Chapter 3

Basic Elements

Stress-Strain Review
Textbook: 3.1

Review of Solid Mechanics

The analysis of any solid elastic body has to define and
develop the following quantities and/or relations
Stress
Strain (strain-displacement relations)
Constitutive Properties (Stress-Strain relations)
Compatibility
Equilibrium Equations
Boundary Conditions

SURFACE TRACTION f

F
1

Surface traction (Stress)

The entire body is in equilibrium with external
forces (f1 ~ f6)

n
P

The imaginary cut body is in equilibrium due to

external forces (f1, f2, f3) and internal forces

f3

Internal force acting at a point P

on a plane whose unit normal is n:

(n)

f6
f1

F
lim
A 0 A

The surface traction depends on the unit

normal direction n.

T(n) Txi Ty j Tzk

f5

f4

f2
z

Surface traction will change when n changes.

unit = force per unit area (pressure)

f2

f3
y

T(n) T Tx2 Ty2 Tz2

4

NORMAL AND SHEAR STRESSES

Normal and shear stresses
Decompose T(n) into normal and tangential components
n

normal stress

stress component parallel to n

shear stress

stress component perpendicular to n

T(n)

n T ( n ) n
T (n )

n
n

n2 n2

T(n) n2

What if T(n) and n are

in the same
direction?

CARTESIAN STRESS COMPONENTS

Surface traction changes according to the direction of the surface.

Impossible to store stress information for all directions.
Lets store surface traction parallel to the three coordinate directions.
Surface traction in other directions can be calculated from them.
Consider the x-face of an infinitesimal cube
T( x ) Tx( x )i Ty( x ) j + Tz( x )k

F Fxi Fy j Fzk

T ( x ) xxi xy j xzk

Fx

xx lim
A x 0 A
x

Fy

xy lim
A x 0 A
x

Fz
xz lim
A x 0 A
x

z
xz
F

xy

xx
y
x

CARTESIAN COMPONENTS cont.

First index is the face and the second index is its direction
When two indices are the same, normal stress, otherwise shear stress.
Continuation for other surfaces.
Total nine components
Same stress components are defined for the negative planes.

Comp.

Description

xx

Normal stress on the x face in the x dir.

yy

Normal stress on the y face in the y dir.

zz

Normal stress on the z face in the z dir.

xy

Shear stress on the x face in the y dir.

yx

Shear stress on the y face in the x dir.

yz

Shear stress on the y face in the z dir.

zy

Shear stress on the z face in the y dir.

xz

Shear stress on the x face in the z dir.

zx

Shear stress on the z face in the x dir.

zz

z
xz
F

zx

y
x

yz
xy

xx

zy

yx

yy

y
7

CARTESIAN COMPONENTS cont.

Sign convention
Positive when tension and negative when compression.
Shear stress acting on the positive face is positive when it is acting in
the positive coordinate direction.

sgn( xx ) sgn(n) sgn( Fx )

sgn( xy ) sgn(n) sgn( Fy )

STRESS TRANSFORMATION
If stress components in xyz-planes are known, it is possible to
determine the surface traction acting on any plane.
Consider a plane whose normal is n.
nx
y

n nxi ny j nzk ny
B

n
z
n
Surface area (ABC = A)

zz
T(n)
zx
xz
PAB Anz ; PBC Anx ; PAC Any
zy
xx
P
The surface traction
xy
yz
A x
yx
T (n ) Tx(n )i Ty(n ) j Tz(n )k
yy
z C
Force balance (h 0)

Tx(n) A xx Anx yx Any zx Anz 0

Tx(n ) xxn x yxn y zxnz

STRESS TRANSFORMATION cont.

All three-directions
Tx(n ) xxnx yxny zxnz
Ty(n ) xynx yyny zynz
Tz(n ) xznx yzny zznz

Matrix notation
T (n ) [ ] n

xx

[ ] xy

xz

yx
yy
yz

zx

zy
zz

[]: stress matrix; completely characterize the state of stress at a point

Normal and shear components

n T ( n ) n n [ ] n
n

T (n )

{n} T [ ]{n}

n2
10

SYMMETRY OF STRESS TENSOR

Stress tensor should be symmetric
9 components
6 components
Equilibrium of the angular moment

yx

M l(xy yx ) 0

xy l

xy yx

Similarly for all three directions:

xy yx

xy

O
l

yx

xx

[ ] xy

xz

yx

yz zy

xx

xz zx
yy
zz
Lets use vector notation: { }
yz

zx
xy

zx

zy
zz

yy
yz

11

COORDINATE TRANSFORMATION
When []xyz is given, what would be the components in a different
coordinate system xyz (i.e., []xyz)?
Unit vectors in xyz-coordinates:
b

1
b b
b

1
1
1
2
1
3

b
2
, b b

2
1
2
2
2
3

b
3
, b b

3
1
3
2
3
3

b1 = {1, 0, 0}T in xyz coordinates,

while b1 {b11, b12 , b13 } in xyz coordinates
the rotational transformation matrix
[N] [b1 b 2

b11

b3 ] b12
b13

b12
b22
b32

b13

b32
b33

y
b2

b1
x

b3
z

Direction cosine matrix

Stress does not rotate. The coordinates rotate

12

COORDINATE TRANSFORMATION cont.

