Natural frequency and stability analysis of axially moving functionally graded carbon nanotube-reinforced composite thin plates

This paper deals with the natural frequency and stability of axially moving functionally graded carbon nanotube-reinforced composite (FG-CNTRC) rectangular thin plates. Based on Reddy's first-order shear deformation theory, the partial differential equations of motion for axially moving FG-CNTRC plates in thermal environment are derived by Hamilton's principle and discretized by the Galerkin method. The in-plane displacement and inertia of the plate are retained in the dynamic model. By solving the complex eigenvalues of the gyroscope system, the variations of natural frequencies of the axially moving FG-CNTRC plates with axial moving velocity are obtained, and the stability of the plates is analyzed. The validity of the present model is verified by comparing the natural frequencies and the critical divergence velocity of the axially moving plate with the existing results in literature. The divergence and flutter type of instability, critical divergence velocity, and critical flutter velocity are studied. The numerical results reveal the effects of CNT distribution, volume fraction, aspect ratio, width-to-thickness ratio, and temperature rise on the natural frequencies of the plates. Additionally, the effects of geometry parameters on the critical divergence velocity and critical flutter velocity of axially moving FG-CNTRC plates are studied by plotting the instability regions.