Abstract:In this paper, a four-node composite cylindrical shell finite element model based on Love's first approximation theory is proposed to solve the nonlinear vibration of the hard-coating cylindrical shell efficiently. The developed model may have great significance for vibration reduction of the cylindrical shell structures of the aero engine or aircraft. The influence of the strain dependence of the coating material on the complex stiffness matrix is considered in this model. Nonlinear iterative solution formulas with a unified iterative method are theoretically derived for solving the resonant frequency and response of the composite cylindrical shell. Then, a cylindrical shell coated with a thin layer of NiCoCrAlY + yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) is chosen to demonstrate the proposed formulation, and the rationality is validated by comparing with the finite element iteration method (FEIM). Results show that the developed finite element method is more efficient, and the hard-coating cylindrical shell has the characteristics of soft nonlinearity due to the strain dependence of the coating material.