[N] transforms a vector in the xyz coordinates into the xyz coordinates,
while [N]T transforms a vector in the xyz coordinates into the xyz
coordinates.
y
x
y
Consider bxyz = {1, 0, 0}T:
b11
b1
b2
1
1
1
b xyz [N] b x ' y ' z ' b2
x
b3
b1
3
z

Stress transformation: Using stress vectors,

1

[T (b )

T (b

T (b ) ]xyz []xyz [b1 b 2 b3 ] []xyz [N]

By multiplying [N]T the stress vectors can be represented in the xyz

coordinates
[]xyz [N]T []xyz [N]

The first [N] transforms the plane, while the second transforms the
force.
13

Equilibrium Equations (2-D)

Equilibrium of a cube in
xy-plane with length dx
and dy in X-and Ydirections and unit
thickness in the Zdirection

yy

dy
2

yx
xx

dx
2

xy

dy
2

xy

dx
2

x
x

xx

dx
2

dx
2

yx

dy
2

yy
Equilibrium of forces
in X-direction

dy
2

x dx dy x dy xy dxy dx xy dx FX 0
14

Equilibrium of forces in X-direction

x d x dy x dy xy d xy dx xy dx FX dxdy 0
1

x d x dy x dy xy d xy dx xy dx FX dxdy 0
x
dx
x
xy
dy

d x
d xy

d xy
d x
dxdy
dxdy FX dxdy 0
dx
dy

x xy

X dxdy 0
x
y

15

2-D Equilibrium Equations

The force equilibrium provide the relations shown below
referred to as differential equation of equilibrium

x xy

Fx 0
x
y
xy
x

3D case

y
y

Fy 0

xx xy xz

FX 0

x
y
z

xy yy yz

FY 0

x
y
z

yz zz

FZ 0
xz
y
z
x

16

Strain
Why do we need the strain measures? Will displacement not
suffice?
Strain better quantifies the deformation of the body and
eliminates rigid body motion/rotation
Strain in very general terms is a measure of relative
deformation
Relative to what?
Undeformed body : Lagrangian strain
Deformed body:

Eulerian strain

17

STRAIN
Strain: a quantitative measure of deformation
Normal strain: change in length of a line segment
Shear strain: change in angle between two perpendicular line segments

Displacement of P = (u, v, w)
Displacement of Q & R
u
x
x
v
vQ v
x
x
w
x
wQ w
x

uQ u

u
y
y
v
vR v
y
y
w
wR w
y
y

uR u

R'

Q'
R

P'(x+u,y+v,z+w)

x
P(x,y,z)
Q
x

18

STRAIN
Strain is defined as the elongation per unit length
uy
y
P

ux

Tensile (normal) strains in x- and y-directions

ux ux

x 0 x
x
uy uy
lim

y 0 y
y

xx lim
yy

Textbook has different, but

more rigorous derivations

Strain is a dimensionless quantity. Positive for elongation and negative

for compression
19

SHEAR STRAIN
Shear strain is the tangent of the change in angle between two
originally perpendicular axes
ux

1 tan 1

uy
2

x
ux
2 tan 2
y

y
P

Shear strain (change of angle)

xy 1 2 lim

x 0

xy

uy
x

ux uy ux

y 0 y
x
y

lim

u
1
1 u
xy y x
2
2 x
y

/2 12

uy

Engineering shear strain

Tensor shear strain

Positive when the angle between two positive (or two negative) faces
is reduced and negative when the angle is increased.
Valid for small deformation
20

STRAIN MATRIX
Strain matrix and strain vector
xx

[ ] yx

zx

xy
yy
zy

xx

yy
zz
{ }
yz

zx
xy

xz

yz
zz

Normal component: nn n [ ] n
Coordinate transformation: [ ]xyz [N]T [ ]xyz [N]

21

Compatibility
Deformation must be such that the pieces fit together
without any gaps or overlap.
Why is this an issue?
In 2-D we require only 2 displacements u, and v to
describe deformation, but have three strain quantities
x,y, and xy. This implies only two of the three strain
terms are independent.

u
x

v
y

xy

v u

x y

2
2 x y
2 u 2 v
2
xy 2 2 2 2
y
x
y x x y
xy
22

Stress-Strain Relations
The stress-strain relations in solid mechanics is often
referred to as the Hookes Law
Hookes law of proportionality stated as extension is
proportional to the force refers to the axial extension of
a bar under an axial force
This can be extended to 3-D stress/strain state referred
to as the Generalized Hookes Law relates the
components of the 3-D stress state to 3-D strains as
follows.
x c11
c
y 21
z c31

xy c41
yz c51

zx c61

c12
c22
c32
c42

c13
c23
c33
c43

c14
c24
c34
c44

c15
c25
c35
c45

c52
c62

c53
c63

c54
c64

c55
c65

c16 x
c26 y
c36 z

c46 xy
c56 yz

c66 zx

23

Generalized Hookes Law

In the most general form the generalized Hookes Law
requires 36 constants to relate the terms of a 3-D Stress
state to its corresponding 3-D strain state for an elastic
material
However, from symmetry of the strain energy terms, it
can be shown that cij = cji
This reduces the number of unknown constants to 21

