Structural Mechanics Module

User’s Guide
Structural Mechanics Module User’s Guide
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Part number: CM021101

C o n t e n t s

Chapter 1: Introduction

About the Structural Mechanics Module 30

A Quick Overview of the Structural Mechanics Module . . . . . . . . 30
What Problems Can It Solve? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
The Structural Mechanics Module Physics Interface Guide . . . . . . . 34
Common Physics Interface and Feature Settings and Nodes . . . . . . 43
Where Do I Access the Documentation and Application Libraries? . . . . 44

Overview of the User’s Guide 48

Chapter 2: Structural Mechanics Modeling

Study Types 55
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Stationary Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Eigenfrequency Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Mode Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Time-Domain Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Frequency-Domain Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Mode Superposition. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Harmonic Perturbation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Modal Reduced-Order Models. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Linearized Buckling Analysis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Bolt Pretension Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Random Vibration (PSD) Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Response Spectrum Analysis Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

Selecting the Physics Interface 81

Solid Mechanics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Elastic Waves, Time Explicit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Shell and Plate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

CONTENTS |3
 Membrane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Beam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Pipe Mechanics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Truss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Wire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

Selecting Discretization 89
Shape Function Order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Lagrange and Serendipity Shape Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Choosing Shape Functions in Multiphysics Models . . . . . . . . . . 90
Implicit Shape Function Orders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

Coupling Different Element Types 93

Introduction to the Element Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Coupling Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

Applying Loads 102

Units, Orientation, and Visualization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Load Cases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Singular Loads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Moments in the Solid Mechanics Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Acceleration Loads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Temperature Loads — Thermal Expansion . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Hygroscopic Swelling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Total Loads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Loads with a Spatial Variation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Variables for Loads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

Defining Constraints 113

Rigid Body Motion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Orientation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Prescribed Displacements, Velocities, and Accelerations . . . . . . . 115
Symmetry Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
Elemental and Nodal Constraints. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Suppressing Constraints on Lower Dimensions . . . . . . . . . . 120
Kinematic Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Rotational Joints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

4 | CONTENTS
Attachments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

Calculating Reaction Forces 125

Using Predefined Variables to Evaluate Reaction Forces . . . . . . . 125
Using Weak Constraints to Evaluate Reaction Forces . . . . . . . . 126
Using Surface Traction to Evaluate Reaction Forces. . . . . . . . . 127
Evaluating Surface Traction Forces on Interior Boundaries . . . . . . 128

Introduction to Material Models 129

Material Models for Structural Mechanics . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
Combination of Material Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Entering Material Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Introduction to Linear Elastic Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Introduction to Viscoelastic Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Mixed Formulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Modeling Damage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
About the Material Databases for the Structural Mechanics Module . . 136
Using External Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

Modeling Piezoelectric Problems 151

About Piezoelectric Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Piezoelectric Material Orientation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
Piezoelectric Losses. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
References for Piezoelectric Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
Piezoelectric Coupling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
Create the Piezoelectric Effect Interface and Define Domains . . . . . 169
Complete Settings of Piezoelectric Materials . . . . . . . . . . . 170
Add Damping and Loss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
Define Material Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
Coupling Piezoelectricity with Acoustics . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173

Modeling Electrostrictive and Ferroelectroelastic Materials 174

Electrostriction Coupling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
Ferroelectricity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
Multiphysics Interfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174

CONTENTS |5
 Modeling Magnetostrictive Materials 176
Magnetostriction Coupling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
Linear vs. Nonlinear Magnetostriction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
Create the Magnetostriction Interface and Define Domains. . . . . . 177

Mechanical Damping and Losses 181

Damping Sources. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
About Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Rayleigh Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184
Loss Factor Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
Viscous Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
Equivalence Between Loss Factor, Rayleigh, and Viscous Damping . . . 187
Explicit Complex-Valued Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Viscoelastic Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Piezoelectric Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Adding Damping in the Modal Solver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189

Modeling Geometric Nonlinearity 190

Geometric Nonlinearity, Frames, and the ALE Method . . . . . . . 190
Geometric Nonlinearity for the Solid Mechanics Interface . . . . . . 198
Geometric Nonlinearity for the Shell, Plate, Membrane, Beam and
Truss Interfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Solving Geometrically Nonlinear Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Prestressed Structures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Geometric Nonlinearity for the Piezoelectric Material. . . . . . . . 203
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205

Contact Modeling 206

Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206
Setting Up a Contact Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207
Contact Pairs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216
Meshing for Contact Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218
Settings for Contact Nodes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
Quasistatic Contact Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229
Dynamic Contact Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230
Multiphysics Contact Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
Special Types of Contact Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
Fallback Conditions to Contact Regions . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234

6 | CONTENTS
Solver Settings for Contact Analysis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235
Monitoring the Solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
Dependent Variables in Contact Analysis. . . . . . . . . . . . . 240
Important Contact Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243
References for Contact Modeling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245

Activating and Deactivating Material 246

Springs and Dampers 249

Defining Multiphysics Models 251

Thermal-Structure Interaction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
Acoustic-Structure Interaction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252
Thermal-Electric-Structural Interaction . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252

Thermally Coupled Problems 254

Temperature-Dependent Material Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254
Thermal Expansion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256
Constraints and Thermal Expansion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262
Thermoelastic Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263

Fluid-Structure Interaction 265

Deforming Fluid Domains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Union or Assembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266
Contact and FSI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
One-Way FSI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268

Component Mode Synthesis 270

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270
COMSOL Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270
Applications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271
Working With CMS Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272

Computing Mass Properties 284

Effective Properties of Periodic Structures 287

RVE Modeling Using the Cell Periodicity Node . . . . . . . . . . 287

CONTENTS |7
 Modeling Pretensioned Bolts 290

Simplified Modeling of Bolt Threads 299

Modeling Embedded Structures and Reinforcements 301

Modeling Thin Layers 306

The Thin Layer Node . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306
Interior and Exterior Boundaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 308
Material Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 309
Loads and Boundary Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 309
Result Evaluation and Visualization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 310

Modeling Cracks 312

The Crack Node . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 312
J-integrals. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 313
Stress Intensity Factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 316
Contact Between Crack Faces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317

Buckling Analysis 319

Linearized Buckling Analysis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319
Nonlinear Buckling Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
Modeling Imperfection in a Buckling Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . 323

Performing a Random Vibration Analysis 328

Performing a Response Spectrum Analysis 336

Stress Linearization 344

Solver Settings for Structural Mechanics 350

Symmetric Matrices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 350
Selecting Iterative Solvers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 351
Solver Settings for Viscoelasticity, Creep, and Viscoplasticity . . . . . 352
Specifying Tolerances and Scaling for the Dependent Variables . . . . 353
Solver Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 353

8 | CONTENTS
 Using Reduced Integration 355

Result Presentation 359

Local Orientations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 359
How an Expression Is Evaluated . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 362
Quality Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 364
Gauss Point Evaluation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365
Postprocessing of Eigenmodes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366
Plotting Applied Loads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 368

Part Libraries 373

Chapter 3: Structural Mechanics Theory

Solid Mechanics Theory 379

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 379

Frames and Coordinate Systems 381

Material and Spatial Coordinates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381
Coordinate Systems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 382
Boundary System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 383

Analysis of Deformation 384

Lagrangian Formulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 384
Deformation Measures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 387
Invariants of Strain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391
Inelastic Strain Contributions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 394
Deformed Geometry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398
Axial Symmetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 400
Plane Strain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 403
Generalized Plane Strain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 404

Stresses 409
Defining Stress. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 409
Invariants of the Stress Tensor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 410
Plane Stress . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 413

CONTENTS |9
 Initial Stresses and Strains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 414
External Stress. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 415
External Strain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 417
Axial Symmetry and Stresses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 418

Equation of Motion 419

Material Models 422

Linear Elastic Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 425
Mixed Formulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 437
Nonlinear Elastic Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 439
Linear Viscoelasticity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 451
Large Strain Viscoelasticity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 480
Hyperelastic Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 483
Distributed Fiber Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 510
Elastoplastic Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 514
Failure Criteria for Concrete, Rocks, and Other Brittle Materials . . . 552
Elastoplastic Soil Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 558
Creep and Viscoplasticity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 574
Inelastic Strain Rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 593
Shape Memory Alloy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 595
Piezoelectricity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 600
Magnetomechanics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610
Magnetostriction and Piezomagnetism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 614
Electrostriction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 627
Ferroelectroelasticity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 628
Rigid Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 632
Damage Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 642
Safety Factor Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 652

Formulation of the Equilibrium Equations 673

Equation Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 673

Study Types 675

Frequency-Domain Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 675
Eigenfrequency Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 679
Random Vibration Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 682
Response Spectrum Analysis Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 689

10 | C O N T E N T S
Linear Buckling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 707

Damping 709
Rayleigh Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 709
Loss Factor Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 710
Viscous Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 711
Maximum Loss Factor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 712
Wave Attenuation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 713

Loads and Constraints 717

Distributed Loads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 717
Gravity and Base Excitation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 718
Frame Acceleration Forces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 719
Spring Foundation and Thin Elastic Layer . . . . . . . . . . . . . 721
Spring-Damper Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 725
Added Mass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 730
Rigid Motion Suppression . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 731
Limited Displacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 732
Low-Reflecting Boundary Condition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 733
Cyclic Symmetry and Floquet Periodic Conditions . . . . . . . . . 734
Symmetry Condition with Translation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 735
Roller Boundary Condition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 736
Thermal Expansion of Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 738
Fluid-Structure Interaction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 740
Periodic Cell Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 741
Rigid Connector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 744
Continuity Condition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 747

Contact Analysis Theory 751

Contact Search and Kinematics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 751
Definition of Contact Tractions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 755
Normal Contact . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 755
Tangential Contact with Friction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 762
Unbiased Formulation and Self-Contact . . . . . . . . . . . . . 767
Adhesion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 768
Decohesion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 770
Wear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 781

CONTENTS | 11
 Bolt Modeling Theory 783
Tightening Torque . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 783

Stress Linearization 786

J-Integral Theory 789

Embedded Elements 793

Theory for Thin Layers 797

Deformation Gradient . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 797
Solid Approximation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 798
Membrane Approximation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 799
Spring Approximation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800
Material Models in Thin Layers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800
Spring Material. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 801

Reduced Integration and Hourglass Stabilization 804

Average Rotation 806

Energy Quantities 808

Elastic Energy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 808
Kinetic Energy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 810
Dissipated Energy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 810
Mechanical Energy Flux . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 811
Energy Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 812

References 815

Chapter 4: Solid Mechanics

The Solid Mechanics Interface 828

Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for Solid Mechanics . . 838
Initial Values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 843
Change Thickness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 844

12 | C O N T E N T S
Change Cross Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 844
Linear Elastic Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 845
Nonlinear Elastic Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 853
Elastoplastic Soil Material. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 859
Hyperelastic Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 866
Shape Memory Alloy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 878
Phase Transformation Direction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 883
Piezoelectric Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 883
Piezomagnetic Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 887
Magnetostrictive Material. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 891
Viscoelasticity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 891
Mullins Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 898
Plasticity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 899
Set Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 907
Creep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 909
Additional Creep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 914
Viscoplasticity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 915
Porous Plasticity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 923
Soil Plasticity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 929
Concrete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 933
Rocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 935
Fiber . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 937
Thermal Expansion (for Fibers) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 939
Thermal Expansion (for Materials) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 940
Hygroscopic Swelling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 943
Intercalation Strain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 945
Initial Stress and Strain. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 947
External Stress. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 948
External Strain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 952
Inelastic Strain Rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 955
Damage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 958
Activation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 963
Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 964
Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 970
Mechanical Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 976
Coupling Loss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 978
Dielectric Loss. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 979
Conduction Loss (Time-Harmonic) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 981

CONTENTS | 13
 External Stress-Strain Relation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 982
Rigid Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 984
Initial Values (Rigid Material) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 988
Fixed Constraint (Rigid Material) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 989
Prescribed Displacement/Rotation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 990
Applied Force (Rigid Material) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 993
Location Nodes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 995
Applied Moment (Rigid Material) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 995
Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid Material) . . . . . . . . . . . 997
Center of Mass Nodes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 999
Spring Foundation (Rigid Material) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 999
Free. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1002
Prescribed Displacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1003
Prescribed Velocity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1006
Prescribed Acceleration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1009
Fixed Constraint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1011
Thermal Expansion (for Constraints) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1013
Roller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1016
Symmetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1018
Symmetry Plane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1021
Antisymmetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1023
Rigid Motion Suppression . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1024
Body Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1026
Gravity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1028
Base Excitation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1030
Rotating Frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1031
Linearly Accelerated Frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1034
Boundary Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1036
Edge Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1040
Point Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1041
Point Load, Free . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1045
Ring Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1047
Ring Load, Free . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1048
Point Load (on Axis) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1050
Thin Layer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1052
Prescribed Displacement (Thin Layer) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1053
Fixed Constraint (Thin Layer) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1055
Roller (Thin Layer) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1056

14 | C O N T E N T S
Face Load (Thin Layer) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1057
Boundary Load (Thin Layer) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1059
Spring Material. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1061
Spring Foundation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1062
Thin Elastic Layer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1068
Predeformation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1072
Spring-Damper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1073
Source Point (for Spring-Damper) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1079
Destination Point (for Spring-Damper) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1079
Source Point Nodes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1079
Destination Point Nodes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1080
Added Mass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1080
Periodic Condition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1083
Adiabatic Heating. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1086
Cell Periodicity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1088
Boundary Pair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1092
Low-Reflecting Boundary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1093
Rigid Connector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1093
Center of Rotation Nodes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1104
Thermal Expansion (Rigid Connector) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1104
Applied Force (Rigid Connector) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1106
Applied Moment (Rigid Connector) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1108
Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid Connector) . . . . . . . . . . 1110
Spring Foundation (Rigid Connector) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1111
Attachment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1113
Thermal Expansion (Attachment). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1115
Reduced Flexible Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1117
Component Definition. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1119
Fixed Joint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1120
Source Filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1121
Destination Filter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1121
Contact . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1122
Friction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1134
Slip Velocity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1138
Adhesion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1141
Decohesion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1143
Wear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1146
Continuity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1149

CONTENTS | 15
 Bolt Pretension . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1150
Bolt Selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1153
Bolt Thread Contact . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1156
Crack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1158
Crack Closure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1160
Face Load (Crack) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1162
J-Integral . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1163
Reverse Crack Front . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1165
Port . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1166
Elastic Predeformation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1170
Phase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1172
Harmonic Perturbation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1174
Stress Linearization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1175
Section Forces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1178
Test Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1181
Local System Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1183
Average Rotation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1185
Wave Speeds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1187
Important Variables in the Solid Mechanics Interface . . . . . . . . 1188

Chapter 5: Shell and Plate

Modeling with Plates and Shells 1194

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1194
Dependent Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1195
Layered and Nonlayered Shells . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1197
Working with Section Stiffness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1199
Loads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1199

Theory for the Shell and Plate Interfaces 1201

General Theory for the Shell and Plate Interfaces . . . . . . . . . 1201
Theory for FSDT Laminated Shell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1224
Theory for Hyperelastic Shells . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1239
Results Evaluation in a Laminate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1239
Theory for Section Stiffness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1240
References for the Shell Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1241

16 | C O N T E N T S
The Shell and Plate Interfaces 1242
Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Shell and
Plate Interfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1247
Initial Values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1249
Thickness and Offset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1250
Thickness Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1252
Linear Elastic Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1253
Layered Linear Elastic Material. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1255
Shell Local System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1259
Layered Hyperelastic Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1260
Viscoelasticity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1262
Plasticity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1263
Set Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1265
Creep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1265
Additional Creep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1267
Viscoplasticity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1268
Thermal Expansion (for Materials) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1269
Hygroscopic Swelling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1273
Initial Stress and Strain. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1276
External Stress. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1279
External Strain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1281
Inelastic Strain Rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1283
Damage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1284
Mullins Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1285
Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1286
Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1287
Section Stiffness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1289
Fixed Constraint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1291
Prescribed Displacement/Rotation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1293
Thermal Expansion (for Constraints) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1296
Prescribed Velocity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1298
Prescribed Acceleration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1300
Pinned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1303
No Rotation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1304
Simply Supported. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1306
Symmetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1307
Symmetry Plane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1310
Antisymmetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1312

CONTENTS | 17
 Body Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1313
Face Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1315
Edge Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1317
Point Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1320
Point Load, Free . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1322
Ring Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1325
Ring Load, Free . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1327
Spring Foundation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1329
Predeformation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1333
Added Mass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1333
Point Mass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1335
Point Mass Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1336
Periodic Condition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1337
Layered Adiabatic Heating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1341
Boundary to Boundary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1344
Edge to Boundary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1345
Edge to Edge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1348
Rigid Connector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1351
Thermal Expansion (Rigid Connector) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1359
Attachment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1360
Thermal Expansion (Attachment). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1361
Phase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1362
Harmonic Perturbation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1363

Chapter 6: Layered Shell

Theory for the Layered Shell Interface 1366

About Layered Shells . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1366
Theory Background for the Layered Shell Interface . . . . . . . . . 1367

The Layered Shell Interface 1381

The Shell Properties and Interface Selection Sections . . . . . . . . 1385
Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Layered
Shell Interface. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1386
Initial Values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1390
Linear Elastic Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1391

18 | C O N T E N T S
Hyperelastic Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1393
Piezoelectric Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1395
Viscoelasticity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1399
Mullins Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1400
Plasticity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1401
Set Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1403
Creep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1404
Additional Creep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1405
Viscoplasticity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1407
Thermal Expansion (for Materials) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1408
Hygroscopic Swelling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1409
Initial Stress and Strain. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1411
External Stress. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1412
External Strain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1414
Inelastic Strain Rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1415
Damage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1416
Activation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1417
Delamination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1419
Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1422
Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1423
Mechanical Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1425
Coupling Loss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1426
Dielectric Loss. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1427
Rigid Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1428
Free. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1429
Prescribed Displacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1430
Prescribed Displacement, Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1431
Prescribed Velocity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1432
Prescribed Velocity, Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1433
Prescribed Acceleration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1434
Prescribed Acceleration, Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1436
Fixed Constraint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1437
Fixed Constraint, Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1438
Thermal Expansion (for Constraints) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1439
Roller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1440
Roller, Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1441
Symmetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1442
Antisymmetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1442

CONTENTS | 19
 Rigid Motion Suppression . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1443
Body Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1444
Face Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1446
Rotating Frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1447
Linearly Accelerated Frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1448
Boundary Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1449
Edge Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1451
Line Load. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1452
Point Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1453
Phase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1454
Spring Foundation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1455
Spring Foundation, Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1456
Thin Elastic Layer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1458
Thin Elastic Layer, Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1459
Predeformation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1460
Added Mass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1461
Added Mass, Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1462
Adiabatic Heating. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1463
Rigid Connector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1466
Rigid Connector, Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1467
Thermal Expansion (Rigid Connector) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1468
Attachment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1469
Thermal Expansion (Attachment). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1470
Continuity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1471

Chapter 7: Membrane

Theory for the Membrane Interface 1476

About Membranes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1476
Theory Background for the Membrane Interface . . . . . . . . . . 1478

The Membrane Interface 1486

Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Membrane Interface. . . 1488
Linear Elastic Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1490
Layered Linear Elastic Material. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1494
Viscoelasticity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1498

20 | C O N T E N T S
 Plasticity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1500
Set Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1501
Creep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1502
Additional Creep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1503
Viscoplasticity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1505
Wrinkling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1506
Thermal Expansion (for Materials) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1507
Hygroscopic Swelling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1509
Initial Stress and Strain. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1511
External Stress. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1513
Inelastic Strain Rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1515
Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1516
Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1517
Symmetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1519
Antisymmetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1521
Layered Adiabatic Heating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1522

Chapter 8: Beam

Modeling with Beams 1528

About Beams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1528
In-Plane Beams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1528
3D Beam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1529
Orientation of the Cross Section. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1530
Geometric Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1531
Result Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1532
Geometric Nonlinearity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1534
Modeling Stiffeners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1535
Nonrigid Joints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1536

Theory for the Beam Interface 1540

Shape Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1540
Geometric Nonlinearity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1542
Strain-Displacement/Rotation Relation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1545
Stress-Strain Relation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1545
Thermal Strain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1546

CONTENTS | 21
 Hygroscopic Swelling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1546
Initial Load and Strain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1547
Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1548
Theory for Section Stiffness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1550
Stress Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1552
Common Cross Sections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1554

The Beam Interface 1571

Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Beam Interface . . . . 1574
Initial Values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1576
Cross-Section Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1577
Section Orientation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1581
Linear Elastic Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1584
Thermal Expansion (for Materials) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1586
Hygroscopic Swelling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1587
Initial Stress and Strain. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1588
External Stress. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1590
Section Stiffness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1591
Prescribed Displacement/Rotation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1593
Prescribed Velocity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1597
Prescribed Acceleration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1599
Pinned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1601
Thermal Expansion (for Constraints) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1602
No Rotation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1603
Symmetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1604
Antisymmetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1606
Edge Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1607
Point Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1610
Point Load, Free . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1612
Point Mass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1613
Point Mass Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1614
Rigid Connector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1615
Attachment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1622
Beam End Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1622
Edge Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1624
Phase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1624
Harmonic Perturbation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1625

22 | C O N T E N T S
Chapter 9: Beam Cross Section

Using the Beam Cross Section Interface 1628

About Beams and Cross-Section Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1628
Using the Beam Cross Section Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1629

Theory for the Beam Cross Section Interface 1635

Cross-Section Properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1635
Computation of Stresses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1649

The Beam Cross Section Interface 1652

Homogeneous Cross Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1653
Hole . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1655
Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1657

Chapter 10: Truss

Modeling with Truss Elements 1660

Theory for the Truss Interface 1662

Theory Background for the Truss Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . 1662

The Truss Interface 1671

Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Truss Interface . . . . 1672
Cross-Section Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1674
Straight Edge Constraint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1677
Linear Elastic Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1678
Set Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1679
Thermal Expansion (for Linear Elastic Material) . . . . . . . . . . 1680
Thermal Expansion (for Shape Memory Alloy) . . . . . . . . . . . 1682
Hygroscopic Swelling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1683
Initial Stress and Strain. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1684
External Stress. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1684
Spring-Damper Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1686
Prescribed Displacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1687

CONTENTS | 23
 Pinned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1691
Thermal Expansion (for Constraints) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1691
Symmetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1693
Antisymmetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1695
Edge Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1696
Point Mass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1698
Point Mass Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1699

Chapter 11: Wire

Modeling Wires and Cables 1702

Theory for the Wire Interface 1703

Theory Background for the Wire Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . 1703

The Wire Interface 1706

Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Wire Interface. . . . . 1707
Elastic Wire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1709
Thermal Expansion (for Elastic Wire) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1710
Hygroscopic Swelling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1711
Initial Stress and Strain. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1712
Pinned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1713
Thermal Expansion (for Constraints) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1713
Symmetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1715
Antisymmetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1717
Edge Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1718

Chapter 12: Pipe Mechanics

Theory for the Pipe Mechanics Interface 1722

About Pipes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1722
Effects of Internal Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1723
Fluid Flow Forces. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1727
Effects of Thermal Expansion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1729
Stress Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1731

24 | C O N T E N T S
Connection Between Pipes and Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . 1736
Cross Sections. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1738

The Pipe Mechanics Interface 1743

Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Pipe Mechanics
Interface. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1746
Pipe Cross Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1748
Section Orientation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1752
Bend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1754
Fluid and Pipe Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1756
Rigid Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1758
Thermal Expansion (for Materials) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1760
Gravity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1762
Base Excitation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1763
Linearly Accelerated Frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1764
Fluid Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1766

CONTENTS | 25
 Chapter 13: Multiphysics Interfaces and Couplings

The Thermal Stress, Solid Interface 1772

The Thermal Stress, Shell Interface 1774

The Thermal Stress, Layered Shell Interface 1776

The Thermal Stress, Membrane Interface 1778

The Joule Heating and Thermal Expansion Interface 1780

Overview of Fluid-Structure Interaction Interfaces 1783

The Fluid-Solid Interaction Interface 1785

The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Fixed Geometry Interface 1788

The Fluid-Shell Interaction Interface 1790

The Fluid-Shell Interaction, Fixed Geometry Interface 1792

The Fluid-Membrane Interaction Interface 1794

The Fluid-Membrane Interaction, Fixed Geometry Interface 1796

The Fluid-Pipe Interaction, Fixed Geometry Interface 1798

The Solid Thin-Film Damping Interface 1799

The Shell Thin-Film Damping Interface 1801

The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Viscoelastic Flow Interface 1803

The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Viscoelastic Flow, Fixed Geometry

26 | C O N T E N T S
 Interface 1805

The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Conjugate Heat Transfer Interface

1807

The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Two-Phase Flow, Phase Field

Interface 1810

The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Two-Phase Flow, Phase Field,

Fixed Geometry Interface 1813

Overview of Electromagnetics-Structure Interaction Interfaces

1816

The Piezoelectricity Interface, Solid 1817

Coupling Piezoelectricity with Acoustics . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1820

The Piezoelectricity, Layered Shell Interface 1821

The Electrostriction Interface 1824

The Ferroelectroelasticity Interface 1825

The Magnetomechanics Interface 1826

The Magnetomechanics, No Currents Interface 1828

The Piezomagnetism Interface 1830

The Nonlinear Magnetostriction Interface 1833

Hygroscopic Swelling Coupling 1836

Multiphysics Couplings 1837

Thermal Expansion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1837
Layered Thermal Expansion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1840
Hygroscopic Swelling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1843
Piezoelectric Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1845

CONTENTS | 27
 Layered Piezoelectric Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1847
Electrostriction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1848
Magnetomechanical Forces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1852
Magnetic Forces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1854
Piezomagnetic Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1856
Nonlinear Magnetostriction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1858
Magnetostriction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1861
Lorentz Coupling 1861
Fluid-Structure Interaction 1863
Fluid-Structure Interaction, Pair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1865
Fluid-Structure Interaction, Fixed Geometry . . . . . . . . . . . 1868
Fluid-Pipe Interaction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1868
Structure Thin-Film Flow Interaction 1870
Shell Thin-Film Flow Interaction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1871

Couplings Between Structural Mechanics Interfaces 1874

Solid-Thin Structure Connection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1874
Solid-Beam Connection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1877
Shell-Beam Connection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1882
Layered Shell-Structure Transition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1884
Layered Shell-Structure Cladding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1885
Layered Shell-Shell Connection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1886
Structure-Pipe Connection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1887
Embedded Reinforcement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1888
Beam Cross Section-Beam Coupling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1891
Beam-Beam Cross Section Coupling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1892

Chapter 14: Glossary

Glossary of Terms 1896

Index 1903

28 | C O N T E N T S
 1

Introduction

This guide describes the Structural Mechanics Module, an optional add-on

package that extends the COMSOL Multiphysics modeling environment with
customized physics interfaces that solve problems in the fields of structural and
solid mechanics, including special physics interface for modeling of shells,
membranes, beams, plates, trusses, wires, and pipes.

This chapter introduces you to the capabilities of this module and includes a
summary of the physics interfaces as well as information about where you can find
additional documentation and model examples. The last section is a brief overview
with links to each chapter in this guide.

• About the Structural Mechanics Module

• Overview of the User’s Guide

29
 About the Structural Mechanics
Module
In this section:

• A Quick Overview of the Structural Mechanics Module

• What Problems Can It Solve?
• The Structural Mechanics Module Physics Interface Guide
• Common Physics Interface and Feature Settings and Nodes
• Where Do I Access the Documentation and Application Libraries?

The Physics Interfaces and Building a COMSOL Multiphysics Model in

the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

A Quick Overview of the Structural Mechanics Module

The Structural Mechanics Module solves problems in the fields of structural and solid
mechanics, adding special physics interfaces for modeling shells and beams, for
example.

The physics interfaces in this module are fully multiphysics enabled, making it possible
to couple them to any other physics interfaces in COMSOL Multiphysics or the other
modules. Available physics interfaces include:

• Solid mechanics for 1D and 2D plane stress, plane strain, and generalized plane
strain, 2D axial symmetry, and 3D solids
• Beams in 2D and 3D, Euler and Timoshenko theory
• Pipes in 2D and 3D
• Truss elements in 2D and 3D
• Wires in 2D and 3D
• Shells and plates, Mindlin theory, 3D and 2D axial symmetry
• Membranes, 3D and 2D axial symmetry
• With the Composite Materials Module, the Layered Shell interface is also available.

30 | CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
The module’s study capabilities include static, eigenfrequency, time dependent
(transient), frequency response, buckling, response spectrum, random vibration, and
parametric studies.

There are several material models:

• Linear Elastic Materials can be isotropic, orthotropic, or fully anisotropic, and you
can use local coordinate systems to specify material properties.
• Linear Viscoelastic Materials
• Piezoelectric Materials
• Magnetostrictive Materials are available when used together with the AC/DC
module.
• Material models for hyperelasticity, metal plasticity, porous plasticity, creep,
viscoplasticity, nonlinear elasticity, soil plasticity, concrete, rocks, and clay are
available with the optional Nonlinear Structural Materials Module and
Geomechanics Module.

Large deformations, as well as contact and friction, can also be modeled.

Coupling structural analysis with thermal analysis is one example of multiphysics easily
implemented with the module, which provides predefined multiphysics couplings for
thermal stress and other types of multiphysics. Piezoelectric materials, coupling the
electric field and strain in both directions are fully supported inside the module
through special multiphysics couplings solving for both the electric potential and the
displacements. Structural mechanics couplings are common in simulations done with
COMSOL Multiphysics and occur in interaction with, for example, fluid flow (fluid–
structure interaction, FSI), chemical reactions, acoustics, electric fields, magnetic
fields, and optical wave propagation.

What Problems Can It Solve?

The Structural Mechanics Module contains a set of physics interfaces adapted to a
broad category of structural-mechanics analyses. The module serves as an excellent
tool for the professional engineer, researcher, and teacher. In education, the benefit of
the short learning curve is especially useful because educators need not spend excessive
time learning the software and can instead focus on the physics and the modeling
process.

A short summary is given below.

ABOUT THE STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODULE | 31

 STATIC ANALYSIS
In a static analysis, the load and constraints are fixed in time.

EIGENFREQUENCY ANALYSIS
An eigenfrequency analysis finds the damped or undamped eigenfrequencies and
mode shapes of a structure, sometimes referred to as the free vibration of a structure.
Prestress effects and damping can also be taken into account.

TRANSIENT ANALYSIS
A transient analysis finds the transient response for a time-dependent model, taking
into account mass and mass moment of inertia. The transient analysis can be either
direct or using a modal solution.

FREQUENCY RESPONSE ANALYSIS

A frequency response analysis finds the steady-state response to harmonic loads. The
frequency-response analysis can be either direct or using a modal solution. Effects of
prestress can be included.

LINEAR BUCKLING STUDY

A linear buckling analysis uses the stiffness coming from stresses and material to
define an eigenvalue problem where the eigenvalue is a load factor that, when
multiplied with the actual load, gives the critical load in a linear context.

PARAMETRIC ANALYSIS
A parametric analysis finds the solution dependence due to the variation of a specific
parameter, which could be, for instance, a material property or the position of a load.

RESPONSE SPECTRUM ANALYSIS

Response spectrum analysis provides a method to estimate peak values of, for example,
displacements and stresses when a structure is subjected to a short, non-deterministic
event like an earthquake or a shock.

RANDOM VIBRATION ANALYSIS

For steady-state random dynamic loading, like wind or waves, it is possible to perform
random vibration analysis where the input is given in terms of a power spectrum
density (PSD).

32 | CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
THERMAL STRESS
In a transient thermal stress study, the program neglects mass effects, assuming that
the time scale in the structural mechanics problem is much smaller than the time scale
in the thermal problem.

LARGE DEFORMATIONS
You can also enable geometric nonlinearity for all structural mechanics interfaces. The
engineering strain is then replaced with the Green–Lagrange strain and the stress with
the second Piola–Kirchhoff stress. To solve the problem, the program uses a total
Lagrangian formulation.

ELASTOPLASTIC MATERIALS
An elastoplastic analysis involves a nonlinear material with or without hardening.
Several isotropic and kinematic hardening models are available.

The material models allow large strains.

The elastoplastic material models are available in the Solid Mechanics, Shell, Layered
Shell, Membrane, and Truss interfaces.

CREEP AND VISCOPLASTIC MATERIALS

A number of different material models for creep and viscoplasticity are available. In
these materials, the rate of strain depends on the stress.

HYPERELASTIC MATERIALS
In hyperelastic materials, the stresses are computed from a strain energy density
function. They are often used to model rubber and biological tissue, but are also used
in acoustic elasticity. Many different models are available.

The hyperelastic materials are available in the Solid Mechanics, Shell, Layered Shell,
and Membrane interfaces.

NONLINEAR ELASTIC MATERIALS

The nonlinear elastic materials are intended for materials that exhibit a nonlinear
behavior already at small strains. Some brittle material as well as soils show this
behavior.

ABOUT THE STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODULE | 33

 VISCOELASTIC MATERIALS
Viscoelastic materials have a time-dependent response, even if the loading is constant.
Viscoelasticity is available in the Solid Mechanics, Shell, Layered Shell, and Membrane
interfaces.

• Hyperelastic, elastoplastic, creep, viscoplastic, and nonlinear elastic

material models are available with the Nonlinear Structural Materials
Module.
• Additional functionality and material models for geomechanics and soil
mechanics — nonlinear elasticity, soil plasticity, concrete, rock, and clay
material models — is available with the Geomechanics Module.

CONTACT MODELING
You can model contact between parts of a structure. The Solid Mechanics, Shell,
Layered Shell, and Membrane interfaces support contact with or without friction.
Three contact algorithms are available: penalty, augmented Lagrangian, and Nitsche
methods. The contact models can be augmented with adhesion and decohesion.

SPECIAL MODELING TECHNIQUES

In the Structural Mechanics Module, you will find support for many important special
modeling techniques. Some examples are:

• Bolt pretension
• Bolt thread modeling
• Stress linearization
• Rigid connectors
• Transitions between solid, shell, and beam elements

The Structural Mechanics Module Physics Interface Guide

The Poroelasticity interface requires and is coupled with the Structural

Mechanics Module, and is discussed in the Subsurface Flow Module
User’s Guide.

34 | CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
 At any time, a new model can be created or physics interfaces added. Right-click the
Root (top) node and select Add Component or right-click a Component node and select
Add Physics.

Depending on the physics interface, specify parameters defining a problem on points,

edges (3D), boundaries, and domains. It is possible to specify loads and constraints on
all available geometry levels, but material properties can only be specified for the
domains, except for shells, membranes, beams, and trusses, where they are defined on
the boundary or edge level.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Studies and Solvers

• The Physics Interfaces
• For a list of all the core physics interfaces included with a COMSOL
Multiphysics license, see Physics Interface Guide.

PHYSICS INTERFACE ICON TAG SPACE AVAILABLE STUDY TYPE

DIMENSION

Acoustics

Elastic Waves

Elastic Waves, Time elte 3D, 2D, 2D time dependent

Explicit axisymmetric
Piezoelectric Waves, — 3D, 2D, 2D time dependent
Time Explicit axisymmetric
Fluid Flow

Fluid-Structure Interaction

Fluid-Solid Interaction2 — 3D, 2D, 2D stationary; time dependent

axisymmetric
Fluid-Shell Interaction2 — 3D, 2D stationary; time dependent
axisymmetric

ABOUT THE STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODULE | 35

 PHYSICS INTERFACE ICON TAG SPACE AVAILABLE STUDY TYPE
DIMENSION

Fluid-Shell Interaction, — 3D, 2D stationary; stationary, one

Fixed Geometry2 axisymmetric way; time dependent; time
dependent, one way
Fluid-Membrane — 3D, 2D stationary; time dependent
Interaction2 axisymmetric
Fluid-Membrane — 3D, 2D stationary; stationary, one
Interaction, Fixed axisymmetric way; time dependent; time
Geometry2 dependent, one way
Fluid-Pipe Interaction, — 3D, 2D stationary; time dependent
Fixed Geometry7
Conjugate Heat Transfer, — 3D, 2D, 2D stationary; time dependent;
Fluid-Solid Interaction2 axisymmetric
Fluid-Solid Interaction, — 3D, 2D, 2D time dependent; time
Viscoelastic Flow2,10 axisymmetric dependent with phase
initialization
Fluid-Solid Interaction, — 3D, 2D, 2D time dependent; time
Two-Phase Flow, Phase axisymmetric dependent with phase
Field2, 6 initialization

36 | CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
PHYSICS INTERFACE ICON TAG SPACE AVAILABLE STUDY TYPE
DIMENSION

Structural Mechanics

Solid Mechanics1 solid 3D, 2D, 2D stationary; eigenfrequency;

axisymmetric, eigenfrequency,
1D, 1D prestressed; mode analysis;
axisymmetric time dependent; time
dependent, modal; time
dependent, modal
reduced-order model;
frequency domain;
frequency domain, modal;
frequency domain,
prestressed; frequency
domain, prestressed,
modal; frequency domain,
modal reduced-order
model; frequency domain,
AWE reduced-order
model; response spectrum;
random vibration (PSD);
linear buckling; bolt
pretension
Thermal Stress, Solid2 — 3D, 2D, 2D stationary; time dependent
axisymmetric
Thermal Stress, Shell2, 4 — 3D, 2D stationary; time dependent
axisymmetric
Thermal Stress, — 3D, 2D stationary; time dependent
Membrane2, 4 axisymmetric
Joule Heating and Thermal — 3D, 2D, 2D stationary; time dependent
Expansion2 axisymmetric

ABOUT THE STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODULE | 37

 PHYSICS INTERFACE ICON TAG SPACE AVAILABLE STUDY TYPE
DIMENSION

Shell shell 3D stationary; eigenfrequency;

eigenfrequency,
prestressed; time
dependent; time
dependent, modal; time
dependent, modal
reduced-order model;
frequency domain;
frequency domain, modal;
frequency domain,
prestressed; frequency
domain, prestressed,
modal; frequency domain,
modal reduced-order
model; response spectrum;
random vibration (PSD);
linear buckling
Plate plate 2D stationary; eigenfrequency;
eigenfrequency,
prestressed; time
dependent; time
dependent, modal; time
dependent, modal
reduced-order model;
frequency domain;
frequency domain, modal;
frequency domain,
prestressed; frequency
domain, prestressed,
modal; frequency domain,
modal reduced-order
model; response spectrum;
random vibration (PSD);
linear buckling

38 | CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
PHYSICS INTERFACE ICON TAG SPACE AVAILABLE STUDY TYPE
DIMENSION

Beam beam 3D, 2D stationary; eigenfrequency;

time dependent, modal;
time dependent, modal
reduced-order model;
frequency domain;
frequency domain, modal;
frequency domain, modal
reduced-order model; time
dependent; response
spectrum; random
vibration (PSD); linear
buckling
Beam Cross Section bcs 3D, 2D stationary

Truss truss 3D, 2D stationary; eigenfrequency;

eigenfrequency,
prestressed; time
dependent; time
dependent, modal; time
dependent, modal
reduced-order model;
frequency domain;
frequency domain, modal;
frequency domain,
prestressed; frequency
domain, prestressed,
modal; frequency domain,
modal reduced-order
model; response spectrum;
random vibration (PSD);
linear buckling

ABOUT THE STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODULE | 39

 PHYSICS INTERFACE ICON TAG SPACE AVAILABLE STUDY TYPE
DIMENSION

Wire wire 3D, 2D stationary; eigenfrequency;

eigenfrequency,
prestressed; time
dependent; time
dependent, modal; time
dependent, modal
reduced-order model;
frequency domain;
frequency domain, modal;
frequency domain,
prestressed; frequency
domain, prestressed,
modal; frequency domain,
modal reduced-order
model; response spectrum;
random vibration (PSD);
linear buckling
Membrane mbrn 3D, 2D stationary; eigenfrequency;
axisymmetric eigenfrequency,
prestressed; time
dependent; time
dependent, modal; time
dependent, modal
reduced-order model;
frequency domain;
frequency domain, modal;
frequency domain,
prestressed; frequency
domain, prestressed,
modal; frequency domain,
modal reduced-order
model; response spectrum;
random vibration (PSD)

40 | CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
PHYSICS INTERFACE ICON TAG SPACE AVAILABLE STUDY TYPE
DIMENSION

Pipe Mechanics pipem 3D, 2D stationary; eigenfrequency;

time dependent, modal;
time dependent, modal
reduced-order model;
frequency domain;
frequency domain, modal;
frequency domain, modal
reduced-order model; time
dependent; response
spectrum; random
vibration (PSD)
Solid Thin-Film Damping — 3D, 2D, 2D stationary; eigenfrequency;
axisymmetric time dependent; time
dependent, modal; time
dependent, modal
reduced-order model;
frequency domain;
frequency domain, modal;
frequency domain, modal
reduced-order model; time
dependent; response
spectrum; random
vibration (PSD)
Shell Thin-Film Damping — 3D, 2D stationary; eigenfrequency;
axisymmetric time dependent; time
dependent, modal; time
dependent, modal
reduced-order model;
frequency domain;
frequency domain, modal;
frequency domain, modal
reduced-order model; time
dependent; response
spectrum; random
vibration (PSD)

ABOUT THE STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODULE | 41

 PHYSICS INTERFACE ICON TAG SPACE AVAILABLE STUDY TYPE
DIMENSION

Piezoelectricity2 — 3D, 2D, 2D stationary; eigenfrequency;

axisymmetric eigenfrequency,
prestressed; time
dependent; time
dependent, modal;
frequency domain;
frequency domain, modal;
frequency domain,
prestressed; frequency
domain, prestressed,
modal; small-signal analysis,
frequency domain; linear
buckling
Piezoelectricity, Layered — 3D stationary; eigenfrequency;
Shell2 5 time dependent; frequency
domain
Magnetostriction2,3 — 3D, 2D, 2D stationary; eigenfrequency;
axisymmetric time dependent; frequency
domain; small-signal
analysis, frequency domain;
eigenfrequency,
prestressed; frequency
domain, prestressed
Magnetomechanics2,3 — 3D, 2D, 2D stationary; eigenfrequency;
axisymmetric time dependent; frequency
domain; small-signal
analysis, frequency domain;
eigenfrequency,
prestressed; frequency
domain, prestressed
Magnetomechanics, No — 3D, 2D, 2D stationary; eigenfrequency;
Currents2,3 axisymmetric time dependent; frequency
domain; small-signal
analysis, frequency domain;
eigenfrequency,
prestressed; frequency
domain, prestressed
Ferroelectroelasticity2,9 — 3D, 2D, 2D stationary; time dependent;
axisymmetric frequency domain

42 | CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
PHYSICS INTERFACE ICON TAG SPACE AVAILABLE STUDY TYPE
DIMENSION

Electrostriction2,9 — 3D, 2D, 2D stationary; time dependent;

axisymmetric frequency domain
1
This physics interface is included with the core COMSOL Multiphysics software but has
added functionality for this module.
2 This physics interface is a predefined multiphysics coupling that automatically adds all the
physics interfaces and coupling features required.
3
Requires the addition of the AC/DC Module.

4 Requires the addition of the Heat Transfer Module.

5
Requires the addition of the Composite Materials Module.

6 Requires the addition of the CFD Module, or the Polymer Flow, or the Microfluidics
Module.
7
Requires the addition of the Pipe Flow Module.

8
Requires the addition of the Porous Media Flow Module.

9
Requires the addition of the AC/DC Module or the MEMS Module.

10
Requires the addition of the Polymer Flow Module.

Common Physics Interface and Feature Settings and Nodes

There are several common settings and sections available for the physics interfaces and
feature nodes. Some of these sections also have similar settings or are implemented in
the same way no matter the physics interface or feature being used. There are also some
physics feature nodes that display in COMSOL Multiphysics.

ABOUT THE STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODULE | 43

 In each module’s documentation, only unique or extra information is included;
standard information and procedures are centralized in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual, see Table 2-4 for

links to common sections and Table 2-5 to common feature nodes.
You can also search for information: press F1 to open the Help
window or Ctrl+F1 to open the Documentation window.

Where Do I Access the Documentation and Application Libraries?

A number of online resources have more information about COMSOL, including
licensing and technical information. The electronic documentation, topic-based (or
context-based) help, and the Application Libraries are all accessed through the
COMSOL Desktop.

If you are reading the documentation as a PDF file on your computer,

the blue links do not work to open an application or content
referenced in a different guide. However, if you are using the Help
system in COMSOL Multiphysics, these links work to open other
modules, application examples, and documentation sets.

THE DOCUMENTATION AND ONLINE HELP

The COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual describes the core physics interfaces
and functionality included with the COMSOL Multiphysics license. This book also has
instructions on how to use COMSOL Multiphysics and how to access the electronic
Documentation and Help content.

Opening Topic-Based Help

The Help window is useful as it is connected to the features in the COMSOL Desktop.
To learn more about a node in the Model Builder, or a window on the Desktop, click
to highlight a node or window, then press F1 to open the Help window, which then

44 | CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
displays information about that feature (or click a node in the Model Builder followed
by the Help button ( ). This is called topic-based (or context) help.

To open the Help window:

• In the Model Builder, Application Builder, or Physics Builder, click a node

or window and then press F1.
• On any toolbar (for example, Home, Definitions, or Geometry), hover the
mouse over a button (for example, Add Physics or Build All) and then
press F1.
• From the File menu, click Help ( ).
• In the upper-right corner of the COMSOL Desktop, click the Help ( )
button.

To open the Help window:

• In the Model Builder or Physics Builder, click a node or window and then
press F1.
• On the main toolbar, click the Help ( ) button.
• From the main menu, select Help>Help.

Opening the Documentation Window

To open the Documentation window:

• Press Ctrl+F1.
• From the File menu, select Help>Documentation ( ).

To open the Documentation window:

• Press Ctrl+F1.
• On the main toolbar, click the Documentation ( ) button.
• From the main menu, select Help>Documentation.

ABOUT THE STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODULE | 45

 THE APPLICATION LIBRARIES WINDOW
Each model or application includes documentation with the theoretical background
and step-by-step instructions to create a model or application. The models and
applications are available in COMSOL Multiphysics as MPH-files that you can open
for further investigation. You can use the step-by-step instructions and the actual
models as templates for your own modeling. In most models, SI units are used to
describe the relevant properties, parameters, and dimensions, but other unit systems
are available.

Once the Application Libraries window is opened, you can search by name or browse
under a module folder name. Click to view a summary of the model or application and
its properties, including options to open it or its associated PDF document.

The Application Libraries Window in the COMSOL Multiphysics

Reference Manual.

Opening the Application Libraries Window

To open the Application Libraries window ( ):

From the File menu, select Application Libraries.

To include the latest versions of model examples, from the File>Help

menu, select ( ) Update COMSOL Application Library.

Select Application Libraries from the main File or Windows menus.

To include the latest versions of model examples, from the Help menu,
select ( ) Update COMSOL Application Library.

CONTACTING COMSOL BY EMAIL

For general product information, contact COMSOL at [email protected].

COMSOL ACCESS AND TECHNICAL SUPPORT

To receive technical support from COMSOL for the COMSOL products, please
contact your local COMSOL representative or send your questions to
[email protected]. An automatic notification and a case number will be sent to you

46 | CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
by email. You can also access technical support, software updates, license information,
and other resources by registering for a COMSOL Access account.

COMSOL ONLINE RESOURCES

COMSOL website www.comsol.com

Contact COMSOL www.comsol.com/contact
COMSOL Access www.comsol.com/access
Support Center www.comsol.com/support
Product Download www.comsol.com/product-download
Product Updates www.comsol.com/support/updates
COMSOL Blog www.comsol.com/blogs
Discussion Forum www.comsol.com/forum
Events www.comsol.com/events
COMSOL Application Gallery www.comsol.com/models
COMSOL Video Gallery www.comsol.com/video
Support Knowledge Base www.comsol.com/support/knowledgebase

ABOUT THE STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODULE | 47

 Overview of the User’s Guide
The Structural Mechanics Module User’s Guide gets you started with modeling using
COMSOL Multiphysics. The information in this guide is specific to this module.
Instructions how to use COMSOL in general are included with the COMSOL
Multiphysics Reference Manual.

As detailed in the section Where Do I Access the Documentation and

Application Libraries?, this information can also be searched from the Help
menu in COMSOL Multiphysics.

TABLE OF CONTENTS, GLOSSARY, AND INDEX

To help you navigate through this guide, see the Contents, Glossary, and Index.

MODELING WITH THE STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODULE

The Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter gives you an insight on how to approach
the modeling of various structural mechanics problems.

STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The Structural Mechanics Theory chapter introduces the general theory on which the
physics interfaces in the Structural Mechanics Module are based.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE

The Solid Mechanics chapter describes The Solid Mechanics Interface, which is used
to model 3D solids, plane strain and plane stress 2D and 1D models, and 2D
axisymmetric models.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES

The Shell and Plate chapter describes The Shell and Plate Interfaces, which are used to
model thin 3D structures (shell) and out-of-plane loaded plates (plate). The
underlying theory is described in Theory for the Shell and Plate Interfaces.

THE BEAM INTERFACE

The Beam chapter describes The Beam Interface, which contains Euler (Euler–
Bernoulli) and Timoshenko beams for modeling slender 3D and 2D structures.
Typical examples are frameworks and latticeworks. The underlying theory for the
physics interface is described in Theory for the Beam Interface.

48 | CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
THE BEAM CROSS SECTION INTERFACE
The Beam Cross Section chapter describes The Beam Cross Section Interface, which
is used for computing cross section properties for beams. It can also be used for a
detailed evaluation of stresses in a beam when the section forces to which it is subjected
are known. The first section discusses Using the Beam Cross Section Interface, and the
underlying theory is described in Theory for the Beam Cross Section Interface.

THE TRUSS INTERFACE

The Truss chapter describes The Truss Interface, which models slender 3D and 2D
structures with components capable to withstand axial forces only. Typical applications
are latticeworks, but it can also be used for modeling cables. In the section Modeling
with Truss Elements, you will find a discussion about how to set up models using this
interface. The underlying theory for the physics interface is described in Theory for the
Truss Interface.

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE

The Membrane chapter describes The Membrane Interface, which can be used for
prestressed membranes, cladding on solids, and balloons, for example. The underlying
theory for the physics interface is also included in Theory for the Membrane Interface.

THE MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES

The Multiphysics Interfaces and Couplings chapter describes these physics interfaces
found under the Structural Mechanics branch when adding a physics interface:

• The Thermal Stress, Solid Interface combines a Solid Mechanics interface with a
Heat Transfer interface. The coupling appears on the domain level, where the
temperature from the Heat Transfer interface acts as a thermal load for the Solid
Mechanics interface, causing thermal expansion.
• The Thermal Stress, Shell Interface combines a Shell interface with a Heat Transfer
in Shells interface. The coupling appears on the boundary level, where the
temperature from the Heat Transfer in Shells interface acts as a thermal load for the
Shell interface, causing thermal expansion.
• The Thermal Stress, Layered Shell Interface combines a Layered Shell interface with
a Heat Transfer in Shells interface. The coupling appears on the boundary level,
where the temperature from the Heat Transfer in Shells interface acts as a thermal
load for the Layered Shell interface, causing thermal expansion.
• The Thermal Stress, Membrane Interface combines a Membrane interface with a
Heat Transfer in Shells interface. The coupling appears on the boundary level,

OVERVIEW OF THE USER’S GUIDE | 49

 where the temperature from the Heat Transfer in Shells interface acts as a thermal
load for the Membrane interface, causing thermal expansion.
• The Joule Heating and Thermal Expansion Interface combines solid mechanics
using a thermal linear elastic material with an electromagnetic Joule heating model.
This is a multiphysics combination of solid mechanics, electric currents, and heat
transfer for modeling of, for example, thermoelectromechanical (TEM)
applications.
• The Piezoelectricity Interface, Solid combines a Solid Mechanics interface with an
Electrostatics interface. Piezoelectric materials in 3D, 2D plane strain and plane
stress, and 2D axial symmetry can be modeled.
• The Piezoelectricity, Layered Shell Interface combines a Layered Shell interface with
an Electric Currents in Layered Shells interface. This makes it possible to model
piezoelectric effects in thin layered structures.
• The Electrostriction Interface combines a Solid Mechanics with an Electrostatics
interface. Using this interface, you can solve problems where strains are caused by
electrostrictive effects.
• The Ferroelectroelasticity Interface combines a Solid Mechanics with an
Electrostatics interface. Using this interface, you can solve problems involving
ferroelectric materials, for example within nonlinear piezoelectricity.
• Hygroscopic Swelling Coupling combines a Solid Mechanics with a Magnetic Fields
interface. Using this interface, you can solve problems in the magnetostrictive field
with linear as well as nonlinear material models.
• The Fluid-Solid Interaction Interface combines fluid flow with the Solid Mechanics
interface to capture the interaction between the fluid and the solid in a situation
where the fluid domain has significant deformation. The solid material exists on
domains which are adjacent to the fluid.
• The Fluid-Shell Interaction Interface combines fluid flow with the Shell interface to
capture the interaction between the fluid and the solid in a situation where the fluid
domain has significant deformation. The shell is modeled on the boundary of the
fluid.
• The Fluid-Membrane Interaction Interface combines fluid flow with the Membrane
interface to capture the interaction between the fluid and the membrane in a
situation where the fluid domain has significant deformation. The membrane is
modeled on the boundary of the fluid.
• The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Fixed Geometry Interface combines fluid flow with the
Solid Mechanics interface to capture the interaction between the fluid and the solid

50 | CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
 in a situation where the fluid domain can be considered to be nondeforming. The
solid material exists on domains which are adjacent to the fluid.
• The Fluid-Shell Interaction, Fixed Geometry Interface combines fluid flow with the
Shell interface to capture the interaction between the fluid and the solid in a
situation where the fluid domain can be considered to be nondeforming. The shell
is modeled on the boundary of the fluid
• The Fluid-Membrane Interaction, Fixed Geometry Interface combines fluid flow
with the Membrane interface to capture the interaction between the fluid and the
membrane in a situation where the fluid domain can be considered to be
nondeforming. The membrane is modeled on the boundary of the fluid.
• The Fluid-Pipe Interaction, Fixed Geometry Interface combines flow computed
using the Pipe Flow interface with structural analysis in the Pipe Mechanics
interface. Different types of fluid loads are transferred to the structural analysis.
• The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Conjugate Heat Transfer Interface combines fluid flow
with the Solid Mechanics interface and the Heat Transfer in Solids and Fluids
interface. It combines fluid-structure interaction modeling with a nonisothermal
flow. Heat transfer is considered both in the fluid and in the solid in order to capture
thermal expansion effects.
• The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Two-Phase Flow, Phase Field Interface combines
two-phase fluid flow with the Solid Mechanics interface to capture the interaction
between the fluid and the solid in a situation where the fluid domain has significant
deformation. The solid material exists on domains which are adjacent to the fluid.
• The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Two-Phase Flow, Phase Field, Fixed Geometry
Interface combines two-phase fluid flow with the Solid Mechanics interface to
capture the interaction between the fluid and the solid in a situation where the fluid
domain can be considered to be nondeforming. The solid material exists on
domains which are adjacent to the fluid.

OVERVIEW OF THE USER’S GUIDE | 51

52 | CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
 2

Structural Mechanics Modeling

The goal of this chapter is to give you an insight on how to approach the modeling
of various structural mechanics problems.

Some physics interfaces and features discussed in this chapter are only available with
certain products. For a detailed overview of the functionality available in each
product, visit https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/

53
 In this chapter:

• Study Types • Component Mode Synthesis

• Selecting the Physics Interface • Computing Mass Properties
• Selecting Discretization • Effective Properties of Periodic
• Coupling Different Element Types Structures

• Applying Loads • Modeling Pretensioned Bolts

• Defining Constraints • Simplified Modeling of Bolt

Threads
• Calculating Reaction Forces
• Modeling Embedded Structures
• Introduction to Material Models
and Reinforcements
• Modeling Piezoelectric Problems
• Modeling Thin Layers
• Modeling Electrostrictive and
• Modeling Cracks
Ferroelectroelastic Materials
• Buckling Analysis
• Modeling Magnetostrictive
Materials • Performing a Random Vibration
Analysis
• Mechanical Damping and Losses
• Performing a Response Spectrum
• Modeling Geometric Nonlinearity
Analysis
• Contact Modeling
• Stress Linearization
• Activating and Deactivating
• Solver Settings for Structural
Material
Mechanics
• Springs and Dampers
• Using Reduced Integration
• Defining Multiphysics Models
• Result Presentation
• Thermally Coupled Problems
• Part Libraries
• Fluid-Structure Interaction

54 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Study Types
Introduction
In this section, you will find information about when and how to apply the study types
which are available for structural mechanics problems:

• Stationary Analysis
• Eigenfrequency Analysis
• Mode Analysis
• Time-Domain Analysis
• Frequency-Domain Analysis
• Mode Superposition
• Harmonic Perturbation
• Modal Reduced-Order Models
• Linearized Buckling Analysis
• Bolt Pretension Study
• Random Vibration (PSD) Study
• Response Spectrum Analysis Study

For general information about study types and solvers, see Studies and
Solvers in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

Stationary Analysis
You can consider a structural mechanics problem as stationary if the following two
criteria are fulfilled:

• The loads vary so slowly that inertial forces are negligible. Problems of this type are
referred to as quasi static.
• There are no explicit time dependencies in the material model. Viscoelasticity and
creep have such time dependencies.

To perform this type of analysis, you use a Stationary study step.

STUDY TYPES | 55
 In many cases, there is a variation in the load, even though the solution for each value
of the load can be considered as stationary. There are three conceptually different
cases:

• The load values are independent; it is just a number of different load cases you want
to compute. The load case handling functionality described in Load Cases is well
suited for this purpose.
• You want to study a nonlinear problem where the solution is path dependent, or
where the load must be increased in small increments in order to obtain a converged
solution. In this case you should use the parametric continuation solver. Create a
parameter under Global Definitions>Parameters, which you use to control the
variation of the load. Then select Auxiliary sweep under Study Extensions in the
settings for the Stationary solver. In the table for the auxiliary sweep parameters, add
the load controlling parameter, and define its range of variation.
• In a multiphysics problem, another physical quantity might be truly time dependent
but on a time scale that is “slow” from the structural mechanics point of view. This
is usually the case with, for example, problems coupled to heat transfer or diffusion.
If the problem also is such that the structural deformations do not affect the other
physics, it will be unnecessarily expensive to solve also the structural problem in the
time domain, irrespective of whether it is linear or nonlinear. In this situation, you
should first solve the other physics in a time-dependent study and then the structural
mechanics problem in a subsequent stationary study step using the time t as the
parameter in the auxiliary sweep.

For an example of how to set up such a study sequence, see

Fluid-Structure Interaction in a Network of Blood Vessels: Application
Library path Structural_Mechanics_Module/Fluid-Structure_Interaction/
blood_vessel.

CONSTRAINTS
A stationary problem is solvable only if the structure is sufficiently constrained. There
must not be any possible rigid body modes. Thus, no stress-free deformation states are
allowed.

For a more detailed discussion about sufficient constraints, see Rigid

Body Motion.

56 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Eigenfrequency Analysis
An Eigenfrequency study solves for the eigenfrequencies (natural frequencies) and the
shapes of the corresponding eigenmodes.

When performing an eigenfrequency analysis, you can specify whether to look at the
mathematically more fundamental eigenvalue, , or the eigenfrequency, f, which is
more commonly used in a structural mechanics context. The relation between the two
is


f = – ---------
2i

where i is the imaginary unit.

The undamped eigenvalue problem is commonly written as

2
 K –  M u = 0

where K is the stiffness matrix, M is the mass matrix, u is the eigenmode displacement
vector, and   f is the angular frequency. If damping is present, the eigenvalue
equation is expanded to

2
 K + iC –  M u = 0 (2-1)

where C is the viscous damping matrix, and K can be complex-valued.

Because only the shape and not the size of the modes (eigenvectors) have physical
significance, the computed modes can be scaled arbitrarily. You can select the method
for scaling in the Eigenvalue Solver node of the solver sequence. If Scaling of eigenvectors
is set to Mass matrix, the eigenmodes u are orthogonalized with respect to the mass
matrix M so that

T
u i Mu i = 1 (2-2)

This is a common choice for the scaling of eigenvectors within the structural mechanics
field. The choice of eigenvector scaling does not affect for example the results of a
subsequent mode superposition analysis, but it will affect the interpretation of an
exported modal representation of the system.

STUDY TYPES | 57
 MODAL PARTICIPATION FACTORS
Modal (or mass) participation factors are useful tools when working with the modal
representation of a structure. Through them, you can get the following information:

• The fraction of the total mass of a structure that a certain number of modes
represent is a result. This can be important when judging if a set of modes forms a
good enough base for a mode superposition.
• The main direction of vibration for a certain mode can be seen from the relation
between the participation factors.
• When you have a large set of modes, an examination of the participation factors can
give information about the dominant modes.
To compute modal participation factors, a Participation Factors node must be present
under Definitions in the current component. When you add an Eigenfrequency study
from the Add Study window, such a node is automatically created.

You can also add it manually under Definitions>Physics Utilities. If you do that after an
eigenfrequency study has been run, you need to do an Update Solution in order to get
access to the variables containing the participation factors.

The modal participation factors are available as global variables, and these can for
example be displayed in a table using a Global Evaluation node under Derived Values in
the Results branch. The participation factor results are available as predefined variables
in the Definitions submenu for the component. In Table 2-1, the variables created from
a Participation Factors node is listed (assuming the default tag mpf1).
TABLE 2-1: PARTICIPATION FACTOR VARIABLES

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION

mpf1.mass Total mass

mpf1.CMJ Center of mass, J coordinate
mpf1.mEffLJ Effective mass, translation along J axis
mpf1.mEffRJ Effective mass, rotation around J axis
mpf.pfLJ Participation factor, translation along J axis
mpf.pfRJ Participation factor, rotation around J axis
mpf.pfLnormJ Normalized participation factor, translation along J axis
mpf.pfRnormJ Normalized participation factor, rotation around J axis

The normalized participation factors are those that would be obtained if mass matrix
scaled eigenmodes would have been used.

58 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

If a Participation Factors node is present in the model when an eigenfrequency study is
run, an evaluation group named Participation Factors is automatically generated. It
contains a table with the translational and rotational modal participation factors for all
computed eigenfrequencies.

If you would compute all eigenmodes of a structure, and sum all modal
masses, they will usually not exactly match the total mass of the structure.
The reason is that any mass which is associated with constrained degrees
of freedom is lost. This effect is discretization dependent. The mass lost
is a fraction of the mass of the elements having constrained nodes.

For an example showing how to compute modal participation factors and

modal mass, see In-Plane Framework with Discrete Mass and Mass
Moment of Inertia: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Verification_Examples/
inplane_framework_freq.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Eigenvalue Solver
• Studies and Solvers
• Postprocessing of Eigenmodes
• Derived Values, Evaluation Groups, and Tables

In the theory chapter of the Structural Mechanics User’s Guide:

• Modal Participation Factors

It is possible to compute eigenfrequencies for structures which are not fully

constrained; this is sometimes referred to as free-free modes. For each possible rigid
body mode, there is one eigenvalue which in theory is zero. The number of possible
rigid body modes for different geometrical dimensions is shown in the table below.
TABLE 2-2: NUMBER OF POSSIBLE RIGID BODY MODES

DIMENSION NUMBER OF RIGID BODY MODES

3D 6 (3 translations + 3 rotations)
2D axisymmetric 1 (Z-direction translation)

STUDY TYPES | 59
 TABLE 2-2: NUMBER OF POSSIBLE RIGID BODY MODES

DIMENSION NUMBER OF RIGID BODY MODES

2D (solid, beam, truss) 3 (2 translations + 1 rotation)

2D (plate) 3 (1 translation + 2 rotations)
The computed rigid body modes will in general not be recognizable as having pure
translation or rotation. Rather, they will contain linear combinations of all the
fundamental rigid body motions.

In a piezoelectric model, one more zero eigenfrequency could appear if you have not
set a reference value for the electric potential.

In practice, the natural frequencies of the rigid body modes are not computed as
exactly zero, but can appear as small numbers which may even be negative or complex.
If rigid body modes are present in the model, then it is important to use a nonzero
value in the Search for eigenfrequencies around text field in the settings for the
Eigenfrequency study step. The value should reflect the order of magnitude of the first
important nonzero eigenfrequency.

For an example showing an eigenfrequency computation in a model

having a rigid body mode, see Eigenfrequency Analysis of a Free
Cylinder: Application Library path Structural_Mechanics_Module/
Verification_Examples/free_cylinder.

DAMPING
If any type of damping is included in the model, an eigenfrequency solution
automatically returns the damped eigenvalues. The eigenfrequencies and, in general,
also the mode shapes are complex in this case. A complex-valued eigenfrequency can
be interpreted so that the real part represents the actual frequency, and the imaginary
part represents the damping. The damping ratio of the corresponding eigenmode can
be defined as

imag   i  imag   i 
 i = -------------------------  -------------------------
i real   i 

where the approximate expression is valid with high accuracy (within 2%) as long as the
damping is less than 0.2.

60 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

In a complex mode shape, there are phase shifts between different parts of the
structure, so that not all points reach the maximum at the same time under free
vibration.

Some damping types will still give real-valued eigenmodes, this is the case for Rayleigh
damping and loss factor damping.

If an eigenfrequency study is performed as a first step of a mode

superposition analysis, then all features that supply damping should be
disabled in this step. This can be done in the Physics and Variables Selection
section in the settings for the Eigenfrequency study step.

The damping is taken into account in the mode superposition studies.

See also the discussion under Mode Superposition.

PRESTRESSED ANALYSIS
In a loaded structure, the natural frequencies may be shifted due to stress stiffening.

To do a prestressed analysis, Include geometric nonlinearity must be selected in the

Eigenfrequency study step. This is automatic when you add the Eigenfrequency,
Prestressed study type.

The prestress loading can include a contact analysis, in which case the subsequent
eigenfrequency analysis provide as linearization around the current contact state.

Prestressed Structures

FREQUENCY DEPENDENT MATERIAL PROPERTIES

If the material data (stiffness or damping) is frequency dependent, the eigenvalue
problem will become nonlinear. This can, for example, occur for some viscoelastic
materials. In this case, the eigenvalue equation Equation 2-1 becomes

2
 K    + iC    –  M u = 0 (2-3)

The eigenvalue solver as such assumes that the matrices involved are constant, so they
must be evaluated at a certain frequency, the linearization point.

2
 K   L  + iC   L  –  M u = 0 (2-4)

STUDY TYPES | 61
 In order to get a correct solution to Equation 2-3, the linearization point L must be
close to the actual eigenvalue . This is in general possible only for one single
eigenfrequency at a time. You must solve this problem either by manual iteration, or
by using some type of scripting, for example through a model method.

Eigenmodes of a Viscoelastic Structural Damper: Application Library

path Structural_Mechanics_Module/Dynamics_and_Vibration/
viscoelastic_damper_eigenmodes.

The built-in viscoelastic materials use a special formulation that do not

generate a nonlinear eigenvalue problem, as long fractional derivatives are
not used.

Mode Analysis
The Mode Analysis study type ( ) is available with the Solid Mechanics interface in
2D plane strain.

Elastic waves can propagate over large distances in structures like rails and pipes, with
a generic name referred to as waveguides. After some distance of propagation in a
waveguide of uniform cross section, such guided waves can be described as a sum of
just a few discrete propagating modes, each with its own shape and phase speed. The
equation governing these modes can be obtained as a spatial Fourier transform of the
linearized time-harmonic equation in the waveguide axial z direction or by inserting
the assumption that the mode is harmonic in space,

u = ue – ikz z

and eliminating all out-of-plane z dependence.

Similar to the full time-harmonic equation, the transformed equation can be solved at
a given frequency with a nonzero excitation for most axial wave numbers kz. But at
certain discrete values the equation breaks down. These values are the propagation
constants or wave numbers of the propagating or evanescent waveguide modes. The

62 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

eigenvalue solver can solve for these propagation constants together with the
corresponding mode shapes.

The propagating wave number is a function of the frequency. The relation

between the two is commonly referred to as a dispersion curve.

The most common use for mode analysis is to define sources for a subsequent
time-harmonic simulation. If there is a component with one or more waveguide
connections, its behavior can be described by simulating its response to the discrete set
of propagating modes on the waveguide opening cross sections.

• Out-of-Plane Waves in the Structural Mechanics Theory Chapter

• Studies and Solvers and Mode Analysis in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual

Time-Domain Analysis
There are two classes of problems where a stationary solution cannot be used:

• When the inertial forces no longer are negligible, the full problem as given by
Newton’s first law must be solved.
• When there are time dependencies in the material model, as for creep or
viscoelasticity.

The most general way of handling time-dependent problems is to use a Time Dependent
study. In this type of analysis, you can incorporate any type of nonlinearity, and there
are no limitations on the time dependence of the loads.

A time-domain solution can be preceded by a stationary study, if, for example, prestress
effects are needed.

For a linear problem including inertia, using the mode superposition method is often
much more efficient than using the standard direct method.

