Thermal buckling of angle-ply laminated composite and sandwich plates according to a global higher-order deformation theory

A two-dimensional global higher-order deformation theory is presented for thermal buckling of angle-ply laminated composite and sandwich plates. By using the method of power series expansion of continuous displacement components, a set of fundamental governing equations which can take into account the effects of both transverse shear and normal stresses is derived through the principle of virtual work. Several sets of truncated Mth order approximate theories are applied to solve the eigenvalue problems of simply supported laminated composite and sandwich plates. In order to assure the accuracy of the present theory, convergence properties of the critical temperatures are examined in detail. Numerical results are compared with those of the published three-dimensional layerwise theory in which both in-plane and normal displacements are assumed to be C-0 continuous in the continuity conditions at the interface between layers. Modal transverse shear and normal stresses can be calculated by integrating the three-dimensional equations of equilibrium in the thickness direction, and satisfying the continuity conditions at the interface between layers and stress boundary conditions at the external surfaces. Effects of the difference of displacement continuity conditions between the three-dimensional layerwise theory and the global higher-order theory are clarified in thermal buckling problems of angle-ply laminated and sandwich plates. (c) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.