Computers and Structures 81 (2003) 13111327

www.elsevier.com/locate/compstruc

An analytical solution for in-plane free vibration

and stability of loaded elliptic arches
K.Y. Nieh a, C.S. Huang

b,*

, Y.P. Tseng

Department of Civil Engineering, Tamkang University, Tamsui 25137, Taiwan

Department of Civil Engineering, National Chiao Tung University, 1001 Ta-Hsueh Rd., Hsinchu 30050, Taiwan
c
Do & Find Engineering Consultant Co., Ltd., No. 19, Lane 30, Deng Kung Rd., Tamsui 251, Taiwan
Received 30 September 2002; accepted 10 January 2003

Abstract
In-plane free vibration and stability analyses of elliptic arches subjected to a uniformly distributed vertical static
loading are performed here. A variational principle is applied to derive the governing equations for free vibration and
stability of preloaded arches, considering the eect of the extensibility of the arch centerline but neglecting the eect of
shear deformation. Particular attention is given to present a general procedure for combining series solutions with stiness
matrixes to construct an analytical solution for free vibration and stability of loaded arches with varying curvature. The
correctness of the proposed solution is veried through a convergence study on the vibration frequencies of a loaded
circular arch and by comparing the results with published data. The solution is further applied to investigate the behaviors
of clamped or xedfree elliptic arches.
2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Analytical solution; In-plane; Vibration; Stability; Arch; Varying curvature

1. Introduction
Curved beams are important structural elements in civil, mechanical and aerospace engineering applications, such as
bridges, roof structures, springs, and stieners in aircraft structures. Due to their importance, the literature on the dynamic
behavior of planar curved structural elements is vast. The related work can be traced back to the 19th century [1]. Survey
studies on the dynamic analysis of arch-type structures have been compiled in references [24], where more than 500
articles have been reviewed. Most of the previous research has principally dealt with the dynamic analysis of unloaded
arch-type structures. This paper presents a study on the vibration behaviors of elliptic arches under static and uniformly
distributed loading.
Rather little previous work has dealt with the vibration and stability analysis of statically loaded arches even though
dynamic analyses of loaded arches are frequently needed in many engineering applications, such as arch bridges, where
arches are subjected to their own weights or the static loading from the bridge deck. All of the previous studies concentrated to circular arches, and most of them assumed an in-extensional centerline for the sake of simplicity. For
example, Timoshenko and Gere [5] and Simitses [6] showed closed solutions for the stability of simply supported or
clamped circular arches subjected to uniformly distributed radial forces. Gjelsvik and Bonder [7] utilized an energy
approach to investigate the stability of a clamped arch under center point loads. Schreyer and Masur [8] established a
closed-form general solution to the stability problem of an arch subjected to uniformly distributed loading and having
*

Corresponding author. Tel.: +886-3-5712121x54962; fax: +886-3-5716257.

E-mail address: cshuang@mail.nctu.edu.tw (C.S. Huang).

0045-7949/03/$ - see front matter 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/S0045-7949(03)00057-9

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K.Y. Nieh et al. / Computers and Structures 81 (2003) 13111327

various boundary conditions. Wasserman [9] developed exact and approximate formulae for determining the lowest
natural frequencies and critical loads of arches with exibly supported ends. In Kang et al. [10], the dierential
quadrature method was used to nd the critical loads of circular arches.
Lin and Soedel [11] showed that centerline extensibility signicantly inuences the vibrations of rotating thick rings.
Using the Ritz method, Chidamparam and Leissa [12] rst analyzed the in-plane free vibrations of loaded circular
arches with consideration of an the extensible centerline. However, they determined the distribution of the initial axial
forces based on the assumption of an in-extensional centerline. Chidamparam and Leissa [12] concluded that centerline
stretching in the vibratory motion results in a decrease of the vibration frequency, and that this decrease may be very
considerable, especially for shallow arches. Discarding the assumption of an in-extensional centerline used by Chidamparam and Leissa [12], Huang and Nieh [13] further developed an analytical solution for vibrations of circular
arches under static, uniformly distributed loading. Comparing the results of Chidamparam and Leissa [12] with those of
Huang and Nieh [13] reveals considerable dierences for shallow arch cases with large compressive or tensile loading.
This paper presents the vibration and stability analysis of statically loaded arches with varying curvature. The governing equations are developed from the variational form given by Washizu [14] for the dynamic problems of an elastic
body with initial stresses. In the derivation of the equations, centerline extensibility but no shear deformation is considered. A general analytical solution to the governing equations is obtained by decomposing the entire arch under
consideration into several sub-domains and establishing a stiness matrix for each sub-domain. The stiness matrix is
developed according to a series solution of the governing equations dened in the sub-domain. The proposed solution is
veried through a convergence study on vibration frequencies for a loaded circular arch, and through comparison of the
present results with published data. The proposed solution is applied to investigate the eects of the opening angle (h0 ), the
ratio of the long-axis length to the short-axis length (a=b), and the ratio of the twice long-axis length to the radius of
gyration of the cross-section area (l) on the vibration frequencies and buckling loads of elliptic arches under uniformly
distributed vertical forces.
2. Governing equations
For the arch with opening angle h0 shown in Fig. 1, the radius of the centroidal axis, denoted by R, is a function of
the angular co-ordinate, denoted by h, measured from the middle of the arch. The arch cross-section is assumed to have
at least one symmetry axis, so the in-plane motion of the arch does not couple with out-of-plane motion. The arch is
subjected to static external forces along the tangential and normal directions with the intensities Pt and Pn , respectively,
0
which produce initial stresses rij in equilibrium. It is assumed that the resulting static deformation is small enough so
that the changes in the geometry of the arch can be neglected. For in-plane free vibration, the dynamic tangential and

, respectively. The sign conventions for
radial displacements of a point with coordinates (r; h) are denoted by
v and w
positive dynamic displacement components, moment (M), shear force (Q), and axial force (N ) are also given in Fig. 1.
Ignoring shear deformation yields the in-plane displacement eld of an arch as



ow

vr; h; t vh; t  z
v ;
w

r; h; t wh; t;
1
oS

Fig. 1. Arch coordinates and displacement and stress resultants for in-plane motion.

