Analysis on the buckling of imperfect functionally graded sandwich plates using new modified power-law formulations

Abstract

A new simple solution for critical buckling of FG sandwich plates under axial and biaxial loads is presented using new modified power-law formulations. Both even and uneven distributions of porosity are taken into account in this study. Material properties of the sandwich plate faces are assumed to be graded in the thickness direction according to a modified power-law distribution in terms of the volume fractions of the constituents. Equilibrium and stability equations of FG sandwich plate with various boundary conditions are derived using the higher-order shear deformation plate theory. The results reveal that the distribution shape of the porosity, the gradient index, loading type and functionally graded layers thickness have significant influence on the buckling response of functionally graded sandwich plates.