Nonlinear stochastic vibration of a variable cross-section rod with a fractional derivative element

The article deals with the problem of computing efficiently the nonlinear response of a rod involving a fractional constitutive model, and exposed to random excitation. The constitutive model is a three-parameter model comprising an instant elasticity modulus, a prolonged elasticity modulus, and a relaxation parameter. The nonlinear term is a linear-plus-cubic force of the Winkler kind. The resulting nonlinear fractional partial differential equation governing the rod displacement has no known exact solution. Thus, the article proposes an approximate analytical solution by relying on the statistical linearization technique. Further, it develops a Boundary Element Method (BEM)-based approach to estimate numerically the rod response statistics. The statistical linearization solution is obtained by representing the rod displacement as the superposition of linear modes of vibration having time-dependent coefficients. In this context, it is shown that the equation governing the time variation of the mode coefficients is a nonlinear fractional ordinary differential equation, whose solution is computed by a surrogate linear system identified by minimizing the response error between the linear system and the nonlinear one in a mean square sense. Relevant Monte Carlo studies pertaining to rods with fixed-fixed, and fixed-free ends show that the proposed analytical solution is in a good agreement with data obtained by the numerical (BEM) approach.