Hygrothermal effects on the flexural strength of laminated composite cylindrical panels

In this article, the effect of hygrothermal conditions on the bending behaviour of laminated composite cylindrical panels has been investigated by using a nonlinear finite element micromechanical model. The panel model has been developed mathematically by introducing the geometrical nonlinearity in Green-Lagrange sense in the framework of the higher-order shear deformation theory. In order to achieve any general case, all the nonlinear higher order terms have been incorporated in the present formulation and the lamina material property variations due to hygrothermal effect are included via the micromechanical model. The governing equation is obtained using the variational principle and discretised using nonlinear finite element steps. The convergence behaviour of the present numerical model has been established and validated by comparing the responses with the existing results in the literature. The effects of thickness ratio, lamination scheme and support conditions under different sets of hygrothermal conditions are investigated in details.