K.Y. Nieh et al. / Computers and Structures 81 (2003) 13111327

1313

where v and w represent the tangential and radial displacements of the centroidal axis, respectively, z r  R, and S is
the arc length coordinate.
To derive the governing equations of free vibration for a loaded arch and the associated boundary conditions, we use
the variational principle for the dynamic problem of an elastic body with equilibrium initial stresses, which was derived
by Washizu [14] via the principle of virtual work:
8
9
Z t2 <
Z Z Z
=
0 H
d
T U 
rij eij dV dt 0;
2
;
t1 :
V

where T and U are the kinetic and strain energy, given by

Z Z Z
1

_ 2 dV ;
q
v_ 2 w
T
2

3a

Z Z Z

1
L
rij eij dV :
2

3b

V
L

eij and eij are innitesimal strain components and high-order strain components, respectively, rij represents dynamic
stress components, q is the material density, and the dot denotes the derivative with respect to time. In Eq. (2), the body
subjected to the static loading is considered as the reference state, which is the state before the start of a dynamic
deformation of interest.
For the displacement eld given by Eq. (1), the non-vanishing strain component is axially normal strain; hence
1
L

;
ehh
v0 w
r
H

ehh

4a

1
w0  v2 :
2r2

4b

The prime represents the dierential with respect to h. In Eq. (4b), small strain but moderately small rotation is assumed.
By assuming suciently small h=R (where h is the thickness of the arch), by neglecting rotary inertia, and by using
L
the stressstrain relation rhh Eehh , where E is the elastic modulus, we can derive the following governing equations
from Eqs. (2)(4) by carrying out a typical variation process [15]:



1 oM oN N 0 ow v


qAv;
5a

R oS
oS
oS R
R




o2 M N

oS 2
R


o
ow v
N 0

qA
w
oS
oS R

5b

and the following associated boundary conditions:

Natural boundary condition
N



oM
v
0 ow
N

oS
oS R
M
Essential boundary condition
v
w
ow v

oS R
where N 0 is the initial axial force and A is the cross-sectional area.

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K.Y. Nieh et al. / Computers and Structures 81 (2003) 13111327

In deriving Eqs. (5) and (6), the following denition of the stress resultants is introduced:
Z
N ; M
rhh 1; z dA:

Consequently, from Eq. (4a) and the stressstrain relation, we can express the stress resultants in terms of displacement components as follows:



ov w
N EA

;
8a
oS R

2
o w o v
;
8b

M EI
oS 2 oS R
where I is the second moment of the arch cross-section about the centerline. Notably, when shear deformation is
neglected, the shear force does not appear in the variational principle of Eq. (2), so the resulting governing equations
and the associated boundary conditions do not involve terms with the shear force. Nevertheless, it is well-known that
the shear force is related to the moment through the following equilibrium equation:
oM
Q 0:
9
oS
~ w=L and
Substituting Eqs. (8a) and (8b) into Eqs. (5a) and (5b) and introducing the dimensionless v~ v=L, w

R=L, where L is a characteristic length of the arch, yield
R

L2
qR
v~;
~ 00 a~2 w
~ 0 a~3 w
~ b~1 v~00 b~2 v~0 b~3 v~ 
~ 000 a~1 w
w
E

c2 n3

10a

qL2 R
~ ;
~ iv a~5 w
~ 000 a~6 w
~ 00 a~7 w
~ 0 a~8 w
~
v~000 b~4 v~00 b~5 v~0 b~6 v~ a~4 w
w
2
E

c n3

10b

where
!2



3n0
n00
n0
1 1 L2 N 0
; a~2
;

 2
a~1
n
n
n
EI
n c
2

0
R

n; a~5 6R

n0 ;
; a~4 R
a~3
2

n2
c
R
#
"
7n0 2 L2 N 0
00


a~6 R 4n

;
n
EIn
#
"
0 00
0 3
2 0 0
2
0 0
4n
n
n

L
N
n
L
N

000

n
2 
;
a~7 R

n
EIn
n
EIn2
1
a~8 
;

n3
c2 R
!
!
0





0
R
R
1
1
n
1
2R
b~1 
2 ; b~2  2
2
2 ;


n R c

Rn
n R c

!
2
0

00 R

0n

0
1 R
2R
N 0 L2
;
2

3
b~3
2

EIn3
n
n
R
R
R
n
"
#

0
3n0 3R
b~4  

;
n
R
2
!2
#
!2

0

0 n0 n00

00
R
6R
n0
3R
1
N 0 L2
 

6

;
b~5 4

n
n
R n
R
R
EIn2
c
2 n2
8
2
!2
!3
<R
0

00 n0 6R

0R

000 3R

00

00

0

0 n00
n
R
R
R

2 

6


4
b~6 


: R
n
R n
R
R
R
R n
n

dS
;
L dh

c
2 I=L2 A:

11

n0
n

!2 3
2
0 0
2 0
5 L N  L N
2
EIn
EIn2

9

0 =
R

;;
R

K.Y. Nieh et al. / Computers and Structures 81 (2003) 13111327

1315

Notably, Eqs. (10a) and (10b) can be reduced to the governing equations used by Chidamparam and Leissa [12] for
analyzing the vibrations of loaded circular arches.

