Free vibration analysis of all-composite tetrahedral lattice truss core sandwich beam

Lattice sandwich structure, which is characterized by two thin face sheets and a lattice core sandwiched between them, is a novel kind of structure with the features of lightweight and multifunction. Due to its own structural form, the analysis of mechanical behavior of lattice sandwich structure is relatively complex. Converted discrete core to continuum homogenized material, the free vibration of all-composite tetrahedral lattice truss core sandwich beam is studied in this paper. Considering the bending deformation of face sheets and shearing deformation of the core, the governing equation for free vibration of sandwich beam is derived using Hamilton's principle. Tetrahedral lattice truss core sandwich beam under simply supported condition is taken as an example to calculate the natural frequencies. Theoretical results are compared with those obtained from numerical simulation, and good agreements are observed. Furthermore, the effects of laminate stacking sequence, truss radius, truss inclination angle, core height and beam length on the natural frequencies of sandwich beams are discussed. The results are valuable for understanding the frequency characteristic of all-composite tetrahedral lattice truss core sandwich beam.