Elastic buckling of rectangular fiber-metal laminated plates under uniaxial compression

In this article, the elastic buckling response of rectangular simply supported and clamped fiber-metal laminates (FMLs) subjected to uniaxial compressive loading is investigated using the finite element method and eigenvalue buckling analysis. Using validated finite element method (FEM) models, the buckling coefficient-aspect ratio diagrams and the mode shapes of nine GLARE grades are obtained and studied along with the diagrams and the mode shapes of three unidirectional glass-epoxy composites and monolithic 2024-T3 aluminum. It is found that the critical average buckling stress and the buckling load of the materials increases for increasing metal volume fraction, when the plate aspect ratio is greater than 1.5. The rule of mixtures is evaluated and found to be a simple method to estimate approximately the average critical buckling stress of the GLARE plates. An approximate formula is derived for the estimation of the critical buckling coefficient of the GLARE plates using the buckling coefficients of their constituents. The applicability of the results to thermoplastic-based FMLs is discussed.