Acta Mech

https://doi.org/10.1007/s00707-022-03413-1

O R I G I NA L PA P E R

Abdelhak Khechai · Mohamed-Ouejdi Belarbi ·

Ahmed Bouaziz · Fares Mohammed Laid Rekbi

A general analytical solution of stresses around circular

holes in functionally graded plates under various in-plane
loading conditions

Received: 11 September 2022 / Revised: 18 October 2022 / Accepted: 19 October 2022

© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Austria, part of Springer Nature 2022

Abstract In the present work, for the first time, a general analytical solution is developed and applied for
functionally graded (FG) composite laminated plates with circular cutouts under various in-plane loading
conditions. The stress resultants are expressed in a simple and elegant form. Firstly, the extension is achieved
by first introducing arbitrarily oriented uniaxial, biaxial, and shear loading conditions into Greszczuk’s solution.
Then, the expressions of effective moduli of unsymmetrical laminated plates, obtained by the layer lumping
method, are introduced in the present solution. The FG plate can be discretized into a large number of skinny
orthotropic layers such that a continuous gradation of their mechanical properties can be obtained. The material
properties of the FG plate are graded continuously through the thickness direction according to a power-law
function. The robustness and accuracy of the proposed analytical solution are ascertained by comparing its
results with analytical findings using the complex variable method and those predicted by the finite element
method (FEM). This comparison demonstrates a good level of agreement between these results. Results
also show the validity of the proposed solution for both symmetric and non-symmetric FG-laminated plates.
Moreover, a comprehensive parametric study is examined and discussed in detail to show the effects of various
parameters such as gradation of the material properties and applied loading on the orientation of material axes
and the stress distribution around the cutout. The present analytical findings can serve as a benchmark for
future research on the modeling of multilayered perforated FG plates.

1 Introduction

Multilayered structures with cutouts made from composite materials have found widespread applications, and
they have been successfully applied to different engineering fields. In such applications, the cutout shapes
generally used are circular, elliptical, or square. The values of stress concentrations (SCs) around such holes
become high when the plates are subjected to different loading conditions. However, various serious issues
can appear in these kinds of structures. Firstly, the irregularity of the mechanical properties between the
adjacent laminas creates interlaminar SCs at the free edges, which has been noticed to be one of the sources
of delamination and other types of composite structure failures (see e.g., [1–9]). Thus, functionally graded
materials (FGMs) were introduced to overcome these disadvantages and to reduce the interlaminar SCs in
multilayered structures by serving as tailored interfacial zone materials with continuously varying properties
[10–13]. On the other hand, the presence of cutouts changes the mechanical behavior of FG structures and
produces an undesirable SC surrounding these holes [14–16].

A. Khechai · M.-O. Belarbi (B) · A. Bouaziz

Laboratoire de Recherche en Génie Civil, LRGC, University of Biskra, B.P. 145 R.P, 07000 Biskra, Algeria
e-mail: mo.belarbi@univ-biskra.dz; Belarbi.m.w@gmail.com
F. M. L. Rekbi
Research Centre in Industrial Technologies - CRTI, P.O. Box 64, 16014 Cheraga, Algiers, Algeria
 A. Khechai et al.