x c11
c
y 12
z c13

xy c14
yz c15

zx c16

c12
c22

c13
c23

c14
c24

c15
c25

c23
c24

c33
c34

c34
c44

c35
c45

c25
c26

c35
c36

c45
c46

c55
c56

c16 x
c26 y
c36 z

c46 xy
c56 yz

c66 zx

24

Hookes Law: Orthotropy and Isotropy

If we assume the x, y and x coordinates provide the
planes of symmetry we can further reduce the number
of constants to 9.
x c11
c
y 12
z c13

xy 0
yz 0

zx 0

c12
c22
c23
0
0
0

0
0
0
c44
0
0

c13
c23
c33
0
0
0

0
0
0
0
c55
0

0 x
0 y
0 z

0 xy
0 yz

c66 zx

Orthotropic
material

Isotropy assumes that there is no directional variation on

property. Using this argument we can obtain
c11 c 22 c33
c12 c13 c 23
c 44 c55 c66
25

Hookes law : Engineering Elastic Constants

The two engineering elastic constants used to relate stress
to strain for isotropic materials are the Elastic modulus, E
and the Poissons ratio .
For uniaxial loading, strain in the loading direction
obtained from Hookes law, states

x
E

Transverse to loading direction y z x

x
E

The relation between the shear stress component and its

corresponding shear-strain component is called the modulus of
rigidity or modulus of elasticity in shear and is denoted by the letter
G.

E
G
G

21

26

LINEAR ELASTICITY (HOOKES LAW) cont.

Isotropic Material:
Stress in terms of strain: { } [C] { }

xx

xx
1
E

yy
1
yy

1 1 2

1 zz

zz
xy G xy , yz G yz , zx G zx
Strain in terms of stress
Shear Modulus

xx
1 xx
1

yy 1 yy
E 1

zz
zz

xy xy , yz yz , zx zx
G
G
G

E
2(1 )

27

TYPES OF 2D PROBLEMS

yy

Governing D.E.

xx xy

bx 0

y
x

xy yy b 0
y
x
y

Definition of strain
xx

u
,
x

yy

v
,
y

Stress-Strain Relation
xx C11 C12

yy C21 C22
C
C32
xy 31

dy
2

yx
b
x

dx
2

xy

y
x

dy
2

xy

xx

bx x

dx
2

xx

dx
2

dx
2

u v
xy

y x

yx

dy
2

yy

dy
2

C13 xx

C23 yy { } [C]{ }

C33 xy

Since stress involves first-order derivative of displacements, the

governing differential equation is the second-order
28

TYPES OF 2D PROBLEMS cont.

Boundary Conditions
All differential equations must be accompanied by boundary conditions
u = g,

on Sg

sn = T,

on ST

Sg is the essential boundary and ST is the natural boundary

g: prescribed (specified) displacement (usually zero for linear problem)
T: prescribed (specified) surface traction force

Objective: to determine the displacement fields u(x, y) and

v(x, y) that satisfy the D.E. and the B.C.

29

PLANE STRESS PROBLEM

Plane Stress Problem:

Thickness is much smaller than the length and width dimensions

Thin plate or disk with applied in-plane forces
z-directional stresses are zero at the top and bottom surfaces
Thus, it is safe to assume that they are also zero along the thickness
zz xz yz 0

fy

Non-zero stress components:

xx, yy, xy
Non-zero strain components:
xx, yy, xy, zz

fx
x

30

PLANE STRESS PROBLEM cont.

Stress-strain relation
xx

E
yy
2
1
xy

1
1

0 0

xx

0 yy {} [C ]{}

1

2 (1 ) xy
0

Even if zz is not zero, it is not included in the stress-strain relation

because it can be calculated from the following relation:
zz

( xx yy )
E

How to derive plane stress relation?

Solve for zz in terms of xx and yy from the relation of zz = 0 and Eq.
(1.57)
Write xx and yy in terms of xx and yy
31

PLANE STRAIN PROBLEM

Plane Strain Problem
Thickness dimension is much larger than other two dimensions.
Deformation in the thickness direction is constrained.
Strain in z-dir is zero

zz 0, xz 0, yz 0
Non-zero stress components: xx, yy, xy, zz.
Non-zero strain components: xx, yy, xy.

Plane strain model

32

PLANE STRAIN PROBLEM cont.

Plan Strain Problem
Stress-strain relation

1
xx
E

yy

(1
)(1
2
)

0
0
xy

0 xx

0 yy {} [C ]{}

2
xy

Even if zz is not zero, it is not included in the stress-strain relation

because it can be calculated from the following relation:

zz

E
( xx yy )
(1 )(1 2 )

33

EQUIVALENCE
A single program can be used to solve both the plane stress
and plane strain problems by converting material properties.

