A new nine DOF triangular element for analysis of thick and thin plates

A simple triangular 9 DOF plate bending element for analysis of thick and t hin plate is presented in this paper. This element is constructed by the fo llowing procedure: (i) the variation functions of the rotation and shear strain along each sid e of the element are determined using Timoshenko's beam theory; and) (ii) the rotation, curvature and shear strain fields in the domain of the e lement are then determined using the technique of improved interpolation. The proposed element, denoted by ARS-TB, is robust and free of shear lockin g and, thus, it can be employed to analyze very thin plate. Numerical examp les show that the proposed element is a high performance element for Thick and. thin plates.