Over the years, perforated multilayered composite structures have attracted vast and increasing attention
of investigators in broad areas of research owing to their wide applications in many engineering fields. So
far, various numerical analyses have been carried out to understand the complex behavior of such structures
[16, 17]. Furthermore, some analytical solutions have also been provided for multilayered and FG structures.
For instance, for orthotropic materials, such as spruce wood and sheet metal, where the elastic properties in
three perpendicular directions are different, Green and Zerna [18] proposed a theoretical solution to identify
the stress distribution around circular holes in perforated orthotropic plates. Later, Greszczuk [19] and Arslan
et al. [20] extended the Green and Zerna solution, and new results were obtained for SCs and failure loads of
orthotropic composite plates. Their solutions were derived for single layers subjected to uniaxial, biaxial, and
shear loading. Recently, Khechai et al. [21, 22] extended the Greszczuk’s and Arslan’s solutions to determine
the stress distributions in symmetric multilayered plates subjected to arbitrarily in-plane loadings. This was
achieved by introducing arbitrarily oriented uniaxial, biaxial, and shear loading conditions into Greszczuk’s
solution.
In other areas, FG plates may also have some holes that lead to SCs, which should be addressed effectively.
The FG plates are characterized by a continuous variation of the mechanical properties either along the length
or thickness of the plates. The problem of SC surrounding circular holes in FG plates, with varying material
properties along the radial direction, has been investigated by Yang et al. [23, 24], Mohammadi et al. [25, 26],
Kim and Paulino [27], Kubair et al. [28], and Enab [29].
The FG plates with through-thickness variation are also studied by Batra et al. [30], Pan [31], Ramirez
et al. [32], Croce et al. [32], Reid and Paskaramoorthy [33], and others. In their works, they solved analytically
and numerically various problems like static analysis and natural frequency. When the material properties
of the FG plate are varied through the thickness, an unsymmetry in the orientation of the material axes is
introduced with respect to the global coordinate system. Such different orientations of material axes bring a
coupling effect between stresses and moments in the plate [34]. Recently, Dave and Sharma [34, 35] derived
analytical solutions for FG plates having circle, elliptical [35], and rectangular [34] discontinuities using the
complex variable approach [36]. Here, their solutions were given for FG plates where the material properties
vary exponentially in the thickness direction. Based on complex variable method, Jafari et al. [37] proposed a
general solution of stress field in exponential FGM plates with rectangular cutout under uniaxial tensile load.
On the other hand, Jafari et al. [38] presented analytically the resultant forces and moments acting on infinite
symmetric FG plates with a triangular hole subject to uniaxial tensile load using also the complex variable
approach. Furthermore, and for stress concentration mitigation, Goyat et al. [39–41] studied SC reduction
using different FGMs layer around the circular holes in an infinite homogeneous material panel for different
load conditions, while Yonggang and Yun [42] provided a general solution to the anti-plane shear problem
of an arbitrarily shaped hole reinforced with an FG layer in a homogenous plate by using the piece-wise
homogeneous layers method and the conformal mapping technique. On the other hand, Quanquan et al. [43]
studied the out-of-plane bending problems of FG thin plates with a circular hole. The thin plates had arbitrary
variations of elastic properties along the radial direction. The general solutions of the stresses and moments
were presented for plates subjected to remote bending moments based on the theory of complex variable
functions. More recently, Goyat et al. [44] carried out a stress concentration analysis of an inverse distance
weighted function FGM panel with a circular hole under biaxial loading.
Based on the aforementioned review, one can see that the majority of previous works on the FG plates
with cutouts is based on their solutions on complex variable method. This method is powerful in solving a
wide variety of elasticity problems; however, it is very complicated and must be reformulated for each type
of far-field load [21]. Therefore, in the current study, a simple exact analytical solution for FG plates with
circular cutouts subjected to external uniaxial, biaxial, and shear loading oriented at an arbitrary angle with
respect to x-direction is proposed. This solution can be considered as an extension of Greszczuk’s [19], Arslan
et al. [20], and Khechai’s [21] previous solutions to unsymmetrical multilayered FG plates. The expressions
of effective moduli of unsymmetrical laminated plates, obtained by the layer lumping method, are introduced
in the present solution. The through-thickness gradation of the FGMs properties is obtained according to the
power-law function. New referential solutions for the corresponding multilayered FGM plates are obtained
and discussed considering the influence of various parameters such as gradation of the material properties
and applied loading on the orientation of material axes and the stress distribution around the cutout. The
comparison studies show that the proposed analytical solution has exactly reproduced most of the results of the
analytical solution of Dave and Sharma [34, 35] for FG plates with circular holes. In addition to the different
cases mentioned above, several other cases are studied by the proposed solution. To the best of the authors’
knowledge, it is the first time that perforated FGM plates under external uniaxial, biaxial, and shear loading
A general analytical solution of stresses around circular holes

Fig. 1 Anisotropic composite single layers with holes subjected to various types of loading

oriented at an arbitrary angle with respect to x-direction are studied analytically based on Green and Zerna
approach. Finally, it can be concluded that the proposed solution is simple, accurate, and gives the design
engineer a useful tool for optimizing FGM laminated plates in the presence of discontinuities.

2 Mathematical formulation

2.1 Stresses in the composite plate with a cutout

In this Section, the available formulations for stress distribution around a hole in orthotropic and anisotropic
plates, using the Green and Zerna approach, are presented in brief.