From

To

Plane strain Plane

stress

Plane stress Plane

strain

2
E 1

1
E

1

34

STRAIN ENERGY
Force

Deformation

Stress

Strain Energy Density: U0 1

Stored Energy

1
2

3-D situation: U0 (11 22 3 3 )

Use principal stress-strain relation
1

1 E ( 1 2 3 )

2 ( 2 1 3 )
E

3 E ( 3 1 2 )

Strain Energy Density: U0

Strain energy

1 2
1 22 32 2(12 23 13 )

2E
in terms of principal stresses

35

Homework

For a plane stress problem, the strain components in the xy plane at a

point P are computed as
xx yy 0.125 10 2 , xy 0.25 10 2
(a) Compute the state of stress at this point if Youngs modulus E = 21011
Pa and Poissons ratio = 0.3. (b) What is the normal strain in the z
direction? (c) Compute the normal strain in the direction of n = (1, 1, 1).
The state of stress at a point is given by

80 20 40
[] 20 60 10 MPa

40 10 20
(a) Determine the strains using Youngs modulus of 100 GPa and Poissons
ratio of 0.25. (b) Compute the strain energy density using these stresses and
strains. (c) Calculate the principal stresses. (d) Calculate the principal strains
from the strains calculated in (a). (e) Show that the principal stresses and
principal strains satisfy the constitutive relations. (f) Calculate the strain
energy density using the principal stresses and strains.
36

Interpolation and Element Matrix Formation

Textbook: 3.2, 3.3

37

Interpolation
For given nodal values ui, how to calculate u(x) within the
element?
u(x)

u3
u1

x1

u2

x2

x3

A continuous function that satisfies prescribed conditions

(nodal values, ui) at a finite number of points (nodes).
u(xi ) ui

Property of interpolation

Polynomials are the usual choice for FEM

38

Polynomial interpolation (1D)

For (n+1) node element, solution u(x) is approximated by
n+1 monomials
n

u(x) ai x

u(x) X {a}

or

i0

2
n
X 1 x x ... x

a0

a1 a2 ... an

Impose interpolation condition u(xi) = ui, i = 1, , n+1

u1 1 x1
u
2 1 x 2

un1 1 x n

x1n a0

xn2 a1

x nn an

{d} [ A]{a}

Calculate unknown coefficients

{a} [ A]1 {d}

39

Polynomial Interpolation (1D)

Solution in terms of nodal values

u(x) X(x) [ A]1 {d} N(x) {d}

Interpolation or
shape function

Coefficients ai do not have any physical meaning

{d} are nodal values of the solution
Property of interpolation
1
Ni (x j )
0

if i j
if i j

n 1

N (x) 1
i1

40

Degree of Continuity
In FEM, field quantities u(x) are interpolated in piecewise
fashion over each element
This implies that u(x) is continuous and smooth within the
element
However, u(x) may not be smooth between elements (but
continuous)
An interpolation function with Cm-continuity provides a
continuous variation of the function and up to the mderivatives at the nodes
For 1D bar element, if the displacement u(x) is C0 then displacements
are continuous between elements, but the strains are not

41

Degree of Continuity

Function u1 is C0 continuous while u2 is C1 continuous

du
dx

u(x)
u1(x)
C0
x0

du1
dx

du2
dx

u2(x)
C1

x1

Elem1 Elem2

C0

x2

C1

x0
x1
x2
Elem1 Elem2

42

Example: 1D linear interpolation function

Linear interpolation between x1 and x2 u(x)

u1

u(x) u
2

Two points: (x1, u1) and (x2, u2)

Assume linear polynomial (why?)

u(x) = a0 + a1x

x1

x2

Apply interpolation property

1

u1 1 x1 a0


u2 1 x 2 a1

u(x) X(x) [ A]1 {d} N(x) {d}

x x
N 2
x 2 x1

x x1

x 2 x1

N1

x2 x
x 2 x1

N2

x x1
x 2 x1

u2 u N u1
u
2
x2

u1
x1

1
x

43

Example: Quadratic Interpolation

Three points
(x1, u1), (x2, u2), (x3, u3)
Quadratic approx.
u(x) = a0 + a1x + a2x2

x1

x2

x3

N1

x 2 x x3 x
x 2 x1 x3 x1

N2

x1 x x3 x
x1 x 2 x3 x 2

x1

x2

x3
1

x1

x2
u2

u1

x1 x x 2 x

x1 x3 x 2 x3

u1

u(x) N(x) u2
u
x3
3
3

u3

x1

x2

x3

N3

44

Lagrange Interpolation Formula

Shape functions shown for the C0 interpolations are

special forms of the Lagrangian interpolation functions

f(x) Nk (x)fk
k 1

Nk

x1 x ... xk 1 x xk 1 x ... xn x
x1 xk ... xk 1 xk xk 1 xk ... xn xk

45

C1 Interpolation
Also called Hermite interpolation (Hermite polynomials)
Use the ordinate and slope information at the nodes to
interpolate

ux2
ux1

C0 interpolation

curve

C1 interpolation curve

u
x

u
x
46

Beam Element Interpolation

Start with v(x) = a0 + a1x + a2x2 + a3x3
Impose 4 conditions:
v(0) v1 v(L) v 2
v,x (0) 1 v,x (L) 2

47

2D and 3D Interpolation
The 2D and 3D shape functions follow the same procedure
as for 1D
We now have to start with shape functions that have two or
more independent terms.
For example, a linear interpolation in 2D from 3 nodes will
require an interpolation function
a1

f(x,y) 1 x y a2
a
3

If there are two or more components (e.g., u, v and w

displacements) then the same interpolation function is used
for all components
48

Principle of Virtual Work

The principle of virtual work states that at equilibrium the
strain energy change due to a small virtual displacement is
equal to the work done by the forces in moving through the
virtual displacement.
A virtual displacement is a small imaginary change in
configuration that is also a admissible displacement
An admissible displacement satisfies kinematic boundary
conditions
Note: Neither loads nor stresses are altered by the virtual
displacement.