SOLVER SELECTION
The two classes of dynamic problems presented above have quite different properties.
The inertial forces in the full structural dynamics problem contain second-order time
derivatives of the displacements, whereas creep and viscoelasticity only have first-order

STUDY TYPES | 63
 derivatives. The physical and numerical properties of these equations differ
significantly.

There are two general solvers for time-dependent problems in COMSOL

Multiphysics.

• The Generalized alpha method, which is recommended for structural dynamics

problems. This is the default solver if Structural Transient Behavior is set to Include
inertial terms in the physics interface settings.
• The BDF method, which is recommended for first-order problems. This is the
default solver if Structural Transient Behavior is set to Quasistatic in the physics
interface settings.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Time-Dependent Solver
• Studies and Solvers

Frequency-Domain Analysis
In a frequency-domain analysis, you study the response to a harmonic steady state
excitation for certain frequencies. Such a steady state can prevail once all transient
effects have been damped out.

The response must be linear, so that the single frequency harmonic excitation gives a
pure harmonic response with the same frequency. The model may, however, contain
nonlinearities. The harmonic response is computed around a certain linearization
point. In such a case, the frequency-domain analysis can be considered as a very small
perturbation around that linearization point.

Harmonic Perturbation

64 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

All loads and responses in a frequency-domain analysis are in general complex-valued
quantities. If all loads do not have the same phase, you can describe the phase of a
certain load in two ways:

• Add a Phase subnode to the load, in which you directly give the phase angle.
• Enter the load as a complex value, for example as
100[N]*(1+0.3*i)/sqrt(1+0.3^2).

Most results from a frequency domain analysis are complex-valued. In many results
evaluation nodes, the real value of any result quantity will be shown. Assuming that
you want to display for example the displacement in the x direction, u, you have the
following options:

• Plot u or real(u). This gives the displacement at current (default zero) phase angle.
• Plot imag(u). This gives the displacement at a phase angle shifted 90 degrees from
the current value.
• Plot abs(u). This gives the amplitude of the displacement.
• Plot arg(u). This gives the phase angle of the displacement.

The reference phase, with respect to which the results above are reported can be
entered in the settings for the dataset.

STUDY TYPES | 65
 Result quantities that are nonlinear in terms of the displacements, such as principal
stresses, should be interpreted with great care in frequency domain. They will in
general not be harmonic, so the information about amplitude and phase is not reliable.

Some extra variables for postprocessing are created in a frequency-domain

analysis. As an example, in a Solid Mechanics interface with the name
solid, the following variables are defined:

• solid.disp — norm of displacement (at current phase angle)

• solid.vel — norm of velocity (at current phase angle)
• solid.acc — norm of acceleration (at current phase angle)
• solid.disp_rms — RMS displacement over a cycle
• solid.vel_rms — RMS velocity over a cycle
• solid.acc_rms — RMS acceleration over a cycle
• solid.uAmpX — amplitude of displacement in the X direction
• solid.uAmp_tX — amplitude of velocity in the X direction
• solid.uAmp_ttX — amplitude of acceleration in the X direction
• solid.uPhaseX — phase of X displacement, in radians
• solid.uPhase_tX — phase of X velocity, in radians
• solid.uPhase_ttX — phase of X displacement, in radians
• solid.mises — von Mises equivalent stress at current phase angle.
• solid.mises_peak — maximum von Mises equivalent stress over a
cycle.

The components in other coordinate directions are obtained by replacing

X by another coordinate name.

PRESTRESSED ANALYSIS
The shift in the natural frequencies in a prestressed structure may have a significant
effect on the frequency response. This is particularly important when the frequencies
of the load are close to any of the natural frequencies of the structure.

To do a prestressed analysis, Include geometric nonlinearity must be selected in the

Frequency Domain study step. This is automatic when you add the Frequency Domain,
Prestressed study type.

66 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

The prestress loading can include a contact analysis, in which case the subsequent
frequency domain analysis provides a linearization around the current contact state.

• Prestressed Structures
• Harmonic Perturbation

OBTAINING A TIME HISTORY

Sometimes you want to study the time history over a period for the results of a
frequency domain analysis. You can do that by adding a Frequency to Time FFT study
step. The frequency response results are then viewed as terms in a Fourier series, which
can be transformed to time domain. It is possible combine the results for several
frequencies into a single time history, under the assumption that they are all multiples
of the same fundamental frequency.

For examples showing how to obtain a time history from frequency

domain results, see

• Viscoelastic Structural Damper: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Dynamics_and_Vibration/
viscoelastic_damper_frequency.
• Vibration Analysis of a Deep Beam: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Verification_Examples/
vibrating_deep_beam.

Mode Superposition
Analyzing forced dynamic response for large models can be very time-consuming. You
can often improve the performance dramatically by using the mode superposition
technique. The following requirements must be met for a modal solution to be
possible:

• The analysis is linear. It is possible, however, that the structure has been subjected
to a preceding nonlinear history. The modal response can then be a linear
perturbation around that state.
• There are no nonzero prescribed displacements.
• The important frequency content of the load is limited to a range that is small when
compared to all the eigenfrequencies of the model, so that its response can be

STUDY TYPES | 67
 approximated with a small number of eigenmodes. In practice, this excludes wave
and shock type problems.
• If the modal solution is performed in the time domain, all loads must have the same
dependency on the time. This requirement can be relaxed if you use a reduced-order
model to represent the system, rather than using one of the mode superposition
studies.

When using the Structural Mechanics Module, there are three predefined study types
for mode superposition:

• Time Dependent, Modal

• Frequency Domain, Modal
• Frequency Domain, Prestressed, Modal

The two first of these study types consist of two study steps: One step for computing
the eigenfrequencies and one step for the modal response. The last one has three study
steps. Before the eigenfrequency step, you solve a static load case in order to get a
prestress state used in the eigenfrequency computation.

In practice, you have often computed the eigenfrequencies already, and then want to
use them in a mode superposition. In this case, start by adding an empty study, and
then add a Time Dependent, Modal or Frequency Domain, Modal study step to it. After
having added the study step this way, you must point the modal solver to the solution
containing the eigenfrequencies and eigenmodes. You do this by first selecting Show
default solver at the study level, and then selecting the eigenfrequency solution to be
used in the Eigenpairs section of the generated modal solver.

In a mode superposition, the deformation of the structure is represented by a linear

combination of its eigenmodes. The amplitudes of these modes are the degrees of
freedom of the reduced problem. You must select which eigenmodes to include in the
analysis. This choice is usually based on a comparison between the eigenfrequencies of
the structure and the frequency content of the load. As a rule of thumb, select
eigenmodes up to approximately twice the highest frequency of the excitation.

In the mode superposition formulation in COMSOL Multiphysics, the full model is

projected onto the subspace spanned by the eigenmodes. A problem having the
number of degrees equal to the number of included modes is then solved. Note that
this differs from many implementations of mode superposition, where it often is
assumed that the modal equations are totally decoupled.

68 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

An implication of this, is that it is not necessary to assume a certain structure of the
damping matrix. Any type of damping which is allowable in the corresponding analysis
of the full system can also be used in the modal based analysis.

For many common cases, the mode superposition analysis is not sensitive to whether
the eigenmodes were computed using damping or not. The reason is that the
eigenmodes of problems with Rayleigh damping and loss factor damping can be shown
to be identical to those of the undamped problem, so that the projection to the
subspace spanned by the eigenmodes is the same in both cases. For more general
damping, it is however recommended that you suppress all contributions to the
damping during the eigenfrequency step, and thus base the mode superposition on the
solution to the undamped eigenfrequency problem.

FREQUENCY DOMAIN ANALYSIS

All loads are assumed to have a harmonic variation. This is a perturbation type analysis,
so only loads having the Harmonic perturbation property selected are then included in
the analysis.

TIME-DEPENDENT ANALYSIS
Only the factor of the load which is independent of time should be specified in the load
features. The dependency on time is specified as Load factor under the Advanced section
of the modal solver. This factor is then applied to all loads.

• Modal Solver and Studies and Solvers in the COMSOL Multiphysics

Reference Manual
• Mechanical Damping and Losses

For an example showing how to perform mode superposition in time and

frequency domain, see Various Analyses of an Elbow Bracket:
Application Library path Structural_Mechanics_Module/Tutorials/
elbow_bracket.

Harmonic Perturbation
Analyses in the frequency domain assume that the problem your study is linear, at least
with respect to the response to the harmonic excitation. There may be other
nonlinearities, such that the structure has responded nonlinearly to a previous loading.

STUDY TYPES | 69
 This loading could, for example, have caused a large rotations or prestress of a rubber
membrane.

The concept of harmonic perturbation is in COMSOL Multiphysics used for

distinguishing the linear harmonic analysis from a possible prestress analysis. The most
important implication is that if a load has the Harmonic Perturbation selection, it is
applied only in a study that is of the perturbation type. A load without this selection is,
on the other hand, ignored in such a study. In this way two sets of loads can be
distinguished from each other. Technically speaking, the effect of marking a load as
Harmonic Perturbation is that the linper() operator is applied to the value of the load.

The default settings for the different structural mechanics study types in the frequency
domain are summarized in Table 2-3.
TABLE 2-3: DEFAULT PERTURBATION SETTINGS FOR STRUCTURAL MECHANICS STUDY TYPES

STUDY TYPE STUDY STEP PERTURBATION

Frequency Domain Frequency Domain No

Frequency Domain, Prestressed Stationary No
Frequency Domain, Perturbation Yes
Frequency Domain, Modal Eigenfrequency N/A
Frequency Domain, Modal Yes
Frequency Domain, Prestressed, Stationary N/A
Modal Eigenfrequency N/A
Frequency Domain, Modal Yes

Note the following:

• With the default settings you cannot use the same set of loads for a Frequency Domain
and a Frequency Domain, Modal study because only the latter responds to
perturbation loads.
• You can change the behavior of a Frequency Domain study to be of the perturbation
type by modifying the solver sequence. In the General section of the settings for the
Stationary Solver, change Linearity to Linear perturbation.
• A solver that does not have Linearity set to either Linear perturbation or Linear may
respond to nonlinear effects. There are multiphysics problems where this is wanted
because there may be a nonlinearity in another physics, even though the harmonic
solution within structural mechanics is linear. But if there are nonlinearities within

70 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

 the structural mechanics parts of the model, you must be careful with the solver
settings.

In a Frequency-Domain, Perturbation study step, that is when Linearity is set

to Linear perturbation, geometric nonlinearity will be incorporated in the
sense that there is a split between the material and spatial frames. This
makes it possible to take for example stiffness from follower loads into
account, and to use a contact solution as linearization point.

This frame split was introduced in version 5.3. As an effect, models

created in an earlier version, in which some expressions have a frame
dependency, may produce results that differ from before. Examples of
such cases are:

• Pressure loads
• Loads defined in coordinate systems with deformation dependent axis
orientation
• User-defined expressions containing spatial (“lowercase”) coordinates

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Frequency Domain Perturbation Study Step

• Harmonic Perturbation — Exclusive and Contributing Nodes
• Built-In Operators (linper() operator)

For most load types, the use of Harmonic Perturbation is straightforward, but some
cases need a more detailed discussion:

• A Rigid Connector can be assigned a Harmonic Perturbation subnode in which you can
prescribe harmonic perturbation values to constrained degrees of freedom. If you
have added Applied Force or Applied Moment nodes under a Rigid Connector, you can
independently assign Harmonic Perturbation to these nodes, so that the loads are
considered as being of the perturbation type.

STUDY TYPES | 71
 • Even though initial stresses and strains are not usually considered as loads, you can
assign Harmonic Perturbation also to the Initial Stress and Strain nodes.
• Rather assigning Harmonic Perturbation to a load, you can write the load value
enclosed in the linper() operator. This is particularly useful when the feature that
provide the loading does not have the Harmonic Perturbation option.

For an example showing how to use harmonic perturbation, see Bracket

— Frequency-Response Analysis: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Tutorials/bracket_frequency.

Modal Reduced-Order Models

Reduced-order modeling seeks to reduce the number of degrees of freedom in a
physical model whilst still retaining the essential physics. For a lightly damped resonant
system driven at one of its resonant frequencies, it is reasonable to consider only the
contributions to the system of a small number (m) of modes within the signal
bandwidth. In some cases, a single mode is sufficient. A system with n degrees of
freedom has mass, stiffness, and damping matrices of size n-by-n. A reduced-order
representation of the system considering m modes has size m-by-m. The reduction in
complexity of the system, and the computational speed up is therefore significant when
m « n. This section describes the theory of the reduced-order system and gives
guidelines on how to obtain reduced-order models from a COMSOL model.

This can be employed in two different ways: Either you can use the built-in modal
solvers for the time or frequency domain, or you can export the small equivalent system
and analyze it outside COMSOL Multiphysics, for example, as a component in a larger
system simulation.

THE MODAL COORDINATE SYSTEM

Consider a mechanical system, with n degrees of freedom, described by an equation of
the form

ꞏꞏ ꞏ
Mu + Du + Ku = F (2-5)

where u is the displacement vector (size: n-by-1), K is the stiffness matrix (size:
n-by-n), D is the damping matrix (size: n-by-n), and M is the mass matrix (size:
n-by-n). In the frequency domain the problem takes the form

72 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

 2
–  M u 0 + iDu 0 + Ku 0 = F

where u = u0eit.

Initially consider the system in the absence of damping and forces. The undamped
system has n eigenvalues i, which satisfy the equation

ˆ =  2 Mu
Ku ˆ (2-6)
i i i

These eigenvectors can be shown to be orthogonal with respect to both M and K:

ˆ T Mu
u ˆ = 0 i  j , i  j (2-7)
j i

ˆ T Ku
u ˆ = 0 i  j , i  j (2-8)
j i

Next the following n-by-n matrix is constructed, with columns taken from the n
eigenvectors:

ˆ ,u
U = u ˆ u
ˆ
1 2 n

Then consider the following matrix:

u ˆ u
ˆ T Mu ˆT ˆ
1 1 1 Mu 2
ˆ T Mu
u ˆ u ˆT ˆ
2 1 2 Mu 2
T
U MU =
ˆ T Mu
u ˆ ˆT ˆ
n–1 n – 1 u n – 1 Mu n
ˆ T Mu
u ˆ ˆ T Mu
u ˆ
n n–1 n n

From Equation 2-7 it is clear that this is a diagonal matrix. Similarly, from
Equation 2-8 it is clear that UTKU is also diagonal.

From the properties of the eigenvectors it is possible to expand any function in terms
of the eigenvectors. Thus, the displacement u can be written as:

n
ˆ
u =  ai ui
i=1

This equation can also be expressed in the form:

STUDY TYPES | 73
 u = Ua (2-9)

where a is a column vector containing the coefficients ai as rows. In general a is

time dependent.

Now consider the original equation: Equation 2-5. First substitute for u using
Equation 2-9. Then transform the equation to the modal coordinate system by
premultiplying by UT. This gives:

T ꞏꞏ T ꞏ T T
U MUa + U DUa + U KUa = U F (2-10)

It has already been established that the matrices UTMU and UTKU are diagonal and
frequently a damping model is chosen that results in a diagonal damping matrix. For
example, in Rayleigh damping D  M + K, where  and  are constants. For a
general damping, the transformed damping matrix is however not diagonal. As an
alternative, a damping ratio, i, can be assigned to each mode.

EIGENVALUE SCALING
The precise form of Equation 2-10 is determined by the normalization adopted for the
eigenfunctions. In structural applications the eigenfunctions are often normalized such
that UTMU  I. This is referred to as mass matrix scaling in the eigenvalue solver. In
this case Equation 2-6 gives

ˆ T Ku
u ˆ =  2u
ˆ T Mu
ˆ = 2
i i i i i i

so that

T 2
U KU = diag   i 

where diag(i2) is the diagonal matrix with diagonal elements i2. Similarly, if
damping ratios for each mode are defined, the damping matrix can be expressed in the
form

T
U DU = diag  2 i  i 

Thus, if mass matrix scaling is used Equation 2-10 takes the form

ꞏꞏ ꞏ 2 T
a + diag  2 i  i a + diag   i a = U F (2-11)

It is also possible to scale the eigenvectors so that the point of maximum displacement
has given displacement. This is referred to as max scaling in the eigenvalue solver. For

74 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

an individual mode this scaling has a simple physical interpretation — the
corresponding component of a, ai, is the amplitude of the i:th mode, measured at the
point of maximum displacement, when the mode is driven by the force F. In this case
Equation 2-10 takes the form

ꞏꞏ ꞏ T
diag  m eff , i a + diag  c eff , i a + diag  k eff , i a = U F (2-12)

Here meff,i is the effective mass of the i:th mode, ceff,i = 2meff,iii is the effective
damping parameter for the mode, and keff,i is the effective spring constant. Each
element of the vector UTF gives the force component that acts on each of the
respective modes.

When using max scaling, it is the largest value of a degree of freedom

which is scaled to 1. The total displacement in that node will thus be
between 1 and 3 times the given scaling factor.

If degrees of freedom other than displacements are active in the

eigenfrequency problem, the maximum value may occur in another type
of degree of freedom such as electric potential or pressure. Consequently,
the peak displacement in that mode can then be less than the scaling
factor.

REDUCED-ORDER MODELS
The preceding discussion did not consider how to reduce the number of degrees of
freedom in the system. For systems in which the vector UTF has only a few significant
components (for example, components i = 1, …, m where m « n) the following
approximation can be made:

m
ˆ
u  ai ui
i=1

The expression for u in matrix becomes:

u = U'a'

where U' is now an m-by-n and a' is a vector with m components. The equation
system in modal coordinates now takes the form

T ꞏꞏ T ꞏ T T
U' MU'a' + U' DU'a' + U' KU'a' = U' F (2-13)

STUDY TYPES | 75
 The matrices U'TMU', U'TDU', and U'TKU' now have dimensions m-by-m.
Similarly, the vector U'TF has m components. This results in a significant reduction in
the system complexity.

REDUCED-ORDER MODELS WITH PHYSICAL DAMPING

If physically relevant damping is present in the system, the above theory must be
modified as the damping matrix is no longer diagonal in the modal coordinate system.
COMSOL can still handle this case as the modal solver does not assume that any of the
matrices are diagonal. In this case the eigenvalues become complex and the
eigenvectors split into right and left eigenvectors. The right eigenvectors Ur are
solutions of the equation:

2 ˆ + i Du
–i M u ˆ + Kuˆ
r ,i i r ,i r ,i = F

As in the previous section, for a reduced set of modes, it is assumed that:

u = U' r a'

where U'r is the n-by-m matrix containing the right eigenvectors chosen for the modal
analysis. Once again a' is a vector with m components. The system in modal
coordinates takes the form

T ꞏꞏ T ꞏ T T
U' l MU' r a' + U' l DU' r a' + U' l KU' r a' = U' l F

where U'l is the n-by-m matrix containing the left eigenvectors chosen for the modal
analysis.

The matrices U'lTMU'r, U'lTDU'r, and U'lTKU'r are no longer necessarily diagonal.
The modal solver accepts any linearly independent set of vectors to project the solution
vector and equations onto and constructs the reduced-order system accordingly.

ACCESSING THE REDUCED-ORDER MODEL MATRICES

The Model Reduction and Modal Reduced-Order Model study steps have the property that
they can assemble the modal matrices and make them available for output. In the Model
Reduction node, the Store reduced matrices check box must be selected.

After the model has solved, right-click the Results>Derived Values node and select
System Matrices. In the output section choose the Matrix to display in the list. The mass
matrix corresponds to the matrix U'lTMU'r the stiffness matrix corresponds to
U'lTKU'r, and the damping matrix corresponds to U'lTDU'r. The vector U'lTF is
available as the load vector. These matrices are given in a format that respects the

76 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

normalization of the preceding Eigenvalue Solver. To change this, select the Eigenvalue
Solver node, and change the Scaling of Eigenvectors setting under the Output section.
Use the Max setting if an equivalent Mass-Spring-Damper system is required, in which
case the modal amplitude corresponds to the maximum displacement of the mode.

Linearized Buckling Analysis

A linearized buckling analysis can be used to estimate the critical load at which a
structure becomes unstable. This is a predefined study type that consists of two study
steps: An initial step in which a unit load is applied to the structure, and a second step
in which an eigenvalue problem is solved for the critical buckling load.

COMSOL reports a critical load factor, ,which is the multiplier to the initial load at
which the structure becomes unstable. The corresponding eigenmode is the shape of
the structure in its buckled state.

The level of the initial load used is immaterial since a linear problem is solved. If the
initial load actually was larger than the buckling load, then the critical value of  is
smaller than 1. It is also possible that the computed value of  is negative. This signifies
that a reversed load will give the critical case.

When performing a linearized buckling study, it is possible to discriminate between live

and dead loads, where the former are the ones with respect to which the critical load
factor is computed, and the latter are assumed to be constant. In this case, two
different basic load cases need to be solved before the eigenvalue solution.

The buckling computed buckling modes can be used to provide an initial imperfection
for a subsequent nonlinear buckling analysis,

• For more details about how to model buckling, see Buckling Analysis.
• The numerical formulation is described in the section Linear Buckling
in the theory chapter.
• Settings for the solvers are described in Studies and Solvers, Linear
Buckling, and Buckling Imperfection in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

STUDY TYPES | 77
 • Bracket — Linear Buckling Analysis: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Tutorials/bracket_linear_buckling
• Buckling Analysis of a Truss Tower: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Buckling_and_Wrinkling/
truss_tower_buckling

Bolt Pretension Study

The Bolt Pretension study step is a special case of a Stationary study step, where the
special degrees of freedoms used for modeling prestressed bolts are solved for. In all
other study types, these degrees of freedom are inactive. Typically, you include a Bolt
Pretension study step as the first step in a study in order to simulate the state after the
assembly of a bolted joint. You can then add any other types of study steps for
computing the effects of the service loads.

In a Bolt Pretension study step, it is possible to tension the bolts sequentially, or to

change the bolt prestress more than once, if an auxiliary sweep over some history
parameter is used.

Modeling Pretensioned Bolts

• Modeling of Pretensioned Bolts: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Tutorials/bolt_pretension_tutorial
• Prestressed Bolts in a Tube Connection: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Contact_and_Friction/tube_connection

Random Vibration (PSD) Study

A random vibration study is used to analyze the response of a structure subjected to
loads that randomly vary in time, but their statistical properties do not change with
time.

The input to a random vibration analysis is given in terms of power spectral densities
(PSD) and, in the case of several loading sources, the load cross-correlations.

78 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

The results of this type of analysis can only be interpreted in a statistical sense. Usually,
the root mean square (RMS) of the result quantities is studied.

The analysis is based on a mode superposition and the reduced-order model (ROM)
functionality. Except from the computation of eigenfrequencies and corresponding
eigenmodes, and the creation of the reduced model, the core of the computation is
performed during result evaluation.

The Random Vibration (PSD) study is mainly an entry point when adding studies. When
you select it, you actually get two studies and a number of nodes under Global
Definitions added to the model.

• See Performing a Random Vibration Analysis for a detailed description

of how to study random vibration.
• The theory is described in Random Vibration Theory.

• Bracket — Random Vibration Analysis: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Tutorials/bracket_random_vibration
• Random Vibration Test of a Motherboard: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Dynamics_and_Vibration/
motherboard_random_vibration
• Random Vibration Analysis of a Deep Beam: Application Library
path Structural_Mechanics_Module/Verification_Examples/
random_vibration_deep_beam

Response Spectrum Analysis Study

Response spectrum analysis is used for computing an approximation of the structural
response to transient, nondeterministic events, such as earthquakes or shocks.

The Response Spectrum Analysis study is mainly an entry point when adding studies.
What you actually get when you add such study is an Eigenfrequency study step together
with a Response Spectrum node under Definitions.

The actual response is computed on demand during result evaluation, using the
computed eigenfrequencies and modes. The settings for the evaluation are done in the
Response Spectrum 2D and Response Spectrum 3D datasets.

STUDY TYPES | 79
 If your response spectrum evaluation requires inclusion of missing mass correction,
you need also to compute a set of stationary load cases. To set up that analysis, use the
Create missing mass correction study button ( ) on the header of the Response
Spectrum section the in the Response Spectrum node settings.

• See Performing a Response Spectrum Analysis for a detailed

description of how to work with response spectrum evaluations.
• The theory is described in Response Spectrum Analysis Theory.
• The settings for the special datasets are described in Response
Spectrum 2D and Response Spectrum 3D in the COMSOL
Multiphysics Reference Manual.
• The Response Spectrum node is described in the COMSOL
Multiphysics Reference Manual.

• Earthquake Analysis of a Building: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Dynamics_and_Vibration/
building_response_spectrum
• Shock Response of a Motherboard: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Dynamics_and_Vibration/
motherboard_shock_response

80 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Selecting the Physics Interface
The structural mechanics products contain a number of physics interfaces for a wide
range of applications. This section contains some guidelines for how to select an
appropriate physics interface for your analysis.

The basic physics interfaces for structural mechanics are:

• Solid Mechanics — General modeling of solid objects with extension in all

directions.
• Elastic Waves, Time Explicit — For efficient analysis of linear elastic wave
propagation in solid domain.
• Shell and Plate — For objects which are thin in one direction, but have significant
bending stiffness
• Membrane — For objects which are thin in one direction, and have negligible
bending stiffness
• Beam — For objects where two directions have significantly smaller dimensions
than the third; significant bending stiffness
• Pipe Mechanics — For analysis of pipes with internal pressure. This interface is
similar to the Beam interface, but specialized for analysis of pipes.
• Truss — For objects where two directions have significantly smaller dimensions than
the third; only axial forces can be transmitted
• Wire — Similar to Truss, but only tensile forces can be transmitted

For a detailed overview of the functionality available in each product, visit

https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/

Solid Mechanics
The Solid Mechanics interface offers the most general modeling of structural
mechanics problems and is based on general principles of continuum mechanics. It is
the interface which contains the largest number of material models, and the most
advanced boundary conditions.

SELECTING THE PHYSICS INTERFACE | 81

 The drawback with using solid elements is that the models can become
computationally expensive, especially in 3D. For structures which are thin or slender,
you should consider using one of the specialized physics interfaces.

3D SOLID GEOMETRY
The degrees of freedom (dependent variables) in 3D are the global displacements u, v,
and w in the global x, y, and z directions, respectively.

Figure 2-1: Loads and constraints applied to a 3D solid using the Solid Mechanics
interface.

2D GEOMETRY

Plane Stress
The plane stress variant of the 2D physics interface is useful for analyzing thin in-plane
loaded plates. For a state of plane stress, the out-of-plane components of the stress
tensor are zero.

Figure 2-2: Plane stress is used to model plates where the loads are only in the plane; it does
not include any out-of-plane stress components.

The 2D physics interface for plane stress allows loads in the x and y directions, and
assumes that these are constant throughout the material’s thickness, which can vary
with x and y. The plane stress condition prevails in a thin (compared to the in-plane

82 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

dimensions) flat plate in the xy-plane loaded only in its own plane and without any
z direction restraint.

Plane Strain
The plane strain variant of the 2D physics interface that assumes that all out-of-plane
strain components of the total strain tensor z, yz, and xz are zero.

Figure 2-3: A geometry suitable for plane strain analysis.

Loads in the x and y directions are allowed. The loads are assumed to be constant
throughout the thickness of the material, but the thickness can vary with x and y.
Formally, the plane strain condition requires that the ends of the object are constrained
in the z direction, but it is often also used for central parts of an object that is long in
the z direction (compared to the in-plane dimensions). One example is a long tunnel
along the z-axis where it is sufficient to study a unit-depth slice in the xy-plane.

Generalized Plane Strain

Generalized plane strain is similar to plane strain in the sense that transverse stresses
can develop in the 2D cross section of a long object. The requirement that the
out-of-plane strain is zero, is however relaxed. Instead, an assumption about zero
resulting force in the transverse direction is used. Optionally, assumptions about zero
bending moments over the cross section can be added. Generalized plane strain
conditions prevail in the in the inner parts of a long object with free ends. For many
cases, generalized plane strain conditions is the 2D approximation that is closest to a
full 3D solution.

For an in-depth discussion of different aspects of 2D solid mechanics, see

https://www.comsol.com/blogs/
what-is-the-difference-between-plane-stress-and-plane-strain

SELECTING THE PHYSICS INTERFACE | 83

 AXISYMMETRIC GEOMETRY
The axisymmetric variant of the Solid Mechanics interface uses cylindrical coordinates
r,  (phi), and z. All properties are independent of the azimuthal angle  .

In the default version of the interface, displacements occur only in the r-z plane, and
there are two degrees of freedom, u and w. By selecting the Include circumferential
displacement option, you can model also torsion around the axis of rotational
symmetry. The azimuthal rotation degree of freedom v is then included. In addition,
many features, such as load features, allow values to be entered in the  direction.

The 2D axisymmetric geometry is viewed as the intersection between the original

axially symmetric 3D solid and the half plane   0, r  0. Therefore, the geometry is
drawn only in the half plane r  0, and it recovers the original 3D solid by rotating the
2D geometry about the z-axis.

Figure 2-4: Rotating a 2D geometry to recover a 3D solid.

• Axisymmetric Twist and Bending: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Verification_Examples/
axisymmetric_twist_and_bending

Elastic Waves, Time Explicit

The Elastic Waves, Time Explicit is used to compute the velocity and strain field in
solids with propagating linear elastic waves. In the Add Physics dialog, it is found in
the Acoustics branch, under Elastic Waves.

In general, the interface is suited for modeling the propagation of waves over large
distances relative to the wavelength, for example, ultrasound propagation for
nondestructive testing (NDT), or seismic waves. The interface exists in 2D
(generalized plane strain) and 3D.

84 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

The interface is based on the discontinuous Galerkin (dG or dG-FEM) method and
uses a time explicit solver. The method is very memory efficient and can solve problems
with many million degrees of freedom (DOFs). The method is also well suited for
distributed computing on clusters.

In the Acoustics Module User’s Guide:

• The Elastic Waves, Time Explicit Interface

• Theory for the Elastic Waves, Time Explicit Interface

Shell and Plate

The Shell interface is useful when the object is thin in one direction. Structures built
from welded or bolted flat plates are archetypal shell structures and so are pressure
vessels. The Shell interface is available in 3D and 2D axisymmetry.

The Plate interface is a specialization of the Shell interface, used for 2D modeling in
the XY-plane. A plate model has its main action in bending out of the plane, but can
optionally also treat in-plane forces. If the loads act only in the plane, using Solid
Mechanics with the Plane Stress option is a better choice.

Shells are modeled on boundaries, and the transverse direction is represented only by
the mathematical model. The degrees of freedom consist of displacements and
rotations at the modeled boundary. This results in an assumption where the in-plane
strains vary linearly through the thickness, and the stress in the thickness direction is
zero. The thickness of a shell does not have to be constant, although this is by far the
most common case.

When the Composite Materials Module is available, it is possible to model also

multilayered shells.

For nonlinear material models, a layered approach with a single layer is used. There is
a virtual mesh in the thickness direction, in order to accommodate the potential
variation of the material properties in the thickness direction.

Rather than computing the shell stiffness from material properties and thickness, you
can also directly enter that stiffness properties in tension, bending, and shear.

The Shell and Plate interfaces can be used both for “thin” and “thick” shells. Shear
deformations are taken into account; this is usually called Mindlin theory. The material
model is linear elastic.

SELECTING THE PHYSICS INTERFACE | 85

 When modeling with shells, it is important to keep track of “top” and “bottom” side
when applying loads and interpreting the results.

The in-plane stiffness of an elastic shell is proportional to the thickness h, while the
bending stiffness is proportional to h3. The difference in stiffness along different
directions can thus become very large. When an object is very thin, a shell model may
be numerically ill-posed due to the negligible bending stiffness. It is then better to use
the Membrane interface.

Membrane
The Membrane interface can be used for very thin objects, like cloth, where only
in-plane forces are important. Membranes can be considered as plane stress elements
but with an arbitrary, possibly curved configuration in space. The Membrane interface
is available in 3D and 2D axisymmetry.

In most applications, a membrane must be pretensioned in order to have a stable

configuration, so it will almost invariably be used in a geometrically nonlinear analysis.
The main exception is when it is used as a “cladding” on top of a solid, since it will
then be stabilized by the solid.

You can study configurations when there is local wrinkling in a membrane by adding
a special nonlinear material model.

In the Membrane interface a large number of different material models can be used.
When the Composite Materials Module is available, it is possible to model also
multilayered membranes.

Beam
A beam is an abstract model where only the extension in the axial direction is modeled
explicitly on an edge. The cross section is usually specified in terms of geometrical
properties such as area and moments of inertia. Several predefined cross-section types
are also available. The Beam interface is available in 3D and 2D.

The exact stress distribution in the beam is not explicitly modeled. It is actually not
even fully determined by the cross-sectional properties. Instead, six (in 3D) resultant
section forces are used: axial force, shear forces in two perpendicular directions, two
bending moments, and one twisting moment.

The Beam interface assumes linear elasticity.

86 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Two formulations are available in the Beam interface:

• The classical Euler-Bernoulli beam theory, which is applicable for slender beams.
• Timoshenko theory, where also shear deformations are considered. This theory
makes it possible to use the Beam interface to model rather thick beams.

Pipe Mechanics
Pipes are similar to beams, and many properties of the Pipe Mechanics interface are
shared with the Beam interface. The most distinguishing feature is that the internal
pressure usually causes a significant part of the stresses in a pipe. Also, temperature
gradients usually occur through the pipe wall, rather than across the entire section.

The loads from internal pressure and drag forces can be taken directly from results in
the Pipe Flow interface. Similarly, the temperature in the pipe walls can be taken from
the Heat Transfer in Pipes interface.

In the Pipe Flow Module User’s Guide:

• The Pipe Flow Interface

• The Heat Transfer in Pipes Interface

Truss
The Truss interface has two main purposes:

• Modeling of trusses, consisting of straight bars carrying only axial forces

• As reinforcements, used in conjunction with other physics interfaces

The Truss interface is available in 3D and 2D.

For a truss model, only one geometrical property is needed, the cross-section area. The
material model can be linear elastic, elastoplastic, or a shape memory alloy. There is also
a special material model for creating spring/damper data.

The truss element has no stiffness in the directions perpendicular to its extension. For
trusses, this is usually not a problem since they are designed such that each member is
stabilized by its neighbors.

SELECTING THE PHYSICS INTERFACE | 87

 Wire
The Wire interface intended for modeling of cables and wires. The structures are often
prestressed, but also cables sagging under, for example, self-weight can be modeled.

The main difference between the Truss interface and the Wire interface is that the
wires cannot sustain any compressive forces. In reality the wire will wrinkle.
Numerically, this is handled by using a very low stiffness in compression.

88 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Selecting Discretization
Shape Function Order
In structural mechanics analysis, the focus is often on the stresses and strains rather
than on the displacements. Since the strains are derivatives of the displacement field,
the accuracy of the strains will be one order less than the accuracy of the displacements.
For this reason, second-order shape functions are used as default in most of the
structural mechanics interfaces. Often this gives the best tradeoff between model size
and accuracy.

It is well known that using first-order shape functions in solid mechanics will give an
overly stiff solution, unless a very fine mesh is used. This is especially noticeable for
triangular and tetrahedral elements. This can, to some extent, be counteracted by using
reduced integration, see Using Reduced Integration.

If the purpose of the analysis is only to compute stiffness, rather than stresses, the use
of linear shape functions can still be justified. This is the default choice in the
Multibody Dynamics interface, available with the Multibody Dynamics Module.

If the solution contains discontinuities, for example when some type of front is moving
through the material, first-order elements and a fine mesh is often a good choice, since
the advantage of the higher-order elements lies in their ability to represent smooth
gradients.

TRUSS ELEMENTS
In the Truss interface the default is to use first-order shape functions, since the
elements are mainly used in a context where the axial force in each element is constant.

When truss elements share an edge with other structural elements, you should choose
the same discretization in both interfaces, usually quadratic.

BEAM ELEMENTS
The beam elements have only one set of shape functions, which cannot be changed.
The axial displacement and the twist are represented by first-order shape functions,
while the bending is represented by cubic Hermitian shape functions. This element can
then represent a constant axial force, a constant twisting torque, a linear bending
moment, and a constant shear force. This is the exact solution for a beam having no
distributed loads.

SELECTING DISCRETIZATION | 89
 A consequence of this formulation is that it may not possible to obtain a perfectly
conforming approximation if a beam shares an edge with elements from another
physics interface.

Lagrange and Serendipity Shape Functions

In the Solid Mechanics and Membrane interfaces, you can choose between two
families of shape functions: Lagrange and serendipity. The default is to use serendipity
shape functions.

The serendipity elements have the advantage of generating significantly fewer degrees
of freedom for structured meshes. The accuracy is in most cases almost as good as for
the Lagrange elements. The Lagrange elements are however less sensitive to strong
mesh distortions.

The serendipity shape functions differ from the Lagrange shape functions only for the
following element shapes:

• 2D: Quadrilateral elements of discretization order higher than 1

• 3D: Hexahedral, prism, and pyramid elements of discretization order higher than 1

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• The Lagrange Element (shlag)

• The Nodal Serendipity Element (shnserp)

When coupling two structural mechanics physics interfaces, the same type of shape
functions should be used in both interfaces to ensure conformity in displacement shape
functions. Since there is no difference between the two families of shape functions in
1D, this is not an issue when connecting edges.

Choosing Shape Functions in Multiphysics Models

In problems where several physics fields participate, the accuracy can sometimes be
improved by considering how the different fields interact. In structural mechanics, it
is common that other physics fields directly affect the inelastic strains. This is the case
in, for example, thermal expansion and hygroscopic swelling.

90 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

In thermal expansion, the elastic strain used in most constitutive relations is the
difference between the total strain, which is computed from derivatives of the
displacement field, and the thermal strain:

 el =  tot –  th =  tot –   T – T ref 

Since the thermal strain is directly proportional to the temperature, a consistent

approximation would be to use one step lower discretization order for the temperature
than for the displacements. When using built-in couplings, such as Thermal Expansion,
such a modification is not necessary. Any mismatch is automatically taken care of by
re-interpolating the thermal strains to an order that matches the general strain field.

Another type of coupling appears on the boundary between two domains having
different physics, as in fluid-structure interaction and acoustic-structure interaction.
When, for example, Thermoviscous Acoustics is coupled to Solid Mechanics, then the
time derivative of the displacement in the solid is set equal to the velocity in the
acoustic medium on the shared boundary. In this case, it makes sense to have the same
shape function order for these two fields.

Implicit Shape Function Orders

Some solid mechanics formulations contain other degrees of freedom in addition to
the displacements. The shape functions are then selected internally based on your
choice of displacement discretization.

VISCOELASTIC STRESS AND STRAIN

When using a viscoelastic material model, auxiliary degrees of freedom are added either
for the viscoelastic strains or the viscoelastic stresses, depending on whether a linear or
a nonlinear formulation is used. These degrees of freedom are local to the element, and
you can select either the discontinuous Lagrange or Gauss point data type.

The discontinuous Lagrange shape functions will have an order that is one below what
is used for the displacement shape functions.

If Gauss point data is used, the same integration points as used for the numerical
integration of the stiffness matrix are used. This order depends on the selected
displacement discretization order and whether reduced integration is used or not.

INELASTIC STRAINS
For material models like plasticity and creep, the inelastic strains are formally degrees
of freedom. They will be allocated at the same integration points as used for the

SELECTING DISCRETIZATION | 91
 numerical integration of the stiffness matrix. This order depends on the selected
displacement discretization order and whether reduced integration is used or not.

92 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Coupling Different Element Types
In this section:

• Introduction to the Element Types

• Coupling Techniques

Introduction to the Element Types

In some engineering structures, the optimal idealization is a mixture of different
element types. Some examples are:

• Structures that are thin in large regions, but more three-dimensional at certain
locations. A mixture of solids and shells can then significantly reduce the model size.
• Plates or shells having beams as stiffeners.
• Truss elements acting as reinforcement bars in a concrete structure.
• A thin layer of one material on top of another material. In this case, an idealization
with shells or membranes covering the boundary of a solid can be useful.

When several physics interfaces are added in COMSOL Multiphysics, the default is
always that each physics interface has individual and unique degrees of freedom. In
structural mechanics, the first physics interface has the displacement variables (u, v, w),
then the second physics interface has (u2, v2, w2), and so on. This means that the
physics interfaces initially are independent, even when defined on the same geometrical
part. To get the intended interaction requires that a coupling is established between
the physics interfaces.

Various methods to couple different element types are discussed in this section.

Coupling Techniques
The following basic techniques to connect physics interfaces with displacement
degrees of freedom are discussed in this section:

• Renaming Degrees of Freedom

• Using Customized Coupling Features
• Using General Coupling Operators

COUPLING DIFFERENT ELEMENT TYPES | 93

 RENAMING DEGREES OF FREEDOM
The easiest coupling method is to rename the displacement degrees of freedom so that
these are the same for all physics interfaces. This is sufficient, for example, when using
membranes as cladding on a solid boundary or truss elements as reinforcement bars in
a solid.

In the Beam, Pipe Mechanics, Shell, and Plate interfaces, the deformation is described
also by rotational degrees of freedom. In the general case, these degrees of freedom
interact with the translational degrees of freedom in a connection.

In some special cases — for example, when a thin shell acts as cladding on a solid — it
is sufficient to make the degree of freedom names for the displacements common; the
rotational degrees of freedom are not important. If, however, a shell edge is connected
to a solid, it acts as a “hinge”, which in most cases is not the intended behavior. You
then need to use the more sophisticated techniques described next.

The default shape functions in the Solid Mechanics interface are of the
serendipity type, whereas Lagrange shape functions are used in the Shell
interface. If you are placing a shell element on the boundary of a solid
element, you must select Lagrange shape functions also in the Solid
Mechanics interface so that the two physics interfaces share the same node
points.

The shape functions used in the Beam and Pipe Mechanics interfaces have
special properties, and a beam cannot have the same degrees of freedom
as another physics interface if the same edge is shared.

Also, the representation of rotations differs between the Shell and Plate
interfaces (displacement of normal) and the Beam and Pipe Mechanics
interfaces (rotation angle). It is therefore not possible to use common
degree of freedom names for the rotational degrees of freedom.

USING CUSTOMIZED COUPLING FEATURES

There are a number of built-in couplings, by which you can add connections that are
nontrivial to set up manually:

• Shell Edge to Solid Boundary (3D)

• Shell Boundary to Solid Boundary (3D)
• Membrane Boundary to Solid Boundary (3D)

94 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

• Beam Point to Solid Boundary (2D)
• Beam Point to Solid (3D)
• Beam Edge to Solid Boundary (2D)
• Beam Edge to Solid Boundary (3D)
• Beam Edge to Shell Edge (3D)
• Beam Point to Shell Boundary (3D)
• Beam Point to Shell Edge (3D)
• Pipe Point to Solid Boundary (3D)
• Pipe Point to Shell Edge (3D)
• Embedded Reinforcement

Shell Edge to Solid Boundary (3D)

A shell can be coupled to a solid by adding a Solid-Thin Structure Connection
multiphysics coupling. In the settings, set Connection type to Solid boundaries to shell
edges. This situation typically occurs when you want to make a transition from a thin
region to one that is thicker. Usually, shell assumptions should be valid on both sides
of the transition. The solid geometry is expected to have the same thickness as the
thickness given in the Shell interface.

You can choose between two different formulations, by setting Method to either Rigid
or Flexible. The flexible version is significantly more accurate locally at the connected
solid boundary, but it comes with a cost in terms of some extra degrees of freedom.
Also, this method requires a large enough number of degrees of freedom in the
thickness direction of the solid. For second-order elements, typically three elements are
required.

Shell Boundary to Solid Boundary (3D)

A shell can also be coupled to a solid by adding a Solid-Thin Structure Connection
multiphysics coupling with Connection type set to Shared boundaries or Parallel
boundaries. This connection is used to add a shell on top of a solid as a ‘cladding’. It is
possible to include an offset distance. The boundaries may be coincident or parallel.

Membrane Boundary to Solid Boundary (3D)

A membrane can be coupled to a solid by adding a Solid-Thin Structure Connection
multiphysics coupling with Connection type set to Shared boundaries. When the thin
structure is a membrane, this is the only available connection type. It is used to add a
membrane on top of a solid as a ‘cladding’.

COUPLING DIFFERENT ELEMENT TYPES | 95

 Beam Point to Solid Boundary (2D)
A beam in 2D can be coupled to a solid by adding a Solid-Beam Connection
multiphysics coupling. In the settings, set Connection type to Solid boundaries to beam
points. This connection is intended for modeling a transition from a beam to a solid,
where beam assumptions are valid on both sides of the connection.

You can choose between two different formulations, by setting Method to either Rigid
or Flexible. The flexible version is significantly more accurate locally at the connected
solid boundary, but it comes with a cost in terms of some extra degrees of freedom.
Also, this method requires a large enough number of degrees of freedom in the
thickness direction of the solid. For second-order elements, typically three elements are
required.

Beam Point to Solid (3D)

A beam in 3D can be coupled to a solid by adding a Solid-Beam Connection
multiphysics coupling. In the settings, set Connection type to either Solid boundaries to
beam points, general. or Solid boundaries to beam points, transition. These two
couplings are fundamentally different.

The Solid boundaries to beam points, general connection is used for modeling a beam
with one end “welded” to the face of the solid. You can specify the size of the area on
the solid boundary that is connected to the endpoint of the beam in several different
ways.

The Solid boundaries to beam points, transition coupling is intended for modeling a
transition from a beam to a solid where beam assumptions are valid on both sides of
the connection. Thus, the geometry of the solid at the transition should match the
cross-section data given to the beam.

This connection type can include warping of the solid cross section. In order to
compute the warping properties, an extra PDE is solved over the cross-section
boundaries. To improve the performance, you should preferably solve for these
variables once in a separate stationary study or study step. In that study step, clear all
physics interfaces except the Solid-Beam Connection multiphysics coupling in the Physics
and Variables Selection section.

You can manually control whether to include warping or not. If not included, the setup
of the solver sequence is simplified, but there will be significant stress disturbances
close to the connection boundaries if the cross section is susceptible to warping.

There are four warping variables: one named Warping function and three named
Warping constant. In the successive study steps, you need to manually suppress

96 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

them. You can do so under the Dependent Variables node, where you first set Defined
by study step to User Defined. Then, for each of these four variables, clear the Solve for
this field check box.

Beam Edge to Solid Boundary (2D)

A beam in 2D can also be coupled to a solid by adding a Solid-Beam Connection
multiphysics coupling with Connection type set to Shared boundaries or Parallel
boundaries. This connection is used for adding a beam on top of a solid as a “cladding”.
It is possible to include an offset distance. The boundaries may be coincident or
parallel.

Beam Edge to Solid Boundary (3D)

A beam in 3D can also be coupled to a solid by adding a Solid-Beam Connection
multiphysics coupling with Connection type set to Solid boundaries to beam edges. This
connection is used for adding a beam that is “welded” along the surface of the solid.

Beam Edge to Shell Edge (3D)

A beam can be coupled to a shell by adding a Shell-Beam Connection multiphysics
coupling with Connection type set to either Shared boundaries or Parallel boundaries.
This connection is used for adding beams as stiffeners to shells. The edges may be
coincident or parallel. It is possible to prescribe that the beam has an offset from the
shell when a coincident edge is used.

Beam Point to Shell Boundary (3D)

A beam can be coupled to a shell by adding a Shell-Beam Connection multiphysics
coupling with Connection type set to Shell boundaries to beam points. This connection
is used for modeling a beam with one end “welded” to the face of the shell. You can
specify the size of the area on the shell boundary that is connected to the end point of
the beam in several different ways.

Beam Point to Shell Edge (3D)

A beam can be coupled to a shell by adding a Shell-Beam Connection multiphysics
coupling with Connection type set to Shell edges to beam points. This connection is
used for modeling a beam with one end “welded” to the edge of the shell. You can
specify the part of the shell edge that is connected to the end point of the beam in
several different ways.

Pipe Point to Solid Boundary (3D)

A pipe in 3D can be coupled to a solid by adding a Structure-Pipe Connection
multiphysics coupling. The coupling is intended for modeling a transition from a pipe
to a solid where beam assumptions are valid on both sides of the connection. Thus, the

COUPLING DIFFERENT ELEMENT TYPES | 97

 geometry of the solid at the transition should match the cross-section data given to the
pipe. The connection assumes that the pipe cross section is circular; if another cross
section is used, it is converted to an equivalent circular cross section. This means that
warping is not considered.

The connection can be considered an extension of the Solid boundaries to beam points,
transition coupling in Solid-Beam Connection to also account for radial deformation
of the pipe caused by the fluid pressure and the temperature difference over the cross
section.

Pipe Point to Shell Edge (3D)

A pipe in 3D can be coupled to a shell by adding a Structure-Pipe Connection
multiphysics coupling. The coupling is intended for modeling a transition from a pipe
to a shell where beam assumptions are valid on both sides of the connection. Thus, the
geometry of the shell at the transition should match the cross-section data given to the
pipe. The connection assumes that the pipe cross section is circular; if another cross
section is used, it is converted to an equivalent circular cross section. This means that
warping is not considered.

The connection can be considered an extension of the Shell edges to beam points
coupling in Shell-Beam Connection to also account for radial deformation of the pipe
caused by the fluid pressure and the temperature difference over the cross section.

Embedded Reinforcement
Lower dimension structural elements can be connected to a solid domain by adding
an Embedded Reinforcement multiphysics coupling. This connection supports
coupling truss, beam, and membrane elements to a Solid Mechanics interface. The
connection can either be rigid, or made by attaching springs between points on the
embedded structure and points in the solid. A more detailed discussion about this type
of modeling is given in Modeling Embedded Structures and Reinforcements.

The underlying theory and more details about the built-in couplings can
be found in

• Connection Between Shells and Solids

• Connection Between Shells and Beams
• Embedded Elements

98 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

 • Examples of all types of couplings between shells and beams are shown
in Connecting Shells and Beams: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Beams_and_Shells/shell_beam_connection
• An example of couplings between shells and solids is shown in
Connecting Shells and Solids: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Beams_and_Shells/shell_solid_connection
• An example of couplings between beams and solids is shown in
Connecting Beams and Solids: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Beams_and_Shells/beam_solid_connection

USING GENERAL COUPLING OPERATORS

The most general method of connecting parts modeled with different physics
interfaces is by using a General Extrusion operator. In this case the parts need not even
be in contact, so the connection is an abstraction.

An example could be a shell stiffened by beams. In practice, you would probably use
the built-in coupling described in Beam Edge to Shell Edge (3D) for this case, but the
example shows the principles.

In structure like this, the beam is usually placed at one side of the shell, so that the
centerline of the beam and the midsurface of the shell do not coincide. This difference

COUPLING DIFFERENT ELEMENT TYPES | 99

 must be taken into account, so the edges representing the beam are geometrically
disconnected from the midsurface of the shell.

Beam centerline

Mathematically, the connection between the beam and the shell can be expressed as


 u beam = u shell +    X beam – X shell 

  beam =  shell


or equivalently as


 u beam = u shell +   X beam – X shell   n a

  beam =  shell


Here,  is the rotation vector, which contains the rotational degrees of freedom in the
Beam interface. The rotation vector is also available as a variable in the Shell interface,
where it is derived from the rotational degrees of freedom a. The shell normal is
denoted by n. Small rotations are assumed.

To create the coupling:

1 Add a General Extrusion node under Definitions>Nonlocal Couplings. Select the line on
the shell midsurface as source. Enter data in the Destination Map.

100 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

2 Add a Prescribed Displacement/Rotation node in the Beam interface and select the
corresponding edge.
3 Enter data for the prescribed displacements and rotations, for example
genext1(u)+genext1(shell.thy)*zdist, where zdist is some expression
defining the distance from the beam axis to the shell midsurface.

Because a shell does not have a valid rotation degree of freedom around
its normal, the rotation of the beam should not be connected in that
direction.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Nonlocal Couplings and Coupling Operators and General Extrusion

• About Nonlocal Couplings

COUPLING DIFFERENT ELEMENT TYPES | 101

 Applying Loads
An important aspect of structural analysis is the formulation of the forces applied to
the modeled structure. You can use custom expressions, predefined or user-defined
coordinate systems, and even variables from other modeling physics interfaces.

Loads can be applied in the structural mechanics interfaces on the body, face, edge, or
point levels. You can also apply loads to special features like Rigid Material or Rigid
Connector. There is also an option to apply point loads to given coordinates, which do
not have to coincide with a geometrical point or a mesh node.

In this section:

• Units, Orientation, and • Acceleration Loads

Visualization • Temperature Loads — Thermal
• Load Cases Expansion
• Singular Loads • Hygroscopic Swelling
• Moments in the Solid Mechanics • Total Loads
Interface • Loads with a Spatial Variation
• Pressure • Variables for Loads

Units, Orientation, and Visualization

USING UNITS
Enter loads in any unit, independently of the base SI unit system in the model, because
COMSOL automatically converts any unit to the base SI unit system. To use the
feature for automatic unit conversion, enter the unit in square brackets, for example,
100[lbf/in^2].

The exception is random vibration analysis. In that case, no automatic unit conversions
are available, so you must enter loads in the base units of the model.

PREDEFINED AND CUSTOM COORDINATE SYSTEMS

In this module, different predefined coordinate systems are available when materials or
boundary conditions are specified. There is always the global coordinate system.
Depending on the dimensionality of the part being worked with, there can also be

102 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

predefined coordinate systems such as the local tangent and normal coordinate system
for boundaries.

Custom coordinate systems are also available and are useful, for example, to specify a
load in any direction without splitting it into components. From the Definitions
toolbar, select a Coordinate System ( ) from the menu.

Some coordinate systems can have solution dependent axis directions. If

you use such a system for defining a load, the directions of the load follow
the moving coordinate axis directions if the Include geometric nonlinearity
check box is selected under the Study settings section of the current study
step.

VISUALIZATION
If you have switched on the physics symbols (see Displaying Physics Symbols in the
Graphics Window — An Example in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual),
then an applied load is indicated by a symbol together with a coordinate system
indicator displaying the definition directions for the load. The actual direction or
magnitude of the load you enter is not, however, reflected by the symbol. As a load in
COMSOL Multiphysics can be a function of parameters, variables, the solution, or
results from other physics interfaces, it is not possible to display it with only the
information available in the individual load feature.

Once you have turned on the physics symbols for a certain physics interface, you can
fine-tune the display. Every feature which has associated physics symbols will now have
a check box Show physics symbols, by which you can control the display of the symbols
for that specific feature.

Loads are among the results for which predefined plots are generated, so you will
always have access to a visual feedback of the loads after the solution. How to work
with the default load plots is described in detail in the Plotting Applied Loads section.

Sometimes, especially if you have entered complicated load expressions in a large

model, it is important to inspect the load distribution before you run the analysis. You
will then need to generate a dataset and the predefined plots. The fastest way to do that

APPLYING LOADS | 103

 is to click Get Initial Value on the Study toolbar. Note that if you change the loads, you
will have to delete the dataset and generate it again.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Physics Symbols
• Using Units
• Coordinate Systems
• Plotting Applied Loads

For an example showing how to examine the load distribution, see

Bracket — Static Analysis: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Tutorials/bracket_static. This is also the first
example used in the Introduction to the Structural Mechanics Module.

Load Cases
For a Stationary or Frequency Domain study, you can define load cases and constraint
cases. Any load or constraint can be assigned to a load or constraint group, and then
be used conditionally.

For most load types, the load case acts as a simple multiplier, but some cases need a
more detailed discussion:

• A Prescribed Displacement or Prescribed Displacement/Rotation node can be assigned

both a constraint group and a load group. You can use the constraint group to
switch on and off the whole constraint. The load group acts as a multiplier to any
nonzero prescribed values of displacement and rotations, and will not have any
effect unless the constraint is active.
• When a load case multiplier is used for Thermal Expansion, the multiplier is applied
not to the actual temperature, but to the difference between the temperature and
the strain free reference temperature. The temperature difference, and thus the
thermal strain, is proportional to the load case multiplier.
• Since Thermal Expansion nodes are exclusive (only the last one given gives a
contribution for a certain domain), you cannot switch between different Thermal
Expansion nodes only by assigning them to different load cases.
• Hygroscopic Swelling behaves analogously to Thermal Expansion.

104 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

• For External Stress, the given stress values are multiplied by the load case multiplier.
• A Spring Foundation or Thin Elastic Layer node can be assigned a constraint group,
which you can use to switch the whole boundary condition on and off. If there is
also a Predeformation subnode, then you can assign a load group to that subnode.
The prescribed predeformation is then multiplied by the load case multiplier.
Predeformation nodes are exclusive, you cannot switch between them by assigning
them to different load cases.
• A Rigid Connector can be assigned both a constraint group and a load group. You can
use the constraint group to switch off the prescribed displacements and rotations.
The load group acts as a multiplier to nonzero prescribed values of displacement and
rotations.
• If you have added Applied Force or Applied Moment nodes under a Rigid Connector,
you can assign individual load groups to these nodes.
• If you have added Applied Force or Applied Moment nodes under a Rigid Material, you
can assign individual load groups to these nodes.

Any expression that acts purely as a load, that is, contributes only to the
right-hand side of the system of equations, can be part of the load case
handling. This is true even if, for example, the corresponding feature does
not have a setting for load cases, or if it is a contribution you have created
using equation based modeling.

To do this, you can modify any such expression expr to

if(group.<lgName>,group.<lgName>*expr). Here, <lgName> is the
parameter name you have chosen in the settings for the load group.

In most cases, the expression group.<lgName>*expr is sufficient. The

only reason to use the longer version with the if() statement if you want
to avoid that expr is evaluated for load cases in which it is not used.

For example, if you have a boundary load which partially is always active,
and partially is conditional, you can write 20[MPa]+group.lg1*10[MPa]
in the input field for the pressure.

In particular, this approach is useful for features that override each other,
like Thermal Expansion, since you can then accommodate several load
cases in a single node in the Model Builder.

APPLYING LOADS | 105

 In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• About Load Cases

• Defining Load Groups and Constraint Groups
• Load Group
• Constraint Group

For an example about how to set up expressions for controlling position

and distribution of loads using load cases, see Tapered Cantilever with
Two Load Cases: Application Library path COMSOL_Multiphysics/
Structural_Mechanics/tapered_cantilever.

Singular Loads
In reality, loads always act on a finite area or over a volume. However, in a model loads
are sometimes defined on points or edges, which leads to a singularity. The reason for
this is that points and lines have no area, so the stress becomes infinite. Because of the
stress singularity, there are high stress values in the area surrounding the applied load.
The size of this area and the magnitude of the stress depend on both the mesh and the
material properties. The stress distribution at locations far from these singularities is
unaffected according a to a well-known principle in solid mechanics, the St. Venant’s
principle. It states that for an elastic body, statically equivalent systems of forces
produce the same stresses in the body, except in the immediate region where the loads
are applied.

Figure 2-5 shows a plate with a hole in plane stress loaded with a distributed load and
a point load of the same magnitude. The mesh consists of triangular elements with
quadratic shape functions. The high stress around the point load is dissipated within
the length of a few elements for both mesh cases. The stresses in the middle of the plate
and around the hole agree for the distributed load and the point load. The problem is
that due to the high stress around the singular load it is easy to overlook the high stress
region around the hole. When the point load is applied, the range must be manually
set for the stress plot to get the same visual feedback of the high stress region around
the hole in the two cases. This is because the default plot settings automatically set the
range based on the extreme values of the expression that is plotted.

Despite these findings it is good modeling practice to avoid singular loads because it is
difficult to estimate the size of the singular region. In the Structural Mechanics

106 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Module, it is possible to define loads on all boundary types. However, avoid singular
loads altogether with elastoplastic or creep materials.

The Plasticity and Creep nodes are available as a subnode to Linear Elastic
Material nodes with the Nonlinear Structural Materials Module or the
Geomechanics Module.

normal mesh size

finer mesh size

Figure 2-5: A plate with a hole subject to a distributed load (left) and a point load (right).

For more details about singularities, see also

https://www.comsol.com/blogs/
singularities-in-finite-element-models-dealing-with-red-spots/

https://www.comsol.com/blogs/
applying-and-interpreting-saint-venants-principle/

APPLYING LOADS | 107

 Moments in the Solid Mechanics Interface
The Solid Mechanics interface, as opposed to the Beam, Pipe Mechanics, Plate, and
Shell interfaces, does not have rotational degrees of freedom. This makes the direct
specification of moment loads somewhat more complicated. To specify moments, you
can attach a Rigid Connector to the loaded area. The rigid connector has rotational
degrees of freedom, and it is possible to apply moments directly. For load application,
the flexible formulation of the rigid connector is particularly useful, since it avoids
artificial stiffening of the boundary where the load is applied.

Pressure
A pressure is a load acting toward the normal of a face of the structure. If there are
large deformations in the model and the Include geometric nonlinearity check box is
selected under the Study settings section of the current study step, the pressure acts as
a follower load. The pressure is then defined with respect to the geometry and, as the
geometry deforms locally, the orientation of the load changes. The size of the loaded
area can also change as an effect of straining.

Acceleration Loads
Within the structural mechanics interfaces, you will find four different types of loads
to describe acceleration loads:

• Gravity
• Base Excitation
• Rotating Frame
• Linearly Accelerated Frame

The two first nodes have are of a global type. They will be applied to all features in the
physics interface, and cannot have a spatial variation.

The Rotating Frame and Linearly Accelerated Frame nodes have a domain selection. They
can be applied selectively, and also depend on the coordinates. When applied to a set
of selected domains, such loads are applied also to lower dimensional objects, for
example, a point mass or an added mass on an edge.

All acceleration loads share the property that they are not applied to mass contributions
that belong to global features such as rigid connectors. There, you must add loads
explicitly.

108 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

When a structure is subjected to an acceleration which is applied to all its support
points, then it often more convenient to replace the support acceleration by a an
acceleration force, using a Base Excitation node. In particular, this is necessary when
using modal based dynamic analyses, in which nonzero prescribed displacements
cannot be used. Changing to a frame acceleration load does not affect the distribution
of forces and stresses. It will however imply that displacements, velocities, and
accelerations are measured relative to the supports, and not relative to a room fixed
coordinate system. The Base Excitation node does however also define absolute
acceleration variables, which are what would be measured by an accelerometer.

Temperature Loads — Thermal Expansion

When performing thermal expansion analysis, temperature loads are specified by
entering a temperature and a reference temperature in a thermal expansion subnode
which is available from the context menu (right-click the parent node, a Linear Elastic
Material node, for example) or from the Physics toolbar, Attributes menu. Enter a
constant temperature or an analytic expression that can depend on the coordinates or
dependent variables. For beams, plates, and shells it is also possible to specify bending
temperature loads. More details are available in the descriptions for each physics
interface.

When a separate physics interface is used to model heat transfer in the material, the
entry for the temperature is the dependent variable for the temperature from that
physics interface, typically T. In most cases, possible temperature variables from other
physics interfaces can be directly selected from a list.

• For more information about how to couple heat transfer analysis with
structural mechanics analysis, see Thermal-Structure Interaction. This
module also includes The Thermal Stress, Solid Interface.
• For a detailed discussion about thermal effects in structural mechanics
models, see Thermally Coupled Problems.

Hygroscopic Swelling
Some materials have the capability to absorb significant amounts of moisture through
diffusion processes. Changes in the moisture content may then cause volume changes.

To include the effects of hygroscopic swelling, the Hygroscopic Swelling subnode is

available from the context menu (right-click the parent node, Linear Elastic Material

APPLYING LOADS | 109

 node, for example) or from the Physics toolbar, Attributes menu. Enter a constant
concentration or an analytic expression that can depend on the coordinates or
dependent variables. For beams, plates, and shells it is also possible to specify bending
swelling loads caused by concentration gradient in the transverse direction. More
details are available in the descriptions for each physics interface.

When a separate physics interface is used to model the moisture diffusion in the
material, the entry for the concentration is the dependent variable for the
concentration from that physics interface, typically c. In most cases, possible
concentration variables from other physics interfaces can be directly selected from a
list.

The diffusion of the moisture into the material also adds to the mass density. You can
choose to automatically include this effect in a dynamic analysis, and also in mass
proportional loads, such as gravity and rotating frame loads.

Total Loads
You can specify a load either as a distributed load per unit length, area, or volume, or
as a total force to be distributed on a boundary. In the case of a total load, the applied
distributed load is the given load divided by the area (or length, or volume) on which
its acts. Thus, entering a total load is usually only meaningful when its orientation is
given by a Cartesian coordinate system.

Loads with a Spatial Variation

Since you can write any type of expression in an input text field, it is easy to describe
loads having a spatial variation.

HYDROSTATIC LOAD
Hydrostatic loading is a common special case of spatial variation. In this case, there is
often a fluid surface, above which there is no load. Such a load you can describe with
an expression like if(Z<ZSurf,rhoFluid*g_const*(ZSurf-Z),0). Here, ZSurf
and rhoFluid are assumed to be parameters containing the Z-coordinate of the fluid
surface and the mass density of the fluid respectively.

LOADS WITH A FAST SPATIAL VARIATION

If a load has a spatial variation which is fast relative to the element size, you may need
to increase the accuracy of the numerical integration used to compute the load
contribution. As a default, a load which varies no faster than the polynomial order of

110 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

the displacement shape functions can be integrated exactly. To change the integration
order, enable Equation View. In the Equation View node under the current load node
in the Model Builder tree, you can then increase the integration order.

The local stress state within the loaded element is still limited by what can be described
by the shape functions, but the total load applied on the structure will be more
accurate it you increase the integration order.

TRAVELING LOADS
Loads that are moving along the structure with time can be modeled using an
expression X-v*t, where v is the velocity of the load. The mesh independent point
load of the type Point Load, Free is particularly well suited for this type of modeling. If
a distributed load is modeled using this approach, it is often necessary to increase the
integration order as discussed in the previous section, since the load patch will typically
cover partial element faces.

Variables for Loads

Each node in which a load is given, such as Boundary Load or Point Load, creates a
number of variables which you have access to, for example during postprocessing.
These variables have standardized names. The names are constructed using the
following pattern: <phys>.<loadTag>_<loadType>_<geom><dir>, for example
solid.bndl1.F_Ax.

TABLE 2-4: THE LOAD VARIABLE NAMING SCHEME

DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

<phys> Physics interface tag solid, truss2

<loadTag> Tag of the load feature bndl1, el2
<loadType> Force or moment F (force)
M (moment)
<geom> The type of object to which P (point)
the load is applied L (line)
A (area)
V (volume)
<dir> Orientation x, y, z, r (vector
components)
_Mag (magnitude of
the vector)

APPLYING LOADS | 111

 For loads which are do not have a geometrical selection, such as loads on Rigid
Connector and Rigid Material, the _<geom> part of the name is omitted. As an example,
a load created through an Applied Force node under a Rigid Connector, is contained in
a variable such as solid.rig2.rf4.Fy.

112 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Defining Constraints
Defining the proper constraints for structural mechanics models is just as important as
defining the loads as together they make up the model boundary conditions. There are
many useful predefined physics features to define the constraints or to create
user-defined expressions that define constraints.

In this section:

• Rigid Body Motion

• Orientation
• Prescribed Displacements, Velocities, and Accelerations
• Symmetry Constraints
• Elemental and Nodal Constraints
• Suppressing Constraints on Lower Dimensions
• Kinematic Constraints
• Rotational Joints
• Attachments

Rigid Body Motion

In most cases, a structure must have a set of constraints which is sufficient to suppress
any rigid body motions. A stationary problem is solvable only if the structure is
sufficiently constrained. There must not be any possible rigid body modes. Thus, no
stress-free deformation states are allowed. In a dynamic analysis, rigid body motions
are admissible. The inertial forces will then balance the external forces.

The number of possible rigid body modes for different geometrical dimensions is
shown in the table below.
TABLE 2-5: NUMBER OF POSSIBLE RIGID BODY MODES

DIMENSION NUMBER OF RIGID BODY MODES

3D 6 (3 translations + 3 rotations)
2D axisymmetric 1 (Z-direction translation)
2D (solid, beam, truss) 3 (2 translations + 1 rotation)
2D (plate) 3 (1 translation + 2 rotations)

DEFINING CONSTRAINTS | 113

 If the model is under constrained, you may encounter the following problems:

• The solver reports that the stiffness matrix is singular.

• The solver reports that the stiffness matrix is ill-conditioned. Theoretically, the
matrix is singular for a structure with rigid body modes, but because of the roundoff
errors during the solution this is not exactly determined.
• A nonlinear analysis fails to converge.
• An iterative linear equation solver fails to converge.
• You get a solution with an extremely large displacement, orders of magnitude larger
than what is expected.