2.1.1 Stresses in an infinite anisotropic plate with a cutout

An anisotropic composite plate is described as a plate with oriented fibers. The approximate analytical solution,
for uniaxial loaded anisotropic single layer as shown in Fig. 1a, using the analytical approach of Green and
Zerna [18] is given for the first time by Greszczuk [19]. This solution allows us to determine the circumferential
stress σ αθ at any point α at the edge of the circular cutout periphery as:
σαθ  [ψ1 + ψ2 + ψ3 ]ω−1 σx (1)
with
 
ψ1  (1 + γ1 )(1 + γ2 ) 1 + γ1 + γ 2 − γ1 γ2 − 2 cos 2(α − θ ) ,
 
ψ2  −4 γ1 + γ2 − (1 + γ1 γ2 ) cos 2(α − θ) sin2 α,
ψ3  −4(γ1 γ2 − 1) sin 2(α − θ ) sin θ cos θ ,
  
ω  1 + γ12 − 2γ1 cos 2(α − θ ) 1 + γ22 − 2γ2 cos 2(α − θ) (2)
where θ is the fiber orientation angle. The constants γ1 and γ2 are given by:
 
γ1  (ξ − 1) (ξ + 1) , γ2  (ϑ − 1) (ϑ + 1) (3)
with
  1/2 1/2   1/2 1/2 E2 E2
ξ  ζ + ζ2 − η , ϑ  ζ − ζ2 − η , ζ  − v21 , and η  . (4)
2G 12 E1
The terms E 1 , E 2 , G12 , and ν 12 are Young’s moduli, shear modulus, and Poisson’s ratio in material
directions, respectively. For anisotropic composite plates with oriented fibers subjected to pure shear or biaxial
loading conditions as shown in Fig. 1b and c, respectively, the approximate analytical solution for these cases
can be obtained by resolving the applied stress into the stress components associated with the symmetry axes
of the material [20].
 A. Khechai et al.

The analytical solution of Greszczuk [19] was extended by Arslan et al. [20] to calculate the circumferential
stress around circular cutouts. Upon superposition, the resulting equation for the circumferential stress at any
point α at the edge of an opening in an anisotropic plate becomes:
 
σα  M1 N1 + M2 N2 − M3 N3 ω−1 (5)
with
 
N1  (1 + γ1 )(1 + γ2 ) 1 + γ1 + γ 2 − γ1 γ2 − 2 cos 2(α − θ ) ,
 
N2  (1 − γ1 )(1 − γ2 ) 1 − γ1 − γ 2 − γ1 γ2 + 2 cos 2(α − θ) ,
N3  4(γ1 γ2 − 1) sin 2(α − θ ),
 
M1  σx (1 + cos 2θ) + σ y (1 − cos 2θ) 2,
 
M2  σx (1 − cos 2θ) + σ y (1 + cos 2θ) 2,
  
M3  σx − σ y sin 2θ 2. (6)

2.1.2 Stresses in infinite multilayered plates with cutouts

In a laminated plate consisting of several layers, each having different material properties and different fiber
orientation angles, the circumferential stress around the opening can be approximated from the previously given
solutions provided that the equivalent elastic constants corresponding to a symmetric multilayer composite
plate are used. Once the resultant stresses for the laminate are known, the local stresses in various layers
can be determined using the multilayer plate theory. Here, it is assumed that the laminate is symmetric with
uniform thickness. All laminae are homogeneous, orthotropic, and perfectly bonded together. The values of
stiffness moduli Aij , based on the classical laminate theory CLT, for symmetrically laminated plate [22] can
be calculated by taking [A]  [a]−1 where
⎡ ∗ ∗ ∗ ⎤
a11 a12 a16 H/2
−1 ⎣ ∗ ∗ a∗ ⎦
[a]  H a21 a22 26 , V[1,2,3,4]  [cos 2θ , cos 4θ , sin 2θ , sin 4θ ]dz, (7)
∗ a∗ a∗
a61 62 16 −H/2
⎛ ∗⎞ ⎡ ⎤⎛ ⎞ ⎛ ∗ ⎞ ⎡ ⎤⎛ ⎞
a11 U1 V1 V2 H a66 U5 0 −V2 H
∗ ∗
⎝ a22 ⎠  ⎣ U1 −V1 V2 ⎦⎝ U2 ⎠, ⎝ a16 ⎠  ⎣ 0 0.5V3 V4 ⎦⎝ U2 ⎠ (8)
∗
a12 U 4 0 −V 2 U3 ∗
a26 0 0.5V 3 −V 4 U3
where H is the total thickness of the plate and U j are the laminate invariants defined in terms of reduced
stiffness Qij matrix components as:
U1  (3Q 11 + 3Q 22 + 2Q 12 + 4Q 66 )/8,
U2  (Q 11 − Q 22 )/2,
U3  (Q 11 + Q 22 − 2Q 12 − 4Q 66 )/8,
U4  (Q 11 + Q 22 + 6Q 12 − 4Q 66 )/8,
U5  (Q 11 + Q 22 − 2Q 12 + 4Q 66 )/8. (9)
These are the invariants given for the entire laminate by the reduced stiffness matrix components of the
composite. For symmetric laminated plates, the circumferential stresses around the opening (corresponding to
the various cases of loading) can be obtained if one replaces γ 1 and γ 2 , which appear in Eq. (3), by χ 1 and
χ 2 as:
     