3. Method of solution
Apparently, to solve Eqs. (10a) and (10b), we have to know the distribution of axial forces along an arch under static
external forces. Then, the vibration frequencies or the bulking loads can be determined for the arch. Here, a series
solution combined with the stiness matrix approach is applied to establish analytical solutions for static and dynamic
responses.
3.1. Solution for N(0)
For an arch with varying curvature subjected to in-plane static loading, the equations governing the deformation are
similar to Eqs. (10a) and (10b). They are
^ 000 a~1 w
^ 00 a^2 w
^ 0 a~3 w
^ b~1 v^00 b~2 v^0 b^3 v^
w

L3
R
Pt ;
EIn3

L3
R
^ iv a~5 w
^ 000 a^6 w
^ 00 a^7 w
^ 0 a~8 w
^
Pn ;
v^000 b~4 v^00 b^5 v^0 b^6 v^ a~4 w
EIn3

12a

12b

^ are
where a^i (i 2, 6 and 7) and b^j (j 3, 5 and 6) are identical to a~i and b~j with N 0 0, respectively; v^ and w
~ , respectively, and are the dimensionless static displacement components; Pt and Pn are the disanalogous to v~ and w
tributed loads along the tangential and normal directions, respectively (see Fig. 1).
Eqs. (12a) and (12b) are two ordinary dierential equations with variable coecients. It is generally impossible to
nd a closed-form solution for these two equations. Nevertheless, the famous Frobenius method can be applied to
construct an analytical solution in terms of a power series of h. Each variable coecient and external loading function
in Eqs. (12a) and (12b) has to be expressed in terms of a Taylors expansion series as follows:
a~1

K
X

ak h  gk ;

a^2

k0;1

a~3

K
X

a~5

ck h  gk ;

a~4

K
X

ek h  gk ;

a^6

b~1

gk h  gk ;

a~8

K
X

ak h  g ;

b~2

K
X

fk h  gk ;

K
X

hk h  gk ;

K
X

13

bk h  g ;
k

k0;1

ck h  gk ;

b~4

k0;1

b^5

K
X

k0;1

k0;1

b^3

dk h  gk ;

k0;1

k0;1
K
X

K
X
k0;1

k0;1

a^7

bk h  gk ;

k0;1

k0;1
K
X

K
X

K
X

d
k h  gk ;

k0;1

ek h  gk ;

b^6

k0;1
K
X

L3
R
P
pk h  gk ;
3 t
EIn
k0;1

K
X

f
k h  gk ;

k0;1
K
X

L3
R

pk h  gk ;
P
3 n
EIn
k0;1

where g is a reference point along the centroidal axis. The solution of Eqs. (12a) and (12b) is also assumed to be in the
following form:

1316

K.Y. Nieh et al. / Computers and Structures 81 (2003) 13111327

^
w

J
X

Aj h  gj

and v^

j0;1

J
X

Bj h  gj :

14

j0;1

Substituting Eqs. (13) and (14) into Eqs. (12a) and (12b) with careful arrangement, we can develop the following
recursive equations from the vanishing coecients of (h  g) with dierent powers:
Ai3

Bi3

(
i
X
1

k 2k 1aik Ak2 k 1bik Ak1 cik Ak

pi 
i 3i 2i 1
k0
)
k 2k 1
aik Bk2 k 1b
ik Bk1
cik Bk  ;

15a

(
i
X
1
p
i 

k 2k 1d
ik Bk2 k 1
eik Bk1 fik Bk

1 
a0 d0 i 3i 2i 1
k0
k 3k 2k 1eik Ak3 k 2k 1fik Ak2 k 1gik Ak1 hik Ak 
(
i1
i1
X
X

k 4k 3k 2k 1dik Ak4   i 1d0 pi1 
k 2k 1aik1 Ak2
k0

k0

k 1bik1 Ak1 cik1 Ak k 1

bik1 Bk1
cik1 Bk 
))
i
X

k 2k 1
aik1 Bk2 
:

15b

k0

Since Eqs. (12a) and (12b) are non-homogeneous dierential equations, the general solution consists of a homo^ h and v^h ) and a particular solution (w
^ p and v^p ). Hence, we let
geneous solution (w
^p
^w
^h w
w

K
X

Ak h  gk

k0;1

v^ v^h v^p

K
X

K
X

Ak h  gk ;

16a

16b

k0;1

Bk h  gk

k0;1

K
X

Bk h  gk :

k0;1

From Eqs. (15a) and (15b) with pi and
pi equal to zero, the coecients Ak and Bk with k P 3 are expressed in terms
h
h
of Ak and Bk with k 0, 1 and 2, where are to be determined by the specied boundary conditions. The coecients
p
p
p
p
Ak and Bk with k P 3 are determined from Eqs. (15a) and (15b) by setting Ak and Bk with k 6 2 equal to 1.
Consequently, the solution can be rewritten as
h

^ A0 w
^ 0 A1 w
^ 1 A2 w
^ 2 B0 w
^ 3 B1 w
^ 4 B2 w
^5 w
^p ;
w

17a

h
h
h
h
h
h
v^ A0 v^0 A1 v^1 A2 v^2 B0 v^3 B1 v^4 B2 v^5 v^p ;