For a single body, it is seldom difficult to see whether it is fully constrained or not, but
for a more complex assembly, including several physics interfaces, or advanced
couplings and boundary conditions, it may not be trivial. If you suspect that rigid body
modes are a problem in your model, you can run an eigenfrequency analysis, and check
for modes with zero eigenfrequency as described in Eigenfrequency Analysis.

If there are no constraints which are dictated by the physical boundary conditions of
the structure, you can use the Rigid Motion Suppression feature to automatically
remove the rigid body motions. When you do this, the assumption is that the external
loads are in equilibrium. If not, reaction forces and stress concentrations will appear at
seemingly arbitrary points where the automatic constraints were placed.

As an alternative to applying constraints, you can also add elastic supports through a
Spring Foundation node to suppress rigid body motion.

Rigid Motion Suppression in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

Orientation
You can specify constraints in global as well as in any previously defined local
coordinate system.

Coordinate Systems in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

114 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Prescribed Displacements, Velocities, and Accelerations
The most fundamental constraint is the prescribed displacement, where the individual
components of displacement or rotation can be prescribed to zero or nonzero values
for points, edges, boundaries, or domains.

For dynamic analysis, you can also directly prescribe the velocity or acceleration. The
conditions for prescribing displacements, velocities, or accelerations are mutually
exclusive for the same geometrical object since they prescribe the same degree of
freedom.

FREQUENCY DOMAIN
In frequency domain, a prescribed velocity vp or prescribed acceleration ap can be
directly interpreted as a prescribed displacement up:

vp
u p = ------
i

–ap
u p = --------
2
-


where  is the angular frequency.

A prescribed velocity with zero phase is assumed to have its peak at the
reference phase. As an effect, the corresponding peak displacement is
shifted by 90°. Similarly, a positive prescribed acceleration with zero phase
corresponds to a negative value of the displacement.

These definitions are particularly important if you mix prescribed velocity

or acceleration conditions with other boundary conditions.

TIME DOMAIN
In the case of a time-dependent analysis, the prescribed displacement is obtained as


u p  t  = u 0  t 0  + v p    d
t0

or

DEFINING CONSTRAINTS | 115

 t 
 
u p  t  = u 0  t 0  + v 0  t 0  + a p    d d
 

 
t0  t0 

where u0 and v0 are is given by the initial conditions. It is not possible to set explicit
initial conditions, but if initial values are taken from a previous study, they will be
respected. In order to compute the integrals, up is introduced as a separate degree of
freedom which is solved for by adding an extra ODE.

As prescribing the velocity or acceleration in time domain comes with an extra cost,
you should always consider using a prescribed displacement instead. As long as the
time history of the velocity or acceleration is a known a priori and does not depend on
the solution itself, this is possible.

• When the velocity or acceleration has a simple time dependence, you can integrate
it analytically one or two times to obtain the displacement, and directly prescribe the
displacement instead.
• When you have complicated known velocity or acceleration histories, for example
from measurements, you can use the integrate() operator. In this case, you enter
the prescribed displacement as integrate(my_data(tau),tau,0,t). Here
my_data is the measured data as function of time, and tau is a dummy integration
variable

When a local coordinate system is used for prescribing a prescribed velocity or

acceleration, the axis directions must be fixed in space. As an example, you cannot use
a Boundary System rotating with the deformation.

STATIONARY ANALYSIS
In a stationary analysis, the prescribed velocity and acceleration nodes can have two
different behaviors. As a default, they are ignored, but you can also select that the
degrees of freedom having a prescribed velocity or acceleration in a dynamic analysis
should be constrained to zero in a static analysis.

Symmetry Constraints
In many cases symmetry of the geometry and loads can be used to your advantage in
modeling. Symmetries can often greatly reduce the size of a model and hence reduce
the memory requirements and solution time. When a structure exhibits axial
symmetry, use the axisymmetric physics interfaces. A solid that is generated by rotating
a planar shape about an axis is said to have axial symmetry. In order to make use of

116 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

the axisymmetric physics interfaces, all loads and constraints must also be the same
around the circumference.

For other types of symmetry, use the predefined symmetry and antisymmetry
constraints. This means that no expressions need to be entered — instead just add the
type of constraint to apply to the model.

Physics Interface Axial Symmetry Node in the COMSOL Multiphysics

Reference Manual

If the geometry exhibits two symmetry planes (Figure 2-6), model a quarter of the
geometry by using the Symmetry node for the two selected surfaces.

Symmetry planes Apply symmetry constraints

Figure 2-6: If the geometry exhibits two symmetry planes, model a quarter of the geometry
by using the Symmetry feature for the two selected surfaces.

Both geometric symmetry and loads are important when selecting the
correct constraints for a model.

In an eigenfrequency or buckling analysis, the eigenmodes might be

nonsymmetric even if the structure is symmetric.

Figure 2-7 shows symmetric and antisymmetric loading of a symmetric geometry.

When modeling half of the geometry, the correct constraint for the face at the middle

DEFINING CONSTRAINTS | 117

 of the object would be Antisymmetry in the case of antisymmetric loading and
Symmetry in the case of symmetric loading of the object.

Symmetry plane Antisymmetry plane

Figure 2-7: Symmetry plane (left) and antisymmetry plane (right).

SYMMETRY IN 2D AXISYMMETRY
In an axisymmetric model, the only possible symmetry is when the symmetry plane is
normal to the Z-axis. For models in 2d axisymmetry, the Symmetry Plane node is used
for prescribing this type of symmetry.

Antisymmetry cannot exist in this case.

TRANSLATION OF THE SYMMETRY PLANE

In some situations, you may want to use a symmetry condition, in which the symmetry
boundary actually can move along its normal. This may for example the case when you
use symmetry conditions to terminate your modeled region even though the situation
is not truly symmetric. The best approximation may then be that the boundary remains
planar, but that there is no resultant reaction force from the boundary condition.

You can modify the symmetry condition, so that it can translate in various ways by
using the controls in the Normal Direction Condition section of the settings for the
Symmetry constraint. You can model the following cases:

• Reaction force free translation.

• Prescribed total force acting on the constrained part.
• The displacement in the normal direction is prescribed.

118 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Note that allowing translation in the symmetry constraint is only meaningful if the
geometry selection corresponds to a single symmetry plane.

For an example showing how to force a boundary to remain plane, but

still allow it to translate in its normal direction using this special version
of Symmetry, see Thermo-Mechanical Analysis of a Surface-Mounted
Resistor: Application Library path Structural_Mechanics_Module/
Thermal-Structure_Interaction/surface_resistor.

Symmetry Condition with Translation in the Structural Mechanics

Theory chapter.

Elemental and Nodal Constraints

For most constraints, you can select between using elemental and nodal constraints.
To do this, select Advanced Physics Options, so that the Constraint Settings section is
displayed.

When using nodal constraints, one constraint is generated for each node within the
selection a certain constraint feature. With elemental constraints, the number of
constraints added at a node equals the number of elements connected to that node.
This means that if some values used in the constraints differ between the elements,
then different constraints will be generated by the elemental method, whereas with the
nodal method an average is computed at the node before adding the constraint.

When several constraints are present at a node, the internal constraint elimination
algorithm is responsible for reducing them to a minimum unique set. Using elemental
constraints will clearly put an extra burden on this algorithm, so whenever possible you
should use nodal constraints.

The two different options exist, since under some circumstances the actual constraints
can differ between the two methods. Consider for example a symmetry constraint,
where the displacement in the direction normal to the boundary is constrained by the
equation

un = 0

where n is the unit normal vector.

DEFINING CONSTRAINTS | 119

 If there are several intersecting symmetry planes, like in Figure 2-6, using nodal
constraints could cause a problem:

• If both boundaries are selected in the same Symmetry node, then only a single
constraint is applied for each node along the common edge, while you actually want
constraints along the normals of both planes. The normal used would be pointing
somewhere between the two planes, since a nodal constraint uses averaging of the
values from the adjacent elements.
• If two Symmetry nodes are used, so that the selection in any one of them only
contains boundaries without a normal direction discontinuity, the intended
constraints are added. On the common edge, there will be two contributions, one
from each Symmetry node, and each using the normal direction of its boundary. If
you want to use nodal constraints, you must set up your model in this way if the
constraints are orientation dependent.

Elemental constraints, on the other hand, can cause problems if the constraints added
by adjacent elements are not exactly the same. This could for example happen if the
normal orientation differs between neighboring elements. In such a case, a boundary
could behave as if it were fixed when a Symmetry, Antisymmetry, or Roller constraint is
applied. Such a situation could occur when the component consists of an imported
mesh, so that no underlying geometry exists.

The default type of the constraint, nodal or elemental, differs between different
constraint features. A nodal formulation is the default whenever it is considered safe,
like for a Fixed Constraint. Whenever the constraint can have a dependency on the
surface orientation, the default value is elemental.

See also Constraint Settings in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference

Manual.

Suppressing Constraints on Lower Dimensions

Sometimes, boundary conditions on two adjacent objects can come into conflict on a
shared object.

For most constraints in the structural mechanics interfaces, you have the possibility to
select that certain objects of lower dimensions should be excluded from the main
selection. To do this, you must first select Advanced Physics Options. In the settings for
a constraint, like for example Prescribed Displacement, new sections named Excluded

120 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Surfaces, Excluded Edges, and Excluded Points will then appear. In these sections, you
can select geometrical objects which should be excluded from the main selection when
the constraint is applied.

In the structural mechanics interfaces, there are many types of complex constraints,
and sometimes you may get conflicts or duplicates which makes the model either
overconstrained, or problematic for the automatic constraint elimination algorithm. If
you are aware of such situations, it is good practice to remove one of the potentially
conflicting constraints. One example of such a situation is when you have a Solid-Shell
Connection meeting a symmetry plane, as shown in Figure 2-8.

Figure 2-8: Example of potentially conflicting constraints

Here you would add a Symmetry condition on a boundary in the Solid Mechanics
interface, as well as a Symmetry condition on an edge in the Shell interface. But at the
same time, the displacements on whole boundary where the solid meets the shell are
controlled by shell degrees of freedom as an effect of the Solid-Shell Connection. As a
result, on the edge marked with Conflict in the sketch, the displacements will be
controlled both by the symmetry condition is Solid Mechanics, and implicitly through
the coupling, by the symmetry condition in the Shell interface. Particularly if the
geometry is curved, there is a risk that these constraints are not identical from a
numerical point of view. In this case, excluding the conflicting edge from the selected
boundary in the Solid Mechanics interface will make the behavior unique and fully
predictable.

Another example where constraints will come in conflict is if you want to constrain the
displacement on parts of the geometry using weak constraints, while keeping the
default pointwise constraints on other parts. If the same mesh node has both types of

DEFINING CONSTRAINTS | 121

 constraints, the solution will fail, so you must exclude any common geometrical objects
from the selection in one of the constraints.

See also Excluded Surfaces, Excluded Edges, and Excluded Points in the
COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

Kinematic Constraints
Kinematic constraints are equations that control the motion of solids, faces, edges, or
points. Add a Prescribed Displacement constraint to enter expressions for constraints.
You can define the equations using predefined coordinate systems as well as custom
coordinate systems. Special constraints, for instance to keep an edge of body straight
or to make a boundary rotate, require such constraint equations.

In the 3D and 2D Solid Mechanics interfaces and in the Shell and Beam
interface there is a special constraint called a Rigid Connector. A rigid
connector is applied to one or more boundaries, edges, or points and force
them to behave as connected to a common rigid body. The rigid
connector can be given prescribed displacements and rotations and thus
simplifies the realization of some constraints.

Rotational Joints
Joints between elements in The Truss Interface are automatically rotational joints
because the truss elements have no rotational degrees of freedom. For beams, however,
the rotational degrees of freedom are by default coupled between elements. To create
a rotational joint between two beam elements, add one additional Beam interface to a
geometry. Make sure that it is only active for the edge that includes the point where
the joint is positioned and that no other physics interface is active here. Couple the
translational degrees of freedom and leave the rotational degrees of freedom
uncoupled at the joint.

Attachments
An Attachment is a set of boundaries, edges, or points on a flexible or rigid component
used to connect it to another flexible or rigid component through a joint or spring. An

122 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

attachment can be defined on the boundaries of a solid element, on the edges of a shell
element, and on the points of a beam element.

When an attachment is connected to a flexible body, you can use two different
formulations: rigid or flexible.

In the rigid attachment formulation, all selected boundaries or edges behave as if they
were connected to a common rigid body. This may cause an unrealistic stiffening and
local stress concentrations.

In the flexible version, the boundaries are allowed to deform, and the rigid body
constraints are enforced only in an average sense.

The attachment formulation is similar to that of a rigid connector. In the rigid case,
the only degrees of freedom needed to represent this assembly are the ones needed to
describe the movement of a rigid body. In 2D this is just two in-plane translations, and
the rotation around the out-of-plane axis.

In 3D the situation is more complex. Six degrees of freedom are necessary, usually
selected as three translations and three parameters for the rotation. For finite rotations
any choice of three rotation parameters is singular at some specific set of angles. For
this reason, a four-parameter quaternion representation is used.

Some extra degrees of freedom are added for each attachment where the flexible
formulation is used.

When an attachment is defined on a rigid component, it does not create any degrees
of freedom of its own and directly picks the degrees of freedom of the rigid
component.

The formulation of the attachment feature is same as the rigid connector

formulation, which is discussed in Rigid Connector in the Structural
Mechanics Module User’s Guide.

Some useful information about the attachment feature:

• The attachment can be defined either on a flexible or on a rigid component. It is not

possible to select the boundaries from both types of components in a single
attachment. The reason is the different formulation of attachment for flexible or
rigid components.

DEFINING CONSTRAINTS | 123

 • The attachment’s center of rotation is the centroid of its selected boundaries, edges,
or points. In a joint, it is possible to select the attachment center of rotation as the
center of the joint.
• If the attachment is connected to a flexible domain, the forces and moments on an
attachment with a boundary selection are computed by summing the reaction forces
on the selected boundaries. There is an option to use these forces and moments to
evaluate the joint forces.
• For an attachment in the Shell interface, the selection consists of edges. The forces
and moments on an attachment are then computed by summing the reaction forces
and reaction moments on the selected edges. There is an option to use these forces
and moments to evaluate the joint forces.
• For an attachment in the Beam interface, the selection consists of points. The forces
and moments on an attachment are then computed by summing the reaction forces
and reaction moments on the selected points. There is an option to use these forces
and moments to evaluate the joint forces.
• When an attachment is defined in the Shell or Beam interface, the normal force
cannot be defined through Attachment reaction forces in the Friction subnode of a
joint.
• In a joint you select attachments to establish its connection with flexible, or
optionally, rigid bodies. This is accomplished by setting up a relation between the
source attachment and destination attachment degrees of freedom. Thus, the
motion of an attachment is governed by the joints where this attachment is used.
• An attachment which is not referenced by any joint acts as an unconstrained rigid
connector.

• The Multibody Dynamics Interface

• The Solid Mechanics Interface, The Shell and Plate Interfaces, and The
Beam Interface in the Structural Mechanics Module User’s Guide.

124 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Calculating Reaction Forces
There are different ways to evaluate reaction forces and these are discussed in this
section.

• Using Predefined Variables to Evaluate Reaction Forces

• Using Weak Constraints to Evaluate Reaction Forces
• Using Surface Traction to Evaluate Reaction Forces
• Evaluating Surface Traction Forces on Interior Boundaries

The following sections describe the merits and costs of these methods.

Using Predefined Variables to Evaluate Reaction Forces

The results analysis capabilities include easy access to the reaction forces and moments.
They are available as predefined variables. The reaction force variables are available
only at the nodes, and not as a continuous field, so they are not suitable for graphic
presentation.

To compute the sum of the reaction forces over a region, use

Volume Integration, Surface Integration, or Line Integration under Results>
Derived Values or under an Evaluation Group node. The integration
method discovers that the reaction forces are discrete values and applies a
summation instead of an integration.

If you create an integration operator under Component>Definitions>

Nonlocal Couplings>Integration to sum reaction forces, you must explicitly
set Method to Summation over nodes.

Reaction forces are computed as the sum of the nodal values over the selected volume,
face, or edge. Reaction moments are calculated as the sum of the moment from the
reaction forces with respect to a reference point, and any explicit reaction moments (if

CALCULATING REACTION FORCES | 125

 there are rotational degrees of freedom). During postprocessing, you can modify the
coordinates of the reference point in the Parameters section of a result feature.

• Reaction forces are not available for eigenfrequency analysis or when

weak constraints are used.
• Reaction force variables are computed where there are constraints, that
is Dirichlet conditions like Fixed Constraint, or Prescribed Displacement.
Reaction force variables are found in the Reactions folder in the result
menus, and have names like solid.RFx and solid.RMz for an
x-directed force and a moment around the z-axis, respectively.
• From the physical point of view, there can be other sources of reaction
forces, such as the elastic and viscous forces from a Spring Foundation.
Such forces are not included in the reaction force variables, but are
placed in separate variables. You will find them in the Spring and
damping forces folder in the result menus.

• Total reaction force variables are available. In these variables, reaction

forces, spring forces, and damping forces have been integrated over the
whole physics interface. These variables are found in the Reactions
folder in the result menus, and have names like solid.RFtotalx and
solid.RMtotalz for an x-directed force and a moment around the
z-axis, respectively. These variables should thus, for a stationary
analysis, be equal to the total applied load.
• If reaction forces are summed independently for two adjacent
boundaries, the total sum is not the same as if the reaction forces were
summed for both boundaries in one operation. The values of the nodes
at the common edge always contain contributions from the elements
at both sides of the edge.

Derived Values, Evaluation Groups, and Tables in the COMSOL

Multiphysics Reference Manual

Using Weak Constraints to Evaluate Reaction Forces

Select the Use weak constraints check box to get accurate distributed reactions. Extra
variables that correspond to the reaction traction distribution are automatically added
to the solution components.

126 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

With weak constraints activated, COMSOL Multiphysics adds the reaction forces to
the solution components. The variables are denoted X_lm, where X is the name of the
constrained degree of freedom (as, for example, u_lm and v_lm). The extension lm
stands for Lagrange multipliers. It is only possible to evaluate reaction forces on
constrained boundaries in the directions of the constraints.

To compute the total reaction force on a boundary, integrate one of the

variables X_lm using Volume Integration, Surface Integration, or Line
Integration under Derived Values or under an Evaluation Group node.

If the constraint is defined in a local coordinate system, the degrees of

freedom for the weak constraint variables are defined along the directions
of that system.

Since the reaction force variables are added to the solution components, the number
of DOFs for the model increases slightly, depending on the mesh size for the
boundaries in question. Boundaries that are adjacent to each other must have the same
constraint settings. The reason for this is that adjacent boundaries share a common
node.

Using weak constraints affects the structure of the equation system to be solved, and
is not suitable for all types of equation solvers.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Derived Values, Evaluation Groups, and Tables

• Symmetric and Nonsymmetric Constraints

Using Surface Traction to Evaluate Reaction Forces

As an alternative method, you can obtain values of the reaction forces on constrained
boundaries by using boundary integration of the relevant components of the surface
traction vector.

For 2D and 1D axisymmetric components, multiply the surface traction

by the cross-section thickness, and for 1D components multiply the
surface traction by the cross-section area before integrating to calculate
the total reaction force.

CALCULATING REACTION FORCES | 127

 Two different types of surface traction results can be computed in COMSOL
Multiphysics:

The first type, contained in the variables interface.Tax, is computed from the
stresses. It is always available. Since the surface traction vector is based on computed
stress results, this method is less accurate for computing reactions than the other
methods.

The second type, contained in the variables interface.Tracx, is computed using a

method similar to the weak constraints, but without introducing the Lagrange
multipliers as extra degrees of freedom. The accuracy is high, but there is an extra
computational cost. These traction variables are computed only if the Compute
boundary fluxes check box in the Discretization section is selected for the Solid
Mechanics interface.

In case of geometric nonlinearity, the two types of traction variables are

interpreted differently. The interface.Tax variables are based on
Cauchy stress, and contains a force per current area. If you integrate them
you must use the spatial frame. The interface.Tracx variables are based
on First Piola–Kirchhoff stresses and contains a force per undeformed
area. An integration must then be done on the material frame.

Evaluating Surface Traction Forces on Interior Boundaries

As opposed to the other methods for reaction force computation, the boundary flux
based tractions are computed not only on external boundaries, but also on interior
boundaries. On interior boundaries, there are then two traction fields: One acting
from each of the domains sharing the boundary. These internal traction fields are
contained in the variables interface.iTracux and interface.iTracdx. The letters
u and d in the variable names indicate the upside and downside of the boundary,
respectively. If you need the value of the total force acting on an internal section
through your model, these variables can be integrated. The interface.iTracux and
interface.iTracdx variables are only available if the Compute boundary fluxes check
box is selected in the Discretization section of the physics interface, and there are
interior boundaries in your model.

Computing Accurate Fluxes in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference

Manual

128 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Introduction to Material Models
In this section:

• Material Models for Structural Mechanics

• Entering Material Data
• Introduction to Linear Elastic Materials
• Introduction to Viscoelastic Materials
• Mixed Formulation
• Modeling Damage
• About the Material Databases for the Structural Mechanics Module
• Using External Materials

Material Models for Structural Mechanics

The Structural Mechanics Module without any add-on modules provides the Linear
Elastic material with Viscoelasticity and Thermal Expansion modeling capabilities. It
also provides access to piezoelectric and magnetostrictive materials.

If you have the optional products Nonlinear Structural Materials Module or

Geomechanics Module, many other classes of nonlinear materials are also available.
These models can be modified and extended, and custom material models can be
defined.

You can also add a material model which you have coded yourself and made available
as a binary library file using an External Stress-Strain Relation.

• Modeling Piezoelectric Problems

• Modeling Magnetostrictive Materials
In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Working with External Materials

• External Material

INTRODUCTION TO MATERIAL MODELS | 129

 In Table 2-6 and Table 2-7 you can find an overview of the families of materials, and
their applicability in the various structural mechanics interfaces.
TABLE 2-6: MATERIAL MODELS IN THE PHYSICS INTERFACES ON DOMAINS AND BOUNDARIES

MATERIAL SOLID ELASTIC SHELL/ LAYERED MEMBRANE

MODEL MECHANICS WAVES, PLATE SHELL
TIME
EXPLICIT

Linear Elastic Material X — X X X

Layered Linear Elastic — — X — X
Material
Section Stiffness — — X — —
Elastic Waves, Time — X — — —
Explicit Model
Nonlinear Elastic X — — — X
Material
Hyperelastic Material X — — X X
Layered Hyperelastic — — X — —
Material
Shape Memory Alloy X — — — —
Piezoelectric Material X — — X —
Piezomagnetic X — — — —
Material
Viscoelasticity X — X X X
Plasticity X — X X X
Soil Plasticity X — — — —
Creep X — X X X
Elastoplastic Soil X — — — —
Material
Viscoplasticity X — X X X
Porous Plasticity X — — — —
Concrete X — — — —
Rocks X — — — —
Damage X — — — —
External Stress-Strain X — — — X
Relation
Rigid Material X — X X —

130 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

TABLE 2-7: MATERIAL MODELS IN THE PHYSICS INTERFACES ON EDGES

MATERIAL BEAM PIPE TRUSS

MODEL MECHANICS

Linear Elastic Material X — X

Fluid and Pipe — X —
Materials
Section Stiffness X — —
Plasticity — — X
Rigid Material X X —
Spring-Damper — — X
Material

Many of the material models can be augmented by effects like thermal expansion,
hygroscopic swelling, initial stresses and strains, external stress, and activation.

Combination of Material Models

It is possible to combine many of the effects in an additive manner. The models based
on elasticity all have the same structure where

1 An elastic strain is computed by removing all inelastic strains (for example, plastic or
thermal strains) from the total strain.
2 An “elastic stress” is computed from the elastic strains.
3 Any additional stresses (for example viscous stresses, or initial stresses) are added to
form the total stress.

This concept will give you a great freedom in combining effects. Some such useful
combinations are

• Plasticity and thermal expansion

• Plasticity and creep
• Thermal expansion and hygroscopic swelling
• Viscoelasticity and creep

Entering Material Data

For most material data, you have the option to choose between From material and
User defined. The preferred way of supplying the material data, is through the Materials

INTRODUCTION TO MATERIAL MODELS | 131

 node. If you are using data from the Material Library, this is the only option, but also
when supplying your own data this will improve clarity of model.

Constitutive matrices, such as the elasticity matrix for an anisotropic material, are in
many cases per definition symmetric. Only the upper diagonal of the matrix given as
input is used for forming the matrix used, so you need not enter the lower diagonal
part.

Introduction to Linear Elastic Materials

Linear elasticity forms the basis for the majority of structural mechanics simulations.

For isotropic linear elasticity, two parameters are enough to describe the material
behavior. The number of parameters increases to (at most) 21 for the fully anisotropic
case in 3D. When setting up a model, make sure that the material parameters are
defined in agreement with the type of relationship used. If necessary, transform the
material data before entering it in the physics interface. For example, for orthotropic
materials calculate the Poisson’s ratio xy by

Ex
 xy =  yx ------
Ey

In the theory section Linear Elastic Material

Introduction to Viscoelastic Materials

The generalized Maxwell, standard linear solid (SLS) and Kelvin-Voigt viscoelastic
materials are available. All the models are linear, and the corresponding materials can
be described as consisting of one or more branches with a spring and a dashpot acting
in parallel to a linear elastic material. For each viscoelastic branch, the shear modulus
and the relaxation time (or viscosity) are entered.

• Linear Viscoelasticity
• Viscoelasticity

132 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Mixed Formulation
Nearly and fully incompressible materials can cause numerical problems if only
displacements are used in the interpolating functions. Small errors in the evaluation of
volumetric strain, due to the finite resolution of the discrete model, are exaggerated by
the high bulk modulus. This leads to an unstable representation of stresses, and in
general to underestimation of the deformation, because spurious volumetric stresses
might balance also applied shear and bending loads.

In several material models you will find settings named Use mixed formulation or
Compressibility, by which you can introduce a mixed formulation.

Use a mixed formulation when the material data is such that the deformation is close
to being incompressible. For an isotropic elastic material, this happens when Poisson’s
ratio approaches 0.5.

There are different approaches to assess which combinations of displacement shape

function types and auxiliary variable shape function types yield numerically sound and
effective elements. In general, the shape function order of the auxiliary variable should
be lower than for the displacement field, to avoid locking. However, this is not a
sufficient requirement. The inf-sup condition (Ref. 1) can be used to analytically or
numerically identify sound mixed element formulations. In general, the outcome of
such a test will depend not only on the shape function type combination, but also on
the element type. For instance, a sound and effective combination of shape function
types for a tetrahedral element is not necessarily suitable for a hexahedral element.
COMSOL Multiphysics provides four types of shape functions for the auxiliary
pressure or auxiliary volumetric strain variable. The different shape function types for
the auxiliary variable are described below. Depending on the particular context, one of
these types is implicitly selected using Automatic.

Note that in the case of a mixed mesh, you may have to sub-divide the
domain by element type, to be able to control the shape functions for the
auxiliary variable.

DISCONTINUOUS LAGRANGE
If this shape function type is selected, the auxiliary variable shape function is
discontinuous across element boundaries, and it is one order lower than the shape
function order of the displacements.

INTRODUCTION TO MATERIAL MODELS | 133

 CONTINUOUS
If this shape function type is selected, the auxiliary variable shape function is
continuous across element boundaries. It will be of the same type (Lagrange or
Serendipity) as that of the displacements, but one order lower. A special case is for a
linear displacement field, for which a discontinuous, constant, shape function is used.

LINEAR
If this shape function type is selected, the auxiliary variable is regarded as a linearly
interpolated field in the element. In the case of an auxiliary pressure, the interpolation
in a 3D isoparametric element is

p = p0 + 1  p1 – p0  + 2  p2 – p0  + 3  p3 – p0 

where p0, p1, p2, and p3 are auxiliary pressure coefficients, and 1, 2, and 3 are
isoparametric coordinates. Note that the field is linear in the local element coordinates,
and that it is not continuous across element boundaries.

The linear shape function type is not available for layered material
features.

CONSTANT
This shape function type represents a constant auxiliary variable in the element, p = p0.

The mixed formulation is useful not only for linear elastic materials but
also for nonlinear elastic materials, elastoplastic materials, hyperelastic
materials, and viscoelastic materials.

Note that some iterative solvers do not work well together with mixed
formulation because the stiffness matrix becomes indefinite.

For more details, see Mixed Formulation in the theory chapter.

134 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Modeling Damage
Modeling problems with strain localization might turn into unstable behavior and
convergence difficulties. The following techniques can be used to help in such
situations:

• Use a displacement-controlled loading scheme, since damage is often associated

with a reduction in load carrying capacity, see the Cracking of a Notched Beam
example in the Geomechanics Module or in the Nonlinear Structural Mechanics
Module Application Libraries.
• Better convergence is often obtained when the Nonlinear method is set to Constant
(Newton) with a Damping factor equal to 1, and a Jacobian update on every iteration.
• Reduce the smallest and/or largest allowable step size in an Auxiliary sweep, or
restrict the time steps in a time-dependent study.
• Introducing a soft spot where a crack is expected can make the localization of strains
more stable, see the Brittle Damage in Uniaxial Tension example in the
Geomechanics Module or in the Nonlinear Structural Mechanics Module
Application Libraries. Alternatively, a random spatial distribution of the material
parameters could be employed to obtain a more stable solution.

When using the crack band method or no regularization at all, the following steps are
recommended:

• The size of the biggest mesh element h should not exceed 2EGf/ts2, where E is
the Young’s modulus, Gf is the fracture energy per unit area, and ts is the tensile
strength. Larger values of h will cause a snap-back of the stress-strain curve at the
material point level.
• Use linear shape functions for the displacement field. When using higher-order
shape functions, strains may localize in either rows of Gauss points, or entire
elements, depending on the stress state and numerical rounding errors.
• If cracks are located on a symmetry plane, the model parameters should be modified
so that the amount of dissipated energy is reduced by one half in the elements
adjacent to the symmetry plane. This can be achieved, for example, by reducing the
fracture energy in that row of elements.
When using the implicit gradient method, the element size should be sufficiently small
to resolve damaged zones. The same applies to the Phase field damage model, where it
is recommended that size of the mesh elements in the expected crack path follows
h < lint/2 for a linear displacement field, otherwise h < lint.

INTRODUCTION TO MATERIAL MODELS | 135

 While it is possible to solve brittle fracture problems with the Phase field damage model
by applying a fully coupled strategy, this can often exhibit poor or slow convergence.
An alternative and often more stable approach is to use a segregated solution strategy,
by splitting the evolution of the crack phase field and the displacement field in two
groups. This type of algorithmic operator split can conceptually be summarized as
follows for step n+1:

1 Initialization. The crack phase field, displacement field and state variables are
known at step n.
2 Update state variables. Update internal state variables used by the phase field
model with values from step n.
3 Solve for the Crack Phase Field. Compute the crack phase field variable in a Newton
step, with the displacement field frozen at step n.
4 Solve for the Displacement field. Compute displacement field variables in a Newton
step with the updated crack phase field.
This leads to a single-pass algorithm that is accurate only for sufficiently small
parameter or time steps.

The default solver will suggest the above single-pass algorithm for the
Phase field damage model when it is feasible to perform the operator split.
Cases where this is not possible include when some multiphysics
couplings are present in the model and when a segregated contact
algorithm has to be used.

An improvement to the method is to add a multi-pass correction by iterating over steps

3 and 4 in each increment; either until convergence is achieved or for a predefined
number of iterations. This type of strategy is demonstrated in the Brittle Fracture of
a Holed Plate example in the Geomechanics Module or in the Nonlinear Structural
Mechanics Module Application Libraries, where a multi-pass algorithm with a
maximum of 3 outer iterations is used. Note that although the solution is accepted
without requiring convergence of the outer problem, each sub group locally fulfills the
defined convergence criterion. Hence the displacement field can be considered as a
converged solution given the current crack phase field.

About the Material Databases for the Structural Mechanics Module

The Structural Mechanics Module includes these material databases: Liquids and
Gases, with temperature-dependent fluid dynamic and thermal properties, MEMS, an

136 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

extended solid materials library with metals, semiconductors, insulators, and polymers
common in MEMS devices, and a Piezoelectric database with over 20 common
piezoelectric materials. The materials include temperature-dependent fluid dynamic
and thermal properties.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• MEMS Material Library

• Piezoelectric Materials Library
• Liquids and Gases Materials Library
• Materials

For an example of the MEMS materials database and Piezoelectric

materials database, see Piezoelectric Shear-Actuated Beam: Application
Library path Structural_Mechanics_Module/Piezoelectric_Effects/
shear_bender.

Using External Materials

If you need to use a constitutive model which is not available among the built-in
material models, it is possible to program it yourself. Such a material function, termed
an external material, is coded in C. If you already have an existing code in another
language like Fortran or C++, it is however possible to write a wrapper function to it.

Before moving to implementing your own material model, there are however two
other options to consider:

• Many material models like hyperelasticity, creep and plasticity have User defined as
one of the options in addition to the standard models. Any material model which
you can describe using built-in variables is most conveniently described here.
• A material model which can partially described in terms of a PDE can often be
implemented using one of the mathematical interfaces. Stresses or strains computed
in that interface are then injected in an existing material model using the External
Stress and External Strain subnodes.

There are two basic types of external material functions: those which completely
replace other material definitions in a domain, and those that just compute an inelastic
strain contribution to be used as part of an existing material model. The former is

INTRODUCTION TO MATERIAL MODELS | 137

 referenced from an External Stress-Strain Relation node, whereas the latter is
referenced from an External Strain subnode.

During the solution, an external material routine is always called for each Gauss point
during evaluation of stiffness matrices and computation of residuals. During result
presentation, the external material can be called from any location in the geometry, as
requested by for example graphs and point evaluations.

Almost invariably, you need to store state variables in the external material, such as for
example plastic strains. The state variables are stored at the Gauss points. If an external
material is called at another location, the state variables will be interpolated to that
location. This means that the state of the material may not be exactly consistent there,
which can lead to some artifacts during result presentation. You can avoid this problem
by using the gpeval operator.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Working with External Materials

• External Material

LIBRARY OF UTILITY FUNCTIONS

In order to simplify the task of writing the code for an external material, a library of
utility routines is provided. It provides a toolkit for operations common in solid
mechanics such as various tensor operations or computing principal stresses and
equivalent stresses.

LIST OF UTILITY FUNCTIONS

csext_add: Function that adds two matrices

/*
* Function: csext_add
* -------------------
* Description:
* Adds two (3 x 3) matrices 'A' and 'B' and stores the
* result 'A + B' in 'C'.
*
* Arguments:
* double A[3][3]
* double B[3][3]
* double C[3][3] (output)
*
* Return value:

138 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

 * void
*/
void csext_add(double A[3][3],double B[3][3], double C[3][3]);

csext_det: Function that computes the matrix determinant

/*
* Function: csext_det
* -------------------
* Description:
* Computes the determinant of a (3 x 3) matrix 'A' and
* returns the value.
*
* Arguments:
* double A[3][3]
*
* Return value:
* double
*
*/
double csext_det(double A[]3[3]);

csext_dev: Function that computes the deviator of a matrix

/*
* Function: csext_dev
* -------------------
* Description:
* Computes the deviator of a (3 x 3) matrix 'A'
* and stores the value in 'dev'.
*
* Arguments:
* double A[3][3]
* double dev[3][3] (output)
*
* Return value:
* void
*
*/
void csext_dev(double A[3][3], double dev[3][3]);

csext_dot: Function that computes the inner product of two matrices

/*
* Function: csext_dot
* -------------------
* Description:
* Computes the inner product of (3 x 3) matrices 'A' and 'B',

INTRODUCTION TO MATERIAL MODELS | 139

 * and returns 'A : B'.
*
* Arguments:
* double A[3][3]
* double B[3][3]
*
* Return value:
* double
*
*/
double csext_dot(double A[3][3],double B[3][3]);

csext_eig: Function that computes the spectral decomposition of a symmetric matrix

/*
* Function: csext_eig
* -------------------
* Description:
* Computes the eigenvalues and eigenvectors of a
* symmetric (3 x 3) matrix 'A'.
* The eigenvalues are stored in 'vals', sorted with the
* largest value in vals[0].
* The eigenvectors are stored column-wise in 'vecs' with
* the same ordering as the eigenvalues.
* Normal execution returns 0. nonzero means that the
* computation failed.
*
* Arguments:
* double A[3][3]
* double vals[3] (output)
* double vecs[3][3] (output)
*
* Return value:
* int
*
*/
int csext_eig(double A[3][3], double vals[3], double vecs[3][3]);

csext_gl: Function that computes the Green-Lagrange strain tensor

/*
* Function: csext_gl
* ------------------
* Description:
* Computes the Green-Lagrange strain tensor 'egl' based on
* the Right Cauchy-Green deformation tensor 'rcg'.
*
* Arguments:
* double rcg[3][3]

140 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

 * double egl[3][3] (output)
*
* Return value:
* void
*
*/
void csext_gl(double rcg[3][3],double egl[3][3]);

csext_inv: Function that computes the matrix inverse

/*
* Function: csext_inv
* -------------------
* Description:
* Computes the inverse of a (3 x 3) matrix 'A'.
* The inverse, if it exists, is stored in 'inv'.
* 0 is returned if successful, -1 if 'A' is numerically
* singular. The matrix 'A' is considered singular if
* abs(det(A))<tol.
*
* Arguments:
* double A[3][3]
* double tol
* double inv[3][3] (output)
*
* Return value:
* int
*
*/
int csext_inv(double A[3][3], double tol, double inv[3][3]);

csext_lcg: Function that computes the Left Cauchy–Green deformation tensor

/*
* Function: csext_lcg
* -------------------
* Description:
* Computes the Left Cauchy-Green deformation 'lcg' tensor
* based on the deformation gradient 'defgrad'.
*
*
* Arguments:
* double defgrad[3][3]
* double lcg[3][3] (output)
*
* Return value:
* void
*
*/

INTRODUCTION TO MATERIAL MODELS | 141

 void csext_lcg(double defgrad[3][3], double lcg[3][3]);

csext_linsolv: Function to solve a linear system of equations

/*
* Function: csext_linsolv
* -------------------
* Description:
* Solves a linear system of equations, 'Ax = b', for 'x',
* where 'A' is (n x n), and 'b' is (n x 1).
* The maximum allowed size of the system is n = 6.
*
* The solution vector 'x' is stored in 'b' as output.
* The elements of matrix 'A' are not preserved.
*
* If successful, 0 is returned.
* If the solution cannot be determined, -1 is returned.
* If n < 1 or n > 6, -2 is returned.
*
* Arguments:
* double *A
* double *b (input/output)
*
* Return value:
* int
*
*/
CSEXTUTILS_SYMBOLS int csext_linsolv(int n, double *A, double *b);

csext_lpolar: Function that computes the Left polar decomposition of a matrix

/*
* Function: csext_lpolar
* -------------------
* Description:
* Computes the Left polar decomposition F = VR,
* such that the deformation gradient 'defgrad' is
* multiplicatively decomposed into a rotation, 'R',
* and a stretch tensor, 'V'.
* If the polar decomposition fails, -1 is returned.
* If successful, 0 is returned.
*
* Arguments:
* double defgrad[3][3]
* double V[3][3] (output)
* double R[3][3] (output)
*
* Return value:
* int

142 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

 *
*/
int csext_lpolar(double defgrad[3][3], double V[3][3],
double R[3][3]);

csext_mises: Function that computes the von Mises equivalent stress

/*
* Function: csext_mises
* ---------------------
* Description:
* Computes and returns the von Mises equivalent stress based
* on a stress tensor 'sig'.
*
* Arguments:
* double sig[3][3]
*
* Return value:
* double
*
*/
double csext_mises(double sig[3][3]);

csext_mul: Function that multiplies two matrices

/*
* Function: csext_mul
* -------------------
* Description:
* Multiplies two (3 x 3) matrices 'A' and 'B'.
* The result 'AB' is stored in 'C'.
*
* Arguments:
* double A[3][3]
* double B[3][3]
* double C[3][3] (output)
*
* Return value:
* void
*
*/
void csext_mul(double A[3][3], double B[3][3], double C[3][3]);

csext_rcg: Function that computes the Right Cauchy–Green deformation tensor

/*
* Function: csext_rcg
* -------------------

INTRODUCTION TO MATERIAL MODELS | 143

 * Description:
* Computes the Right Cauchy-Green deformation tensor 'rcg'
* based on the deformation gradient 'defgrad'.
*
* Arguments:
* double defgrad[3][3]
* double rcg[3][3] (output)
*
* Return value:
* void
*
*/
void csext_rcg(double defgrad[3][3], double rcg[3][3]);

csext_rpolar: Function that computes the Right polar decomposition of a matrix

/*
* Function: csext_rpolar
* -------------------
* Description:
* Computes the Right polar decomposition F = RU,
* such that the deformation gradient 'defgrad' is
* multiplicatively decomposed into a rotation, 'R',
* and a stretch tensor, 'U'.
* If the polar decomposition fails, -1 is returned.
* If successful, 0 is returned.
*
* Arguments:
* double defgrad[3][3]
* double R[3][3] (output)
* double U[3][3] (output)
*
* Return value:
* int
*
*/
int csext_rpolar(double defgrad[3][3], double R[3][3],
double U[3][3]);

csext_spect: Function that computes a matrix based on its spectral decomposition

/*
* Function: csext_spect
* -------------------
* Description:
* Computes a symmetric (3 x 3) matrix 'A' based on
* its spectral decomposition A=Q*diag*Q^T.
* The matrix 'diag' is diagonal and stores the
* eigenvalues of 'A'. The matrix 'Q' stores the

144 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

 * eigenvectors (column-wise) of 'A', with the ordering
* corresponding to the eigenvalues in 'diag'.
* The vector 'd' stores the diagonal elements of 'diag'.
*
* Arguments:
* double Q[3][3]
* double d[3]
* double A[3][3] (output)
*
* Return value:
* void
*
*/
void csext_spect(double Q[3][3], double d[3], double A[3][3]);

csext_trace: Function that computes the matrix trace

/*
* Function: csext_trace
* ---------------------
* Description:
* Computes and returns the trace of a (3 x 3) matrix 'A'.
*
* Arguments:
* double A[3][3]
*
* Return value:
* double
*
*/
double csext_trace(double A[3][3]);

csext_transp: Function that computes the matrix transpose

/*
* Function: csext_transp
* ----------------------
* Description:
* Computes the transpose of a (3 x 3) matrix 'A'.
* The result is stored in 'transp'.
*
* Arguments:
* double A[3][3]
* double transp[3][3] (output)
*
* Return value:
* void
*
*/

INTRODUCTION TO MATERIAL MODELS | 145

 void csext_transp(double A[3][3], double transp[3][3]);

csext_add_voigt: Function that adds two matrices

/*
* Function: csext_add_voigt
* ---------------------------
* Description:
* Adds two matrices 'A' and 'B' stored on Voigt form.
* The result is stored in 'C'.
*
* Arguments:
* double A[6]
* double B[6]
* double C[6] (output)
*
* Return value:
* void
*/
void csext_add_voigt(double A[6], double B[6], double C[6]);

csext_dev_voigt: Function that computes the deviator of a symmetric matrix

/*
* Function: csext_dev_voigt
* ---------------------------
* Description:
* Computes the deviator of a (symmetric) matrix 'A' stored on
Voigt form.
* The result is stored in 'dev'.
*
* Arguments:
* double A[6]
* double dev[6] (output)
*
* Return value:
* void
*/
void csext_dev_voigt(double A[6], double dev[6]);

csext_dot_voigt: Function that computes the inner product of symmetric matrices

/*
* Function: csext_dot_voigt
* ---------------------------
* Description:
* Computes and returns the dot product (inner product) of two
* symmetric (3 x 3) matrices 'A' and 'B' stored on Voigt form.

146 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

 *
* Arguments:
* double A[6]
* double B[6]
*
* Return value:
* double
*/
double csext_dot_voigt(double A[6], double B[6]);

csext_mises_voigt: Function that computes the von Mises equivalent stress

/*
* Function: csext_mises_voigt
* ---------------------
* Description:
* Computes and returns the von Mises equivalent stress based
* on a stress tensor 'sig' on Voigt form.
*
* Arguments:
* double sig[6]
*
* Return value:
* double
*
*/
double csext_mises_voigt(double sig[6]);

csext_utils_trace_voigt: Function that computes the matrix trace

/*
* Function: csext_trace_voigt
* ---------------------------
* Description:
* Computes and returns the trace of a symmetric (3 x 3) matrix
* 'A' stored on Voigt form.
*
* Arguments:
* double A[6]
*
* Return value:
* double
*/
double csext_trace_voigt(double A[6]);

csext_from_voigt: Function to change from Voigt notation

/*

INTRODUCTION TO MATERIAL MODELS | 147

 * Function: csext_from_voigt
* -------------------
* Description:
* Converts a symmetric (3 x 3) matrix 'A' stored
* on Voigt form to matrix form. The result is stored in 'B'.
* If 'def' = 1, the values of last three elements of 'A' are
* un-altered when passed into 'B'.
* If 'def' = 2, the values of last three elements of 'A' are
* halved when passed into 'B'.
* Returns -1 if the value of 'def' is invalid, 0 otherwise.
*
* Arguments:
* double A[6]
* int def
* double B[3][3] (output)
*
* Return value:
* int
*
*/
int csext_from_voigt(double A[6], int def, double B[3][3]);

csext_to_voigt: Function to change to Voigt notation

/*
* Function: csext_to_voigt
* -------------------
* Description:
* Converts a symmetric (3 x 3) matrix 'A' to Voigt form.
* The result is stored in 'B'.
* If 'def' = 1, the values of the off-diagonal components
* of 'A' are un-altered when passed into 'B'.
* If 'def' = 2, the values of the off-diagonal components
* of 'A' are doubled when passed into 'B'.
* Returns -1 if the value of 'def' is invalid, 0 otherwise.
*
* Arguments:
* double A[3][3]
* int def
* double B[6] (output)
*
* Return value:
* int
*
*/
int csext_to_voigt(double A[3][3], int def, double B[6]);

148 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

csext_jac_conv: Function to convert the Jacobian
/*
* Function: csext_jac_conv
* ------------------------
* Description:
* Converts a Jacobian from 'dSde' to 'dSdF' using the deformation
* gradient 'defgrad', where:
* - 'S' is the 2:nd Piola-Kirchhoff stress tensor,
* - 'e' is the Green-Lagrange strain tensor,
* - 'F' is the deformation gradient.
* If 'def' = 1, dSde is defined using tensor shears.
* If 'def' = 2, dSde is defined using engineering shears.
* Returns -1 if the value of 'def' is invalid.
*
* Arguments:
* double dSde[6][6]
* int def
* double defgrad[3][3]
* double dSdF[6][9] (output)
*
* Return value:
* int
*
*/
int csext_jac_conv(double dSde[6][6], int def,
double defgrad[3][3], double dSdF[6][9]);

csext_unit: Function to define a unit matrix

/*
* Function: csext_unit
* -------------------
* Description:
* Initializes an (n x n) matrix 'A' to the identity matrix.
* Returns -1 if n < 1,
* 0 otherwise.
*
* Arguments:
* int n
* double *A (output)
*
* Return value:
* int
*
*/
int csext_unit(int n, double *A);

INTRODUCTION TO MATERIAL MODELS | 149

 csext_zero: Function to initialize a matrix
/*
* Function: csext_zero
* -------------------
* Description:
* Initializes an (m x n) matrix 'A' to zero.
* Returns -1 if m < 1 or n < 1,
* 0 otherwise.
*
* Arguments:
* int m
* int n
* double *A (output)
*
* Return value:
* void
*
*/
int csext_zero(int m, int n, double *A);

References
1. D. Chapelle and K.J. Bathe, The Inf-Sup test, Comp. Struct., Vol. 47, No. 4/5, pp.
537–545, 1993.

150 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

M o de li ng P i e z oel ect ri c Prob l ems
In this section:

• About Piezoelectric Materials

• Piezoelectric Coupling
• Create the Piezoelectric Effect Interface and Define Domains
• Complete Settings of Piezoelectric Materials
• Add Damping and Loss
• Define Material Properties

• Multiphysics Modeling Workflow in the COMSOL Multiphysics

Reference Manual.
• Piezoelectric Coupling
• Piezoelectricity in the theory section

About Piezoelectric Materials

Piezoelectric materials become electrically polarized when strained. From a
microscopic perspective, the displacement of atoms within the unit cell (when the solid
is deformed) results into electric dipoles within the medium. In certain crystal
structures, this combines to give an average macroscopic dipole moment or electric
polarization. This effect, known as the direct piezoelectric effect, is always
accompanied by the converse piezoelectric effect, in which the solid becomes strained
when placed in an electric field.

Within a piezoelectric, there is a coupling between the strain and the electric field,
which is determined by the constitutive relation:

T
S = sET + d E
(2-14)
D = dT +  T E

Here, the naming convention used in piezoelectricity theory is assumed: S is the strain,
T is the stress, E is the electric field, and D is the electric displacement field. The
material parameters sE, d, and T, correspond to the material compliance, the coupling
properties and the permittivity. These quantities are tensors of rank 4, 3, and 2,

MODELING PIEZOELECTRIC PROBLEMS | 151

 respectively. The tensors, however, are highly symmetric for physical reasons, and they
can be represented as matrices within an abbreviated subscript notation, which is
usually more convenient. In the Piezoelectricity interface, the Voigt notation is used,
which is a standard in the literature for piezoelectricity but which differs from the
defaults in the Solid Mechanics interface.

The Piezoelectric Material uses the structural mechanics nomenclature.

The strain is named  (instead of S) and the stresses are denoted by either
 or S (instead of T). This makes the names consistent with those used in
the other structural mechanics interfaces.

Equation 2-14 will, using the notation from structural mechanics, then read

T
 = sE  + d E
(2-15)
D = d +  0  rT E

Equation 2-14 (or Equation 2-15) is known as the strain-charge form of the
constitutive relations. The equation can be re-arranged into the stress-charge form,
which relates the material stresses to the electric field:

T
 = cE  – e E
(2-16)
D = e +  0  rS E

The material properties, cE, e, and S are related to sE, d, and T. It is possible to use
either form of the constitutive relations. In addition to Equation 2-14 or
Equation 2-16, the equations of solid mechanics and electrostatics must also be solved
within the material.

• Piezoelectric Coupling
• Modeling Piezoelectric Problems
• Piezoelectricity in the theory section

Piezoelectric Material Orientation

The orientation of a piezoelectric crystal cut is frequently defined by the system
introduced by the IRE standard of 1949 (Ref. 8). This standard has undergone a
number of subsequent revisions, with the final revision being the IEEE standard of

152 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

1987 (Ref. 9). Unfortunately, the 1987 standard contained a number of serious errors
and the IEEE subsequently withdrew it. COMSOL therefore adopts the preceding
1978 standard (Ref. 10), which is similar to the 1987 standard, for material property
definitions. Most of the material properties in the material library are based on the
values given in the book by Auld (Ref. 11), which uses the 1978 IEEE conventions.
This is consistent with general practice except in the specific case of quartz, where it is
more common to use the 1949 IRE standard to define the material properties.
COMSOL therefore provides additional sets of material properties consistent with this
standard for the case of quartz. Note that the material properties for quartz are based
on Ref. 12, which uses the 1949 IRE standard (the properties are appropriately
modified according to the different standards).

The stiffness, compliance, coupling, and dielectric material property matrices are
defined with the crystal axes aligned with the local coordinate axes. Note that the signs
of several matrix components differ between the 1949 and the 1978 standards (see
Table 2-8). In the absence of a user-defined coordinate system, the local system
corresponds to the global X, Y, and Z coordinate axes. When an alternative coordinate
system is selected this system defines the orientation of the crystal axes. This is the
mechanism used in COMSOL to define a particular crystal cut, and typically it is
necessary to calculate the appropriate Euler angles for the cut (given the thickness
orientation for the wafer). All piezoelectric material properties are defined using the
Voigt form of the abbreviated subscript notation, which is universally employed in the
literature (this differs from the standard notation used for the Solid Mechanics
interface material properties). The material properties are defined in the material
frame, so that if the solid rotates during deformation the material properties rotate
with the solid. See Modeling Geometric Nonlinearity.

Crystal cuts are usually defined by a mechanism introduced by the IEEE/IRE

standards. Both standards use a notation that defines the orientation of a virtual slice
(the plate) through the crystal. The crystal axes are denoted X, Y, and Z and the plate,
which is usually rectangular, is defined as having sides l, w, and t (length, width, and
thickness). Initially the plate is aligned with respect to the crystal axes and then up to
three rotations are defined, using a right-handed convention about axes embedded
along the l, w, and t sides of the plate. Taking AT cut quartz as an example, the IEEE
1978 standard defines the cut as: (YXl) 35.25°. The first two letters in the bracketed
expression always refer to the initial orientation of the thickness and the length of the
plate. Subsequent bracketed letters then define up to three rotational axes, which move
with the plate as it is rotated. Angles of rotation about these axes are specified after the
bracketed expression in the order of the letters, using a right-handed convention. For

MODELING PIEZOELECTRIC PROBLEMS | 153

 AT cut quartz only one rotation, about the l axis, is required. This is illustrated in
Figure 2-10. Note that within the 1949 IRE Standard AT cut quartz is denoted as:
(YXl) 35.25°, since the X-axis is rotated by 180° in this convention and positive
angles therefore correspond to the opposite direction of rotation (see Figure 2-9).
Table 2-9 summarizes the differences between the standards for different crystal cuts.

When defining the material properties of Quartz, the orientation of the

X, Y, and Z axes with respect to the crystal differs between the 1987 IEEE
standard and the 1949 IRE standard. Figure 2-9 shows the alignment of
the axis for the case of right-handed quartz. A consequence of this is that
both the material property matrices and the crystal cuts differ between the
two standards. Table 2-8 summarizes the signs for the important matrix
elements under the two conventions. Table 2-9 shows the different
definitions of the crystal cuts under the two conventions.

TABLE 2-8: SIGNS FOR THE MATERIAL PROPERTIES OF QUARTZ, WITHIN THE TWO STANDARDS COMMONLY
EMPLOYED.

IRE 1949 STANDARD IEEE 1978 STANDARD

MATERIAL RIGHT HANDED LEFT HANDED RIGHT HANDED LEFT HANDED

PROPERTY QUARTZ QUARTZ QUARTZ QUARTZ

s14 + + - -
c14 - - + +
d11 - + + -
d14 - + - +
e11 - + + -
e14 + - + -

TABLE 2-9: CRYSTAL CUT DEFINITIONS FOR QUARTZ CUTS WITHIN THE TWO STANDARDS COMMONLY
EMPLOYED AND THE CORRESPONDING EULER ANGLES FOR DIFFERENT ORIENTATIONS OF THE CRYSTAL
THICKNESS.

STANDARD REPRESENTATION AT CUT BT CUT

IRE 1949 Standard (YXl) +35.25 (YXl) 49

Y-thickness Euler (ZXZ: 035.250) (ZXZ: 0490)
angles
Z-thickness Euler (ZXZ: 0°,125.250) (ZXZ: 0 410)
angles
IEEE 1978 Standard (YXl) 35.25 (YXl) +49

154 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

TABLE 2-9: CRYSTAL CUT DEFINITIONS FOR QUARTZ CUTS WITHIN THE TWO STANDARDS COMMONLY
EMPLOYED AND THE CORRESPONDING EULER ANGLES FOR DIFFERENT ORIENTATIONS OF THE CRYSTAL
THICKNESS.

STANDARD REPRESENTATION AT CUT BT CUT

Y-thickness Euler (ZXZ: 0 35.250) (ZXZ: 0 490)

angles
Z-thickness Euler (ZXZ: 0 54.750) (ZXZ: 0 1390)
angles
When defining the material orientation, it is necessary to consider the orientation of
the plate with respect to the global coordinate system in addition to the orientation of
the plate with respect to the crystallographic axes. Consider the example of AT cut
quartz in Figure 2-10. The definition of the appropriate local coordinate system
depends on the desired final orientation of the plate in the global coordinate system.
One way to set up the plate is to orientate its normal parallel to the Y axis in the global
coordinate system. Figure 2-11 shows how to define the local coordinate system in this
case. Figure 2-12 shows how to define the local system such that the plate has its
normal parallel to the global Z axis. In both cases it is critical to keep track of the
orientation of the local system with respect to the global system, which is defined
depending on the desired orientation of the plate in the model.

There are also a number of methods to define the local coordinate system with respect
to the global system. Usually, it is most convenient to define the local coordinates with
a Rotated System node, which defines three Euler angles according to the ZXZ
convention (rotation about Z, then X, then Z again). Note that these Euler angles
define the local (crystal) axes with respect to the global axes — this is distinct from the
approach of defining the cut (global) axes with respect to the crystal (local) axes.

MODELING PIEZOELECTRIC PROBLEMS | 155

 Figure 2-9: Crystallographic axes defined for right-handed quartz in COMSOL and the
1978 IEEE standard (color). The 1949 standard axes are shown for comparison (gray).

Figure 2-9 is reproduced with permission from: IEEE Std 176-1987 -

IEEE Standard on Piezoelectricity, reprinted with permission from
IEEE, 3 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10016-5997 USA, copyright 1987,
by IEEE. This figure must not be reprinted or further distributed without
prior written permission from the IEEE.

156 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Figure 2-10: Definition of the AT cut of quartz within the IEEE 1978 standard. The AT
cut is defined as: (YXl) 35.25°. The first two bracketed letters specify the initial
orientation of the plate, with the thickness direction, t, along the crystal Y axis and the
length direction, l, along the X axis. Then up to three rotations about axes that move with
the plate are specified by the corresponding bracketed letters and the subsequent angles. In
this case only one rotation is required about the l axis, of 35.25° (in a right-handed
sense).

MODELING PIEZOELECTRIC PROBLEMS | 157

 Figure 2-11: Defining an AT cut crystal plate within COMSOL, with normal in the
global Y direction. Within the 1978 IEEE standard the AT cut is defined as (YXl)
-35.25°. Start with the plate normal or thickness in the Ycr direction (a) and rotate the
plate 35.25° about the l axis (b). The global coordinate system rotates with the plate.
Finally rotate the entire system so that the global coordinate system is orientated as it
appears in COMSOL (c). The local coordinate system should be defined with the Euler
angles (ZXZ - 0, 35.25°, 0). (d) shows a coordinate system for this system in COMSOL.

158 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Figure 2-12: Defining an AT cut crystal plate within COMSOL, with normal in the
global Z direction. Within the 1978 IEEE standard the AT cut is defined as (YXl)
35.25°. Begin with the plate normal in the Zcr direction, so the crystal and global systems
are coincident. Rotate the plate so that its thickness points in the Ycr direction (the starting
point for the IEEE definition), the global system rotates with the plate (b). Rotate the plate
35.25° about the l axis (d). Finally rotate the entire system so that the global coordinate
system is orientated as it appears in COMSOL (d). The local coordinate system should be
defined with the Euler angles (ZXZ: 0, -54.75°, 0). (e) shows a coordinate system for this
system in COMSOL.

MODELING PIEZOELECTRIC PROBLEMS | 159

 Piezoelectric Losses
Losses in piezoelectric materials can be generated both mechanically and electrically.

In the frequency domain, these can be represented by introducing complex material

properties in the elasticity and permittivity matrices. Taking the mechanical case as an
example, this introduces a phase lag between the stress and the strain, which
corresponds to a Hysteretic Loss. These losses can be added to the Piezoelectric
Material by three subnodes: Mechanical Damping, Coupling Loss, and Dielectric Loss.
The losses typically defined as loss factors (see below).

The hysteretic electrical losses are usually used to represent high frequency electrical
losses that occur as a result of friction impeding the rotation of the microscopic dipoles
that produce the material permittivity.

Low frequency losses, corresponding to a finite material conductivity, can be added to

the model through an Electrical Conductivity (Time Harmonic) subnode. This feature
operates only in the frequency domain.

In the time domain, the losses can be added by:

• Using the Rayleigh Damping option in the Mechanical Damping and Coupling Loss
subnodes to the Piezoelectric Material,.

Rayleigh Damping

• Using either the Dispersion, or Complex permittivity, or Maximum Loss Tangent option
in the Dielectric Loss subnode to the Piezoelectric Material.

These types of damping are also available in the frequency domain.

Rayleigh Damping

HYSTERETIC LOSS
In the frequency domain, the dissipative behavior of the material can be modeled using
complex-valued material properties, irrespective of the loss mechanism. Such hysteretic
losses can be applied to model both electrical and mechanical losses. For more
information about hysteretic losses, see Ref. 1 to Ref. 4.

160 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

For the case of piezoelectric materials, this means that the constitutive equations are
written as follows.

For the stress-charge formulation

T = c˜ E S – e˜ E
T

D = e˜ T +  ̃ E
0 rS

where T is the stress tensor, and S is the strain tensor.

For the strain-charge formulation,

S = s˜ E T + d˜ E
T

D = d˜ S +  ̃ E
0 rT

All constitutive matrices in the above equation can be complex-valued matrices, where
the imaginary parts define the dissipative function of the material.

Both the real and complex parts of the material data must be defined so as to respect
the symmetry properties of the material being modeled and with restrictions imposed
by the laws of physics.

A key requirement is that the dissipation density is positive; that is, there
is no power gain from the passive material. This requirement sets rules for
the relative magnitudes for all material parameters. This is important
when defining the coupling losses.

In COMSOL, you can enter the complex-valued data directly or by means of loss
˜
factors. When loss factors are used, the complex data X is represented as pairs of a
real-valued parameter

˜
X = real  X 

and a loss factor

˜ ˜
 X = imag  X   real  X 

the ratio of the imaginary and real part, and the complex data is then:

˜
X = X  1  j X 

MODELING PIEZOELECTRIC PROBLEMS | 161

 where the sign depends on the material property used. The loss factors are specific to
the material property, and thus they are named according to the property they refer to,
for example, cE. For a structural material without coupling, simply use s, the
structural loss factor.

The loss factors are defined so that a positive loss factor value usually corresponds to a
positive loss. The complex-valued data is then based on sign rules.

By default, there is no damping until at least one of the damping and losses related
subnodes is added.

For the Piezoelectric Material node, the following equations apply via the
corresponding three subnodes:

Mechanical Damping
m n m n m n
c˜ E = c E  1 + j cE 
m n m n m n
s˜ E = s E  1 – j sE 

where m and n refer to components of each matrix.

Coupling Loss
m n m n m n
e˜ =e  1 + j e 
m n m n m n
d˜ =d  1 + j d 

Dielectric Loss
m n m n m n
̃ rS =  rS  1 – j S 
m n m n m n
̃ rT =  rT  1 – j T 

Note that the multiplication is applied component-wise.

The loss factors can also be entered as scalar isotropic factors independently of the
material and the other coefficients.

A good check on the chosen values is to compute a number of eigenfrequencies,

possibly using some different sets of boundary conditions. All computed
eigenfrequencies must have a positive imaginary part in order to represent a damped
motion.

162 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

In practice, it is often difficult to find complex-valued data for each of the matrix
elements in the literature. Measuring the losses independently is a challenging task.

Two important particular cases are available in COMSOL, for which the
dielectric loss data can be entered based on experimentally measurable
quantities:

• Complex permittivity
• Maximum Loss Tangent

DIELECTRIC DISPERSION
The Dielectric Loss subnode can be set to use the Dispersion option. In such case, the
following equations need to be solved in the time domain:

D
 + J p = 0 (2-17)
t 

J p E
Jp + d =  0  rS (2-18)
t t

where you can specify two material parameters: the relaxation time d and the relative
permittivity increment rS. The latter can be either a matrix or a scalar quantity. This
model is a one-term version of the more general Debye dispersion model, Ref. 13.

The constitutive relation is assumed as

D = eS +  0   E (2-19)

where S is the strain tensor, and   is the relative permittivity in the high frequency
limit (that is, for excitations with a characteristic time much shorter than the relaxation
time d).

The parent Piezoelectric Material node has an input for the relative
permittivity, rS, which is used in stationary study. You can chose how this
input will be interpreted in the dispersion computations. The options are:

• High frequency limit. In such case,   =  rS will be used.

• Low frequency limit. In such case,   =  rS –  rS will be used. Note
that for consistency,   must be always positive valued.

MODELING PIEZOELECTRIC PROBLEMS | 163

 With the absence of free electric charges, Equation 2-17 and Equation 2-18 can be
combined and integrated in time to yield the following equation:

D
   D +  d +  0  rS E = 0
t

This is the equation form used in COMSOL Multiphysics for time-dependent analysis.

For the eigenfrequency and frequency domain analyses, the corresponding equation is:

    1 + j d  jD +  0  rS jE  = 0

In most cases, i can be factored out, so that the following equation is solved:

   D + j d  D +  0  rS E  = 0

This equation, together with the constitutive relation Equation 2-19 gives

   eS +  0  ' – j'' E  = 0 (2-20)

where

 rS
' =   + --------------------------2-
1 +  d  

and

 d  0 
rS
'' = ---------------------------2-
1 +  d  

Equation 2-20 shows how the dispersion parameters contribute to the polarization
and losses. Thus, the effective relative permittivity decreases with the excitation
frequency from the low frequency limit   +  rS down to the high frequency limit
  . The damping effect vanishes for both large and small frequencies, and it reaches
the maximum for   1d.

If your license includes either the AC/DC Module or MEMS Module,

more options for modeling dielectric dispersion can be found in
Dispersion section in the AC/DC Module User’s Guide.

The following two sections present two cases, for which the dielectric dispersion data
can be related to other experimentally measurable quantities. Both cases, can be used

164 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

in Eigenfrequency, Frequency Domain, and Time Dependent study. The software will
apply the dispersion model equations, for which the effective relaxation time and
relative permittivity increment are computed automatically based on the node input
parameters.

Complex permittivity
In this case, the complex relative permittivity is known at a certain reference frequency

'  f ref  – j''  f ref 

The relaxation time and relative permittivity contribution cane be computed as

–1 –1
 d =  ref ''  ' –   

2 –1
 rS = ' –   +  ''   ' –   

where  ref = 2f ref .

If the relative permittivity rS (input on the Piezoelectric Material parent node) is
selected to represent the low frequency limit, one has

2 –1
  = ' –  ''    rS – ' 

If rS is selected to represent the high frequency limit, one can simply use   =  rS
instead.

Maximum Loss Tangent

The loss tangent is defined as a function of the frequency

  f  = tan  = ''  '

so that the complex relative permittivity can be written as

 r  f  = '  I – j 

For many materials, the loss tangent reaches a maximum at certain frequency fref
within the frequency range of interested

 max = max  f  =   f ref 

The relaxation time cane be computed as

–1 2 12
 d =  ref   max +   max + I  

MODELING PIEZOELECTRIC PROBLEMS | 165

 where  ref = 2f ref .

If the relative permittivity rS (input on the Piezoelectric Material parent node) is
selected to represent the low frequency limit, the relative permittivity contribution is
computes as

 rS =  rS –  
–2
where   =   d  ref   rS .

If the relative permittivity rS is selected to represent the high frequency limit, it is
computed as

2
 rS =    d  ref  – I  

where   =  rS .

ELECTRICAL CONDUCTIVITY (TIME HARMONIC)

For frequency domain and eigenfrequency analyses, the effect of electrical conductivity
of the piezoelectric material (see Ref. 2, Ref. 5, and Ref. 6) can be included. Thus, in
addition to the displacement current, the conduction electric current term is used

   jD + J e  = 0

Je = e E

where e is the material electrical conductivity, and E is the electric field. The above
form of the equation is used for the eigenfrequency analysis in COMSOL
Multiphysics.

When the conduction loss is applied, the default eigenvalue analysis will
in most cases return a number of pure imaginary eigenfrequencies. To
avoid this, you can configure the solver to search for eigenvalues with real
part larger than zero.

Do not use any dielectric loss factor damping together with the
conduction loss in an eigenfrequency analysis.

166 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

 In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Selecting a Stationary, Time-Dependent, or Eigenvalue Solver

• Eigenvalue Solver

For the frequency domain analysis, the angular frequency is just a parameter, and the
equation can be transformed into

–1
   D – j  e E  = 0

which allows you to use both a dielectric loss factor and electrical conductivity in a
frequency response study. In such case, ensure that the loss factor refers to the
alternating current loss tangent, which dominates at high frequencies, where the effect
of ohmic conductivity vanishes (Ref. 7).

Conduction loss can be combined with Dielectric Dispersion for both eigenfrequency
and frequency domain analyses. The following equation forms are used, respectively,
in the frequency domain:

–1
   D + j d  D +  0  rS E +   d – j J e  = 0

and in eigenfrequency analyses:

    1 + j d  jD +  0  rS jE +  1 + j d  J e  = 0

References for Piezoelectric Damping

1. R. Holland and E.P. EerNisse, Design of Resonant Piezoelectric Devices, Research
Monograph No. 56, The M.I.T. Press, 1969.