χ1  ξ  − 1 ξ  + 1 , χ2  ϑ  − 1 ϑ  + 1 (10)
with
  1/2 1/2     2 1/2 1/2  Ey Ey
ξ   ζ  + ζ 2 − η , ϑ  ζ − ζ − η , ζ  − v yx and η  . (11)
2G x y Ex
The terms E x , E y , Gxy , and ν xy are the equivalent elastic constants for the symmetric laminate.
A general analytical solution of stresses around circular holes

Fig. 2 Laminate with arbitrarily oriented layers subjected to general loading conditions

The previous solutions of Greszczuk [19] and Arslan [20] were extended by Khechai et al. [21] to determine
the stress distribution in single layer and multilayered composite plates subjected to external uniaxial, biaxial,
and shear loading oriented at an arbitrary angle β with respect to the x-axis (see Fig. 2).
The stresses developed in each layer of the laminate due to the oriented fiber and loading must be resolved
into components (along the fiber direction, transverse direction, and shear) associated with the axes of symmetry
of the material by static equilibrium rules. Then, the stress distribution function could be determined by
superposition. The stress distribution for the multilayered composite plate subjected to general oriented loading,
as shown in Fig. 2, could be calculated as:
σα  [B1 C1 + B2 C2 − B3 C3 ]C4−1 (12)
with
C1  (1 + χ1 )(1 + χ2 )[1 + χ1 + χ 2 − χ1 χ2 − 2 cos 2(α − θ)],
C2  (1 − χ1 )(1 − χ2 )[1 − χ1 − χ 2 − χ1 χ2 + 2 cos 2(α − θ )],
C3  4(χ1 χ2 − 1) sin 2(α − θ ),
  
C4  1 + χ12 − 2χ1 cos 2(α − θ ) 1 + χ22 − 2χ2 cos 2(α − θ ) ,

B1  [σ {1 + cos 2(θ − β)} + λσ {1 − cos 2(θ − β)}] 2 + S sin 2(θ − β),

B2  [σ {1 − cos 2(θ − β)} + λσ {1 + cos 2(θ − β)}] 2 − S sin 2(θ − β),

B3  [(σ − λσ ) sin 2(θ − β)] 2 − S cos 2(θ − β). (13)
Remark: Any of the above solutions is valid if the size of the opening is small in comparison with the
dimensions of the plate. The opening can be considered small if the ratio of the plate width to the diameter of
the opening is equal to or larger than 4 [21].
Remark: The equivalent elastic constants for the laminate are for balanced and symmetric laminate only.
These solutions cannot be used if the laminate is not balanced or symmetric [21].

2.2 A general solution for in-plane loading with arbitrary biaxial and shear loading conditions

The arbitrary biaxial and shear loading conditions are considered for arbitrary orientation of uniaxial tension,
any ratio of biaxial tension, and shear stress at infinity. In order to get several in-plane loading cases in one
single solution, the arbitrary biaxial and shear loading conditions are introduced into the boundary conditions.
These conditions have been adapted from Ukadgaonker and Rao [45] general solution for stresses around holes
in symmetric laminates.
 A. Khechai et al.

Fig. 3 FG plate with a circular hole

The remotely applied loading is considered about arbitrary coordinate axes (x’ and y’) rotated by an angle
β from the principal body directions x and y as shown in Fig. 3. The boundary conditions are

σx∞  λσ , σ y∞  σ , and τx∞ y   S (14)

where σx∞ , σ y∞ , and τx∞ y  are the stresses applied about x’, y’ axes. λ is a scalar parameter. By transformation
of axes, the boundary conditions in Eq. (24) are explicitly written as

N x∞  σx∞  σ [(λ + 1) + (λ − 1) cos 2β] 2,

N y∞  σ y∞  σ [(λ + 1) − (λ − 1) cos 2β] 2,

N x∞y  τx∞y  σ [(λ − 1) sin 2β] 2 or τx∞y  S. (15)

The following values of λ and β will be taken in Eq. (15) to obtain the required conditions of loading. For
uniaxial tension at infinity, the load parameters are: λ  0 and β   0. In the case of tension load along the
x and y directions, the loading conditions are: β  0 and β  π/ 2, respectively. For equibiaxial tension, the
load parameters are: λ  1 and β   0. The loading conditions in the case of equibiaxial load tension are: λ
 1 and β  0. Finally, for a multilayered composite plate under shear stress at infinity, two possibilities of
loading conditions are considered. The first is a uniform shear stress with the following conditions: λ  − 1,
β  π/ 4 or β  3π/ 4 for S  0, σ   0, and the second is for inclined applied shear stress using λ  1, β   0
for S   0, σ  0.

