A theoretical study on shape control of arbitrary lay-up laminates using piezoelectric actuators

This paper investigates the application of a piezoelectric actuator to control deformation of thin arbitrary lay-up composite laminates. A theoretical model based on Rayleigh–Ritz principle is developed to predict laminate cured shape and the effect of piezoelectric actuator layer. Several stacking sequences are studied using the model. When applied to pure composite laminates it is observed that cured shape of near-unidirectional laminates is always saddle. When applied to arbitrary lay-up piezo-composite laminates, it is found that the principal direction of the laminates can change with electric field. This is one unique feature of such type of laminates. A new FEA technique is proposed to deal with the multiple solution issue and obtain the stable solution more precisely.