Finite Element Analysis PDF

Structural Integrity Analysis 10.
Finite Element Analysis

Copyrighted materials

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10. FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSIS
Igor Kokcharov

10.1 FINITE ELEMENT METHOD
The theories of elasticity, plasticity, plates and other analytical theories can be used to solve
many engineering problems. Frequently, practical engineering problems cannot be solved
analytically due to complexity of the structure's geometry and boundary conditions. The
simple examples given in A, B and C can be solved to obtain inner stresses and displacements
with analytical methods. More complicated geometries such as the propeller in example D is
usually treated with a numerical method such as finite element method (FEM).

FEM is applied in the following manner:

1. Identify the problem, sketch the structure and loads.
2. Create the geometry with the FE package solid modeler or a CAD system.
3. Mesh the model.
4. Apply boundary conditions (constraints and loads) on the model.
5. Solve numerical equations.
6. Evaluate the results.
Structural Integrity Analysis 10. Finite Element Analysis


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Steps 1, 2, 3, 4 are known as preprocessing, the solution of equations in step 5 is the
processor and step 6 is considered postprocessing.
The FE model is normally subdivided into finite elements of a specific and simple shape. A
typical 3D finite element may be a brick or a wedge with nodes representing the vertices. The
displacement of the element is determined by nodal displacements and simple polynomial
shape functions that describe the assigned shape of the element. The strains and stresses are
calculated by the unknown nodal displacements. Once the nodal displacements are known,
element stresses and strains can be calculated.

The most difficult and lengthy step of FEM is the preprocessing, or creating the finite element
model. This step includes defining and generating the mesh and applying the correct loading
and displacement boundary conditions. Automatic meshing is not always simple, especially in
very small features or at the edges and corners. It can be difficult to apply boundary
conditions that correspond to the real situation. However, FEM solvers that process the
equations in step 5 work automatically and can be rather fast depending on the number of
nodes. Powerful and robust visualization tools can allow for a very thorough analysis in step 6.

Degrees of freedoms
Degrees of freedoms (DOF) are associated with each unknown nodal displacement. Each node
of a 3D tetrahedral element has 3 DOF representing 3 translational motions. The equations of
equilibrium are assembled in a matrix form. Problems with well over 100,000 DOF can be
solved with a notebook computer.


4

Equilibrium equations refer to the equilibrium of each node in each direction:

The sum of all forces at an axis is equal to zero.
The sum of inner forces is equal to the sum of external forces.

The number of nodes is usually bigger than the number of elements for structured 3D models.
The number of degrees of freedom is 3 times the number of nodes less the number of
kinematic boundary conditions.



5

The stiffness matrix [K] is the relationship between the vectors of nodal displacements {D}
and forces {F}. The stiffness matrix is a diagonal-dominant matrix and is symmetric. It solves
for nodal displacement given the loading scheme.



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10.2 FINITE ELEMENTS
The mathematical model is subdivided by finite elements, which are connected to each other
with nodes. Forces act at the nodes. The finite element is not a rigid body, the model
assumes stresses and strains exist inside the finite elements.

There are a few commonly used finite elements: beam A, truss B, thin shell C, 2D or 3D
continuum (D). It is possible to use several types of elements in one model.

Reliability of the FEA predictions depends on the number of finite elements. If the inner
stresses do not vary greatly then the number of elements does not have a significant effect
on the accuracy.


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Solid elements may be linear (first-order elements) or parabolic (second-order elements).
Linear elements have corner nodes only and their edges are straight. The minimum number
of nodes for 3D elements is 4. Parabolic elements can have a node placed centrally along
each edge and therefore the edges are parabolic. Given the same number of elements, the
higher order elements are more accurate because they have a more complex mathematical
formulation to describe the element shape (shape function). Also, they represent curved
geometry more accurately. An analysis involving higher order elements requires more
computational resources.

There are 3 degrees of freedom in a node and 8 nodes for a brick (hexahedral) element. This
means that 24 nodal displacements and 24 nodal forces must be considered. The size of the
stiffness matrix that relates the nodal displacement vector with the nodal forces vector is
[24*24].



