D. Segond et A. Tafreshi, STRESS-ANALYSIS OF 3-DIMENSIONAL CONTACT PROBLEMS USING THE BOUNDARY-ELEMENT METHOD, Engineering analysis with boundary elements, 22(3), 1998, pp. 199-214
This paper presents a technique based on the boundary element method [
I] to analyse three-dimensional contact problems. The formulation is i
mplemented for the frictionless and infinite friction conditions. Foll
owing a review of the basic nature of contact problems, the analytical
basis of the direct formulation of the boundary element method is des
cribed. The numerical implementation employs linear triangular element
s for the representation of the boundary and variables of the bodies i
n contact. Opposite nodal points in similar element pairs are defined
on the two surfaces in the area which are expected to come into contac
t under the increasing load. The use of appropriate contact conditions
enables the integral equations for the two bodies to be coupled toget
her. Following an iteration procedure, the size of the contact zone is
determined by finding a boundary solution compatible with the contact
conditions. Different examples have been analysed in order to verify
the applicability of the proposed method to various contact situations
. The results have been compared with those obtained using the finite
element method in conjunction with the ABAQUS [2] and IDEAS [3] packag
es which are shown to be in good agreement. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science
Ltd. All rights reserved.