successfully used for buckling, vibration,
geometric non-linear analysis, non-linear vibration analysis for
isotropic and composite thin plates and shells [10, 11, 12] is
extended to FGM plates and shells.

(3)



 = 

 
 +

(4)

Where
 and
 are the corresponding properties of upper and
lower surface. The material properties along the thickness of the
shell, such as Youngs modulus E ,Poissons ratio  and the
coefficient of thermal expansion  , can be determined according
to eqn. (4).With these material properties, the stresses can be
determined as
1
"
0

&
&(

"
1
0 $ % &   &( )
 =    =
 


'
'(
0
0


= [Q] [{& * -]

(5)
Where E ,  , *) and -/, 1, are the Youngs Modulus,
Poissons ratio, coefficient of linear expansion and the temperature
referenced to the stress free state, respectively.
The axial force N and the moment M can be calculated using the
following expression.
:


1, 45 9
2345 645 7 = 8;:


(6)

Hence we have
3 = <=]> + <?]@ 3 ( 
6 = <?]> + <A]@ 6( 
In which, <=], <?],BC9 <A] matrices are extension stiffness,
coupling stiffness and bending stiffness respectively.
:


<=], <?], <A] = 8;:
1, ,  <D] 9


Where D = D =

D =

ISBN 978-93-80609-17-1
50

IJKL 'JKL

1 'JKL

EFG


HEFG

(7)

International Conference on Recent Advances in Mechanical Engineering and Interdisciplinary Developments [ICRAMID - 2014]

DMM =

IJKL

<VL ] = 8<9( ]<

] 9B
<fX ]Consistent Thermal load vector.
(
<fX ] = 8<T]( Q 3 ( R 9B
6
[Ks] -Structural Stiffness Matrix.

221 + ' JKL 7
And the thermal force NT and the thermal moment MT are given by
3 ( , 6( 

:

;:


= 8 <D]*  -1, 9

(8)

[KS] =

IV. FINITE ELEMENT FORMULATION

Semiloof shell element
which has all the advantages of
Isoparametric formulation and which uses Isoparametric shell
theory and Discrete Kirchhoff Theory can overcome the locking
phenomenon was developed by Irons [10,11,12] is used

z
j

xz

jyz

vi
ui
Central node

z
y

Conventional nodes
x

Global axes

[ E ] [ H ] d a

(17)

The work done due to the prebuckling stress during Buckling is

expressed as [31]

Y = 3ZZ <[Z +
Z + \Z ] + 3]] <[] +
] + \] ] +

23Z] <[Z [] +
Z
] + \Z \] ] ..(18)
0
0
0
0
[Z ( 3ZZ 3Z]
[Z
f3
[]
3]]
0
0
0
0 i []
Z]
h` c
` c e


0
0
3ZZ 3Z]
0
0 h
Z

_ b
Y = _ Zb e
 _
] b e 0
0
3Z] 3]]
0
0 h _
] b
\Z e 0
0
0
0
3ZZ 3Z] h \Z
^\] a d 0
0
0
0
3Z] 3]] g ^\] a
(19)

Y = <j]( <k]<j]
(20)

<j]( = <[Z , [] ,
Z ,
] , \Z , \Z ]
(21)
<j] = <l]<S]
(22)
Substituting Eq. (22) in Eq. (20)

Y = <S]( <l]( <k]<l]<S]
(23)

The total potential energy for the buckling state can be written as

wi

loof nodes

(16)

B. Finite Element formulation for Buckling

Semiloof shell element

[ H ]

(15)

X,Y,Z-Local axes

Fig.1.Semiloof Shell Element.

c =

The Semiloof element (Fig.1)is formulated with 43 degrees of

freedom (d.o.f).Out of which 11 are eliminated by Kirchhoff shear
constrain, so that the final version of the element has 32 d.o.f as
follows.
The geometry of the element is described by eight node Serendipitytype shape function. The displacement vector u [10] is given as
[u] = [d] [q]
(9)
Where [q] - Nodal degree of freedom.
[d] - Shape function

[q]

[ H ]T [E ] [ H ][ q] + [ q]T [G ]T [ P][G ][q]da

(24)

From the Eq. (24) Geometric Stiffness Matrix can be writen as

m

[KG] =

[G ]

[ P ] [G ] d a

In order to establish the critical buckling state corresponding to

neutral equilibrium condition, the second variation of the total
potential energy must be equal to zero.
Hence [Ks] + [KG] = 0
(25)

where is the Eigen value which multiplies the applied load

to give the Critical Buckling Loads.

