Three-dimensional Stability Analysis of Piezoelectric Antisymmetric Angle-Ply Laminates Using Finite Layer Method

The finite layer method is the most efficient numerical method for 3D analysis of simply supported rectangular plates. In this method, the plate is divided into a number of finite layers. Within each finite layer, trigonometric functions are used for the in-plane interpolations of displacements, whereas polynomials are employed for the interpolations in the thickness direction. Thus, the 3D analysis is transformed into a series of 1D analyses, and the efficiency is enhanced significantly. In the present study, the finite layer method is extended to the stability analysis of piezoelectric antisymmetric angle-ply laminates, which may be also combined with some symmetrical cross-plies. Numerical results are presented to verify the proposed method. The effects of side-to-thickness ratio, aspect ratio, number of plies, fiber-orientation, and electrical conditions on stability behaviors of some piezoelectric laminates are investigated.