A Conical Beam Finite Element for Rotor Dynamics Analysis

The development of finite element formulations for use in rotor dynamics analysis has been the subject of many recent publications. These works have included the effects of rotatory inertia, gyroscopic moments, axial load, internal damping, and shear deformation. However, for most closed-form solutions, the element geometry has been limited to a cylindrical cross-section. This paper extends these previous works by developing a closed-form expression including all of the above effects in a linearly tapered conical cross-section element. Results are also given comparing the formulation to previously published examples, to stepped cylinder representations of conical geometry, and to a general purpose finite element elasticity solution. The elimination of numerical integration in the generation of the element matrices, and the ability of the element to represent both conical and cylindrical geometries, make this formulation particularly suited for use in rotor dynamic analysis computer programs.