Finite element method

The finite element method (FEM) is a popular method for numerically solving differential equations arising in
engineering and mathematical modeling. Typical problem areas of interest include the traditional fields of structural
analysis, heat transfer, fluid flow, mass transport, and electromagnetic potential.

The FEM is a general numerical method for solving partial differential equations in two or three space variables (i.e.,
some boundary value problems). To solve a problem, the FEM subdivides a large system into smaller, simpler parts
that are called finite elements. This is achieved by a particular space discretization in the space dimensions, which is
implemented by the construction of a mesh of the object: the numerical domain for the solution, which has a finite
number of points. The finite element method formulation of a boundary value problem finally results in a system of
algebraic equations. The method approximates the unknown function over the domain.[1] The simple equations that
model these finite elements are then assembled into a larger system of equations that models the entire problem. The
Visualization of how a car deforms in an
FEM then approximates a solution by minimizing an associated error function via the calculus of variations.
asymmetrical crash using finite element
analysis
Studying or analyzing a phenomenon with FEM is often referred to as finite element analysis (FEA).

Basic concepts
The subdivision of a whole domain into simpler parts has
several advantages:[2]

Accurate representation of complex geometry

Inclusion of dissimilar material properties
Easy representation of the total solution
Capture of local effects.

Typical work out of the method involves:

1. dividing the domain of the problem into a collection

of subdomains, with each subdomain represented
by a set of element equations to the original
problem
2. systematically recombining all sets of element FEM mesh created by an analyst prior to finding a FEM solution to the problem at left, involving a
equations into a global system of equations for the solution to a magnetic problem using FEM cylindrically shaped magnetic shield. The
final calculation. software. Colors indicate that the analyst has set ferromagnetic cylindrical part is shielding the area
material properties for each zone, in this case, a inside the cylinder by diverting the magnetic field
The global system of equations has known solution conducting wire coil in orange; a ferromagnetic created by the coil (rectangular area on the right).
techniques, and can be calculated from the initial values of component (perhaps iron) in light blue; and air in The color represents the amplitude of the magnetic
the original problem to obtain a numerical answer. grey. Although the geometry may seem simple, it flux density, as indicated by the scale in the inset
would be very challenging to calculate the legend, red being high amplitude. The area inside
In the first step above, the element equations are simple
magnetic field for this setup without FEM software, the cylinder is the low amplitude (dark blue, with
equations that locally approximate the original complex using equations alone. widely spaced lines of magnetic flux), which
equations to be studied, where the original equations are suggests that the shield is performing as it was
often partial differential equations (PDE). To explain the designed to.
approximation in this process, the finite element method is
commonly introduced as a special case of Galerkin method.
The process, in mathematical language, is to construct an integral of the inner product of the residual and the weight functions and set the integral to zero. In simple
terms, it is a procedure that minimizes the error of approximation by fitting trial functions into the PDE. The residual is the error caused by the trial functions, and
the weight functions are polynomial approximation functions that project the residual. The process eliminates all the spatial derivatives from the PDE, thus
approximating the PDE locally with

a set of algebraic equations for steady state problems,

a set of ordinary differential equations for transient problems.

These equation sets are the element equations. They are linear if the underlying PDE is linear, and vice versa. Algebraic equation sets that arise in the steady-state
problems are solved using numerical linear algebra methods, while ordinary differential equation sets that arise in the transient problems are solved by numerical
integration using standard techniques such as Euler's method or the Runge-Kutta method.

In step (2) above, a global system of equations is generated from the element equations through a transformation of coordinates from the subdomains' local nodes
to the domain's global nodes. This spatial transformation includes appropriate orientation adjustments as applied in relation to the reference coordinate system. The
process is often carried out by FEM software using coordinate data generated from the subdomains.

The practical application of FEM is known as finite element analysis (FEA). FEA as applied in engineering is a computational tool for performing engineering
analysis. It includes the use of mesh generation techniques for dividing a complex problem into small elements, as well as the use of software coded with a FEM
algorithm. In applying FEA, the complex problem is usually a physical system with the underlying physics such as the Euler–Bernoulli beam equation, the heat
equation, or the Navier-Stokes equations expressed in either PDE or integral equations, while the divided small elements of the complex problem represent
different areas in the physical system.