49

Principle of Virtual Work

The principle of virtual work can be written as follows

{}

{}dV {u} T {F}dV {u} T { }dS

{u} = {u, v, w}T: virtual displacement

{}: virtual strain due to {u}

Interpolation: {u} [N]{d}

{u} [N]{d}

Strain-displacement: {} [B]{d}

[B] [ ][N]

{} [B]{d}

Constitutive relation: {} [E]{}

Altogether

{d} T

[B] [C][B]dV{d} [N] {F}dV [N] {}dS 0

T

Need to satisfy all kinematically admissible displacements {d}

50

Stiffness Matrix and Load Vector

Equations of equilibrium
[B]T [E][B]dV {d} [N]T {F}dV [N]T {}dS

[k ]{d} {re }
Element stiffness matrix

[k ] [B]T [E][B]dV

Element load vector

{re } [N]T {F}dV [N]T {}dS
Refer textbook for loads due to initial strain and initial stress

51

Homework
Solve Problem 3.2-3
Solve Problem 3.2-5

52

Plane Elements
(CST, LST)
Textbook: 3.4, 3.5

53

CST ELEMENT

Constant Strain Triangular Element

Decompose two-dimensional domain by a set of triangles.

Each triangular element is composed by three corner nodes.
Each element shares its edge and two corner nodes with an adjacent
element
Counter-clockwise or clockwise node numbering
Each node has two DOFs: u and v
displacements interpolation using the shape functions and nodal
displacements.
Displacement is linear because three nodal data are available.
Stress & strain are constant.
y
v3
3
u
3

v1
1

u1

v2
2

u2

54

CST ELEMENT cont.

Displacement Interpolation
Since two-coordinates are perpendicular, u(x,y) and v(x,y) are
separated.
u(x,y) needs to be interpolated in terms of u1, u2, and u3,
and v(x,y) in terms of v1, v2, and v3.
interpolation function must be a three term polynomial in x and y.
Since we must have rigid body displacements and constant strain
terms in the interpolation function, the displacement interpolation must
be of the form
u(x,y) 1 2 x 3 y

v(x,y) 1 2 x 3 y

The goal is how to calculate unknown coefficients i and i, i = 1, 2, 3,

in terms of nodal displacements.
u(x,y) N1(x,y)u1 N2 (x,y)u2 N3 (x,y)u3
55

CST ELEMENT cont.

Displacement Interpolation
x-displacement: Evaluate displacement at each node
u(x1,y1 ) u1 1 2 x1 3 y1

u(x 2 ,y 2 ) u2 1 2 x 2 3 y 2
u(x ,y ) u x y
3
1
2 3
3 3
3 3

In matrix notation
u1 1 x1

u2 1 x 2

u3 1 x 3

u3

v1
1

y1 1

y 2 2

y 3 3

v3

u1

v2
2

u2

Is the coefficient matrix singular?

56

CST ELEMENT cont.

Displacement Interpolation
1

2

3

1 x1
1 x
2

1 x 3

y1
y2

y 3

u1
f1
1

y
u2
23
u 2A x
3
32

f2
y 31
x13

f3 u1

y12 u2

x 21 u3

where
f1 x 2 y 3 x 3 y 2 , y 23 y 2 y 3 , x 32 x 3 x 2

f2 x 3 y1 x1y 3 , y 31 y 3 y1, x13 x1 x 3

f x y x y , y y y , x x x
1 2
2 1
12
1
2
21
2
1
3
Area:
1 x1
1
A det 1 x 2
2
1 x3

y1
y2
y3

57

CST ELEMENT cont.

1
(f1u1 f2u2 f3u3 )
2A
1
2
(y 23u1 y 31u2 y12u3 )
2A
1
(x 32u1 x13u2 x 21u3 )
3
2A
1

Substitute into the interpolation equation

u(x,y) 1 2 x 3 y
1
(f1u1 f2u2 f3u3 ) (y 23u1 y31u2 y12u3 )x (x32u1 x13u2 x 21u3 )y
2A
1
(f1 y 23 x x 32 y) u1

N1(x,y)
2A
1
(f2 y 31x x13 y) u2

N2(x,y)
2A
1

(f3 y12 x x 21y) u3

2A
N3(x,y)

58

CST ELEMENT cont.

Displacement Interpolation
A similar procedure can be applied for y-displacement v(x, y).
u(x,y) [N1 N2

v(x,y) [N1 N2

u1

N3 ] u2
u
3
v1

N3 ] v 2
v
3

N1(x,y) 2A (f1 y 23 x x 32 y)

(f2 y 31x x13 y)

N2 (x,y)
2A

N3 (x,y) 2A (f3 y12 x x 21y)

Shape Function

N1, N2, and N3 are linear functions of x- and y-coordinates.

Interpolated displacement changes linearly along the each coordinate
direction.

59

CST ELEMENT cont.