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The stiffness matrix components are inversely proportion to the modulus of elasticity. Zero
modulus of elasticity means that there is no finite elements. Division by zero modulus of
elasticity leads to numerical errors in the FEM procedures. Infinity modulus of elasticity
means that a part of structure is absolutely rigid.

Although in the theory of elasticity the tensile stress in the crack tip is equal to infinity, all
stresses are finite in FEM.



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Long elements can be used if there is not a large gradient of displacements, strains and
stresses. Such elements can be used in fields of uniform stress but not for stress
concentrations. The stress gradient is high but still finite in zones of stress concentration.

If a structure and its loads are symmetrical about the axis the problem can be solved using
axisymmetric 2D finite elements.

Five tetrahedral elements are enough to form a cube. Parabolic pyramid elements provide
results that are at least as accurate as linear brick elements.



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10.3 MESHING
A key step in finite element analysis procedure is to mesh the model. Meshing is process of
breaking the model into small pieces (finite elements). The network of nodes and elements is
called a mesh.

There are two broad types of mesh-generation methods: structured and unstructured
meshes.

A structured mesh B is formed by grid-based subdividing of the geometry.

Unstructured mesh is formed automatically. The size of neighboring elements can be
significantly different for unstructured mesh. There are no "rows and columns" for such mesh,
A. There are more nodes than elements for unstructured mesh with a large number of
elements. The ratio between elements and nodes is approximately 2:1 for 2D unstructured
mesh and 6:1 for 3D unstructured mesh with tetrahedral elements.

Smaller mesh size h corresponds to a larger number of finite elements in the model. The
calculation time increases exponentially as size decreases. The errors decrease for finer mesh
but never fall to zero since FEM is always an numerical approximation.


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A linear element requires a finer mesh than a parabolic (quadratic) or a cubic element.
Structured mesh B is preferable over an unstructured mesh, A.
Rectangular 4 node elements, C are more preferable than triangular elements, B.
Quadratic (second order) triangular elements, D have at least the same accuracy as first
order 4 node elements, C.
Rectangular 8 node elements, E are preferable over triangular second order elements, D
despite their larger size.
Cubic displacement approximation F does not need fine meshing.



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The FEM is an approximate method. The accuracy of the predictions depends on the
assumptions made within the element types and the mesh. A fine mesh is required where
there are stress and strain gradients (rates of change). A coarse mesh can be used in areas
of reasonably constant stress or regions that are not of user's interest. Users must be able to
identify regions of stress concentration. Points of interest may consist of fracture points of
previously tested structure, holes, fillets, corners, contact zones, complex details, and high
stress areas.



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The accuracy decreases if the sizes of the neighboring elements near stress concentrators are
significantly different.

The shape of finite elements affects the accuracy. It is preferable not to have sharp corners in
finite elements. Elements with similar sides produce smaller errors.

The FE mesh is built without gaps between elements. Both triangular and rectangular
elements can be used in the same FE model.



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The nodes are numbered sequentially for manual meshing. It is forbidden to build four node
elements with an obtuse (> 180
o
) inner corner.

10.4 BOUNDARY CONDITIONS

Application of boundary conditions is the most critical stage of the finite element analysis.

To simulate the constraints imposed on the physical motion of the structure, displacement
boundary conditions A, B must be defined. Prescribed displacements can have zero A or non-
zero B values. There are also load boundary conditions, C.


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The boundary conditions (fixation or force for a direction) are applied at the nodes only.
Maximum number of boundary conditions for a node is equal to the degrees of freedom: 3
restraints or forces for a node in this example.

Great care must be taken so that the finite element model is neither under constrained nor
over-constrained. It is not possible to fix all degrees of freedom (all nodal displacements) for
an element. It is better to remove the element from the model. It is not possible to fix a node
and to apply force in the same direction.

Absence of restraints along an axis can lead to a shift along the axis due to errors in
numerical calculations. The correct boundary conditions must have at least one restraint for
each axis.