A. Finite Element Formulation for Stress.

The Finite Element Formulation is based on minimization of the
total potential energy. The total potential energy of the
functionally graded shell subjected to axial load may be written as
> ( = ? >
= L 8 P Q R Q
R Q R 9B 8<S]( <9]( <
]9B
@ ? A @
(
(
>
3
(10)
8 Q@R Q ( R 9B
6
>
Q R= [H] [q]
(11)
@
Where [H] is the strain matrix. Substituting Eq. (11) in Eq. (10)
= L 8 P <S]( <T]( <E]<T]<S]9B 8<S]( <9]( <
]9B
3(
(12)
8<S]( <T]( Q ( R 9B
6
= ?
Where [E] =Q
R
(12a)
? A
Differentiating the total potential energy with respect to nodal
displacement [q] and equating to zero gives
(
= L 8 P <T]( <I]<T]<S]9B 8<9]( <
]9B 8<T]( Q 3 ( R 9B = 0
6
(13)
[Ks][q] =[fm]+[fT]
(14)

V. VERIFICATION OF THE PROGRAM

The program COMSAP developed by Kari Thangaratnam et al.
[10-12] for composite plates and shells are extended to FGM
Material. The results are verified with exact solutions and existing
FEM results.
A.Thermal Bucklingg of FGM plate.
FGM square plate composed of Alumina (Al2O3) and Nickel (Ni) is
subjected to uniform temperature rise with clamped boundary
condition [13]. The geometric parameters used are a/h=100, span
a=1m. Critical Temperature for different volume fraction index
obtained is compared in Table 1 and good agreement is observed
between the two even for a coarse mesh 3x3.
Table 1 Critical temperature with respect to volume fraction index.
volume fraction index (n) Ref [13] Present Result
.3
28.21
27.47
1
30.56
29.78
5
34.17
35.93

[fm] Consistent nodal force vector due to mechanical load.

ISBN 978-93-80609-17-1
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International Conference on Recent Advances in Mechanical Engineering and Interdisciplinary Developments [ICRAMID - 2014]

Displacement (mm)

VI. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

For the analysis of plate various boundary conditions S1,S2,S3,
[12] are considered for three materials, Material 1,2,3 as in Table 2.
The material properties[14,15] are calculated at room temperature
(T=270C) (1)Simply supported edges(SS1) u=0,v=0,w=0, m/
0,at x=0,a
and at y=0,b(2) Simply supported edges(SS2)
u0,v=0,w=0, m/ 0, at x=0,a and u=0,v0,w=0, m/ 0,at
y=0,b(3) Simply supported edges(SS3) u=0,v 0,w=0, m/ 0, at
x=0,a and u 0,v = 0,w=0, m/ 0,at y=0,b
E gpa
70.

0.3

(kg/m3)
2707

0C
23x10-6

Zirconia (ZrO2)

151

0.3

3000

10x10-6

Material 2
Ref[14]
Material 3
Ref[15]

Ti-6AI-4v
Alumina (Al2O3)
Titanium (Ti)
Silicon carbide
(SiC)

105.6
320.2
105.8
410

0.3
0.3
0.3
0.17

4420
3970
4420
3100

6.94 x10-6
7.2x10-6
8.4x10-6
4.3x10-6

4
6
Volume Fraction Index(n)

Fig 3: Thermal displacement for S2 Boundary Conditions

Displacement (mm)

FGM Material
Aluminum(Al)

Material 1
Material 2
Material 3

Table: 2 Critical temperature with respect to volume fraction index

Material
Material 1
Ref[14]

2.00
1.75
1.50
1.25
1.00
0.75
0.50
0.25
0.00

1.600
1.400
1.200
1.000
0.800
0.600
0.400
0.200
0.000

Material 1
Material 2
Material 3

Volume Fraction Index (n)

