Vibration analysis of thin circular plates with multiple openings by the assumed mode method

Circular plates with openings are used in many engineering structures, especially as swash bulkheads in cargo tanks of liquefied gas carriers. In this article, an approximate procedure is worked out for the vibration analysis of circular plates with different boundary conditions and a different number and size of openings with an arbitrary arrangement within the plate area. The assumed mode method, recently used in the vibration analysis of rectangular plates, is applied in this case. Following the basic idea, the effect of the openings is accounted for by subtracting the potential and kinetic energy of the cut-out plate parts corresponding to the total plate energies without openings. The procedure is illustrated with numerical examples related to the vibration analysis of annular plates and circular plates with openings. The results are evaluated through their comparison with an analytical and finite element method solution.