17b

where w
^ i and v^i (i 0; 1; . . . ; 5) are polynomials of (h  g), whose coecients are determined from Eqs. (15a) and (15b)
with pi and
pi equal to zero.
We can use Eqs. (17a) and (17b) to determine the solution that satises the specied boundary conditions. Very highorder terms may have to be used to obtain accurate results; however, numerical diculties typically occur. In addition,
the convergence radius of the series solution may not be able to cover the entire arch under consideration. To avoid
such possible problems, the nite element concept is introduced into the series solution. The arch is decomposed into
several sub-domains. For each sub-domain, a series solution is constructed by following the above procedure and
taking g as the middle angle of the sub-domain. The end (or nodal) displacement components (see Fig. 2) for the nth
sub-domain can be expressed as

K.Y. Nieh et al. / Computers and Structures 81 (2003) 13111327

1317

Fig. 2. Positive displacement and stress resultants for the nth element.

8
9
8 n 9
3 Ah >
2
0 >
v^1 hn
v^2 hn
v^3 hn
v^4 hn
v^5 hn >
>
v^0 hn
v
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
h >
6 w
>
>
n >
A1 >
>
>
>
>
^ 0 hn
^ 1 hn
^ 2 hn
^ 3 hn
^ 4 hn
^ 5 hn 7
w
w
w
w
w
w
>
>
>
>
7
6
>
>
>
>
>
>
7>
6 0
< w0n >
=
=
6 w
^ 0 hn
^ 01 hn
^ 02 hn
^ 03 hn
^ 04 hn
^ 05 hn 7< Ah
w
w
w
w
w
2
7
6

L
6 v^ h v^ h v^ h v^ h v^ h v^ h 7> h >
>
vn1 >
1 n1
2 n1
3 n1
4 n1
5 n1 7> B
>
>
>
6 0 n1
>
>
>
> 0 >
>
>
7>
6
>
>
n1
h >
>w
>
>
>
5>
4w
^
h

w
^
h

w
^
h

w
^
h

w
^
h

w
^
h

0
n1
1
n1
2
n1
3
n1
4
n1
5
n1
>
>
>
B1 >
>
>
>
: 0n1 >
>
;
>
: h >
;
^ 00 hn1 w
^ 01 hn1 w
^ 02 hn1 w
^ 03 hn1 w
^ 04 hn1 w
^ 05 hn1 >
w
w
B2
8
9
v^p hn >
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
^ p hn >
w
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
< w
^ 0p hn =
bn fAn g fDp
L
n g:
>
v^p hn1 >
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
^ p hn1 >
w
>
>
>
>
>
>
:w
0
^ p hn1 ;

18

By using the relations between the stress resultants and displacement components, we can write the end (or nodal)
forces (see Fig. 2) in terms of end displacement components as
8
8 n 9
9
Nn >
v
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Qn >
> wn >
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
<
< 0n >
=
=
Mn
w
^n
19
K
ff p
n g;
n1
N
v
>
>
>
n1 >
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
n1
> Qn1 >
>w
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
:
: 0n1 >
;
;
Mn1
w
^ n  and the equivalent nodal external force
where the lengthy expressions of the stiness matrix for the nth sub-domain K
vector ff p
g
are
given
in
Appendix
A.
Through
the
continuity
conditions
between
adjacent sub-domains, we can asn
semble the relation given in Eq. (19) for each sub-domain to form the following relation for the entire arch:
Kfug fFg;

20

where K is the stiness matrix for the whole arch, and fug and fFg are vectors consisting of nodal displacement
components and equivalent external nodal forces, respectively.
By satisfying the boundary conditions, we are able to solve for fug using Eq. (20). Then, the coecients fAn g for
each sub-domain can be determined from Eq. (18), and the initial axial force N 0 h for each sub-domain can be
determined.
3.2. Solution for vibration frequencies and buckling loads
For free vibration analysis, the displacement components are assumed to be
e eixt
~W
w

and

v~ Ve eixt ;

21

where x is the vibration frequency. Substituting Eq. (21) into Eqs. (10a) and (10b) leads to
e 000 a~1 W
e 00 a~2 W
e 0 a~3 W
e b~1 Ve 00 b~2 Ve 0 b
3 Ve 0;
W

22a

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K.Y. Nieh et al. / Computers and Structures 81 (2003) 13111327

e iv a~5 W
e 000 a~6 W
e 00 a~7 W
e 0 a
8 W
e 0;
Ve 000 b~4 Ve 00 b~5 Ve 0 b~6 Ve a~4 W

22b

where
a
8 a~8

L2 x2
qR
E

c2 n3

and

L2 x2
qR
b
3 b~3 
:
E

c2 n3

The similarity between Eqs. (22a) and (22b) and Eqs. (12a) and (12b) indicates that the procedure for determining
the homogeneous solution in the preceding section can be directly applied to construct the general solution of Eqs. (22a)
and (22b). For convenience, the sub-domains used here are exactly the same as those used for the static solution.
Accordingly, we can develop the following relation for the entire loaded arch:
e f U
e g fF
e g;
K

