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ABAQUS - Beam, Plane Stress, and Plane Strain Element Compatibility

Submitted by jwshaffer on

Hello,

 

I am working with a simulation of a thin component bonded to a thick
component in ABAQUS 6.7.  Here I utilize beam (B21) elements bonded to
plane strain elements (CPE4R) using a *TIE constraint, and another
simulation that uses plane stress elements (CPS4R) bonded to plane
strain elements (CPE4R) using a *TIE constraint.  In both cases the
plane strain elements represent the slave surface for the bonded
constraint.

The question has come up regarding the compatibility of using these
elements together (i.e. different formulations).  In general, beams and plane stress elements are not
infite in the out-of-plane direction, however plane strain elements
are.  What can I do to verify the compatibility between these types of
elements when used in a single model?  What simple tests could I perform
in ABAQUS?

 

Regards,

-JWS

 

 

 Additional Details:

The *TIE constraint between the beam/plane stress and the plane strain
elements should not be a problem because the nodes of the beams are
coincident with the nodes of the plane strain elements (but the nodes
are not shared).  According to the ABAQUS Analysis User's Manual
(28.3.1) if the master surface has a rotational dof and the slave does
not, then the translational motion is consistent and the rotation is
accounted for using a moment on the master surface.  Since my nodes are
coincident this should not come into effect.

 

ABAQUS ANALYSIS USER'S MANUAL: 28.3.1

Only one surface has rotational degrees of freedom

If the slave surface has rotational degrees of freedom and the master

surface does not, the translational motion is constrained at the closest

point on the master reference surface. When the reference surfaces are

offset, a moment will be applied to each slave node based on the

constraint force times the offset distance. Similarly, if the master

surface has rotational degrees of freedom and the slave surface does

not, the translational motion is constrained at each slave node and a

moment will be applied to the relevant nodes on the master surface if an

offset exists. In either case the surface-based constraint will behave

correctly under rigid body rotation regardless of the amount of offset