CENG - 6502 [FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSIS IN STRUCTURES]

Materials and method of analysis

In the present study, the effect of aspect ratio of finite element around a central circular hole
on the stress distribution and deflection in a rectangular 3D plate of dimensions 100mm x
60mm x 10mm under longitudinal static load of magnitude 10Mpa has been analysed using
finite element method. Due to the presence of circular hole in the plate the maximum
equivalent Von-Mises stress induced is expected at the corner of major axis of the hole.

The 3D model of the elastic rectangular plate has been created and discretised using
modelling and meshing capabilities of LISA. The elements are manually discretised. It can
tolerate irregular shapes without as much loss of accuracy.. It has plasticity, creep, stress
stiffening, large deflection, and large strain capabilities. The model geometry and various
boundary conditions applied are shown in the figure below:

The plate is considered to have Young’s modulus of 210GPa and poisons ratio of 0.3; and
since LISA doesn't use any system of units itself. We apply consistent units to all quantities
with a magnification factor of 100 [10 (width),6 (length),young’s modules = 21,000,000 ,
load = 5000N,10,000N for model 1, model 2and 3 load of 2500N,5000N] these load are
applied at the nodes.

Fig.2. Geometry and boundary conditions of elastic plate with central circular hole

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 CENG - 6502 [FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSIS IN STRUCTURES]

Analysis procedure using LISA software

Finite Element Method is a popular and powerful method for realistically predicting the
behaviour of many engineering structures and components. Computer graphics are used
throughout the method to display the model and results. The finite element method, therefore,
has three main stages:
1. Build the model
2. Solve the model
3. Display the results
These can be broken down further:
 Build the model
o Create nodes in positions to represent the object’s shape
 Either create in LISA or
 Import from an existing CAD model
 Refine as required.
o Create finite elements (beams, plates, bricks, etc) between the nodes
o Assign material properties to the elements
o Assign constraints to selected nodes
o Assign applied forces to the appropriate nodes.
 Solve the model
o Define the type of analysis you want e.g. static linear, vibrational modes,
dynamic response with time, etc.
o Let LISA’s Solver do the work.
 Display the results
o Open the results file and select which parameters you want to display e.g.
displacement, principal stress, temperature, voltage,
o Display as 2D or 3D contour plots, and/or as tables of numerical values,
o Before inferring anything from the results, they must first be validated,
o Validation requires confirming mesh convergence has occurred and that
values are in line with expectations from hand calculations, experiments or
past experience,
o Mesh convergence requires refining the mesh repeatedly and solving until the
results no longer change appreciably.

SECTION THREE

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 CENG - 6502 [FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSIS IN STRUCTURES]

Results

The finite element method uses a mathematical formulation of physical theory to represent
physical behaviours. Assumptions and limitations of theory (like beam theory, plate theory,
Fourier theory, etc.) must not be violated by what we ask the software to do. A competent
user must have a good physical grasp of the problem so that errors in computed results can be
detected and a judgment made as to whether the results are to be trusted or not.

LISA works only with numerical quantities. It does not differentiate between N/m2 and
N/mm2. This means that you must use a consistent system of units throughout your analysis.
For example, if you're using millimetre for length, then Young's modulus should be in
N/mm2 and not N/m2. If you're using N/m2 for Young's modulus then use N for force, not
kN. we have used 5cm by 3cm model(quarter of the model) such as Young's modulus will
be equal to 210x10^5 N/cm2 .
Our first finite element model-1 for the problem has 34 nodes and 11 quadrilateral and 22
triangular elements(around hole). From the output of the program in LISA 7.7, it is seen that
the aspect ratio of all the elements are close to unity. Here only 6 elements have aspect ratio
below unity. The stress distribution for the model 1 is shown in Annex A.

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 CENG - 6502 [FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSIS IN STRUCTURES]

Fig(3.1). Model 1 (34 node and 33 element),

The maximum Von-Mises stress for this case with an aspect ratio of 0.6 is 0.297 MPa and the
maximum deflection of 2.73E-03 cm.

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 CENG - 6502 [FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSIS IN STRUCTURES]

Fig(3.2) Model 2(79 nodes and 68 elements)

The maximum Von-Mises stress for this case with an aspect ratio of 0.6 is 0.283 MPa and the
maximum deflection of 3.23E-03 cm.

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Fig (3.3) Model 3 (142 nodes and 117 elements )

The maximum Von-Mises stress for this case with an aspect ratio of 0.6 is 0.45 MPa and the
maximum deflection of 3.87E-03 cm.

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Conclusion

The following conclusions can be drawn from the above analysis:

 LISA provides a very suitable way of determining stresses induced in any body.
 LISA obtained results are not very accurate as compared to the analytical results but
they can be used for the simulation of complex geometries.
 As compared to the analytical method which only gives the numerical value of stress,
LISA gives a more intuitive feel to the designer by displaying stress contours
throughout the plate.
 The maximum stress concentration occurs at the corners of circular hole in all the
cases.

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