Thermoelastic Frequency Prediction of Nanotube-Reinforced Graded Smart (Shape Memory Alloy-Reinforced) Sandwich Structure

Purpose: The thermoelastic free vibrational characteristics of sandwich composite shell panels reinforced with carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and bonded with shape memory alloy (SMA) fibres have been analyzed numerically utilizing the higher-order shear deformation theory (HOSDT). Method: The sandwich face sheets are considered to be CNT-reinforced composites (single-walled). In which CNTs are randomly oriented in XY-plane and functionally graded along the thickness coordinate (Z-axis). Moreover, the SMA has been introduced as a foreign functional material to improve the structural strength due to its inherent recovery stress characteristics under constraint conditions. The system of equations for vibration analysis is acquired via Hamilton’s principle, and the finite element (FE) approach is executed to attain the solution. Results: The current numerical solutions are validated by comparing them with published results. The impact of diverse design parameters such as volume fraction of individual constituents, aspect ratios, thickness ratio, types of CNT reinforcement, temperature and SMA pre-strain value on the eigenvalues of SMA embedded CNT reinforced sandwich structure are examined. Conclusions: The current outcomes suggest that using SMA at higher temperatures (active condition of SMA) is more effective in vibration control of the CNT-reinforced sandwich composite structure.