A new finite element of spatial thin-walled beams.pdf

Appl. Math. Mech. -Engl. Ed. 31(9), 1141–1152 (2010) Applied Mathematics DOI 10.1007/s10483-010-1349-7 and Mechanics c Shanghai University and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2010 (English Edition) A new finite element of spatial thin-walled beams∗ 1 1 2 Xiao-feng WANG () , Qi-lin ZHANG () , Qing-shan YANG ( ) (1. College of Civil Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai 200092, P. R. China; 2. School of Civil Engineering, Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing 100044, P. R. China) (Communicated by Li-qun CHEN) Abstract Based on the theories of Timoshenko’s beams and Vlasov’s thin-walled mem- bers, a new spatial thin-walled beam element with an interior node is developed. By independently interpolating bending angles and warp, factors such as transverse shear deformation, torsional shear deformation and their coupling, coupling of flexure and tor- sion, and second shear stress are considered. According to the generalized variational theory of Hellinger-Reissner, the element stiffness matrix is derived. Examples show that the developed model is accurate and can be applied in the finite element analysis of thin- walled structures. Key words spatial beams, thin-walled section, stiffness matrix, shear deformation, coupling of flexure and torsion, second shear stress Chinese Library Classification TU323.3 2000 Mathematics Subject Classification 74K10 1 Introduction Steel structures are widely used in civil engineeri