A. Thermal Stress for FGM Plates for varying temperature

Fig4. Thermal displacement for S3 Boundary Conditions

A FGM square plate of size a=100cm is considered. A quarter
plate is analyzed using 3x3 meshes due to symmetry. The plate is
subjected to linearly varying temperature gradient forSS1,SS2 and
SS3 boundary conditions and the results are presented in Fig.2 to
Fig.4. As the volume fraction index increases from ceramic to metal
the displacement also increases gradually within the range of
n=0(ceramic rich ) to n=5 and then decreases slowly as n become
larger (metal rich). It is noted that volume fraction index variation
affects the response of the FG plate, especially for thermal loading.
The values of ABD matrix components for Aluminum(Al) and
Zirconia (ZrO2) are shown in Fig.5.Due to the variation of material
properties through thickness the stretching-bending coupling exists
in FG plates. This coupling produces deflection and bending
moments when the plate is subjected to inplane loads. Fig 6 and fig
7 The force resultant NT and moment resultant MT increase as the
volume fraction increases to 2 and then decreases for material 1 and
3. But for material 2 the resultant decreases as volume fraction
increases. From the results we can observe that the displacement for
all the boundary conditions increases up to volume fraction 3 and
then decreases for material 1and 3. But for material 2 the values of
Moment Resultant increase just in the beginning but then exhibit
continuous decline as the Volume Fraction Index increases. This
different behavior of material 2 can be explained from the fact that
thermal force and moment resultant decreases as the volume
fraction increases.

Displacement (mm)

3.00
2.50
2.00
1.50
1.00
0.50
0.00

1.80E+05
1.60E+05
1.40E+05
1.20E+05
1.00E+05
8.00E+04
6.00E+04
4.00E+04
2.00E+04
0.00E+00

ABD Value

3
4
5
Volume fraction index(n)

NT

1.70E+02
1.60E+02
1.50E+02
1.40E+02
1.30E+02
1.20E+02
1.10E+02
1.00E+02
9.00E+01
8.00E+01
7.00E+01
6.00E+01

Material 1
Material 2
Material 3
0

volume fractiom index (n)

Fig 6: Thermal force resultant against volume fraction index

MT
6

Volume Fraction index (n)

Fig 5 : Variation of ABD value with respect to n.

Material1
Material 2
Material 3

A11
A12
B11
B12
B16
D11
D12
D16

3.60E+01
3.40E+01
3.20E+01
3.00E+01
2.80E+01
2.60E+01
2.40E+01
2.20E+01
2.00E+01
1.80E+01
1.60E+01
1.40E+01

Material1
Material 2
Material 3

Volume Fraction index( n)

Fig 2: Thermal displacement for S1 Boundary Conditions

Fig 7: Thermal Moment resultant against volume fraction index.

ISBN 978-93-80609-17-1
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International Conference on Recent Advances in Mechanical Engineering and Interdisciplinary Developments [ICRAMID - 2014]

VII CONCLUSIONS.

B. Thermal Buckling of FGM Plates for varying temperature

A FGM square plate of size a=1m and thickness=0.01m is
considered. Due to symmetry a quarter plates is considered for
analysis using 3x3 meshes. The plate is subjected to linearly varying
temperature gradient (0 to 1000 C) through thickness and the results
are presented in Fig8. to Fig.10.As the volume fraction index
increases the displacement also increases gradually up to the
volume fraction index n is equal to 5 and decreases as n value
increases beyond 5 for material 1 and 3. For the material 2 for S1,
S2and S3 boundary condition the displacement increases up to n is
1 and thereafter not much variation. For S3 boundary conditions the
variation is negligible. The reason for this different behavior of
material 2 can be explained from the force and the moment
resultants which are given in Fig. 5. and Fig 6 The force resultant
NT and moment resultant MT increase as the volume fraction
increases up to 2 and then decreases for material 1 and 3. But for
material 2 the resultant decreases as volume fraction increases for
all values of n. moment resultants decreases as volume fraction
index increases from 0 to 0.4 and increases after n is 0.8. The reason
for this is from the fact that material property from Table 3 such as
youngs modulus variation is more for constituent materials in
material 1 and 2 but coefficient of thermal expansion variation for
material 1 is more and very less for material 2.
35
Material 1
30
Material 2
25
Material 3
20
15
10
5
0
0
2 Volume Fraction
4 index (n) 6
8
Fig 8: Thermal buckling for S1 Boundary Conditions
45
Buckling Load(N)

