Electro-Thermo-Mechanical Response of Thick-Walled Piezoelectric Cylinder Reinforced by BNNTs

Electro-thermo-elastic stress analysis of piezoelectric polymeric thick-walled cylinder reinforced by boronnitride nanotubes (BNNTs) subjected to electro-thermo-mechanical fields is presented in this article. The electro-thermo-elastic properties of piezoelectric fiber reinforced composite (PEFRC) was studied by a modified XY micromechanical model capable of exhibiting full coupling relation between electric, thermal and elastic fields. Assuming the basic relation for the axisymmetric deformation of a thick-wall cylinder subjected to uniform internal and external pressures, an axial electrical load, a temperature change  T ∆  between inner and outer radius are derived. The stress results suggest that increasing BNNTs content in longitudinal direction reduces the effective stress. Also, displacement along radial direction indicates an optimum content of 5% BNNT for this. Furthermore, at normal working conditions, the influence of thermal and mechanical fields are much higher than the electric one on the effective stress; hence, this smart structure is best suited for applications as sensors than actuators.