Effect of nonhomogeneity in orthotropic curved plates

It is noted that in the design of fiber-reinforced plastic structures, it is often necessary to use fibers with different modulus and strength properties in order to minimize the extreme fiber stress. Curved members of uniform thickness and such type of mixed fiber structure may then be approximated by radially nonhomogeneous orthotropic curved plates. In the present paper, the bending behavior of a nonhomogeneous orthotropic curved plate subjected to surface tractions and edge forces is investigated. The layered fiber reinforcement in the plate is assumed to be radially nonhomogeneous and orthotropic, and the Airy's stress function approach is used. It is concluded that the results of the analysis may be used to minimize the extreme fiber stress on one radial surface, while keeping the stress level on the other surface as low as possible.