New Nonlinear Buckling Solutions of Piezoelectric Truncated Conical Shells

2026-99-1262

9/4/2026

Authors
Abstract
Content
Piezoelectric materials are highly valued in engineering for their electromechanical coupling. With these characteristics, structural applications utilizing such materials are increasingly being employed across a variety of disciplines. Among these structural configurations, piezoelectric conical shells have garnered significant interest owing to their inherent electromechanical coupling behavior, making them ideal for applications in various devices such as actuation systems, sensing mechanisms and energy harvesting solutions. To ensure the structural safety of these devices, assessing the stability of such shell structures is essential. This study conducts an analysis of the buckling stability of truncated piezoelectric conical shells. To this end, a theoretical buckling model for piezoelectric truncated conical shells is established, based on first-order shear deformation theory combined with nonlinear pre-buckling deformations. Utilizing a novel set of displacement trial functions within the Galerkin framework, this study derives precise critical buckling loads along with their associated mode shapes. The accuracy of the model is verified through comparative studies in the numerical section. Subsequently, the influence of key parameters—including applied voltages, semi-apex angles, and shell thickness—on the buckling behavior is investigated. The findings indicate that including the nonlinear pre-buckling deformation in the analysis is essential for ensuring reliable predictions. This research offers a theoretical foundation for the dependable design and assessment of piezoelectric truncated conical shells. Moreover, they also create opportunities for smart structures in aerospace, civil, and robotics, where accurate predictions of stability under electromechanical loading are critical.
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DOI
https://doi.org/10.4271/2026-99-1262
Citation
Zhang, J., Chen, L., Jia, J., and Zhou, Z., "New Nonlinear Buckling Solutions of Piezoelectric Truncated Conical Shells," 2025 6th International Conference on Applied Mechanics and Mechanical Engineering (ICAMME 2025), Beijing, China, December 12, 2025, https://doi.org/10.4271/2026-99-1262.
Additional Details
Publisher
Published
Yesterday
Product Code
2026-99-1262
Content Type
Technical Paper
Language
English