Cutouts are commonly used as access port for mechanical and electrical structures. Most of the structures generally work under severe dynamic loading and different constrained conditions during their service life. This may lead to vibration of the structure. Therefore, it is necessary to predict the vibration responses of laminated composite plates with cutouts precisely with less computational cost and good accuracy of these complex structures. A suitable finite element model is proposed and developed based on first order shear deformation theory using ANSYS parametric design language (APDL) code. The model has been discretized using an appropriate eight nodded element (SHELL 281) from the ANSYS element library. The free vibrations are computed using Block-Lanczos algorithm. The convergence study has been done of the developed model and compared with those available published literature. Effects of different geometric parameters (aspect ratio, thickness ratio, boundary conditions, number of layers, angle of lamina geometry of cutout, cutout side to plate side ratio and distance between cutouts) and material properties on the free vibration responses are discussed in detail. The frequency increases with increase in the number of layers, modulus ratio of plate and angle of lamina. The frequency decreases with increase in aspect ratio, thickness ratio, size of cutout and distance between cutouts. The boundary conditions of the plate play an important role in the free vibrations of the plate with cutouts. The Non-dimensional frequencies are higher for fully clamped boundary condition in comparison to other boundary conditions.

This piece of work aims at the modeling and using the finite element method approach (FEM) to analyze the fatigue behavior of bolted beam to column end-plate connection in the structural steel framework subjected to static loading. A detailed three dimensional (3D) simulation model of the bolted beam to column end-plate connection is constructed in PRO-E wildfire and it is analyzed in the ANSYS workbench to obtain its behavior. The bolted end-plate connection is chosen as an important type of beam to column joint. The end-plate connection is chosen for its complexity in the analysis and behavior due to the number of connection components and their inheritable behavior. The solid elements, bonded contact and the bolt pretension are included to obtain the behavior of the structure. The FEA results of the structure with or without bolt pretension are compared with the available literature. At last the fatigue behavior of connections under over tensioning is presented in this work.