Low Velocity Impact Analysis of Functionally Graded Circular Plates Available to Purchase

Functionally graded materials (FGMs) are advanced composites with mechanical properties that vary continuously through a given dimension. FGMs have generated a great deal of interest in recent years due to their flexibility for use in a wide variety of environments, including those structural applications where extreme thermal and corrosion resistance are required. In this paper, analyses will be performed given an impact event that occurs between a spherical projectile and a functionally graded circular plate with both simply supported and clamped boundary conditions. The circular plates are constructed using zirconia and aluminum as constituents blended through the thickness in various configurations using a power-law distribution. The analyses will assume that the classical rule-of-mixtures (ROM) approach will sufficiently describe the macro-mechanical properties for the graded plates. First, impact response equations developed for composite materials are applied to estimate the impact force and maximum deflection of a functionally graded plate. Next, the elastic wave response of the functionally graded plate is predicted using the classic wave equation applied to the graded plate and the impact event. Finally, finite element simulations are developed to compare the analytical solutions to numerical results from a commercial software program. The degree of correlation between the analytical predictions and the finite element simulations will provide insight into the validity of the ROM assumption and provide a baseline for estimating impact behavior of functionally graded plates.