Chaotic response of a large deflection beam and effect of the second order mode

This study intends to investigate the dynamic behavior of a nonlinear elastic beam of large deflection. Using the Galerkin principle, the dynamic nonlinear governing equations are derived based on the single and double mode methods. Two different kinds of nonlinear dynamic equations are obtained with the variation of the dimension and loading parameters. The chaotic critical conditions are given by Melnikov function method for the single mode model. The chaotic motion is investigated and the comparison between single and double mode models is carried out. The results show that the single mode method usually used may lead to incorrect conclusions in some conditions, and instead the double mode or higher order mode method should be used. Finally, the applicable condition of the single mode method is analyzed.