23

e  is the so-called dynamic stiness matrix because the inertia forces are included in the right-hand side of Eq.
where K
e g is the vector for the nodal vibratory displacement components, and f F
e g is a vector having non-zero unknown
(23), f U
stress resultants at the nodes on the boundary. Eq. (23) can be further rewritten as
 



e uu  K
e ug
e ub 
f0g
K
fU

24
e bg ;
e bg
e bb 
e bu  K
fF
fU
K
e u g and f U
e b g are the unknown nodal displacement components and the prescribed displacement components
where f U
e b g is the unknown stress resultants on the displacement prescribed boundaries.
on the boundaries, respectively, and f F
e b g is a zero vector in a free vibration problem, the natural frequencies for the arch are those x0 s resulting in
Because f U
e uu . The buckling loads are those external loads that make the free vibration frequencies
the vanishing determinant of K
equal to zero.
4. Convergence study
Careful investigation of the solution methodology given in the previous section reveals that the accuracy of the
solution is dependent on the number of sub-domains that an arch is decomposed into, the number of expansion terms
for variable coecients (nc ), and the number of terms used in the series solution (ns ) for each sub-domain. To validate
the correctness of the proposed solution, convergence studies were done for clamped circular arches initially loaded
with a uniformly distributed vertical load with intensity v. The arches considered had h=R 0:01 and were symmetric
with respect to a vertical line.
p
In Table 1 are listed the non-dimensional frequency parameters xR2 qA=EI of an arch with h0 100, subjected to
a vertical uniform loading with intensity v such that vR3 =EI 20: The results were obtained using dierent numbers of
sub-domains along with dierent values of nc and ns . Notably, in determining the static solution for N 0 , the coecients
of Eqs. (12a) and (12b) were kept constant, and the number of terms in a series solution was chosen equal to nc as given
in Table 1. The results show that for a xed number of sub-domains, convergent results could be obtained by simultaneously increasing nc and ns . If one uses a small number of sub-domains and nc , then one may obtain incorrect
answers even if one uses a very large ns because the obtained N 0 is not accurate enough. Convergent results can also be
obtained by increasing the number of sub-domains with xed nc and ns .
Table 1 also lists the results provided by Huang and Nieh [13], who used a closed-form static solution for N 0 and
determined the vibration frequencies by using a series solution along with the dynamic stiness matrix approach.
The agreement of the present convergent results with those given in [13] indicates the correctness of the present solution.

5. Numerical results
p
Convergent non-dimensional frequency parameters k xL2 qA=EI of elliptic arches with rectangular cross-sections are tabulated in Tables 2 and 3 and plotted in Figs. 36 for various conditions. The arches considered were
geometrically symmetric to their short axis and subjected to a uniformly distributed vertical loading with intensity v (see
Fig. 7). The radius of the centroidal axis of an elliptic arch is dened as
R

1 2
a cos2 h b2 sin2 h3=2 ;
ab

25

K.Y. Nieh et al. / Computers and Structures 81 (2003) 13111327

1319

Table 1
p
Convergence of non-dimensional frequency parameters xR2 qA=EI for a loaded clamped circular arch with h=R 0:01 and h0 100
(vR3 =EI 20)
Element no.

Mode no.

nc

Ref. [13]

ns
10

15

20

30

5
10
15

10.888
9.7717
9.7717

11.523
9.7697
9.7697

11.540
9.7697
9.7697

11.540
9.7697
9.7697

5
10
15

23.685
26.170
26.170

26.034
26.161
26.161

26.064
26.161
26.161

26.064
26.161
26.161

26.161

5
10
15

52.493
54.220
54.220

54.658
54.121
54.121

54.676
54.121
54.121

54.676
54.121
54.121

54.121

5
10
15

87.056
83.985
83.985

85.469
83.939
83.939

85.461
83.939
83.939

85.461
83.939
83.939

83.939

5
10
15

127.95
124.50
124.50

126.59
124.85
124.85

126.57
124.85
124.85

126.57
124.85
124.85

124.85

5
10
15

167.09
163.98
163.98

168.51
167.13
167.13

168.68
167.13
167.13

168.69
167.13
167.13

167.13

5
10
15

5
10
15

26.191
26.161
26.161

26.192
26.161
26.161

26.192
26.161
26.161

26.191
26.161
26.161

26.161

5
10
15

54.191
54.121
54.121

54.193
54.121
54.121

54.193
54.121
54.121

54.193
54.121
54.121

54.121

5
10
15

84.011
83.938
83.938

84.014
83.939
83.939

84.014
83.939
83.939

84.014
83.939
83.939

83.939

5
10
15

124.93
124.84
124.84

124.94
124.85
124.85

124.94
124.85
124.85

124.94
124.85
124.85

124.85

5
10
15

167.13
167.09
167.09

167.20
167.13
167.13

167.20
167.13
167.13

167.20
167.13
167.13

167.13

9.8593
9.7697
9.7697

9.8602
9.7697
9.7697

9.8602
9.7697
9.7697

9.8602
9.7697
9.7697

9.7697

9.7697

where a and b are the length of the long and short axes, respectively. In Eq. (11),
1
n a2 cos2 h b2 sin2 h1=2 :
L

26

The results were obtained by decomposing an arch into eight sub-domains, by using nc ns 15 to determine N 0
and using nc 15 and ns 30 to obtain the dynamic solution. Notably, a non-dimensional loading parameter
b vL3 =EI and a slenderness parameter l L=c, where c is the radius of gyration of a cross-section area, were introduced. The characteristic length L was chosen as 2a.