2. T. Ikeda, Fundamentals of Piezoelectricity, Oxford University Press, 1990.

3. A.V. Mezheritsky, “Elastic, Dielectric, and Piezoelectric Losses in Piezoceramics:

How it Works all Together,” IEEE Transactions on Ultrasonics, Ferroelectrics, and
Frequency Control, vol. 51, no. 6, 2004.

4. K. Uchino and S. Hirose, “Loss Mechanisms in Piezoelectrics: How to Measure

Different Losses Separately,” IEEE Transactions on Ultrasonics, Ferroelectrics, and
Frequency Control, vol. 48, no. 1, pp. 307–321, 2001.

MODELING PIEZOELECTRIC PROBLEMS | 167

 5. P.C.Y. Lee, N.H. Liu, and A. Ballato, “Thickness Vibrations of a Piezoelectric Plate
With Dissipation,” IEEE Transactions on Ultrasonics, Ferroelectrics, and Frequency
Control, vol. 51, no. 1, 2004.

6. P.C.Y. Lee and N.H. Liu, “Plane Harmonic Waves in an Infinite Piezoelectric Plate
With Dissipation,” Frequency Control Symposium and PDA Exhibition, pp. 162–
169, IEEE International, 2002.

7. C.A. Balanis, “Electrical Properties of Matter,” Advanced Engineering

Electromagnetics, John Wiley & Sons, chapter 2, 1989.

8. “Standards on Piezoelectric Crystals, 1949”, Proceedings of the I. R. E.,vol. 37,

no.12, pp. 1378–1395, 1949.

9. IEEE Standard on Piezoelectricity, ANSI/IEEE Standard 176-1987, 1987.

10. IEEE Standard on Piezoelectricity, ANSI/IEEE Standard 176-1978, 1978.

11. B.A. Auld, Acoustic Fields and Waves in Solids, Krieger Publishing, 1990.

12. R. Bechmann “Elastic and Piezoelectric Constants of Alpha-Quartz,” Physical

Review B, vol. 110 no. 5, pp. 1060–1061, 1958.

13. N.S. Stoykov, T.A. Kuiken, M.M. Lowery, and A. Taflove, “Finite-element
time-domain algorithms for modeling linear Debye and Lorentz dielectric dispersions
at low frequencies,” IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, vol. 50, no. 9,
pp. 1100–1107, 2003.

Piezoelectric Coupling
The piezoelectric effect is an interaction between the mechanical and electrical physics,
where a stress applied on a piezoelectric material generates a voltage (direct effect) or
a voltage applied on it generates the deformation of the material (inverse effect). In
COMSOL Multiphysics, the Piezoelectricity interface is constituted of one Solid
Mechanics and one Electrostatics interface, which are coupled together by a Piezoelectric
Effect multiphysics feature. Hence a piezoelectric problem contains solid and
electrostatic domains, with at least one domain shared by the two physics interfaces
and with the piezoelectric coupling defined on it.

168 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Create the Piezoelectric Effect Interface and Define Domains
A piezoelectric problem can be set up in different ways:

• By selecting Piezoelectricity from the Model Wizard,

• By choosing Piezoelectricity from the Add Physics menu when working in an existing
model, or
• By adding the corresponding features to create the coupling manually.

In the first two cases, by default all the domains in the model are assumed to be
piezoelectric materials.

When setting up the problem manually (that is, by adding single physics interfaces one
at a time) both Solid Mechanics and Electrostatics interfaces should be added. Then, you
have to specify which domains are in each physics, and which domains are to be
modeled as piezoelectric materials.

1 On the Solid Mechanics interface Settings window, locate the Domain Selection
section. Select the domains which undergo structural deformation, including the
piezoelectric material domains.
2 Go to the Solid Mechanics>Piezoelectric Material node (if it is not yet available, add
it). Select the domains where the piezoelectric effect applies. Domains which are not
piezoelectric can be modeled using other available material models.
3 Go to the Electrostatics node and under Domain Selection select the domains the
electrostatics equations must be solved. These domains include all the piezoelectric
domains, and any other insulating domains.

Since metals usually have a conductivity several orders of magnitude

higher than other materials, it is normal not to solve the electrostatics
equations in their corresponding domains, but instead the surfaces of the
material are represented as isopotentials with an appropriate boundary
condition (usually a terminal or floating potential).

4 Go to the Electrostatics>Charge Conservation, Piezoelectric node (if it is not yet

available, add it). Select the domains where the piezoelectric effect has to be
modeled.
5 A Multiphysics>Piezoelectric Effect node is already present if the coupling was added
using either the Model Wizard or Add Physics window. If the model is set up manually

MODELING PIEZOELECTRIC PROBLEMS | 169

 (that is, single physics interfaces are added), right-click the Multiphysics Couplings
node to add a Piezoelectric Effect coupling.
6 Confirm that all the domains where the piezoelectric material is present are selected.

Only domains that have both Charge Conservation, Piezoelectric selected in

the Electrostatics interface and Piezoelectric Material selected in the Solid
Mechanics interface are selected. The selection of this feature cannot be
edited. If several Solid Mechanics or Electrostatics interfaces are present,
select the correct ones.

7 Confirm that remaining domains are well assigned:

- Solid and electrostatic domains: In these domains, the electrostatics and
structural problems are solved independently without any piezoelectric coupling.
This is the case for insulators.
- Solid-only domains: In these domains, only mechanical phenomena are modeled,
and the electrostatics phenomena are neglected. Metals are typically modeled in
this way, because their conductivity is so high that their surfaces can be treated as
isopotential surfaces within the electrostatics problem. In some cases, insulators
are modeled using these settings, for example, when there is no potential applied
across the domain, and correspondingly solving the electrostatics equations
would produce a constant potential and waste computing resources.
- Electrostatics-only domains: Those domains are nonsolid. This is typically the
case of air, in which the electrostatics is solved but not mechanics.
- Nonsolid and nonelectrostatic domains: In those domains, another physics is
solved. A typical example is an acoustic domain in the case of piezoacoustic
modeling.

Complete Settings of Piezoelectric Materials

Go to the Solid Mechanics>Piezoelectric Material node. On the Settings window
complete these settings:

• Coordinate System Selection section: The material is poled in the x3 direction of the
coordinate system (x1, x2, x3) specified in this section. By default, it is set to the
global coordinate system. If the piezoelectric material is poled along another
direction, you need to define a coordinate system so that its third direction is aligned

170 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

 with the poling direction. Then, assign it as the coordinate system which orients the
material in the Coordinate System Selection section.

If a given piezoelectric material is present with several orientations (such

as stacked piezoelectric disks) you need to define several Piezoelectric
Material nodes and to assign a different coordinate system for each of
them.

• Piezoelectric Material Properties: Select whether the constitutive relation of

piezoelectric material is in Stress-charge or in Strain-charge form. This choice
defines the type of material properties that will be used.
• Geometric Nonlinearity: select the check box to force strains to be linear.
• Energy Dissipation: Select the check box to enable the calculation of the dissipated
energy.

Add Damping and Loss

In the physics toolbar you can add attributes to the Piezoelectric Material node,
especially the following damping and loss contributions:

• Mechanical Damping: Specify the domains of application, then choose if you want to
define a loss factor for cE, a loss factor for sE (in Strain-charge form), an isotropic
loss factor, or a Rayleigh damping.
• Dielectric Loss: Specify the domains of application, then choose if you want to define
a loss factor for rS, a loss factor for rT (in Strain-charge form), or dispersion.
• Coupling Loss: Specify the domains of application, then choose if you want to define
a loss factor for e, a loss factor for d (in Strain-charge form), or Rayleigh damping.
• Conduction Loss (Time-Harmonic): Specify the domains of application, then choose
how you want to define the Electrical conductivity.

Define Material Properties

Define material properties for the piezoelectric materials. The material library contains
several common piezoelectric materials under the piezoelectric section. If you want to
define your own piezoelectric material, you need to specify its properties by hand. The
required properties depend on whether the constitutive relations are in Stress-charge
or Strain-charge form, and which damping and loss attributes are created. Defining all

MODELING PIEZOELECTRIC PROBLEMS | 171

 piezoelectric settings before materials preselects the required properties and makes the
completion easier:

MECHANICAL PROPERTIES
3
• Density rho (SI unit: kg/m )
• Elasticity matrix cE (SI unit: Pa) in Stress-charge form.
• Compliance Matrix sE (SI unit: 1/Pa) in Strain-charge form.

ELECTROSTATIC PROPERTIES
• Relative Permittivity rS (dimensionless) in Stress-charge form.
• Relative Permittivity rT (dimensionless) in Strain-charge form.

COUPLING PROPERTIES
• Coupling matrix eES (SI unit: C/m2) in Stress-Charge form.
• Coupling matrix dET (SI unit: C/N) in Strain-charge form.

DAMPING AND LOSS PROPERTIES

• Either loss factor cE for elasticity matrix cE, or the loss factor sE for compliance
matrix sE: required when Mechanical Damping is present. Both are dimensionless,
the latter is valid only in Strain-Charge form.
• Either loss factor  S for electrical permittivity matrix rS, or loss factor  T for
electrical permittivity matrix rT: required when Dielectric Loss is present. TBoth
are dimensionless, the latter is valid only in Strain-Charge form.
• Either loss factor e for coupling matrix e, or loss factor d for coupling matrix d:
required when Coupling Loss is present. Both are dimensionless, the latter is valid
only in Strain-Charge form.
• Electrical conductivity e (SI unit: S/m): required when Conduction Loss is
present.

Working with Materials and Piezoelectric Materials Library in the

COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

172 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Coupling Piezoelectricity with Acoustics
Using piezoelectric materials for an acoustic application is common, such as in sonars,
microphones, sensors, and so forth. This is why coupling piezoelectric devices with
acoustic domains is of particular interest for these applications.

Compared to a single piezoelectric model, you need to add a pressure acoustics

interface, for example, Pressure Acoustics, Frequency Domain or Pressure Acoustics,
Transient (depending on which study type you want to use) plus an Acoustic-Structure
Boundary coupling under the Multiphysics Couplings node. You can also directly create
the nodes that are needed for coupling by adding an Acoustic-Piezoelectric Interaction
interface from the Model Wizard or Add Physics windows. If solid and acoustic domains
are correctly defined, then the right coupling boundaries are automatically selected.
Then specify domains of application for each physics.

• Select solid domains and Piezoelectric Material domains in Solid Mechanics.

• Select electrostatic domains and Charge Conservation, Piezoelectric domains in
Electrostatics.
• Select acoustic domains in a Pressure Acoustics node.
• Under the Multiphysics branch, confirm that selections for Piezoelectric Effect and
Acoustic-Structure Boundary are the right ones. If several Pressure Acoustics, Solid
Mechanics, or Electrostatics interfaces are present, select the right ones that need to
be coupled in the multiphysics interfaces.
• Continue the modeling process by entering the settings for each physics interface
and feature and define materials.

MODELING PIEZOELECTRIC PROBLEMS | 173

 Modeling Electrostrictive and
Ferroelectroelastic Materials
Electrostriction Coupling
Electrostriction is an interaction between the mechanical and electric physics, where an
electric field applied on electrostrictive material generates the deformation of the
material (direct effect), and a stress applied on it changes the material polarization
(inverse effect). In contrast to linear piezoelectricity, the electrostrictive strain induced
in the polarized material is proportional to the square of the polarization. Thus, the
strain will remain the same if the direction of the applied electric field is changed to the
opposite.

Ferroelectricity
The ferroelectroelasticity and ferroelectricity phenomena are related to phase
transitions in materials. In its ferroelectric phase, the material exhibits spontaneous
polarization, so that it is constituted of domains with nonzero polarization even at zero
applied field. This is similar to permanent magnetism in ferromagnetics, which explains
the name used for such materials. Electrostriction in ferroelectroelastic materials can
be related to the domain rotation. Thus, the applied electric field can both rearrange
the domains resulting into the net polarization and rotate the domains mechanically.
Thus, the material extends in the direction of the electric field and contracts in the
direction perpendicular to the field. The domain rotation can be affected by an applied
mechanical stress, which also results into the effective polarization. At very large
electric fields, the electrostrictive effect saturates, as all ferroelectric domains in the
material are aligned along the direction of the applied field. Domain wall interactions
can also lead to a significant hysteresis in the polarization and strain.

Many piezoelectric materials exhibit such nonlinear ferroelectroelastic behavior at large

applied electric fields.

Multiphysics Interfaces
In COMSOL Multiphysics, the electrostrictive effect can be modeled using two
multiphysics interfaces: Electrostriction and Ferroelectroelasticity. Both interfaces are
constituted of one Solid Mechanics and one Electrostatics interface, which are coupled

174 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

together via an Electrostriction multiphysics feature. However, in case of
Ferroelectroelasticity, the corresponding Electrostatics interface will contain a dedicated
feature Charge Conservation, Ferroelectric.

The Electrostriction interface electrostatically can be used for modeling electrostatically

actuated structures in regimes when the electric polarization can be assumed to vary
linear with the applied electric field.

The Ferroelectroelasticity can be used for modeling nonlinear electromechanical

interaction in ferroelectric and piezoelectric materials at high applied electric fields.
Electric polarization in such materials depends nonlinearly on the applied electric field
including possible hysteresis and saturation effects.

Ferroelectricity in the AC/DC Module User’s Guide.

Electrostriction and Ferroelectroelasticity in the Structural Mechanics

Module User’s Guide.

MODELING ELECTROSTRICTIVE AND FERROELECTROELASTIC MATERIALS | 175

 Modeling Magnetostrictive Materials
Magnetostriction Coupling
Magnetostriction is an interaction between the mechanical and magnetic physics,
where a magnetic field applied on magnetostrictive material generates the deformation
of the material (direct effect or Joule effect), while a mechanical stress applied on it
changes the material magnetization (inverse effect or Villari effect).

The magnetostrictive strain has a nonlinear dependence on the magnetic field and the
mechanical stress in the material. However, the effect can be modeled using linear
coupled constitutive equations if the response of the material consists of small
deviations around an operating point (bias point). This type of coupling is reffed to as
Piezomagnetic Effect.

In COMSOL Multiphysics, there are two multiphysics interfaces for modeling either
linear or nonlinear magnetostriction, respectively:

• The Piezomagnetism Interface

• The Nonlinear Magnetostriction Interface

Both multiphysics interfaces, the Magnetostriction interfaces are constituted of one

Solid Mechanics and one Magnetic Fields interface, which are coupled together via either
Piezomagnetic Effect or Nonlinear Magnetostriction multiphysics coupling feature.
Hence a magnetostriction problem contains solid and magnetic domains, with at least
one domain shared by the two physics interfaces and with the magnetostriction
coupling defined on it.

Linear vs. Nonlinear Magnetostriction

For piezomagnetic model, it is possible to express the relation between the stress S,
strain , magnetic field H, and magnetic flux density B in either a stress-magnetization
form or strain-magnetization form. In COMSOL Multiphysics, both constitutive
forms can be used; simply select one, and the software will make all necessary
transformations if needed. You find all the necessary material data inputs within the
Piezomagnetic Material selected in the Solid Mechanics interface.

The nonlinear model of magnetostrictive strain can be used for the whole range from
full demagnetization to saturation magnetization. In case of nonlinear
magnetostriction, the magnetization model can be selected. The following options are

176 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

available: Langevin function, Hyperbolic tangent, User defined, and Linear. The last
option will make it possible to find an explicit expression for the magnetization. Note
however that such model does not have a proper saturation behavior, and thus it
should be used only in the operating range far from saturation. For all other choices,
the magnetization vector components will be treated as extra dependent variables.

For more details, see the corresponding theory section in Magnetostriction and
Piezomagnetism.

Create the Magnetostriction Interface and Define Domains

A magnetostriction problem can be set up in different ways:

• By selecting either Piezomagnetism or Nonlinear Magnetostriction from the Model

Wizard,
• By choosing either Piezomagnetism or Nonlinear Magnetostriction from the Add
Physics menu when working in an existing model, or
• By adding the corresponding coupling features to create the coupling manually.

In the first two cases, by default all the domains in the model are assumed to be
magnetostrictive materials.

PIEZOMAGNETISM
When setting up the problem manually (that is, by adding single physics interfaces one
at a time) both Solid Mechanics and Magnetic Fields interfaces should be added. Then,
you have to specify which domains are in each physics, and which domains are to be
modeled as piezomagnetic materials.

1 On the Solid Mechanics interface Settings window, locate the Domain Selection
section. Select the domains which undergo structural deformation, including the
piezomagnetic material domains.
2 Go to the Solid Mechanics>Piezomagnetic Material node. If it is not yet available, add
such node. Select the domains where the piezomagnetic effect applies. You find all
the necessary material data inputs within the Piezomagnetic Material. This includes
the elasticity, magnetic permeability and coupling matrices. Non piezomagnetic
domains can be modeled using any other available structural material model.
3 Go to the Magnetic Fields node and under Domain Selection select the domains the
magnetics equations must be solved. These domains include all the piezomagnetic
domains, and any other magnetic domains.

MODELING MAGNETOSTRICTIVE MATERIALS | 177

 4 Go to the Magnetic Fields>Ampere’s Law, Piezomagnetic node. If it is not yet available,
add such node. Select the domains where the piezomagnetic effect needs to be
modeled.
5 A Multiphysics>Piezomagnetic Effect node is already present if the coupling was
added using either the Model Wizard or Add Physics window. If the model is set up
manually (that is, single physics interfaces are added), right-click the Multiphysics
Couplings node to add a Piezomagnetic Effect coupling. If several Solid Mechanics or
Magnetic Fields interfaces are present, select the correct ones. By default, the model
will be solved as fully coupled. Alternatively, on the Piezomagnetic Effect coupling
node, you can select to include only either Joule effect or Villari effect. Confirm that
all the domains where the piezomagnetic material is present are selected.

Only domains that have both Ampere’s Law, Piezomagnetic selected in the
Magnetic Fields interface and Piezomagnetic Material selected in the Solid
Mechanics interface are applicable in the selection for Piezomagnetic Effect
coupling. The selection of this multiphysics coupling node cannot be
edited directly.

6 Confirm that remaining domains are well assigned:

- Solid and magnetic domains: In these domains, the magnetics and structural
problems are solved independently without any piezomagnetic coupling. This
represents deformable magnetic materials for which such coupling is negligible.
Exclude such domains from the selections for all Ampere’s Law, Piezomagnetic and
Piezomagnetic Material nodes under the corresponding interfaces.
- Solid-only domains: In these domains, only mechanical phenomena are modeled,
and the magnetics phenomena are neglected. This represents deformable solid
nonmagnetic materials. Exclude such domains from the selection in the Magnetic
Fields interface.
- Magnetics-only domains: Those domains are nonsolid. This is typically the case
of air, in which the magnetics is solved but not mechanics. Exclude such domains
from the selection in the Solid Mechanics interface.
- Nonsolid and nonmagnetic domains: In those domains another physics is solved.
Typical examples are acoustic domains and fluid flow domains, which might be

178 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

 present in certain multiphysics application. Exclude such domains from the
selections on both Magnetic Fields and Solid Mechanics interface nodes.

• Piezomagnetic Material
• Ampère’s Law, Piezomagnetic

NONLINEAR MAGNETOSTRICTION
When setting up the problem manually (that is, by adding single physics interfaces one
at a time) both Solid Mechanics and Magnetic Fields interfaces should be added. Then,
you have to specify which domains are in each physics, and which domains are to be
modeled as magnetostrictive materials.

Instead of Magnetic Fields interface, you can also use Rotating Machinery,
Magnetic interface.

1 On the Solid Mechanics interface Settings window, locate the Domain Selection
section. Select the domains which undergo structural deformation, including the
magnetostrictive material domains. The following structural material nodes are
supported to represent the magnetostrictive domains: Linear Elastic Material and
Hyperelastic Material (available with the Nonlinear Structural Materials Module).
2 Go to the Magnetic Fields node and under Domain Selection select the domains the
magnetics equations must be solved. These domains include all the magnetostrictive
domains, and any other magnetic domains.
3 Go to the Magnetic Fields>Ampere’s Law, Nonlinear Magnetostrictive node. If it is not
yet available, add such node. Select the domains where the magnetostriction effect
needs to be modeled. You can specify the magnetization model and enter the related
material data on the node.
4 A Multiphysics>Nonlinear Magnetostriction node is already present if the coupling was
added using either the Model Wizard or Add Physics window. If the model is set up
manually (that is, single physics interfaces are added), right-click the Multiphysics
Couplings node to add a Nonlinear Magnetostriction coupling. If several Solid
Mechanics or Magnetic Fields interfaces are present, select the correct ones. On the
coupling node, you can also select the magnetostriction model depending on the
material symmetry and enter the corresponding coupling data. By default, the
model will be solved as fully coupled. Alternatively, on the Nonlinear Magnetostriction

MODELING MAGNETOSTRICTIVE MATERIALS | 179

 coupling node, you can select to include only either Joule effect or Villari effect.
Select only the domains where the magnetostrictive effect needs to be modeled.

On the Nonlinear Magnetostriction coupling node, the applicable domains

in the selection are only domains that have both Ampere’s Law, Nonlinear
Magnetostrictive selected in the Magnetic Fields interface and Linear Elastic
Model (or Hyperelastic Model) selected in the Solid Mechanics interface.

5 Confirm that remaining domains are well assigned:

- Solid and magnetic domains: In these domains, the magnetics and structural
problems are solved independently without any magnetostriction coupling. This
represents deformable magnetic materials for which such coupling is negligible.
Exclude such domains from the selection in the Nonlinear Magnetostriction
coupling node.
- Solid-only domains: In these domains, only mechanical phenomena are modeled,
and the magnetics phenomena are neglected. This represents deformable solid
nonmagnetic materials. Exclude such domains from the selection in the Magnetic
Fields interface.
- Magnetics-only domains: Those domains are nonsolid. This is typically the case
of air, in which the magnetics is solved but not mechanics. Exclude such domains
from the selection in the Solid Mechanics interface.
- Nonsolid and nonmagnetic domains: In those domains another physics is solved.
Typical examples are acoustic domains and fluid flow domains, which might be
present in certain multiphysics applications. Exclude such domains from the
selections in both Magnetic Fields and Solid Mechanics interfaces.

• Ampère’s Law, Nonlinear Magnetostrictive

180 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Mechanical Damping and Losses
Damping and losses are important factors for determining the response in
time-dependent and frequency domain studies, and sometimes also when computing
eigenfrequencies. This section describes how to model damping and loss using
different damping models. In this section:

In this section:

• About Damping
• Rayleigh Damping
• Loss Factor Damping
• Viscoelastic Damping
• Explicit Complex-Valued Damping
• Equivalence Between Loss Factor, Rayleigh, and Viscous Damping
• Piezoelectric Damping
• Adding Damping in the Modal Solver

Damping Sources
There are many sources of damping in a system. Some of them are:

• Dissipation in the material. This dissipation can be for example be proportional to

the amplitude of the strain rate (viscous damping) or to the amplitude of the strain
itself (hysteretic damping).
• Thermoelastic damping, which is a thermodynamic effect which is related not only
to the state in a point, but also to the gradients of the temperature field.
• Damping caused by the surrounding medium, often air or water.
• Friction between joined parts.
• Components intended to supply damping like a dashpot in a car suspension.

It is often difficult to separate and quantify these effects, so damping modeling is one
of the biggest challenges in structural dynamics.

MECHANICAL DAMPING AND LOSSES | 181

 About Damping
Phenomenological damping models are typically invoked to model the intrinsic
frictional damping present in most materials (material damping). These models are
easiest to understand in the context of a system with a single degree of freedom. The
following equation of motion describes the dynamics of such a system with viscous
damping:

2
d u du
m ---------2- + c ------- + ku = f  t  (2-21)
dt dt

In this equation u is the displacement of the degree of freedom, m is its mass, c is the
damping parameter, and k is the stiffness of the system. The time (t) dependent forcing
term is f(t). This equation is often written in the form:

2
d u- du 2 f t
--------- + 2 0 ------- +  0 u = --------- (2-22)
dt
2 dt m

where   c2m0 and 02  km. In this case  is the damping ratio (  1 for
critical damping) and 0 is the undamped resonant frequency of the system. In the
literature it is more common to give values of  than c. The damping ratio  can also
be readily related to many of the various measures of damping employed in different
disciplines. These are summarized in Table 2-10.
TABLE 2-10: RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN MEASURES OF DAMPING

DAMPING DEFINITION RELATION TO

PARAMETER DAMPING RATIO

Damping ratio  = c  c critical –

Logarithmic u  t0   d  2
decrement  d = ln  ----------------------
u  t0 +  
 « 1
where t0 is a reference time and  is the period
of vibration for a decaying, unforced degree of
freedom.

182 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

TABLE 2-10: RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN MEASURES OF DAMPING

DAMPING DEFINITION RELATION TO

PARAMETER DAMPING RATIO

Quality factor Q =    Q  1   2 

where  is the bandwidth of the amplitude  « 1

resonance measured at 1  2 of its peak.
Loss factor 1 Qh At the resonant
 = ------  --------
2  W h frequency:
  2
where Qh is the energy lost per cycle and Wh is
the maximum potential energy stored in the  « 1
cycle. The variables Qh and Wh are available as
solid.Qh and solid.Wh.

In the frequency domain, the time dependence of the force and the displacement can
be represented by introducing a complex force term and assuming a similar time
dependence for the displacement. The equations

jt jt
f  t  = Re  Fe  and u  t  = Re  Ue 

are written where  is the angular frequency and the amplitude terms U and F can in
general be complex (the arguments provide information on the relative phase of
signals). Usually the real part is taken as implicit and is subsequently dropped.
Equation 2-21 takes the following form in the frequency domain:

2
–  mU + jcU + kU = F (2-23)

where the time dependence has canceled out on both sides. Alternatively, this equation
can be written as:

2 2 F
–  U + 2j 0 U +  0 U = ----- (2-24)
m

There are three basic damping models available in the structural mechanics interfaces
for explicit modeling of material damping — Rayleigh damping, viscous damping,
and loss factor models based on introducing complex quantities into the equation
system. There are also other phenomena which contribute to the damping. Some
material models, such as viscoelasticity and plasticity are inherently dissipative. It is also
possible to model damping in spring conditions.

MECHANICAL DAMPING AND LOSSES | 183

 Rayleigh Damping
A common method of modeling damping is Rayleigh damping, where two damping
coefficients are specified. This type of damping is not directly related to any physical
process, but must be seen as a way to take the total damping of a structure into
account.

Rayleigh damping introduces damping in a form based on Equation 2-21. This means
that the method can be applied generally in either the time or frequency domain. The
parameter c in Equation 2-21 is defined as a fraction of the mass and the stiffness using
two parameters, dM and dK, such that

c =  dM m +  dK k (2-25)

Substituting this relationship into Equation 2-21 and rearranging into the form of
Equation 2-22 gives:

2
d u- 2 du 2 ft
---------
2
+   dM +  dK  0  ------- +  0 u = ---------
dt dt m

When there are many degrees of freedom m, k, and c become matrices and the
technique can be generalized.

Rayleigh damping can therefore be identified as equivalent to the damping ratio at

resonance of:

1  dM
 = ---  ----------- +  dK  0 (2-26)
2  0 

Note that Equation 2-26 holds separately for each vibrational mode in the system at
its resonant frequency. In the frequency domain it is possible to use frequency
dependent values of dM and dK. For example, setting dM  0 and dK  2/0
produces an equivalent viscous damping model at the resonant frequency 0.

While Rayleigh damping is numerically convenient, the model does not agree with
experimental results for the frequency dependence of material damping over an
extended range of frequencies. This is because the material damping forces behave
more like frictional forces (which are frequency independent) than viscous damping
forces (which increase linearly with frequency as implied by Equation 2-23). In the
frequency domain it is possible to introduce loss factor damping, which has the desired
property of frequency independence.

184 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

A complication with the Rayleigh damping model is to obtain good values for the
damping parameters dM and dK. A more physical damping measure is the damping
ratio, the ratio between actual and critical damping, often expressed as a percentage of
the critical damping. Commonly used values of the damping ratio can be found in the
literature.

Using Equation 2-26, this relationship at two frequencies, f1 and f2, with different
damping ratio, 1 and 2, results in an equation system that can be solved for dM and
dK:

1-
----------- f
4f 1 1  dM 1
=
1-  dK 2
----------- f
4f 2 2

The damping ratios are then

1 f2 – 2 f1
 dM = 4f 1 f 2 ---------------------------
2 2
f2 – f1
2 f2 – 1 f1
 dK = ---------------------------
2 2
  f2 – f1 

Using the same damping ratio, 1 = 2 = 0, does not result in a constant damping
factor inside the interval f1  f  f2. It can be shown that the damping factor is lower
inside the interval, as Figure 2-13 shows.
Damping ratio

Rayleigh damping
(f)

0
Specified damping

f1 f2 f

Figure 2-13: An example of Rayleigh damping.

MECHANICAL DAMPING AND LOSSES | 185

 Since the coefficients dM and dK should not be negative, the damping ratios are
constrained by the respective frequencies as

f1 2 f2
----  -----  ----
f2 1 f1

For many applications it is sufficient to leave dM as zero and to define damping only
using the dK coefficient. Then, according to Equation 2-26, a damping which
increases linearly with frequency is obtained. If the damping ratio f0 or loss factor
f0 is known at a given frequency f0, the appropriate value for dK is:

 dK =    f 0  =    2f 0 

In order to visualize the damping ratio as a function of frequency, click

Damping Ratio Preview ( ).

Loss Factor Damping

Loss factor damping (sometimes referred to as material damping, structural damping,
or hysteretic damping) can be applied in the frequency domain.

The loss factor is a measure of the inherent damping in a material when it is

dynamically loaded. It is typically defined as the ratio of energy dissipated in unit
volume per radian of oscillation to the maximum strain energy per unit volume.

In COMSOL Multiphysics the loss information appears as a multiplier to the elastic

constitutive matrix Dc

c
D =  1 + j s D

For a nonlinear elastic material, this applies to the tangential stiffness.

The use of loss factor damping traditionally refers to a scalar-valued loss factor s. But
there is no reason that s must be scalar. Because the loss factor is a value deduced from
true complex-valued material data, it can be represented by a matrix of the same
dimensions as the anisotropic stiffness matrix. Especially for orthotropic materials,
there should be a set of loss factors of all normal and shear elasticity modulus
components, and COMSOL allows all these options, so a more general expression is.

c
D mn =  1 + j s mn D mn

186 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

For hyperelastic materials the loss information appears as a stress contribution to the
second Piola–Kirchhoff stress, S:

W s
S q = j s ----------
E

Loss factor damping is available for frequency response analysis and damped
eigenfrequency analysis in all interfaces.

Viscous Damping
You can add an explicit viscous damping to several material models. Viscous damping
can be used both in time domain and frequency domain. In the viscous damping
model, and extra contribution, proportional to the strain rate, is added to the stress
tensor, as described in Viscous Damping.

You can specify the viscous damping for volumetric strains and shear strains
independently.

Equivalence Between Loss Factor, Rayleigh, and Viscous Damping

In frequency domain, it is possible to use Rayleigh damping in order to specify an
equivalent viscous damping. Set the stiffness damping parameter dK, to the loss
factor, , divided by the excitation frequency:

 
 dK = --------- = ----
2f 

The mass damping factor, dM, should be set to zero.

If, on the other hand, you would want to use a viscous damping, corresponding to a
certain Rayleigh stiffness damping, the conversion to bulk and shear viscosity can be
made using the expressions

 b = K dK
 v = G dK

where K and G are the bulk and shear moduli, respectively. Equivalently, you can
transform between loss factor damping and viscous damping,

MECHANICAL DAMPING AND LOSSES | 187

 K
 b = --------

G
 v = --------


Explicit Complex-Valued Damping

In frequency domain, it is possible to define damping by modeling the dissipative
behavior of the material using complex-valued material properties. In COMSOL
Multiphysics, you can enter the complex-valued data directly, using i or sqrt(-1) for
the imaginary unit.

However, entering complex-valued data directly into the material parameters is

incompatible with the built-in damping and viscoelasticity features.

Viscoelastic Damping
In some cases, damping is included implicitly in the material model. This is the case for
a viscoelastic material, where damping operates on the shear components of stress and
strain.

When viscoelasticity is modeled in the frequency domain, it will act as a loss factor
damping. The complex modulus G*() is the frequency-domain representation of the
stress relaxation function of viscoelastic material. It is defined as

G = G + jG =  1 + j s G

where G' is the storage modulus, G'' is the loss modulus, and their ratio sG''G' is
the loss factor. The term G' defines the amount of stored energy for the applied strain,
whereas G'' defines the amount of energy dissipated as heat; G', G'', and s can all be
frequency dependent.

Piezoelectric Damping
Piezoelectric losses are more complex and include coupling and electrical losses in
addition to the material terms. For damping in piezoelectric materials, see Piezoelectric
Losses.

For piezoelectric materials, dK is only used as a multiplier of the structural

contribution to the stiffness matrix when building-up the damping matrix as given by

188 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Equation 2-25. In the frequency domain studies, you can use the coupling and
dielectric loss factors equal to dK to effectively achieve the Rayleigh damping
involving the whole stiffness matrix.

Adding Damping in the Modal Solver

In COMSOL it is possible to solve a problem for a set of modes in the absence of
damping, and then to use those solutions as a modal basis to solve a problem in the
time (using a time domain modal study) or frequency domain (using a Frequency
Domain, Modal study). In both of these cases it is possible to manually assign a
damping ratio to the computed modes in the time or frequency domain study. To do
that, right click on the study and choose Show Default Solver, then expand the solver
sequence until the Modal Solver node is visible. In the Settings window for that node,
add damping ratios for each of the modes.

For more details, see the section Modal Solver in the COMSOL
Multiphysics Reference Manual.

MECHANICAL DAMPING AND LOSSES | 189

 Modeling Geometric Nonlinearity
This section discusses how to model problems where displacements or strains are of a
size where the deformation of the structure has to be taken into account when
formulating the equations. Examples of the type of problems where this feature is
useful include:

• Thin structures, where the deflection is of the same order of magnitude as the
thickness.
• Where the structure exhibits large rotations. A rigid body rotation of only a few
degrees causes significant strains and stresses in a material where a linear strain
representation is used.
• Where the strains are larger than a few percent.
• Contact problems.
• Where a prestress must be taken into account for computing the dynamic response
of a structure.
• Buckling problems.
• Where a deformed mesh is used.
• Fluid-structure interaction problems.

• Contact Modeling
• Fluid-Structure Interaction
• The more formal theory is described in Analysis of Deformation

Geometric Nonlinearity, Frames, and the ALE Method

Consider the bending of a beam in the general case of a large deformation (see
Figure 2-14). In this case the deformation of the beam introduces an effect known as
geometric nonlinearity into the equations of solid mechanics.

Figure 2-14 shows that as the beam deforms, the shape, orientation, and position of
the element at its tip changes significantly. Each edge of the infinitesimal cube
undergoes both a change in length and a rotation that depends on position.
Additionally, the three edges of the cube are no longer orthogonal in the deformed

190 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

configuration (although typically for practical strains the effect of the
nonorthogonality can be neglected in comparison to the rotation).

From a simulation perspective it is possible to solve the equations of solid mechanics

on either a fixed domain (this is often called a Total Lagrangian formulation), or on
a domain that changes continuously with the deformation. The latter approach is often
called an Updated Lagrangian formulation. These two approaches also stand in
contrast to the Eulerian formulation which is often used for fluid mechanics. In an
Eulerian formulation the flow through a domain fixed in space is considered, while in
the Lagrangian formulation a fixed volume of material is considered.

In COMSOL Multiphysics, the concepts of a material frame and a

spatial frame are used. Equations formulated in the material frame will
give a Total Lagrangian formulation, while equations formulated in the
spatial frame will give an Eulerian formulation.

See Frames and Coordinate Systems in the theory chapter for more
details.

Solid mechanics in COMSOL Multiphysics is formulated on the material frame. This

is achieved by defining a displacement field for every point in the solid, usually with
components u, v, and w. At a given coordinate (X, Y, Z) in the reference configuration
(on the left of Figure 2-14) the value of u describes the displacement of the point
relative to its original position. The displacement is considered as a function of the
material coordinates (X, Y, Z), but it is not explicitly a function of the spatial
coordinates (x, y, z). The spatial coordinates give the current location in space of a
point in the deformed solid. As a consequence, it is only possible to compute
derivatives with respect to the material coordinates.

Taking derivatives of the displacement with respect to X, Y, and Z enables the

definition of a strain tensor. There are possible representations of the deformation. Any
reasonable representation must however be able to represent a rigid rotation of an
unstrained body without producing any strain. The engineering strain fails here, thus
it cannot be used for general geometrically nonlinear cases. One common choice for
representing large strains is the Green–Lagrange strain. It contains derivatives of the
displacements with respect to the original configuration. The values therefore
represent strains in material directions. This allows a physical interpretation, but it
must be realized that even for a uniaxial case, the Green–Lagrange strain is strongly
nonlinear with respect to the displacement. If an object is stretched to twice its original

MODELING GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY | 191

 length, the Green–Lagrange strain is 1.5 in the stretching direction. If the object is
compressed to half its length, the strain would read -0.375.

An even more fundamental quantity is the deformation gradient, which contains the
derivatives of the deformed coordinates with respect to the original coordinates:

x
F = ------- = u + I
X

The deformation gradient contains all information about the local deformation in the
solid, and can be used to form many other strain quantities. As an example, the Green–
Lagrange strain is

1 T
 = ---  F F – I 
2

An element at a point (X, Y, Z) specified in the material frame moves with a single
piece of material throughout a solid mechanics simulation. It is often convenient to
define material properties in the material frame as these properties move and rotate
naturally together with the volume element at the point at which they are defined as
the simulation progresses. In Figure 2-14 this point is illustrated by the small cube
highlighted at the end of the beam, which is stretched, translated, and rotated as the
beam deforms. The three mutually perpendicular faces of the cube in the Lagrange

192 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

frame are no longer perpendicular in the deformed (spatial) frame. The deformed
frame coordinates in this frame are denoted (x, y, z) in COMSOL.

Figure 2-14: An example of the deformation of a beam showing the undeformed state
(left) and the deformed state (right) of the beam itself with an element near its tip
highlighted (top), of the element (center), and of lines parallel to the x-axis in the
undeformed state (bottom).

It is important to note that, as the solid deforms, the Lagrangian frame

becomes a nonorthogonal curvilinear coordinate system (see the lower
part of Figure 2-14 to see the deformation of the X-axis). Particular care
is therefore required when defining physics in this coordinate system.

FRAME CONTROL CONFLICTS

Under geometric nonlinearity, a Solid Mechanics interface (or a similar structural
mechanics interface such as Multibody Dynamics) will assume control over the spatial
frame in the domains where it is active. However, the definition of the spatial frame
must be unique, and there may be conflicts. Some examples are:

• A Solid Mechanics interface and a moving mesh feature (for example, Deforming
Domain or Rotating Domain) have a common selection. In this case, the selection in

MODELING GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY | 193

 the Solid Mechanics interface will be marked as “not applicable”. Thus, it is not
possible to solve a structural mechanics problem on such a domain.
• There are more than one frame-controlling physics interfaces active on the same
domain.

When two physics interfaces are competing for frame control, you will get the error
message “Multiple moving frame specifications on the same selection” when trying to
run the study. To identify the problem, go to the settings for the study step, and select
Modify model configuration for study step. There, you will get an overview of the frame
control in the model. Note that it is quite possible that several features control the
spatial frame, as long as it is on different geometric selections.

When you select a physics interface in the tree view, you can click the Control Frame
Deformation button ( ) to toggle whether that interface should control the spatial
frame or not.

194 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

STRESS MEASURES
For example, in the spatial frame it is easy to define forces per unit area (known as
tractions) that act within the solid and to define a stress tensor that represents all of
these forces that act on a volume element. Such forces could be physically measured,
for example, using an implanted piezoresistor. The stress tensor in the spatial frame is
called the Cauchy or true stress tensor (in COMSOL Multiphysics this is referred to as
the spatial stress tensor). To construct the stress tensor in the Lagrangian frame a
tensor transformation must be performed on the Cauchy stress. This produces the
second Piola–Kirchhoff (or material) stress, which can be used with the material strain
to solve the solid mechanics problem in the (fixed) material frame. This is how the
Solid Mechanics interface works when geometric nonlinearities are enabled.

For the Cauchy stress tensor, both the force components and the normal to the area
on which the force is acting have fixed directions in space. This means that if a stressed
body is subjected to a pure rotation, the actual values of the stress components will
change. What was originally a uniaxial stress state might be transformed into a full
tensor with both normal and shear stress components. In many cases, this is neither
what you want to use nor what you would expect.

Consider for example an orthotropic material with fibers having a certain orientation.
It is much more plausible that you want to see the stress in the fiber direction, even if
the component is rotated. The Second Piola–Kirchhoff stress has this property as it is
defined along the material directions. In the figure below, an originally straight
cantilever beam has been subjected to bending by a pure moment at the tip. The
xx-component of the Cauchy stress and Second Piola–Kirchhoff stress are shown.
Since the stress is physically directed along the beam, the xx-component of the Cauchy
stress (which is related to the global x direction) decreases with the deflection. The
Second Piola–Kirchhoff stress, however, has the same through-thickness distribution
all along the beam, even in the deformed configuration.

MODELING GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY | 195

 Figure 2-15: xx-components of the Cauchy stress tensor (top) and Second-Piola–Kirchhoff
stress tensor (below) for an initially straight beam

Another stress measure available in COMSOL Multiphysics is the First Piola–Kirchhoff

stress. It is a multiaxial generalization of the nominal (or engineering) stress. The stress
is defined as the force in the current configuration acting on the original area. The First
Piola–Kirchhoff stress is an unsymmetric tensor, and is for that reason less attractive to
work with. Sometimes you may also encounter the Kirchhoff stress, although it is not
used in COMSOL Multiphysics. The Kirchhoff stress is just the Cauchy stress scaled
by the volume change. It has little physical significance, but can be convenient in some
mathematical and numerical operations.

Unfortunately, even without a rotation, the actual values of all these stress
representations are not the same. All of them scale differently with respect to local
volume changes and stretches. This is illustrated in the graph below. The
xx-component of four different stress measures are plotted at the fixed end of the beam
from the example above. At this point, the beam axis coincides with the x-axis, so the
directions of all stress tensor components coincide. In the center of the beam, where
strains, and thereby volume changes are small, all values approach each other. For a
case with large rotation but small strains, the different stress representations can be
seen as pure rotations of the same stress tensor.

196 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Figure 2-16: Stress distribution across the beam at the constrained end.

If you want to compute the resulting force or moment on a certain boundary based on
the stresses, there are in practice only two possible choices: Either integrate the Cauchy
stress over the deformed boundary, or integrate the First Piola–Kirchhoff stress over
the same boundary in the undeformed configuration. In COMSOL Multiphysics this
corresponds to selecting either Spatial frame or Material frame in the settings for the
integration operator.

ALE METHOD
In the case of solid mechanics, the material and spatial frames are associated directly
with the Lagrangian and Eulerian frames, respectively. In a more general case (for
example, when tracking the deformation of a fluid, such as a volume of air surrounding
a moving structure) tying the Lagrangian frame to the material frame becomes less
desirable. Fluid must be able to flow both into and out of the computational domain,
without taking the mesh with it. The arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian (ALE) method
allows the material frame to be defined with a more general mapping to the spatial or
Eulerian frame. In COMSOL Multiphysics, a separate equation is solved to produce
this mapping — defined by the mesh smoothing method (Laplacian, Winslow,
hyperelastic, or Yeoh) with boundary conditions that determine the limits of

MODELING GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY | 197

 deformation (these are usually determined by the physics of the system, whilst the
domain level equations are typically being defined for numerical convenience). The
ALE method offers significant advantages since the physical equations describing the
system can be solved in a moving domain.

Deformed Geometry and Moving Mesh in the COMSOL Multiphysics

Reference Manual

Geometric Nonlinearity for the Solid Mechanics Interface

For the Solid Mechanics interface, you enable a geometrically nonlinear analysis for a
certain study step by selecting the Include geometric nonlinearity check box in the Study
Settings section of a study step.

If any active feature in the model requires the analysis to be geometrically nonlinear,
the Include geometric nonlinearity check box is selected automatically, and it cannot be
cleared. The following physics features force this behavior:

• Contact, because the deformation between the contacting boundaries must be part
of the solution.
• Moving mesh (when at least one deforming domain is active).
• Large strain plasticity.
• Hyperelastic materials, which are always formulated for large strains.

Usually you would also want to use geometric nonlinearity when a Moving Mesh
interface is present, but this setting is not forced by the program.

When you select a geometrically nonlinear study step, the behavior of several features
differs from that in a geometrically linear case:

• There is an important difference between using uppercase (X, Y, Z, R) and

lowercase (x, y, z, r) coordinates in expressions. The lowercase coordinates
represent the deformed position, and this introduces a dependency on the solution.
• Many features, such as coupling operators, can be specified as operating either in the
material (X, Y, Z) or the spatial (x, y, z) frame. This setting does not make a
difference unless a geometrically nonlinear analysis is performed. In most cases you
would want to do the operation in the material frame.

198 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

• The strain representation is changed from using engineering strains to Green–
Lagrange strains, unless the Geometrically linear formulation check box is selected in
the Geometric Nonlinearity section of a certain material.
• Where Green–Lagrange strains are used, Second Piola–Kirchhoff stresses are also
used. This means that material data must be given in terms of these quantities. This
distinction is important only when the strains actually are large.
• Pressure loads are interpreted as follower loads, so that the direction of the load as
well as the loaded area are deformation dependent.
• Rigid connectors take finite rotations into account.

Studies and Solvers in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

Geometric Nonlinearity for the Shell, Plate, Membrane, Beam and

Truss Interfaces
For the Shell, Plate, Membrane, Beam, and Truss interfaces, a geometrically nonlinear
analysis is enabled in the same way described above. For the Membrane interface,
geometric nonlinearity must almost always be used, since it is nonlinear effects which
supply the stiffness in the transverse direction.

The geometric nonlinearity in the Beam interface is limited to large rotations and
displacements, but small strains.

The effect of using geometric nonlinearity in these interfaces is limited to the stress and
strain representation as the other effects described in Geometric Nonlinearity for the
Solid Mechanics Interface are not relevant.

Solving Geometrically Nonlinear Problems

Depending on the geometrically nonlinear effects that appear in your model, you may
have to use different solution strategies. Some problems in this class are strongly
nonlinear, while others show only a weak deviation from linearity. Some guidelines are:

• If the problem has a path dependent solution, then it must be solved in an

incremental way in order to give a correct solution. Problems including for example
plasticity or friction belong to this class. If you do the analysis in time domain, then
the solution is inherently incremental. If the analysis is stationary, invoke the

MODELING GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY | 199

 parametric continuation solver by adding an Auxiliary Sweep, and ramp up some
loading parameter. In either case, make sure that the step size is not too large.
• Problem that have a unique solution, like an elastic model subjected to large
rotations or strains can be solved in a single static load step without loss of accuracy.
It is however possible that such an approach will not converge, in which case a
parametric continuation solver must be used.
• In problems involving large rotations, the default settings of the nonlinear solver
will sometimes give a too conservative solution strategy. You can often decrease the
solution time significantly by modifying the settings under Method and Termination
in the settings for the Fully Coupled or Segregated Step node in the solver sequence.
Set Nonlinear method to Constant (Newton) and use a rather high Damping factor. In
most cases the value 1 will work.
• If you model a situation which to a large extent is a rigid rotation, it is often
necessary to use tighter tolerances than usual in order to avoid spurious stresses.
Since the strains are computed from the differences of the displacements in an
element, even a small relative error in the displacements (which are large) can cause
significant strains. This will be visible in a case where the actual stresses are small.

Prestressed Structures
You can analyze eigenfrequency, frequency domain, or time-dependent problems
where the dynamic properties of the structure are affected by a preload, such as a
tensioned string.

Usually, a study of a prestressed problem includes using two study steps. The first step
is a Stationary step in which the static preload is applied. The preload step can be
computed with or without taking geometric nonlinearity into account. In the second
study step, where you compute the eigenfrequency or the frequency response, it is
necessary to take geometric nonlinearity into account. Even if the displacements and
strains are small, this is what gives the prestress contribution to the equations.

There are three predefined study sequences for prestressed dynamic analysis:

• Eigenfrequency, Prestressed
• Frequency Domain, Prestressed
• Frequency Domain, Prestressed, Modal

The prestressed study types assume that the loading causes small perturbations around
the prestressed state.

200 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

In a general nonlinear analysis, like a Stationary or Time Dependent study step, the full
combined effect of the prestress and other loads will automatically be included.

The same principles apply also to a linear buckling analysis, except that both study steps
should be geometrically linear. The nonlinear contribution is included in the
formulation of the buckling eigenvalue itself.

FOLLOWER LOADS
Loads that change orientation with deformation, such as a pressure, actually contribute
not only to the load but also to the stiffness. This is a physical effect and not just a
numerical artifact. Whether such loads are included or not in an Eigenfrequency study
step will affect the computed eigenfrequencies. If you for some reason do not want this
effect, you must suppress the load in the Physics and Variables section of the
Eigenfrequency node.

If you use a local coordinate system for describing a load, you must, in
case of geometric nonlinearity, pay attention to whether that coordinate
system has constant axis orientations or not. As an example, the default
boundary system has Frame set to Deformed Configuration, so that a load
represented in that system will behave as a follower load. Change to
Reference Configuration if the load should act in fixed directions.

In more general terms, any feature in which there is a dependency on the

choice of frame (material or spatial) can potentially affect the outcome of
a prestressed analysis.

CONTACT AND PRESTRESSED ANALYSIS

If a contact is included in the prestress load case, you can perform a subsequent
eigenfrequency or frequency-domain analysis in which the linearization will be made
around the computed contact state. The connection between the two boundaries is
elastic, using the penalty factor as stiffness, both for the penalty method and the
augmented Lagrangian method. If the augmented Lagrangian method is used for the
contact modeling, then the penalty factor must be constant and not dependent on the
iteration number.

MODELING GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY | 201

 The contact state is considered as fixed, so there is no harmonic perturbation in contact
quantities, such as the contact pressure.

The gap distance in a contact analysis is computed from the coordinates

of the contacting boundaries in the spatial frame. The spatial frame is
defined by the displacements in the preload step and is not affected by the
displacements in a subsequent perturbation step.

INELASTIC STRESSES AND STRAINS

When inelastic stresses and strains are part of the problem description, you need to
make some extra considerations. Such contributions are formally part of the
constitutive model but generate load vector contributions.

There are three Preset study types which can be used to set up these two
study steps: Eigenfrequency, Prestressed; Frequency Domain, Prestressed;
and Linear Buckling.

If you want to explicitly prescribe the stress field for a prestressed analysis
rather than solving for it, you should not use the two study step
procedure. In such a case, prescribe the stress field using an Initial Stress
and Strain, External Stress, or External Strain node. Then add a separate
Eigenfrequency or Frequency Domain study and select Include Geometric
Nonlinearity in the settings for the study step.

Eigenfrequency, Prestressed, Frequency Domain, Prestressed, and Linear

Buckling in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

• For an example of a general prestressed eigenfrequency analysis see

Bracket — Eigenfrequency Analysis: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Tutorials/bracket_eigenfrequency.
• For an example of an analysis where the stress state is explicitly
prescribed, see Vibrating Membrane: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Verification_Examples/
vibrating_membrane.

202 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Geometric Nonlinearity for the Piezoelectric Material

PIEZOELECTRIC MATERIALS WITH LARGE DEFORMATIONS

The linear piezoelectric equations as presented in About Piezoelectric Materials with
engineering strains are valid if the model undergoes only relatively small deformations.
As soon as the model contains larger displacements or rotations, these equations
produce spurious strains that result in an incorrect solution. To overcome this
problem, so-called large deformation piezoelectric equations are required.

The Piezoelectric Material implements the large deformation piezoelectric equations

according to Yang (Ref. 1). Key items of this formulation are:

• The strains are calculated as the Green–Lagrange strains, ij:

1  u i u j u k u k
 ij = ---  -------- + -------- +
2  X j X i  --------
- ---------
X i X j 
(2-27)
k

Green–Lagrange strains are defined with reference to an undeformed geometry.

Hence, they represent a Lagrangian description. In a small-strain, large rotational
analysis, the Green–Lagrange strain corresponds to the engineering strain in
directions that follow the deformed body.
• Electrical field variables are calculated in the material directions, and the electric
displacement relation is replaced by an expression that produce electric polarization
in the material orientation of the solid.
• In the variational formulation, the electrical energy is split into two parts: The
polarization energy within the solid and the electric energy of free space occupied
by the deformed solid.

The first two items above result in another set of constitutive equations for large
deformation piezoelectricity:

T
S = cE  – e Em
P m = e +  0   rS – I E m

where S is the second Piola–Kirchhoff stress;  is the Green–Lagrange strain, Em and

Pm are the electric field and electric polarization in the material orientation; I is the
identity matrix; and cE, e, and rS are the piezoelectric material constants. The
expression within parentheses equals the dielectric susceptibility of the solid:

 =  rS – I

MODELING GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY | 203

 The electric displacement field in the material orientation results from the following
relation

–1
D m = P m +  0 JC E m

where C is the right Cauchy–Green tensor

T
C = F F

Fields in the global orientation result from the following transformation rules:

–T
E = F Em
–1
P = J FP m
(2-28)
–1
D = J FD m
–1
v = V J

where F is the deformation gradient; J is the determinant of F; and v and V are the
volume charge density in spatial and material coordinates, respectively. The
deformation gradient is defined as the gradient of the present position of a material
point x  X + u:

x
F = -------
X

Finally, one can rewrite the constitutive equations as

T
S = cE  – e Em
–1
D m = e +  0  rS E m +  0  JC – I E m

DECOUPLED MATERIALS WITH LARGE DEFORMATIONS

The large deformation formulation described in the previous section applies directly to
materials not being piezoelectric if the coupling term is set to zero: e  0. In that case,
the structural part corresponds to the large deformation formulation described for the
solid mechanics interfaces.

The electrical part separates into two different cases: For solid domains, the electric
energy consists of polarization energy within the solid and the electric energy of free
space occupied by the deformed solid — the same as for the piezoelectric materials.
For nonsolid domains this separation does not occur, and the electric displacement in

204 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

these domains directly results from the electric field — the electric displacement
relation:

D = 0 r E

The Electrostatics Interface in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference

Manual

LARGE DEFORMATION AND DEFORMED MESH

The Piezoelectricity Interface, Solid can be coupled with the Moving Mesh (ALE)
interface in a way so that the electrical degrees of freedom are solved in an ALE frame.
This feature is intended to be used in applications where a model contains nonsolid
domains, such as modeling of electrostatically actuated structures. This functionality is
not required for modeling of piezoelectric or other solid materials.

The use of ALE has impacts on the formulation of the electrical large deformation
equations:

• The first impact is that with ALE, the gradient of the electric potential directly
results in the electric field in the global orientation, and the material electric field
results after transformation.
• The most visible impact is on the boundary conditions. With ALE, any surface
charge density or electric displacement is defined per the present deformed
boundary area, whereas for the case without ALE, they are defined per the
undeformed reference area.

Deformed Geometry and Moving Mesh in the COMSOL Multiphysics

Reference Manual

References
1. J. Yang, An Introduction to the Theory of Piezoelectricity, Springer Science and
Business Media, N.Y., 2005.

2. A.F. Bower, Applied Mechanics of Solids, CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL (http://
www.solidmechanics.org), 2010.

MODELING GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY | 205

 Contact Modeling
Overview
Situations where objects come into contact with each other occur frequently in
mechanical simulations. Setting up and solving such contact problems can be a
challenging task, and this section contains information about important aspects of
creating models involving contact.

In a contact analysis, you solve for the contact state and the contact forces. The most
fundamental quantity in a contact analysis is the distance between the objects which
may come into contact, the gap. If the gap is positive then there is no interaction. The
task of the contact algorithm is to ensure that the gap never becomes negative; that is,
to avoid overclosure. In order to accomplish this task, contact forces must be
introduced.

For normal contact, the state only consists of being in contact or not, and the force
variable is the contact pressure in the normal direction. With friction included, there
are two possible states for the relative tangential displacement when in contact:
sticking or sliding. The tangential force vector is added as force variable.

The contact analysis functionality in COMSOL Multiphysics also includes the

possibility to prescribe adhesion and decohesion between the contacting objects, and
to model removal of material by wear when the objects are sliding relative to each
other.

In this section:

• Setting Up a Contact Problem • Special Types of Contact Problems

• Contact Pairs • Fallback Conditions to Contact
• Meshing for Contact Analysis Regions

• Settings for Contact Nodes • Solver Settings for Contact Analysis

• Quasistatic Contact Analysis • Monitoring the Solution

• Dynamic Contact Analysis • Dependent Variables in Contact

Analysis
• Multiphysics Contact Analysis
• Important Contact Variables

206 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Setting Up a Contact Problem
Mechanical contact can be modeled between boundaries in the Solid Mechanics,
Multibody Dynamics, Shell, Layered Shell, and Membrane interfaces. You can model
contact not only within a single physics interface, but also between two physics
interfaces, or even between a physics interface and any boundary having a mesh.

To model a mechanical contact problem, you must do the following fundamental

steps:

• In the finalization step of the geometry sequence, you should normally have Action
set to Form an assembly. If Form a union is used, then the contacting boundaries must
be geometrically separated in the initial configuration.
• Add Contact Pair nodes under Definitions. A contact pair consists of two sets of
boundaries, which are called the source and destination boundaries. Contact pairs
can also be added automatically, based on boundary adjacency when the Form an
assembly action is used. The geometric gap distance is a variable set up by the
contact pair, which also define operators for mapping variables or expressions
between the selected boundaries.
• Use the default Contact node or add new Contact nodes in the physics interface. In
the Contact node, you select the contact pairs to be used, and provide the settings
for the physical and numerical properties of the contact model.
• If relevant, add Friction, Slip Velocity, Adhesion, Decohesion, or Wear subnodes to
Contact.

CONTACT MODELING | 207

 • Select a suitable study type. You can analyze contact using the following types of
study steps:
- Stationary; commonly using an auxiliary sweep.
- Bolt Pretension
- Time Dependent
- Any type of prestressed analysis. In this case, the full contact problem is solved in
the preload step, and in the subsequent perturbation step the contact state is
considered as fixed.

• Documentation of the Contact, Friction, Slip Velocity, Adhesion,

Decohesion, and Wear nodes.
• Contact Analysis Theory.
• Identity and Contact Pairs in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference
Manual.

In a multiphysics analysis, a contact problem can also incorporate for example changes
in the heat flux or electric current through the contacting boundaries. You will then
also need to add corresponding features in the other participating interfaces, like a
Thermal Contact node in the Heat Transfer in Solids interface. The contact state and
contact pressure used by other physics interfaces are always supplied by the structural
mechanics interface.

Because of the multiphysics capabilities, the setup of a contact problem is

split into two parts. The definition of the contact pair is made under
Definitions, and can be shared between several physics interfaces. This part
of the contact problem defines the geometric properties of the contact,
such as search and mapping operations between the selected boundaries.
The physics related definitions of the contact properties are then made in
the respective physics interfaces.

The fact that you add a Contact node to your model will automatically make all study
steps geometrically nonlinear. For the default Contact node, this requirement can be
removed by selecting Disconnect pair.

208 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

INCLUDING FRICTION
In real life, there is always some friction between contacting objects, but this is
sometimes ignored when setting up the mechanical contact problem. There are several
reasons to do this simplification:

• In many cases, only the normal forces are significant for the general force
distribution in the structure, while the frictional forces only cause minor local
effects.
• The values of the friction coefficients are difficult to obtain, and unless the structure
is assembled under well controlled conditions, the magnitude of the friction can
vary a lot. If there is a large degree in uncertainty in the input data, it can be argued
that the inclusion of friction does not add much to the quality of the results.
• Adding friction to a contact problem will often increase the computation time
significantly, or even cause convergence problems.

There are a number of situations when friction modeling cannot be avoided. Some of
them are:

• When a significant portion of the load is carried by shear tractions acting on the
contact boundaries.
• When a tangential force is necessary to maintain stability and to avoid rigid body
motions. In many cases, it is however possible to replace the friction by a suitable
boundary condition instead, as long as there are no resultant forces being resisted
by such a constraint.
• When modeling wear.
• When the frictional dissipation is an important component of a dynamics problem,
or when it is needed as a heat source in a thermal analysis.

In some cases, such as when a brake pad slides along a brake disc, the size and
orientation of the slip velocity is known. You can then employ a simplified form of
friction modeling by assuming the tangential contact to always be in a slip state, which
simplifies the computation of the friction forces. This is done using the Slip Velocity
node. This is particularly useful for wear modeling.

INCLUDING ADHESION AND DECOHESION

You can also specify that the contacting boundaries stick to each other, so that they will
not separate or slide. The onset of adhesion, when the boundaries become
permanently attached to each other, can be based on several criteria:

• When a certain contact pressure is exceeded.

CONTACT MODELING | 209

 • When the gap distance between the contact boundaries is smaller than a certain
value.
• When a user specified logical expression is fulfilled. This can for example be used if
an adhesive cures when a certain temperature is exceeded.
• From the start of the analysis. This case is particularly useful if you are interested in
modeling the subsequent tearing of a thin glue layer by decohesion.

If adhesion is active between the contact boundaries, it is possible to break the bond
by adding a decohesion model. You can choose between several different decohesion
models.

Adhesion and friction can be combined, but during the time that two boundaries are
bonded to each other through adhesion, any settings for friction are ignored.

INCLUDING WEAR
It is possible to model adhesive or abrasive wear of the material when the contacting
boundaries are sliding along each other. The removal of material from the domain
adjacent to the contact boundary can be modeled using three, fundamentally different,
approaches.

For the Solid Mechanics and the Multibody Dynamics interfaces, the most general
approach relies on the deformed geometry concept, where material is actually removed
by using an adaptive mesh technique. In the second, simplified, approach wear is
incorporated as an offset in the contact condition. This approach is computationally
less expensive, and is suitable as long as only small amounts of material are removed,
and wear does not change the orientation of the normal to the boundary significantly.
In the Shell and Membrane interfaces the structural domain is represented by only a
meshed surface. Therefore, a different, more suitable approach is used, in which the
thickness variable and the midsurface offset to the meshed boundary are modified.

Computing the amount of wear involves solving a rate equation, hence, it is only
possible to compute wear in time-dependent studies. The wear rate is typically a
function of the contact pressure and the relative slip velocity between the contacting
boundaries.

The Wear subnode is not available in the Layered Shell interface.

210 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

SELECTING THE CONTACT METHOD
In COMSOL Multiphysics, there are three classes of methods available for solving
contact problems: the penalty method, the augmented Lagrangian method, and the
Nitsche method. For all methods, the contact pair is asymmetric, that is, the
destination contact boundary is constrained not to penetrate the source boundary, but
not vice versa. However, it is possible to set up a symmetric formulation for the contact
problem by selecting the same boundaries as source and destination.

Penalty Method
The default penalty method is rather simple and robust method to introduce the
contact conditions. Roughly speaking, it is based on inserting a stiff distributed spring,
active only in compression, between the contacting boundaries. In addition to the
robustness, it has the advantage that no special solver is required, which makes it easier
to set up multiphysics problems and time-dependent studies. However, the penalty
method only enforces the contact conditions approximately. The contact forces
computed are thus less accurate than when using, for example, the augmented
Lagrangian method, and there is always some overclosure between the contacting
surfaces. For stick friction, there is also an ‘elastic’ deformation due to the penalization
of the constraint.

When using the penalty method, there is always a tradeoff between accuracy and
stability. While a large penalty factor will reduce nonphysical overclosures, the problem
may become ill-conditioned and unstable if it is too large. It might therefore be
beneficial to accept some penetration between the contacting objects. Note, however,
that if the penalty factor is too small, the contact condition may be violated.

Augmented Lagrangian Method

The augmented Lagrangian method provides better accuracy, but at a higher
computational cost, and is often less stable from a convergence point of view. All
contact conditions are enforced in a weak or integral sense, and thus evaluated in the
integration points on the destination boundary. For normal contact, it is thus possible
for a node to have a small penetration into the source boundary, even for a well
converged solution. Both, the contact pressure and the friction forces are added as
extra degrees of freedom to enforce the contact constraints.

When using the augmented Lagrangian method, it is possible to choose between a

segregated and a coupled solution method. The segregated solution method sets up
special type of segregated solver sequence, where the extra degrees of freedom related
to contact are updated in a separate segregated solver step. As its name implies, there
is no such need when using the coupled solution method, and you can more freely set

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 up the solver sequence. This less restrictive solver requirement can be particularly
useful for multiphysics problems where the penalty method does not provide sufficient
accuracy.

Nitsche Method
The Nitsche method for contact is an extension of the general method suggested by
J. Nitsche in 1971 to weakly impose Dirichlet conditions. Conceptually, it can be
viewed as an enhancement of the penalty method where the surface traction of the
adjacent domains is used to improve the accuracy of the contact condition. Also, as for
the penalty method, it has the advantage that no special solver is required, which makes
it easier to set up multiphysics problems and time-dependent studies.

The Nitsche method is intended as an alternative to the augmented Lagrangian

method for problems where the penalty method lacks sufficient accuracy. Relevant
examples where this might be the case includes:

• Large deformation problems with hyperelasticity

• Self-contact
• Problems where the structural stiffness of the global system is of importance

For the first two problems in particular, the accuracy and stability can be further
improved by increasing the quadrature order for the contact equations, see also
Quadrature Settings. Hence, the Nitsche method uses a higher quadrature order by
default than the other contact methods.

COMSOL Multiphysics supports three different formulations of the Nitsche method:

• Symmetric
• Skew-symmetric
• Nonsymmetric

The default nonsymmetric formulation is recommended for the majority of cases and
provides a good tradeoff between performance and stability. In cases where the default
formulation fails, the skew-symmetric formulation can be an alternative, but it includes
additional equations that are expensive to evaluate that can increase the solution time.

The Nitsche method is available in the Solid Mechanics and Multibody

Dynamics interfaces.

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Dynamic Methods
Both the penalty and the augmented Lagrangian methods are additionally available in
a specialized formulation intended for dynamic contact problems. Both of these are
based on a viscous formulation that for the normal contact constrains the rate of the
gap to be zero, rather than the gap. Since the formulations are viscous, the duration of
the contact should be small, otherwise the overclosure will eventually grow and violate
the nonpenetration condition. This is especially the case for the dynamic penalty
method, where the gap rate is only approximately zero.

CONTACT DETECTION
The contact search is made only towards one side of the source and destination
boundaries, determined by the positive direction of the contact normal of the selected
boundary. For contact to be detected, this means that the source and destination
contact normals must point towards each other. Generally, the contact normal
coincides with the geometry normal that is determined by the direction of the
boundary. However, there are situations where this is not the case, or where the
Contact node can control the sign of the contact normal. Some common situations are
summarized in the following:

• If the contact boundary is on the exterior of a domain, then the geometry normal
always point outwards from the domain. This is the most common case, and then
no other considerations are needed.
• In some cases, like fluid-structure interaction, there may be a domain with a moving
mesh between the two contacting objects. The source and destination boundaries
will then, in the geometrical sense, be interior boundaries. In this case, the physics
interface (Solid Mechanics or Multibody Dynamics) defines a normal vector which
is pointing outward from the boundaries that are external to the physics interface.
Thus, this case is also handled automatically.
• When a boundary without an adjacent domain is selected, you need to be careful so
that the normal is pointing in the intended direction.
• When using the Shell, Layered Shell or Membrane interfaces, contact can potentially
occur on both sides of the boundary. In a single Contact node, you can only model
contact on one side. In the Contact Surface section, you can select whether the
contact should occur on the top side or bottom side. The ‘top’ and ‘bottom’ sides
are defined by the orientation of the physics interface normal, which may differ from
the geometry normal. In these interfaces, the orientation of the physics normal is
controlled by the Boundary System that is attached to each boundary through the

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 material models. The normal direction can be reversed using the settings in the
Boundary System node.

The actual normal vector used in the contact search algorithm can be
visualized by plotting <pair_tag>.n<coord_label>. For example, the
variable p1.nx gives the x-component of the spatial normal used by
contact pair p1. Plotting the contact normal vector can be useful to verify
that the source and destination normals point towards each other.

Visualizing the Orientation of Boundaries

In 2D, a boundary is represented by a line. If you follow the line from its start point
to its endpoint, the positive normal points to the left. The line orientations can be
visualized by selecting the Show edge direction arrows check box in the appropriate View
node under Definitions.

