Lamination-dependent shear corrective terms in the analysis of flexure
of laminates are derived from a priori assumed linear thicknesswise d
istributions for gradients of transverse shear stresses and using them
in the two in-plane equilibrium equations of elasticity in each ply.
Adding these corrective terms to (i) Classical Laminate Plate Theory (
CLPT) displacements and (ii) Classical Laminate Shear Deformation Theo
ry (CLSDT) displacements, four new refined lamination-dependent shear
deformation models for angle-ply laminates are developed. Performance
of these models is evaluated by comparing the results from these model
s with those from exact elasticity solutions for antisymmetric 2-ply l
aminates and for 4-ply [15/-15](s) laminates. In general, the model wi
th shear corrective terms based on CLPT and added to CLSDT displacemen
ts is sufficient and predicts good estimates, both qualitatively and q
uantitatively, for all displacements and stresses.