Large Amplitude Oscillations of Thin Circular Rings

Abstract

Using an intrinsic formulation, an accurate set of geometrically nonlinear equations of motion is derived for the large amplitude oscillations of a thin circular ring. Non-dimensionalization of the equations of motion and the compatibility conditions indicates clearly that certain terms involving the extensional deformation, the shear deformation, and the rotatory inertia are relatively small and can be discarded. The resulting equations of motion are analyzed by the method of multiple scales with a single bending mode approximation to the linear problems indicating a softening type of nonlinearity for both the in-plane and the out-of-plane problems with the out-of-plane flexural motion experiencing a greater degree of softening when compared to that of the in-plane flexural motion. The results for the nonresonant case indicate that the frequency of an out-of-plane bending mode is significantly reduced by the presence of a nonzero in-plane bending amplitude, whereas the results for the resonant case indicate the presence of unsteady oscillations with an exchange of energy between the in-plane and the out-of-plane modes.