On the treatment of frictional contact in shell structures using variational inequalities

A new variational inequality-based formulation is presented for the large d eformation analysis of frictional contact in elastic shell structures. The formulations are based on a seven-parameter continuum shell model, which ac count for the normal stress and strain through the shell thickness and acco mmodate double-sided shell contact. The kinematic contact conditions are en forced accurately in terms of the physical contacting surfaces of the shell . Large deformations and rotations are accounted for by invoking the approp riate stress and strain measures. Lagrange multipliers are used to ensure t hat the kinematic contact constraints are accurately satisfied and that the solution is free from user-defined parameters. Three numerical examples ar e used to verify the developed formulations and algorithms, and test the va rious aspects of the solution technique. Copyright (C) 1999 John Wiley & So ns, Ltd.