In 3D, the rules for the orientation of a boundary are more complicated. In general,
you have to visualize the normals, in order to check its orientation. This can be done
in different ways:

• For a mesh without physics, you will need to use the general result presentation
tools. Follow these steps:
- Run Get Initial Values for an arbitrary study in order to create data for result
presentation.
- Add a 3D Plot Group under Results.
- Add an Arrow Surface plot to the new plot group.
- In the Replace Expression ( ) dialog, select the geometry normal.

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• When working with the Shell or Membrane interfaces, select Enable physics symbols
in the settings for the interface. You will then see the physics normals plotted if you
select a material model like Linear Elastic Material in the Model Builder.

CONTACT BETWEEN PHYSICS INTERFACES

Contact can seamlessly be modeled between Solid Mechanics, Shell and Membrane
interfaces. Equation are only added to Contact nodes that have an applicable
destination boundary, that is, a destination boundary that intersects with the selection
of the physics interface. Properties such as contact surface offset can, however, be
considered as long as either a source or a destination boundary is applicable in the
Contact node. Shell and Membrane offsets are automatically considered on both source
and destination boundaries.

SOURCE SELECTION OUTSIDE PHYSICS INTERFACES

In most cases, the source and destination boundaries belong to the same physics
interface. The only strict rule, however, is that the destination side belongs to the
physics interface in which the Contact node resides. The source side only needs to have
a mesh and can optionally have one or more physics interfaces attached to it.

If the source boundary is not part of the a physics interface with a Contact node, the
gap is computed using only the current location of its mesh, ignoring any physical
properties that may exist there. In this case, the Contact node has no control of the
contact normal used by the source boundary. Care must therefore be taken to ensure

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 that the contact normal of the source and destination points toward each other for the
contact detection to work.

There are two main scenarios where you may want to use a source selection that is not
in the current physics interface:

Fixed Rigid Wall

If one side of a contact pair can be considered as rigid and fixed in space, then it is
sufficient to add a meshed boundary at that location without any physics.

Moving Rigid Wall

This case is similar to the previous. In order to prescribe the path of the rigid wall, add
Moving Mesh with a Prescribed Deformation node under Definitions.

Contact Pairs

SELECTING SOURCE AND DESTINATION

To decide which boundaries to assign as source and destination in a contact pair,
consider the following guidelines:

• If there is a significant difference in the stiffness in the normal direction between the
source and destination boundaries, select the stiffer side as source. This is especially
important if the difference in stiffness is quite large (for example, more than a factor
of ten).
• When the contacting parts have approximately the same stiffness, consider the
geometry of the boundaries instead. Make a concave boundary the source and a
convex boundary the destination rather than the opposite.
• If one of the boundaries belongs to a part that is rigid it should be selected as the
source boundary. Rigid boundaries can be created in several ways, for example
- The underlying domain has the Rigid Material material model.
- The boundary or its underlying domain is constrained by, for example, Fixed
Constraint or Prescribed Displacement.
- The source boundary is meshed, but has no physics attached.
- The source boundary position is controlled by Prescribed Deformation under
Moving Mesh.
• If only one side of the contact pair is within a physics interface that has a Contact
node, that side must be the destination side.

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For efficiency, include only those boundaries that can potentially come in contact in
the destination selection. All equations are formed on the destination boundary, and
includes performing the contact search which can be expensive.

If it is difficult to follow the above guidelines, the same boundaries can be selected as
both source and destination. Doing so results in an unbiased (or symmetric)
formulation that is less sensitive to, for example, difference in stiffness or mesh density
between the contacting boundaries. However, such a formulation involves evaluating
equation and contact mapping at additional points and can thus be more expensive to
use.

STRATEGIES FOR SELECTING CONTACT PAIRS

A Contact node can reference any number of contact pairs.

A contact pair is just a definition, and does not have to be referenced by any Contact
node.

Neither the source, nor the destination, in a contact pair has to be geometrically
contiguous. In practice, this means that you often only need a few contact pairs in a
model. The number of pairs actually needed will be determined by how many different
settings that are required in the Contact Pair and Contact nodes.

If you have many contact pairs in your model, it is a good idea to manually set the Label
of each pair in order to simplify the identification during subsequent selections in the
Contact nodes.

AUTOMATIC GENERATION OF CONTACT PAIRS

Contact pairs can be automatically generated during the finalization of the geometry
sequence. When Action is set to Form an assembly, you can select Create pairs, and use
Contact pair as Pair type. Boundaries which are in geometrical contact with each other
will then be placed in contact pairs. All contact pairs created are automatically added
to the default Contact node. If you do not want to use all pairs, either delete the pairs
from the model or disconnect the default Contact node in the relevant physics interface
by selecting Disconnect pair. For the latter alternative, add new Contact nodes in the

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 physics interface, and select which of available pairs to actually use for the contact
analysis.

The automatic pair generation will not know which side to use as source
or destination. Based on the suggestions in Selecting Source and
Destination above, you may need to switch selections using the Swap
Source and Destination ( ) button in the Source Boundaries section of the
contact pair settings.

SMALL SLIDING CONTACT

In some situations, the relative sliding between the contacting boundaries is small. This
is, for example, often the case for shrink fit simulations, when mounting a component
using prestressed bolts, or for partial decohesion of two components. The sliding
distance can be considered as small if it is significantly less than the length of a mesh
element edge.

In such cases, it is possible to simplify the problem by selecting the Mapping Method to
be Initial Configuration in the Contact Pair node. With this setting, a material point on
the destination boundary will see the same material point on the source boundary
throughout the entire simulation; that is, the mapping is constant. This setting will
make the contact analysis run faster and convergence to be more stable.

The analysis is geometrically nonlinear also when using this option, and the contact
region can still have arbitrarily large displacements and rotations.

Friction can be modeled. Even though there is no sliding in a geometrical sense, the
difference in tangential displacement is computed.

You cannot mix contact pairs with the two different types of Mapping
Method within the same Contact node.

Meshing for Contact Analysis

Once the source and destination boundaries are chosen, you should mesh the
destination finer than the source. Do not make the destination mesh just barely finer
than the source because this can cause nonphysical oscillations in the contact pressure.
Make the element size on the destination at least two times finer than on the source.
The reason is that the algorithm is asymmetric; the points on the destination side

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connects to the source side, and not vice versa. With a coarse mesh on the destination
side, a large portion of an element (or even a whole element) on the source side could
be without connection to the destination.

It is always important that the geometry is well resolved, so that a curved contact
boundary actually is seen as curved rather than “faceted”. The density of the mesh
often needs to be finer than what would be needed to resolve stresses on a similar
boundary without the contact conditions. If the normal to the contact boundary
changes much from one element to the next, there is a risk that the contact analysis
does not converge.

If the source boundary is rigid, there are no requirements on the mesh size of the
destination boundary. In this case, you may use a significantly finer mesh on the source
boundary than on the destination boundary. This is sometimes necessary in order to
resolve the geometry well. On the other hand, if you have a flat rigid boundary, you
only need to mesh it with a single element.

Settings for Contact Nodes

THE CONTACT NODE

Penalty Factor
An important parameter in the settings for the Contact node is the penalty factor.
When running into convergence problems, check the penalty factor settings and
consider changing the current value. It is used by all contact methods, but its
interpretation differs:

• In the penalty method, the penalty factor has a straightforward interpretation as the
stiffness of a distributed spring connecting the two contacting boundaries. A higher
value will decrease the unphysical penetration, but can be detrimental to the
numerical conditioning of the stiffness matrix. A too small value can, however, result
in violation of the contact condition.
• In the augmented Lagrangian method, the penalty factor is a numerical parameter,
which affects the convergence properties of the algorithm. Its interpretation is
different depending on the chosen solution method. For a segregated method, the
penalty factor mainly affects the rate of convergence of the outer iteration loop; a
higher value typically leads to faster convergence, but can decrease the stability of
the algorithm for certain problems. For the coupled method, the penalty factor
mainly affects the structure of the underlying equations, and the solution is typically

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 less sensitive to the value of the penalty factor. However, the convergence properties
can be improved by tuning the penalty factor.
• In the Nitsche method, the penalty factor is a stabilization parameter which can
affect the robustness of the solution, but to a lesser extent the accuracy. The suitable
value of the penalty factor depends on the chose formulation, where the
skew-symmetric and nonsymmetric formulation are typically less sensitive than the
symmetric formulation.

In the augmented Lagrangian method and the Nitsche method, the value
of the penalty factor does not affect the accuracy of the final solution, like
it does in the penalty method.

High values of the penalty factor can lead to an ill-conditioned stiffness matrix and
convergence problems in the Newton iterations. This is often identified by that the
damping factor reported by the solver becomes less than 1 for many Newton iterations,
or by that the structure “jumps” into an unphysical state. Large errors returned from
the linear solver are also an indication that the stiffness matrix is ill-conditioned. If this
occurs, decrease the penalty factor.

The default value for the penalty factor is based on a characteristic stiffness. The
default is an “equivalent” Young’s modulus (Eequ) of the material on the destination
side. For linear elastic isotropic materials, Eequ is the actual Young’s modulus. For
other types of materials, Eequ is defined by an estimate of a similar stiffness at zero
strain. For materials that are user defined or in other ways nonstandard (for example,
anisotropic with large differences in stiffness in different directions), Eequ might need
to be replaced with another estimate.

For nonlinear materials in general, and for elastoplastic materials in

particular, there can be a significant change in stiffness during the solution
process. Choose the source and destination boundaries accordingly. You
may even have to adjust the penalty factor as the solution progresses when
such materials form a contact boundary.

When using the augmented Lagrangian formulation with a segregated solution

method, having a well-tuned penalty factor is important for the performance of the
outer contact iterations. The default value is selected as a compromise between speed
and stability, but with more weight on stability. The strategy is for each new step
(parametric step or time step) to start with a softened penalty factor, which is then

220 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

increased over the first four iterations. The purpose is to stabilize the problem in case
there are large overclosures during the first iterations. This is called relaxation.

In a situation where the contact is well established, using relaxation will however cost
extra iterations, and it may even lead to a loss of convergence.

For this method, the penalty factor can be tuned in several ways. You have three basic
choices, ranging from simple to advanced:

• With a Preset penalty factor, you can choose having it tuned for Stability, Speed, or
Bending. With Stability, relaxation is used in every step. With Speed, a constant
penalty factor is used, and the value that is used is equal to the final value obtained
when using Stability. For Bending, a constant and low penalty factor is used in all
iterations. The value corresponds to the initial value when using Stability. As the
name implies, this option is intended for bending dominated problems where the
structural stiffness is much lower than the bulk stiffness of the material.
• With Manual tuning, you can adjust the magnitude of the penalty factor, and also the
relaxation strategy.
• With User defined, you can enter any expression for the penalty factor.

For details about these settings, see the documentation of the settings for
the Contact node.

Some hints for selecting the penalty factor for the segregated augmented Lagrangian
method:

• Use relaxation only when large changes in the contact state is expected.
• If an analysis takes a long time, check the convergence graphs. If the contact
variables show a steady, but slow, convergence it may help to increase the penalty
factor. Increase by a factor of 2 – 5.
• If a model fails to converge, and the contacting parts appear to have moved far from
each other, it is probable that the penalty factor is too high. You can then either
decrease the total stiffness or add more relaxation.

Trigger Cutback
If, during the iterations, a contact problem comes into a state where it is far from the
converged solution, it is unlikely that the solution will ever converge. In such a case,
much computing time can be spent before the maximum number of iterations is
reached, and the solver makes an attempt with a smaller time or parameter step. To

CONTACT MODELING | 221

 speed up this process, you can select the Trigger cutback check box when using the
augmented Lagrangian method. You can then enter a logical expression that will force
the solver to immediately abandon the iterations and try a smaller step when fulfilled.
Such an expression can, for example, be a maximum displacement (like solid.disp >
5[mm]), based on what is physically realizable for the structure. The expression is
evaluated in all points on the boundary, but you can also use a global value, like an
average or a maximum.

Contact Surface Offset and Adjustment

It is possible to assign an offset to both the source and destination boundaries. When
an offset is given, the boundary used in the computations is not the geometrical
boundary, but a virtual boundary displaced by the offset value. You can use this option
for several purposes:

• When analyzing problems with for example shrink fit, nominal dimensions can be
used for the geometry, and the overclosure included in the gap by using a positive
offset.
• When there is a small clearance between two boundaries, a negative offset can be
used instead of changing the geometry.
• If geometries are such that a large overclosure exists in the initial configuration, the
contact algorithms may not converge. You can then add a negative offset, which is
slowly removed by letting it depend on time or on the parameter in the parametric
continuation solver.
• A positive offset can be used to avoid a complete collapse of a mesh that exists
between the source and destination boundaries. This is discussed in more detail in
Multiphysics Contact Analysis.

When the source and destination boundaries are curved, the discretization introduced
by the meshing may lead to small variations in the computed distance between the
source and destination boundaries, even though the geometrical shapes of the two
objects are ideal. When modeling for example a shrinkage fit, this effect can cause
significant fluctuations in the contact pressure. If you select Force zero initial gap, the
computed distance from destination to source will be adjusted by the initial gap
distance detected by the contact search. Positive gap distances smaller than the
tolerance gap are adjusted to be zero. By default, gap is set to Inf, which means that
all gaps and overclosures detected are adjusted to be zero. This adjustment can be
combined with an offset. The offset is applied to the adjusted gap value.

222 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

It is only the gap computation that is affected by this setting, the mesh as such is not
adjusted. This type of adjustment is most useful when the sliding is small, so that the
gap distance is always computed between the same points on source and destination.

You can only apply an offset to the source boundaries if they belong to the same physics
interface as the destination boundaries.

Initial Value
In the augmented Lagrangian method, where the contact pressure is a dependent
variable, it can be given an initial value. In force-controlled contact problems where no
other stiffness than the contact prohibits the deformation, the initial contact pressure
is crucial for convergence. If it is too low, the parts might pass through each other in
the first iteration. If it is too high, they will never come into contact.

Discretization
When using the augmented Lagrangian method it is possible to change the type and
order of the shape functions used for the contact pressure and friction force degrees of
freedom. The default is linear shape functions, which ensures that there are no
over-constraints in the contact interface. It is allowed to use a shape function order that
is equal to or lower than the order of the displacement field. Increasing the order of
the contact variables from the default can increase the accuracy of how well the contact
conditions are enforced, but can impair convergence and increase the computational
cost.

For a discretization other than Linear, the lumped solver is no longer optimal for the
contact pressure update when using a segregated solution method. In such cases, a
standard segregated step should be used. The default solver generation takes this into
account, but if you later modify the discretization, you should update the solver
sequence.

Quadrature Settings
The weak equations set up by the Contact node and its subnodes typically involve
discontinuous functions. These originate from the contact mapping, where the source
and destination meshes, in most cases, are nonconforming. The default quadrature
used in the numerical integration of these integrals is equal to the order used by the
displacement field. For a quadratic displacement field, this means integration order
equal to four.

In most situations, the default quadrature provides sufficient accuracy of the numerical
integration. However, it is sometimes necessary to increase the integration order for
the contact weak equations. This can improve the stability of the contact model since

CONTACT MODELING | 223

 it reduces numerical errors that might occur during assembly of the system matrices.
Note that using a too high integration order can significantly increase the cost of
assembling the matrices.

Jacobian Contribution
In the Advanced section of the Contact node, there is an option to specify the type of
Jacobian contribution from the contact equations. The default Automatic option will
choose a suitable setting depending on the mapping method used by the contact pair.
However, if controlled manually the Nonsymmetric option is the preferable choice
especially when the source boundaries undergoes large deformations, since it is more
robust. The Symmetric option can be attractive for large models since it preserves the
symmetry of the global stiffness matrix, as long as no other features cause it to be
nonsymmetric. This can decrease the solution time and memory requirements when
solving the model.

THE FRICTION NODE

When adding a Friction node, you can specify a constitutive model (friction model) for
the behavior of the tangential contact. This model includes conditions for switching
between sticking and sliding, as well as computation of the current friction forces.

Friction Parameters
The friction model specifies the threshold for the friction force in the contact pair. If
the computed (trial) friction force is above this threshold value, the contact is in a stick
state; if the (trial) friction force is above the threshold, the contact is in a slip (or
sliding) state.

Two predefined friction models are available based on the classical Coulomb law,
where the friction force is proportional to the contact pressure through the friction
coefficient. Both Coulomb laws are additionally generalized by allowing specification
of minimum (cohesion) sliding resistance and a cap that sets the maximum tangential
traction.

It is also possible to define the threshold for the friction force as an arbitrary expression
that may depend on any quantity in the model, for example temperature or position.
The only limitation is that the expression may not implicitly depend on the current
value of the friction force.

Friction Force Penalty Factor Control

This section provides similar settings as described in Penalty Factor of the Contact
node, but the penalty factor is here used to regularize the stick constraint. However,

224 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

the same considerations for how to set an appropriate value apply. For convenience, it
is also possible to utilize the penalty factor set in the parent contact node.

This section is not available when the Nitsche method is used. The same penalty factor
as set in the parent Contact node will be used for friction as well.

THE SLIP VELOCITY NODE

The Slip Velocity node facilitates a simplified form of slip friction modeling, which can
be used in the case that the direction and speed of the sliding is known. The same
friction models as for the Friction node are available. However, it is here assumed that
the tangential contact is in a sliding state, and that the slip velocity is known
beforehand. The latter is supplied to the feature as a user input in the local coordinate
system.

Knowing the slip velocity greatly simplifies the computation of friction forces. There is
no need to determine the transition between stick and slip contact, which can be
difficult.

THE ADHESION NODE

When using the penalty method, you can specify that the boundaries in the contact pair
should stick to each other after coming into contact by adding an Adhesion node.

The adhesive layer is conceptually without thickness, but by specifying an offset in the
Contact node, you can to some extent include the dimensions of the adhesive layer.

The adhesive layer always has a finite stiffness. For a glue layer, this represents the true
stiffness. For a more conceptual joining of two boundaries, this stiffness should be
considered in the same way as the penalty stiffness in the contact formulation. The
stiffness can differ between tension and compression: In compression the stiffness is
always taken as the penalty stiffness, whereas you can change the tensile stiffness.

THE DECOHESION NODE

When adhesion is active, it is possible to break the bond between the source and
destination boundaries by adding a Decohesion subnode to Contact. To model
decohesion, it is required that an Adhesion node is present and active in the same parent
Contact node.

Decohesion defines a cohesive zone model (CZM) based on interface damage

mechanics on the adhesive layer. Damage is assumed to be a scalar variable that initiates
as 0 and grows to 1 during decohesion, and in principle degrades the stiffness of the
adhesive layer. Since damage is a scalar, both the normal and tangential stiffness

CONTACT MODELING | 225

 components degrade simultaneously, irrespective of whether the actual loading
direction. However, the penalty stiffness of the contact condition is not affected by
damage.

Two alternative CZM are available. The Displacement-based damage models defines
damage growth as a function of a mixed mode displacement quantity. It comes with
several traction separation laws that associate the onset of damage with the peak
strength of the interface. For some of them, it is possible to choose between different
mixed mode failure criteria. The Energy-based damage models define damage growth
as a function of the stored undamaged elastic energy density of the interface. It also
comes with several different traction separation laws. However, these are more general
and define the onset of damage at an arbitrary elastic energy density. In principle, you
can define the model so that damage initiates immediately during loading of the
adhesive layer, that is for zero energy density. The strength of the interface is then
determined by the critical energy release rate and the shape of the damage evolution
function. In this way, the energy-based damage models can be viewed as a
regularization of linear elastic fracture mechanics.

Decohesion is an inherently unstable process. The elastic energy in the strained

adhesive layer is released during decohesion. Numerically, the decreasing branch of the
traction-separation curve manifests itself as a local negative stiffness. Such problems are
only possible to solve as long as the surrounding material can absorb the released
energy. The numerical stability is, furthermore, closely coupled to the physical stability
of the structure. The following points can help to set up a model with decohesion and
to overcome problems with convergence.

• If the structure is in a load-controlled situation, there is no possibility to continue

the analysis when the peak external load has been exceeded. Physically, this
corresponds to a sudden collapse of the component, or in the case of decohesion, a
rapid breakage of the adhesive layer.
• If the structure is loaded by prescribed displacements, it is usually possible to
continue the analysis further. It may, however, happen that the stored elastic energy
in the structure is large enough to force a complete breakdown of the adhesive layer
once a certain external displacement is reached. If possible, use prescribed
displacements in a decohesion analysis, and evaluate the applied load from the
reaction forces.
• Sometimes it is not possible to use prescribed displacements, for example if the load
is distributed. You can then add a Global Equation to control the loading rate by

226 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

 some other quantity that increases monotonically. This is the same technique as the
one used for post-buckling problems.
• To improve the robustness of the solver, it is sometimes beneficial to modify the
settings in the Method and Termination section of the Fully Coupled or Segregated
nodes in the solver sequence. For example, allow a larger number of iterations or try
a different nonlinear method. Often, the Constant (Newton) method can improve the
convergence of models with decohesion.
• The robustness of the solver can also be improved by modifying the parameter or
time stepping algorithm. For a stationary study, you can tune the step size in the
Parametric node, and for a time-dependent study, you can modify the time stepping
of the Time-Dependent Solver. A good idea is often to reduce the maximum allowed
step size of the solver and to allow for smaller step size than the default. Note that
if the maximum step size allowed is too large, the solver might bypass the
decohesion process altogether; in other words, even though a converged solution is
obtained, it might be invalid.
• The solution of the unstable failure due to decohesion is, to some degree, always
mesh dependent; see, for example, Ref. 1. It is therefore good practice to make sure
that the mesh of the interface and in its vicinity is fine enough to allow the energy
released during decohesion to properly redistribute in the structure. This can help
avoid solution jumps where several mesh elements are completely damaged in a
single step. Such solution jumps can be difficult for the solver to get pass, and even
if it does, the solution after the jump might be invalid.
• The true unstable failure of decohesion is a dynamic event. This can be analyzed
using a time-dependent solver, but the computational cost can be high. The inertial
forces will then balance the released energy, which is transformed to kinetic energy.
For time-dependent studies, it is possible regularize the CZM with a viscous delay by
selecting Delayed damage in the Regularization list. This option adds a delay to the
release of energy, which is controlled by the Characteristic time . Using this option can
help to suppress the instability of the solution when the step size or mesh size is too
large. If the viscous damage is used to stabilize a rate-independent decohesion

CONTACT MODELING | 227

 problem, the value of  must be chosen with care. As a rule of thumb,  should at least
be one or two orders of magnitude smaller than the expected time step.

For an example showing a decohesion analysis, including how to use a

global equation to control an unstable problem, see Mixed-Mode
Debonding of a Laminated Composite: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Contact_and_Friction/
cohesive_zone_debonding.

THE WEAR NODE

By adding a Wear subnode to a Contact node, it is possible to model adhesive or
abrasive wear of the material when the contacting boundaries are sliding along each
other. Since wear involves solving evolution equations, the Wear node only adds a
contribution for time-dependent studies. Moreover, wear is typically a slow process
where dynamic effects are of small significance. You should, therefore, usually set
Structural transient behavior to Quasistatic in the Structural Transient Behavior section
of the physics interface settings.

The most general technique to model the removal of material during the wear process
relies on the deformed geometry concept. When selecting the Deformed geometry
formulation, the wear feature adds a (hidden) Deforming Domain feature that controls
the material frame through an adaptive mesh smoothing. The wear, as computed in the
Wear node is fed as a (hidden) Prescribed Normal Mesh Displacement boundary
condition to the deforming domain, and thus describes the actual removal of material
from the geometry. When using this formulation, you must be aware that the adaptive
mesh means that state variables stored in Gauss points, for example plastic strains or
creep strains, will not represent the same material points all the time. Whether or not
this effect is acceptable must be judged on a case-by-case basis. Unless the amount of
material that is removed is large, or gradients are strong, this is mainly an issue close
to the boundary where material is removed by the wear process.

Alternatively, wear can be incorporated as an offset in the contact condition. This

formulation is computationally less expensive, and is suitable as long as only small
amounts of material are removed, and the wear does not change the orientation of the
normal to the boundary significantly.

The slip velocity used for the wear computation can be obtained from either a Friction
node or a Slip Velocity node, so one of these two nodes should be present and active
under the same Contact parent node. For the Generalized Archard wear model, this is a

228 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

requirement. In most cases, the orientation of the slip velocity is known a priori in a
wear analysis, in which case Slip Velocity provides the more efficient solution.

In general, modeling wear on the destination side is slightly more accurate, since it is
there that the contact pressure and slip velocity are originally computed. When
modeling wear on the source side, these quantities are mapped from the destination
boundary. Multiple Wear nodes under the same Contact node contributes with each
other, which means that it is possible to model wear on both source and destination
simultaneously. However, adding multiple wear contributions to either source or
destination may give unphysical results. On the source side it is possible to also use the
Rigid Material material model; this is not permitted on the destination due to general
restrictions of the Contact node.

• Documentation of the Contact, Friction, Slip Velocity, Adhesion,

Decohesion, and Wear nodes.
• Contact Analysis Theory in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

Quasistatic Contact Analysis

When including contact in a stationary or quasistatic simulation, make sure that the
bodies are sufficiently constrained. If the bodies are not in contact in the initial
configuration, and there are no constraints on them, there will be possible rigid body
displacements. This will cause the solver to fail and must be avoided.

For a more detailed discussion about sufficient constraints, see

Constraints under Stationary Analysis.

Sometimes, as when simulating mounting processes, the structure is not fully

constrained until the contact is fully established. There are some strategies for how you
can deal with this problem.

• Create the geometry or set initial values for the displacement variables so that there
is a small penetration in the initial configuration.
• Use boundary conditions giving a prescribed displacement rather than a prescribed
force. When possible, this is usually the best way to stabilize problem. Note that you
can always obtain the force actually applied from the reaction forces.

CONTACT MODELING | 229

 • Add a temporary weak spring during the beginning of the simulation. Assuming
that a parameter p, ranging from 0 to 1, is used for applying the external load, you
can introduce a stabilizing spring with stiffness kx in the x direction as
–  p  10 
k x = k  1 – p 2

and similarly in any other direction that needs to be restrained. It is not important
whether the spring is applied to domains, boundaries, or edges, but it should not
create significant local forces. The value for the stiffness k should be chosen so that
the force generated by the spring balances the external load at a sufficiently small
displacement. A too weak spring will give a too large initial overclosure of the
contact boundaries. A too stiff spring might influence the solution too much.

Dynamic Contact Analysis

The contact formulations in COMSOL Multiphysics can be used in transient as well as
quasistatic analyses. In truly dynamic problems, where inertial effects are significant, a
contact formulation must conserve fundamental quantities, such as linear and angular
momentum and energy, across the contact pair. An important class of dynamic
problems, where these quantities must be conserved, is impact analysis.

To model dynamic contact events, two specialized contact methods are provided, the
Penalty, dynamic and the Augmented Lagrangian, dynamic methods. Both are based on
a viscous formulation that constrains the gap rate to be zero, ensuring that the normal
contact is dissipative and does not introduce any spurious energy contribution to the
system. Since the methods are dissipative, they are mainly intended for short duration
events, such as soft impact between two bodies. For prolonged interaction between
two bodies, energy dissipation can become significant, and overclosures can become
large, since the gap rate is only approximately zero. Both the dissipation and the
accuracy are controlled by a penalty factor that for these two methods conceptually
represents a dashpot, rather than a spring. It therefore has a characteristic time user
input that sets its magnitude. As a rule-of-thumb, it should be of the order of the
contact event duration, but the best choice must be decided on a case-by-case basis.

The Penalty, dynamic method also provides the possibility to combine the stiffness and
viscous based penalization of the normal contact. For impact analysis, it is often best
to use only the viscous formulation by setting the stiffness Penalty factor control to
Viscous only.

When modeling dynamic contact, the main interest is often the kinematics between the
contacting bodies. If you rely on the (default) adaptive time-stepping algorithm, the

230 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

solver typically also tries to resolve the wave propagation in the domains adjacent to
the contact pairs. This can cause unnecessarily small time steps and increase the
computation time. To avoid this, you can modify the solver to use a manual
time-stepping algorithm in the settings for the Time-Dependent Solver in the solver
sequence. Make sure to use time steps that are small enough to capture the contact
event, otherwise spurious energy contributions can result, and cause the problem to
“blow up”.

The time-dependent solvers in COMSOL Multiphysics introduce numerical damping

to stabilize the time stepping. This kind of stabilization is often necessary. However,
excessive numerical damping runs the risk of removing vital information from the
simulation. For this reason, the BDF solvers should be avoided for dynamic contact
analyses. The default solver suggests the generalized- solver when inertial terms are
included in the structural mechanics problem.

Regardless of the method that is used, and how the solver is set up, it is good practice
to do an a posteriori check of conservation of momentum and energy, to ensure that
the solution is acceptable.

For examples of dynamic contact problems, see

• Transient Rolling Contact: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Contact_and_Friction/
transient_rolling_contact.
• Impact Between Two Soft Rings: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Verification_Examples/ring_impact.

In both examples, an energy balance check is included. The latter model

also verifies the conservation of momentum.

Multiphysics Contact Analysis

Two different classes of multiphysics contact problems will be described in this section.

FLUXES THROUGH CONTACT SURFACES

In some contact problems, there is some kind of flux from one domain to another
through the contact zone. This can for example be a heat flux, an electric current, or
moisture transport. The common property here is that the other physics fields than the
displacements are present in domains where the solid mechanics problem is solved.

CONTACT MODELING | 231

 Typically, there will be a more or less perfect insulation as long as there is no contact,
but as soon as contact is established there will be a flux through the contact area.

This class of problems often exhibit a high degree of nonlinearity, which may lead to
convergence problems in the nonlinear solver. As an example, consider heat transfer
through the contact area, where initially only a small spot is in contact. The solution
for the temperature field is then extremely sensitive to the size of the contact area. If,
at the same time, the solid deforms due to thermal expansion, there may be large
changes in the contact area between iterations,

It is important to resolve the size of the contact area accurately, that is, to
use a very fine mesh in the contact area when modeling fully coupled
multiphysics problems.

If the contact area is larger, a fine mesh is not required because then the temperature
solution is not that sensitive to the size. If possible, start with an initial configuration
where the contact area is not very small.

You can use the contact variables (gap and contact pressure) in expressions for
quantities in other physics interfaces. As an example, a thermal resistance in the contact
region can depend on the contact pressure.

In many cases, the penalty method is preferred in multiphysics contact problems

because of its better stability and less restrictive requirements on solver selections. If
the contact conditions depend strongly on the contact pressure, use the augmented
Lagrangian method because if its higher accuracy.

FIELDS EXIST IN THE GAP

In this class of problems, a field exists between the domains controlled by solid
mechanics.

This is the case in, for example, fluid-structure interaction (FSI) problems. Here, the
equations in the fluid are solved on a domain with a moving mesh, so that the shape
of the fluid domain is controlled by the displacements of the solid. Another case of the
same type is when there is an electric field in an air gap.

If contact is established, the mesh in the original gap between the source and
destination boundaries will collapse. This must be avoided. The remedy is to add an
offset in the contact settings to either the source boundary, the destination boundary,
or both. If you do this, contact forces will be transmitted without the geometrical gap
being fully closed.

232 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

If, for example, this technique is used when modeling a valve, there will still be some
small flux even though the valve is closed, since there is a geometrical gap with the
width of the artificial offset. By choosing a suitably small offset, you can however make
that flux negligible.

Special Types of Contact Problems

INTERFERENCE FIT
Interference fits can be analyzed using contact modeling. This is necessary if you are
interested in checking the connection with respect to, for example, slipping or local
stresses.

There are two possible approaches for modeling interference fits, both equally valid:

• The actual geometry of the two parts before assembly is modeled. In this case, there
will be some overlap between the two domains.
• A nominal geometry in which the contacting boundaries have the same location is
created. In this case, the overlap is described as part of the contact modeling.

An imported CAD geometry can use either of these approaches, depending of the
strategy used during the geometry creation. Often, the geometrical parts are modeled
as nominal, and instead equipped by tolerance information that describe the amount
of interference.

True Geometry
With a true geometry, you can often immediately solve the contact problem.
Sometimes convergence problems may, however, appear, in particular if the material
model is nonlinear. The cause is often that the initial overlap is too far from the final
solution.

To deal with such a problem, add an offset in the in the settings for the Contact node.
The offset should be defined by a parameter, so that the boundaries of the two domains
are barely in contact in the initial state. Now, the offset can be reduced to zero
step-by-step, using an auxiliary sweep in the solver.

CONTACT MODELING | 233

 Nominal Geometry
When working with a nominal geometry, you always need to add an offset in the
Contact node. The offset equals the size of the interference. If needed for convergence
reasons, ramp up the offset using an auxiliary sweep in the solver.

Interference Fit Connection in a Mountain Bike Fork: Application

Library path Structural_Mechanics_Module/Contact_and_Friction/
mountain_bike_fork

SELF-CONTACT
To model self-contact, include the same boundaries in both the source and destination
selections of the Contact Pair definition. This will cause the boundaries to act as both
source and destination in the contact search and mapping. For mechanical contact, this
results in a unbiased (or symmetric) contact formulation, as the contact conditions are
formulated on both sides of the contact pair. Note that a source is not allowed to
partially intersect the destination when used for mechanical contact.

This technique to model self-contact means that some of the considerations discussed
in this chapter regarding contact modeling do not apply. For example, instead of the
recommendations in Meshing for Contact Analysis, it is recommended to use a
uniform mesh element size along the contacting boundaries. Self-contact is a case
where it might be necessary to increase the quadrature order used in the weak
equations, see Quadrature Settings.

For examples of self-contact problems, see

• Self-Contact of a Loaded Spring: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Contact_and_Friction/
loaded_spring_contact.
• Contact Analysis of a Rubber Boot Seal: Application Library path
Nonlinear_Structural_Materials_Module/Hyperelasticity/rubber_boot_seal.

Fallback Conditions to Contact Regions

In the Solid Mechanics, Shell, and Membrane interfaces, certain boundary conditions
may act as fallback conditions to a contact region, or any pair region, if their selection
overlaps with the source and destination boundaries. The Layered Shell interface does

234 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

not support any fallback conditions. When a boundary condition is considered as a
fallback, the condition is only active for regions that are not in contact.

In the Solid Mechanics interface, the following boundary conditions are by default
recognized as fallback conditions if their selection intersects any source and destination
boundary:

• Boundary Load
• Spring Foundation
• Added Mass
• Free

In the Shell and Membrane interfaces, the following boundary conditions can be
recognized as fallback conditions:

• Face Load
• Spring Foundation
• Added Mass
To enable the fallback condition in these nodes, change the Allowed region to Fallback
and nonpair regions in the Applicable Pair Regions section of settings window of the
node. To display the Applicable Pair Regions section, click the Show More Options
button ( ) and select Advanced Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

The most common case when a fallback condition is used is when there is a pressure
load acting on the part of the boundary that is currently not in contact. In this case
you would add a Boundary Load or Face Load with a selection that intersects with the
source and destination boundaries.

Solver Settings for Contact Analysis

This section provides useful tips for tuning solver settings for contact analysis in
general, and tips specific to different methods.

GENERAL SETTINGS
The following solver settings can help to successfully perform contact simulations in
general:

• In a contact analysis, you almost invariably use an incremental approach. It is

possible to solve a problem without friction in a single stationary load step, but such
an approach will often fail to converge. In a stationary analysis, you should instead

CONTACT MODELING | 235

 use the parametric continuation solver, and gradually increase the load or
displacement. Enable it by selecting Auxiliary sweep under Study Extensions in the
settings for the Stationary solver.
• Use a direct solver, rather than an iterative solver, as linear equation solver if the
problem size allows it. Direct solvers are less sensitive and can provide better
convergence.
• As a default, the double dogleg nonlinear solver is selected when a stationary study
is generated and Contact nodes are present in the model. For the majority of contact
problems this solver has more stable convergence properties than the Newton
solver, which is the default solver for most other problems. Using otherwise similar
settings, the double dogleg solver tends to be somewhat slower than the Newton
solver on problems where both solvers converge. It is, however, often possible to
take larger parameter steps when using the double dogleg solver. For some
problems, the Newton solver can still be the better choice, so if you experience
problems using the default settings, try to switch solvers.
• For contact problems, it is often necessary to let the parametric solver use a defensive
strategy when going from one parameter step to the next. This can be controlled by
setting the value of Predictor in the Parametric. By default, the parametric solver will
do so by setting the predictor to Constant when contact is present. However, it can
sometimes be more efficient to use a more aggressive strategy by setting it to Linear.
• Always solve contact problems that involve friction or decohesion incrementally,
using a parametric or time-dependent solver. The evolution of the friction forces is
history dependent. For contact problems without friction, an incremental strategy
is not necessary but often a good choice.
• If the model includes friction, try solving the problem without friction first if
possible. When the study runs absent friction, enable friction again.
• The convergence of many contact problems can be improved by modifying the
parameter or time step algorithm. For a stationary study, you can tune the step size
in the Parametric node, and for a time-dependent study, you can modify the time
stepping in the Time-Dependent Solver.
• For models that include decohesion, see the suggestions under The Decohesion
Node.

THE PENALTY METHOD

Since the penalty method only adds a weak contribution to the physics, there are no
special solver requirements, apart from the suggestions that apply to contact analysis
in general. If the simulation shows poor convergence, or even diverges, it is for the

236 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

penalty method often related to the choice of the penalty factor. A too high penalty
factor may cause the ill-conditioning, which can manifest itself either in poor
convergence of the Newton solver or large errors in the linear solver. If this is
encountered, consider using a smaller penalty factor. However, a too small penalty
factor will deteriorate the accuracy of the simulation, and contact might even be lost if
the overclosure becomes too large.

THE SEGREGATED AUGMENTED LAGRANGIAN METHOD

The segregated solution method for the augmented Lagrangian formulation
introduces extra contact degrees of freedom for the contact pressure and the friction
forces. It also relies on a special solver sequence to obtain the correct solution. Some
general considerations when using this method are:

• The convergence check relies on the scaling of the degrees of freedom, but since
contact pressures and friction forces often are zero over parts of the simulation, you
should not rely on automatic scaling. When the solver sequence is first created, both
contact pressure and friction forces are given a manual scaling which is relevant for
typical metal-to-metal contact. You should in most cases change this to values
appropriate for your application. The variable scaling is accessed under Dependent
Variables in the solver sequence. Set the scale for each variable to a value that is
representative for the expected result. Too large values may give a too early
convergence, while too small values may lead to an excessive number of iterations.
• The default solver sequence generates one lumped step in the segregated solver for
each Contact node. This split of variables into different lumped steps does not
influence the solution as such; you can equally well group the contact variables in a
single lumped step. Each lumped step will however generate an individual curve in
the convergence plot, making it easier to pinpoint the source of possible
convergence problems. You can also increase the granularity even more by changing
Solver log to Detailed in the Advanced node in the solver sequence. This will give a
separate convergence curve for each dependent variable.

The default solver generates a solver sequence that is stable and gives and accurate
solution for the majority of contact problems. However, if convergence is difficult
other settings can be tested:

• The Segregated solver is generated with a termination technique set to Tolerance.

This setting ensures the convergence of the contact degrees of freedom, that is, that
their value only changes within the specified tolerance during the latest segregated
iteration. If, however, convergence of the contact DOFs is of less importance, you
can accept the solution after n segregated iterations instead. To do this, set the

CONTACT MODELING | 237

 termination technique to Iterations or tolerance and specify the maximum number
of segregated iterations. The solver will then continue to the next step if the
tolerance criteria is fulfilled, or if the maximum number of iterations is reached.
Note that the solution of the segregated groups is still converged in each segregated
iteration.
• For efficiency purposes, the nonlinear solver in the Segregated Step that includes the
displacement field is by default set to accept the solution after seven iterations,
regardless of convergence or not. If you notice in the solver log that the solution is
far from convergence after these seven iterations it can be necessary to change this
setting. Updating the contact DOFs with a nonconverged solution can cause the
overall problem to diverge. By changing the termination technique to Tolerance, the
segregated solver will instead do a cutback if such a situation is encountered.

THE COUPLED AUGMENTED LAGRANGIAN METHOD

The coupled solution method for the augmented Lagrangian formulation introduces
special contact degrees of freedom for the contact pressure and the friction forces.
Otherwise it places no special restriction on the solver sequence. Some general
considerations when using this method are:

• The convergence check relies on the scaling of the degrees of freedom, but since
contact pressures and friction forces often are zero over parts of the simulation, you
should not rely on automatic scaling. When the solver sequence is first created, both
contact pressure and friction forces are given a manual scaling typical for
metal-to-metal contact. You should in most cases change this to values appropriate
for your application. The variable scaling is accessed under Dependent Variables in the
solver sequence.
• Since the solution to the augmented Lagrangian can be non smooth, the default
double dogleg nonlinear solver in stationary studies is sometimes too conservative.
The convergence can in such cases often be improved by using a Newton solver, for
example, the Constant (Newton) with a full Jacobian update.
• Although the penalty factor does not affect the accuracy of the solution, it can have
significant influence on the convergence properties of the model.

THE NITSCHE METHOD

Since the Nitsche method only adds a weak contribution to the physics, there are no
special solver requirements, apart from the suggestions that apply to contact analysis
in general. If the simulation shows poor convergence, or even diverges, it is often
related to the choice of the penalty factor. A too low value may cause the solution to

238 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

be unstable, while as for the penalty method, a too high value may cause
ill-conditioning.

DYNAMIC CONTACT
The dynamic contact methods in general inherit the properties and suggested solver
settings from the corresponding standard method. With regards to solver settings, the
main difference for the dynamic methods is how to set up the time-dependent solver,
where it is recommended to use manual time stepping, see Dynamic Contact Analysis.

Monitoring the Solution

It is often useful to monitor the solution during a contact analysis. This can be done
in different ways.

Using the Results while solving functionality in the study step is a good practice. You
can either use a stress plot, or a plot of the contact pressure. In most cases, the scale of
a deformed plot should be set to 1 when monitoring contact problems. If you select
Results while solving in the Segregated node, the plot is updated after each iteration,
thus allowing you to monitor the convergence in detail.

For each contact pair, two global variables that can be used in probe plots are available.
These are the maximum contact pressure (<phys>.Tnmax_<pair>) and the minimum
gap distance (<phys>.gapmin_<pair>).

Looking at the convergence plot will give valuable information about the convergence
properties. There will, as a default, be one graph per Contact node in the Model Tree,
which will help you pinpoint the source of a convergence problem. You can also
increase the granularity even more by changing Solver log to Detailed in the Advanced
node in the solver sequence. This will give a separate convergence curve for each
dependent variable.

You can also select to include information about the contact state in the solver log. To
do that, select the Add contact status to solver log check box in the Advanced section of
the settings for the Contact node. For each contact pair, messages like

69 points of 120 are now in contact.

33 points started to stick. 72 points are now sticking.
12 points started to slide. 47 points are now sliding.

will be generated for each time or parameter step. Only changes are reported.

CONTACT MODELING | 239

 Dependent Variables in Contact Analysis
The Contact and its subnodes will generate a number of degrees of freedom depending
on the settings and study type. You will see these degrees of freedom appear under
Dependent Variables in the solver sequence. There are two types of extra variables
created:

• Variables changed until convergence is reached during the iterations. These variables
appear in the Lumped Step nodes in the Segregated solver or in the Fully Coupled
node.
• Variables used to store the state, once the iterations have converged for a certain
time or parameter step, so called internal degrees of freedom. Such state variables
are not immediately visible in the solver sequence, but it you select the Displacement
Field node under Dependent Variables in the solver sequence, you will see them listed
as ‘Internal variables’.

If you change settings in the Contact or Friction nodes after the solver
sequence has been generated, dependent variables may be added or
removed. The second case is never a problem, but when new dependent
variables are created, they are not automatically added to the groups in the
segregated solver. You may then encounter the error message
“Segregated solver steps do not involve all components.” You
can then either regenerate the solver sequence, or manually insert the
missing variables into the Lumped Step node.

In Table 2-11 the dependent variables that can be created by the Contact and its
subnodes are summarized. To shorten the variable names, the full scope has been
removed. As an example, the contact pressure variable for pair p1 in component comp1,
generated in the Solid Mechanics interface solid, will have the full name similar to
comp1.solid.Tn_p1. In the table, it is shown as Tn.

TABLE 2-11: DEPENDENT VARIABLES OCCURRING IN CONTACT ANALYSIS

VARIABLE NAME DESCRIPTION EXPLANATION CREATED SOLVER NODE

Tn Contact pressure The contact Contact: Lumped

pressure in the Augmented Step
normal direction Lagrangian used
Tt Friction force The friction force Friction: Lumped
vector Augmented Step
Lagrangian used

240 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

TABLE 2-11: DEPENDENT VARIABLES OCCURRING IN CONTACT ANALYSIS

VARIABLE NAME DESCRIPTION EXPLANATION CREATED SOLVER NODE

gap_old Previous gap Physical gap Contact: Penalty, Internal

distance variable from the dynamic or state
last converged Augmented variable
solution, Lagrangian,
dynamic used
cm_old Previous mapped The location on Friction node Internal
source the source where present state
coordinates this point was variable
located at last
converged
solution
sliptot_old Previous Total slip in this Friction or Slip Internal
accumulated slip point at last velocity: Store state
converged accumulated slip variable
solution selected
contact_old Contact variable Nonzero if the Friction node Internal
in previous step point was in present state
contact at last variable
converged
solution within
the friction
detection
tolerance
isContact_old Contact status Nonzero if the Contact: Add Internal
variable in point was in contact status to state
previous step contact at last solver log variable
converged selected
solution
isSliding_old Sliding friction Nonzero if the Contact: Add Internal
status variable point was in a contact status to state
previous step sliding state at last solver log variable
converged selected. Friction
solution node present.
isSticking_old Sticking friction Nonzero if the Contact: Add Internal
status variable point was in a contact status to state
previous step sticking state at solver log variable
last converged selected. Friction
solution node present.

CONTACT MODELING | 241

 TABLE 2-11: DEPENDENT VARIABLES OCCURRING IN CONTACT ANALYSIS

VARIABLE NAME DESCRIPTION EXPLANATION CREATED SOLVER NODE

Wfric Frictional Energy dissipated Friction present Segregated

dissipation density by friction and Compute step
frictional
dissipation
selected.
Wfric_old Previous frictional Energy dissipated Slip velocity Internal
dissipation density by friction at the present and state
last converged Compute variable
solution frictional
dissipation
selected.
activation_old Adhesion Nonzero if the Adhesion node Internal
condition at adhesion present state
previous step condition was variable
fulfilled at the last
converged
solution
cma_old Previous adhesive Position on the Adhesion node Internal
mapped source source where this present state
coordinates point was located variable
when adhesion
was detected.
um_max_old Maximum Maximum norm Decohesion node Internal
displacement of displacement present and state
jump at previous jump vector Displacement- variable
step reached until based damage
previous step. selected
Ydm_max_old Maximum damage Maximum value of Decohesion node Internal
energy at the stored present and state
previous step undamaged elastic Energy-based variable
energy at damage selected
previous step

242 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

TABLE 2-11: DEPENDENT VARIABLES OCCURRING IN CONTACT ANALYSIS

VARIABLE NAME DESCRIPTION EXPLANATION CREATED SOLVER NODE

vdmg_old Viscous damage at Value of the Decohesion node Internal

previous step viscous damage present and state
variable at the Delayed damage variable
previous step selected
Wdmg_old These variables Decohesion node Internal
Wsd_old are related to the present and state
computation of Compute damage variables
dmg_old
the energy dissipation energy
dissipated by selected.
damage

Important Contact Variables

In this section you will find a summary of variables created in the contact node that
can be useful in postprocessing. In Table 2-12 important field variables are listed. For
the Shell, Layered Shell and Membrane interfaces, these are appended with the suffix
‘_top’ or ‘_bot’, depending on which side of the boundary that is in contact. All
variables are also defined per contact node, for example <phys>.<contact_tag>.Tn
is the contact pressure from the contact node with the tag <contact_tag>. These
variables can be useful if the model includes multiple contact nodes. Table 2-13
presents global variables related to contact that can be useful for postprocessing.
TABLE 2-12: IMPORTANT CONTACT VARIABLES

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION DEFINED IN COMMENTS

<phys>.Tn Contact pressure Contact Vector in global

coordinates also
available
<phys>.gap Gap distance including Contact
offsets
<phys>.Ttnorm Friction force norm Friction or Slip
Velocity
<phys>.Tt Friction force Friction or Slip Vector
Velocity
<phys>.qfric Friction dissipation Friction or Slip
rate Velocity
<phys>.fs Adhesive stress Adhesion Vector
<phys>.us Displacement jump Adhesion Vector
<phys>.adhesion Adhesion condition Adhesion

CONTACT MODELING | 243

 TABLE 2-12: IMPORTANT CONTACT VARIABLES

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION DEFINED IN COMMENTS

<phys>.bdmg Damage Decohesion

<phys>.um_max Maximum Decohesion If displacement-
displacement jump based damage
<phys>.Ydm_max Maximum damage Decohesion If energy-based
energy damage
<phys>.Wcnt Contact energy Contact
density
<phys>.Wfric Frictional dissipation Friction or Slip
density Velocity
<phys>.Wadhe Adhesive elastic Adhesion
energy
<phys>.Wdbmg Damage dissipation Decohesion
energy density

TABLE 2-13: GLOBAL CONTACT VARIABLES

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION DEFINED IN COMMENTS

<phys>.gapmin_ Minimum gap Contact

<pair_tag> distance, contact pair
<pair_tag>
<phys>.Tnmax_ Maximum contact Contact
<pair_tag> pressure, contact pair
<pair_tag>
<phys>.T_tot Total contact force Contact Vector
<phys>.Tn_tot Total contact force, Contact Vector
pressure contribution
<phys>.Tt_tot Total contact force, Friction or Slip Vector
friction contribution Velocity
<phys>.Wcnt_tot Total contact energy Contact Integration over
all contact
boundaries
<phys> Total frictional Friction or Slip Integration over
.Wfric_tot dissipation Velocity all contact
boundaries

244 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

TABLE 2-13: GLOBAL CONTACT VARIABLES

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION DEFINED IN COMMENTS

<phys> Total adhesive elastic Adhesion Integration over

.Wadhe_tot energy all contact
boundaries
<phys>.Wdmg_tot Total damage Decohesion Integration over
dissipation energy all contact
boundaries

References for Contact Modeling

1. J.L. Chaboche, F. Feyel, and Y. Monerie, “Interface debonding models: a viscous
regularization with limited rate dependency,” International Journal of Solids and
Structures, vol. 38, pp. 3127–3160, 2001.

CONTACT MODELING | 245

 Activating and Deactivating Material
In some applications, you may want to activate or deactivate material during an
analysis. An example is when you want to model the addition of material during
processes such as additive manufacturing or welding.

The information in this section is applicable if your license includes the

Structural Mechanics Module or the MEMS Module.

The Activation subnode can be used for this purpose. You enter an activation
expression to determine whether material is active or not. When this Boolean
expression is satisfied, the material is activated. Rather than truly adding or removing
material, the Activation subnode alters the stiffness and density of the material to
emulate this.

It is typically required that material is activated in a state of zero stress. Therefore,

Activation activates material in a stress-free state by removing all elastic strains present
at the point of activation.

ACTIVATION
Add an Activation subnode when you want to activate or deactivate one or several
domains selected in a Linear Elastic Material node. The Activation expression field is used
to define when material should be activated, and the Activation scale factor is used to
reduce the elastic stiffness and density of the material which is not active.

In Figure 2-17 a case is shown where the material in domains 1, 2, and 3 is to be

activated when an auxiliary sweep parameter para exceeds the value 1.5. The
activation scale factor has a default value of 10-5.

The activation condition can be any type of expression or function. A common case is
that it is a function of the temperature. The activation expression is evaluated in each
Gauss point. This means that an element can be partially activated. If you want to force
whole elements to be activated, you can for example put the activation expression
inside the centroid() operator.

246 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Figure 2-17: Settings for the Activation subnode.

VARIABLES
Two useful variables are created when you add the Activation subnode. The variable
isactive is set to ‘1’ when the activation condition is satisfied, and it is ‘0’ otherwise.
The variable wasactive is used to record if the material has been active at any previous
step in the analysis. This variable can be used to “lock” the state of activation, once it
has been reached. Suppose that you want the material in the previous example to
remain active even if para later becomes less than 1.5. The activation expression for an
interface with the name solid could then be expressed as:

(para > 1.5) || solid.wasactive

Similarly, the variable wasinactive is used to record if the material has been inactive
at any previous step in the analysis.

ACTIVATING AND DEACTIVATING MATERIAL | 247

 Domains that are not selected in any Activation subnode always have the isactive
variable set to ‘1’.
TABLE 2-14: VARIABLES DEFINED BY THE ACTIVATION SUBNODE

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION

<physics>.isactive Current state of the material (1 or 0)

<physics>.wasactive Variable set to 1 if isactive has been 1 previously
<physics>.wasinactive Variable set to 1 if isactive has been 0 previously

RESULTS
If you have performed an analysis in which only part of the material is active, it is useful
to apply a Filter and only display the regions that actually are active; see Figure 2-18.
When an Activation subnode is added in a Solid Mechanics or Membrane interface,
such a Filter node is automatically added to the default stress plots.

Figure 2-18: Filter settings to only display active material.

248 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

S pr i ng s a nd Damp ers
The Spring Foundation and Thin Elastic Layer physics nodes supply elastic and
damping boundary conditions for domains, boundaries, edges, and points.

The features are completely analogous, with the difference that a Spring Foundation
connects the structural part on which it is acting to a fixed “ground,” while the Thin
Elastic Layer acts between two parts, either on an interior boundary or on a pair.

A Spring Foundation is most commonly used for simulating boundary conditions with
a certain flexibility, such as the soil surrounding a construction. Another important use
is for stabilizing parts that would otherwise have a rigid-body singularity. This is a
common problem in contact modeling before an assembly has actually settled. In this
case a Spring Foundation acting on the entire domain is useful because it avoids the
introduction of local forces.

A Thin Elastic Layer used as a pair condition can simulate thin layers with material
properties that differ significantly from the surrounding domains. Common
applications are gaskets and adhesives.

When a Thin Elastic Layer is applied on an interior boundary, it usually models a local
flexibility, such as a fracture zone in a geological model.

The following types of data are defined by these nodes:

• Spring Data
• Loss Factor Damping
• Viscous Damping

SPRING DATA
The elastic properties can be defined either by a spring stiffness or by a force as function
of displacement. The force as a function of displacement can be more convenient for
nonlinear springs. Each spring node has three displacement variables defined, which
can be used to describe the deformation dependency. These variables are named
<interface_name>.uspring1_<tag>, <interface_name>.uspring2_<tag>, and
<interface_name>.uspring3_<tag> for the three directions given by the local
coordinate system. In the variable names, <tag> represents the tag of the feature
defining the variable. The tag could, for example, be spf1 or tel1 for a Spring
Foundation or a Thin Elastic Layer, respectively. These variables measure the relative
extension of the spring after subtraction of any predeformation.

SPRINGS AND DAMPERS | 249

 In addition to explicitly supplying a spring stiffness, you can choose to enter elastic
material data and the layer thickness. The spring stiffness is then computed internally,
based on an assumption of plane strain conditions.

LOSS FACTOR DAMPING

The loss factor damping adds a loss factor to the spring data above, so that the total
force exerted by the spring with loss is

f sl =  1 + i f s

where fs is the elastic spring force, and  is the loss factor.

Loss factor damping is only applicable for eigenfrequency and frequency-domain

analysis. In time-dependent analysis the loss factor is ignored.

VISCOUS DAMPING
It is also possible to add viscous damping to the Spring Foundation and Thin Elastic
Layer features. The viscous damping adds a force proportional to the velocity (or in
the case of Thin Elastic Layer: the relative velocity between the two boundaries). The
viscosity constant of the feature can be made dependent on the velocity by using the
variables named <interface_name>.vdamper1_<tag>, <interface_name>
.vdamper2_<tag>, and <interface_name>.vdamper3_<tag>, which contain the
velocities in the three local directions.

Bracket — Spring Foundation Analysis: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Tutorials/bracket_spring

Spring Foundation and Thin Elastic Layer

250 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Defining Multiphysics Models
The following modeling tips are about how to define multiphysics models. A good
place to start reading is in Building a COMSOL Multiphysics Model in the COMSOL
Multiphysics Reference Manual.

In this section:

• Thermal-Structure Interaction
• Acoustic-Structure Interaction
• Thermal-Electric-Structural Interaction

Thermal-Structure Interaction
The Thermal Stress, Solid Interface included with this module has a predefined
one-way approach for thermal-structure interaction (thermal stress), which combines
a Solid Mechanics interface with a Heat Transfer interface from the Heat Transfer
Module or COMSOL Multiphysics.

There are also similar multiphysics interfaces available for thin structures, as described
in The Thermal Stress, Shell Interface, The Thermal Stress, Membrane Interface, and
The Thermal Stress, Layered Shell Interface. The latter requires the Composite
Materials Module.

By default, COMSOL Multiphysics takes advantage of the one-way dependence and

solves the problem sequentially using the segregated solver. The solution for the
temperature is separated from the stress-strain analysis, which then uses the computed
temperature field from the heat transfer equation.

Using a single iteration in the segregated solver does not produce a

correct result if there are thermal properties that depend on the
displacements. Examples are when a heat source causes mechanical losses
(damping) in the material or when thermal contact is present.

DEFINING MULTIPHYSICS MODELS | 251

 Acoustic-Structure Interaction
When the Structural Mechanics Module is used together with an acoustics physics
interface from the Acoustics Module, it is possible to model a wide range of
acoustic-structure interaction problems.

There are several physics interfaces available that are documented and
described in the Acoustic-Structure Interaction Interfaces chapter in the
Acoustic Module User’s Guide

• The Acoustic-Solid Interaction, Frequency Domain Interface

• The Acoustic-Solid Interaction, Transient Interface
• The Acoustic-Piezoelectric Interaction, Frequency Domain Interface
• The Acoustic-Piezoelectric Interaction, Transient Interface
• The Solid Mechanics (Elastic Waves) Interface
• The Elastic Waves, Time Explicit Interface
• The Poroelastic Waves Interface
• The Acoustic-Solid-Poroelastic Waves Interaction Interface
• The Acoustic-Poroelastic Waves Interaction Interface
• The Acoustic-Shell Interaction, Frequency Domain Interface
• The Acoustic-Shell Interaction, Transient Interface
• The Thermoviscous Acoustic-Solid Interaction, Frequency Domain
Interface
• The Thermoviscous Acoustic-Shell Interaction, Frequency Domain
Interface

Thermal-Electric-Structural Interaction
The Joule Heating and Thermal Expansion Interface enables
thermal-electric-structural interaction. This is a combination of three physics
interfaces: Solid Mechanics, Heat Transfer in Solids, and Electric Currents.

The thermal-electric coupling is bidirectional, with Joule heating and

temperature-dependent electrical properties, while the temperature coupling to the
Solid Mechanics interface is unidirectional.

252 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

By default, COMSOL Multiphysics takes advantage of the one-way dependence and
solves the problem sequentially using the segregated solver. Temperature and electric
potential are solved using a coupled approach and then the stress-strain analysis uses
the computed temperature field from the heat transfer equation.

Using a single iteration does not produce a correct result if there are
thermal properties or electrical that depend on the displacements, making
the thermal-structure part into a bidirectional coupling.

DEFINING MULTIPHYSICS MODELS | 253

 T he r m a lly C o u p l ed Prob l em s
A wide class of structural mechanics problems are related to effects of variations in
temperature. In this section various such effects are discussed.

Temperatures can either be computed using another physics interface, usually Heat
Transfer in Solids, or directly be prescribed in the input for the various physics nodes.

For information about the predefined coupling between the Solid

Mechanics and Heat Transfer in Solids interfaces, see The Thermal Stress,
Solid Interface.

In this section:

• Temperature-Dependent Material Data

• Thermal Expansion
• Constraints and Thermal Expansion
• Thermoelastic Damping

Temperature-Dependent Material Data

Many material properties, such as Young’s modulus, coefficient of thermal expansion,
and yield stress, can have a significant dependence on temperature. In many cases,
materials supplied in the material libraries and databases have such dependencies
incorporated.

Materials in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

If a material property under the Materials branch has a temperature dependence, you
have to input the temperature to be used in the Model Input section in the settings
window for the node in the physics interface that references the property. It is possible
that not all aspects of a material are defined in the same node in the Model Builder tree.
For example, if a problem is run with thermal expansion and plasticity, then:

• Young’s modulus, Poisson’s ratio, and mass density are given in the Linear Elastic
Material node.

254 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

• Yield stress and hardening function are given in the Plasticity node.
• Coefficient of thermal expansion is given in the Thermal Expansion (for Materials)
subnode.

The Plasticity node is available as a subnode to the Linear Elastic Material

node when you have either the Nonlinear Structural Materials Module or
the Geomechanics Module.

For each of these nodes, there is a Model Input section in the Settings window. Some
of these sections may be empty if none of the properties given in that node have a
temperature dependence. In general, you have to supply the temperature in all the
Model Inputs sections.

As a default, the value of the temperature T is obtained from a Common model input.
You can also select User defined to enter a value or expression for the reference
temperature locally. This can be done either by explicitly giving a temperature or by
selecting a temperature variable from another physics interface.

USING COMMON MODEL INPUT

When the option Common model input is selected in a physics node, you can see or
modify the value actually used by clicking the Go To Source button ( ). Doing that
will move you the node in the Model Builder that is defining the value of the property.
That location can be:

• The Default Model Inputs node under Global Definitions

• A Model Input node under Definitions->Shared Properties in the current component

If you want to create a model input value which is local to your current selection, click
the Create Model Input button . This will create a new Model Input node under
Definitions->Shared Properties in the current component, having the same selection as
in the current node.

See also Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL
Multiphysics Reference Manual.

MASS DENSITY AND VOLUME REFERENCE TEMPERATURE

All structural mechanics interfaces are formulated on the material frame. This means
that the equations of motion are written for a certain volume in its initial configuration.

THERMALLY COUPLED PROBLEMS | 255

 The preservation of mass requires that the mass density is constant. In a structural
mechanics problem this means that the mass density must not change. If you are using
a material in which the density has a temperature dependence, you must specify a
specific temperature at which the value is evaluated. This is the volume reference
temperature. Conceptually, you can consider this as the temperature at which the
domain has the size in which it is drawn. In practice, the choice of reference
temperature is seldom an issue, unless your application requires extreme precision. The
density of a solid material has a rather slow variation with temperature, so in most cases
it is sufficient to use room temperature as reference.

If any material in the model has a temperature-dependent mass density, the Volume
reference temperature list will appear in the Model Input section of the material settings.
As a default, the value of Tref is obtained from a Common model input. You can also
select User defined to enter a value or expression for the reference temperature locally.

All effects of volume change with temperature are incorporated through the thermal
expansion effects.

See also

• Using Common Model Input.

• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

Thermal Expansion
As the temperature changes, most materials react by a change of volume. For a
constrained structure, the stresses that evolve even with moderate temperature changes
can be considerable. The volume change can be represented a thermal strain th,
which produces stress-free deformations. For a linear elastic material, the constitutive
law is

 = C    –  th 

256 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

In the computations, the thermal expansion appears as a load, even though it formally
is a part of the constitutive relations.

You can include thermal expansion in a model either by adding a Thermal

Expansion (for Materials) subnode to the chosen material, or by using the
Thermal Expansion.

TEMPERATURE DEPENDENCE OF THE THERMAL EXPANSION

COEFFICIENT
When performing an analysis over a larger range of temperatures, you often need to
consider the temperature dependence in the values of the thermal expansion
coefficient itself.

As long as you are using materials from the COMSOL Material Library, everything is
handled internally. When you want to enter data from your own measurements or from
the literature, you do, however, need to be aware of some details in the definitions
used.

Tangent or Secant Data

Thermal expansion coefficients can appear in two forms: tangent and secant.

The tangent form states that the increment in length is

dL
-------- =  t  T dT (2-29)
L

where t is the tangential thermal expansion coefficient. This form, which is the
thermodynamic definition, is conceptually simple, because t is uniquely defined at
each temperature. It is, however, less convenient to use in practice because an
integration is required for determining the actual change in length for a finite
temperature difference.

The secant formulation, which is the default in COMSOL Multiphysics, is often used
in engineering:

L
-------- =   T T
L0

In the secant formulation, the actual values of  will however depend on the choice of
reference temperature, Tref, at which the material has the reference length L0:

THERMALLY COUPLED PROBLEMS | 257

 L
-------- =   T,T ref   T – T ref 
L0

Converting from Tangent Form to Secant Form

Equation 2-29 can be integrated, giving

ln  ------ =
L
L0   t   d (2-30)
T ref

Define

I  T,T ref  =   t   d

T ref

Thus,

L L I  T,T ref 
-------- = ------ –1 = e –1
L0 L0

giving the secant thermal expansion coefficient as

I  T,T ref 
e –1
  T,T ref  = ---------------------------------
 T – T ref 

For most materials and temperature ranges I  T,T ref  « 1 , which makes it possible to
approximate with the simpler expression

I  T,T ref 
  T,T ref  = ------------------------- (2-31)
 T – T ref 

If you have access to tangent data, you can choose between two different methods for
using them in COMSOL Multiphysics:

• In most of the physics interfaces, you can enter tangent data directly by selecting
Tangent coefficient of thermal expansion in the settings for Thermal Expansion. When
using this option, a numerical integration of Equation 2-30 will be performed each

258 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

 time the thermal strain is used. This will have a negative impact on the performance,
when compared to using a secant coefficient of thermal expansion.
• Precompute the expression in Equation 2-29 externally for the intended range of
temperatures. This can for example be done in a spreadsheet program. Enter the
computed result as a function, which is then used as any other secant temperature
dependent thermal expansion coefficient.

When using Tangent coefficient of thermal expansion, the integrate

operator is used. It is called with the two integration limits being the
reference temperature <phys>.Tref and the current temperature <phys>
.T, where <phys> is the tag of the physics interface. If you define the
expression for the coefficient of thermal expansion yourself, you must
ensure that it depends on a ‘free’ variable, and not use the same
temperature variable as you use to prescribe the current temperature
<phys>.T.

Thermal Expansion Coefficient Dependence on Reference Temperature

Letm(T) be the temperature-dependent function that represents the measured values
of the secant thermal expansion coefficient. The change in length of a sample at a given
temperature T with respect to the sample’s original length at a temperature Tm is called
dilation.

Note that by definition, the dilation at T = Tm is zero, so Tm denotes the strain-free

state of the material as far as the measured values of m(T) is concerned. Denote the
length of the sample at a temperature T as L(T) and the strain-free length as
L0 = L(Tm). The dilation can be then expressed as LTL(Tm. Using the definition
of the secant coefficient of thermal expansion, L(T) can be written as:

L  T  =  1 +  m  T   T – T m  L  T m  (2-32)

When using the measured data, it is possible that the strain-free state occurs at a
temperature Tref which differs from Tm. The dilation at any temperature T would then
be defined as LTL(Tref, where L(Tref) can be written as.

L  T ref  =  1 +  m  T ref   T ref – T m  L  T m  (2-33)

As a result of this shift in the strain-free temperature, it is necessary to redefine the

thermal expansion coefficient so that L(T) and L(Tref) can be related using
Equation 2-32 but with Tm replaced by Tref.

THERMALLY COUPLED PROBLEMS | 259

 L  T  =  1 +  r  T   T –  T ref   L   T ref   (2-34)

Here r(T) is the redefined thermal expansion coefficient, based on Tref. It can be
derived from the relations above. Using Equation 2-32 and Equation 2-34 there are
two ways of writing the current length L(T), so that

 1 +  r  T   T –  T ref   L   T ref   =  1 +  m  T   T – T m  L  T m  (2-35)

Equation 2-33 makes it is possible to eliminate L(Tref) and L(Tm) from

Equation 2-35, and after some algebra r(T) can then be written as

 m  T  –  m  T ref 
 m  T  +  T ref – T m  -----------------------------------------------
T – T ref
 r  T  = ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (2-36)
1 +  m  T ref   T ref – T m 

Representation in COMSOL Multiphysics

Most materials listed in the material libraries and databases available with COMSOL
Multiphysics and its add-on products contain a function for the measured
temperature-dependent thermal expansion coefficient curve. You can find this from
the Materials branch, as shown in Figure 2-19. The Piecewise function named
alpha_solid_1 is the measured thermal expansion coefficient m(T).

Using Functions in Materials in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference

Manual

The Material Contents section in Figure 2-19 shows the material property alpha,
which is the redefined thermal expansion coefficient r(T). The complete expression
for alpha is as follows:

(alpha_solid_1(T[1/K])[1/K]+(Tempref-293[K])*
if(abs(T-Tempref)>1e-3,(alpha_solid_1(T[1/K])[1/K]
-alpha_solid_1(Tempref[1/K])[1/K])/(T-Tempref),
d(alpha_solid_1(T[1/K]),T)[1/K]))/
(1+alpha_solid_1(Tempref[1/K])[1/K]*(Tempref-293[K]))

This is essentially Equation 2-36, but with a small modification to avoid problems if
T=Tref.

