Computation of homogenized stiffnesses of thin corrugated plates

Abstract

The homogenized stiffnesses of a corrugated plate are calculated by solving the periodicity cell problem of the homogenization theory by using two-steps dimension reduction procedure. The three-dimensional periodicity cell problem first reduces to a two-dimensional problem on the plate cross-sections. Then, provided that the plate is thin, the two-dimensional problem reduces to a one-dimensional problem, similar to the problem of curvilinear beam bending. Using the specifics of the arising one-dimensional problem, we construct its solution, depending on several constants. As a result, the solution of the cell problem and the calculation of the homogenized stiffnesses are reduced to solving algebraic equations. It is found that essential calculations are necessary only for finding the tension stiffness in the direction orthogonal to the corrugation profile. The remaining effective stiffnesses are easily calculated by numerically computing integrals of known functions. For some effective stiffnesses exact formulas are obtained.