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Different sets of load and displacement boundary conditions can be implemented to represent
model tension, pure bending or shear.

There are three planes of symmetry in this example. If the cube is more flexible than the
platens then there is no need to model the entire structure. All points of the upper cube
surface will have virtually the same vertical displacements.


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St Venants principle:
Two sets of statically equivalent forces produce the same stress field at distance that
is large compared to linear dimensions of cross section: b > a.

This principle is often utilized to replace complex boundary conditions with statically
equivalent loads.

The figure shows two equivalent loading schemes.

Tensile stresses are frequently the reason for failure in a structure. If the region of
maximum tensile stress extends beyond the region of the applied force it is not


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necessary to have a very fine mesh in that region. There are compressive stresses in
region of applied force.

This is an example how the distributed load is spread over the nodes. The sum of the force is
equal to 18 kg for a half of the plate. The force can be distributed as the weight over 6 nodes.



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10.5 DEFORMATION

Most finite element procedures are based on the "displacement method". From the law of
equilibrium, the sum of the forces (internal and external) on a node must equal zero. The
unknown variables are the displacements. The following is the matrix form of the equilibrium
equations:
[K] {D} = {F}
[K] = global stiffness matrix;
{D}= displacement vector;
{F} = load vector.

The stiffness matrix [K] is symmetrical about the diagonal. There are two main types of
solvers: direct and iterative. Direct solvers are usually based on Gaussian elimination
technique. The direct solvers are more robust but can be slow and require large amounts of
disk space for very large problems. Iterative solvers can be extremely fast and require small
disk space.

The matrix equation is solved for the displacement vector {D}. Strains can be computed from
the displacement results.

The figure shows how the strain depends on the nodal displacements. There is a shift along
axis x by 5mm : e
x
= 0. Displacement v increases along axis y: e
y
is positive.



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For first order elements the tensile strain is defined by the difference between corresponding
displacements.

There is a linear function for displacements inside the 4-node element. This means that the
maximum displacement is only in nodes. The strain is constant for the element. The strain
function is quadratic for the second order element shown.

The post-processor visualizes the static or animated description of the deformed shape. The
deformed shape of the structure is obtained by summing the nodal coordinates and the nodal
displacements multiplied by factor k. The deformed shape helps us to understand many
things about the structure such as the position of a region under deflection, where maximum
distortion takes place, the accuracy of the applied restraints, and other features of the
structural deformation.
The figure shows the initial and deformed shape of a thin plate. The magnification factor is
k=1. It is possible to obtain large deformation even if the material properties remains linear


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(elastic). The problem was solved by a (geometrically) nonlinear structural procedure. The
step-by-step loading solution is implemented in this case. The low bending rigidity assists in
large linear deformation. The bending rigidity is low if the elastic modulus or thickness t are
small. Theoretically, the size of the finite elements do not effect rigidity.

The deformed shape can help the user to decide if the boundary conditions are properly
prescribed. No rotations are allowed at edges 1 and 2, only 1 rotation component at edges 3
and 4.



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All displacements are linear for these four-nodes plane elements. There are no gaps between
the finite elements. The edges can be polygonal lines if the number of finite elements in the
model is large.

This figure shows the deformed shapes for different loading schemes. The uniform stress and
deformation fields can be obtained for the second loading scheme. It is better if the loads at
the edges are half of those in the center.



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The maximum deformation is in the point where the force is applied. The maximum shear
stress in the body occurs in the surface element under the force. The rigid plate redistributes
force in the body. The contact stress in the body is smaller for the second example. The
calculated value of maximum shear stress depends on the size of the elements.

The left end of the shaft is fixed in all nodes. Two nodes on the opposite end are shifted by 2
mm. This loading situation corresponds to torsion. There is a stress irregularity at the right
end. If the ends of the shaft are made of relatively rigid material, the local deformation will
be distributed over the entire shaft. The stress field is more homogeneous for the second
instance.