260 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

 m(T)

r(T)

Figure 2-19: An example in COMSOL Multiphysics showing the Materials branch and
where to find the temperature-dependent thermal expansion coefficient.

In the definition of alpha (to be more specific: <material_tag>.def.alpha) in

COMSOL Multiphysics, Tm is set as 293 K and Tref is obtained from the variable
Tempref, which typically fetches its value from the physics interface.

Using Your Own Material Data

If you use our own material data in COMSOL Multiphysics (via an interpolation or
any other function), you can still copy-paste the built-in expression for alpha into your
New Material. You just need to:

• Replace the function name alpha_solid_1(T[1/K])[1/K], with the function

name that you have assigned to the temperature-dependent measured thermal
expansion coefficient and use the correct temperature units.

Take care when describing the units. Temperature unit conversions can be
the cause of subtle errors because of the shift in zero-point value. Use
kelvin (K) as the temperature unit to the largest possible extent. As an
alternative, you can use the other absolute temperature scale, Rankine
(R). Avoid using Fahrenheit and Celsius unless you are completely
familiar with how the temperature unit conversion works.

THERMALLY COUPLED PROBLEMS | 261

 • Ensure that the value of Tm is changed from 293 K to the actual value of
temperature that was used as the strain-free temperature to compute m(T) in the
function that you created.

User-Defined Materials and Libraries in the COMSOL Multiphysics

Reference Manual

Constraints and Thermal Expansion

When a structure is undergoes thermal expansion, the fact that the motion is restricted
by constraints will in general cause stresses. There are three types of such effects:

• The global expansion is restricted by constraints at different locations, so that

internal forces are introduced throughout the structure.
• At a boundary that is constrained, local stresses can appear if the boundary is not
free to expand in the tangential direction.
• Internally, the same type of local constraint effects will be caused by rigid objects,
such as Rigid Material.

In many cases, not only the structure which actually is modeled deforms due to the
changes in temperature, but also the surroundings (which are approximated by
constraints) will deform. You can take this effect into account by adding a Thermal
Expansion subnode to the constraints. The constraints will then provide an extra
displacement based on a given temperature field. For thermal strains, which have a
simple variation in space (for example, linear temperature variations), it is possible to
completely offset the constraint stresses using this method. For more general cases, the
stresses caused by the constraint can be significantly reduced.

The thermal expansions of the constraints are independent of that of the material in
the adjacent domain, so that the surrounding structure can be made from another
material, or have a different temperature distribution.

262 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

You can, however, also inherit temperature and thermal expansion coefficient from the
domain being constrained. This is useful for the common case that the temperature
and materials are the same over the modeled structure body and its surroundings.

The spatial variation of the temperature and coefficient of thermal

expansion must be explicit functions of the material frame coordinates. It
is not possible to use a computed temperature distribution for the thermal
expansion of the constraints.

• Thermal Expansion (for Constraints)

• Thermal Expansion of Constraints in the theory section.

For an example showing how to relive the stress at constraints in a heated

structure, see Thermal Expansion in a MEMS Device: Application
Library path Structural_Mechanics_Module/Thermal-Structure_Interaction/
thermal_expansion.

Thermoelastic Damping
In most engineering problems, the coupling between temperatures and structural
problems can be considered as unidirectional. Only the thermal expansion is
considered.

The opposite effect, where changes in stress cause heat generation, may be important
in small structures vibrating at high frequencies. The Thermoelasticity interface,
available with the MEMS Module, is designed for analyzing such problems.

It is also possible to take this effect into account by adding the Thermoelastic Damping
node to the Heat Transfer in Solids interface. When you add a Thermal Expansion node
to a material in the Solid Mechanics interface, the heat source term is computed and
made available to the Heat Transfer in Solids interface.

When you add a Thermal Expansion node under the Multiphysics Couplings branch, it is
possible to select whether the thermoelastic damping effect should be taken into
account or not. The heat source contribution is then included automatically without
adding any data in the heat transfer interface.

THERMALLY COUPLED PROBLEMS | 263

 In either case, the heat source term is only present when Structural Transient Behavior
is set to Include inertial terms.

See also

• Entropy and Thermoelasticity

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials)
• The Fluid-Solid Interaction Interface

264 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Fluid-Structure Interaction
Fluid-structure interaction (FSI) involves several phenomena where a solid structure
and a fluid interact with each other. The interaction has three possible components,
which can be more or less important:

• The pressure and viscous forces in the fluid provides a load on the boundary of the
solid. Usually, the pressure is dominant.
• The deformation of the structure changes the geometry of the fluid domain.
• The fluid sees the structure as a moving wall, which imposes a velocity at the
interface.

You can model FSI with four different structural mechanics interfaces: Solid
Mechanics, Multibody Dynamics, Shell, and Membrane. The fluid-flow can be
modeled with any domain-level physics interface from the Single-Phase Flow group and
the Two-Phase Flow groups under Multiphase Flow.

Deforming Fluid Domains

When a fluid-structure interaction multiphysics interface is added using the Model
Wizard, a Deforming Domain node can be added automatically in the Model Builder under
the Definitions node. This is the case for the following interfaces:

• Fluid-Solid Interaction
• Fluid-Shell Interaction
• Fluid-Membrane Interaction
• Fluid-Multibody Interaction
• Fluid-Multibody Interaction, Assembly

The Deforming Domain node is, however, not added for multiphysics interfaces denoted
‘Fixed Geometry’, which are intended for cases where the deformation of the fluid
domains is small everywhere.

A deforming domain represents domains and boundaries where the mesh can deform.
By default, the Deforming Domain node has an empty selection. You can then select any
fluid domain. However, this is only needed if the geometry of such a domain
experience significant changes due to the deformation or rotation of the adjacent solid
domains. Otherwise, the moving mesh computations could introduce unnecessary

FLUID-STRUCTURE INTERACTION | 265

 overhead and nonlinearity in the model (see Deformed Mesh Fundamentals).
Domains selected in the Solid Mechanics interface are not applicable. The
deformations of the solid parts are handled in the formulation of the Solid Mechanics
interface.

If no domains are selected in the Deforming Domain node, a fixed

geometry case is solved.

Under the Deforming Domain, you can also choose the Mesh smoothing type, by default
set to Hyperelastic. More information of the smoothing type can be found in
Deforming Domain chapter in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

By default, the mesh is free at all external boundaries of the geometry, and it follows
the solid boundaries at the solid-fluid interfaces. You can also add other types of
boundary conditions for the mesh motion; for details, see Deformed Geometry and
Moving Mesh in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

Union or Assembly
In most cases you model FSI problems so that the geometry sequence is set up to form
a union, and the same multiphysics coupling, Fluid-Structure Interaction, is used
irrespective of the type of structural mechanics interface. This coupling will
automatically find all boundaries that are shared between the structure and the fluid.

There are, however, cases where the assembly mode must be chosen, particularly when
having mechanisms, as is common in the Multibody Dynamics interface. In that case,
the interface between the solid and the fluid is no longer formed by a common
boundary. Rather, it consists of two boundaries, located at the same place in space.
These boundaries will in general slide with respect to each other. To model this, you
use the Fluid-Structure Interaction, Pair multiphysics coupling. You must create
appropriate pairs containing the boundaries from both types of physics under
Definitions, and manually select them in the Fluid-Structure Interaction, Pair node.

UNION — FLUID-STRUCTURE INTERACTION

When using Fluid-Structure Interaction, the spatial frame also deforms with a mesh
deformation that is equal to the displacements u_solid of the solid within the solid
domains. The mesh is free to move inside the fluid domains, and it adjusts to the
motion of the solid walls. This geometric change of the fluid domain is automatically
accounted for in COMSOL Multiphysics by the ALE method.

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ASSEMBLY — FLUID-STRUCTURE INTERACTION, PAIR
The Fluid-Structure Interaction, Pair coupling does not automatically transfer the mesh
deformation at the interface from structural displacements.

For the moving mesh, you must specify the deformation of the mesh manually. Add a
Prescribed Mesh Displacement node under the Moving Mesh node, in which you give the
structural displacement as the mesh displacement expression. The variables for the
displacement in the structure is provided by the multiphysics coupling.

The variable names to use have the form <tag>.u_solid, <tag>

.v_solid, and <tag>.w_solid, where <tag> is the tag of the
multiphysics coupling, for example fsip1.

Contact and FSI

Sometimes the structural deformations are so large that objects may come into contact
with each other with the fluid being squeezed in between. Modeling contact together
with FSI requires some special considerations. The mesh in the fluid domain may
deform, but the topology remains the same — a fluid domain cannot be split into two.
If you are to model a valve or a similar structure, then the two solid parts cannot come
exactly into contact.

By adding an offset in the settings for the Contact node, you can force the two sides of
the solid to experience contact at some distance before they meet in the geometrical
sense. This approach only will, however, leave a thin channel through which the fluid
can pass. The reduction in flow may be sufficient, but you can block it even further by
increasing the viscosity in the channel when the gap is closed. To do that, you can, for
example, compute the minimum gap anywhere in the contact pair, and then make the
viscosity a function of it. Another option is to compute the wall distance in the fluid
from both sides of the contact pair and use that information to modify the viscosity.
Do not increase the viscosity more than a couple of orders of magnitude, to avoid
numerical problems.

In configurations where you more or less completely cut off the whole flow, you must
pay particular attention to your boundary conditions. A prescribed flux will cause an
extreme pressure build-up upstream of the valve and thus unrealistically large forces on
the structure.

FLUID-STRUCTURE INTERACTION | 267

 One-Way FSI
For some fixed geometry FSI problems, you can consider the coupling as being
unidirectional. One physics interface affects the other, but it is not reciprocal. Typical
examples are when the fluid slightly deforms the structure, or when small structural
vibrations modify the fluid flow. In this case, it is not necessary to compute the solution
with both physics interface solved together. It is more efficient to first solve for the
governing physics interface only, and then the other one with results from the first as
input. To solve such a problem sequentially, you need to create a study configuration
manually, with one study step for each physics interface. The governing physics
depends on the coupling type. For the case of fluid loading on a structure, the
governing physics is the fluid one. For the case of velocity transmission to a fluid, the
governing physics is the solid one.

Deformed geometry FSI, or fixed geometry fully coupled FSI, should not
be solved using a one-way approach.

Below are the steps to follow to compute a one-way FSI problem sequentially:

1 In the study step settings windows, under the Physics and Variables Selection section,
clear the physics that is solved in the second step, so that only the governing physics
is selected.
2 Add a second study step to the study and in the settings windows make sure you
have the governing physics cleared.
If the selected study steps are of stationary type, you can generate the default solver
configuration, edit it if necessary, and compute the solution. The mapping of the
solution from the first to the second study step is done automatically.
In case of a transient problem, continue with the steps below:
3 In the second study step settings window, expand the section Physics and Variables
Selection. Under Initial values of variables solved for make sure the settings are
defined as in the table below:

Settings User controlled

Method Solution
Study <previous study step>
Selection First

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4 Under Values of variables not solved for define the settings as in the table below:

Settings User controlled

Method Solution
Study <previous study step>
Selection All

In the case of a fluid loading to structure coupling type, the structural mechanics
problem can be treated as quasistatic. This can be handled by running the structural
analysis as a parametric sweep over a number of static load cases, where time is used as
the parameter.

For an example of one-way FSI using a quasistatic structural analysis, see

Fluid-Structure Interaction in a Network of Blood Vessels: Application
Library path Structural_Mechanics_Module/Fluid-Structure_Interaction/
blood_vessel.

FLUID-STRUCTURE INTERACTION | 269

 Component Mode Synthesis
Introduction
Component mode synthesis (CMS) is a family of procedures in which one or more
parts of a finite element model are represented by a small reduced-order model
(ROM). There are several possible algorithms through which such a reduction can be
made. In COMSOL Multiphysics, the popular Craig–Bampton method is used for
model reduction with a dual assembly technique to ensure compatibility between
components.

The reduced component is sometimes called a dynamic substructure. Essentially, it

contains small mass, damping, and stiffness matrices, tuned so that it can represent the
static stiffness, as well as a set of important eigenmodes and the inertia of the original
component. An important assumption is that the reduced structure is linear.

The reduced component accounts for the constraints applied on the component. It can
also contain, for example, information about loads applied to the component prior to
model reduction.

Since the reduced components only have a small number of degrees of freedom (often
of the order of 10-100), they are computationally more efficient than the original full
FEM components. To create a reduced component, it is necessary to both perform an
eigenfrequency analysis and to solve for a number of static load cases. These studies
are, however, computed at the component level, and are thus usually computationally
much cheaper than analyzing the full model.

For general information on reduced-order modeling and model

reduction, see also

• Reduced-Order Modeling

• Model Reduction

in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

COMSOL Implementation
The Component Mode Synthesis (CMS) technique is currently implemented in the
Solid Mechanics, Shell and Multibody Dynamics interfaces. You use the Reduced

270 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Flexible Components node in either of these interfaces to control the generation and use
of such reduced components.

Reduced components are connected to each other and to nonreduced parts of the
model through Attachment features. It means that all physics features that can access
an attachment can be used to connect the reduced components. The most common
option is to use joints, but there are other alternatives, such as Spring-Damper, or
bearing foundations in the rotordynamics interfaces.

The global model can consist of either a set of reduced components, or a mix of
ordinary FE discretized domains and reduced components. The reduced components
can be used as linear parts in an otherwise nonlinear model.

A requirement to be able to create a valid reduced component is that its underlying

physics is linear with regards to material models, the strain formulation, and other
possible contributions such as springs and loads

COMSOL Multiphysics always forces a geometrically linear formulation

on selections that intersect that of a Reduced Flexible Components node.

When using a reduced component in the global model, the connection to

nonreduced parts must be such that the deformation of the reduced
component is limited to small rotations and small strains.

You can compute all type of results and visualize reduced components just as if they
are ordinary domains in your model. One important property of the reduced
component is that only the results for the reduced set of degrees of freedom are stored.
It means that for time-dependent studies with many time steps, the file sizes can be
reduced by orders of magnitude.

Applications
Some examples of applications of the CMS reduction technique include:

• In multibody dynamics models, you usually have a number of physical components,

coupled by joints. The ultimate reduction is then to use rigid domains. When it is
necessary to take the flexibility of a component into account, using a reduced
flexible component is attractive.

COMPONENT MODE SYNTHESIS | 271

 • In rotordynamics, it is common that the foundation supporting the rotor must be
part of the analysis. Such a foundation will almost invariably have linear properties.
It is then well suited to be considered as a reduced flexible component. This can
greatly reduce the number of the degrees of freedom in the rotordynamic analysis,
which is often computationally heavy.
• In many situations, only a smaller part of a model is nonlinear. It is then possible to
reduce the linear parts once and for all, and then iterate on a much smaller nonlinear
system of equations. For this to be feasible, it must however be possible to dissect
the structure in a way that can be represented by attachments.

Working With CMS Models

CREATING REDUCED COMPONENTS

A reduced component can be created in an applicable physics interface by adding a
Reduced Flexible Components node, in which you select all domains that are to be
reduced, as shown in Figure 2-20. Subsequently, one Component Definition subnode
should be added for each set of domains for which a reduced-order model (ROM) is
to be generated. By default, this step is automated and the selected domains are
grouped into disconnected components as detected from the geometry. With this
setting, a number of Component Definition subnodes are created and their selections are
set automatically. However, by setting Component definition to User defined in the
Reduced Flexible Components node, you can take manual control of the geometric
definition of the components by adding, removing, or modifying Component Definition
nodes. In each such node, select a number of domains that defines a component. This
may be necessary if domains are not physically adjacent, but connected by other means,
for example, by springs.

By default, disconnected geometries connect by the Continuity and Thin Elastic Layer
pair features are merged when automatically generating Component Definition
subnodes. This also applies to Boundary to Boundary, Edge to Boundary, and Edge to
Edge connection features in the Shell interface. The automatic handling of such
connections can be disabled by clearing Include connections and pairs in component
definition in the Reduced Flexible Components node.

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Figure 2-20: A Reduced Flexible Components node with two automatically generated
Component Definition subnodes.

• If the components are geometrically disjoint, then Form Union should

be used in the geometry sequence. If not, Form Assembly is probably a
better choice, but then you may have to either create unions between
domains that are part of the same components, or edit the settings in
the Component Definition nodes manually.
• In the majority of cases, it is sufficient with one Reduced Flexible
Components node per physics interface. If you, however, do not want to
train all ROMs in one sweep, having a single Reduced Flexible
Components node per actual component can be useful. Another case is
if you decide to reduce one additional component after already having
reduced one or several other components. Then, adding an additional
Reduced Flexible Components node can be an alternative.

COMPONENT MODE SYNTHESIS | 273

 The Reduced Flexible Components node is only applicable on domains
where the material behavior is determined by a Linear Elastic Material node
or a Section Stiffness node in the Shell interface. You can, however, have
several such nodes with different properties and settings within one
reduced component.

A disconnected reduced component, as defined by a Component Definition subnode,

can only be connected to other parts of the geometry by attachment features. In fact,
to be able to create the ROM, each component must be connected to at least one
Attachment node. By using attachments, a reduced component can be connected to
any number of other parts, reduced or full, of the model assembly.

See also Attachments.

When working with CMS, the full static and dynamic behavior of a component is
represented by a number constraint modes and constrained eigenmodes that are
computed in the training phase. These are independent of each other and are used to
construct one ROM for each component. Each Attachment node connected to a
component will add a number of static load cases that describe the constraint modes:
six in 3D, and three in 2D. The number of eigenmodes to be used is controlled
manually. You can either define it for all components in the Reduced Flexible
Components node, or individually in each Component Definition subnode. To get an
accurate representation of the reduced component, always make sure to use a sufficient
number of eigenmodes to describe the dynamics of each component. During the
eigenfrequency training step, all attachments are treated as fixed constraints, hence, the
eigenmodes are always constrained.

Note that, from a computational point of view, each eigenmode is represented as a

degree of freedom when using the reduced component in a global analysis. For
computational efficiency, you should avoid using unnecessarily many eigenmodes.

To create the ROMs, a special study sequence needs to be set up for each Reduced
Flexible Components node. It should sweep over all Component Definition subnodes, and
for each component, compute the static load cases and the requested eigenmodes in
training study steps as outlined above. The results from these study steps are then used
in a Model reduction step to generate a ROM. By using the Configure CMS Study ( )
button in the Reduced Flexible Components node, the set-up of this special study

274 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

sequence is automated. In the model tree, a generated ROM is represented as a node
with the label Reduced Component under Global Definitions as seen in Figure 2-21.

Figure 2-21: Nodes in the model tree that are added automatically when working with
CMS.

• When a Reduced Flexible Components node is added, a set of parameters

are also automatically added under the Global Definitions branch. These
are placed in the CMS Parameters node seen in Figure 2-21, which is
created by the first Reduced Flexible Components node in the model.
Additionally, each Reduced Flexible Components node creates an explicit
selection node with the label CMS Component (<tag>) in its model
component. The parameters and selection are used in the
corresponding CMS study and should therefore not be deleted or
modified. As a safeguard, they are regenerated if missing when the
Configure CMS Study ( ) action is executed.
• If you change the number of Component Definition nodes or add new
features to the physics interface after setting up the CMS study and
want to run it again, the safest option is to reconfigure the study by
using the Configure CMS Study ( ) action. Note that this will delete
any ROMs that have previously been generated. To save these in the
model, you can temporarily change the name of the existing Reduced
Component nodes under Global Definitions before reconfiguring the
CMS study.

COMPONENT MODE SYNTHESIS | 275

 APPLYING LOADS TO REDUCED COMPONENTS
Loads can be applied to a reduced component in two fundamentally different ways:

1 External to the ROM: In this case, the weak contribution of the load on the reduced
component is part of the assembly procedure for the global FE model. This is the
default choice and can handle any type of loads. It is, however, the computationally
more expensive of the two methods.
2 Internal to the ROM: The load can either be constant or a function of a global
reduced model input. In this case, the load is stored as part of the ROM.

Be careful not to mix up the two alternatives; doing so can lead to double load
contributions. For this reason, option 1 is usually recommended. When the Configure
CMS study ( ) button is used, all load type features are disabled in the study steps of
the CMS study.

Figure 2-22: Loads are, by default, disabled in the model reduction study.

The advantage of option 2 is that it can be computationally cheaper in the global

analysis, since any evaluation of weak equations in domains of the reduced component
is avoided. To use this approach, enable the relevant load features in the reference
study step to the Model Reduction study step in the CMS study. The same load features
should then be disabled in all other studies. By selecting Include load contributions in
Reduced Components in the Reduced Flexible Components node, you can change the

276 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

default behavior of loads when the Configure CMS study ( ) button is used. When
selected, all loads are enabled in the study steps of the generated CMS study.

You can find an example of both approaches for load application in this
tutorial model:

• Component Mode Synthesis Tutorial: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Tutorials/cms_tutorial
• Component Mode Synthesis Tutorial: Application Library path
Multibody_Dynamics_Module/Tutorials/cms_tutorial
• Component Mode Synthesis Tutorial: Application Library path
MEMS_Module/Dynamics_and_Vibration/cms_tutorial

While conceptually similar to other load features, Linearly Accelerated Frame, Rotating
Frame, Gravity, and Base Excitation are always considered as internal to the ROM and
part of the reduced component. They are, by default, enabled in the CMS Study when
using the Configure CMS study ( ) button. The reason is that they are considered to
contribute to the acceleration of the frame. If necessary, use control inputs to
parameterize, for example, the gravity vector or rotation speed.

THE CMS STUDY

The CMS study is a parametric sweep over a set of components as defined by the
Component Definition subnodes of a Reduced Flexible Components node with the aim to
create one ROM for each component. The study is automatically generated by using
the Configure CMS Study ( ) button in a Reduced Flexible Components node. The
auto-generated study and solver sequences have a number of built-in features and
settings that greatly simplifies the process of creating a reduced component; especially
when there are multiple components to be reduced. The study sequence is shown in
Figure 2-23 and consists of:

• A Parametric sweep over the components to be reduced

• A Stationary training study step to compute the constraint modes from the static
load cases
• An Eigenfrequency training study step to compute the constrained eigenmodes
• A Model Reduction study step to generate the ROM. This step can either use a Time
Dependent or Frequency Domain study step as a reference.

COMPONENT MODE SYNTHESIS | 277

 Figure 2-23: The automatically generated CMS study.

If the global model is to be used in a frequency domain analysis, use a

Frequency Domain study step as a reference during model reduction. If not,
use a Time Dependent study step. Both steps are added by the Configure CMS
study ( ) action, and can be enabled or disabled depending on the use
case. By default, the Time Dependent study step is enabled.

Key to the CMS study is that all study steps are solved on a subset of the total model;
the selection of the component. This is controlled in the Compile Equations nodes of
the solver sequence. When using an auto-generated CMS study, the selections used are
automatically updated during the sweep over components.

Running a CMS study creates a number of datasets in the Results branch as well as
subnodes to the Reduced-Order Modeling node under Global Definitions.

• The Reduced Model Data datasets contains the solution that is used to create a ROM,
including the constraint modes and eigenmodes. It also contains the matrices of the
ROM, which can be inspected by using the System Matrix derived values node.
• Depending on the chosen reference study step during model reduction, Frequency
Domain, Modal Reduced-Order Model or Time Dependent, Modal Reduced-Order Model
nodes are created under Global Definitions. When created from a CMS Study, these
are always created with a default label Reduced Component and names that are related
to the generating study and physics. Moreover, the CMS study generates ROMs
with a stateful interface, which is a requirement for it to connect to other parts of
the model. You can use Model Control Inputs and other settings in the generated
ROMs to modify their behavior when used in a global analysis.

Once the ROMs have been created, you can in principle delete the CMS
study to clean up the model tree. In fact, you only need to keep the
Reduced Flexible Components node and the generated ROMs under Global
Definitions.

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 Neither the names, nor the order of the list of ROMs in the Reduced-Order
Modeling node under Global Definitions should be changed, as this will
break the connection between the ROMs, the physics, and the reduced
component. The automatic naming convention has the structure <rom>
_n_<feat>_<phys>_<i>, where <rom> is a generic tag for the generating
ROM, <feat> is the tag of the Reduced Flexible Components node that
generated the CMS study, <phys> is the physics tag, and <i> is a number.
For example, the ROM of the first component in a Solid Mechanics
interface is typically named rom1_n_rfc1_solid_1.

SETTING UP THE GLOBAL MODEL

Using ROMs created from a Reduced Flexible Components node and a CMS Study in a
global model, in general, requires no further steps to be taken. The only requirement
is that the states of the ROMs are solved together with the other dependent variables
of the model. By default, the Solve for status of these ROMs are synchronized with the
Solve for status of the generating physics in non-CMS studies, which takes care of this
requirement.

If all the domains of the physics interface are reduced, it is possible to turn
off the synchronization of the Solve for status, since in such cases it is only
necessary to solve for the states of the ROMs. By not solving for the
dependent variables of the physics, it is made sure that no double
contributions are added by, for example, load features. Clear the
Synchronize ‘Solve for’ study setting for Reduced Components check box in
the Reduced Flexible Components node to make this possible.

One way to add more control over the behavior of a ROM is to add control inputs in
Global Reduced Model Inputs under Global Definitions. These should be added to the
model before solving the CMS study, and can be used in expressions in relevant physics
nodes. After running the CMS study, you can modify the input expression for each

COMPONENT MODE SYNTHESIS | 279

 added control input, either globally or individually in each of the generated Reduced
Component nodes.

If you include a load in a reduced component, and enter a value or a

parameter for its amplitude, then that load will have a constant value when
the component is reused. If you want to be able to, for example, make that
load time dependent, or to switch it off, then you define it using a control
input.

For a more detailed discussion on how to work with ROM control inputs
and their limitations, see Reduced-Order Model Inputs in the COMSOL
Multiphysics Reference Manual.

IMPORTANT CONSIDERATIONS
A number of important considerations to be aware of when working with CMS and
reduced components are listed below:

• Do not modify the content of automatically generated nodes in the model tree, such
as the CMS Parameters node, and the CMS Component selection.
• Only zero-valued constraints can be applied to a reduced component. While it is
fundamentally possible to apply constraints on a reduced component in a global
analysis, the correct way is to apply them when generating the ROMs in a CMS
study so that such constraints can be accounted for while computing constraint
modes and eigenmodes. Later, constraints can be removed in all other studies. This
is handled automatically for most such features including for example:
- Fixed Constraint
- Prescribed Displacement
- Roller
- Symmetry

No constraint equations are added for these features on selections that intersect that
of a Reduced Flexible Components node. For the Prescribed Displacement node and
similar features, any non-zero values set for the constraint are, moreover, ignored in
the CMS study.
• Attachment nodes can be used without a connection to other parts of the model to
define additional static modes of the reduced component. Note that attachments by
default induce a rigid boundary on its selection.

280 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

• Added Mass, Spring Foundation, and Thin Elastic Layer are special features that add
either mass or stiffness to the reduced component, and can therefore be considered
as part of its basic properties. By default, these are enabled in the CMS Study when
using the Configure CMS study ( ) button. No mass nor stiffness is added in a
global study on selections intersecting with that of a Reduced Flexible Components
node.
• When working with CMS, the following subnodes to Linear Elastic Material and
Section Stiffness are supported when creating reduced components:
- Thermal Expansion
- Hygroscopic Swelling
- Initial Stress and Strain
- External Stress
- External Strain
- Damping
- Fiber

All other subnodes are, by default, disabled in the CMS Study when using the
Configure CMS study ( ) button. Some options in the supported features may,
however, not be supported. For example, the External material option in External
Strain is not supported with CMS.
• In the Damping subnode to Linear Elastic Material or Section Stiffness, the following
Damping types are supported:
- Isotropic loss factor
- Anisotropic loss factor
- Loss factor
- Rayleigh damping
- Viscous damping
- Wave attenuation

When using the Configure CMS study ( ) button, the Damping subnode is disabled
in the training steps to avoid complex eigenpairs, but active in the reference step to
the model reduction. Any contributions are removed on selections that intersects
with that of a Reduced Flexible Components node in a global study.
• Damping can also be added to reduced components by Spring Foundation, Thin
Elastic Layer, and Low-Reflecting Boundary nodes. For these features, damping
contributions are only added on selections intersecting with that of a Reduced

COMPONENT MODE SYNTHESIS | 281

 Flexible Components node in the reference step to the model reduction. No
contributions are added in the training steps for such selections to avoid complex
eigenpairs.
• Reduced components are by definition linear. Do not use any features that are
nonlinear such as Creep, Damage, or Plasticity on the same selection as a Reduced
Flexible Components node. Also, make sure not to induce nonlinearity by user
defined expressions in features that are to be reduced. This also applies to boundary,
edge, and point features adjacent to the domains selected in a Reduced Flexible
Components node.
• It is not possible to compute dissipated energy due to for example damping on
selections that intersect that of a a Reduced Flexible Components node. The Calculate
dissipated energy setting is ignored for such selections.
• Certain features that add weak contributions on domain, boundary, edge, or point
level should be used with care if their selections intersect that of a Reduced Flexible
Components node. To get consistent results and avoid double contributions, it may
be necessary to manually disable some features in the model tree of the training
study step of a generated CMS study, or in the global study that uses a ROM.
Examples of such features, other than loads, include Weak Contribution. By default,
these are disabled in the CMS Study when using the Configure CMS study ( ) button.
• Most features that add global dependent variables are not applicable together with
reduced components. The reason is that it is difficult to automatically determine to
which part of the model such variables belong. Hence, do not use features such as
Average Rotation, Rigid Body Contact, Rigid Connector, Prescribed Velocity, or Point
Load, Free when setting up reduced components. By default, all such features are
disabled in the CMS Study when using the Configure CMS study ( ) button. The only
exception is the Attachment feature which is specially designed to work with reduced
components.
• Features and functionality that add dependent variables which are expected to have
a significantly different order of magnitude compared to the displacements should
be used with caution when creating reduced components. The reason is that such
DOFs can corrupt the scaling of the eigenvectors used to train the ROM during

282 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

 model reduction, which in the end will result in a inaccurate ROM. Examples of
functionality that may cause this are:
- The Pressure mixed formulation in Linear Elastic Material
- The Flexible connection type in Attachment nodes
- The Lagrange multipliers added by weak constraints
If such functionality must be used, you can try to manually adjust the scaling of the
eigenvectors by changing the Maximum absolute value in the Eigenvalue Solver of the
CMS Study. Another alternative is the try setting Scaling of eigenvectors to Mass Matrix.
• Translating or rotating a ROM is not supported. Hence you cannot use a single
ROM to represent multiple reduced components.
• Import of ROMs created in another COMSOL Multiphysics model or any external
software is not supported for reduced components.

COMPONENT MODE SYNTHESIS | 283

 Computing Mass Properties
In structural mechanics analysis, especially when modeling dynamic problems, the
mass properties of a structure or its part can be an important aspect of the design. To
compute such mass properties, you can use Mass Properties node, which can be added
under Component>Definitions>Physics Utilities. There, you can select the geometry
domains to be included into the computations and select physics interfaces that will
define the mass properties. You can add and configure several mass property
contributions if needed.

284 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Volume, mass, center of mass, and moments of inertia will be computed. They will
become available as predefined variables, which you find in the Equation View node’s
settings window under the corresponding Mass Properties node.

Besides for postprocessing purposes, you can also use these variables in any
user-defined expressions, user inputs, and in optimization criteria.

Structural mechanics interfaces contribute to the mass properties in several ways:

• All material models, including Rigid Material, define mass density contributions.
• Added Mass nodes for all geometric entity levels can also contribute with added mass
density. It is possible to suppress the contribution from an Added Mass node by using
the Exclude contribution check box in the Frame Acceleration Forces section.
• Point Mass nodes contribute both with mass and with the specified mass moment of
inertia. It is possible to suppress the contribution from a Point Mass node by using
the Exclude contribution check box in the Frame Acceleration Forces section.
• The Hygroscopic Swelling nodes, which can be added to most material models for all
structural elements, can use the moisture content as an extra mass density
contribution.

COMPUTING MASS PROPERTIES | 285

 • Rigid Material and Rigid Connector can contribute directly to the total mass properties
via their Mass and Moment of Inertia subnodes.

• Structural elements like beams and shells take their true geometrical dimensions into
account when contributing to the mass properties. As an example, a beam
contributes to the rotational inertia around its axis, even though the geometrical
model is only an edge. The beam cross-section properties are used to compute the
data.

The mass properties can be computed on both initial geometry (material frame) and
deformed geometry (spatial frame). The results may differ considerably in case of large
deformations. To compute the results in the undeformed geometry, you do not have
to perform the whole analysis; it is sufficient to choose Get Initial Values under the Study
node. To obtain the mass properties in the deformed configuration, you need to the
full analysis, so that the displacement results are available.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Mass Properties
• Studies and Solvers
• Derived Values, Evaluation Groups, and Tables

286 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Effective Properties of Periodic
Structures
Sometimes you need to model on different scales. The heterogeneous properties of a
material in the microscopic scale are often unfeasible to use directly on a macroscopic
scale, in which a structure is typically analyzed. In such a case, you typically want to use
a homogeneous material model with appropriately averaged properties.

The Cell Periodicity feature facilitates the evaluation of such average properties. It is
based on the idea of a representative volume element (RVE). The RVE is a domain
that is representative for the material on a microscopic scale.

If the material is truly periodic, an RVE is typically identified as the smallest possible
unit cell. If the material has a random distribution of, for example, porosities, the RVE
should be large enough to be representative for the average properties of the material
on a macroscopic scale.

The only requirement on the shape of the RVE is that it should be possible to fill space
with a repetitive pattern of RVEs. This means that there are a set of matching boundary
pairs, each pair having the same geometry, but offset by a given distance.

RVE Modeling Using the Cell Periodicity Node

To model an RVE, you add the domain feature Cell Periodicity, and select the domains
representing the RVE. For each pair of matching boundaries, add a Boundary Pair
subnode, and select the boundaries.

In principle, there is no limitation on the physics features you can use for modeling the
RVE, as long as the basic assumptions about periodicity are not violated. You should,
however, not add any displacement constraints because the possible rigid-body
motions are automatically constrained by the Cell Periodicity node.

MESHING
The accuracy of the analysis is significantly better if each pair of matching boundaries
has the same mesh. Mesh the boundaries before the domains, and use Copy Face to
ensure that the boundary meshes match.

If you decide to use a nonmatching mesh, then the stress disturbances can be reduced
by using a weak form of the periodicity constraints.

EFFECTIVE PROPERTIES OF PERIODIC STRUCTURES | 287

 HOMOGENIZED MATERIAL PROPERTIES
Two different types of material properties can be automatically evaluated using the Cell
Periodicity node. With the Free Expansion periodic condition, you can calculate the
homogenized material properties related to the free expansion of the RVE when
exposed to a variation in temperature or moisture concentration — that is, the
averaged coefficient of thermal expansion and the averaged coefficient of hygroscopic
swelling. To set up an analysis for the evaluation of thermal properties, add a Thermal
Expansion subnode to each material model used in the RVE, and apply a unit rise in
temperature. Similarly, for hygroscopic properties, add Hygroscopic Swelling subnodes
and apply a unit rise in concentration. Without adding these subnodes to the material
models of the RVE, no expansion is applied to the unit cell, and consequently the
results will be zero. Results will also be zero if no variation in temperature or
concentration is applied. If requested, the computed material properties are by default
presented in a separate evaluation group under Results.

With the Average strain and Average stress periodic conditions, you can calculate the
homogenized elastic properties of the RVE. Use the average strain condition to
compute the elasticity matrix, or the average stress to compute the compliance matrix.
In order to compute these properties, the deformation of the RVE needs to be
evaluated for a number of fundamental load cases. These correspond to the
perturbations of the unit cell with each component of the average strain or stress
tensor, while keeping the other components equal to zero. Setting up this analysis can
be automated with the Create Load Groups and Study option under the Study and
Material Generation button. It creates a load group for each tensor component,
populates the average strain or stress tensor, and creates a study with a load case for
each created load group. If the calculation of an average material property is requested,
the computed values are by default presented in a separate evaluation group under
Results. If no material property evaluation is requested, or if it is not available, the
results can be used to study the response of the RVE to the applied load cases.

You can also create a global material using the Create Material option under the Study
and Material Generation button for the Average strain or Average stress periodic
conditions. This option creates a material that contains the homogenized elasticity or
compliance matrix, which can be accessed by other components in the model. Note
that if you want to use the computed material properties in another model or store
them to a user-defined material library, you should use the Create Material by Value
option. For the Create Material by Reference option, the automatically generated global
material contains variables linked to the Cell Periodicity node in the current model.

288 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Micromechanical Model of a Fiber Composite: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Material_Models/
micromechanical_model_of_a_fiber_composite

EFFECTIVE PROPERTIES OF PERIODIC STRUCTURES | 289

 Modeling Pretensioned Bolts
The information about pretensioned bolts is applicable if your license
includes the Structural Mechanics Module.

Bolted joints are common in mechanical and civil engineering structures. If you are
interested in analyzing the details of a bolted joint, the prestress in the bolt must be
taken into account in order to correctly capture the behavior under service loads. The
Bolt Pretension functionality in COMSOL Multiphysics is designed to simplify such
analyses. You can model the bolts either using solid or beam elements.

During mounting, a bolt is tightened to a certain prestress. The mounting of the bolt
is, in general, accompanied by deformations of the surrounding structure. In the
subsequent service, the force in the bolt can then change due to external loads.

Sometimes the sequence in which the bolts are tightened is important. This will be the
case if significant nonlinearities are induced by the tightening process. Modeling such
a process is also fairly straightforward. This is, however, a less common case which adds
some extra complexity to the modeling, so it will be discussed separately below.

MODELING THE BOLTS

You must use a specific modeling technique in order to use a bolt in a prestress analysis.

Using Solid Elements

1 You can model bolts using solid elements in 3D or 2D axial symmetry. In 3D, it is
usually most efficient to add the predefined bolt geometries from the Part Libraries.
In 2D axial symmetry, the bolt is always assumed to be axially symmetric, and thus
having the Z-axis as its center of rotation.
2 Make sure that there is at least one interior boundary perpendicular to the bolt axis
somewhere in the shank. In the following, this boundary is referred to as the slit
boundary (Figure 2-24). The slit boundary can be composed of several adjacent
boundaries in the geometry.
3 If you are using bolts from the Part Libraries, a slit boundary is predefined, and has
the selection name Pretension cut. In order to make this boundary selection
visible from the physics interface, select its Keep check box in the Boundary Selections
section of the settings for the part instance (Figure 2-25).
4 If needed, add contact conditions between the bolt head and the component and
between different components clamped by the bolt. In many cases, it is sufficient

290 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

 and more efficient to use a continuity condition between the bolt head and the
component.
5 Add a Bolt Pretension node, in which the pretension force or stress is prescribed for
a set of bolts sharing the same data.
6 For each bolt having the same essential data, add a Bolt Selection subnode where its
slit boundary is selected.
7 The label of the bolt, which is an input in the Bolt Label section, is used to identify
the bolts during result evaluation. A suggestion for the name is automatically
generated, based on the base name given in the parent node.

When a bolt is located in a symmetry plane (so that only half the bolt is
modeled), and Automatic symmetry detection is selected in the Bolt
Selection node, the given pretension force is interpreted as the force in the
whole bolt, and not as the force in the half-present bolt. This makes it
possible to use the same Bolt Pretension node for a set of similar bolts
where some of them are located in symmetry planes.

Figure 2-24: Example of a bolted joint with the bolt modeled as a solid.

MODELING PRETENSIONED BOLTS | 291

 Figure 2-25: Getting access to the slit boundary selection for a bolt from the Part Libraries.

Using Beam Elements

1 When modeling with beam elements, you will typically use a Polygon with three
points to model each bolt (Figure 2-26).
2 There must be at least one interior point somewhere in the shank. In the following,
this point will, in analogy with the solid, be referred to as the slit boundary.

292 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

3 Since there is no explicit bolt head when you model a bolt using beams, you need
to connect it to the solid component using some type of abstract coupling. There
are several options:
- You can connect the end of the beam to the edge of the bolt hole (the lower end
in Figure 2-26). Then, use the Solid-Beam Connection multiphysics coupling,
with Connection type set to Solid Edges to Beam Points. In this case, you select the
edge of the bolt hole.
- You can create a circular boundary having the diameter of the bolt head on the
surface of the component (the upper end in Figure 2-26). Then, use the
Solid-Beam Connection multiphysics coupling, with Connection type set to Solid
Boundaries to Beam Points. In this case, you select the annular solid boundary.
- Even without creating an extra boundary, you can use the Solid-Beam
Connection multiphysics coupling, with Connection type set to Solid Boundaries to
Beam Points, general. Then set Connected region to Distance (manual) and enter half
the head diameter as Connection radius. In this case, you select the entire
boundary on which the bolt head is residing. This method is convenient, but will
often give more spurious stresses around the bolt hole, since partial element faces
will be connected.
- You can use the two first approaches, but rather than using a multiphysics
coupling for the connection, you can add rigid connectors in both physics
interfaces, and then connect them. This approach is more expensive, since it adds
degrees of freedom in both the rigid connectors, plus the constraints to couple
them. It is however an approach that may be suitable for imported meshes, where
connection data in this form is available.

All these techniques are shown in the Application Libraries example Modeling of
Pretensioned Bolts.
4 Add a Bolt Pretension node, in which the pretension force or stress is prescribed for
a set of bolts with the same data.
5 For each bolt having the same essential data, add a Bolt Selection subnode where its
slit boundary is selected.

MODELING PRETENSIONED BOLTS | 293

 6 The label of the bolt, which is an input in the Bolt Label section, is used to identify
the bolts during result evaluation. A suggestion for the name is automatically
generated, based on the base name given in the parent node.

Figure 2-26: A bolt modeled using the Beam interface.

THE PREDEFORMATION DEGREE OF FREEDOM

Each bolt defined in the Bolt Selection node has a single global degree of freedom called
predeformation, d. At the slit boundary, the two sides of the bolt are disconnected so
that the displacements over it can be discontinuous. The discontinuity is represented
by:

u u = u d –  d – r n

Here the subscript u denotes the upside of the slit boundary, and d denotes the
downside. n is the normal pointing out from the downside. The sign has been selected
so that d gets a positive value when the bolt force is tensile. An optional relaxation r
can also be included.

The axial force in the bolt is thus caused by a small overlap between the two sides of
the slit boundary. It is computed as the reaction force belonging to the degree of
freedom d.

294 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

It is only meaningful to introduce the relaxation in a later study step. If it is present all
the time, then its only effect would be to increase the predeformation during the
pretension analysis by r. Thus, the value of r is usually a function of the load history,
which is initially zero.

SETTING UP THE STUDY STEPS

In an analysis of prestressed bolts, you have to use two or more separate study steps.
They can be part of a single study or be placed in different studies. The first study step,
in which the bolt prestress is prescribed, simulates the mounting process. If you would
only use a force to load the bolt (for example, as an initial stress), the resulting stress
in the bolt would be less than the intended, due to the compression of the material
around the bolt. The prestress step ensures that the bolts have the intended prestress,
irrespective of the flexibility of the surrounding structure and their interaction.

In the subsequent studies, the bolt force is allowed to change, while keeping the
extension of the bolt, as caused by the first study, fixed. The procedure to do this is as
follows:

1 Run the study step for the mounting simulation. The predefined study type Bolt
Pretension is designed for this. You may need to apply the pretension load in smaller
steps, if there are nonlinearities in the system. Then, you select Auxiliary sweep in the
Study Extensions section in the settings for the Bolt Pretension study step. Introduce
a load ramping parameter, which is used to multiply the pretension forces.
2 Add one or more studies or study steps to analyze the effects of the service loads.
3 Since the pretension degrees of freedom are not solved for in the service load study
steps, they must obtain their values from the pretension study step. If the study steps
are sequential within the same study, no special action is needed, since the default
then is to inherit values from the previous study step. For other cases, go to the
Values of Dependent Variables section of the study step, set Values of variables not
solved for to User controlled, and then select the pretension study step.

SEQUENTIAL TIGHTENING
If you need to take the order of the bolt tightening into account, then you must use
an auxiliary sweep where the sweep parameter is used to control the tightening history.

You need to perform the following steps:

1 In each Bolt Selection node representing a bolt that is not fully pretensioned from
the beginning of the study step, select the Sequential tightening check box.

MODELING PRETENSIONED BOLTS | 295

 2 A new text field, Pretensioning expression, is now shown. In this text field, you enter
a Boolean expression, which evaluates to a nonzero value at the parameter values
when the prestress is applied. It may happen more than once, if the bolt is not given
its full pretension force at once. An example of such an expression is
round(par)==3 || round(par)==11.

3 If you want the bolt prestress (when applied) to have a value that differs from the
value given in the parent Bolt Pretension node, change the setting of Pretension type
from From parent to another option. Extending the example above, the expression
for the pretension force could be 50[kN]*if(par>3.5, 1, 0.6). The only thing
that matters here is the value of the force at the parameter values when the
pretension force is set, in this example 3 and 11.

A sequential tightening precess may have a quite slow convergence rate until a certain
number of bolts have been loaded. The reason is that it is common that two mating
boundaries barely touch, so that many contact iterations are needed. It is advisable to

296 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

start by giving all bolts a small prestress, maybe 1% of the final value, in order to
stabilize the model.

It is important to make sure that you only solve for the bolt
predeformation degrees of freedom in the pretension study step, and not
when analyzing the service loads.

If you use the Bolt Pretension study type for the pretension study step, and
any other study type to analyze the service loads, the solvers are
automatically set up to handle this. The Bolt Pretension study type is
actually a special case of a Stationary study step, with the sole purpose of
activating the predeformation degrees of freedom. These degrees of
freedom are by default not solved for in any other study type.

If you, however, set up your studies manually, the information below is

useful. Also, in versions prior to 5.3, this automatic mechanism was not
available, so in older models the studies were always set up manually.

You enable or disable the solution of individual degrees of freedom under

the Dependent Variables node for a certain study step in the solver
sequence. If required, begin by clicking Show Default Solver in the study
node or in the Solver Configurations node of the study. Then move to the
Dependent Variables node, and in the General section, set Defined by study
step to User defined.

You can now go to the node for each predeformation degree of freedom
below Dependent Variables and adjust the state of the Solve for this state
check box.

For more information, see also Dependent Variables and Studies and
Solvers in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

RESULTS
The results in a bolt do not belong to any part of the geometry, but are global
variables. To access the result from a certain bolt, a full scope of the type <interface>
.<Bolt Pretension tag>.<Bolt Selection tag>.<variable> must be used. An

MODELING PRETENSIONED BOLTS | 297

 example could be solid.pblt1.sblt1.F_bolt. The bolt results are summarized in
the table below.
TABLE 2-15: BOLT VARIABLES

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION

d_pre Predeformation
F_bolt Axial force in the bolt
F_shear Shear force in the bolt (3D only)

If you place a bolt in a symmetry plane, that only half of the bolt is modeled, this will
automatically be detected. The results are reported for the whole bolt, not for the
symmetric half.

When there are pretensioned bolts in a study, evaluation groups containing the bolt
forces will automatically be generated.

Studies and Solvers in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

• Modeling of Pretensioned Bolts: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Tutorials/bolt_pretension_tutorial
• Prestressed Bolts in a Tube Connection: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Contact_and_Friction/tube_connection

298 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Simplified Modeling of Bolt Threads
When an internal and an external thread are engaging, there will be a complex local
stress state. When analyzing such geometries, you can approach the problem at three
levels:

• Make a full 3D model of the actual thread geometry and solve the contact problem.
This approach is only used in some rare cases, since such a model by necessity
becomes very large. Also, the actual stress state in the thread itself is seldom the
target of an analysis.
• Ignore the thread completely and just connect the two parts by a union operation
or through a Continuity pair. This approach will provide an accurate solution outside
a region with a size of a couple of bolt diameters from the bolt hole.
• Use the simplified Bolt Thread Contact condition. With this approach, the stresses
will be correct, except at distances where stress concentrations caused by the actual
thread geometry are significant. The important part of the solution that can be
captured by this simplified contact condition is that the contact pressure between
the threads will push the walls of the bolt hole outward. This will cause significant
tensile hoop stresses around the bolt hole.

When you use Bolt Thread Contact, you model the face of both the bolt and the bolt
hole as cylinders. The actual geometry of the thread is taken care of by the
mathematical formulation of the contact condition. The most important parameter is
the thread angle, since it determines the direction of the contact forces.

For each individual bolt, you need to add one Bolt Thread Contact node.

PENALTY FACTOR
The contact condition is enforced using a penalty formulation. In practice, this means
that a stiff spring is inserted between the two boundaries. In most contact problems,
you want to use a high penalty factor, in order to avoid excessive overclosure of the
contacting boundaries. In this case, however, there is a certain flexibility which has its
source in a slight bending of the threads in real life. This effect can to some extent be
accounted for by allowing a certain flexibility in the contact condition. For this reason,
the default penalty factor is rather low. You may need to adjust it to suit your
conditions.

A higher penalty factor also means that the force is transferred from the external thread
to the internal thread over a shorter distance along the bolt axis.

SIMPLIFIED MODELING OF BOLT THREADS | 299

 CONTACT ORIENTATION
In most cases, you know a priori which side of the thread that will be in contact. You
can reduce the size of the contact problem by a factor of two by selecting an
appropriate value for the Contact orientation. The default is to search in both
directions.

If a bolt is pretensioned, the contact orientation will be Up if the bolt orientation is such
that the Orientation vector points toward the bolt head. If the bolt geometry, including
orientation, is computed using the Automatic option, you will often have to use the
Direction adjustment option to have full control over the up and down directions.

MODELING HINTS
• You must create one Contact Pair for each bolt and mating bolt hole. The bolt
should be the destination side of the contact pair.
• In the Part Libraries, you will find predefined parameterized bolt geometries that
also contain a domain intended to be used as drill for the bolt hole.
• The cylindrical surfaces of the bolt and bolt hole should have the same diameter. If
you want to decrease the stiffness of the bolt because it is not solid all the way out
to the nominal diameter, a good suggestion is to decrease Young’s modulus by a
factor based on the stress area of the bolt.
• Since the contacting boundaries are cylindrical, there is a risk that the bolt, instead
of computing the gap to the nearest point on the bolt hole, will instead see a point
on the opposite side. A good practice is to select Manual from the Search distance list
in the settings for the Contact Pair. Half the diameter of the bolt is an appropriate
search distance.
• Since the relative displacements between the bolt and the hole are small, setting
Mapping method to Initial Configuration in the settings for the Contact Pair can
improve efficiency.
• In the initial state, the two objects being joined may possess rigid body modes, just
like in any other contact problem. If so, you can for example add weak springs to
maintain stability.

300 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Modeling Embedded Structures and
Reinforcements
Lower dimension structural elements such as trusses, beams, and membranes can be
embedded into a solid domain by adding an Embedded Reinforcement multiphysics
coupling. This modeling technique is intended for efficient modeling of thin structures
in solids, where it is unfeasible or not necessary to resolve the geometry of the thin
structure. Some typical use cases include:

• Reinforcement bars in concrete structures

• Piles or sheets in soil
• Fibers in composite materials
• Embedded sensors in a structure. Embedding sensors can either be used to model
a real sensor, or as a modeling technique to extract, for example strain in some
predefined location and direction in a solid domain.
The connection between the embedded structure and the solid can be set up using
different techniques; either a rigid connection by adding constraints between the
points in the respective interface, or by adding springs. When a spring type connection
is used, the connection can be linear or nonlinear. Using a nonlinear connection can
be important when modeling reinforcement in structures, especially when predicting
failure and postfailure behavior.

The multiphysics coupling is intended for situations where the volume of the
embedded structure is small compared to the solid domain. Hence, no compensation
is made for the mass of the small structure. If a detailed model of the connection and
composite structure is required, the geometry should include the interface between
the embedded structure and the solid. The connection should then be modeled using

MODELING EMBEDDED STRUCTURES AND REINFORCEMENTS | 301

 some other coupling technique as discussed in Coupling Different Element Types, or
using Contact Modeling.

When the Embedded structure is a Beam interface and a Rigid connection

type is used, the displacements are only constrained to the solid domain
at the mesh nodes of the beam elements. This means that higher-order
variations of the displacement field between mesh nodes is allowed. The
Spring connection will, however, constrain also the higher-order variations
of the displacement field.

The functionality provided by the Embedded Reinforcement multiphysics

coupling to some extent overlaps with other couplings available to
different structural mechanics interfaces. For example, both the Embedded
Reinforcement and the Solid-Thin Structure Connection can be used to
attach a membrane as a cladding on a solid domain. An important
difference is, however, that the Solid-Thin Structure Connection will add
constraints on the solid domain, while the Embedded Reinforcement will
add constraints on the membrane. Depending on the mesh, the results
may differ significantly.

The same difference applies when comparing the Embedded Reinforcement

to a Solid-Beam Connection on shared edges.

GEOMETRY AND MESHING

When modeling embedded structures, it is sometimes easier to form the geometries of
the coupled interfaces from an assembly. In the finalization step of the geometry
sequence, you should select Form an assembly in the Action list. This will also put less
restrictions on the mesh of the respective geometry. If Form Union is selected in the
Action list, the same mesh will be shared by both interfaces; which has to respect and
resolve the geometry of the embedded structure.

While there is no strict restriction on the mesh size when modeling embedded
structures in an assembly; a good practice is that the mesh used for the two coupled
interfaces is of approximately the same size, or that the mesh of the embedded
structure is slightly finer. Use the same shape order in both interfaces when modeling
embedded structures that share the geometry and mesh with the solid domain, that is,
when Form Union is selected in the Action list.

302 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

In some situations, the connection can be sensitive to mesh elements of the embedded
structure that are partially within the solid domain. This is especially sensitive for the
penalty connection, where the weak equations are evaluated at the integration points
of the embedded mesh element. A slight shift in the mesh can cause an integration
point to either be inside or outside the solid domain.

PENALTY FACTORS
When using the spring type connection, the accuracy of the connection is controlled
by the spring stiffness matrix. The components of this matrix are most naturally
represented in the local coordinate system of the embedded structure, for which only
the diagonal components are of interest. Mathematically, the spring stiffness can be
viewed as penalty factors that must be sufficiently high to accurately enforce the
regularized constraint, but if they are too high the overall stiffness matrix will be
ill-conditioned. This means that in most cases, the spring stiffness in only a numerical
parameter. However, there can be situations where the interface between the
embedded structure and the solid domain has a measurable stiffness, for example, if
the connection is used to idealize an interface with a finite, but small, thickness such
as a glue layer. In such cases the spring stiffness will have a real physical interpretation.

The default expression for the spring stiffness of the connection is derived from the
stiffness and cross-sectional properties of the mesh element of the embedded structure.
The available spring connection types and the corresponding default expressions for
the spring stiffness are summarized in Table 2-16. All spring stiffness components have
the same default expressions.
TABLE 2-16: DEFAULT EXPRESSION FOR SPRING STIFFNESS.

CONNECTION SPRING CONSTANT PER UNIT LENGTH SPRING CONSTANT PER UNIT
TYPE SURFACE AREA

Truss 1e3*truss.Eequ* 1e3*truss.Eequ*

truss.area/h^2 truss.perimeter/h^2
Beam 1e3*beam.Eequ*beam.area/h^2 N/A
Membrane N/A 1e5*mbrn.Eequ*
mbrn.d/h^2

LOCAL ORIENTATIONS
Many quantities used by the connection, such as the spring stiffness and constitutive
models, are most naturally represented in the local coordinate system of the embedded
structure. For beam and membranes, the multiphysics coupling picks up the local
coordinate system defined by the physics interface. However, in the Truss interface
only the direction of the local edge tangent tle is defined. For the multiphysics

MODELING EMBEDDED STRUCTURES AND REINFORCEMENTS | 303

 coupling, two transverse direction are also needed when using a spring connection.
Thus, the multiphysics coupling defines a local coordinate system by assuming that tle
is the normal to a plane. The actual directions of the two in-plane tangents are not
important, and it is assumed that the first tangent points in the global z direction.
Hence, the first transverse direction is

e z –  t le  e z t le
t 1 = ----------------------------------------------
e z –  t le  e z t le

and the second transverse direction is

t le  e z
t 2 = t le  t 1 = ----------------------------------------------
e z –  t le  e z t le

where ez is the base vector that points in the global z direction. Since no distinction is
made between t1 and t2, only a single transverse spring constant, kt, has to be entered
when defining the spring stiffness matrix.

BOND SLIP MODELS

It is possible to include a bond slip model of the interface when modeling the
embedded structure connection with a nonlinear spring. This nonlinear behavior
follows a plasticity model, where the relative displacement between the two coupled
interfaces is additively decomposed into an elastic displacement and a plastic
displacement, or slip. Modeling bond slip is limited to small sliding only, since the
mapping between the embedded structure and the solid domain is made in the
reference configuration.

The slip is defined using a local constitutive model. This local model adds a set of
internal degrees-of-freedom that are solved for and stored in the model at each Gauss
point of the embedded structure. Typically, these internal variables include the relevant
components of the slip vector ul,p, the accumulated slip upe, and the friction
dissipation density Wp. The last variable is only added if the Calculate dissipated energy
check box is selected in the Energy Dissipation section. The internal variables used by
the Embedded Reinforcement multiphysics coupling are shown as separate fields under
Dependent Variables node in the solver sequence.

The resistance to slide in the bond slip model is determined by the cohesion c, which
can be a function of any variable or field present in the model; by adding a generic
expression to the initial cohesion c0. A built-in hardening model with respect to upe

304 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

can be also be added, in which case c = c0+ch, where ch describes some hardening
function.

In many applications the bond slip behavior of the interface is described by a Coulomb
type friction. However, the bond slip model by default has no dependence on the
normal force acting on the interface since the connection has no formal direction of
the normal of the interface. A Coulomb type friction model can still be considered if a
good estimate of the normal force can be found by adding such a dependence to c0.
If, for example, the pressure in the solid domain can be considered as the normal
pressure acting on the interface, use an expression like 0.1*<tag>
.ExtCplOp(solid.p) to define c0 with a friction coefficient equal to 0.1. Here <tag>
is the tag of the multiphysics coupling and <tag>.ExtCplOp(expr) is the operator
that maps the expression from the solid domain to the embedded structure.

SOLVER SETTINGS
When adjusting the settings of the solver sequence for a model that includes an
Embedded Reinforcement multiphysics coupling, make sure that the dependent variables
of the coupled interfaces are solved in the same group. Also, note that the fields related
to the bond slip model should be included in the same solver group as well. This is only
a potential issue if a segregated solver is used, and it is handled automatically by the
default solver suggestion.

MODELING EMBEDDED STRUCTURES AND REINFORCEMENTS | 305

 Modeling Thin Layers
Sometimes, there are thin layers between larger components that cannot be ignored in
a structural analysis. The reasons are either because they have significant flexibility or
damping properties, or that they may fail. Examples of such layers are glue layers,
O-rings, and gaskets. Other cases can involve transition zones between particles or
fibers and the binder in a composite material.

When the layer is thin compared to other dimensions of the structure, it is difficult to
produce a mesh with acceptable quality without compromising the numerical
conditioning of the stiffness matrix. The Thin Layer boundary feature allows to
overcome this problem by making simplifications, so that there is no need for a mesh
in the through-thickness direction.

There are three different approximations available for modeling thin layers:

• Solid
• Membrane
• Spring

These approximations differ in the simplifications made for obtaining the deformation
gradient in the thin layer. For more details see Theory for Thin Layers.

The Thin Layer Node

The Thin Layer node is used to identify boundaries that have a thin layer attached to
them. These boundaries may either be exterior or interior boundaries to the domain
where the physics interface is active. The Thin Layer node also determines the thickness
of the thin layer, and how to approximate the deformation gradient on it. The first
choice is whether to use a Layered or a Nonlayered thin structure.

In the majority of cases, the Nonlayered approximation is sufficient to capture the

behavior of the thin layer. For this type of layer, two sets of degrees of freedom (DOFs)
are introduced at the boundary; one set corresponds to the upside, and one set to the
downside as illustrated in Figure 2-27. In COMSOL Multiphysics, this is referred as a
slit of the displacement field on the thin layer boundary.

Note that in Figure 2-27 no extra integration points are introduced in the
through-thickness direction, and that numerical integration is made on the
midsurface. Hence, dependent variables always have a linear variation in the thickness

306 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

direction; that is, their gradients are constant in the through-thickness direction. This
also applies to inelastic quantities such as plastic strains.

Upside

Midsurface

Downside

Figure 2-27: Illustration of a nonlayered thin stratum between two mesh elements using
quadratic serendipity shape functions. Circles indicate nodal points and squares
integration points.

The Layered type can be used when a more detailed description of the
through-thickness behavior is needed. For this type of thin layer, a slit of the
displacement field is made on the boundary, and additional DOFs are introduced
between the upside and downside as illustrated in Figure 2-28. These extra DOFs
facilitate a more detailed through-thickness representation of stresses and strains, and
they make it possible to, for example, model composites and laminate strata.
Continuity is enforced by constraints between the DOFs on the up- and downside, and
the extra DOFs. The through-thickness discretization is controlled by the attached
material. For more details about modeling layered structures, see Composite Materials
Modeling

Upside

Midsurface

Downside

Figure 2-28: Illustration of a discretized layered thin layer using a single mesh element in
the through-thickness direction. The thin layer is injected between two mesh elements using
quadratic serendipity shape functions. Circles indicate nodal points and squares
integration points.

MODELING THIN LAYERS | 307

 When the Nonlayered type is used, it is possible to chose different approximations of
the deformation measure in the thin layer:

• Solid
• Membrane
• Spring

The description in Figure 2-27 is representative of the solid and spring

approximations. The solid approximation is the most general and accounts for the full
normal and tangential deformations in the thin layer. The spring approximation is
similar but neglects the membrane deformation. This is useful for cases where the
behavior of the thin layer is given by force versus extension data, as is often the case
when modeling gaskets.

For the membrane approximation, no slit is introduced and the thin layer only
accounts for the membrane deformation. It thus only contributes with tangential
stress, while plane stress conditions apply in the through-thickness direction. This is
typically the case when the thin layer describes a cladding on an exterior boundary or
a reinforcement layer on an interior boundary.

The different thin layer approximations are compared in Thin Layer

Interfaces: Application Library path
Nonlinear_Structural_Materials_Module/Hyperelasticity/thin_layer_interfaces

Interior and Exterior Boundaries

A Thin Layer can be applied to either exterior or interior boundaries of the physics
interface. However, there are some noticeable differences between adding a thin layer
on an exterior or on an interior boundary.

On an interior boundary, the selected boundary is always considered to be the

midsurface of the thin layer. It is not possible to apply any loads or boundary
conditions on interior boundaries.

On an exterior boundary, the bottom of the thin layer is attached to the adjacent
domain. This means that the thickness of the thin layer extends outwards from the
domain in the direction of the normal. For a nonlayered thin structure, an exterior
displacement field is introduced to create the slit, so it is possible to apply loads and
boundary conditions to this exterior field. For example, applying a fixed constraint on
an exterior thin layer makes it equivalent to a Spring Foundation. For a layered thin

308 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

structure, the top side of the layered material is always the exterior. Loads and
boundary conditions can be applied to the top side only.

When the thin layer boundary is part of a contact pair, the thickness of the exterior thin
layer is considered when modeling contact.

Material Models
A Thin Layer can be assigned different material models:

• Linear Elastic Material

• Nonlinear Elastic Material
• Hyperelastic Material
• Spring Material

The first three material models are equivalent to the corresponding domain material,
hence the discussion in Introduction to Material Models is valid also for thin layers.

The Spring Material is a special material model only available with the spring
approximation. As the name implies, data for this material model is given in terms of
spring constants, or as force as a function of extension. It can be useful for certain types
of modeling where data is given in this format, for instance, when normal force versus
closure curves are available.

It is also possible incorporate inelastic effects by adding one or several subnodes to

these material models.

Loads and Boundary Conditions

Several loads and boundary conditions can be applied to a thin layer. Exactly what
boundary conditions are available and how they are treated depends on the thin layer
approximation. Whether the thin layer is an exterior or interior boundary of the physics
interface also affects the available boundary conditions.

On exterior boundaries, loads and boundary conditions can be applied to the exterior
displacement field of the nonlayered stratum, or on the top side of a layered material
for a layered stratum. For example, applying a fixed constraint to a thin layer on an
exterior boundary makes is equivalent to a Spring Foundation. It is also possible to
apply loads and boundary conditions to edges and points of the thin layer. For a
nonlayered stratum, loads and other boundary conditions apply to the exterior

MODELING THIN LAYERS | 309

 displacement field. However, for a layered stratum, all extra DOFs attached to the edge
or point are constrained.

When a Roller is applied on a boundary perpendicular to a thin layer, a

Roller should in most cases also be added to the edge of the thin layer. This
is especially important if the roller represents a symmetry condition.

On interior boundaries, only loads and boundary conditions on edges and points are
available. Moreover, these are only relevant for a layered stratum. For a nonlayered
stratum, there are no free DOFs on which to apply the boundary conditions.

Result Evaluation and Visualization

For a nonlayered thin structure, many variables defined by the material models have
the same name for both the thin layer and the adjacent domain. For example, the von
Mises stress is always called solid.mises. Hence, the context in which the variable is
evaluated is important.

If solid.mises is evaluated using a surface plot in a 3D model, it will have the

following interpretation:

• On boundaries with no thin layer, it will show the von Mises stress of the adjacent
domain.
• On boundaries that intersect a nonlayered thin layer, it will show the von Mises
stress on the thin layer.

Use the mean() and side() operators to force the evaluation of variables in adjacent
domains. For example, using mean(solid.mises) for a surface plot will average the
stresses from the two adjacent domains, and it will not consider the stress in the thin
layer between these two.

Extra care must be taken when evaluating results on entities of lower dimensions, such
as points, to make sure that the expression is evaluated in the correct context. The
mean() or side() operators can then be applied multiple times. For example, using
mean(mean(mean(solid.mises)))in a point plot for a 3D model will ensure that the
von Mises stress in the domain material is evaluated. Similarly, a point plot with the
expression mean(side(1,solid.mises)) will evaluate the von Mises stress in the
thin layer on boundary 1.

310 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

When one or more thin layers are present in a model, a default plot is
added to show the stress in the thin layer.

See Results Evaluation in Composite Materials Modeling for a discussion

on how to evaluate and visualize results for layered thin layer.

MODELING THIN LAYERS | 311

 Modeling Cracks
A crack in a solid model can be represented in two fundamentally different ways:

• As an ideal crack — that is, by a single boundary. Across this boundary, the
displacement field is discontinuous. Using COMSOL Multiphysics nomenclature,
this is called a slit condition.
• By the crack geometry, in which case the two sides of the crack are two different
boundaries. In the true geometry, the two crack surfaces may coincide, or there may
be a distance between them.

Both cases have an analogous representation in a symmetry plane. The ideal crack is
just a boundary located in the symmetry plane, but without the symmetry conditions,
so that it can open. This can, however, just as well be considered as special case of a
geometrical crack, so in symmetry planes the distinction more or less disappears.

Fundamental for cracks is that the stress and strain states at the crack tip are singular,
so any mesh refinement will only produce even higher stresses. For a linear elastic
material, the stresses and strains in the vicinity of the crack vary as 1  r , where r is
the distance from the crack tip.

The Crack Node

The Crack node serves several purposes:

• In the case of an ideal crack on an internal boundary, the degrees of freedom are
split so that the displacements on the two crack surfaces are independent.
• In the case that a crack is located in a symmetry plane, all constraints that may be
applied (such as symmetry) are removed. It is then possible for the crack to open.
• If possible, a crack growth direction is computed. For some cases this is instead a
user input.
• A number of variables, such as an estimate of the crack length are created.
• A mesh suggestion is generated.
• By using the J-Integral subnode under Crack, you can compute J-integrals and
stress intensity factors.
• By using the Crack Closure subnode under Crack, you can add contact conditions
between the crack faces.

312 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

The selected boundaries can form branched cracks.

MESH
At a crack tip, there will be an automatic mesh refinement. In the mesh sequence, you
will find an extra Size node, with all crack tips selected. You may want to adjust the
mesh size in that node.

J-integrals
The J-integral is a path independent integral that can be used to characterize the
severity of the stress state at the crack tip, both for linear and some nonlinear materials.
You can compute J-integrals by adding one or more J-integral subnodes under Crack.