Displacement Interpolation
Matrix Notation
u N 0 N2 0 N3
{u} 1
v 0 N1 0 N2 0

u1
v
1
0 u2

N3 v 2
u3

v 3

{u(x, y)} [N(x, y)]{q}

[N]: 26 matrix, {q}: 61 vector.
For a given point (x,y) within element, calculate [N] and multiply it with
{q} to evaluate displacement at the point (x,y).

60

CST ELEMENT cont.

Strain Interpolation
differentiating the displacement in x- and y-directions.
differentiating shape function [N] because {q} is constant.

xy

xx

3
Ni
u
3

N
(x,
y)u

ui

i
i

x x i 1
i 1 x

yy

3
Ni
v
3

N
(x,
y)v

vi

i
i

y y i 1
i 1 y

3
3
N
N
u v

i ui i v i
y x i 1 y
i 1 x

N1(x,y)

N2 (x,y)

N3 (x,y)

1
(f1 y 23 x x 32 y)
2A
1
(f2 y 31x x13 y)
2A
1
(f3 y12 x x 21y)
2A
61

CST ELEMENT cont.

Strain Interpolation
u

x
y 23
v
1
{ }
0

y
2A

x 32
u v

y x

y 31

y12

x 32

x13

y 23

x13

y 31

x 21

u1
v
0 1
u
x 21 2 [B]{q}
v
y12 2
u3

v 3

[B] matrix is a constant matrix and depends only on the coordinates of

the three nodes of the triangular element.
the strains will be constant over a given element

Element stiffness matrix

[k ] [B]T [E][B]dV [B]T [E][B]At
V

62

CST ELEMENT cont.

Property of CST Element
Since displacement is linear in x and y, the triangular element deforms
into another triangle when forces are applied.
an imaginary straight line drawn within an element before deformation
becomes another straight line after deformation.
Consider a local coordinate such that = 0 at Node 1 and = a at
Node 2.
3
Displacement on the edge 1-2:
u() 1 2

v() 3 4

Since the variation of displacement is linear,

the displacements should depend only on
u1 and u2, and not on u3.

63

CST ELEMENT cont.

Property of CST Element

u() 1 a u1 a u2 H1 u1 H2 u2

v() 1 v v H v H v
1
1
2
2
a 1 a 2

Inter-element Displacement Compatibility

1
1

Element
1
a
x
Element
2

2
3

Displacements at any point in an element can be computed from nodal

displacements of that particular element and the shape functions.
Consider a point on a common edge of two adjacent elements, which
can be considered as belonging to either of the elements.
Then the nodes of either triangle can be used in interpolating the
displacements of this point.
However, one must obtain a unique set of displacements independent
of the choice of the element.
This can be true only if the displacements of the points depend only on
the nodes common to both elements.
64

Performance of CST Element

CST element is STIFF
Bending problem: linearly varying stress & strain
CST can only represent constant stress & strain (Lack of capability)
Spurious shear stress
-F

2
1

5
5m

10

6
7

1m

9
F

Exact solution:
Disp = 7.5mm
Stress = 70MPa

xx
x
65

Performance of CST Element

Y-normal and shear stress are supposed to be zero

yy Plot

xy Plot

What will happen if an element shows stiff behavior?

For given loads, displacements and stresses are lower
Solution converges slowly with increasing No. of elements
66

CST ELEMENT cont.

Discussions
CST element performs well when strain gradient is small.
In pure bending problem, xx in the neutral axis should be zero.
Instead, CST elements show oscillating pattern of stress.
CST elements predict stress and deflection about of the exact
values.
Strain along y-axis is supposed to be linear. But, CST elements
can only have constant strain in y-direction.
CST elements also have spurious shear strain.

u
3
a1
x
v
yy b2
1
y
u v
xy a2 b1
y x

u ( x, y ) a0 a1 x a2 y xx
v( x, y ) b0 b1 x b2 y
How can we improve accuracy?
What direction?

v2
u2
67

Linear Strain Triangle (LST)

Six nodes with 12 DOFs

3 corner nodes (1, 2, 3)
3 mid-side nodes (4, 5, 6)

Displacements are quadratic polynomial

Strains are linear polynomials

68

Polynomial Pyramid
When an element has N nodes, how to choose bases for
interpolation?
1

x
x2
x3

y
xy

x2 y

y2
xy 2

y3

The order of polynomial determines

the level of accuracy
u(x,y) a0 a1x a2 y a3 x 2 a 4 xy a5 y 2
xx (x,y)

u
a1 2a3 x a 4 y
x

69

Linear Strain Triangle (LST)

The quadratic displacement field in terms of generalized

coordinates:
u 1 2 x 3 y 4 x 2 5 xy 6 y 2
v 7 8 x 9 y 10 x 2 11xy 12 y 2

The linear strain field:

x 2 24 x 5 y
y 9 11x 212 y
xy (3 8 ) (5 210 )x (26 11 )y

When would this element be exact? And when would be

approximate?
70

Performance of LST

71

Homework

Using two CST elements, solve the simple shear problem described in the
figure and determine whether the CST elements can represent the simple
shear condition accurately or not. Material properties are given as E = 10
GPa, = 0.25, and thickness is h = 0.1 m. The distributed force f = 100
kN/m2 is applied at the top edge.
y

1m
1m
1

2
x

72

Plane Elements
(Q4, Q8, Q9)
Textbook: 3.6, 3.7

73

Bilinear Quadrilateral (Q4)

4 nodes with 8 DOFs
Displacement field: u 1 2 x 3 y 4 xy
v 5 6 x 7 y 8 xy
Artificial anisotropy: sides are stiffer than diagonals

74

Q4: Strain Fields

Strain fields: y
x
2
4
y 7 8 x
xy (3 6 ) 4 x 8 y

Observation 1: x f(x) Q4 cannot exactly model the

beam where x x

75

Q4: Behavior in Pure Bending of a Beam

Observation 2: When 4 0, x varies linearly in y - desirable
characteristic for a beam in pure bending because normal
strain varies linearly along the depth coordinate. But xy0 is
undesirable because there is no shear strain.

