The response of composite plates constructed of graphite/epoxy laminae
with an attached piezoelectric polyvinylidene fluoride layer subjecte
d to mechanical, thermal and electric field loading is considered for
various length-to-depth and aspect ratios. First-order shear deformati
on theory is extended to include the piezothermoelastic response of co
mposite plate structures. Analytic results are obtained for a plate si
mply supported along all edges. A nine-node Lagrangian finite element
formulation is established and results are presented for simply suppor
ted or fixed boundary conditions. Numerical results show that moderate
ly thick piezothermoelastic composites are sensitive to shear deformat
ion, but increasing plate aspect ratio reduces the shear deformation i
nfluence.