Originally, the J-integral concept was derived for 2D, in which case it was sufficient to
integrate certain functions of stress and strain along an arbitrary curve from one
boundary of the crack to the other.

face

Figure 2-29: Example of a J-integral path.

There are some important assumptions when computing the J-integral:

• The curve is completely inside the domain.

• The curve does not enclose any other singularities, such as crack tips.

MODELING CRACKS | 313

 • No volume forces act inside the curve.
• If there is a load on the crack faces, this requires an extra correction. This is taken
into account if the load is given using the Face Load subnode under Crack.

You can specify the integration path as a circle with a given radius, in which case it cuts
the mesh elements at arbitrary locations. In 2D, you can also select a sequence of
internal or external boundaries describing the path. It is recommended that you
evaluate more than one path to assess the accuracy of the solution.

The importance of this method is that stresses and strains far from the singular fields
at the crack tip are used for the evaluation.

J-integrals can be computed also in 3D, but there are some complications. In the 3D
case, the value of J will vary along the crack front. The local value is computed by a
similar path integral, which then must be placed in the plane perpendicular to the crack
front. This is automatically handled by the J-integral node. The J-integral in 3D should
be considered as a continuous function along the crack front.

In 3D, there is also a surface integral contribution which needs to be computed for the
area that is enclosed by the curve. Unfortunately, this causes the singular field to enter
the integration, a fact that reduces accuracy. In addition, the computational effort
increases significantly. Evaluations of J-integrals in 3D can take a noticeable time.

Another problem, that exists only in 3D, occurs if the crack front terminates at a free
boundary. If the crack front is not perfectly perpendicular to the free boundary, the
integration path will not entirely remain inside the solid domain. This is manifested as
spurious results close to the free boundary.

PREDEFINED PLOTS
When J-integral nodes are present, they will generate predefined plots. These plots
reside in a Cracks plot group. The contents of the plots differ significantly between 2D
and 3D, as described below.

2D
The integration paths are plotted as magenta curves. An arrow shows the crack growth
direction. At the crack tips, the value from the last J-integral node is printed. An
example is shown in Figure 2-30.

314 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Figure 2-30: Predefined plot for a 2D case with a crack in a symmetry plane. Three
integration paths are shown; 2 circular and one along boundaries.

3D
In 3D, the integration paths are shown as transparent gray boundaries. The actual
integration paths are located where this boundary is intersected by planes
perpendicular to the crack front.

A colored arrow plot shows the crack growth direction, as well as the local value of the
J-integral as computed in the last J-integral node. An example is shown in Figure 2-31.

MODELING CRACKS | 315

 Figure 2-31: Predefined plot for a case with a 3D crack in a symmetry plane. One
integration path is used.

DEFAULT EVALUATION GROUPS

In both 3D and 2D, a default evaluation group, named Cracks, is also generated. It
contains a table with values of J-integrals and stress intensity factors for all integration
paths. In 3D, however, only the maximum value of J along the crack front is reported.

Stress Intensity Factors

Stress intensity factors are computed from the J-integral. For a linear elastic material,
there is a relation between the J-integral (or energy release rate) and the stress intensity
factors. This relation is, however, only unique when the stress intensity factors are
known, and not when the value the J-integral is known:

2
J = ----------  K I + K II + ------------ K 
1 2 2 1 (2-37)
E eff 1 –  III

316 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

The split between KI, KII, and KIII is estimated using the displacement field on the
crack faces at some distance behind the crack tip.

In Equation 2-37, Eeff is an effective Young’s modulus, defined as

 E
 --------------- if plane strain
E eff =  1 –  2

 E if plane stress

This expression is actually only defined for 2D stress states. In 3D, the expression for
plane strain is used, since the stress state at the crack tip in a thick solid essentially
resembles plane strain.

FREE BOUNDARY IN 3D
At a free boundary, a state of plane stress prevails. Close to the boundary, there will be
a transition zone where neither plane stress nor plane strain is applicable. In this region,
the stress intensity factors, as computed from the J-integral, may be uncertain. It
should be noted, however, that for most metals, the variation in Eeff between plane
strain and plane stress is about 10%, leading to an error in the computed stress intensity
factor in the transition region that is no more than 5%.

UNITS FOR STRESS INTENSITY FACTORS

The SI unit for stress intensity factors is N/m . Other common units are MPa·m1/2,
3/2

psi·in1/2, and ksi·in1/2. The unit handling system in COMSOL Multiphysics only
operates with integer powers of the base units, and can thus not handle stress intensity
factors in a consistent manner.

Because of this, the expressions that define the stress intensity factors include a removal
of the units, and the stress intensity factors appear as a unitless quantities. The value of
a stress intensity factor should be interpreted as having an implicit unit, which is
composed from the base units in the current unit system, for example, N/m3/2.

Contact Between Crack Faces

When a crack is defined by an internal boundary, or is located on a symmetry
boundary, it is possible to consider contact between the crack faces by adding a Crack
closure subnode. When such a node is added, all boundaries selected in the Crack node
are applicable and selected in the Crack closure subnode as well, which means that
contact is added between all crack faces.

MODELING CRACKS | 317

 Contact between crack faces is implemented by the penalty method as described in
Contact Analysis Theory in the Structural Mechanics Theory Chapter. By default,
frictionless contact is considered. However, if the crack is defined by internal
boundaries, you can also take friction into account.

The kinematics of the contact condition between crack faces differs from that used in
general contact analysis and the Contact node. It is fully defined by the displacement
discontinuity defined by the slit condition of the crack, and thus involves no contact
search algorithm. The gap gn is then given by

gn = n   uu – ud 

where n is the spatial normal to the internal boundary, and uu and ud are the
displacements on the “upside” and “downside”, respectively. Similarly, the tangential
deformation gt is given by

gt = –t   uu – ud 

where t is the spatial tangent to the internal boundary. In 3D, there are two
components of gt given by t1 and t2, respectively. Friction is based on an incremental
formulation, and the incremental slip is given by

g t = g t – g t,old

where gt,old is the tangential deformation at the previous converged increment. For a
symmetric crack uu  0 and ud  u. Note that no tangential deformation is computed
in such cases. Given that the gap and the slip are computed from the displacement
jump across an internal boundary, the contact formulation is only valid for small sliding
since the same nodal points are always connected even as the bodies deform.

318 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Buc k li ng Ana l ysi s
Linearized Buckling Analysis
A linearized buckling analysis can be used for estimating the critical load at which a
structure becomes unstable. This is a predefined study type that consists of two study
steps: An initial step in which a unit load is applied to the structure, and a second step
in which an eigenvalue problem is solved for the critical buckling load.

The idea behind this type of analysis can be described in the following way:

Consider the equation system to be solved for a stationary load f, in case of geometric
nonlinearity;

Ku =  K L + K NL u = f

Here the total stiffness matrix, K, depends in the solution, since the problem is
nonlinear. It has been split into a linear part, KL, and a nonlinear contribution, KNL.

In a first-order approximation, KNL is proportional to the stress in the structure and

thus to the external load. If the linear problem is solved first for an arbitrary initial load
level f0,

KL u0 = f0 (2-38)

then the nonlinear problem can be approximated as

 K L + K NL  u 0  u = f 0

where  is called the load multiplier.

An instability is reached when this system of equations becomes singular, so that the
displacements tend to infinity. The value of the load at which this instability occurs can
be determined by, in a second study step, solving an eigenvalue problem for the load
multiplier .

 K L + K NL  u 0  u = 0

COMSOL reports a critical load factor, which is the value of at which the structure
becomes unstable. The corresponding deformation is the shape of the structure in its
buckled state.

BUCKLING ANALYSIS | 319

 The level of the initial load used is immaterial since a linear problem is solved. If the
initial load actually was larger than the buckling load, then the critical value of  is
smaller than 1. It is also possible that the computed value of  is negative. This signifies
that a reversed load will give the critical case.

LIVE AND DEAD LOADS

In some situations, not all loads that act on the structure can vary, and you may want
to compute the critical load factor only with respect to the uncertain (‘live’) load. For
example, gravity is often treated as a ‘dead’ load. The dead loads do, however, affect
the stress distribution in the structure, so they cannot be completely ignored. Using
the same terminology as above,

d
Ku =  K L + K NL + K lNL u = f

Here, the superscripts ‘d’ and ‘l’, stands for live and dead loads, respectively. By solving
two problems, one with the live loads, and one with the dead loads, it is possible to
separate their effects:

l l
KL u0 = f0

d d
KL u0 = f0

Now, the following eigenvalue problem is solved to determine the critical load factor:

d l
 K L + K NL  u 0  + K NL  u 0  u = 0

For any load feature, you can specify that is a dead load by selecting the Treat as dead
load check box in the Linear Buckling section.

To perform a buckling analysis including both live and dead loads, you need three
study steps: two stationary steps, and the linear buckling study step.

1 In the first study step, you solve for the dead loads only. Disable any live loads in the
solver.
2 In the second study step, you solve for all loads; the live loads with an arbitrary
scaling factor plus the dead loads.

320 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

3 Finally, in settings for the Linear Buckling study step, you need to point to these two
solutions as Values at linearization point and Live loads solution, respectively.

Figure 2-32: Selecting the solutions for a buckling analysis with live and dead loads.

GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
Sometimes, the preload case requires a geometrically nonlinear analysis in order to
produce the correct state. This means that it is no longer solved using the linear set of
equations given by Equation 2-38, but rather

 K L + K NL  u 0  u 0 = f 0 (2-39)

The assumption for the buckling analysis is still that KNL is proportional to the external
load, even though this may be disputable for a strongly nonlinear case. KNL is based
on the stresses, which must be computed in the same way for both cases, that is, under
the same assumption about geometric nonlinearity. The effect is that the stiffness

BUCKLING ANALYSIS | 321

 matrix at the linearization point includes the nonlinear part from Equation 2-39, and
the eigenvalue problem is reformulated as

  K L + K NL  u 0   +   – 1 K NL  u 0  u = 0

FOLLOWER LOADS
Loads that depend on the deformation are called follower loads. An example of this is
a pressure load, since the orientation of the load will depend on surface deformation.
Such loads contribute to the stiffness matrix, and can thus affect the buckling load. As
a default, all loads in the structural mechanics interfaces are multiplied by the load
factor in a linear buckling study step.

If the computation of the predeformation requires a geometrically

nonlinear analysis, then geometric nonlinearity must be used also in the
Linear Buckling study step.

In this case, it must be assumed that the critical load factor  is

significantly larger than 1.

• Be aware that for some structures, the true buckling load can be
significantly smaller than what is computed using a linearized analysis.
This phenomenon is sometimes called imperfection sensitivity. Small
deviations from the theoretical geometrical shape can then have a large
impact on the actual buckling load. This is especially important for
curved shells.
• For a structure that exhibits axial symmetry in the geometry,
constraints, and loads, the critical buckling mode shape can still be
nonaxisymmetric. A full 3D model should always be used when
computing buckling loads.
• It must always be checked that allowable stresses are not exceeded
before the buckling load is reached.

• Studies and Solvers and Linear Buckling in the COMSOL Multiphysics

Reference Manual
• Linear Buckling in the theory section of the Structural Mechanics
Module User’s Guide

322 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

 • Bracket — Linear Buckling Analysis: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Tutorials/bracket_linear_buckling
• Buckling Analysis of a Truss Tower: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Buckling_and_Wrinkling/
truss_tower_buckling

Nonlinear Buckling Analysis

A linear buckling analysis gives an approximation to the critical load of a structure. To
gain more confidence in the results, a full nonlinear analysis where the load is slowly
increased can be performed. Such an analysis will, in general, not give a distinct value
of the buckling load. Rather, there will be an increasing level of deviation from the
linear response. The allowable load is given by some criterion of allowable deformation
or stress. In some cases, the nonlinear buckling analysis will stop because a singularity
is encountered. This can then be considered as the buckling load.

In a nonlinear buckling analysis, you use an auxiliary sweep, where a parameter for the
load is increased. This type of analysis requires significantly more computing time than
a linearized buckling analysis.

Modeling Imperfection in a Buckling Analysis

Real structures always contain some level of imperfections in the geometry. Beams are
not perfectly straight, plates are not perfectly flat, and so on. For some structures, the
real-life failure load is much smaller than the ideal buckling load that would be the
result of a linearized buckling study.

There are different ways in which you can take imperfections into account. If the actual
imperfections are known, they may even be part of the geometry. More common,
however, is that the analysis is based on the ideal geometry. In this case, using the
deformed geometry concept provides a convenient tool for introducing the
imperfection.

For more information about deformed geometries, see Deformed

Geometry and Moving Mesh and Deformed Geometry Features in the
COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

BUCKLING ANALYSIS | 323

 If the imperfection is known from some external source, say a standard that stating that
a certain curvature must be assumed for a beam, then you can directly enter
expressions for such deviations. Do as follows:

1 On the Definitions tab, click Deformed Geometry, and select Prescribed Deformation.
Alternatively, you can right-click on the Component node and select
Deformed Geometry>Prescribed Deformation.
2 In the added Prescribed Deformation node, select the appropriate Geometric entity
level, and then select the part of the geometry to perturb.
3 Enter expressions for the Prescribed deformation in terms of the geometry frame
coordinates, for example, Xg, Yg, and Zg.

Another common approach for generating an initial imperfection is to first perform a

linearized buckling analysis, and then add one or more suitably scaled buckling modes
as initial imperfection. The rationale behind this is that it is reasonable to assume that
the structure is sensitive to an imperfection that resembles a buckling mode.

The procedure for entering buckling models as imperfections is also based on a

deformed geometry, but is more complicated. For this reason, a special tool is available
for setting up such an analysis, as described below.

1 Run a linear buckling analysis, in which you solve for one or more buckling modes.
2 On the Definitions tab, click Physics Utilities, and select Buckling Imperfection.
Alternatively, you can right-click on the Definitions node and select Physics Utilities>
Buckling Imperfection.

324 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

3 In the added Buckling Imperfection node, do the following
a From the Linear buckling study list, choose the study from which the imperfection
mode shapes are to be selected. Only studies containing a Linear Buckling study
step are shown in the list.
b Under Mode selection, add the buckling modes to include in the Mode column.
Also, specify a scale factor for each mode in the corresponding field under Scale
factor.
c To add a Deformed Geometry node with necessary subnodes in which the selected
sum of buckling modes are used as predeformation, click the Create button ( )
in the Deformed Geometry section header.
d From the Study list, choose the study that is the nonlinear buckling study. The
default, and most common case, is New, in which case the study does not already
exist. You can also select any existing Stationary study.
e From the Load parameter list, choose the parameter to use as a load parameter for
ramping up the load. The parameter must be defined under a Parameters node,
so you may have to move there to create it. Its purpose is to act as a multiplier to
the same load that was used in the linear buckling study.
f Click the Create button ( ) in the Nonlinear Buckling Study section header to set
up the nonlinear study. If Study is set to New, a new study is created. If an existing
study is selected, its settings will be modified. In either case, geometrical
nonlinearity will be activated in the study, and a continuation solver will be set up

BUCKLING ANALYSIS | 325

 using the Load parameter as auxiliary sweep parameter. The range of the sweep is
based on the lowest buckling mode selected in the Mode selection table.

Figure 2-33: Settings in the Buckling Imperfection node.

4 Go back to the physics, and make sure that the loads are multiplied by the load
multiplier parameter.

326 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

5 Run the nonlinear buckling study.

• When the nonlinear study is generated, the default expression for the
auxiliary sweep parameter values is set to
<CritFactor>*log(range(1,1,20))/log(15)

Here, <CritFactor> is the critical load factor in the linearized

buckling analysis. This means that the load is increased in 20 decreasing
steps, from 0 to about 1.1 times the critical load factor.
• Under Definitions, a Deformed Geometry node with one or more
Prescribed Deformation subnodes is created. These subnodes contain
references to special variables containing the selected superposition of
buckling modes (Figure 2-34).

Figure 2-34: The automatically generated deformed geometry settings.

Buckling Analysis of a Truss Tower: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Buckling_and_Wrinkling/truss_tower_buckling

BUCKLING ANALYSIS | 327

 Performing a Random Vibration
Ana ly s i s
INTRODUCTION
Sometimes, the loads on a structure are random in nature. An example is the wind load
on a tower. In addition to the average wind, there are gusts caused by the turbulence
in the flow. The gusts will give a time-dependent excitation, which can induce a
dynamically amplified response in the structure. The frequency and amplitude of these
gusts will be randomly distributed. If the structure is large, the peaks in the wind speed
may not even occur synchronously at locations far from each other.

If the pressure is measured, it is possible to give a statistical representation of the wind

load. The statistical representation of an input like a force to be used in a random
vibration analysis is the power spectral density (PSD), which is a function of the
frequency.

Similarly, the computed results quantities are represented by their PSD, from which it
is possible to derive a root-mean-square (RMS) value.

There are two main cases when a random vibration analysis is useful. In addition to the
scenario outlined above, it is common that design standards (in particular for
electronic components and devices) include requirements on random vibration
testing. To simulate such a test, a random vibration analysis can be performed. In this
case, the prescribed PSD of the excitation is a simplified envelope intended to cover a
multitude of loading conditions.

For a detailed theory, see Random Vibration Theory.

Correlation
When several loads act on a structure, they can have different degrees of
interdependency. This is described by a statistical measure of their correlation. There
are two important special cases of correlation, which significantly simplify the analysis.

If the loads are random in nature and completely independent of each other, they can
be described as being uncorrelated. This would be the case when, for example, two
separate drilling machines are used simultaneously at some distance from each other.

328 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

If several loads have the same source, they can be fully correlated. Vibration testing is
a common example. In such case, several points on the structure are attached to the
same shaker table. Thus, they will experience identical (but random) acceleration
histories. Another example could be when a certain load is decomposed into
components along different coordinate axes. Clearly, the X- and Y-components are just
scaled versions of the total load, and thus they are fully correlated.

In a general case, the correlation between two loads is a function of both the distance
between their positions and the frequency. The input to the analysis includes not only
the PSD of each load but also their cross-correlation.

Spatial Variation of Random Loads

The PSDs and cross-correlation matrices are assumed to be functions of frequency
only. It is not allowed to write expressions that are functions of the spatial coordinates.
The expression for the load inside the physics interface, however, can have such
dependencies as long as they appear as a pure multiplier to the spectrum.

In principle, however, the PSD and even the full cross-correlation functions could be
considered to vary continuously over a structure, and thus be functions of the spatial
coordinates. An example of this could be the wind pressure on a high tower.

If you want to model such situation, you need to split the loaded region into smaller
parts, each with its own constant spectrum definition. Note that the number of
off-diagonal cross-correlation functions increases quadratically with the subdivision.

SETTING UP A RANDOM VIBRATION ANALYSIS

Random vibration analysis is based on a modal representation of the structure. It
represents a type of mode superposition and relies on the reduced-order model (ROM)
concept.

In principle, you can perform random vibration analysis on any reduced-order model
that is of the Frequency Domain, Modal type. This requires a number of settings and
studies run in an appropriate order.

It is significantly more convenient to start by adding a Random Vibration (PSD) study,

either from the Add Study window or from the Select Study page in the Model Wizard.

The Random Vibration (PSD) study is not a study in itself; rather, it adds a number of
nodes to the Model Builder tree to facilitate a random vibration analysis. These nodes
serve the purpose of setting up the ROM and providing input data to the random
vibration analysis.

PERFORMING A RANDOM VIBRATION ANALYSIS | 329

 Two studies are added:

• One study with an Eigenfrequency study step for computing the eigenfrequencies
and corresponding eigenmodes.
• One study with a Model Reduction study step, in which the ROM is created. It
references the eigenfrequency study, as well as an embedded Frequency Domain study
step. The latter can mainly be considered as a placeholder which is a mandatory
input to the model reduction. In case you have already computed the eigenmodes,
you can change the setting of the Training study in this node to point to the
corresponding existing eigenfrequency study, and then delete the newly generated
one.

The Model Reduction study step is set up to be suitable for a random

vibration analysis. In particular, it is required the Ensure reconstruction
capability is selected.

Under Global Definitions, a Reduced-Order Modeling node becomes available. It contains

three subnodes:

• A Global Reduced Model Inputs node, in which you define the control parameters for
the ROM. All loads that represents random excitations must have a value multiplied
by one of such parameters.
• A Frequency Domain, Modal Reduced-Order Model node. This is a placeholder for the
ROM to be created.
• A Random Vibration node. Here, you prescribe the PSD functions and the
cross-correlation functions, if needed. They can be function of frequency only (the
internal variable freq); it is not possible to prescribe a coordinate dependency.

WORKFLOW
Here, you find recommended steps to perform a random vibration analysis.

1 Add a Random Vibration (PSD) study.

2 In the Global Reduced Model Inputs node, add all required control parameters. The
values that you assign to the parameters are not important. Control parameters are
used in the same manner as ordinary parameters in expressions for the loads in the
physics interface. You need as many control parameters as you have different PSD
functions.

330 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

3 In the physics interface, create the loads that should have a random variation.
Typically, the value is just the name of a control parameter, even though it is possible
to also add a scalar multiplier to it.

• The reduced-order models on which the random vibration analysis is

based are not unit aware. Always use the base units from the current
unit system in the context of a random vibration analysis.
• Only ‘Neumann type’ loads like forces and pressures can be given a
random excitation. It is not possible to use ‘Dirichlet type’ loads like
prescribed displacements, velocities, or accelerations. This is similar to
other mode superposition methods.
For the common case that a number of support points have the same
acceleration PSD, the support acceleration can be replaced by a frame
acceleration load, using the Base Excitation feature. This is how
vibration testing is analyzed. See also Absolute Versus Relative
Accelerations.

4 If you want any scalar outputs, define them as Variables under Definitions in the
component. You can use, for example, probes or functions like at3() to create
scalar outputs. It is also possible to compute scalar results using, for example, Point
Evaluation during result presentation. Such evaluations will, however, require a
larger computational effort than scalar outputs that are part of the ROM definition.
5 In case you want to reuse a previously computed eigenfrequency study, go to the
Model Reduction study step. Change the settings for Training study in the Model
Reduction Settings section to point to the correct eigenfrequency study.
6 Run the study containing the Model Reduction study step. It will automatically create
a ROM that can be used for all further evaluations.

PERFORMING A RANDOM VIBRATION ANALYSIS | 331

 7 Define the PSD and cross-correlation functions required for representing the
loading as functions under Global Definitions. These functions should depend on
frequency only.

It is common that an input PSD is provided in terms of straight lines in a

log-log diagram of PSD value versus frequency, f. To mimic this behavior,
you can use an interpolation function (say int1) where you enter pairs of
log(f) and log(PSD) values. You then reference this function through an
expression like exp(int1(log(freq[1/Hz]))). This will provide a linear
interpolation in a log-log space.

8 Go to the Random Vibration node. Select the appropriate Correlation type.

9 For each control parameter, enter the corresponding spectrum function. The
argument to the function should be the built-in frequency variable freq.
10 If the correlation type is Cross-correlated, enter also the off-diagonal part of the
Correlation matrix.
11 To make these settings available for result evaluation, run Update Solution for the
model reduction study.

RESULT EVALUATION
For presentation of random vibration results, you can use the standard features under
Results, with the provision that the quantity you are studying is a linear function of the
displacements. You can use any linear expression, not only built-in variables.

In addition to linear variables, there is also a special case where the RMS of quadratic
forms can be computed.

The evaluation of random vibration results is done through special operators, listed in
Table 2-17, which are defined by the Random Vibration node (with a tag rvib1 in this
example).
TABLE 2-17: RANDOM VIBRATION OPERATORS

OPERATOR SYNTAX EXPLANATION

psd rvib1.psd(expr) Evaluates the PSD of an expression for the

given frequency
cross rvib1.cross(expr1, expr2) Evaluates the cross-correlation between two
expressions for a given frequency,

332 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

TABLE 2-17: RANDOM VIBRATION OPERATORS

OPERATOR SYNTAX EXPLANATION

rms rvib1.rms(expr, f1, f2, N) Evaluates the RMS value of an expression

within the frequency interval [f1, f2]. N
points are used for integrating over the
interval.
rms rvib1.rms(expr) Evaluates the RMS value of an expression.
The frequency interval, as well as the
integration settings are taken from settings
in the corresponding Random Vibration
node.
m rvib1.m(K,expr, f1, f2, N) Evaluates the K:th order moment of the
PSD. Thus, rvib1.rms(expr, f1, f2, N) =
sqrt(rvib1.m(0,expr, f1, f2, N)). The
maximum supported moment order is K=4.
m rvib1.m(K,expr) Evaluates the K:th order moment of the
PSD. The frequency interval, as well as the
integration settings are taken from settings
in the corresponding Random Vibration
node. The maximum supported moment
order is K=4.
q2 rvib1.q2(expr, f1, f2, N) Evaluates the RMS of a quadratic form, for
example the square of an effective
displacement, or the square of the von Mises
equivalent stress. The expression must not
contain time derivatives like velocities or
accelerations. Rather than
rvib1.q2(utt^2,…), you can write
rvib1.q2(u^2*(2*pi*freq)^4,…).
The quadratic form itself must be
real-valued. This means that evaluation using
the von Mises stress can only be done if the
material properties are real-valued. In
particular, it should be noted that loss factor
damping implies a complex-valued stiffness.
q2 rvib1.q2(expr) Evaluates the RMS value of a quadratic form.
The frequency interval, as well as the
integration settings are taken from settings
in the corresponding Random Vibration
node.

PERFORMING A RANDOM VIBRATION ANALYSIS | 333

 TABLE 2-17: RANDOM VIBRATION OPERATORS

OPERATOR SYNTAX EXPLANATION

q2sq rvib1.q2sq(expr, f1, f2, N) Evaluates the square root of the RMS of the
quadratic form. The norm of the quadratic
form is used as input. See q2 operator above
for more information. The relation between
these two operators is:
rvib1.q2sq(sqrt(expr),…) =
sqrt(rvib1.q2(expr,…))
q2sq rvib1.q2sq(expr) Evaluates the square root of the RMS of the
square root of a quadratic form. The
frequency interval, as well as the integration
settings are taken from settings in the
corresponding Random Vibration node.
The operator q2sq() is a convenience version of the q2() operator. Some important
quantities have special variables, intended for use in the q2sq() operator, see
Table 2-18.
TABLE 2-18: PREDEFINED VARIABLES FOR USE WITH THE Q2SQ OPERATOR

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION

<phys>.mises_rv von Mises equivalent stress

<phys>.disp_rv Norm of displacement
<phys>.vel_rv Norm of velocity
<phys>.utt_rv Norm of acceleration
<phys>.rot_rv Norm of rotation
<phys>.rotvel_rv Norm of rotational velocity
<phys>.rotacc_rv Norm of rotational acceleration

You cannot use ordinary variables like <phys>.mises or <phys.disp> as

arguments to the q2sq() operator. The reason is that the argument must
never evaluate to zero.

It is convenient to plot the PSD of a result quantity computed, for example, at certain
point in the structure for a given frequency range. Such evaluation sweeps over the
frequency can be defined in a Global Evaluation Sweep node.

The RMS of a result quantity does not give direct information about its peak value.
Formally, probability theory says that for a long enough process, the peak value can be

334 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

arbitrarily large. In practice, it is common to assume that the peak value is three (or
sometimes four) times larger than the RMS value. There are good reasons for this
practice.

• The input signal is usually bounded for physical reasons. It is not a true Gaussian
distribution.
• For testing, the shaker table accelerations are limited, and this is even expected in
the requirements on the signal.
• The whole random vibration analysis assumes linearity. Nonlinear effects will
typically limit the response.

Absolute Versus Relative Accelerations

It is common that the input to a random vibration analysis is a PSD for a base
acceleration. Since it is not possible to directly prescribed nonzero displacements (or
accelerations) at constrained points, the standard approach is to replace the base
acceleration with an inertia load on the structure. This can be seen as a frame
transformation, where the analysis is made in a coordinate systems that is connected to
the fixture. This change of frame does not affect for example stress or strain results.

The computed accelerations, however, are measured relative to the support points, not
relative to a room fixed frame. In most cases, you are interested in the absolute
accelerations, that is what would be measured by an accelerometer. When the Base
Excitation feature is used to describe the acceleration, special variables containing the
absolute (room fixed) accelerations are also available.

• Bracket — Random Vibration Analysis: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Tutorials/bracket_random_vibration
• Random Vibration Analysis of a Deep Beam: Application Library
path Structural_Mechanics_Module/Verification_Examples/
random_vibration_deep_beam

PERFORMING A RANDOM VIBRATION ANALYSIS | 335

 Performing a Response Spectrum
Ana ly s i s
INTRODUCTION
Response spectrum analysis is used to approximately determine the structural response
to short nondeterministic events like earthquakes and shocks. The idea is that the event
is characterized by the peak response that it would give a single degree of freedom
(SDOF) oscillator having a certain natural frequency and damping ratio. The response
value is provided as a function of the natural frequency of the oscillator.

If the dynamic structural response is viewed as a mode superposition, each eigenmode

within the given frequency range acts as an SDOF oscillator, with a peak amplitude that
is known from the spectrum. There is, however, no information about when each
mode reaches its peak value. The most conservative assumption is that all modes
should be combined using the individual peak values. Using such approach will in most
cases result into an extremely conservative design. For this reason, other summation
methods have been developed. When performing a response spectrum analysis, you
will have access to several such methods.

SETTING UP A RESPONSE SPECTRUM ANALYSIS

The response spectrum analysis is not a study type. The computations are performed
during result evaluation. You enter the methods and parameters in the settings for the
Response Spectrum 2D or Response Spectrum 3D datasets. These datasets require the
following:

• An eigenfrequency solution, where the eigenmodes to be included in the response

spectrum analysis have been computed. All computed eigenmodes are used. If you
want to filter out a particular set of modes, you can add a Combine Solutions study
step after the Eigenfrequency study step. Such a filter can for example be based on the
effective modal mass, so that only modes which contribute significantly to the mass
are included.

The time to evaluate a result when using a response spectrum dataset

varies almost quadratically with the number of eigenmodes you include.

336 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

• A corresponding set of modal participation factors. To generate them, add a
Response Spectrum node under Definitions in the component. If you have computed
the eigenfrequency prior to adding the Response Spectrum node, you need to
perform an Update Solution.

• In some response spectrum evaluation methods, you are required to compensate for
the mass that is not represented by the included eigenmodes. In order to do so, a
number of special stationary load cases must also be computed. You can set up all
nodes required in the model builder tree by clicking the Create missing mass
correction study ( ) button on the Response Spectrum section header in the
Response Spectrum node settings.

Adding a Response Spectrum Study

In the Add Study dialog, there is a study type called Response Spectrum. When you select
it, two things happen:

• A study, containing a single Eigenfrequency study step is created.

• A Response Spectrum node is added under Definitions in the first component which
contains at least one structural mechanics physics interface. In this node, the
Eigenfrequency study list will be initialized to point to the Eigenfrequency study step
that was just created.

If you already have computed the eigenfrequencies of a structure, and then want to
perform a response spectrum evaluation, there is no need to add a new study. Just add
a Response Spectrum node under Definitions->Variable Utilities, and then do an Update
Solution to make the new variables available.

PERFORMING A RESPONSE SPECTRUM ANALYSIS | 337

 Missing Mass Correction
You create a missing mass correction study from the Response Spectrum node by
clicking the Missing mass correction study: Create button.

It is not possible to undo this operation. To revert, you will have to

manually delete all the nodes which were created.

A number of items are then created in the model tree:

• A set of load group nodes are created under Global Definitions. There are two load
groups for each spatial direction. The load group nodes are placed under a common
group named Load Groups for Missing Mass Correction.

The Parameter name of the load group is reserved, and you should not modify it.
• A new study named Study: Missing Mass Load Cases is created. This study contains
three or four study steps, depending on the space dimension. First, there is one
Combine Solutions study step for each spatial direction. In these steps, a weighted
sum of the eigenmodes is computed. The weights are the modal participation factors
in each direction. This gives a measure of the mass that the eigenmodes represent.
These study steps must reference the eigenvalue solution, including any subsequent
filtering. If you change the study from which the eigenmodes are to be taken, you
must also change the choice in the Solution list in all of the Combine Solutions nodes.

338 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

 The final study step in the study is a stationary study step, where each load group is
solved separately by adding one load case per load group.

If the physics interface has loads other than those automatically generated
for missing mass correction, you need to make sure that those loads are
not solved for in the Missing Mass Static Load Cases study step. There are
several ways of doing that. You can, for example:

• Disable the other load nodes temporarily in the model tree before
solving.
• Disable them in this study, by using Modify model configuration for study
step in the Physics and Variables section in the settings for the study
step. This is the preferred method.
• Assign the other loads to a new load group.

• In each structural mechanics physics interface in the component, a set of Gravity

nodes are added. There are two such nodes for each spatial direction. Each gravity
node is connected to a corresponding load group. Half of the loads are pure gravity
loads, used when only together with the Static ZPA method. The other set of loads,
which are used in the Missing mass method, are referencing the combined solutions

PERFORMING A RESPONSE SPECTRUM ANALYSIS | 339

 as the depend on the computed eigenmodes. The gravity nodes are placed under a
common group, named Loads for Missing Mass Correction.

SETTINGS FOR THE RESPONSE SPECTRUM DATASETS

Defining the Spectra

You input the spectra as functions under Global Definitions. Usually, either an
interpolation function, or an analytic function, or a piecewise function is used.

There are two common methods to describe the design response spectra: either as
function of frequency, or as function of period time. Use the Depends on setting to
control this.

The handling of units in the functions are nonstandard:

• The unit of the argument is ignored. The function is called with either frequency
(hertz) or period time (seconds) as defined by the setting in Depends on.
• The unit of the function is not checked. The function will, however, be scaled to
model units, so if you, for example, enter the unit mm/s^2 for an acceleration
spectrum, the function will (in an SI system) be scaled by 1/1000. You would get
the same effect if the entered unit is inconsistent (for example, mm).

340 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

The spectra you enter have the following correlation to the spatial directions:

• In 2D, you give two spectra: one horizontal and one vertical. The horizontal
spectrum acts along the global X-axis, and the vertical one acts along the Y-axis.
• In 3D, the vertical spectrum always acts along the global Z-axis.
• In 3D, you can supply two different horizontal spectra, called primary and
secondary horizontal spectrum. Those spectra act in two orthogonal directions,
which by default coincide with the global X and Y directions. By giving a nonzero
value to Primary axis rotation, you can make the primary spectrum act in an arbitrary
direction in the XY-plane.
• Some Spatial combination methods in 3D (CQC3 and SRSS3) assume that the two
horizontal spectra are equal except for an amplitude scale factor. In such case, you
only provide one spectrum together with a Secondary horizontal spectrum scale factor
(value between 0 and 1).

Mode Combination
The combination of the eigenmodes is the core of the response spectrum methods.
Most commonly the combination is done in two passes: first the response to the
excitation in each spatial direction is determined, and then a total response is computed
by combining the spatial responses. However, for certain methods the total response
is computed in one pass.

First, you select a Spatial combination method. If it is SRSS or Percent method, you also
select a Mode combination method.

The mode combination methods require different inputs. In particular, several of them
provides a possibility to choose whether the coupling terms between modes are to be
considered as always positive, or they may actually reduce the total response. This is
controlled by the Use absolute value for coupling terms check box. Its default value
differs between the methods, according to what is expected to be the most common
choice.

Periodic Modes and Rigid Modes

For frequencies higher than the highest frequency content of the excitation, the SDOF
system will respond as a rigid body. Some of the response spectrum evaluation methods
take this into account. The effect is that high-frequency (“rigid”) modes are assumed
to have a higher degree of correlation than low-frequency (“periodic”) modes. To take
this effect into account, you can select Rigid modes to be the Gupta method or the
Lindley-Yow method.

PERFORMING A RESPONSE SPECTRUM ANALYSIS | 341

 Missing Mass Correction
In general, only a small fraction of the total number of eigenmodes are used in the
superposition. Therefore, some fraction of the total mass of the structure is not
accounted for. The ignored modes usually have high natural frequencies. Such modes
will not have a significant dynamic amplification. The mass in the corresponding
SDOF system will just follow the movement of the foundation. This means that if the
distribution of the missing mass is known, then it can be treated as an extra stationary
mass force, where the peak acceleration during the event replaces the acceleration of
gravity.

You can use two different methods for missing mass correction:

• In the Missing mass method, the difference between the true mass distribution and
the mass represented by the used eigenmodes will act as extra static load. Typically,
most of the missing mass is located close to support points, where the modal
amplitudes are low. This method can be used together with either the Gupta method
or the Lindley-Yow method.
• In the Static ZPA method, the total inertial force is used as static load. At the same
time, only the periodic part of the response is used in the mode summation. This
method can only be used together with the Lindley-Yow method because it is only
compatible with the assumptions about how the rigid modes are scaled.

RESULT INTERPRETATION
All results from a response spectrum analysis are positive; the evaluation methods
contain absolute values or RMS-like operations. This has important implications for
the interpretation of the results:

• If the sign of your result quantity is important for the conclusions, you need to
manually consider also the case of a negative value.
• It is not meaningful to show deformation or vector plots of response spectrum
results.

An underlying implicit assumption for response spectrum analysis is that it is

performed in a frame of reference that follows the foundations of the structure. Thus,
all displacements, velocities, and accelerations are relative to the foundation, which in
itself is accelerating. Thus, it is difficult to evaluate the absolute acceleration. The
conservative way of doing so is to add the peak acceleration of the underlying event to
the computed acceleration. This will usually be rather conservative since the peak of
the excitation seldom coincides in time with the peak of the response.

342 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

For displacements, the relative displacements between two objects within the same
moving frame is usually a more important result than the absolute displacement, so it
does seldom matter whether a constant value is added to all points or not.

• The theory is described in Response Spectrum Analysis Theory.

• The Response Spectrum node is described in the COMSOL
Multiphysics Reference Manual.
• Combine Solutions and Updating a Solution in the COMSOL
Multiphysics Reference Manual.
• The settings for the special datasets are described in Response
Spectrum 2D and Response Spectrum 3D in the COMSOL
Multiphysics Reference Manual.

• Earthquake Analysis of a Building: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Dynamics_and_Vibration/
building_response_spectrum
• Shock Response of a Motherboard: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Dynamics_and_Vibration/
motherboard_shock_response

PERFORMING A RESPONSE SPECTRUM ANALYSIS | 343

 Stress Linearization
The information about stress linearization is applicable if your license
includes the Structural Mechanics Module.

Stress linearization is a procedure in which the stress distribution along a line through
the thickness in a solid is approximated with an equivalent linear stress distribution,
similar to what would be the result of an analysis using shell theory. The line is
commonly referred to a stress classification line, SCL. This type of evaluation is
common in the analysis of pressure vessels. It is also useful for the design of
reinforcements for concrete structures and for fatigue analysis of welds.

To perform a stress linearization, you add one Stress Linearization node for each SCL.

ORIENTATION OF STRESS COMPONENTS

The stresses along the SCL are represented in a local orthonormal coordinate system,
x1-x2-x3. The x1 direction is oriented along the SCL, so it is mainly the stresses in the
second and third directions that are of interest.

• In 3D, you must specify the x2 direction and thus implicitly the x3 direction. You
specify the orientation either by selecting a point in the x1-x2 plane or by defining
an orientation vector in an approximate x2 direction. In either case, the actual x2
direction is chosen so that it is perpendicular to the SCL and lies in the plane you
have specified. The x3 orientation is then taken as perpendicular to x1 and x2. As
long as you are only interested in a stress intensity, the choice of orientation is
arbitrary.
• In 2D, the x3 direction is the out-of-plane direction, and the x2 direction is
perpendicular to the SCL in the XY-plane.
• In 2D axial symmetry, the x3 direction is the azimuthal direction, and the x2
direction is perpendicular to the SCL in the RZ-plane.

CREATING THE STRESS CLASSIFICATION LINE

The most straightforward way to create an SCL is to include it in the geometry, and
then select it in a Stress Linearization node. This corresponds to using the Line
linearization type where the SCL is defined by Edge.

344 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Figure 2-35: Four stress classification lines in a transition region at a pressure vessel
nozzle.

There are, however, some situations where this direct approach is less convenient:

• When the introduction of the SCL in the geometry must be done after the analysis,
since the locations of critical regions were not obvious when setting up the initial
analysis. It is of course possible to add new edges and rerun the analysis, but this
may not be a good solution if the analysis time is long.
• When the introduction of the edges for the SCL makes the meshing more difficult.
It may, for example, not be possible to use swept meshes anymore, or the mesh
quality is reduced in critical regions.

In the two above cases an alternative is to define an SCL that is not included in the
geometry by connecting two arbitrary points with a straight line. This corresponds to
using the Line linearization type where the SCL is defined by Two points. The
introduction of the SCL will in this case not make it necessary to update the geometry
and rerun the analysis. Since the SCL is disconnected from the geometry and mesh,
this option will also make meshing easier. The downside is then the you cannot control
the mesh quality along the SCL.

STRESS LINEARIZATION | 345

 In some cases it is difficult to a priori determine where to create the SCL or the critical
location may change depending on, for example, loading conditions or time. For such
cases, it is also possible to define it in a distributed manner such that an infinite number
of SCLs are created in a domain. The starting point of the SCLs are given by a
boundary selection, and they extend along the normals of the boundary through the
selected domains. This corresponds to using the Distributed linearization type.

STUDIES AND SOLUTIONS

Stress linearization is a pure postprocessing operation. The Stress Linearization node
will only create a number of variables, which can be evaluated under Results. It is thus
possible to add such nodes after the main analysis has been performed. In order to
make the new variables available for postprocessing, you must then run an Update
Solution.

RESULTS
When you have included one or more Stress Linearization nodes in a model, a number
of datasets and an extra predefined plot are generated.

One edge dataset is created for each SCL. These datasets are named Linearization
Line <n>, where n is an integer number.

Figure 2-36: Generated datasets in a model with five SCL.

The plot contains graphs for the 22 component of the actual stress, the membrane
stress, and the linearized stress. The first Linearization Line dataset is selected. By

346 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

changing edge dataset in the plot group, you can easily move between the different
stress classification lines.

Figure 2-37: Plot along a stress classification line.

For the Distributed linearization type, the created Linearization Line dataset corresponds
to a single SCL in selected domain. The starting point is specified in the Postprocessing
section of the feature, and must lie on the selected boundaries. The endpoint is
computed internally such that the cut line extends through the selected domains along
the boundary normal of the point.

VARIABLE NAMES
Each Stress Linearization node adds a number of variables. Many of these variables exist
with two different scopes, physics scope and feature scope. The physics scope is the
name of the physics interface, having the default value ‘solid’. The feature scope
contains also the tag of the Stress Linearization node, for example, ‘sl1’.

As an example, the variable solid.Sm22 and the variable solid.sl1.Sm22 have the
same value. The variables with physics scope make it more convenient to create
expressions using postprocessing. You could, for example, make a line plot of

STRESS LINEARIZATION | 347

 solid.sb22 and get all edges having a stress linearization colored by their individual
results.
TABLE 2-19: VARIABLES FOR STRESS LINEARIZATION

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION VARIABLE IN COMMENT SCOPE

THEORY SECTION

Sllsij Stress tensor in ij ij = 11, 12, 13, 22, Physics,

local coordinate 23, 33 Feature
system
Smij Membrane stress m,ij ij = 11, 12, 13, 22, Physics,
23, 33 Feature
Sbmaxij Maximum bending b(max),ij ij = 11, 12, 13, 22, Feature
stress 23, 33
Sbij Bending Stress b,ij ij = 11, 12, 13, 22, Physics,
23, 33 Feature
Smbij Membrane + mb,ij ij = 11, 12, 13, 22, Physics,
bending stress 23, 33 Feature
Spsij Peak stress, p(start),ij ij = 11, 12, 13, 22, Feature
starting point 23, 33
Speij Peak stress, b(end),ij ij = 11, 12, 13, 22, Feature
starting point 23, 33
SIm Stress intensity, int Physics,
membrane Feature
SImbs Stress intensity, int Feature
membrane +
bending, starting
point
SImbe Stress intensity, int Feature
membrane +
bending, endpoint
SImb Stress intensity, max(SImbs, SImbe) Physics,
membrane + Feature
bending,
Nij Local in-plane Nij ij = 22, 23, 33 Feature
force
Mij Local bending Mij ij = 22, 23, 33 Feature
moment
Qi Local out-of-plane i = 2, 3 Feature
shear force

348 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

TABLE 2-19: VARIABLES FOR STRESS LINEARIZATION

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION VARIABLE IN COMMENT SCOPE

THEORY SECTION

lengthtot Length of SCL L Feature

arclength Coordinate along X1 Feature
SCL

Stress Linearization in the Structural Mechanics Theory Chapter.

STRESS LINEARIZATION | 349

 Solver Settings for Structural
Mechanics
COMSOL Multiphysics includes many solvers and solver settings. To make it easier to
use a suitable solver and its associated solver parameters, the physics interfaces have
different default settings based on the study type and features used. In some situations,
the default settings may need to be changed. This section helps you to select a solver
and its settings to solve structural mechanics and related multiphysics problems.

In this section:

• Symmetric Matrices
• Selecting Iterative Solvers
• Specifying Tolerances and Scaling for the Dependent Variables

Studies and Solvers in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

If you make changes to the physics, this will not be reflected in the solver
settings unless you regenerate the solver sequence.

Symmetric Matrices
Use the Matrix symmetry list (see the General section on the Settings window for
Advanced for a solver node such as Stationary Solver). There you can explicitly state
whether the assembled matrices (stiffness matrix, mass matrix) resulting from the
compiled equations are symmetric or not.

Normally the matrices from a single-physics structural mechanics problem are

symmetric, but there are exceptions, including the following cases:

• Multiphysics models solving for several physics simultaneously (for example, heat
transfer and structural mechanics). Solving for several Structural Mechanics
interfaces, such as shells combined with beams, does not create unsymmetrical
matrices.

350 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

• Contact with friction.
• Elastoplastic analysis

Advanced and Stationary Solver in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference

Manual

One of the benefits of using the symmetric solvers is that they use less memory and are
faster. The default option is Automatic, which means the solver automatically detects if
the system is symmetric or not. Some solvers do not support symmetric matrices and
always solve the full system regardless of symmetry.

Selecting the Symmetric option for a model with unsymmetric matrices

may lead to incorrect results. For a nonlinear problem that is only weakly
unsymmetric, it may still be useful, since the faster solution of the
symmetric problem may offset the lower convergence rate. This is, for
example, the case for contact problems with a low coefficient of friction.

Complex matrices can be unsymmetric, symmetric, or Hermitian. Hermitian matrices

do not appear in structural mechanics problems.

Selecting the Hermitian option for a model with complex-valued

symmetric matrices produces incorrect results.

Selecting Iterative Solvers

The default solver for structural mechanics is the MUMPS direct solver in 2D and the
PARDISO direct solver in 3D. For large 3D problems (several hundred thousands or
millions of degrees of freedom) it is beneficial to use iterative solvers when possible to
save time and memory. The drawback is that they are more sensitive and might not
converge if the mesh quality is low. The iterative solvers also have more options than
the direct solvers.

For Stationary and Time Dependent studies and Frequency Domain studies in 3D, a
GMRES iterative solver is preconfigured and available as an alternative solver
suggestion for solid mechanics models.

SOLVER SETTINGS FOR STRUCTURAL MECHANICS | 351

 If the model is set up using quadratic (default) or higher-order elements for the
displacement dependent variable, this GMRES solver will use geometric multigrid
(GMG) as the preconditioner.

For slender geometries, changing to SOR Line as presmoother and postsmoother can
give better results compared to SOR, which is the default for the GMG preconditioner.

For models using linear elements for the displacement dependent variable, the
preconditioner will be changed to smoothed aggregated algebraic multigrid (AMG).
This is to avoid remeshing when creating the discretization on the coarse level. Note
that you need to manually regenerate the solver sequence after you change the element
order if you want to make use of such change in the predefined iterative solver
configuration.

For eigenfrequency and eigenvalue studies, use the default direct solver

Specifying a shift frequency greater than the lowest eigenfrequency results

in indefinite matrices.

Studies and Solvers in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

Solver Settings for Viscoelasticity, Creep, and Viscoplasticity

Viscoelasticity, creep, and viscoplasticity are time-dependent phenomena. The time
scale, however, is often such that inertial effects can be ignored. When that is the case,
you can modify the solver settings to improve the performance of the time-dependent
analysis.

PHYSICS INTERFACE SETTINGS

In the Model Builder, click the Solid Mechanics node. In the Settings window, under
Structural Transient Behavior, select Quasi static to treat the elastic behavior as
quasi static (with no mass effects; that is, no second-order time derivatives for the
displacement variables). Selecting this option gives a more efficient solution for
problems where the variation in time is slow when compared to the natural frequencies
of the system since no mass matrix will be created.

352 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

SOLVER SETTINGS
When Quasi static is selected on the physics interface Settings window, the automatic
solver suggestion changes the method for the Time Stepping from Generalized alpha to
BDF.

For a Fully Coupled node (or Segregated node for multiphysics problems), the default
Nonlinear method under Method and Termination is Automatic (Newton). To get a faster
computation time when the strain rate is low or moderate, select Constant (Newton) as
the Nonlinear method instead.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Studies and Solvers

• Fully Coupled and Segregated

Specifying Tolerances and Scaling for the Dependent Variables

The absolute tolerance parameters used for time-dependent studies are problem
specific. By default, the absolute tolerance is applied to scaled variables, with the
default value being 0.001 for all solution components.

The default scaling for the displacement components is based on the size of the
geometry in the model, and certain reasonable scales are used for the pressure and
contact force variables, if any. You are encouraged to change these scales as soon as
better values are known or can be guessed or estimated from the applied forces, yield
stress, reaction forces, maximum von Mises stress, or similar. The same suggestion
applies to the displacement scale, which can be estimated easily if the problem is
displacement controlled. This approach can significantly improve the robustness of the
solution. The variable scaling is accessed under Dependent Variables in the solver
sequence. The scales need to be entered using the main unit system in the model.

Solver Settings
In many situations, the default in COMSOL Multiphysics when having several physics
interfaces is to generate a solver sequence with a segregated solver. When several
structural mechanics interfaces are present, it can happen that the degrees of freedom
are placed in different segregated steps by the default solver generation. It is, however,
not possible to solve a model where the structural mechanics degrees of freedom are

SOLVER SETTINGS FOR STRUCTURAL MECHANICS | 353

 placed in different segregated groups, so in this case you must modify the solver
settings.

• If the model only consists of structural mechanics interfaces, the best option is
usually to replace the segregated solver with a fully coupled solver.
• If the model contains contact conditions where the augmented Lagrangian method
is used, there are two versions of the algorithm: one based on a special segregated
solver, and one based on a fully coupled solver. In the first case, a segregated solver
must be used. Place all structural mechanics degrees of freedom except the contact
variables in one segregated step. The contact variables should remain in the lumped
step, which should appear directly after the step with the other mechanical degrees
of freedom.
• If there are other types of physics interfaces than structural mechanics being solved
in the same study, then the segregated solver should usually be kept. Make sure that
all structural mechanics degrees of freedom except segregated contact variables are
solved in one segregated step.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Solution Operation Nodes and Solvers

• About the Stationary Solver

354 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Using Reduced Integration
Using reduced integration in structural mechanics often have two main justifications:

• Reduce the per mesh element computational effort for assembly of system matrices.
• Improve the accuracy of the finite element by, for example, alleviating locking and
an overly stiff behavior.
The reduced computational effort stems from the fewer quadrature points in which
expressions are evaluated during the assembly of the system matrices. This reduction
can be particularly beneficial for models where a comparably large time is spent in
assembly, as compared to the time needed to solve the system of equations. Typical
examples include structural dynamics where the many increments can lead to a
significant time spent on assembling, and nonlinear material models where each
assembly step can be expensive. Plasticity, for example, involves solving a system of
nonlinear equations at each quadrature point, thus reducing the number of quadrature
points can significantly speed up the assembly time.

Reduced integration can be used selectively for different material models within the
same physics interface.

DISPLACEMENT ORDER AND MESH ELEMENT TYPES

The accuracy and performance of finite elements derived using a reduced integration
scheme depends on both the shape order of the displacement field and on the mesh
element type. For some combinations, reduced integration will give “exact” results,
whereas other combinations may result in deformation modes that produce zero strain
energy — so-called spurious zero energy modes or hourglass modes. In the latter case,
stabilization is needed to suppress such unwanted modes of deformation.

Linear
Using a linear displacement shape order is typically not encouraged in structural
mechanics, since all mesh element types lead to a deficient formulation. The derived
finite elements can be considered overly stiff, especially when a coarse mesh is used.
This overly stiff behavior is commonly caused by shear-locking effects.

These deficiencies can be alleviated by using a reduced integration scheme, which for
linear shape order results in a quadrature order equal to zero. Having only a single
integration point per mesh element removes the shear locking for linear elements, and
it can significantly improve the accuracy in coarse meshes. However, the derived finite
elements exhibit severe hourglassing and require stabilization to be useful. An example

USING REDUCED INTEGRATION | 355

 of a two-dimensional bending problem is given in Figure 2-38, which shows the
performance of linear quadrilaterals using reduced integration with and without
stabilization. A so-called hourglass pattern emerges without stabilization making the
solution clearly not viable.

Figure 2-38: Two-dimensional bending example using a linear displacement field and
reduced integration with stabilization (left) and without it (right).

Using reduced integration for a linear displacement shape order can also remove
volumetric locking and improve the accuracy for incompressible materials, either with
or without a mixed formulation.

The derived finite elements are still sensitive to hourglassing even when stabilization is
used. It is therefore recommended to avoid singularities, since these can excite
hourglass modes and consequently be detrimental for features such as:

• Point and edge loads

• Point and edge constraints

Linear triangular and tetrahedral mesh elements exhibit poor accuracy when using
reduced integration, and are generally not recommended for such scheme.

For quadrilateral and brick mesh elements, the accuracy of the finite element and the
efficiency of the hourglass stabilization is best for mesh element with a good aspect
ratio and quality. The same applies to pyramid and wedge mesh elements.

Quadratic Serendipity
Finite elements derived using quadratic serendipity shape functions and reduced
integration in general have a less stiff behavior than their fully integrated counterparts.
The coarse mesh accuracy in terms of displacements can therefore be improved by
using reduced integration.

If the displacement field uses quadratic serendipity shape functions, any mesh element
leads to a finite element that has no hourglass modes, and therefore no stabilization is

356 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

needed when using reduced integration. For this reason, using quadratic serendipity
shape functions together with reduced integration can be a very efficient formulation.
In theory, there could appear hourglass modes, but these are suppressed when the
finite elements are assembled.

If Automatic hourglass stabilization is selected, no stabilization is added

when serendipity shape functions are used for the displacement field.

Quadratic Lagrange
Finite elements derived using quadratic Lagrange shape functions and reduced
integration in general have a less stiff behavior than their fully integrated counterpart.
The coarse mesh accuracy in terms of displacements can therefore be improved by
using reduced integration.

However, when using reduced integration some mesh element types may lead to finite
elements that exhibit hourglass modes, this is the case for quadrilaterals and bricks.
Although these finite elements are not as sensitive as their linear counterpart, they
require stabilization to be viable. Stabilization is also encouraged for mesh elements
that have deformation modes with a very small stiffness, such as pyramids and wedges.

Higher-Order Shape Functions

Higher-order shape functions share many characteristics with the corresponding
quadratic shape orders. That is, there is no need for stabilization when using
serendipity shape functions, whereas finite elements derived from Lagrange shape
functions will have hourglass modes that require stabilization.

Triangular and Tetrahedral Mesh Elements

Triangular and tetrahedral mesh elements are special cases for which the reduced
integration scheme is exact given that the corresponding mesh element is not
distorted. These mesh element types do not exhibit hourglass modes when using
reduced integration, and therefore stabilization is not needed. If the current mesh only
consists of such mesh element types, turning off the hourglass stabilization may
improve the performance of your model. The accuracy is not affected by enabling or
disabling stabilization, since the stabilization terms would evaluate to zero.

However, it is not recommended to use triangular or tetrahedral mesh elements in

combination with a linear displacement shape order.

USING REDUCED INTEGRATION | 357

 HOURGLASS STABILIZATION
A number of energy quantities are added that can be used to evaluate the amount of
hourglass stabilization energy introduced, and also to portrait parts of the model that
are prone to hourglassing. These include:

• <phys>.Wstb, a field showing the stabilization energy density. Note that values are
extrapolated from the true quadrature points.
• <phys>.Wstbavg, a mesh-element average of the variable <phys>.Wstb. This
variable is not available for layered shell features.
• <phys>.Wstb_tot, the total amount of stabilization energy in the model.
As a crude rule-of-thumb, the total stabilization energy should not be more than 5%
of the total strain energy in the model. If this is not the case, revise the model or use
full integration.

Always make sure that the obtained solution does not exhibit hourglassing when using
reduced integration with formulations prone to it. This is especially the case when the
displacement field is linear, since such finite elements can be particularly sensitive to
hourglassing.

358 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Result Presentation
In this section, some special postprocessing techniques that are particularly useful for
structural mechanics models are presented.

In this section:

• Local Orientations
• How an Expression Is Evaluated
• Quality Settings
• Gauss Point Evaluation
• Postprocessing of Eigenmodes
• Plotting Applied Loads

General principles for result presentation and how to work with the
features under Results in the Model Builder are provided in Results
Analysis and Plots in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

Local Orientations
Many stress and strain tensor components are available both in local and global
directions. Some examples are:

• solid.sxy — Cauchy stress with respect to the global spatial coordinate system
• solid.sl12 — Cauchy stress with respect to the local coordinate system of the
material.
• solid.SXY — Second Piola–Kirchhoff stress with respect to the global material
coordinate system
• solid.Sl12 — Second Piola–Kirchhoff stress with respect to the local coordinate
system of the material
• solid.eXY — Strain with respect to the global material coordinate system
• solid.el12 — the local coordinate system of the material

As can be seen, tensor component indices containing the names of a coordinate

directions has orientations along those axes. Components in local directions contain
the letter ‘l’ and numerical indices.

RESULT PRESENTATION | 359

 The local directions are defined by the coordinate system attached to a material model.
For most material models, you can select a local coordinate system in the Coordinate
System Selection section of its settings. The purpose of this selection is twofold:

• It provides the orientations along which orthotropic and anisotropic material data
are interpreted.
• It acts as the coordinate system in which the local stress and strain tensor
components are presented.

When the material is isotropic, you can utilize the local coordinate system just for the
second purpose. In this case, the results of the analysis itself are independent of the
selected coordinate system. It just provides a transformation to be utilized during
result evaluation. If you want to change the orientations for the local components of
the tensors, you do not have to solve the study again. Instead, you select the new
coordinate system in the material model node, and then run Update Solution ( ) for
the study or studies where you want the new definition to be applied.

Updating a Solution in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

ADDING YOUR OWN TRANSFORMATIONS

If there are no suitable local coordinate system variables defined from the physics
interface itself, you can create your own transformations.

The easiest way of doing that is to use the Local System Results node, available in some
of the structural mechanics interfaces. Here, the input is just a local coordinate system.

A more general approach is to add a Vector Transform or Matrix Transform under

Definitions>Variable Utilities, depending on the type of object you are going to
transform.

These nodes provide a large degree of flexibility in defining various types of transforms,
but for a pure rotation into a new coordinate system, the settings are straightforward.
Do the following:

1 Add the local coordinate system in which the results are to be presented under
Definitions.

360 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

2 In the Input section, enter the components of the vector or tensor to be
transformed. In most cases, you can pick it using Replace Expression ( ).

Some tensors within the structural mechanics interfaces do not contain an

intrinsic information about the associated coordinate system. This is in
particular true for those tensors labeled as ‘local’. When using them in the
Matrix Transform node, you must then manually select the coordinate
system for the input tensor.

3 In the Vector Transform or Matrix Transform node, select the local coordinate system
in the Output section. In the latter node, select it twice.
4 Select the domain where you want this transformation to be valid.
5 Often, you want to enter your own name for the transformed object in the Name
text field.

Figure 2-39: Example of settings for transforming the displacement vector to a cylindrical
coordinate system.

RESULT PRESENTATION | 361

 If you define the transformation after the study was solved, you will need to run Update
Solution ( ) for the study or studies where you want to access the transformed
variables.

You can now access the new transformed quantities for various type of result
presentation. They are accessible under Definitions in the Replace Expression dialog.

Figure 2-40: Picking a transformed result in the Replace Expression dialog.

Vector Transform and Matrix Transform in the COMSOL Multiphysics

Reference Manual.

How an Expression Is Evaluated

In order to get optimal quality in the result presentation, it is necessary to have some
understanding about how expressions are evaluated.

In structural engineering, the maybe most commonly evaluated result quantities are
stresses and strains. Stress expressions can, however, be sensitive to specific settings
during result presentation, and are for this reason used as an example in the discussion
below.

362 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Consider a linear elastic material with thermal expansion and creep. The stress tensor
 is then computed as

 =  ex + C  el =  ex + C    –  inel 

where C is the 4th-order elasticity tensor, “:” stands for the double-dot tensor product
(double contraction). The elastic strain el is the difference between the total strain 
and all inelastic strains inel. In this example, the inelastic strain tensor has two
contributions, creep strain cr and thermal strain th. There may also be an extra stress
term ex with contributions from initial stress and external stress.

When a stress tensor component is to be evaluated, the following happens:

• A position x in an element is identified, where the value is to be computed.

• The total strain is computed from the derivatives of the shape functions at x. The
strain depends on the values of the displacement degrees of freedom at the nodes
and on the shape functions in the element.
• The expression giving the thermal strain th is evaluated at x. This expression will
depend on a temperature, which may be prescribed or computed in another physics
interface.
• The creep strain cr is a state variable, which is stored at the Gauss points in the
element. The value is picked from the Gauss point closest to x.
• The inelastic strain inel (in this example, the creep strains is now subtracted from
the total strains, to form the elastic strain el.
• The elastic strain el is multiplied by the elasticity tensor C , evaluated at x, to give
the stress . The material properties may depend on the location, either explicitly,
or for example by a temperature dependency.
• Any extra stress ex, evaluated at x, is added to the stress tensor.

The subtraction between total and inelastic strains is however a sensitive operation. It
is not uncommon that these two terms are close to each other in value, so that the
resulting elastic strain is a small number obtained by subtraction of two larger
numbers. Since the three types of strain in this example have different types of
distribution through the element, there is a risk that this difference will exhibit artificial
variations inside the element.

As an example, let’s assume that the temperature has a quadratic variation through the
element, and that standard quadratic shape functions are used in Solid Mechanics. The
total strain is a linear function within each element, since it contains derivatives of the
shape functions. The computed elastic strain is the difference between the linear total

RESULT PRESENTATION | 363

 strain and the quadratic thermal strain. If there also are creep strains present, they will
be piecewise constant, since they are taken from the nearest integration point.

It must, moreover, be realized that the total strain is ‘correct’ only in an average sense.
It provides a kind of best fit given by the finite element formulation.

Quality Settings
In many features under Results, such as surface plots and line graphs, there is a section
named Quality, through which details of how the results are computed can be specified.
In some situations, you need to modify these settings to obtain optimal accuracy or
visually attractive presentations.

First, it can be noticed that stresses, strains, and any other variables that are based on
derivatives of the shape functions are not continuous over element borders. The
Smoothing control is used for improving plots by applying an averaging between
neighboring elements. The default when you add a result feature is to use smoothing,
and this will in general improve the results. It does however also hide any jumps in the
solution, which could indicate a too low resolution in the mesh. As soon as you are
investigating the quality of the solution, it is a recommended to avoid smoothing. In
the default stress plots that are generated by the structural mechanics interfaces, an
intermediate path is taken: the Smoothing threshold is set to Manual, with the Threshold
value set to 0.2. This means that as long as the values from adjacent elements do not
differ by more than 20%, smoothing is applied. If, however, there are significant jumps
in the solution, they will be clearly visible.

The Resolution setting determines at how many points in the element the result
quantity is evaluated. Essentially, a local finer mesh is used within the element for the
visualization. Using a high resolution can be problematic and lead to local overshoots
and artificial ‘waviness’ of the solution. For smooth expressions, like a stress in the
absence of inelastic strains or a displacement, this is not a problem. If, however, the
function has sudden variations within the element, a high resolution will give results
having artificial variations.

The default resolution depends on several factors, but will generally result in that a
result quantity is evaluated in a rather large number of points in the element. In
addition to affecting plot quality, having a high resolution can make the plotting
significantly slower.

Using a low resolution will remove the sudden variations, but may still not be an
optimal choice. If you set the quality to No refinement, the expression is evaluated only

364 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

at the corners of the element. This is, for example, rather far from the Gauss points
where many types of inelastic strains are stored. Also, a thermal strain with a quadratic
distribution will be rather far from its best linear approximation at the element corners.

The most robust solution if you encounter this type of problems it to create a
low-order field that approximates the “wavy” expression over the element, as described
in the next section.

Entering Quality Settings for Plot Settings Windows in the COMSOL

Multiphysics Reference Manual.

Gauss Point Evaluation

You can create a smooth field within each element for any expression by using the
gpeval() operator. In its most basic version, this operator has the following syntax:
gpeval(integration_order, expression).

For a general description of the gpeval() operator, see gpeval in the

COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

The gpeval() operator evaluates an expression at a given set of Gauss points and
creates an approximate smooth field using the least squares fit. It is important to use
the correct integration order to accurately evaluate state variables stored at Gauss
points, as in the case with many nonlinear material models. For example, when
quadratic shape functions are used with full integration, the first argument to the
gpeval() operator should be 4.

For some common cases, physics interfaces define built-in variables with Gauss point
evaluation. As an example, the built-in variable solid.sGpx is equivalent to using the
expression gpeval(4,solid.sx). Another example is solid.misesGp. However,
similarly using gpeval(4,solid.mises) can lead to unphysical negative values
caused by the extrapolation done by the operator. Hence, for a variable that is strictly
positive, one should use max(0,gpeval(4,solid.mises)) or similar expressions;
this is done for all relevant built-in variables with Gauss point evaluation.

When working with surface plots in a 3D geometry, or with line graphs in 2D and 3D,
there is a subtle difference between the built-in variables and the operator syntax. The
built-in variables are defined in the domain, and the field is projected from the domain
to be evaluated on boundaries and edges. If, however, you type in the operator syntax

RESULT PRESENTATION | 365

 as an expression in a line graph, the field is created only on that line, using only Gauss
points on the element edges. In order to avoid this, create domain variables under
Definitions>Variables using the operator syntax, and then use them on boundaries or
edges. Another alternative is to use the mean() operator, which evaluates any
expression in adjacent entities of higher order. For example, to evaluate a domain
variable in different plots in 3D, use the following syntax:

• Surface plot: mean(gpeval(integration_order, expr))

• Line graph: mean(mean(gpeval(integration_order, expr)))
• Point graph: mean(mean(mean(gpeval(integration_order, expr))))

There are also built-in operators that can be used specifically for evaluating domain
variables in any type of plot. Their syntax is summarized in Table 2-20. These operators
also automatically set the integration order to be consistent with its parent physics
interface <phys>, as opposed to the corresponding general operators. Also, for
example, reduced integration is taken into account.
TABLE 2-20: SUMMARY OF OPERATORS FOR EVALUATION EXPRESSION IN GAUSS POINTS OF DOMAIN MESH
ELEMENTS.

OPERATOR SYNTAX EXPLANATION

<phys>.elemavg(expr) Elementwise average in domain mesh

elements
<phys>.elemgpmax(expr) Elementwise maximum over Gauss points in
domain mesh elements
<phys>.elemgpmin(expr) Elementwise minimum over Gauss points in
domain mesh elements
<phys>.elemint(expr) Elementwise integration in domain mesh
elements
<phys>.gpeval(expr) Elementwise Gauss point evaluation in
domain mesh elements

Postprocessing of Eigenmodes

EIGENMODE SCALING
The eigenmodes that form the solution to eigenvalue problems, like eigenfrequency
and linear buckling, have some special properties that require attention. The most
important property is that an eigenmode is only defined up to an arbitrary
multiplicative factor. Thus, the actual values of the modal displacements have no

366 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

physical significance. In order to emphasize this, the default eigenmode plots have no
color legend.

The underlying theory does, however, assume that the mode shape is an infinitesimal
perturbation to the geometric shape.

If the eigenmodes have an unfortunate scaling, confusing effects can appear during
postprocessing:

• Any variable or expression used during postprocessing of an eigenvalue solution will

be evaluated using the setting of the Include geometric nonlinearity check box of the
eigenfrequency study step. If the values of the modal displacements are large and the
study step is geometrically nonlinear, then the nonlinear parts of the strain tensor
may become large. This is not consistent with the assumption of a small
perturbation.
• If the study step is geometrically linear, there can be other types if inconsistencies if
the modal displacements are large. Many variables are then defined under the
assumption that angles are small. As an example, the normal vectors to a shell can
appear to no longer have unit length.
• Rotational degrees of freedom scale the same way as the displacements. Computed
rotations can potentially get values of more than a full revolution.

