Large deflection electro-mechanical analysis of composite structures bonded with macro-fiber composite actuators considering thermal loads

In this paper, static analysis of laminated composite plates and shells bonded with macro-fiber composite (MFC) actuators under thermo-electro-mechanical loads is considered. Most earlier studies in the literature focused on the effects of MFC actuation power and fiber orientations on shape deformation of composite plates/shells subjected to electrical voltage only. Also most of the earlier studies on MFC- $$\hbox {d}_{33}$$ bonded smart structures in literature are performed by commercial softwares like Ansys or Abaqus using the thermal strain equivalent approach to model the piezomechanical coupling. Here, our earlier developed geometrically nonlinear plate and shell finite elements considering finite rotation theory are extended for MFC actuator-bonded composite structures taking into account additionally the response to temperature gradients. An improved Reissner–Mindlin hypothesis is considered to derive the variational formulation, in which a parabolic assumption of transverse shear strains across the thickness is assumed. MFC actuators dominated by the $$\hbox {d}_{33}$$ effect (MFC- $$\hbox {d}_{33}$$ ) with arbitrary fiber orientations are considered. The numerical model is validated with composite beams and plates by comparing the results of simulations with experimental investigations existing in the literature. An angle-ply composite shell structure is studied in detail concerning geometrically nonlinear analysis of bending and twisting deformations under different MFC- $$\hbox {d}_{33}$$ fiber orientations under electric loading. Shape control of thermally induced deformations of composite plates and shells is performed using bonded MFC- $$\hbox {d}_{33}$$ actuators and the significance of the present geometrically nonlinear model is highlighted.