An approximate model for wave propagation in piezoelectric materials. I. Laminated composites

A continuum mixture theory with microstructure is developed for guided wave propagation in bilaminated periodic composites of piezoelectric materials. The theory leads to the simple governing coupled equations for the actual composites which retain the integrity of the propagation process in each constituent but allow them to coexist under analytically derived interaction parameters. As a consequence of the analysis, effective mixture properties of the composite are obtained in the zero-frequency (static) limit. The accuracy of the approximation is demonstrated by direct comparison with the exact solution for the propagation of harmonic waves in the system.