Fig. (a) is the correct deformation in pure bending while (b) is

the deformation of Q4 (sides remain straight).
Physical interpretation: applied moment is resisted by a
spurious shear stress as well as flexural (normal) stresses. 76

Q4: Interpolation functions

Easy to obtain interpolation functions

where matrix N is 2x8 and the shape functions are

77

Q4: Shape (Interpolation) Functions

N1=1, N2=N3=N4=0 at node 1, x=-a, y=-b, so u= N1 u1= u1 at
that node.
Similarly Ni=1 while all other Ns are zero at node i.

Fig 3.6-2

See Eqn. 3.6-6 for strain-displacement matrix (= Nd=Bd).

Q4 converges properly with mesh refinement and works
better than CST in most problems.
78

Coarse mesh results

Q4 element is over-stiff in bending. For the following problem,
deflections and flexural stresses are smaller than the exact
values and the shear stresses are greatly in error:

79

BEAM BENDING PROBLEM cont.

Sxx Plot

Max v = 5.1mm

Stress is constant along the x-axis (pure bending)

linear through the height of the beam
Deflection is much higher than CST element. In fact, CST
element is too stiff. However, stress is inaccurate.
80

RECTANGULAR ELEMENT
y-normal stress and shear stress are supposed to be zero.

yy Plot

xy Plot

xx is a linear function of y alone

yy is a linear function of x alone
xy is a linear function of x and y
4

xx
I1

NI
uI
x

yy
I1

NI
vI
y

N1 / x ( y 1)

N1 / y ( x 1)

N 2 / x ( y 1) N 2 / y x
N 3 / x y
N 3 / y x
N 4 / x y

N 4 / y ( x 1)
81

Quadratic Quadrilateral (Q8)

3.7-1

4 corner nodes and 4 side nodes and 16 nodal dof.

82

Quadratic Quadrilateral (Q8): Displacement

The displacement field, which is quadratic in x and y:

Two types of shape functions (=x/a, =y/b) :

The edges x=a deform into a parabola (i.e., quadratic

displacement in y) (same for y=b)
83

Quadratic Quadrilateral (Q8): Strains

The strain field:

Strains have linear and quadratic terms. Hence, Q8 can

represent many strain states exactly.
For example, states of constant strain, bending strain, etc.

84

BEAM BENDING PROBLEM cont.

8-Node Rectangular Elements

Tip Displacement = 7.5 mm, Exact!

85

BEAM BENDING PROBLEM cont.

If the stress at the bottom surface is calculated, it will be the
exact stress value.

Sxx

Syy

86

Homework
For a rectangular element shown in the figure, displacements
at the four nodes are given by {u1,v1,u2,v2,u3,v3,u4,v4} = {0.0,
0.0, 1.0, 0.0, 2.0, 1.0, 0.0, 2.0}. Calculate displacement (u, v)
and strain xx at (x, y) = (2, 1)
y
4 (0,2)

1 (0,0)

3 (3,2)

x
2 (3,0)

87

Choice of interpolation, improved elements

Textbook: 3.8, 3.9, 3.10

88

Polynomial Pyramid
When an element has N nodes, how to choose bases for
interpolation?
1

x
x2
x3

x2 y

y
xy

y2
xy 2

y3

The order of polynomial determines

the level of accuracy
u(x,y) a0 a1x a2 y a3 x 2 a 4 xy a5 y 2
xx (x,y)

u
a1 2a3 x a 4 y
x

89

Choice of Interpolation
For three-node triangular element, Can we choose different
interpolation functions?
u( x ) a1 a2 x a3 y
u( x ) a1x 2 a2 xy a3 y 2

Elements must be able to display rigid body motion and

constant strain field
Then, mesh refinement is to produce convergence toward
correct results
Choice of interpolation must consider balance
No favor to a particular direction (x or y)

90

Choice of Interpolation
Q4 elements use xy rather than x2 or y2
Terms
Constant
Linear
Quadratic

CST

LST

Q4

Q8(Q9)

x y

x y
x2

xy

x y
y2

xy

Cubic
Quartic

x y
x2

xy y2

x2y xy2
(x2y2)

Interpolation must provide geometric isotropy or frame

invariance
Can Q4 element use x2 + y2 instead of xy?
Complete polynomial include all lower-order polynomials
91

Improved Triangles and Quadrilaterals

Without adding more nodes, add additional DOFs or change
numerical integration to improve element performance

Drilling DOF: rotational DOF about axis normal to the plane.

A CST with these added to each node has 9 DOF.

