On dynamic instability of a pressurized functionally graded carbon nanotube reinforced truncated conical shell subjected to yawed supersonic airflow

The aeroelastic flutter characteristics of a functionally graded carbon nanotube reinforced composite (FG-CNTRC) truncated conical shell under simultaneous actions of a hydrostatic pressure and yawed supersonic airflow are scrutinized. The nonlinearity in geometry of the conical shell is considered in Green-Lagrange sense and the model is derived according to the Novozhilov nonlinear shell theory. The aerodynamic pressure is modeled based on the quasi-steady Krumhaar's modified supersonic piston theory by considering the effect of the panel curvature and flow yaw angle. Parametric studies are conducted to investigate the effects of boundary conditions, semi-vertex angle, distribution and volume fraction of CNT, Mach number and airflow yaw angle on the stability boundaries and flutter characteristics. The results show that the semi-vertex angle and CNT distribution may alter the stability boundaries. It is also found that the aeroelastic flutter responses of the structure can be significantly improved through a functionally graded distribution of CNT in a polymer matrix. Moreover, the aeroelastic characteristics of the FG-CNTRC truncated conical shell are found to be very sensitive to geometrical parameters and the airflow yaw angle. The results of this study shed a light into developing and using ultra-high-strength and low-weight composites reinforced with CNT for aerospace applications. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.