Effect of piezoelectric fiber-reinforced composite (PFRC) actuator orientation on controllability of antisymmetric composite plates for active vibration control

Abstract

Piezoelectric materials have a wide range of application on the active vibration control of flexible structures as actuators and sensors due to its inverse and direct piezoelectric effect. In order to increase performance of active vibration control, piezoelectric fibers are stacked into single layer composite, making piezoelectric fiber-reinforced composite (PFRC) actuator and sensor. These actuators and sensors are used for active vibration control of a thin-walled structures, placing them at the surface of the structure. Since that, control performances depend on sizes, positions and orientations of PFRC actuators and sensors. The aim of this paper is to investigate the effect of PFRC actuator orientation and position (top or bottom) on controllability of cross-ply and angle-ply antisymmetric composite plates for active vibration control. Depending on layers' orientation, composite laminates possess coupling behavior (bending-stretching, bending-shear coupling). Since antisymmetric laminates possess bending-stretching coupling behavior, the effect of this behavior on controllability will be also discussed.