A Zigzag Theory with Local Shear Correction Factors for Semi-Analytical Bending Modal Analysis of Functionally Graded Viscoelastic Circular Sandwich Plates

Free bending vibration analysis of the functionally graded viscoelastic circular sandwich plates is accomplished in the present paper, for the first time. Furthermore, local shear corrections factors are presented that may consider simultaneous effects of the gradual variations of the material properties and the viscoelastic behaviors of the materials, for the first time. Moreover, in contrast to the available works, a global-local zigzag theory rather than an equivalent single-layer theory is employed in the analysis. Another novelty is solving the resulted governing equations by a power series that may cover several boundary conditions. To extract more general conclusions, sandwich plates with both symmetric and asymmetric (with a bending-extension coupling) layups are considered. Results are validated by comparing some of them with results of the three-dimensional theory of elasticity, even for the thick plates. Influences of various geometric and material properties parameters on free vibration of the circular sandwich plates are evaluated in detail in the results section.