FEA may be used for analyzing problems over complicated domains (like cars and oil pipelines), when the domain changes (as during a solid-state reaction with a
moving boundary), when the desired precision varies over the entire domain, or when the solution lacks smoothness. FEA simulations provide a valuable resource
as they remove multiple instances of creation and testing of hard prototypes for various high fidelity situations. For instance, in a frontal crash simulation it is
possible to increase prediction accuracy in "important" areas like the front of the car and reduce it in its rear (thus reducing the cost of the simulation). Another
example would be in numerical weather prediction, where it is more important to have accurate predictions over developing highly nonlinear phenomena (such as
tropical cyclones in the atmosphere, or eddies in the ocean) rather than relatively calm areas.

A clear, detailed and practical presentation of this approach can be found in The Finite Element Method for Engineers.[3]

History
While it is difficult to quote a date of the invention of the finite element method, the method originated from the need to solve complex elasticity and structural
analysis problems in civil and aeronautical engineering.[4] Its development can be traced back to the work by A. Hrennikoff[5] and R. Courant[6] in the early
1940s. Another pioneer was Ioannis Argyris. In the USSR, the introduction of the practical application of the method is usually connected with name of Leonard
Oganesyan.[7] It was also independently rediscovered in China by Feng Kang in the later 1950s and early 1960s, based on the computations of dam constructions,
where it was called the finite difference method based on variation principle. Although the approaches used by these pioneers are different, they share one essential
characteristic: mesh discretization of a continuous domain into a set of discrete sub-domains, usually called elements.

Hrennikoff's work discretizes the domain by using a lattice analogy, while Courant's approach divides the domain into finite triangular subregions to solve second
order elliptic partial differential equations that arise from the problem of torsion of a cylinder. Courant's contribution was evolutionary, drawing on a large body of
earlier results for PDEs developed by Rayleigh, Ritz, and Galerkin.

The finite element method obtained its real impetus in the 1960s and 1970s by the developments of J. H. Argyris with co-workers at the University of Stuttgart, R.
W. Clough with co-workers at UC Berkeley, O. C. Zienkiewicz with co-workers Ernest Hinton, Bruce Irons[8] and others at Swansea University, Philippe G.
Ciarlet at the University of Paris 6 and Richard Gallagher with co-workers at Cornell University. Further impetus was provided in these years by available open
source finite element programs. NASA sponsored the original version of NASTRAN, and UC Berkeley made the finite element program SAP IV[9] widely
available. In Norway the ship classification society Det Norske Veritas (now DNV GL) developed Sesam in 1969 for use in analysis of ships.[10] A rigorous
mathematical basis to the finite element method was provided in 1973 with the publication by Strang and Fix.[11] The method has since been generalized for the
numerical modeling of physical systems in a wide variety of engineering disciplines, e.g., electromagnetism, heat transfer, and fluid dynamics.[12][13]

Technical discussion

The structure of finite element methods

A finite element method is characterized by a variational formulation, a discretization strategy, one or more solution algorithms, and post-processing procedures.

Examples of the variational formulation are the Galerkin method, the discontinuous Galerkin method, mixed methods, etc.

A discretization strategy is understood to mean a clearly defined set of procedures that cover (a) the creation of finite element meshes, (b) the definition of basis
function on reference elements (also called shape functions) and (c) the mapping of reference elements onto the elements of the mesh. Examples of discretization
strategies are the h-version, p-version, hp-version, x-FEM, isogeometric analysis, etc. Each discretization strategy has certain advantages and disadvantages. A
reasonable criterion in selecting a discretization strategy is to realize nearly optimal performance for the broadest set of mathematical models in a particular model
class.

Various numerical solution algorithms can be classified into two broad categories; direct and iterative solvers. These algorithms are designed to exploit the sparsity
of matrices that depend on the choices of variational formulation and discretization strategy.