2.3 Effective axial moduli for unsymmetrical multilayered plates

As mentioned above, when the material properties of the FG plate are varied through the thickness, an unsym-
metry in the orientation of the material axes is introduced with respect to the global coordinate system. Such
different orientations of material axes bring a coupling effect between stresses and moments in the plate [24].
The constitutive equations of a lumped sub-laminated plate are obtained from the CLT as:
 0   
ε a b N
 T (16)
κ b d M

where
   −1
a b A B
 (17)
bT d B D
A general analytical solution of stresses around circular holes

where A, B, and D are the extensional, coupling, and bending stiffness matrices of the lumped sub-laminated
plate, respectively. N and M are the forces and moments resultants, respectively. ε0 and k are the mid-surface
strains and curvatures, respectively. Chen and Chan [46] derived modified expressions that determine the
effective equivalent elastic modulus accounting for induced shear and bending deformations. These equivalent
moduli were defined by elements of a matrix P defined as
[P]  [a] − [b][d]−1 [b]T (18)
such that
P16 P26
1 1 P12 − P66
Ex    , Ey    , vx y  − 2
,
2 2 P16
P16
P11 − P66 h
P26
P22 − P66 h P11 − P66

1
Gxy    .
 
P66 − 1
(P11 P22 −P12
2)
2 P
P16 22 − 2P12 P26 P16 + 2 P
P26 11 h
(19)
Based on the previous expressions, if the laminated plates are symmetric or balanced such that the coupling
matrix is null, the Chen-Chan [46] and the CLT expressions yield identical results.

2.4 Functionally graded multilayered plate

According to the power-law gradation, the normalized material properties, i.e., the engineering constants can
be calculated as functions of a distance h along the thickness as:
P(h)  1 + (Pr − 1)(0.5 + h r ) P (20)
where hr  h/H, h is the distance from xy plane, H is the thickness of the FG plate. P(h) is the normalized
material property at a distance h. p is the variation/gradation index of the material properties. Pr  Pb /Pt , Pt
is the value of the engineering constant at the top surface (–h/2) of the FG plate, and Pb is the value of the
engineering constant at the bottom surface (+ h/2) of the FG plate.
An FG plate is presented in Fig. 3. The global coordinate system (x,y,z) is placed at the mid-surface of the
plate, and its origin is located at the center. On the other hand, the material coordinate system (1,2,3) will be
located away from the mid-surface by a distance h along the thickness.
At the top surface of the FG plate, the axes x–y and 1–2 are aligned, and they are perpendicular to each
other at the bottom surface. The z and 3 axes are always aligned.
Using Eq. (20), the elastic properties E x (h), E y (h), and vxy (h) for a given material are obtained for each
value of h. The relations between the elastic properties and the material properties at the top layer are given as
follows:
 
