Open Access
ARTICLE
Three Dimensional Coupling between Elastic and Thermal Fields in the Static Analysis of Multilayered Composite Shells
Salvatore Brischetto*, Roberto Torre, Domenico Cesare
Politecnico di Torino, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Torino, 10129, Italy
* Corresponding Author: Salvatore Brischetto. Email:
(This article belongs to this Special Issue: Theoretical and Computational Modeling of Advanced Materials and Structures)
Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences 2023, 136(3), 2551-2594. https://doi.org/10.32604/cmes.2023.026312
Received 29 August 2022; Accepted 08 November 2022; Issue published 09 March 2023
Abstract
This new work aims to develop a full coupled thermomechanical method including both the temperature profile
and displacements as primary unknowns of the model. This generic full coupled 3D exact shell model permits the
thermal stress investigation of laminated isotropic, composite and sandwich structures. Cylindrical and spherical
panels, cylinders and plates are analyzed in orthogonal mixed curved reference coordinates. The 3D equilibrium
relations and the 3D Fourier heat conduction equation for spherical shells are coupled and they trivially can be
simplified in those for plates and cylindrical panels. The exponential matrix methodology is used to find the
solutions of a full coupled model based on coupled differential relations with respect to the thickness coordinate.
The analytical solution is based on theories of simply supported edges and harmonic relations for displacement
components and sovra-temperature. The sovra-temperature magnitudes are directly applied at the outer faces
through static state hypotheses. As a consequence, the sovra-temperature description is assumed to be an unknown
variable of the model and it is calculated in the same way as the three displacements. The final system is based on a set
of coupled homogeneous differential relations of second order in the thickness coordinate. This system is reduced
in a first order differential relation system by redoubling the number of unknowns. Therefore, the exponential
matrix methodology is applied to calculate the solution. The temperature field effects are evaluated in the static
investigation of shells and plates in terms of displacement and stress components. After an appropriate preliminary
validation, new benchmarks are discussed for several thickness ratios, geometrical data, lamination sequences,
materials and sovra-temperature values imposed at the outer faces. Results make evident the accordance between
the uncoupled thermo-mechanical model and this new full coupled thermo-mechanical model without the need
to separately solve the Fourier heat conduction relation. Both effects connected with the thickness layer and the
related embedded materials are included in the conducted thermal stress analysis.
Keywords
Cite This Article
Brischetto, S., Torre, R., Cesare, D. (2023). Three Dimensional Coupling between Elastic and Thermal Fields in the Static Analysis of Multilayered Composite Shells.
CMES-Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences, 136(3), 2551–2594.