Postprocessing procedures are designed for the extraction of the data of interest from a finite element solution. In order to meet the requirements of solution
verification, postprocessors need to provide for a posteriori error estimation in terms of the quantities of interest. When the errors of approximation are larger than
what is considered acceptable then the discretization has to be changed either by an automated adaptive process or by the action of the analyst. There are some
very efficient postprocessors that provide for the realization of superconvergence.

Illustrative problems P1 and P2

The following two problems demonstrate the finite element method.

P1 is a one-dimensional problem

where is given, is an unknown function of , and is the second derivative of with respect to .

P2 is a two-dimensional problem (Dirichlet problem)

where is a connected open region in the plane whose boundary is nice (e.g., a smooth manifold or a polygon), and and denote the second
derivatives with respect to and , respectively.

The problem P1 can be solved directly by computing antiderivatives. However, this method of solving the boundary value problem (BVP) works only when there
is one spatial dimension and does not generalize to higher-dimensional problems or problems like . For this reason, we will develop the finite element
method for P1 and outline its generalization to P2.

Our explanation will proceed in two steps, which mirror two essential steps one must take to solve a boundary value problem (BVP) using the FEM.
 In the first step, one rephrases the original BVP in its weak form. Little to no computation is usually required for this step. The transformation is
done by hand on paper.
The second step is the discretization, where the weak form is discretized in a finite-dimensional space.

After this second step, we have concrete formulae for a large but finite-dimensional linear problem whose solution will approximately solve the original BVP. This
finite-dimensional problem is then implemented on a computer.

Weak formulation

The first step is to convert P1 and P2 into their equivalent weak formulations.

The weak form of P1

If solves P1, then for any smooth function that satisfies the displacement boundary conditions, i.e. at and , we have

 
 

 
 
(1)

Conversely, if with satisfies (1) for every smooth function then one may show that this will solve P1. The proof is easier for twice
continuously differentiable (mean value theorem), but may be proved in a distributional sense as well.

We define a new operator or map by using integration by parts on the right-hand-side of (1):

 
 

   
(2)

where we have used the assumption that .

The weak form of P2

If we integrate by parts using a form of Green's identities, we see that if solves P2, then we may define for any by

where denotes the gradient and denotes the dot product in the two-dimensional plane. Once more can be turned into an inner product on a suitable space
of once differentiable functions of that are zero on . We have also assumed that (see Sobolev spaces). Existence and uniqueness of the
solution can also be shown.

A proof outline of existence and uniqueness of the solution

We can loosely think of to be the absolutely continuous functions of that are at and (see Sobolev spaces). Such functions are
(weakly) once differentiable and it turns out that the symmetric bilinear map then defines an inner product which turns into a Hilbert space (a detailed

proof is nontrivial). On the other hand, the left-hand-side is also an inner product, this time on the Lp space . An application of the

Riesz representation theorem for Hilbert spaces shows that there is a unique solving (2) and therefore P1. This solution is a-priori only a member of ,
but using elliptic regularity, will be smooth if is.

Discretization
P1 and P2 are ready to be discretized which leads to a common sub-problem (3). The basic idea is to replace the infinite-
dimensional linear problem:

Find such that

with a finite-dimensional version:

A function in with zero values at
the endpoints (blue), and a piecewise
linear approximation (red)

Find such that

 
 

 
 
(3)
where is a finite-dimensional subspace of . There are many possible choices for (one possibility leads to the spectral method). However, for the finite
element method we take to be a space of piecewise polynomial functions.

For problem P1

We take the interval , choose values of with and we define by:

where we define and . Observe that functions in are not differentiable according to the elementary definition of calculus. Indeed, if
then the derivative is typically not defined at any , . However, the derivative exists at every other value of and one can use this derivative
for the purpose of integration by parts.

For problem P2

We need to be a set of functions of . In the figure on the right, we have illustrated a triangulation of a 15 sided
polygonal region in the plane (below), and a piecewise linear function (above, in color) of this polygon which is linear
on each triangle of the triangulation; the space would consist of functions that are linear on each triangle of the chosen
triangulation.