1320

K.Y. Nieh et al. / Computers and Structures 81 (2003) 13111327

Table 2
Non-dimensional frequency parameters k for clamped elliptic arches subjected to the static load b 50
l

b=a

h ()

Mode
2

100

0.2

60
120
180

91.468
33.808
15.351

239.17
48.878
24.603

475.21
132.18
99.702

627.47
227.75
141.61

789.89
359.33
247.42

1181.2
363.64
280.08

0.5

60
120
180

117.27
53.966
24.448

228.64
77.101
41.313

462.55
152.57
102.39

622.83
208.86
130.56

772.88
336.63
225.45

1149.3
362.23
227.11

0.8

60
120
180

153.49
46.034
14.670

216.62
86.071
35.643

446.94
171.13
75.471

614.11
179.33
115.58

749.89
293.44
176.97

1104.1
345.46
197.33

0.2

60
120
180

89.066
28.169
20.618

125.39
70.043
50.731

245.23
79.683
63.291

250.97
143.29
102.98

376.62
155.15
122.11

478.28
215.77
167.94

0.5

60
120
180

87.638
28.526
21.931

123.94
58.654
27.143

238.75
77.235
58.983

249.06
129.94
71.410

374.53
143.30
106.93

459.76
205.64
123.20

0.8

60
120
180

85.571
31.812
15.006

121.22
45.917
25.716

228.30
73.655
87.581

245.54
108.69
91.755

370.29
133.79
133.15

435.83
183.29
136.48

20

Table 3
Non-dimensional frequency parameters k for clamped elliptic arches subjected to the static load b 50
l

b=a

h ()

Mode
1

100

20

0.2

60
120
180

99.696
59.794
56.233

251.01
101.22
75.220

488.21
185.64
148.09

627.56
283.30
194.25

803.51
366.83
303.25

1195.0
418.22
304.34

0.5

60
120
180

126.87
81.210
45.194

246.01
92.401
60.046

481.78
175.75
125.33

623.63
239.32
149.93

792.77
368.29
245.45

1169.1
369.81
248.07

0.8

60
120
180

160.40
63.538
29.053

232.22
102.44
51.334

464.42
180.12
93.950

615.94
200.98
133.44

767.48
316.12
196.99

1122.3
352.31
205.89

0.2

60
120
180

89.452
32.026
23.116

125.39
70.767
53.318

245.68
84.174
63.861

250.97
143.50
106.04

376.62
160.68
122.16

478.72
215.82
170.86

0.5

60
120
180

88.591
35.149
29.87

123.954
63.176
39.390

239.86
83.518
64.687

249.08
134.51
86.867

374.56
150.66
110.22

460.69
206.41
140.40

0.8

60
120
180

87.048
37.608
26.737

121.29
52.829
31.060

230.05
79.561
56.593

245.62
117.951
64.456

370.41
138.81
95.264

437.26
188.95
103.61

K.Y. Nieh et al. / Computers and Structures 81 (2003) 13111327

1321

Fig. 3. Variation of k with b for a clamped elliptic arch with b=a 0:5, l 100 and h0 180.

Fig. 4. Variation of k with b for a clamped elliptic arch with b=a 0:5, l 20 and h0 180.

Fig. 5. Variation of k with b for a xedfree elliptic arch with b=a 0:5, l 100 and h0 180.

5.1. Natural frequencies

Tables 2 and 3 list the non-dimensional frequency parameters k for clamped elliptic arches subjected to uniform
vertical loading b 50 and )50, respectively. Although a larger l value represents a smaller thickness of the arch, the

1322

K.Y. Nieh et al. / Computers and Structures 81 (2003) 13111327

Fig. 6. Variation of k with b for a xedfree elliptic arch with b=a 0:5, l 20 and h0 180.

Fig. 7. Sketch of an elliptic arch subjected to vertical static loading.

frequency parameters k increase as l is increased because l is involved in the denition of k. As expected, k decreases
with increasing h0 because the stiness of the arch decreases and the mass of the arch increases as h0 increases. The trend
for the variation of the frequency parameters with b=a is not clear and depends on which h0 , l, and mode are considered.
Figs. 3 and 4 show the variation of k with b for clamped elliptic arches with l 100 and 20, respectively, while Figs.
5 and 6 depict the variation for cases with xedfree boundary conditions. Arches with a=b 0:5 and h0 180 were
considered here. Figs. 3 and 4 indicate that dierent l can lead to dierent variation patterns for k versus b. In Fig. 4, it
is observed that curves from dierent symmetric classes cross. For the cases with xedfree boundary conditions, the
trend for k versus b is totally dierent from that for the clamped cases. Figs. 5 and 6 do not exhibit the trend where the
values of k monotonically decrease with the increase of b as shown in Figs. 3 and 4. Instead, for xedfree arches, k
decreases with the decrease of b. Interestingly, positive and negative b can lead to arches that elastically buckle. The
dierences in the patterns of k versus b for clamped and xedfree arches can be explained by the distribution of N 0
caused by the uniformly distributed vertical loading (see Fig. 8). As shown in Fig. 8, when an arch is subjected to a
vertical loading with positive b, the resulting axial forces are compressive for the clamped arch, while N 0 for the xed
free arch can be compressive or tensile, depending on its position.
5.2. Buckling loads
Table 4 lists the buckling loads corresponding to the rst two modes of clamped elliptic arches with various b=a, h0
and l, while Fig. 9 depicts the variation of the buckling loads with h0 for the arches with b=a 0:5. In Fig. 9, A1 and S1
denote the rst anti-symmetric and symmetric modes, respectively. The mode shape for the lowest buckling load
changes from symmetric to anti-symmetric as h0 is increased. These results suggest that the bucking loads decrease with
the increase of h0 or l because the bending stiness of the arch becomes smaller as the arch become longer or more
slender. However, there is no clear trend for the inuence of b=a on the buckling loads. Finally, it should be noted that

K.Y. Nieh et al. / Computers and Structures 81 (2003) 13111327

1323

Fig. 8. Distribution of N 0 for elliptic arches with b=a 0:5, l 100 and h0 180.