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10.6 ACCURACY

Numerical modeling requires approximations and simplifications. The results of FEA are not
error-free. Using such a powerful tool as a "black box" without proper understanding of the its
principal features can lead users into serious mistakes. Unfortunately, human error is
inevitable.

A design engineer must understand:
- Which FE analysis is appropriate for an engineering problem;
- What part of the structure must be studied in detail;

Formulation errors take place if the finite elements do not precisely describe the behavior of
the physical problem. Selecting the proper element type and mesh size will reduce
formulation errors. Formulation of boundary conditions is critical for the analysis. The success
of FEA depends on the how closely the boundary conditions, geometry, and material behavior
of the model match the actual situation.

FEM's approximation of a real engineering structure with a finite number of finite elements, as
well as the size and shape of the elements can cause discretization error.

Numerical errors are usually rare in comparison with the discretization and formulation errors.
Displacements are the primary unknowns. The FEM solution is usually obtained as a vector of
nodal displacement {v}. The solution at other locations throughout the element is generally
calculated by interpolation. After approximating the displacement field with shape functions
the strain and stress can be calculated. This means that accuracy is at a maximum for nodal
displacements.

Strain is calculated by determining the difference in displacement between corresponding
points. This is why the accuracy for strain and stress is at a maximum in the central part of
the finite elements.

The figure shows a stress pattern for bending. The theoretical and numerical solutions
coincide at the center point of the elements.



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The type and number of finite elements affect the accuracy of the modeling.



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For the nonlinear analysis where force is calculated the number of elements in the model
affects the value of the force for small numbers only. The force becomes more stable with an
increase in the number of elements.



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The are two methods to increase the accuracy for the solution shown:

H-method increases the number of elements, h is the length of one side of an element.
P-method increases the polynomial order of the element.

Second-order elements, B demonstrate the higher accuracy. For bending of the cantilever
beam one element over the height of the beam is not the best choice. The more parabolic
elements in the length, the better.
Mesh A is preferred for the problem of computational fluid dynamics (CFD).

A. Structured rectangular mesh. Numerical approximations are centered about the centroid of
the rectangle element.
B. Structured deformed mesh. There are many elements where numerical approximations are
not centered (or symmetrical).
C. Block-structured mesh. Elements are condensed at one point along the straight border.



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Nonlinear structural analysis predicts the behavior of the mild steel specimen. The coarse
mesh at the left end does not have a significant effect on results for the region with the finer
mesh such as the value of maximum stress, the strain pattern in the net section Q-Q, or
deformed shape of the central hole. The condition of force applied on the left side of the
model roughly agrees with the real situation. The errors in the numerical diagram "Force -
Displacement F-v" are possible due to the coarse mesh at the left end of the model.

Errors due to numerical analysis increases if small values of volumetric strain e
V
is multiplied
by large values of the bulk modulus K. Such analysis requires additional tests. The situation
occurs when Poisson's ratio approaches a value of 0.5.



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10.7 HEAT TRANSFER ANALYSIS

Steady-State or Transient Heat Transfer Analysis is devoted to predicting the temperature
distribution for an object exposed to heating, radiation, convection and conduction. Thermal
Stress Analysis predicts stresses, displacements due to thermal expansion or contraction.

To perform heat transfer analysis or static structural analysis the same types of elements can
be used. There is no need to decrease the order of elements or to remesh the model. For
three-dimensional (3D) brick elements there are 3 nodal displacements for static analysis.
Nodal temperature is an additional variable. Therefore, there are 4 variables per node for the
thermal stress analysis. The structural stiffness matrix does not depend on boundary
conditions or nodal temperature.
Temperature change causes thermal expansion or contraction. High temperature causes
thermal expansion of a solid. Uniform heating results in deformation only, not thermal stress.
High gradient of temperature causes distortion of the beam. Thermal stresses are caused by
temperature gradient. The smaller the distance between nodes with different temperatures,
the larger the distortion and thermal stresses.



