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Author :
Advisor : Husain Jubran Al-Gahtani
Date : 2015-01-05
Access : restricted
Abstract
Abstract : Modeling the interaction between the soil and the structural foundation is a
major concern in many engineering applications. The soil foundations very often
represent a complex medium and therefore it is extremely difficult to obtain
analytical-based solutions for this interaction. The problem becomes more difficult if
the structure is undergoing large deformation. Numerical methods are powerful
alternative tools to solve such complicated problems. There are two main categories
of these methods: element-based methods such as the finite element (FEM) and the
boundary element (BEM) and element free-based or mesh-less methods like radial
basis functions (RBF). The FEM and BEM have been studied extensively so far,
whereas the RBF still needs to be investigated for the use in various engineering
application areas. Free-element or free-mesh methods are advantageous for
problems that require frequent re-meshing such as those arising in non-linear
analysis. In this work, the use of multi-quadratic radial basis function (MQ-RBF) is
proposed to solve the problem of large deflection of thin elastic plates resting on
nonlinear foundations. The study covers several variables, including the plate shape,
the loading type, the boundary conditions, the foundation type and the foundation
parameter. Two types of foundation models (discrete and continuous) are adopted.
The discrete foundation model consists of Winkler, non-linear Winkler, Pasternak
and non-linear Winkler-Pasternak model whereas the Boussinesq model is used to
represent interaction of the plate with the continuous foundation. WALFRAM
MATHEMATICA software was utilized for the development of the computer codes.
The accuracy and efficiency of the method is demonstrated by comparing the
obtained solution with readily available and corresponding numerical solutions. From
the comparison, the obtained results from MQ-RBF method are close to the ones
obtained from FEM. As a main conclusion, the proposed meshless-based method
(MQ-RBF) can be utilized as a good alternative numerical method for the element
based numerical methods such as FEM and BEM in the solution of the large
deflection of thin elastic plates on nonlinear foundations. The developed computer
codes have been utilized to generate correlations between discrete and continuous
foundation parameters. The obtained correlations of the foundation parameters have
been verified through several examples which revealed that the Pasternak and nonlinear Winkler-Pasternak discrete models are the most in agreement with the
continuous foundation model.
7.2 Recommendations
Finally, as is the case with any other computational-based research, there is a
scope for further enhancement of the study. Below are some of
recommendations that can be made:
the