Table 4
Non-dimensional buckling loads b for clamped elliptic arches
l

b=a

h0 ()

Mode
1

100

0.2

60
120
180

562.64
79.233
54.102

1014.2
85.716
65.602

0.5

60
120
180

587.64
125.69
88.458

666.76
187.31
127.59

0.8

60
120
180

697.85
155.98
82.816

897.10
247.06
138.05

0.2

60
120
180

11465
386.38
421.63

26719
765.47
780.29

0.5

60
120
180

4563.3
234.49
117.99

10276
333.04
140.07

0.8

60
120
180

2857.1
240.28
88.826

6033.3
270.92
148.07

20

the reported buckling loads are not related to snap-through buckling that may be important to very at curved bars
[16]. The proposed solution is not suitable for the snap-through response because the proposed solution neglects the
deformation due to the static loads.

6. Concluding remarks
An analytical solution for the free vibration and stability of loaded arches with varying curvature has been developed
by incorporating series solutions and stiness matrixes. The equations of motion for small amplitude free vibrations
about a pre-stressed static equilibrium state have been developed based on a variational principle and considering the
extensibility of the arch centerline but ignoring shear deformation. The vibration frequencies and buckling loads of
arches have been determined by establishing a static solution for the distribution of the axial force due to static external

1324

K.Y. Nieh et al. / Computers and Structures 81 (2003) 13111327

Fig. 9. Buckling loads for clamped elliptic arches with b=a 0:5 and various h0 and l.

forces and a dynamic solution for the free vibration. Both of the solutions have been developed by decomposing the
arch under consideration into several elements, constructing a series solution of governing equations dened in each
element, and, nally, establishing element-wise stiness matrixes from the series solutions to form a global stiness
matrix.
The proposed solution has been validated through convergence studies and comparison of the present results with
published data on the vibration frequencies of circular arches subjected to uniformly distributed vertical forces. The
solution has also been applied to determine the vibration frequencies and buckling loads of xedxed and xedfree
elliptic arches with various b=a, h0 and l. The arches were subjected to static vertical forces with uniform distribution.
The non-dimensional frequency parameters k and the magnitude of the buckling loads were found to decrease with the
increase of h0 and with the decrease of l, while there was no denite trend for k or for the bucking loads varying with
b=a. The parameters k were also found to decrease with the increase of the non-dimensional loading parameters b for
clamped elliptic arches, while dierent trends were observed for xedfree arches because the distributions of initial
axial forces are very dierent for arches with these two dierent boundary conditions. Consequently, only positive b was
found to cause the clamped arches to buckle, while both negative b and positive b caused xedfree arches to buckle.
The present solution can be used to analyze the in-plane free vibration and stability of any types of arch with various
static external forces. Furthermore, the proposed solution procedure can be easily modied and used to determine the
transient responses of loaded arches by introducing Laplace transform into the dynamic solution [17]. One can also
introduce Fourier transform into the dynamic solution to analyze stationary random vibration problems of loaded
arches.

Acknowledgement
The research reported herein was supported by the National Science Council, ROC (NSC 90-2211-E-009-035). This
support is gratefully acknowledged.

K.Y. Nieh et al. / Computers and Structures 81 (2003) 13111327

1325

b n  and ff p g
Appendix A. The expression for K
n
_

K n  an bn 1 ;

A:1

an  an 1 an 2 an 3 an 4 an 5 an 6 an 7 ;

A:2

where

0
0
0
0
0
6 w
^ 000
^ 000
^ 000
^ 000
^ 000
w
w
w
w
0 hn
1 hn
2 hn
3 hn
4 hn
6
EIn3 6
0
0
0
0
0
an 1  2 6
0
0
0
0
0
L 6
6 000
4w
^ 000
^ 000
^ 000
^ 000
^ 0 hn1 w
w
w
w
1 hn1
2 hn1
3 hn1
4 hn1
0
0
0
0
0
2

0
60
6
EIn2 6
60
an 2
L 6
60
40
0

0
0
1
0
0
0

3n0
L

0
0
0
0

0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0  3nL
0
0

3
0
7
^ 000
w
5 hn 7
7
0
7;
7
0
7
000
^ 5 hn1 5
w
0

A:3

3
32
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
6 w
^ 001 hn
^ 002 hn
^ 003 hn
^ 004 hn
^ 005 hn 7
^ 00 hn
w
w
w
w
w
07
7
76
6 ^ 000
00
00
00
00
7
^ 1 hn
^ 2 hn
^ 3 hn
^ 4 hn
^ 005 hn 7
w
w
w
w
w
0 76 w0 hn
7
6
7;
0
0
0
0
0
0
07
7
76
6
7
00
00
00
00
00
00
^ 1 hn1 w
^ 2 hn1 w
^ 3 hn1 w
^ 4 hn1 w
^ 5 hn1 5
^ 0 hn1 w
0 54 w
00
00
00
00
00
00
^ 0 hn1 w
^ 1 hn1 w
^ 2 hn1 w
^ 3 hn1 w
^ 4 hn1 w
^ 5 hn1
w
1
A:4

