Free vibration and buckling of polymeric shells reinforced with 3D graphene foams

Abstract

In this paper, free vibration and buckling of polymeric shells reinforced with three-dimensional graphene foams (3D-GrFs) are investigated for the first time. The 3D-GrFs/polymer composites are prepared by infiltrating liquid epoxy resin into the porous structure. Thereinto, three-dimensional graphene foams can distribute uniformly or non-uniformly in the shell thickness direction. The effective Young’s modulus, mass density and Poisson’s ratio are predicted by the rule of mixture. Based on Love’s thin shell theory, governing equations and corresponding boundary conditions are derived by Hamilton’s principle. Then, free vibration and axial buckling of three-dimensional graphene foam reinforced polymer (3D-GrFRP) shells are analyzed by using the Navier method and the Galerkin method. Results show that the 3D-GrF skeleton type, the 3D-GrF skeleton weight fraction, the foam coefficient, the radius-to-thickness ratio, and the length-to-radius ratio play important role on mechanical characteristics of 3D-GrFRP shells. Keywords: 3D graphene foams, Reinforced polymer shells, Love’s shell theory, Buckling, Vibration