Static and dynamic analysis of thin and thick sectorial plates by the finite strip method

Abstract Two and three-dimensional finite strips are developed for the analysis of thin and thick sectorial plates. The plates can be isotropic or orthotropic, of constant or variable thickness, and can have different combinations of boundary conditions. The displacement functions for the finite strips are made up of polynomial shape functions and beam eigenfunctions. The 2- D finite strips are derived based on plate bending theory and have as nodal degrees of freedom, the out-of-plane displacement and the slope. The 3- D finite strips are formulated using three-dimensional elasticity constitutive equations, and the three displacement components in a cylindrical co-ordinate system are chosen as the nodal degrees of freedom. Numerical results involving various boundary conditions, radii and subtended angles are presented. Comparisons are made with existing solutions whenever available. Close agreements are noted.