One hopes that as the underlying triangular mesh becomes finer and finer, the solution of the discrete problem (3) will in
some sense converge to the solution of the original boundary value problem P2. To measure this mesh fineness, the
triangulation is indexed by a real-valued parameter which one takes to be very small. This parameter will be related
to the size of the largest or average triangle in the triangulation. As we refine the triangulation, the space of piecewise linear
functions must also change with . For this reason, one often reads instead of in the literature. Since we do not A piecewise linear function in two
perform such an analysis, we will not use this notation. dimensions

Choosing a basis
Interpolation of a Bessel function
To complete the discretization, we must select a basis of . In the one-dimensional case, for each control point we will
choose the piecewise linear function in whose value is at and zero at every , i.e.,

16 scaled and shifted triangular

basis functions (colors) used to
reconstruct a zeroeth order
for ; this basis is a shifted and scaled tent function. For the two-dimensional case, we choose again one basis Bessel function J0 (black).
function per vertex of the triangulation of the planar region . The function is the unique function of whose
value is at and zero at every .

Depending on the author, the word "element" in the "finite element method" refers either to the triangles in the domain, the
piecewise linear basis function, or both. So for instance, an author interested in curved domains might replace the triangles
with curved primitives, and so might describe the elements as being curvilinear. On the other hand, some authors replace
"piecewise linear" by "piecewise quadratic" or even "piecewise polynomial". The author might then say "higher order
element" instead of "higher degree polynomial". The finite element method is not restricted to triangles (or tetrahedra in 3-d, The linear combination of basis
or higher-order simplexes in multidimensional spaces), but can be defined on quadrilateral subdomains (hexahedra, prisms, or functions (yellow) reproduces J0
pyramids in 3-d, and so on). Higher-order shapes (curvilinear elements) can be defined with polynomial and even non- (black) to any desired accuracy.
polynomial shapes (e.g. ellipse or circle).

Examples of methods that use higher degree piecewise polynomial basis functions are the hp-FEM and spectral FEM.

More advanced implementations (adaptive finite element methods) utilize a method to assess the quality of the results (based on error estimation theory) and
modify the mesh during the solution aiming to achieve an approximate solution within some bounds from the exact solution of the continuum problem. Mesh
adaptivity may utilize various techniques, the most popular are:

moving nodes (r-adaptivity)

refining (and unrefined) elements (h-adaptivity)
changing order of base functions (p-adaptivity)
combinations of the above (hp-adaptivity).

Small support of the basis

The primary advantage of this choice of basis is that the inner products

and
will be zero for almost all . (The matrix containing in the location is known as the Gramian matrix.) In
the one dimensional case, the support of is the interval . Hence, the integrands of and
are identically zero whenever .

Similarly, in the planar case, if and do not share an edge of the triangulation, then the integrals

Solving the two-dimensional problem

in the disk centered
and
at the origin and radius 1, with zero
boundary conditions.
(a) The triangulation.

are both zero.

Matrix form of the problem

If we write and then problem (3), taking for ,

becomes

(b) The sparse matrix L of the

discretized linear system

(c) The computed solution,

for  
 

 
 
(4)

If we denote by and the column vectors and , and if we let

and

be matrices whose entries are

and

then we may rephrase (4) as

(5)
 

   
 

It is not necessary to assume . For a general function , problem (3) with for becomes actually simpler,

since no matrix is used,

 
 

 
 
(6)
where and for .

As we have discussed before, most of the entries of and are zero because the basis functions have small support. So we now have to solve a linear system
in the unknown where most of the entries of the matrix , which we need to invert, are zero.

Such matrices are known as sparse matrices, and there are efficient solvers for such problems (much more efficient than actually inverting the matrix.) In addition,
is symmetric and positive definite, so a technique such as the conjugate gradient method is favored. For problems that are not too large, sparse LU
decompositions and Cholesky decompositions still work well. For instance, MATLAB's backslash operator (which uses sparse LU, sparse Cholesky, and other
factorization methods) can be sufficient for meshes with a hundred thousand vertices.

The matrix is usually referred to as the stiffness matrix, while the matrix is dubbed the mass matrix.

General form of the finite element method

In general, the finite element method is characterized by the following process.