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Cooling causes contraction and tensile stress s
z
in most of the elements. The stress does not
depend on the width of the plate. The stress at the left-hand side of the notched specimen is
very small. There is a stress gradient in the net-section A - B. The stress is the largest in
element A.

Oil quenching of a steel structure can be modeled by transient heat transfer module. The
results are transferred to static analysis to calculate the thermal stresses. Quenching causes
contraction of external surfaces. The contraction causes the tensile stress on those surfaces.
The intersection of thin and thick walls causes the highest thermal stresses.

A pressure vessel with bimetal steel walls was heated till 400
o
C. The coefficient of thermal
expansion is larger for stainless steel. The stainless steel layer tries to expand but the
titanium alloy layer does not have such a large deformation. There is a negative tangential
thermal stress in the stainless steel. There is additional compressive thermal stress in the
stainless steel near the layer's intersection.


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Uniform heating of the rigid ring will expand it mostly in the tangential direction. There is a
smaller displacement in the radial direction. Thin walled dome-shape plate will have a larger
radial displacement. It causes the central points to move upwards.

A cold drop of water on a hot metal surface causes thermal cracking due to local tensile
stress. The temperature distribution in the structure is used as the loading condition for a
structural analysis to calculate thermal stress.

The temperature can be calculated using the differential equation governing transient heat
transfer with a heat source. In this case:

k is the heat transfer coefficient;
T is temperature;
t is time;
Q(t) is the heat source.



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10.8 DYNAMICS

Modal Analysis. Understanding the natural frequencies and corresponding modes of
engineering structures can help improve performance and guarantee safety. Changing the
external forces causes dynamic effects. For example, vibrations are generated in vehicles
from motors or road conditions, in ships from waves, in airplane wings due to turbulence, etc.
The maximum stresses resulting from the vibration are considered in engineering analysis.
The stresses define the lifetime of a structure.
Vibration involves repetitive motion. Frequency is defined as the number of cycles in a given
time period. 10 Hertz is the same as 10 cycles per second.

The dynamic magnification factor D is equal to the ratio of amplitude at a given frequency to
amplitude of the static response.

The number of characteristic frequencies of the model is equal to number of DOF in the FE
model. The most important results are within the first few natural frequencies. The
coincidence of the external vibration with the first (and smallest) fundamental frequency
results in the maximum deflection of the structure.

The first frequency is a property of structure. It does not change if the number of FE in the
model increases. FEM solves the eigenvalue problem with better approximation for low
frequencies. The higher the frequency, the smaller the correspondence between the FE model
and the real situation. There is no need to predict all high frequencies for a structure. It is
possible to identify one structure from another by the set of natural frequencies, the "finger
prints" of a structure.


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The most serious consequences occur when a power-driven device produces a frequency at
which an attached structure naturally vibrates. This effect is called "resonance". If sufficient
power is applied, the structure can be destroyed. The major purpose of the modal analysis is
to avoid resonance. Ideally, the first mode must have a frequency higher than any potential
driving frequencies.



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In the example, the membrane of a load cell is compressed with variable external pressure.
External pressure is applied to the membrane with a frequency of 1 / (time period) = 1 / 0.2
= 5 Hz. If the FEA shows that the natural frequency of the membrane is about 5 Hz
resonance will take place. The load cell cannot correctly reflect the pressure values. It is
recommended to use the cell with lower frequency external pressure. If this is not possible
then the cell design must be changed.

An increase of the modulus of elasticity E can increase the fundamental frequency w
1
. Natural
frequency decreases for heavier material.

The following linear eigenvalue problem is solved to calculate the natural frequencies and
associated mode shape of a finite element model. Here
[K] is the structural stiffness matrix;
[M] is the mass matrix;
w
i
is the i
th
natural frequency;
{D
i
} is the i
th
mode shape or eigenvector.



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Natural frequencies and mode shapes are the results of modal analysis. They do not depend
on static loading schemes. The force vector is a zero-element vector.

Predicting the effects of impacts are the most common use of transient dynamics. The second
formula given shows the dependence of dynamic response on applied force. Stiffness matrix
relates forces and displacements. Inertia is described by point accelerations. Damping effect
is defined by the velocity of the body.

