In this paper, the refined beam theory (RBT) is examined for the bending of simply supported isotropic, laminated composite and sandwich beams. The axial displacement field uses parabolic function in terms of thickness ordinate to include the effect of transverse shear deformation. The transverse displacement consists of bending and shear components. The present theory satisfies the traction free conditions on the upper and lower surfaces of the beam without using problem dependent shear correction factors of Timoshenko. Governing differential equations and boundary conditions associated with the assumed displacement field are obtained by using the principle of virtual work. To prove the credibility of the present theory, we applied it to the bending analysis of beams. A simply supported isotropic, laminated composite and sandwich beams are analyzed using Navier approach. The numerical results of non-dimensional displacements and stresses obtained by using the present theory are presented and compared with those of other refined theories available in the literature along with the elasticity solution.
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