One chooses a grid for . In the preceding treatment, the grid consisted of triangles, but one can also use squares or curvilinear polygons.
Then, one chooses basis functions. In our discussion, we used piecewise linear basis functions, but it is also common to use piecewise
polynomial basis functions.

Separate consideration is the smoothness of the basis functions. For second-order elliptic boundary value problems, piecewise polynomial basis function that is
merely continuous suffice (i.e., the derivatives are discontinuous.) For higher-order partial differential equations, one must use smoother basis functions. For
instance, for a fourth-order problem such as , one may use piecewise quadratic basis functions that are .

Another consideration is the relation of the finite-dimensional space to its infinite-dimensional counterpart, in the examples above . A conforming element
method is one in which space is a subspace of the element space for the continuous problem. The example above is such a method. If this condition is not
satisfied, we obtain a nonconforming element method, an example of which is the space of piecewise linear functions over the mesh which are continuous at each
edge midpoint. Since these functions are in general discontinuous along the edges, this finite-dimensional space is not a subspace of the original .

Typically, one has an algorithm for taking a given mesh and subdividing it. If the main method for increasing precision is to subdivide the mesh, one has an h-
method (h is customarily the diameter of the largest element in the mesh.) In this manner, if one shows that the error with a grid is bounded above by , for
some and , then one has an order p method. Under certain hypotheses (for instance, if the domain is convex), a piecewise polynomial of order
method will have an error of order .

If instead of making h smaller, one increases the degree of the polynomials used in the basis function, one has a p-method. If one combines these two refinement
types, one obtains an hp-method (hp-FEM). In the hp-FEM, the polynomial degrees can vary from element to element. High order methods with large uniform p
are called spectral finite element methods (SFEM). These are not to be confused with spectral methods.

For vector partial differential equations, the basis functions may take values in .

Various types of finite element methods

AEM

The Applied Element Method or AEM combines features of both FEM and Discrete element method, or (DEM).

A-FEM

The Augmented-Finite Element Method is introduced by Yang and Lui whose goal was to model the weak and strong discontinuities without the need of extra
DoFs as in PuM stated.

Generalized finite element method

The generalized finite element method (GFEM) uses local spaces consisting of functions, not necessarily polynomials, that reflect the available information on the
unknown solution and thus ensure good local approximation. Then a partition of unity is used to “bond” these spaces together to form the approximating subspace.
The effectiveness of GFEM has been shown when applied to problems with domains having complicated boundaries, problems with micro-scales, and problems
with boundary layers.[14]

Mixed finite element method

The mixed finite element method is a type of finite element method in which extra independent variables are introduced as nodal variables during the discretization
of a partial differential equation problem.

Variable – polynomial

The hp-FEM combines adaptively, elements with variable size h and polynomial degree p in order to achieve exceptionally fast, exponential convergence rates.[15]

hpk-FEM
The hpk-FEM combines adaptively, elements with variable size h, polynomial degree of the local approximations p and global differentiability of the local
approximations (k-1) to achieve best convergence rates.

XFEM

The extended finite element method (XFEM) is a numerical technique based on the generalized finite element method (GFEM) and the partition of unity method
(PUM). It extends the classical finite element method by enriching the solution space for solutions to differential equations with discontinuous functions. Extended
finite element methods enrich the approximation space so that it can naturally reproduce the challenging feature associated with the problem of interest: the
discontinuity, singularity, boundary layer, etc. It was shown that for some problems, such an embedding of the problem's feature into the approximation space can
significantly improve convergence rates and accuracy. Moreover, treating problems with discontinuities with XFEMs suppresses the need to mesh and re-mesh the
discontinuity surfaces, thus alleviating the computational costs and projection errors associated with conventional finite element methods, at the cost of restricting
the discontinuities to mesh edges.

Several research codes implement this technique to various degrees:

1. GetFEM++
2. xfem++
3. openxfem++

XFEM has also been implemented in codes like Altair Radios, ASTER, Morfeo, and Abaqus. It is increasingly being adopted by other commercial finite element
software, with a few plugins and actual core implementations available (ANSYS, SAMCEF, OOFELIE, etc.).

