Application of beam theory in flexural vibration analysis of thin-walled girders is extended for the high-frequency domain by introducing the concept of effective values of beam parameters, that is, cross-sectional moment of inertia, shear area, mass, and mass moment of inertia. Formulation of these parameters is based on equivalence of deformation energy and inertia work, respectively, for a considered structure and its beam model, resulting in the same values of their natural frequencies. For illustration, the natural vertical vibration of a simply supported pontoon has been considered, where it was possible to obtain the analytical solution due to sinusoidal mode shapes. The effective values of cross-sectional moment of inertia and shear area show significant variation in frequency domain. Transfer of effective values of beam parameters, determined for simply supported structure, in the case of other boundary conditions is suggested, based on equal mode wavelengths, and checked for the free pontoon. The results show very low discrepancies compared with a three-dimensional finite-element model solution, so this procedure may be applied generally, as well as to the problem of ship hull vibration. In conclusion, the possibility of calculating the values of effective parameters for multicell ship cross sections, utilizing the theory of folded structure and the finite-element method, is pointed out.