1 1 1 1 2v12t
 cos4 θ + sin4 θ + − sin2 θ cos2 θ ,
E x (h) E 1t E 2t G 12t E 1t
 
1 1 1 1 2v12t
 cos4 θ + sin4 θ + − sin2 θ cos2 θ ,
E y (h) E 2t E 1t G 12t E 1t
 
E x (h)v12t E x (h)v12t 1 1 1
vx y (h)  cos θ +
4
sin θ − E x (h)
4
+ − sin2 θ cos2 θ (21)
E 1t E 1t E 1t E 2t G 12t
where E 1t and E 2t are longitudinal and transverse Young’s moduli at the top layer, respectively. G12t and v12t
are the shear modulus and the Poisson’s ratio in the plane (1, 2) at the top layer, respectively. The solutions of
cos4 θ , sin4 θ and sin2 θ cos2 θ are obtained by solving simultaneously the following equations [34]:
⎡ ! ⎤−1 ⎧ ⎫
⎧ ⎫ 2v12t ⎪
⎪
1 ⎪
⎪
G 12t − E 1t ⎥ ⎪ ⎪ E x (h) ⎪
1 1 1
⎢ E 1t ⎪
⎨ C  cos θ
4
⎪ ⎪
⎬ ⎢
E 2t
⎥ ⎪
⎨ ⎪
⎬
⎢ ! ⎥
D  sin θ
4 ⎢ 1 1 1
− 2v 12t ⎥ 1 . (22)
⎪
⎩ ⎪ ⎢ E 2t ⎥ ⎪ ⎪
2 ⎭ ⎪ ⎪
E 1t G 12t E 1t
E  cos θ sin θ
2 ⎣ ! ⎦ ⎪
⎪ E y (h) ⎪
⎪
E x (h)v12t E x (h)v12t ⎪
⎩ ⎪
⎭
E 1t E 1t −E x (h) E11t + E12t − G112t vx y (h).
 A. Khechai et al.

Now, the material orientation θ is obtained using the following equation:

#
θ  tan−1 (D/C).
4
(23)

The material orientation axis is measured with respect to the global coordinate system. Now, the material
orientation angle θ represents the elastic properties E x (h), E y (h), and vxy (h) such that they vary as per Eq. (20).

3 Results and discussion

The main aim of the present study is to propose a simple analytic solution that allows us to determine the
stress distribution in FG plates with circular holes when subjected to arbitrary uniaxial, biaxial, and shear
loading. Various cases are solved by the proposed solution in order to affirm the accuracy of the present
solution with numerical and some available analytical solutions. For this purpose, several computer programs
were developed to obtain the distributions of the normalized material properties and stress resultants around
a circular hole using Eqs. 20 and 12, respectively. In the present study, the mechanical properties of various
materials used in this validation are given in Table 1.
It is well known that the gradation index p affects the material distributions over the FG plate thickness.
The distributions of the material properties such as Young’s modulus, shear modulus, and Poisson’s ratio are
plotted with respect to h/H in Figs. 4, 5, and 6, respectively, for different materials and various values of
gradation index p  0.5, 1, 2, and 3. From Figs. 4, 5, and 6, it can be observed that for gradation index p < 1,
the normalized mechanical properties E x  E y , Gxy  max(Gxy ), and vxy  vyx are obtained above the middle
surface of the plate (h/H < 0). On the other hand, E x  E y , Gxy  max(Gxy ), and vxy  vyx are obtained at the
middle surface (h/H  0) for p  1 and below the middle surface (h/H > 0) for p > 1. The values of E x and
E y attain their maximum values at the top and the bottom planes of the FG plate, respectively. For the index p
 1, the derivative of the material properties d P(h)/dh r is linear, and equal distribution is obtained from the
mid-plane. Such condition helps to select the distribution of material properties in the FG plate [34, 35]. The
material distributions as shown in Figs. 4, 5, and 6 are similar to those given in Dave et al. [34] (Refer [34],
see Figs. 2, 3, and 4).
For Graphite/Epoxy, Carbon/Epoxy, and Glass/Epoxy, the distributions of the material orientation angle θ
are plotted in Fig. 7 using various values of gradation index p  0.5, 1 and 2.
For p  1, it can be seen that the material orientation axis is 45° at the center of the FG plate. The material
orientation axes become 45° above the middle surface for gradation index p < 1 and below the middle plane
for gradation index p > 1.
In the present study, a plane stress condition is taken for the FG plate with material properties variation
as per Eq. (20) and material axes orientation as shown in Fig. 7. The material properties variation obtained in
Dave et al. [34] (Ref. [34], see Fig. 5) is also successfully reproduced in the present study.

3.1 Convergence of the analytical results

The FG plate is conceptualized by the arrangement of a large number of very thin orthotropic layers. For an
adequately large number of such layers, a continuous gradation of a material property can be obtained. But,
in order to guarantee consistent values of stresses when dividing the FG plate thickness in this manner, a
convergence study for the stress resultants is required to be established. The concept of discretization for the
FG plate is presented in Fig. 8.

Table 1 Material properties

Materials Elastic properties

E 1 (GPa) E 2 (GPa) G 12 (GPa) v12

Mechanical properties for materials from the literature Graphite/Epoxy 181 10.3 7.17 0.28
Glass/Epoxy 47.4 16.2 7.0 0.26
Carbon/Epoxy 131.6 10.8 5.65 0.28
Graphite/BMI 124 8.46 4.59 0.28
A general analytical solution of stresses around circular holes

Fig. 4 Variation of off axes Young’s modulus E x and E y for different materials and index of gradation
 A. Khechai et al.

