Interfacial stress analysis of functionally graded beams strengthened with a bonded hygrothermal aged composite plate

Abstract

This paper reports an improved analytical solution for analysis the problem of interface stresses in functionally graded beam (FGB) strengthened with bonded hygrothermal aged composite plates. The material properties of the functionally graded beam are supposed to vary according to power law distribution of the volume fraction of the constituents through the beam thickness. The obtained results are compared with the existing solutions in the literature to verify the validity of the new analytical approach. It is found that the inhomogeneities play an important role in reducing the stress concentrations along bi-material interfaces. Finally, a parametric study was carried out to show the effects of the fiber volume fraction, the hygrothermal effect, and some design variables, e.g. thickness of adhesive layer and FRP plate on the magnitude of maximum shear and normal stress.

Keywords:

• Interfacial stresses
• FG beam
• hygrothermal aged composite plate
• strengthening
• composites

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments and suggestions that have led to an improvement in the quality of the paper.