Application of Differential Transform Method in Free Vibration Analysis of Rotating Non-Prismatic Beams

Rotating beams are considerably used in different mechanical and aeronautical installations. In this paper, free vibration of non-prismatic rotating Euler-Bernoulli beams is studied. Dynamic stiffness matrix is evaluated by using differential transform method, a powerful numerical tool in solution of ordinary differential equations, for solving the governing equation of motion. The method is capable of modeling any beam whose cross-sectional area and moment of inertia vary along beam with any two arbitrary functions and any type of cross-section with just one or few elements so that it can be used in most of engineering applications. In order to verify the competency of the method, natural frequencies are obtained for two problems and the effects of rotational speed parameter and taper ratio on natural frequencies are investigated.