Scaled boundary finite element method (SBFEM)

The introduction of the scaled boundary finite element method (SBFEM) came from Song and Wolf (1997).[16] The SBFEM has been one of the most profitable
contributions in the area of numerical analysis of fracture mechanics problems. It is a semi-analytical fundamental-solutionless method which combines the
advantages of both the finite element formulations and procedures and the boundary element discretization. However, unlike the boundary element method, no
fundamental differential solution is required.

S-FEM

The S-FEM, Smoothed Finite Element Methods, is a particular class of numerical simulation algorithms for the simulation of physical phenomena. It was
developed by combining meshfree methods with the finite element method.

Spectral element method

Spectral element methods combine the geometric flexibility of finite elements and the acute accuracy of spectral methods. Spectral methods are the approximate
solution of weak form partial equations that are based on high-order Lagrangian interpolants and used only with certain quadrature rules.[17]

Meshfree methods

Discontinuous Galerkin methods

Finite element limit analysis

Stretched grid method

Loubignac iteration

Loubignac iteration is an iterative method in finite element methods.

Crystal plasticity finite element method (CPFEM)

Crystal plasticity finite element method (CPFEM) is an advanced numerical tool developed by Franz Roters. Metals can be regarded as crystal aggregates and it
behave anisotropy under deformation, for example, abnormal stress and strain localization. CPFEM based on slip (shear strain rate) can calculate dislocation,
crystal orientation and other texture information to consider crystal anisotropy during the routine. Now it has been applied in the numerical study of material
deformation, surface roughness, fractures and so on.

Virtual element method (VEM)

The virtual element method (VEM), introduced by Beirão da Veiga et al. (2013)[18] as an extension of mimetic finite difference (MFD) methods, is a generalisation
of the standard finite element method for arbitrary element geometries. This allows admission of general polygons (or polyhedra in 3D) that are highly irregular
and non-convex in shape. The name virtual derives from the fact that knowledge of the local shape function basis is not required, and is in fact never explicitly
calculated.

Link with the gradient discretization method

Some types of finite element methods (conforming, nonconforming, mixed finite element methods) are particular cases of the gradient discretization method
(GDM). Hence the convergence properties of the GDM, which are established for a series of problems (linear and non-linear elliptic problems, linear, nonlinear,
and degenerate parabolic problems), hold as well for these particular FEMs.

Comparison to the finite difference method

The finite difference method (FDM) is an alternative way of approximating solutions of PDEs. The differences between FEM and FDM are:

The most attractive feature of the FEM is its ability to handle complicated geometries (and boundaries) with relative ease. While FDM in its
basic form is restricted to handle rectangular shapes and simple alterations thereof, the handling of geometries in FEM is theoretically
straightforward.[2][19]
FDM is not usually used for irregular CAD geometries but more often rectangular or block shaped models.[20]
FEM generally allows for more flexible mesh adaptivity than FDM.[19]
The most attractive feature of finite differences is that it is very easy to implement.[19]
There are several ways one could consider the FDM a special case of the FEM approach. E.g., first-order FEM is identical to FDM for
Poisson's equation, if the problem is discretized by a regular rectangular mesh with each rectangle divided into two triangles.
There are reasons to consider the mathematical foundation of the finite element approximation more sound, for instance, because the quality
of the approximation between grid points is poor in FDM.
The quality of a FEM approximation is often higher than in the corresponding FDM approach, but this is extremely problem-dependent and
several examples to the contrary can be provided.

Generally, FEM is the method of choice in all types of analysis in structural mechanics (i.e. solving for deformation and stresses in solid bodies or dynamics of
structures) while computational fluid dynamics (CFD) tend to use FDM or other methods like finite volume method (FVM). CFD problems usually require
discretization of the problem into a large number of cells/gridpoints (millions and more), therefore the cost of the solution favors simpler, lower-order
approximation within each cell. This is especially true for 'external flow' problems, like airflow around the car or airplane, or weather simulation.

