The analysis of nonlinear vibration characteristics of fiber-reinforced composite thin wall truncated conical shell: Theoretical and experimental investigation

In this paper, a model for truncated conical shells made of fiber-reinforced composite materials (FRCTWTCS) is advanced considering the material nonlinearity and strain dependency. This model is capable of predicting the natural frequencies, vibration responses, and damping ratios under different excitation amplitudes. Firstly, based on the Jones-Nelson nonlinear material theory and complex modulus method, the nonlinear elastic modulus, and shear modulus are characterized. Subsequently, considering the influence of semi-cone angle and excitation direction deflection angle, a comprehensive set of dynamic control equations is established using the Ritz method. Furthermore, to illustrate the effectiveness of the advanced modeling approach, a series of experiments are conducted using TC300/epoxy resin truncated conical shells as an example. The experimental results validate the effectiveness of the advanced modeling method. The comparative results indicate that the advanced nonlinear model outperforms the model that neglects strain dependency in terms of accuracy. The maximum errors between the predicted and measured values for the natural frequencies, vibration responses, and damping ratios are 1.7%, 3.4%, and 8.5%, respectively. Finally, the impact of various constrained boundary lengths, semi-cone angles, and fiber layup angles on the nonlinear vibration characteristics of the model is discussed. •A nonlinear vibration model for truncated conical shells made of fiber-reinforced composite materials (FRCTWTCS) is advanced considering the material nonlinearity and strain dependency.•The accuracy of the proposed model is validated by establishing a test bed to investigate the nonlinear vibration characteristics of the FRCTWTCS.•The impact of various constrained boundary lengths, semi-cone angles and fiber layup angles on the nonlinear vibration characteristics of the model is discussed.