Fig. 5 Variation of off axes shear modulus Gxy for different materials and index of gradation
A general analytical solution of stresses around circular holes

Fig. 6 Variation of off axes Poisson’s ratio vxy and vyx for different materials and index of gradation
 A. Khechai et al.

Fig. 6 continued

3.2 Validation and effect of layer number

In this Section, the mechanical properties assumed for FG plates are tabulated in Table 1. The maximum stress
resultants around circular cutouts in Glass/Epoxy and Graphite/Epoxy unsymmetric FG laminated plates are
presented in Figs. 9 and 10, respectively. For gradation index p  1, the results were obtained by dividing the
FG plate thickness from 5 to 100 layers. The results are obtained for FG plates subjected to various in-plane
forces at infinity. It can be seen in these Figures that by increasing the number of layers, the stress resultants
A general analytical solution of stresses around circular holes

Fig. 7 Orientation of material axes for different materials and index of gradation

Fig. 8 Effect of discretization and material properties variation

converge very fast to a particular value. However, to ensure sufficient accuracy, all the rest results will be
obtained for FG plates discretized by 100 layers each having a dimensionless thickness h  0.01 which is
more than enough. In addition, the last distributions (see Fig. 10) are similar to those given in the analytical
investigation of Dave et al. [35] (Ref. [35], see Fig. 5) for a circular hole in Graphite/Epoxy FG plates where
the maximum values are practically the same.
Table 2 presents, for various in-plane loading conditions, the maximum stress resultants obtained using
the present analytical solution compared to the analytical findings of Dave et al. [35] using complex variable
method. It can be observed from the Table that all the obtained results are with the same precision, reflecting
the accuracy of the present analytical solution.
On the other hand, the results of the present analytical solution are also evaluated using FEM (in
ABAQUS© ). For gradation index p  1, the Glass/Epoxy FG plate is assumed to be consisting of 100 layers,
with slightly varying properties, which mimic the gradual changes of the mechanical properties over the FG
plate thickness. The plate is subjected to a unit N x ∞ loading condition. Since the stresses are localized in the
region near to the cutout, a graded mesh that facilitates high gradients is used. As shown in Fig. 11, a very fine
mesh with smaller elements is adopted in the region of stress localization while the remaining area, far from
the notch region, is discretized with a coarse mesh to reduce computational requirements. This mesh is adopted
to improve the accuracy of the FEM results. On the other hand, the element number is increased around the
hole until the numerical results are stabilized [47]. This mesh refinement has been done in two stages. The
first stage accomplishes refining the element size over the whole model where the plate edges are divided into
44 elements. The second stage accomplishes refining the areas where stress peaks occur. The cutout region is
meshed using 176 S8R elements.
Figure 12 compares the stress resultants N x , N y , and N xy obtained by the present analytical solution with
those found by the numerical study. It is obvious that when applying a unit load, the normalized stress resultants
are the same as the stress resultants. One can see from this Figure that the present solution successfully obtained
the same distributions compared to the numerical results.
 A. Khechai et al.

Fig. 9 Effect of the layers number of the FG plate on the stress resultants for glass/epoxy

Fig. 10 Effect of the layers number of the FG plate on the stress resultants for graphite/epoxy
A general analytical solution of stresses around circular holes

Table 2 Comparison of maximum stress resultants obtained for Graphite/Epoxy and Glass/Epoxy plates subjected to various
in-plane forces at infinity

Load Item Graphite/Epoxy Glass/Epoxy

Analytical solution Present analytical Analytical solution Present analytical
of Dave et al. [35] solution of Dave et al. [35] solution

Along x N x ∞  1 Max N x 3.40 3.37 2.88 2.73

Max N y 1.42 1.43 1.07 1.00
Max N xy 1.50 1.68 1.15 0.96
Along y N y ∞  1 Max N x 1.42 1.43 1.07 1.00
Max N y 3.40 3.37 2.88 2.73
Max N xy 1.50 1.68 1.15 0.96
Equibiaxial N x ∞  Max N x 2.17 1.97 1.84 1.73
N y∞  1 Max N y 2.18 1.98 1.84 1.73
Max N xy 0.955 1.01 1.10 1.15