Application
A variety of specializations under the umbrella of the mechanical engineering discipline (such as aeronautical,
biomechanical, and automotive industries) commonly use integrated FEM in the design and development of their
products. Several modern FEM packages include specific components such as thermal, electromagnetic, fluid, and
structural working environments. In a structural simulation, FEM helps tremendously in producing stiffness and
strength visualizations and also in minimizing weight, materials, and costs.[21] 3D pollution transport model -
concentration field on ground level
FEM allows detailed visualization of where structures bend or twist, and indicates the distribution of stresses and
displacements. FEM software provides a wide range of simulation options for controlling the complexity of both
modeling and analysis of a system. Similarly, the desired level of accuracy required and associated computational time
requirements can be managed simultaneously to address most engineering applications. FEM allows entire designs to
be constructed, refined, and optimized before the design is manufactured. The mesh is an integral part of the model and
it must be controlled carefully to give the best results. Generally the higher the number of elements in a mesh, the more
accurate the solution of the discretized problem. However, there is a value at which the results converge and further 3D pollution transport model -
mesh refinement does not increase accuracy.[22] concentration field on perpendicular
surface
This powerful design tool has significantly improved both the standard of engineering designs and the methodology of
the design process in many industrial applications.[24] The introduction of FEM has substantially decreased the time to
take products from concept to the production line.[24] It is primarily through improved initial prototype designs using
FEM that testing and development have been accelerated.[25] In summary, benefits of FEM include increased
accuracy, enhanced design and better insight into critical design parameters, virtual prototyping, fewer hardware
prototypes, a faster and less expensive design cycle, increased productivity, and increased revenue.[24]

Finite Element Model of a human knee

joint.[23]
In the 1990s FEM was proposed for use in stochastic modelling for numerically solving probability models[26] and later for reliability assessment.[27]

See also
Applied element method Finite element method in structural Movable cellular automaton
Boundary element method mechanics Multidisciplinary design optimization
Céa's lemma Finite volume method Multiphysics
Computer experiment Finite volume method for unsteady flow Patch test
Direct stiffness method Infinite element method Rayleigh–Ritz method
Discontinuity layout optimization Interval finite element Space mapping
Discrete element method Isogeometric analysis STRAND7
Finite difference method Lattice Boltzmann methods Tessellation (computer graphics)
Finite element machine List of finite element software packages Weakened weak form
Meshfree methods

References
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Cengage Learning. ISBN 9780495668275. boundary finite-element method – alias consistent infinitesimal
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(Third ed.). McGraw-Hill. ISBN 9780071267618. Methods in Applied Mechanics and Engineering. 147 (3–4): 329–
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4. Liu, Wing Kam; Li, Shaofan; Park, Harold S. (2022). "Eighty Years 2900021-2).
of the Finite Element Method: Birth, Evolution, and Future" (https://d
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oi.org/10.1007%2Fs11831-022-09740-9). Archives of
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doi:10.1007/s11831-022-09740-9 (https://doi.org/10.1007%2Fs118 Laboratory of Scientific and Engineering Computing. Archived from
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Further reading
G. Allaire and A. Craig: Numerical Analysis and Optimization: An Introduction to Mathematical Modelling and Numerical Simulation (https://bo
oks.google.com/books?id=HIwSDAAAQBAJ&q=%22finite+element%22).
K. J. Bathe: Numerical methods in finite element analysis, Prentice-Hall (1976).
Thomas J.R. Hughes: The Finite Element Method: Linear Static and Dynamic Finite Element Analysis, Prentice-Hall (1987).
J. Chaskalovic: Finite Elements Methods for Engineering Sciences, Springer Verlag, (2008).
Endre Süli: Finite Element Methods for Partial Differential Equations (http://people.maths.ox.ac.uk/suli/fem.pdf).
O. C. Zienkiewicz, R. L. Taylor, J. Z. Zhu : The Finite Element Method: Its Basis and Fundamentals (https://books.google.com/books?id=Yocoa
H8lnx8C), Butterworth-Heinemann (2005).
N. Ottosen, H. Petersson : Introduction to the Finite Element Method, Prentice-Hall (1992).
Zohdi, T. I. (2018) A finite element primer for beginners-extended version including sample tests and projects. Second Edition
https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-319-70428-9

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