The Finite Element formulation using Semiloof shell element with

Functionally Graded Material modeling is presented. The accuracy
of the numerical results is verified with the existing result from the
literature and the results are agreeing well. The displacement under
uniform pressure load is studied for a square plate and found out
that as the volume fraction increases the displacement also
increases. For the thermal load the displacement is different from
mechanical load behavior and it is influenced by the thermal force
and moment resultants.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The authors wish to thank Velammal Engineering College
Chennai and DMI college of Engineering, Chennai to carry out this
work successfully.
REFERENCES.
[1]V. Birman ,W.L.Byrd , Modeling and Analysis of Functionally
Graded Materials and Structures, Applied Mechanics, Rev. 60
pp 195-216, 2010.
[2] H.Matsunaga , Stress analysis of functionally graded plates
subjected to thermal and mechanical loadings, Composite
Structures, 87 ,pp 344-357,2009.
[3] K.S. Na , J.H. Kim, Comprehensive Studies on Mechanical
stress Analysis of Functionally Graded Plates, World Academy of
Science Engineering and Technology. 60, pp 768-773,2011.
[4] X. Zhao , Y.Y.Lee , K.M .Liew , Mechanical and thermal
buckling analysis of functionally graded plates, Composite
Structures,90 pp 161-171,2009.
[5] H. Matsunaga , Thermal Buckling of Functionally graded
plates according to a 2D higher order deformation theory,
Composite Structures, 90, pp 76-86,2009.
[6] M.Mahdavian , Buckling Analysis of Simply- supported
Functionally Graded Rectangular Plates under Non -uniform
In- plane Compressive Loading, Journal of Solid Mechanics. 1,
pp 213-225.,2009.
[7] O.O.Oyekoya , D.U.Mba , A.M.Ei-Zafrany, Buckling and
Vibration Analysis of functionally Graded Composite Structures
using the finite element Method, Composite Structures. 89,
pp134-142, 2009.
[8] H.Matsunaga , Free vibration and stability of functionally
graded circular cylindrical shells according to a 2D higher order
deformation theory , Composite Structures, 88, pp 519-531,2009.
[9] A.M . Zenkour , D.S. Daound , Thermal buckling analysis of
Ceramic -metal functionally graded plates, Journal of National
Science ,2, pp 967-978, 2010.
[10] R.K.Thangaratnam , Palaninathan, J.Ramachandran , Thermal
Stress Analysis of Laminated composite plate and shells,
Computers and Structures, 30, pp 1403-1411,1988.
[11] R.K.Thangaratnam , Palaninathan, J.Ramachandran ,
Buckling of Composite Cylindrical Shells, Journal of Aerosociety
of India. 41, pp 47- 54,1989.
[12] R.K.Thangaratnam , Palaninathan, J.Ramachandran, Thermal
Buckling of Laminated Composite shells, AIAA. Journal. 28.
pp 859-860,1990.
[13] K.S. Na , J.H. Kim, Three dimensional thermal buckling
analysis of functionally graded material, Composites, part B. 35,
pp 429-437, 2004.
[14].Zhao, X. and Liew, K.M., "A mesh free method for analysis of
the thermal and mechanical buckling of FG cylindrical panels",
Computational Mechanics. 45, pp.297-310, 2010
[15] Vel, S.S., "Exact elasticity solution for the vibration of
functionally graded anisotropic cylindrical shells". Composite
structures., Vol.92, pp2712-2727, 2010.

Buckling Load(N)

Material 1

35

Material 2
Material 3

25
15
5
-5 0

2
4
6
Volume Fraction index(n)
Fig 9: Thermal buckling for S2 Boundary Conditions
Buckling Load (N)

140

Material 1
Material 2
Material 3

120
100
80
60
40
20
0

2
4
6
8
Volume Fraction index (n)
Fig 10: Thermal buckling for S3 Boundary Conditions.

ISBN 978-93-80609-17-1
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