Analysis of dynamic response by FEM is shown in the example. The solutions were obtained
for a time interval Dt. The smaller the time interval the smaller the errors.
There is a critical value Dt
critical
above which the step-by-step integration leads to significant
error. The value of Dt
critical
depends on the highest frequency of the model.



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In the example a static load had caused tensile stress to reach the yield strength in the low-
carbon steel thin plate. The dynamic response problem of the weight dropped onto the plate
from a height of 0.5 meter is solved with nonlinear dynamic analysis. There are damping
vibrations. The dynamic magnification factor is much larger than 1. This means that at
dynamic loading the stress exceeds the yield strength of the material and there is a residual
deformation in plate that is larger than the static one.

10.9 COMPUTATIONAL FLUID DYNAMICS

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) provides insight into transient and turbulent flow. The
mechanical principles governing fluids and solids are the same. CFD uses numerical methods
such as the finite element method, the finite difference method, the boundary element
method, and the finite volume method. It allows analysis and optimization of structural
component geometry for efficient fluid flow. It also allows one to view pressure, velocity, and
temperature in the flow.
Dynamics is the study of motion of objects.

A fluid actually means anything that is not a solid. Both air and water are fluids from this
point of view. Fluids are considered as any "shapeless" substance, which cannot remain at
rest under a sliding stress.

The following are examples of the problem that can be solved by CFD:



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A. Hanging wet clothes out to dry.
B. Burning gasoline in an automobile engine.
C. Sailing.
D. A jet of water issuing from a slit.
E. Dissolution.
F. Melting, boiling .
G. Mechanical movement of a fan.
H. Gas flow in jet engine.

In the CFD-based analysis the Navier-Stokes equations take the form of a large system of
nonlinear equations. There are three fundamental principles of computational fluid dynamics:

Energy is conserved.
Mass is conserved.
Momentum is conserved.


39

Temperature, the pressure, the three velocity components, and density are typical variables
for fluid flow. The flow variables can be stored at the center of the computational cell (Cell
Centered methods) or at the vertices of the cell (Cell Vertex or Vertex Centered methods).
The acoustic-fluid model is the simplest: the fluid only transmits pressure waves, fluid-
particle motions are small. Only one degree of freedom (the potential) needs to be calculated
at each finite-element node in potential-based analysis.

CFD simulates steady and unsteady flow in air and in boundary layers. The mesh is created to
represent the air configuration surrounding a solid. The mesh is more dense for the boundary
layers.

Zones with turbulence flow demand a fine local grid resolution. Zone A for water falling from
a step is an example of such a region.



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There are two different quantitive results for a jet of water issued at a constant low velocity
(<5 cm/s) from a long slit into air chamber:

1. The distortion in the inlet hole can be observed in the exact model and the experiment.
2. The enlargement of the flow in the center may be caused by numerical errors in the
boundary layer between water and air.

This is a rough estimation of the turbulence depending on Reynolds Number Re. Re is meant
to measure the relative importance of fluid inertia to viscous forces. Outside the boundary
layer, the flow is independent of the Reynolds Number. Viscous forces are negligible if the
Reynolds number is large.

n is the kinematic viscosity of the fluid;
L and U are characteristic length and velocity scales for a flow.

The result of CFD modeling is color contours of pressure, velocity, and temperature. Contrary
to solid bodies where stress concentration usually takes place at notches or holes, the
concentration of CFD parameters can be observed on a smooth surface. Supersonic flow in a


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jet engine with a spike: the primary shock wave originates at nose of the spike and impinges
on the inner surface of the intake nozzle. This is a the region of pressure concentration. The
relative difficulty or ease of the CFD-based analysis depend on dimensionality in time (varying
or not varying with time), dimensionality in space (one- , two-, or three-dimensional space),
complexity of the geometry of the solids, and complexity of the flow-influencing boundary
conditions. If available computer resources are not sufficient for the necessary numerical
accuracy, and assumptions were made for the input data the result of CFD-based modeling
may not be reliable . The reliability is greater for laminar rather than turbulent flows, and for
chemically-inert rather than chemically-reactive gases.