0
6
60
6
EIn 6
60
an 3
6
L 60
6
60
4
0
2

0
n00 nn0 2
L

0
0

0
0

0
0

0
0
0
0

n0
0
0
0

0
0
0
0

0
0

0
^ 00 hn
w
w
^ 00 hn

0
^ 01 hn
w
w
^ 01 hn

00

n

nn0 2
L

0
0
^ 02 hn
w
w
^ 02 hn

3
0
7
07
7
07
7
7
07
7
07
5
n0
0
^ 03 hn
w
w
^ 03 hn

0
^ 04 hn
w
w
^ 04 hn

0
^ 05 hn
w
w
^ 05 hn

6
7
6
7
6
7
6
7
6
7
7;
6
6
7
0
0
0
0
0
0
6
7
6 0
7
0
0
0
0
0
6w
^ 1 hn1 w
^ 2 hn1 w
^ 3 hn1 w
^ 4 hn1 w
^ 5 hn1 7
^ 0 hn1 w
4
5
^ 00 hn1 w
^ 01 hn1 w
^ 02 hn1 w
^ 03 hn1 w
^ 04 hn1 w
^ 05 hn1
w

A:5

3
^ 0 hn w
^ 1 hn w
^ 2 hn w
^ 3 hn w
^ 4 hn w
^ 5 hn
w
6
7
0
0
0
0
0
0
6
7
7
EA 6
0
0
0
0
0
0
6
7;
an 4
7
^
^
^
^
^
^
h

w
h

w
h

w
h

w
h

w
h

w
R 6
0
n1
1
n1
2
n1
3
n1
4
n1
5
n1
6
7
4
5
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2

6
7
6
7
7
EIn2 6
0
0
0
0
0
0
7;
an 5 2
6
6
7
0
0
0
0
0
0
LR6
7
00
00
00
00
00
00
4 v^ hn1 v^ hn1 v^ hn1 v^ hn1 v^ hn1 v^ hn1 5
0
1
2
3
4
5
0
0
0
0
0
0
^
v000 hn

^
v001 hn

^
v002 hn

^
v003 hn

^
v004 hn

A:6

^
v005 hn

A:7

1326

K.Y. Nieh et al. / Computers and Structures 81 (2003) 13111327

2
6
6
6
6
6
6
an 6 En6
6
6
6
6
6
4

A
0

I
L2

0

0 n0 R
2nR

2
R

0
0

0
0

I


LR

0
A

2
v^00 hn
v^00 hn
v^00 hn

v^01 hn
v^01 hn
v^01 hn

6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6 v^0 h v^0 h
6 0 n1
1 n1
6 0
6 v^0 hn1 v^01 hn1
6
4 v^0 h v^0 h
0 n1
1 n1

v^02 hn
v^02 hn
v^02 hn

7
0 7
7
7
7
0
0 7
7
0 7
7

0

7



0 n0 R
2nR
I
 L2
0 7
7

2
R
5
0
 LIR

0

v^03 hn
v^03 hn
v^03 hn

v^04 hn
v^04 hn
v^04 hn

7
7
7
7
7
7
7;
0
0
0
0
v^2 hn1 v^3 hn1 v^4 hn1 v^5 hn1 7
7
7
v^02 hn1 v^03 hn1 v^04 hn1 v^05 hn1 7
7
v^02 hn1 v^03 hn1 v^04 hn1 v^05 hn1 5

2
60
6
60
6
EIn 6
60
an 7
2 6
LR 6 0
6
60
6
4
0

v^05 hn
v^05 hn
v^05 hn

A:8

3
0

2 R

00 nR

0 n0 2R

R

0 2 n
R

2
LR

0
0
0
0

0
0
6
6 v^0 hn
v^1 hn
6
6 v^ h
v^1 hn
6 0 n
6
6
0
0
6
6 v^ h v^ h
1 n1
4 0 n1
v^0 hn1 v^1 hn1

0
0

0
R
0
0
0

0
0

0
0

0
0
0
0

2
00
0 0

R

0 2 n
R
0  R R nRLnR
2
2
0
0

07
7
07
7
07
7
7
07
7
07
7

0 5
R

3
0
0
0
0
7
v^2 hn
v^3 hn
v^4 hn
v^5 hn 7
7
v^2 hn
v^3 hn
v^4 hn
v^5 hn 7
7
7:
7
0
0
0
0
7
v^2 hn1 v^3 hn1 v^4 hn1 v^5 hn1 7
5
v^2 hn1 v^3 hn1 v^4 hn1 v^5 hn1

A:9

p
p
ff p
n g K n fDn g fF n g;

where

8
9
N p hn >
>
>
>
>
>
>
Qp hn >
>
>
>
>
<
=
p
M hn
p
fF n g
;
p
>
N h >
>
> p n1 >
>
>
>
>
Q h >
>
: p n1 >
;
M hn1
#
^ p h
w
0
nh^
vp h ;
N h EA

Rh

A:10

A:11

"

Qp h

A:12

n2 h 00
2
0
^ 000
^ 00p h  n00 hn2 h n0 h2 nhw
^ 0p h

v^ h
n3 hw
p h  3n hn hw
Rh p


2 hnhR

0 h  n0 hnhR

h 0

00 hnh R

0 hn0 h  2R

hR

0 h2 n2 h
R
2n2 hR
^
^
v
v
h

h
;

p
p

2 h

4 h
R
R
EI
L2

A:13

K.Y. Nieh et al. / Computers and Structures 81 (2003) 13111327

EI
M h
L
p

(
2

^ 00p h
hw

^ 0p h
hnhw

)

0 hnh
nh 0
R

v^p h
2
v^p h :
Rh
R h

1327

A:14

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[13]
[14]
[15]
[16]
[17]

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