The Föppl-von Kármán equations for plates with incompatible strains

Abstract

We provide a derivation of the Föppl-von Kármán equations for the shape of and stresses in an elastic plate with incompatible or residual strains. These might arise from a range of causes: inhomogeneous growth, plastic deformation, swelling or shrinkage driven by solvent absorption. Our analysis gives rigorous bounds on the convergence of the three-dimensional equations of elasticity to the low-dimensional description embodied in the plate-like description of laminae and thus justifies a recent formulation of the problem to the shape of growing leaves. It also formalizes a procedure that can be used to derive other low-dimensional descriptions of active materials with complex non-Euclidean geometries.