Fig. 11 Mesh of the FG plate

Moreover, in order to see the effect of the gradation index p, Glass/Epoxy FG plates are considered
(see Fig. 13). In this case, the plates are subjected to various loading conditions, and the stress resultants
distributions are plotted. As shown in Figs. 14, 15, and 16, it can be observed that with an increase in the
gradation index p there is an increase in maximum tensile and compressive stress resultants.
For gradation index p  1, the stress resultants around a circular cutout in an infinite FG graphite/BMI
plate subjected to equibiaxial loading (N x ∞  N y ∞  1) are plotted in Fig. 17. As expected, the FGM shows
an equal intensity of stresses around the circular hole under a hydrostatic state of stress, and the max (N x  N y )
is equal to 1.93. It is also to be noted that the change in the gradation index p brings a change in the magnitude
of stress resultants without changing its location (see Fig. 15).
Finally, the effects of the loading angle (β) on the maximum absolute stresses are presented in Fig. 18. The
material under consideration is Glass/Epoxy with material gradation index p  1. The plates are subjected to
various loading conditions. The highest and lowest values of the maximum absolute in-plane stress resultants
N x , N y , and N xy and the corresponding loading angle are tabulated also in Table 3. It is observed that the
loading angle affects the stress values significantly.
In addition, the last distributions (see Fig. 18) are similar to those given in the analytical investigation of
Dave et al. [25] (Ref. [25], see Fig. 11) for a circular hole in Glass/Epoxy FG plates where the maximum
values are practically the same (see Table 3).

4 Conclusions

In the present paper, we provided an exact analytical solution for two-dimensional FG composite laminated
plates with circular cutouts under various in-plane loading conditions. The stress resultants were expressed in
 A. Khechai et al.

Fig. 12 Comparison of the stress resultants N x , N y , and N xy given by the present solution and the numerical results

a simple and elegant form. The FG plate was discretized into a large number of very thin orthotropic layers
such that a continuous gradation of their mechanical properties in the thickness direction can be obtained. The
through-thickness gradation of these properties was obtained according to the power law. The present solution
extended Greszczuk’s solution to the FG plates. This extension was achieved by first introducing arbitrarily
oriented uniaxial, biaxial, and shear loading conditions into Greszczuk’s solution. Then, the expressions of
effective moduli of unsymmetrical laminated plates, obtained by the layer lumping method, were introduced in
the present solution. Typical results of the present solution were discussed considering the influence of various
parameters such as gradation of the material properties and applied loading on the orientation of material axes
and the stress distribution around the cutout. To verify the accuracy of the present solution, its results were
compared successfully with some numerical results using FEM and analytical findings using the complex
variable method. Therefore, the present analytical solution can be used, with complete confidence, for stress
analysis of FG plates with circular cutouts.
On the other hand, some key points that can be concluded from this study are.
1- A general examination demonstrated that in an FG plate subjected to tensile loading in a specific direction,
the stress resultant around the cutout will be larger in that specific loading direction than in other directions.
2- The stress resultants around circular cutout were affected by loading conditions, material properties, and
variation in the material properties through the thickness.
3- For FG Glass/Epoxy plates under tensile loading, with various gradation index p, it can be observed that
with an increase in the gradation index p there is an increase in maximum tensile and compressive stress
resultants.
A general analytical solution of stresses around circular holes

Fig. 13 Stress resultants N x , N y , and N xy obtained for different gradation index in a Glass/Epoxy plate subjected to a uniaxial
load N x ∞  1

Fig. 14 Stress resultants N x , N y , and N xy obtained for different gradation index in a Glass/Epoxy plate subjected to a uniaxial
load N y ∞  1
 A. Khechai et al.

Fig. 15 Stress resultants N x , N y , and N xy obtained for different gradation index in a Glass/Epoxy plate subjected to a biaxial load
N x∞  N y∞  1

Fig. 16 Stress resultants N x , N y , and N xy obtained for different gradation index in a Glass/Epoxy plate subjected to a shear load
N xy ∞  1
A general analytical solution of stresses around circular holes

Fig. 17 Stress resultants in FG Graphite/BMI plate subjected to equibiaxial loading

Fig. 18 Effect of loading angle on stress resultant in a FG Glass/Epoxy plate with a circular hole
 A. Khechai et al.

Table 3 Comparison of highest and lowest values of maximum in-plane stress resultants for FG Glass/Epoxy plates

Maximum Analytical solution of Dave et al. [35] Present analytical solution

of items
Highest Load angle Lowest Load angle Highest Load angle Lowest Load angle
value (°) value (°) value (°) value (°)

Nx 2.88 0 1.07 90 2.73 0 0.99 0

Ny 2.88 90 1.07 0 2.73 90 0.99 90
N xy 1.38 45 0.95 85 1.65 45 0.96 0 and 90

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