Dynamic inelastic response and buckling of metal matrix composite infinitely wide plates due to thermal shocks

A micromechanical approach is combined with a structural analysis in order to investigate the thermally induced response and dynamic thermal buckling of infinitely wide plates composed of elastic-viscoplastic matrix reinforced by elastic fibres. The micromechanical analysis relies on the thermoelastic and inelastic properties of the constituents of the composite, and provides the instantaneous effective relation for the metal matrix composite at any point of the structure. The structural analysis employs the classical and higher-order plate theories in conjunction with a spatial finite difference and temporal Runge-Kutta integrations to generate the dynamic response of the plate. Results are given that illustrate the effects of the metallic matrix inelasticity, shear deformation, fibre orientation and initial geometrical imperfectionon the dynamic response of the metal matrix composite plate subjected to various types of thermal shocks.