10.10 DESIGN ANALYSIS

FEA is used to optimize design, guarantee safety, reduce design-cycle time, weight, costs,
and the need for testing. Practitioners can use FEA

- to prove design safety;
- to meet code requirements;


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- to modify an existing design;
- to test new and competing designs;
- to peer inside design and see phenomenon that cannot be measured with experimental
methods.
Now FEA packages are integrated with solid modeling and computer aided design (CAD)
systems. CAD is the use of geometric or solid modeling programs to aid in the creation or
modification of a design. A structure may be drawn in solid model form by one of the many
CAD packages available. Wireframe is a geometric representation of 3D model as outlined by
its outer edges. The model is transferred to a FE software, where it is meshed and boundary
conditions are specified. The stresses, displacements, temperatures and other parameters are
results of the FE solution. The results help to make decisions on changes in structure design,
loads or service regimes. CAD and FEA are becoming integrated.

A FEA analysis is not simply translating a CAD file and watching the results. Considerable care
and skill has to be employed to be sure that the results correspond to the reality and all
scenarios are taken into account.



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Transferring a model from a CAD system assumes some simplification of the model. The
fillets in the area of maximum stress concentration are the subject of detailed analysis.

Fillets are not always modeled in detail. If the calculated maximum stress is large then one of
the possible ways to guarantee the safety of the new structure is in correct design of fillets
which can decrease stress concentrations.



44
FEA is also used to calculate nominal stresses in different regions of the structure. The FEA
can be useful in comparing of old and new designs with similar manufacturing technologies. If
nominal stresses in the model of a new design are smaller than for the old the conclusion of
the analysis is the new design is at least as safe as the old one.

There are about 100 types of standard finite elements in commercial FE packages. Automatic
meshing procedures can divide the sub-areas on standard elements. There are no plane
elements with 5 or 11 nodes. The number of nodes in a finite element cannot be chosen
arbitrary.



45
FEA solves problems using
Stress Analysis Stresses, displacements, deflections are calculated for static loading.
Steady-state or Transient Heat Transfer Predicting temperature distribution for an
object exposed to heating, radiation, convection and conduction.
Thermal Stress Analysis Stresses and displacement due to thermal expansion are a
subject of the analysis.
Transient Dynamic Objects in rapid motion or under impact are studied to obtain
maximum stresses, deflection. Dynamic incremental nonlinear analysis assumes not
one, but many solution steps for nonlinear system. Time for solution of the problem is
significantly higher than for static analysis problem.
Modal Analysis Vibration characteristics such as natural frequencies and mode shapes
are calculated.
Fluid Flow Fluid flow in gases, air, and water is modeled to find temperatures,
pressures, velocities, etc.
Linear Buckling Calculates the load at which a structure is likely to fail due to elastic
instability.
Non Linear Analysis Analysis for large deflections and nonlinear material behavior
such as plastic.



46
Nonlinear problems are solved by with step-by-step increments of applied loads F. At each
step the material constant (effective modulus of elasticity) changes depending on the level of
stress intensity in the FE for a previous step and material behavior ('stress-strain' diagram).
At each loading step the components of the stiffness matrix change according to the new
level of stress. It is better to avoid infinitely large or negative diagonal components of the
stiffness matrix. This can lead to numerical "oscillation" and errors in the analysis.

REFERENCES
Bathe K.J. Finite Element Procedures, Prentice Hall, 1996.
Knight C.E. The Finite Element Method in Mechanical Design, PWS-KENT Publishing
Company, 1993.
What Every Engineer Should Know About Finite Element Analysis edited by J.R.
Brauer, Marcel Dekker Inc., 1988.
Zienkiewicz O.C. The Finite Element Method, 4th Edition, McGraw Hill Book Company,
New York, 1989.

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Structural Integrity Analysis 10.

Finite Element Analysis

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