For three-node triangle element, each node has u, v, and rz DOFs
Much better than CST, but not as good as LST

92

Q6: Additional Bending Shape Functions

Q4: Artificial shear deformation under pure bending
Additional shape functions to solve the issue
4

u = Ni (s, t )ui + (1 - s 2 )a1 + (1 - t 2 )a2

i =1
4

v = Ni (s, t )v i + (1 - s 2 )a3 + (1 - t 2 )a4

i =1

Bubble modes

Strain xx can vary linear along x-dir.

Shear strain xy can vanish for pure bending
Nodeless DOFs, a1, a2, a3, and a4, are condensed in the
element level (total 12 DOFs)
93

Modeling Bending with the Q6 Element

K
dd
Kad

Kda d fd
=
Kaa a fa

1
{ a } = Kaa { fa - K ad d}
1
-1
[Kdd - KdaKaaK ad ]{d} = { fd - K daK aa fa }

Modeling the previous bending problem with Q6 elements

gives the following stresses:

94

Homework
Solve Problem 3.9-3 and 3.9-4

95

Equivalent nodal forces, stress calculation

Textbook: 3.11, 3.12, 3.13

96

Nodal loads
Consistent (work-equivalent) loads
FEM only takes nodal forces (discrete matrix equation)
Distributed loads must be converted to equivalent nodal forces
Both must produce the same amount of work (force * displacement)

Potential of applied load (negative)

W {d} T {re } uTFdV uT dS
Equivalent
nodal forces

How to calculate it?

u FdV {d}
T

Distributed
loads
Integrate
shape function

[N]T FdV {d} T [N]T FdV

97

Example: Beam under uniform loads

Normal forces are

obvious. For
moments

2x 2 x 3
2 1
qL2
2 1
M11 qN21dx q(x
2 )dx qL ( )
L
L
2 3 4
12
0
0

98

Work equivalent (consistent) normal loads

Normal surface traction on a side of a plane element whose
sides remain straight (q is force/length):
Shape function along the edge 4-3
[N]

1
[a x a x]
2a

q
F [N] 4
q3

Equivalent nodal forces

a

{re } [N]T Fdx

a

a
q
[N]T [N]dx 4
a
q3
a 2 1 q4


3 1 2 q3

99

Loads on quadratic sides

Quadratic side has different shape function
[N]

1
[x(x a) 2(a2 x 2 ) x(x a)]
2
2a

But, the procedure is the same

F4
q4
a


T
F7 a [N] [N]dx q7
F
q
3
3
4 2 1 q4
a

2 16 2 q7

15
1 2 4 q3
100

Multiple elements
Calculate equivalent nodal forces per each element
Use the same assembly process
q(x)
1

Separate

Equivalent
nodal forces
F1

F2

F3

f1(1)

f2(1)

f1(2)

f2(2)

Assembly

101

Distributed Shear Traction

Shear traction on a side of a plane element whose sides

remain straight (q is force/length)

Q4 element and two LSTs share the top midnode so that the
nodal loads from Q4 and the right LST are combined.

102

Uniform Body Force

Work-equivalent nodal forces corresponding to weight as a
body force
LST has no vertex loads and vertex loads of Q8 are upwards!
The resultant in all cases is W, the weight of the element.

103

Stress calculation
Hookes law with strain-displacement relation (Plane stress)
E Bd 0

x
E

y
2
1
xy

0
1

Bd T
0
0 0 (1 ) / 2

Stress & strain have greater error than displacement

Stresses are most accurate inside elements, but not on the
element boundary (discontinuous stress on the boundary)

104

Stress averaging
Stress averaging

Contour-plotting algorithms are based on nodal values

Stress is discontinuous at nodes
Extrapolated stresses are averaged at nodes -> Cause error
Difference b/w actual and averages stress values are often used as
criterion of accuracy
Stress at
integration
point

Stress

Averaged
nodal
stress

Elem 1

Elem 2

Elem 3
105

Estimating errors
Error estimation

Check accuracy of current analysis

Criterion for mesh refinement
Gauss point stress , averaged nodal stress *
Difference in stresses E *
Strain energies
2
U (e)
dV
V
2E
e 1
NE

E2
UE ( e )
dV
V
2E
e 1
NE

Error estimation

UE
U UE

the current mesh size is considered to be appropriate, if 0.05

106

Improving stresses at nodes and boundaries

Stress should not be averaged when material properties or
geometries are discontinuous

Invariants: Stresses that are independent of coordinate sys.

Von Mises stress or effective stress
Used for yield criterion

1/2
1
2
2
2
2
2
2

(
)
(
)
(
)
6

x
y
y
z
z
x
xy
yz
xz
2

107

Examples of poor meshing

Do not create unnecessary discontinuities!

108

Nature of Finite Element Solution

FEA solution is not exact, but approximate
Adjacent elements have identical displacement at nodes
Displacements may or may not be continuous across element
boundaries
Displacement, stress and strains are continuous within an
element
Equilibrium of nodal forces and moments is satisfied
Equilibrium is usually not satisfied at or across element
boundaries
Equilibrium is usually not satisfied within elements (only
averaged sense)

109

Example of discontinuities in un-averaged stresses

110

Homework
Solve Problem 3.11-2
Solve Problem 3.11-4

111