Static and dynamic response of graphene nanocomposite plates with flexoelectric effect

Abstract

In this work, the electromechanical behaviors of graphene reinforced nanocomposite (GRNC) plates with flexoelectric effect were studied by using Kirchhoff's plate theory, Navier's solution and extended linear piezoelectricity theory in conjunction with the mechanics of materials (MOM) and finite element models. The static and dynamic responses of simply supported flexoelectric GRNC nanoplates under different loadings such as uniformly distributed, varying distributed, inline and point loads were investigated. The developed MOM and FE models envisage that the effective piezoelectric constants of a GRNC account for the actuating capability in its transverse direction due to the applied electric field in the plane. The elastic properties of pristine and defective graphene sheets were also estimated via molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and the obtained results are found in good agreement with the existing experimental and numerical results. Our results reveal that the flexoelectric effect on the static and dynamic responses of GRNC nanoplate is substantial and cannot be neglected. The electromechanical response of GRNC plates can be engineered to attain the desired deflection characteristics and resonant frequencies for a range of nanoelectromechanical systems using different boundary conditions as well as geometrical parameters such as aspect ratio/thickness of nanoplate and volume fraction of graphene. © 2019 Elsevier Ltd