In most cases, you only have to be aware of these phenomena. But if you really need
to access quantitative values (for example, as modal stresses), you need to use some
caution.

In a response spectrum analysis, all result quantities are computed by

scaling the modal results. In this case, it is necessary that all eigenmodes
are scaled so that the assumptions of geometric linearity are fulfilled.

The scaling of eigenmodes can be controlled in the Output section in the settings for
the Eigenvalue Solver node. By setting Scaling of Eigenvectors to Maximum and using a
small value for the Maximum absolute value, you can force the eigenmodes to be small.
All structural mechanics interfaces override the default value and set it to 10-6 times
the size of the bounding box of the geometry in order to keep the eigenmode
displacements small.

DEFORMATION PLOT ARTIFACTS

The automatic scaling of a deformation plot can give strange impressions, in particular
when the main deformation shape is a rotation. The geometry then seems to become

RESULT PRESENTATION | 367

 wider, since the displacements are directed in the infinitesimal tangential direction
rather than along a circular path.

Figure 2-41: A torsional eigenmode in a box beam.

EIGENMODES IN A DEFORMED STRUCTURE

When you perform a prestressed eigenvalue analysis, it is possible that the prestress
load case causes a significant deformation to the structure. The default eigenmode plot
will still show the mode relative to the original undeformed structure. Sometimes this
does not give a good enough representation of actual mode shape.

To improve the visualization, do the following:

1 Go to the settings for the 2D or 3D plot group containing the mode shape plot.
Under Plot dataset edges, set Frame to Spatial. This will make the outline to be given
by the deformed shape from the prestress load case.
2 In the dataset for the eigenvalue solution, set Frame to Spatial. The mode shapes are
now plotted relative to the deformed shape.

Plotting Applied Loads

When solving, predefined plots containing the applied loads are generated. You can
add them from the Add Predefined Plots window. Figure 2-42 shows an example of such

368 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

a plot. In this section, it is described in detail how you can work with these plots to
fine-tune the visualization.

Figure 2-42: Example of an automatically generated plot to visualize the boundary loads
applied to a bracket.

STRUCTURE OF DEFAULT LOAD PLOTS

For each structural mechanics physics interface and dataset, a node group is generated
under Results. Its name is Applied Loads (<interfaceTag>). Within this node group, one
plot group per type of load is created. The possible plot group names are listed in
Table 2-21.
TABLE 2-21: PLOT GROUP NAMES AND PLOT TYPES

LOAD GROUP NAME PLOT TYPE DESCRIPTION

Volume Loads Arrow Volume, Generated from Body Load, Gravity, Linearly
Arrow Surface, Accelerated Frame, and Rotating Frame. The
Arrow Line, plot type depends on the geometrical
Arrow Point dimension of the physics interface.
Boundary Loads Arrow Surface Generated from Boundary Load. Also, from
Added Mass on a boundary combined with
Gravity or Rotating Frame.
Face Loads Arrow Surface Generated from Face Load in Shell, Plate, and
Membrane interfaces.
Face Moments Arrow Surface Generated from Face Load in Shell, Plate, and
Membrane interfaces of nonzero moments are
present.

RESULT PRESENTATION | 369

 TABLE 2-21: PLOT GROUP NAMES AND PLOT TYPES

LOAD GROUP NAME PLOT TYPE DESCRIPTION

Edge Loads Arrow Line Generated from Edge Load. Also, from Added
Mass on an edge combined with Gravity or
Rotating Frame.
Edge Moments Arrow Line Generated from Edge Load in Shell, Plate, and
Beam interfaces if nonzero moments are
present.
Point Loads Arrow Point Generated from Point Load.
Point Moments Arrow Point Generated from Point Load in Shell, Plate, and
Beam interfaces if nonzero moments are
present.
Global Loads, Point Generated from global features like Rigid
Global Moments Trajectories Connector and Rigid Material, which have
subnodes as Applied Load and Applied Moment.
Such loads are a type of point load, but they are
applied at a certain location in space, rather
than at a point in the geometry.
Fluid Loads Line Generated from Fluid Load in Pipe Mechanics
(Pressure) interface.
Fluid Loads Arrow Line Generated from Fluid Load in Pipe Mechanics
(Drag Force) interface.
In general, load groups are generated as soon as there is load of a certain type,
irrespective of whether the value of the load is nonzero or not. Load features in which
it is possible to enter both a force and a moment contribution, such as Edge Load in the
Beam interface, have a special behavior:

• A plot group for forces is always generated.

• A plot group for moments is only generated if there is a nonzero value in at least
one of the components of the moment vector.

Within a load group, there is one plot per load feature. In most cases, the plot has the
same label as the generating load feature, for example Boundary Load 2.

MODIFYING THE VISUALIZATION

The default appearance of the load plots provides a good overall visualization of the
loads applied to the model. However, for complex models or for creating plots for
export, you might want to modify the default setting. Most default settings are
presented in the following together with some prepared alternative settings and
suggestions that you can make use of. While the plots are automatically generated, you

370 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

can modify them in any way you want to improve the visualization for your specific
model; the plots are not reset each time you compute the study.

Style Inheritance
Within a load group, the style of each load plot is inherited from the previous plot. The
inheritance can be modified in the Inherit Style section. For example, clear the Color
check box to enable different color schemes for different loads and the Color and data
range to allow different ranges of the color legends.

Filled Surfaces
In order not to hide any load arrows, the default is to use a transparent representation
of the geometry. This is obtained through the extra surface plot Gray Surfaces together
with a Transparency subnode. This plot adds a uniform gray surface on each boundary
of the geometry. The effect is shown in Figure 2-42. If you disable the Gray Surfaces
plot, the structure will have a wireframe outline only. You can modify the transparency
level in the Transparency subnode, or delete the node completely. You can,
furthermore, add a Selection subnode to the Gray Surfaces node to modify on which
boundaries to plot the gray surface.

The Gray Surfaces plot is only generated for physics that use a 2D or 3D representation
of the geometry.

Arrow Heads
You can change the attachment of the arrow by changing the setting of Arrow base in
the Coloring and Style section. The default is in most cases to place the tail on the
geometry. One exception is, for example, a pressure boundary load for which the head
of the arrow is placed at the geometry.

Number of Arrows
For distributed fields, the default is to place one arrow at the center of each element,
element face, or element edge. If the density of arrows is not appropriate, you can
modify the settings in the Arrow Positioning section. For example, change Placement to
Mesh nodes to place an arrow in each point of the of the linear mesh, or set it to Uniform
to specify an arbitrary number of arrows to be plotted.

Color Scheme
The color scheme of the arrow plots is controlled in a Color Expression subnode. The
default color table is a Gradient going from red to black. You can change this in the
Coloring list. By selecting Color table, the color table is automatically set to Spectrum.
This color table can be useful for a clear visualization of the applied loads, when, for
example, the magnitude varies significantly between load features.

RESULT PRESENTATION | 371

 Deformation
By default, the load plots are presented in the initial configuration of the model.
However, when applicable, a Deformation subnode is added to each plot, but with the
Scale factor set to zero. Modify the scale factor to view the loads in a deformed state.
Note that when multiple load plots exist in a plot group, the scale factor is by default
inherited from the first plot. The exception is the Gray Surfaces plot, where the scale
factor is set independently of the other plots.

When the analysis includes geometric nonlinearities, the Scale factor is by default set to
one. Hence, the loads are presented in the deformed configuration for such cases.

• Under geometric nonlinearity, the size of the boundary load arrows

will scale with the local area deformation. Thus, a constant pressure
may appear as nonconstant.
• Load plots that make use of a Point Trajectories node include the
displacements explicitly in order to visualize the current position of the
load.

USING LOAD PLOTS DURING PREPROCESSING

The automatically generated plots of the applied loads can be useful during
preprocessing, for example to verify that loads are applied on the correct boundary and
in the intended direction. To generate the load plots before computing the study,
right-click the Study node, and select Get Initial Value, see Computing the Initial
Values. Doing so will generate all default and predefined plots requested by the
currently active features in all physics interfaces active in the study. You can then insert
the plot from the Add Plot window.

Note that plots are only generated the first time a dataset is created, which means that
the settings will not be updated for subsequent computation of the solution.
Moreover, load plots will not be generated for load features that are added after the
creation of the dataset. To generate new plots when new load features have been
added, delete the current load plots. Then compute the solution or do the Get Initial
Value, and insert the new load plots from the Add Plot window.

372 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

Part Libraries
The Part Libraries can be used to store and access a set of standard geometric entities.
It is possible to create custom user-defined geometry libraries or to use built-in
collections of geometric entities that are available with many add-on modules for
COMSOL Multiphysics.

A dedicated part library for the Structural Mechanics Module is included. The library
consists of two main parts:

• Bolts, nuts, and washers. These are parts intended for quick modeling of fasteners.
The bolts geometries are prepared for use with the Modeling Pretensioned Bolts
functionality. Some of the bolt geometries are also augmented with an extra domain
intended for use as a “drill” when building the geometry.

Figure 2-43: Example of a bolt part.

• Beam cross sections. These are 2D geometries, primarily intended for use in The
Beam Cross Section Interface. The library includes geometries for all standard beam

PART LIBRARIES | 373

 cross sections according to European and US standards, as well as generic beam
geometries.

Figure 2-44: Example of a standard beam cross section.

Figure 2-45: Example of a generic beam cross section.

374 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING

All entities in the built-in the Part Libraries are fully parameterized, making them easy
to use as parts in large-scale industrial models.

Part Libraries in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

PART LIBRARIES | 375

376 | CHAPTER 2: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS MODELING
 3

Structural Mechanics Theory

This chapter contains the theory behind the implementation of the structural
mechanics functionality in COMSOL Multiphysics.

In this chapter:

• Solid Mechanics Theory

• Frames and Coordinate Systems
• Analysis of Deformation
• Stresses
• Equation of Motion
• Material Models
• Formulation of the Equilibrium Equations
• Study Types
• Damping
• Loads and Constraints
• Contact Analysis Theory
• Bolt Modeling Theory
• Stress Linearization

377
 • J-Integral Theory
• Embedded Elements
• Theory for Thin Layers
• Reduced Integration and Hourglass Stabilization
• Average Rotation
• Energy Quantities

378 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

S o li d M e c ha ni cs Th eory
Introduction
In the following, the theory for the Solid Mechanics interface is described. To a large
extent, this theory covers other structural mechanics physics interfaces, such as Shell
and Beam, which are included with the Structural Mechanics Module. For these other
interfaces, only the details which are specific to the interface are described in its
additional documentation.

• Theory for the Shell and Plate Interfaces

• Theory for the Membrane Interface
• Theory for the Beam Interface
• Theory for the Beam Cross Section Interface
• Theory for the Truss Interface

TENSOR NOTATION
Some of the theory is developed using tensor notation. In most cases, explicit index
notation is avoided. This means that the order of a tensor usually must be understood
from the context. As an example, Hooke’s law for linear elasticity is usually written like

 = C :

Here, the stress tensor  and the strain tensor  are second-order tensors, while the
constitutive tensor C is a fourth-order tensor. The ‘:’ symbol means a contraction over
two indices. In a notation where the indices are shown, the same equation would read

 ij = C ijkl  kl

where the Einstein summation convention has been used as a shorthand for

3 3

 ij =   Cijkl kl
k = 1l = 1

In a few cases, nonorthonormal coordinate systems must be considered. It is then

necessary to keep track of the covariance and contravariance properties of tensors. In
such a case, Hooke’s law is written

SOLID MECHANICS THEORY | 379

 ij ijkl
 = C  kl

The stress and constitutive tensors have contravariant components, while the strain
tensor has covariant components.

380 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Frames and Coordinate Systems
In this section:

• Material and Spatial Coordinates

• Coordinate Systems

Material and Spatial Coordinates

The Solid Mechanics interface, through its equations, describes the motion and
deformation of solid objects in a 1-, 2-, or 3-dimensional space. In COMSOL
Multiphysics terminology, this physical space is known as the spatial frame, and
positions in the physical space are identified by lowercase spatial coordinate variables
x, y, and z (or r,  , and z in axisymmetric components).

Continuum mechanics theory also makes use of a second set of coordinates, known as
material (or reference) coordinates. These are normally denoted by uppercase
variables X, Y, and Z (or R, , and Z) and are used to label material particles. Any
material particle is uniquely identified by its position in some given initial or reference
configuration. As long as the solid stays in this configuration, material and spatial
coordinates of every particle coincide and displacements are zero by definition.

More information can be found in About Frames chapter in the COMSOL

Multiphysics Reference Manual.

When the solid object deforms due to external or internal forces and constraints, each
material particle keeps its material coordinates X (bold font is used to denote
coordinate vectors), while its spatial coordinates change with time and applied forces
such that it follows a path

x = x  X t  = X + u  X t  (3-1)

in space. Because the material coordinates are constant, the current spatial position is
uniquely determined by the displacement vector u, pointing from the reference
position to the current position. The global Cartesian components of this displacement
vector in the spatial frame, by default called u, v, and w, are the primary dependent
variables in the Solid Mechanics interface.

By default, the Solid Mechanics interface uses the calculated displacement and
Equation 3-1 to define the difference between spatial coordinates x and material

FRAMES AND COORDINATE SYSTEMS | 381

 coordinates X. This means the material coordinates relate to the original geometry,
while the spatial coordinates are solution dependent.

Material coordinate variables X, Y, and Z must be used in coordinate-dependent

expressions that refer to positions in the original geometry, for example, for material
properties that are supposed to follow the material during deformation. On the other
hand, quantities that have a coordinate dependence in physical space — for example, a
spatially varying electromagnetic field acting as a force on the solid — must be
described using spatial coordinate variables x, y, and z.

In a geometrically linear analysis, no difference is made between the two

coordinate systems. For this case, the material and spatial coordinates
coincide. This may seem inconsistent with equation Equation 3-1 but
ensures linearity for problems that are expected to be linear. It is then, for
example, equivalent to choose a coordinate system related to the material
frame or one related to the spatial frame. In a geometrically nonlinear
analysis, however, any use of a spatial coordinate in an expression will
introduce a nonlinear contribution because it will be deformation
dependent.

Coordinate Systems
Force vectors, stress and strain tensors, as well as various material tensors are
represented by their components in a specified coordinate system. By default, material
properties use the canonical system in the material frame. This is the system whose
basis vectors coincide with the X, Y, and Z axes. When the solid deforms, these vectors
rotate with the material.

Loads and constraints, on the other hand, are applied in spatial directions, by default
in the canonical spatial coordinate system. This system has basis vectors in the x, y, and
z directions, which are forever fixed in space. Both the material and spatial default
coordinate system are referred to as the global coordinate system in the physics
interface.

382 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Vector and tensor quantities defined in the global coordinate system on either frame
use the frame’s coordinate variable names as indices in the tensor component variable
names.

For example, solid.SXY is the material frame XY-plane shear stress, also
known as a second Piola–Kirchhoff stress, while solid.sxy is the
corresponding spatial frame stress, or Cauchy stress. There are also a few
mixed tensors, most notably the deformation gradient solid.FdxY,
which has one spatial and one material index because it is used in
converting quantities between the material and spatial frames.

It is possible to define any number of user coordinate systems on the material and
spatial frames. Most types of coordinate systems are specified only as a rotation of the
basis with respect to the canonical basis in the underlying frame. This means that they
can be used both in contexts requiring a material system and in contexts requiring a
spatial one. A coordinate system defined on the spatial frame will in general introduce
nonlinearities in the problem, since its directions are deformation dependent in case of
a geometrically nonlinear analysis.

The coordinate system can be selected separately for each added material model, load,
and constraint. This is convenient when for example, an anisotropic material with
different orientation in different domains is required. The currently selected
coordinate system is called the local coordinate system.

Coordinate systems used for describing a material must be defined on the material
frame.

Boundary System
Many quantities for shells, membranes and thin layers can best be interpreted in a local
coordinate system aligned to the surface. Material data, initial stresses and stress results
are always represented in this local coordinate system. The local system for stress
output coincides with the orientations defined for the material input.

When a Boundary System is selected, the orientation of the local system is fully defined
by the boundary system.

When using a boundary system, it also possible to control the orientation of the
normal by selecting the Reverse normal direction check box.

FRAMES AND COORDINATE SYSTEMS | 383

 Analysis of Deformation
The analysis of deformation aims at deriving descriptions of the local deformation in a
material suitable for use in a constitutive relation. Often, but not always, this amounts
to deriving a strain tensor.

This section starts by a general description of finite deformation in solids. At the end,
the specialization to engineering strains used in geometrically linear analysis, is made.

In this section:

• Lagrangian Formulation
• Deformation Measures
• Invariants of Strain
• Inelastic Strain Contributions
• Deformed Geometry
• Axial Symmetry
• Plane Strain
• Generalized Plane Strain

Lagrangian Formulation
The formulation used for structural analysis in COMSOL Multiphysics for both small
and finite deformations is a total Lagrangian formulation. This means that the
computed stress and deformation state is always referred to the material configuration
rather than to current position in space.

Likewise, material properties are always given for material particles and with tensor
components referring to a coordinate system based on the material frame. This has the
obvious advantage that spatially varying material properties can be evaluated just once
for the initial material configuration, and they do not change as the solid deforms and
rotates.

Consider a certain physical particle, initially located at the coordinate X. During

deformation, this particle follows a path

x = x  X t 

Here, x is the spatial coordinate and X is the material coordinate.

384 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

For simplicity, assume that undeformed and deformed positions are measured in the
same coordinate system. Using the displacement u it is then possible to write

x = X + u  X t 

The displacement is considered as a function of the material coordinates (X, Y, Z), but
it is not explicitly a function of the spatial coordinates (x, y, z). It is thus only possible
to compute derivatives with respect to the material coordinates.

In the following, the gradient operator is assumed to be a gradient with respect to the
material coordinates, unless something else is explicitly stated.

 = X =   
X Y Z

The gradient of the displacement, which occurs frequently in the following theory, is
always computed with respect to material coordinates. In 3D:

u u u
X Y Z
u = v v v
X Y Z
w w w
X Y Z

The deformation gradient tensor, F, shows how an infinitesimal line element, dX, is
mapped to the corresponding deformed line element dx by

ANALYSIS OF DEFORMATION | 385

 x
dx = ------- dX = F dX
X

The deformation gradient F contains the complete information about the local
straining and rotation of the material. It is a two-point tensor (or a double vector),
which transforms as a vector with respect to each of its indices. It involves both the
reference and present configurations.

In terms of the displacement gradient, F can be written as

x
F = ------- = u + I
X

The deformation of the material (stretching) will in general cause changes in the
material density. The ratio between current and initial volume (or mass density) is
given by

dV 
---------- = -----0- = det  F  = J
dV 0 

Here, 0 is the initial density and  is the current density after deformation. The
determinant of the deformation gradient tensor F is related to volumetric changes with
respect to the initial state. A pure rigid body displacement implies J  1. Also, an
incompressible material is represented by J  1. These are called isochoric processes.

The determinant of the deformation gradient tensor is always positive (since a negative
mass density is unphysical). The relation   0/J implies that for J  1 there is
compression, and for J  1 there is expansion. Since J  0, the deformation gradient
F is invertible.

In the material formulations used within the structural mechanics interfaces, the mass
density should in general be constant because the equations are formulated for fixed
material particles. Thus, do not use temperature-dependent material data for the mass
density. The changes in volume caused by temperature changes are incorporated using
the coefficient of thermal expansion when adding Thermal Expansion (for Materials)
to the material model.

The variable solid.rho represents a “reference” or “initial” density 0,

and not the “current” density . If you are interested in finding the
density of the deformed material (the density in the spatial frame), you
can compute it using the expression solid.rho/solid.J.

386 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Deformation Measures
Since the deformation tensor F is a two-point tensor, it combines both spatial and
material frames. It is not symmetric. Applying a singular value decomposition on the
deformation gradient tensor gives an insight into how much stretch and rotation a unit
volume of material has been subjected to. The right polar decomposition is defined as

F = RU

where U is the right stretch tensor given in the material frame, and R is a proper
orthogonal tensor such that det(R) = 1 and R-1 = RT. The rotation tensor R describes
the rigid rotation, and all information about the deformation of the material is
contained in the symmetric tensor U.

• The internal variables for the deformation gradient tensor with respect
to global material coordinates are named solid.FdxX, solid.FdxY,
and so on.
• The internal variables for the deformation gradient tensor with respect
to local material coordinates are named solid.Fdx1, solid.Fdx2,
and so on.
• The rotation tensor components are named solid.RotxX,
solid.RotxY, and so on.

• The right stretch tensor components are named solid.UstchXX,

solid.UstchXY, and so on.

An uppercase index refers to the material frame, and a lowercase index

refers to the spatial frame.

The stretch tensor contains physically important information about the deformation
state. The eigenvalues of the U tensor are the principal stretches, 1, 2, and 3. The
stretch of a line element with initial length L0 and current length L is

L
 = ------ = 1 +  eng
L0

where eng is the engineering strain. The three principal stretches act along three
orthogonal directions. In the coordinate system defined by these principal directions,
the U tensor will be diagonal:

ANALYSIS OF DEFORMATION | 387

 1 0 0
U = 0 2 0
0 0 3

The right Cauchy–Green deformation tensor C defined by

T
C = F F = U2

It is a symmetric and positive definite tensor, which accounts for the strain but not for
the rotation. The eigenvalues of the C tensor are the squared principal stretches, thus
providing a more efficient way to compute the principal stretches than by using the
stretch tensor U directly.

The Green–Lagrange strain tensor is a symmetric tensor defined as

1 1 T
 = ---  C – I  = ---  F F – I 
2 2

Since C is independent of rigid body rotations, this applies also to the Green–Lagrange
strain tensor.

Using the displacement components and Cartesian coordinates, the Green–Lagrange

strain tensor can be written on component form as

1 u i u j u k u k
 ij = ---  -------- + -------- + ---------  --------- . (3-2)
2 X j X i X i X j

The rotation independence of the Green–Lagrange strain tensor,

together with the fact that it for small strain approaches the engineering
strain tensor explains why it is a common choice in constitutive models
for small strain- finite rotation. As an opposite, a pure rigid rotation causes
strains when engineering strains are used.

The Green–Lagrange is the natural strain representation in a Lagrangian

description. Since it is a tensor in the material frame, its values should be
interpreted in along the undeformed axis orientations.

388 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 • The internal variables for the Green–Lagrange strains are named
solid.eX, solid.eXY, and so on.
• The internal variables for the Green–Lagrange strain tensor in local
coordinates are named solid.el11, solid.el12, and so on.
• In a geometrically linear analysis, the strain variables
solid.eX,solid.el11, and so on, will instead represent engineering
strain.
• The right Cauchy–Green deformation tensor in local coordinate
system are named solid.Cl11, solid.Cl12, and so on.

Some textbooks prefer to use the left Cauchy–Green deformation tensor

B  FFT, which is also symmetric and positive definite but it is defined in
the spatial frame.

ENGINEERING STRAIN
Under the assumption of small displacements and rotations, the normal strain
components and the shear strain components are related to the deformation as follows:

u  xy 1  u v
x =  xy = ------- = --- +
x 2 2   y  x
v  yz
---  v + w
1 (3-3)
y =  yz = ------- =
y 2 2 z y 
w  xz
---  u + w
z = 1
 xz = ------- =
z 2 2 z x 

In COMSOL Multiphysics, the tensor form of strain representation (xy, yz, xz) is
used.

In the documentation, the symbol is used to denote the strain tensor in

general. In a geometrically nonlinear analysis, strains should be
interpreted as a Green–Lagrange strains. In a geometrically linear analysis,
the engineering strain is used.

The symmetric strain tensor  consists of both normal and shear strain components:

ANALYSIS OF DEFORMATION | 389

  x  xy  xz
 =  xy  y  yz
 xz  yz  z

The strain-displacement relationships for the axial symmetry case for small
displacements are

u u w u w
r = ,   = --- , z = , and  rz = +
r r z z r

A special problem occurs at the axis of rotation, where both u and r are zero. To avoid
dividing by zero, the circumferential strain is for very small values of r redefined to

u
 =
r

The alternative expression is obtained by applying L’Hôpital’s rule.

A general description of the axially symmetric case is given in Axial Symmetry.

LOGARITHMIC STRAIN
The logarithmic strain, also called true strain, or Hencky strain, is a popular strain
measure for large strain, in particular when representing data from tensile tests. For a
uniaxial case, it is defined on the incremental form

dL
d = --------
L

where L is the current length of the specimen. If this relation is integrated, the total
strain can be written as

 = log  ------ = log 

L
L0

Here L0 is the initial length and  is the stretch.

In order to generalize the logarithmic strain to a strain tensor, it is necessary to first

compute the three principal stretches and their orientation. Then, a logarithmic strain
tensor in the local principal stretch system is defined as

390 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 log  1 0 0
 lp = 0 log  2 0
0 0 log  3

This tensor is then transformed to the global coordinate system in order to give the
logarithmic strain tensor.

Invariants of Strain

PRINCIPAL STRAINS
The principal strains are the eigenvalues of the strain tensor (), computed from the
eigenvalue equation

  –  p I v p = 0

The three principal strains are sorted so that

 p1   p2   p3

This sorting is true also for the 2D and 1D cases. The corresponding vectors in the
principal directions, vpi, are orthonormal.

• The internal variables for the principal strains are named solid.ep1,
solid.ep2, and solid.ep3.

• The internal variables for the components of the directions of the first
principal strains are named solid.ep1X, solid.ep1Y, and
solid.ep1Z. The direction vectors for the other two principal strains
are named analogously.

The Green–Lagrange strain tensor is used in a geometrically nonlinear

analysis. The orientations of the principal directions will thus be with
respect to the material directions. If you plot the principal strains as
arrows, you should thus use an undeformed plot.

PRINCIPAL STRETCHES
The principal stretches are the eigenvalues of the stretch tensor U, and are also sorted
by size:

ANALYSIS OF DEFORMATION | 391

  p1   p2   p3

The internal variables for the principal stretches are named

solid.stchp1, solid.stchp2, and solid.stchp3. The elastic
principal stretches are named solid.stchelp1, solid.stchelp2, and
solid.stchelp3.

The different invariants of the strain tensor form are useful for constitutive modeling
and result interpretation. The three fundamental invariants for any tensor are

I 1    = trace   
1 2 2
I 2    = ---  trace    – trace    
2
I 3    = det   

The invariants of the strain deviator tensor is also useful.

1
dev    =  – --- trace   I
3
J 1    = trace  dev     = 0
1 1 2
J 2    = --- dev   :dev    = --- I 1    – I 2   
2 3
2 3 1
J 3    = det  dev     = ------ I 1    – --- I 1   I 2    + I 3   
27 3

As defined above J2  0. I1 represents the relative change in volume for infinitesimal

strains and J2 represents the magnitude of shear strain.

In tensor component notation, the invariants can be written as

trace    =  kk
 kk
dev    ij =  ij – --------  ij
3
1
I 2    = ---   ii  jj –  ij  ji 
2
1
J 2    = --- dev    ij dev    ji
2

The volumetric strain is defined as

392 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

  vol = trace   

and the equivalent deviatoric strain as

2 4
 deve = --- dev    ij dev    ji = --- J 2   
3 3

The internal variable for the volumetric strain is solid.evol. The

internal variables for the components of the deviatoric strain tensor in the
local coordinate system are solid.eldev11, and so on. The internal
variable for the equivalent deviatoric strain is solid.edeve.

In terms of the principal strains, the strain invariants can be written as

I 1    =  p1 +  p2 +  p3
I 2    =  p1  p2 +  p2  p3 +  p1  p3
I 3    =  p1  p2  p3

The principal strains are the roots of the characteristic equation (Cayley–Hamilton
theorem)

3 2
p – I1 p + I2 p – I3 = 0

STRAIN RATE AND SPIN

The spatial velocity gradient is defined in components as

 v
L kl =  x t 
 xl k

where vk(x,t) is the spatial velocity field. It can be shown that L can be computed in
terms of the deformation gradient as

dF – 1
L = F
dt

where the material time derivative is used.

The velocity gradient can be decomposed into symmetric and skew-symmetric parts

L = Ld + Lw

ANALYSIS OF DEFORMATION | 393

 where

1 T
L d = ---  L + L 
2

is called the rate of strain tensor, and

1 T
L w = ---  L – L 
2

is called the spin tensor. Both tensors are defined on the spatial frame.

It can be shown that the material time derivative of the Green–Lagrange strain tensor
can be related to the rate of strain tensor as

d
------ = F T L d F
dt

The spin tensor Lw(x,t) accounts for an instantaneous local rigid-body rotation about
an axis passing through the point x.

Components of both Ld and Lw are available as results and analysis

variables under the Solid Mechanics interface.

• The components of the rate of strain tensor are named solid.Ldx,

solid.Ldxy, and so on.

• The components of the spin tensor are named solid.Lwx,

solid.Lwxy, and so on.

Inelastic Strain Contributions

Many of the material models in COMSOL Multiphysics will compute a stress based on
an elastic strain. The elastic strain tensor is obtained after removing any inelastic
deformation contribution from the total deformation from the displacements. There
are several possible inelastic strain contributions:

• Initial strain, 0
• External strain, ex
• Thermal strain, th
• Hygroscopic strain, hs
• Plastic strain, pl

394 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

• Creep strain, cr
• Viscoplastic strain, vp
• Viscoelastic strain, ve

ADDITIVE DECOMPOSITION
In a geometrically linear analysis, the elastic strain is computed by a straightforward
subtraction of the inelastic strain:

 e =  –  inel

where

 inel =  0 +  ex +  th +  hs +  pl +  cr +  vp +  ve

Additive decomposition of strains can also be used in a geometrically nonlinear

analysis. In this case, it can however only be justified as long as the strains are small. In
the case of large deformations, the different strain contributions may not even be
commutative.

Choose to use additive decomposition also for geometric nonlinearity by selecting the
Additive strain decomposition check box in the settings for Linear Elastic Material or
Nonlinear Elastic Material.

MULTIPLICATIVE DECOMPOSITION
In the finite deformation case, the inelastic strain is instead removed using a
multiplicative decomposition of the deformation gradient tensor. The elastic
deformation gradient tensor is the basis for all strain energy formulations in
hyperelastic materials, and also for the elastic strain in linear and nonlinear elasticity. It
is derived by removing the inelastic deformation from the total deformation gradient
tensor.

The total deformation gradient tensor is defined as the result of two successive
operations, an inelastic deformation followed by an elastic deformation:

ANALYSIS OF DEFORMATION | 395

 F = F el F inel (3-4)

The order is important here, multiplication from the left makes the elastic
deformation act on the inelastically deformed state.

Since a deformation gradient tensor describes a mapping from one frame

to another, there are actually three frames involved in this operation. The
F tensor is defined by the displacements as usual and describes the
mapping from the material frame to the spatial frame. The Finel tensor,
however, describes a mapping from the material frame to an intermediate
frame, and the Fel tensor describes a mapping from the intermediate
frame to the spatial frame.

When the inelastic deformation gradient tensor is known, the elastic deformation
gradient tensor is computed as

–1
F el = FF inel (3-5)

so the inelastic deformations are removed from the total deformation gradient tensor.
The inelastic deformation tensor Finel is derived from inelastic processes, such as
thermal expansion or plasticity. When there are several inelastic contributions, they are
applied sequentially to obtain the total inelastic deformation tensor Finel.

F inel = F 1 F 2 F 3 F 4 ...

where Fi is the inelastic strain contribution from subnode i under a Linear Elastic
Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material, or Hyperelastic Material.

• The order is important when deformations are finite. The

contributions are applied in the same order as the subnodes appear in
the model tree. If a Thermal Expansion node appears before a Plasticity
node, then the physical process can be viewed as a thermal expansion
followed by a plastic deformation.
• When a certain inelastic strain contribution is small, the order is not
significant.
• If the inelastic strain is a pure isotropic volume change, as is often the
case for thermal expansion and hygroscopic swelling, the order is not
significant.

396 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The right Cauchy–Green deformation tensor C is computed from the deformation
gradient F, as well as the Green–Lagrange strain tensor 

T 1
C = F F and  = ---  C – I 
2

The elastic right Cauchy–Green deformation tensor is then computed from Fel

T
C el = F el F el

and the elastic Green–Lagrange strain tensor is computed as:

1
 el = ---  C el – I 
2

The internal variables for the elastic right Cauchy–Green deformation

tensor in the local coordinate system are named solid.Cel11,
solid.Cel12, and so on; and for the elastic Green–Lagrange tensor in
local coordinates solid.eel11, solid.eel12, and so on.

The elastic, inelastic, and total volume ratios are related as

det  F  = det  F el det  F inel  or J = J el J inel

The internal variables for the elastic, inelastic, and total volume ratio are
named solid.Jel, solid.Ji, and solid.J.

After Equation 3-5, the elastic Green–Lagrange strain depends on the inelastic
deformation as

1 1 –T –1 –T –1
 el = ---  C el – I  = --- F inel  C – C inel F inel = F inel   –  inel F inel (3-6)
2 2

where the inelastic Green–Lagrange strain reads

1 1 T
 inel = ---  C inel – I  = ---  F inel F inel – I 
2 2

When using multiplicative decomposition of deformation gradients, Hooke’s law for a

Linear Elastic Material produces a second Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor which is
linearly related to the elastic Green–Lagrange strain

ANALYSIS OF DEFORMATION | 397

 S el = C  el

This is however, a stress tensor defined in the intermediate configuration. Introducing

a pull-back operation of this tensor, Hooke’s law for the multiplicative decomposition
of elastic and inelastic strains reads

–1 –T
S = J inel F inel C    –  inel F inel

Large Strain Plasticity

In case of large strain plasticity, the plastic strains are primarily not represented as
strains, but as the plastic deformation gradient tensor, Fpl.

The plastic Green–Lagrange strain tensor is computed from the plastic deformation
gradient tensor as

1 T
 pl = ---  F pl F pl – I 
2

As opposed to the small strain formulation, the total, plastic, and elastic Green–
Lagrange strain tensors are related after Equation 3-6 as follow

–T –1
 el = F pl   –  pl F pl

Deformed Geometry
The equations solved by the Solid Mechanics interface are formulated in the material
frame. The Deformed Geometry functionality in COMSOL Multiphysics allows one
to make the material frame differ from the geometry frame, which implies that the
geometry of the structure on the material frame can differ from that originally drawn.
This is useful for analyzing the behavior of different shapes of an original object, for
example as part of shape optimization.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

Deformed Geometry and Moving Mesh

By default, the material does not follow a change in shape. Deformation of the
geometric boundaries therefore corresponds to addition or removal of material.

The deformed geometry functionality can be also used to set up an incremental

deformation of a structure. This can be achieved by using the Elastic Predeformation

398 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

node in the Solid Mechanics interface. This can significantly speed up computations is
case of large deformations.

An example can be found in Hyperelastic Seal: Application Library path

Nonlinear_Structural_Materials_Module/Hyperelasticity/hyperelastic_seal

ELASTIC PREDEFORMATION
The total displacement field of the solid is represented as

u tot = u pd + u

and the corresponding deformation gradient is multiplicatively decomposed as

F tot = FF pd

One can use upd to define the displacement of the material frame with respect to the
geometry frame, and take u as an update solution of the equations solved by the Solid
Mechanics interface on the material frame. (The corresponding deformation gradient
F connects the material and spatial frames.) Note that the virtual work on such a
displacement update is done by the total stress, and to get the correct stress, one can
use as Fpd the deformation gradient connecting the geometry and material frames, and
then set the elastic deformation gradient to

F el = F tot (3-7)

This is used in the stress calculation during the update step. Thus, the transformation
from geometry to material frame is assumed to be a result of elastic deformation.

The process can be repeated in a parametric sweep, for example, by gradually ramping
up the load, so that the displacement update on each step is small. During each step,
the previous value of the total displacement is used in the material frame definition

u pd = u tot, old

Alternatively, a time-dependent study can be used. In this situation, the above formula
will be applied during each time step to recompute upd before the step, using the
stored previous solution, while u will represent a displacement increment computed
during the time step. In addition, the density is updated as 0/Jpd where

J pd = det  F pd 

ANALYSIS OF DEFORMATION | 399

 Again, Fpd is the deformation gradient connecting the geometry and material frames,
and it will be updated before each time step or parameter sweep value.

The approach can be combined with large strain plasticity. In this case,

F tot = F el F pl

which together with Equation 3-7 gives

–1
F el = FF pd F pl

Note that both Fel and Fpl represent the total deformations of their corresponding
types, while Fpd is the total (elastic and plastic) deformation gradient from the previous
update.

Axial Symmetry
The 2D axisymmetric implementation in COMSOL Multiphysics by default assumes
independence of the azimuthal component of the displacement. Therefore, the
physical components of the radial and axial displacement, u and w, are used by default
as dependent variables for the axially symmetric geometry. It is also possible to include
the dependent variable v for the out-of-plane displacement, or an azimuthal mode
extension in time-harmonic studies. See Circumferential Displacement and
Circumferential Modes.

STRAINS
The displacement gradient with respect to the cylindrical coordinates of the
undeformed geometry reads

u ---
1- u v u
– ----
R R  R Z
u = v ---
1- v ---
u v
+ -
R R  R Z
w 1- w w
---
R R  Z

The assumption of axial symmetry neglect gradients in the azimuthal direction, so the
displacement vector is considered independent on the azimuthal angle, u = u(R, Z),
and

u   = v   = w   = 0 .

400 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The displacement gradient after this assumption reads

u v u
– ----
R R Z
u = v ---
u- v
R R Z
w w
0
R Z

and the Green–Lagrange strain tensor is

1 T T
 = ---  u + u + u u 
2

Assuming that there is no torsion around the axis of symmetry, so there is no

out-of-plane displacement, v = 0, the deformation gradient can be further simplified
to read

u u
0
R Z
u
u = 0 ---- 0
R
w w
0
R Z

For geometrically linear analysis, the nonlinear terms in the Green–Lagrange strain
tensor are dropped

u 1 u w
0 ---  +
R 2   Z  R
1 T u-
 = ---  u + u  = 0 --- 0
2 R

---  u + w 0
1 w
2   Z  R Z

and the volumetric strain is computed from

u ---
u w
 vol = I 1    = + -+
R R Z

ANALYSIS OF DEFORMATION | 401

 For the 1D axisymmetric representation, only the radial component of the
displacement field is computed, and only gradients with respect to the radial direction
are considered, this is, u = u(R), and u   = u  Z = 0 .

CIRCUMFERENTIAL DISPLACEMENT
When the out-of-plane displacement is considered in a 2D axisymmetric model,
torsion is allowed with respect to the symmetry axis. In this case, the displacement
gradient reads

u v u
– ----
R R Z
u = v ---
u- v
R R Z
w w
0
R Z

and the Green–Lagrange strain tensor is

1 T T
 = ---  u + u + u u 
2

For geometrically linear analysis, the nonlinear terms in the Green–Lagrange strain
tensor are dropped

u ---  v – ---
1 v- 1  u w
--- +
R 2   R R 2   Z  R
1
---  v – --- --- v
T v-
 = ---  u + u  = 1 u-
--- 1
2 2   R R R 2 Z

--- v
---  u + w
1 1 w
2   Z  R 2Z Z

and the volumetric strain is computed from

u u w
 vol = I 1    = + ---- +
R R Z

CIRCUMFERENTIAL MODES
A standard 2D axisymmetric representation of the structure assumes the independence
of the solution with respect to the azimuthal angle  . The following 3D solution
represents an extension of this assumption:

402 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 u  R  Z t  = u 0  R Z  + u 1  R Z  exp  it – im 

where m is a circumferential mode number (or azimuthal mode number) that can
only have integer values to obey the axially symmetric nature of the corresponding 3D
problem, that is, there is an azimuthal symmetry  =  + 2. Thus,

u  R  + 2 Z t  = u  R  Z t 

The static prestress solution u0 can be obtained using a standard static analysis in 2D
axially symmetric geometry; and the circumferential wave number km = m/R can be
introduced to describe the circumferential modes.

The displacement vector u1 can have nonzero values in all three components, which
are functions of the radial and axial positions. For a given circumferential mode
number m, the displacement vector u1 can be found using an eigenfrequency analysis
in a 2D axially symmetric geometry. Hence,

 = 2f
f = f  m u 0 

and the perturbation solution becomes

u 1 = u 1  R Z  exp  2if  m u 0 t – im 

The solution u = u0 + u1 represents eigenmodes in the corresponding 3D structure,

which can be computed assuming certain constraints on the axis and possible static
prestress and independent of the position along the axis.

Plane Strain
For two-dimensional problems, there are tree possible approximations: plane strain,
Generalized Plane Strain, and Plane Stress. The selection is made in the settings for the
Solid Mechanics node.

For plane strain, the deformation occurs in the xy-plane and it is fully characterized by
the in-plane displacement components u(X,Y) and v(X,Y). There is no out-of-plane
displacement, w = 0, and there are only in-plane strains. In this case, the displacement
gradient reads

ANALYSIS OF DEFORMATION | 403

 u u
u =  X  Y
v v
X Y

and the strain tensor  ij =  ij  X Y  only has in-plane components:

 x  xy
 =
 xy  y

For the 1D plane strain representation, only the x-component of the displacement field
is computed, and only gradients with respect to the x-direction are considered, this is,
u = u(X), u  Y = u  Z = 0 , and  xy =  y = 0 .

Generalized Plane Strain

One possible extension of the Plane Strain formulation is to assume that the
displacement field depends on the out-of-plane coordinate Z, but in-plane strains are
independent of it.

The above assumption have the following 3D solution for the displacement field:

a 2
u = u 0  X Y  – --- Z
2
b 2
v = v 0  X Y  – --- Z
2
w =  aX + bY + c Z

here, u0(X,Y) and v0(X,Y) are the in-plane displacement components; and a, b, and c
are constants independent of the X, Y, and Z coordinates. The gradient of the
displacement field then reads:

u 0 u 0
– aZ
X Y
u = v v
0 0
– bZ
X Y
aZ bZ aX + bY + c

404 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

At the cross section Z = 0, the in-plane deformation is fully characterized by the
in-plane displacement components u0(X,Y) and v0(X,Y). The displacement gradient
then simplifies to

u 0 u 0
0
X Y
u = v v
0 0
0
X Y
0 0 aX + bY + c

The out-of-plane shear strains are zero,  xz =  yz = 0 , and under the assumption of
small displacements and rotations the normal strain reads

 z = ax + by + c (3-8)

The above conditions differ from the Plane Strain formulation only by the fact that the
out-of-plane strain component z can vary linearly throughout the cross section.

The generalized plane strain approximation is good when the structure is free to
expand in the out-of-plane direction, and the possible bending curvature is small with
respect to the extents of the structure in the xy-plane. In the case where there is no
out-of-plane bending, the out-of-plane strain component simplifies to  z = c .

In COMSOL Multiphysics, the coefficients a, b, and c in Equation 3-8 are modeled

as extra degrees of freedom that are constant throughout the model (global variables).

For the 1D representation, only the x-component of the displacement field is

considered, and only gradients with respect to this direction are computed, this is,
u = u(X), u  Y = u  Z = 0 , and  xy =  y = 0 . It is possible to apply the
generalized plane strain assumption to either the xy-plane, the xz-plane, or to both
planes, in which case the strain components are augmented to  y = b and  z = c .

For the 1D axisymmetric representation, only the radial component of the

displacement field is considered, and only gradients with respect to this direction are
computed, this is, u = u(R), and u   = u  Z = 0 . It is possible to apply the
generalized plane strain assumption to the r-plane, so the strain is augmented to
z = c .

GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
In case of geometric nonlinearity, the strains are represented by the Green–Lagrange
strain tensor:

ANALYSIS OF DEFORMATION | 405

 1
 = ---  u T + u + u T u 
2

Consider the following displacement field expressed in terms of the material

coordinates:

a 2
u  X Y  – --- Z
2
u= b 2
v  X Y  – --- Z
2
 a  X + u  + b  Y + v  + c Z

Coefficients a, b, and c are assumed to be small. Then, using the above displacement
field in the displacement gradient evaluated in the plane Z = 0 simplifies to

u u
0
X Y
u = v v
0
X Y
0 0 aX + u  + bY + v + c

We obtain the strain components by dropping quadratic and higher order terms in the
coefficients a, b, and c:

1 2 2
 XX = u X + ---  u X + v X 
2
1 2 2
 YY = v Y + ---  u Y + v Y 
2
1
 XY = ---  u Y + v X + u X u Y + v X v Y 
2
 XZ =  YZ = 0
 ZZ = a  X + u  + b  Y + v  + c

Thus, in the leading order approximation, the strains become independent of the
out-of-plane coordinate Z.

OUT-OF-PLANE WAVES
When a 2D plane strain model represents a cross-section of the structure that has a
significant uniform extension in the out-of-plane Z direction, the following 3D
solution can be sought in form of the amplitude expansion:

406 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 u  X Y Z t  = u 0  X Y  + u 1  X Y  exp  it – ik Z Z 

The first term, u0, represents a static in-plane prestress deformation:

u 0  X Y 
u 0 = v  X Y 
0
0

This can be obtained by a standard static analysis using a 2D geometry for the cross
section with the corresponding boundary conditions.

The second part of the solution, u1, presents a time-harmonic linear perturbation with
an amplitude that can be a function of the in-plane coordinates X and Y. Such a
perturbation can be seen as an out-of-plane wave, with a small amplitude that
propagates in the Z direction, a wavelength L, and phase velocity c:

k Z = 2  L
c =   kZ
2i
u 1 = u 1  X Y  exp ---------  ct – Z 
L

Note that in contrast to the prestress solution u0, the perturbation amplitude u1 can
have nonzero values in all the displacement components:

u 1  X Y 
u1 = v 1  X Y 
w 1  X Y 

There are two alternative approaches. The wavelength L, and thus the wave number
kZ, can be considered as a parameter. Then,  can be computed by an eigenfrequency
analysis for the 2D cross section with all three displacement components taken as
dependent variables. As a result, one obtains

 = 2f
f = f  L u 0 
c   u 0  = Lf  L u 0 

ANALYSIS OF DEFORMATION | 407

 Thus, the wave speed for the out-of-plane wave is computed as a function of the
wavelength L and possible prestress u0 in the material. The dependence of the wave
speed on the wavelength is often called dispersion.

Alternatively, the frequency f (and thus can be taken as a parameter. Then, the
solution can be computed via eigenvalue analysis with respect to the wave number kZ
using the 2D cross section geometry. Hence,

k Z = 2  L
L = L  f u 0 
c  f u 0  = fL  f u 0 

which determine the wavelength L and phase velocity c for the wave that propagates
out-of-plane for a given frequency f under given in-plane prestress deformation u0.
Such interpretation of the perturbation solution is sometimes called a signaling
problem.

408 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Stresses
In this section:

• Defining Stress
• Invariants of the Stress Tensor
• Plane Stress
• Initial Stresses and Strains
• Axial Symmetry and Stresses

Defining Stress
This section summarizes the definition of different stress measures, stress invariants,
and other important definitions.

Three different stress measures are used in COMSOL Multiphysics:

• Cauchy stress defined as force/deformed area in fixed spatial directions not

following the body. This is a symmetric tensor.
• First Piola–Kirchhoff stress P. The forces in the spatial directions are related to the
area in the original (material) frame. This is an unsymmetric two-point tensor.
• Second Piola–Kirchhoff stress S. Both force and area are represented in the material
configuration. For small strains the values are the same as Cauchy stress tensor but
the directions are rotating with the body. This is a symmetric tensor.

The stresses relate to each other as

–1
S = F P
–1 T –1 T
 = J PF = J FSF

In a geometrically linear analysis, the distinction between the stress measures disappear,
and they all converge to the same values.

In the documentation, the symbol is used to denote not only Cauchy

stress, but stress in general. The symbols P and S are used whenever it is
necessary to make a distinction. In geometrically nonlinear analysis, the
stress should in general be interpreted as second Piola–Kirchhoff stress.

STRESSES | 409
 • The internal variables for the Cauchy stresses are named solid.sx,
solid.sxy, and so on.
• The internal variables for the first Piola–Kirchhoff stresses are named
solid.PxX, solid.PxY, and so on.

• The internal variables for the second Piola–Kirchhoff stresses are

named solid.SX, solid.SXY, and so on.

SIGN CONVENTIONS
A positive normal stress in COMSOL Multiphysics acts in tension. This is the most
widely used definition in general physics and engineering.

Within the field of geomechanics it is however common to let compressive stresses be

positive, since compression is almost always dominant in that field of science. When
working with the material models intended for soils and rocks, you must be aware of
that the “positive in tension” convention is used also there in order to maintain
consistency within the software.

Specifically, the ordering of Principal Stresses is such that p1  p2  p3 (including
signs). In geotechnical applications the dominant principal stresses will usually be
compressive, so the third principal stress will the be the one which you may consider
as “largest”.

The convention used in Ref. 1 refers to the hydrostatic pressure (trace of the stress
Cauchy tensor) with a positive sign. The use of the first invariant of Cauchy stress
tensor I1() is preferred in this document where there is a risk of confusion. The
pressure in COMSOL Multiphysics is always defined as positive under compression, or
equivalently, it has the opposite sign of the Cauchy stress tensor’s trace.

Invariants of the Stress Tensor

The different invariants of the stress tensor form an important basis for constitutive
models and also for interpretation of stress results. The three fundamental invariants
for any tensor are

I 1    = trace   
1 2 2
I 2    = ---  trace    – trace     (3-9)
2
I 3    = det   

410 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

In many cases, the invariants of the deviatoric stress tensor are also useful.

1
dev    =  – --- trace   I
3
J 1    = trace  dev     = 0
1 1 2
(3-10)
J 2    = --- dev   :dev    = --- I 1    – I 2   
2 3
2 3 1
J 3    = det  dev     = ------ I 1    – --- I 1   I 2    + I 3   
27 3

As defined above J2  0. In many material models, the most relevant invariants are I1,
J2, and J3. I1 represents the effect of mean stress, J2 represents the magnitude of shear
stress, and J3 contains information about the direction of the shear stress.

In tensor component notation, the invariants can be written as

trace    =  kk
 kk
dev    ij =  ij – ---------  ij
3
1
I 2    = ---   ii  jj –  ij  ji 
2
1
J 2    = --- dev    ij dev    ji
2

The pressure is defined as

– trace    –I1   
p = ------------------------ = -----------------
3 3

and is thus positive in compression.

• The internal variables for the invariants I1, I2, and I3 are named
solid.I1s, solid.I2s, and solid.I3s, respectively.
• The internal variables for the invariants J2 and J3 are named
solid.II2s and solid.II3s, respectively.

• The internal variable for the pressure is solid.pm.

PRINCIPAL STRESSES
The principal stresses are the eigenvalues of the stress tensor, computed from the
eigenvalue equation.

STRESSES | 411
   –  p I v p = 0

The three principal stresses are ordered so that

 p1   p2   p3

This ordering is true also for the 2D cases. The corresponding principal directions vpi
are orthonormal.

• The internal variables for the principal stresses are named solid.sp1,
solid.sp2, and solid.sp3.

• The internal variables for the components of the directions of the first
principal stress are named solid.sp1x, solid.sp1y, and
solid.sp1z. The direction vectors for the other two principal stresses
are named analogously.

In terms of the principal stresses, the stress invariants can be written as

I 1    =  p1 +  p2 +  p3
I 2    =  p1  p2 +  p2  p3 +  p1  p3
I 3    =  p1  p2  p3

The principal stresses are the roots of the characteristic equation (Cayley–Hamilton
theorem)

3 2
p – I1 p + I2 p – I3 = 0

OTHER STRESS INVARIANTS

It is possible to define other invariants in terms of the primary invariants. One common
auxiliary invariant is the Lode angle 

3 3 J3 -
cos 3 = -----------  ----------- (3-11)
2 J3  2
2

The Lode angle is bounded to 0    3 when the principal stresses are sorted as
p1  p2  p3 (Ref. 1).

Following this convention,  = corresponds to the tensile meridian, and  = 3

corresponds to the compressive meridian. The Lode angle is part of a cylindrical

412 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

coordinate system (the Haigh–Westergaard coordinates) with height (hydrostatic
axis)  = I 1 / 3 and radius r = 2J 2 .

The Lode angle is undefined at the hydrostatic axis, where all three
principal stresses are equal (p1 = p2 = p3 = I1/3) and J2 = 0. To avoid
division by zero, the Lode angle is actually computed from the inverse
tangent function atan2, instead of the inverse cosine, as stated in
Equation 3-11.

The Lode angle and the equivalent (von Mises) stress can be called in user
defined yield criteria by referencing the variables solid.thetaL and
solid.mises, where solid is the name of the physics interface node.

The octahedral plane (also called -plane) is defined perpendicular to the hydrostatic
axis in the Haigh–Westergaard coordinate system. The stress normal to this plane is
oct = I1/3, and the shear stress on that plane is defined by

 oct = 2/3J 2

The functions described in Equation 3-9 and Equation 3-10 enter into expressions
that define various kind of yield and failure surfaces. A yield surface is a surface in the
3D space of principal stresses that circumscribe an elastic state of stress.

The principal stresses p1, p2, and p3) can, when sorted as p1  p2  p3, be
written by using the invariants I1 and J2 and the Lode angle (Ref. 1):

1 4J
 p1 = --- I 1 + ---------2- cos 
3 3
4J
 p2 = --- I 1 + ---------2- cos   – ------
1 2
3 3  3
4J
 p3 = --- I 1 + ---------2- cos   + ------
1 2
3 3 3

Plane Stress
For two-dimensional problems, there are tree possible approximations: Plane Strain,
Generalized Plane Strain, and plane stress. The selection is made in the settings for the
Solid Mechanics node.

STRESSES | 413
 In the plane stress formulation in COMSOL Multiphysics, the plane stress conditions

 zz =  xz =  yz = 0 (3-12)

are not enforced through a modified constitutive relation, as is common in many

textbooks. Instead, an extra set of degrees of freedom for the out-of-plane strains are
introduced, and Equation 3-12 is enforced by solving for the strains.

For a general anisotropic linear elastic material in case of plane stress, COMSOL
Multiphysics solves three equations. For isotropy and orthotropy, only one extra
degree of freedom is needed since the out-of-plane shear components of the stress
tensor are zero.

• For isotropic and orthotropic materials, the extra degree of freedom is

named wZ, and represents w  Z .
• For anisotropic materials in 3D or 2D, two more degrees of freedom
area added, uZ and vZ. They represent u  Z and v  Z .

Initial Stresses and Strains

Initial stresses and strains refer to a stress and strain state that would exist even without
the external loads. Initial stresses and strains are not initial values in the mathematical
sense. They apply all through the solution, and may even vary with time or solution
parameters. They should rather be considered as an offset to the stress and strain state
in the constitutive relation.

The initial strain is subtracted from the total strain, before the constitutive law is
applied for computing the stresses. The initial stress is added to the stress computed by
using the constitutive law. As an example, linear elasticity including both an initial
strain 0 and an initial stress s0 can be written as

s = s 0 + C    –  0 

It can also be noted that the effect of the initial strain is analogous to, for example, a
thermal strain or other inelastic strain contributions.

Use either the initial strain or the initial stress (but not both) when you have results
from another analysis or another physics interface, which you want to incorporate into
the stress-strain relation.

414 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Both the initial stress and strain are tensor variables defined via components in the local
coordinate system for each domain.

In case of nearly incompressible material (mixed formulation), the components of the

total initial stress (that is, without volumetric-deviatoric split) are still input. The initial
pressure in the equation for the pressure help variable pw is computed as

1
p 0 = – --- I 1  s 0 
3

In the case of geometric nonlinearity, the initial stress represents the second Piola–
Kirchhoff stress, not the Cauchy stress. The initial strain is interpreted as a Green–
Lagrange strain.

OTHER POSSIBLE USES OF INITIAL STRAINS AND STRESSES

Many inelastic effects in solids mechanics (for example creep, plasticity, damping,
viscoelasticity, poroelasticity, and so on) are represented by additive contributions to
either the total strain or total stress. Then the initial value input fields can be used for
coupling the elastic equations (solid mechanics) to the constitutive equations (usually
General Form PDEs) modeling such extra effects. When adding stress contributions,
you may however find it more convenient to use the External Stress concept.

The Initial Stress and Strain node can be added to Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear
Elastic Materials, Piezoelectricity, Elastoplastic Soil Models, Magnetostriction and
Piezomagnetism, or Shape Memory Alloy materials.

External Stress
The external stress represents an additional stress contribution which has a source
other than the constitutive relation. It is similar to the initial stress described in Initial
Stresses and Strains, and the two features can be used interchangeably. As an example,
linear elasticity including an external stress ext can be written as

 =  ext + C  (3-13)

This additive contribution is the default option when adding external stresses to either
the material representation (second Piola–Kirchhoff stress) or spatial representation
(Cauchy stress).

It is also possible to prescribe a stress contribution that only acts as a load on the
structure, but that is not added into the stress tensor definition as described in
Equation 3-13. The typical case is when there is a pore pressure in a porous material,

STRESSES | 415
 a common case in geotechnical engineering. The stress carried by the solid material
excluding the pore pressure is often called the effective stress. The load from the pore
pressure helps to balance the external loads, while not contributing to the stress tensor
of the solid. The contribution to the virtual work of the external stress (load) is then

W = V – ext dv (3-14)

With the External Stress feature it is also possible to model residual stresses due to, for
instance, manufacturing processes. The Residual stress option augments the stress
tensor as defined in Equation 3-13, and it also removes the deformation created from
it by applying an external load with opposite sign, as described in Equation 3-14. In
this way there is no induced deformation in the solid, but the definition of the stress
tensor and its invariants are augmented, which has an impact in plasticity, creep, or
viscoplasticity.

When External Stress (Nominal) is selected, the external stress tensor does not have to
by symmetric, thus the contribution of the external stress acts as an external load, to
the virtual work is

W = V –u Pext dv
IN SITU STRESS
The in situ stress is a common residual stress used in geotechnical engineering. The
vertical stress, v, also called overburden pressure, lithostatic pressure, or confining
pressure, represents the stress in a point given by the weight of the overlaying material.

 v = gD

The elevation D is the distance of a point in the soil to the top boundary, is the
density and g the acceleration of gravity. This analytical expression for the vertical stress
is derived for a slab of soil of infinite lateral extension.

The lateral or horizontal stress h is normally given as a factor or the vertical stress

h = k0 v

The factor k0, called the coefficient of lateral earth pressure, is normally computed
from the angle of internal friction, from the Poisson’s ratio, or more complex formulas.

When the z-axis represents the vertical coordinate, the in situ stress tensor is written as

416 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 h
 ins = h
v

The External Stress subnode can be added to Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic
Materials, Elastoplastic Soil Models, Shape Memory Alloy, or Hyperelastic Materials.

External Strain
The external strain represents an inelastic strain contribution which has a source other
than the elastic deformation. It is similar to the initial strain described in Initial Stresses
and Strains, and the two features can be used interchangeably. As an example, linear
elasticity including an external strain ext can be written as

 = C  el with  el =  –  ext (3-15)

This Additive Decomposition of strains,  =  el +  ext , is the default option when

adding external strains to represent either the second Piola–Kirchhoff stress or the
Cauchy stress.

It is possible to prescribe a large external strain contribution that follows a

Multiplicative Decomposition of the deformation gradient tensor. In this case, the
elastic deformation gradient reads

–1
F el = FF ext (3-16)

Enter the external deformation gradient, F ext , the external stretches in the local
–1
coordinate system,  ext , or the inverse deformation gradient, F ext . The external
strain can also be computed by Using External Materials.

The External Strain subnode can be added to Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic
Materials, Shape Memory Alloy, or Hyperelastic Materials.

See also

• Using External Materials

• External Material and Working with External Materials in the
COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

STRESSES | 417
 Axial Symmetry and Stresses
The physical stress components are defined on the global coordinate system:

11
r = 

2 22
 = r 

33
z = 

13
 rz = 

The first invariant of the stress tensor is

 
ij
I1    = g ij  =  r +   +  z
i j

418 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

E qua ti o n o f M ot i on
The first Piola–Kirchhoff stress P is calculated from the second Piola–Kirchhoff stress
as P  FS. The first Piola–Kirchhoff stress relates forces in the present configuration
with areas in the reference configuration, and it is sometimes called the nominal stress.

Using the first Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor, the equation of motion can be written in
the following form:

2
 u T
0 2
= X  P + FV (3-17)
t

where the density corresponds to the material density in the initial undeformed state,
the volume force vector FV has components in the actual configuration but given with
respect to the undeformed volume, and the tensor divergence operator is computed
with respect to the coordinates on the material frame. Equation 3-17 is the strong
form that corresponds to the weak form equations within the Solid Mechanics
interface (and many related multiphysics interfaces) in COMSOL Multiphysics. Using
vector and tensor components, the equation can be written as

2
 ux P xX P xY P xZ
0 =  + + + F Vx
t
2 X Y Z 
2
 uy P yX P yY P yZ
0 = + + + F Vy
2 X Y Z 
t
2
 uz P zX P zY P zZ
0 = + + + F Vz
2 X Y Z 
t

The components of the first Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor are nonsymmetric in the
general case, thus

P iJ  P Ij

because the component indices correspond to different frames.

The boundary load vector FA in case of geometric nonlinearity can be related to the
first Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor via the following formula:

EQUATION OF MOTION | 419

 F A = Pn 0

where the normal n0 corresponds to the undeformed surface element. This force
vector is often referred to as the nominal traction. In components, it can be written as

F Ax = P xX n X + P xY n Y + P xZ n Z
F Ay = P yX n X + P yY n Y + P yZ n Z
F Az = P zX n X + P zY n Y + P zZ n Z

The Cauchy stress, ,can be calculated as

–1 T –1 T
 = J PF = J FSF

The Cauchy stress is a true stress that relates forces in the present configuration (spatial
frame) to areas in the present configuration, and it is a symmetric tensor.
Equation 3-17 can be rewritten in terms of the Cauchy stress as

2
 u
 2
= x   + fV
t

where the density corresponds to the density in the actual deformed state, the volume
force vector fV has components in the actual configuration (spatial frame) given with
respect to the deformed volume, and the divergence operator is computed with respect
to the spatial coordinates.

The pressure is computed as

1
p = – --- trace   
3

which corresponds to the volumetric part of the Cauchy stress, and it is positive in
compression. The deviatoric part is defined as

 d =  + pI

The second invariant of the deviatoric stress

1
J 2    = ---  d : d
2

is used for the computation of von Mises (equivalent) stress

420 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 mises = 3J 2   

EQUATION OF MOTION | 421

 Material Models
There are many material models available for structural analysis in COMSOL
Multiphysics. In this section, the theory for all material models is presented. The
material models available, and also some detailed aspects of them, depend on which
licenses you have. The material models, grouped by families, are as follows:

• Linear Elastic Material

• Nonlinear Elastic Materials
- Ramberg–Osgood
- Power Law
- Bilinear Elastic
- Uniaxial Data
- Shear Data
- Hyperbolic Law
- Hardin–Drnevich
- Duncan–Chang
- Duncan–Selig
- User Defined
• Linear Viscoelasticity
- The Maxwell Model
- The Generalized Maxwell Model
- The Kelvin–Voigt Model
- The Generalized Kelvin–Voigt Model
- Standard Linear Solid Model
- The Burgers Model
- Generalized Maxwell Model with Fractional Derivatives
- Generalized Kelvin–Voigt Model with Fractional Derivatives
- Standard Linear Solid Model with Fractional Derivatives
- Burgers Model with Fractional Derivatives
- User Defined

422 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

• Hyperelastic Materials
- Neo-Hookean
- St Venant–Kirchhoff
- Mooney–Rivlin, Two Parameters
- Mooney–Rivlin, Five Parameters
- Mooney–Rivlin, Nine Parameters
- Yeoh
- Ogden
- Storakers
- Varga
- Arruda–Boyce
- Gent
- van der Waals
- Blatz–Ko
- Gao
- Murnaghan
- Delfino
- Fung
- Extended Tube
- User Defined
- Mullins Effect

• Distributed Fiber Models

• Elastoplastic Materials
- The von Mises Criterion
- The Tresca Criterion
- Orthotropic Plasticity

MATERIAL MODELS | 423

 • Porous Plasticity
- The Shima–Oyane Criterion
- The Gurson Criterion
- The Gurson–Tvergaard–Needleman Criterion
- The Fleck–Kuhn–McMeeking Criterion
- The FKM–GTN Criterion
- Capped Drucker–Prager

• Soil Plasticity
- The Mohr–Coulomb Criterion
- The Drucker–Prager Criterion
- The Matsuoka–Nakai Criterion
- The Lade–Duncan Criterion

• Failure Criteria for Concrete, Rocks, and Other Brittle Materials

- The Bresler–Pister Yield Criterion
- The Willam–Warnke Criterion
- The Ottosen Criterion
- The Original Hoek–Brown Criterion
- The Generalized Hoek–Brown Criterion

• Elastoplastic Soil Models

- The Modified Cam-Clay Soil Model
- The Modified Structured Cam-Clay Soil Model
- The Extended Barcelona Basic Soil Model
- The Hardening Soil Model

• Creep and Viscoplasticity

- Creep
- Viscoplasticity
- Creep and Viscoplasticity for Large Strains
• Inelastic Strain Rate
• Shape Memory Alloy
• Piezoelectricity

424 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

• Magnetomechanics
• Magnetostriction and Piezomagnetism
• Electrostriction
• Ferroelectroelasticity
• Rigid Material
• Damage Models
• Safety Factor Evaluation

You can also add a material model which you have coded yourself and made available
as a binary library file using an External Stress-Strain Relation.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Working with External Materials

• External Material

Linear Elastic Material

For a linear elastic material, Hooke’s law relates the stress tensor to the elastic strain
tensor:

 =  ex + C  el =  ex + C    –  inel  (3-18)

where C is the 4th order elasticity tensor, “:” stands for the double-dot tensor product
(or double contraction). The elastic strain el is the difference between the total strain
 and all inelastic strains inel. There may also be an extra stress contribution ex with
contributions from initial stresses and viscoelastic stresses. In case of geometric
nonlinearity, the second Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor and the Green–Lagrange strain
tensor are used.

The elastic strain energy density is

1 1
W s = ---  el   C  el + 2 0  = ---  el    +  0  (3-19)
2 2

This expression assumes that the initial stress contribution is constant during the
straining of the material.

MATERIAL MODELS | 425

 TENSOR VS. MATRIX FORMULATIONS
Because of the symmetry, the strain tensor can be written as the following matrix:

 x  xy  xz
 xy  y  yz
 xz  yz  z

A similar representation applies to the stress tensor:

 x  xy  xz
 xy  y  yz
 xz  yz  z

Due to the symmetry, the elasticity tensor can be completely represented by a

symmetric 6-by-6 matrix as:

1111 1122 1133 1112 1123 1113

D 11 D 12 D 13 D 14 D 15 D 16 C C C C C C
D 12 D 22 D 23 D 24 D 25 D 26 1122 2222 2233 2212 2223 2213
C C C C C C
D 13 D 23 D 33 D 34 D 35 D 36 1133 2233 3333 3312 3323 3313
D = = C C C C C C
D 14 D 24 D 34 D 44 D 45 D 46 C
1112
C
2212
C
3312
C
1212
C
1223
C
1213

D 15 D 25 D 35 D 45 D 55 D 56 C
1123
C
2223
C
3323
C
1223
C
2323
C
2313

D 16 D 26 D 36 D 46 D 56 D 66 1113 2213 3313 1213 2313 1313

C C C C C C

which is the elasticity matrix.

ISOTROPIC MATERIAL AND ELASTIC MODULI

In this case, the elasticity matrix becomes

1–   0 0 0
 1–  0 0 0
  1– 0 0 0
E 1 – 2-
D = --------------------------------------- 0 0 0 --------------- 0 0 (3-20)
 1 +    1 – 2  2
1 – 2-
0 0 0 0 --------------- 0
2
1 – 2-
0 0 0 0 0 ---------------
2

426 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Different pairs of elastic moduli can be used, and as long as two moduli are defined,
the others can be computed according to Table 3-1.
TABLE 3-1: EXPRESSIONS FOR THE ELASTIC MODULI.

DESCRIPTION VARIABLE DE DEG DKG D

Young’s E= E E 9KG - 3 + 2
------------------  --------------------
modulus 3K + G +
Poisson’s =  E- 1 3K – 2G-  -
------- –1 --- --------------------- --------------------
ratio 2G 2 3K + G 2 + 
Bulk K= E - EG - K 2
----------------------- --------------------------  + -------
modulus 3  1 – 2  3  3G – E  3
Shear G= E G G 
---------------------
modulus 21 + 
Lamé = E G  E – 2G - 2G 
--------------------------------------
- --------------------------- K – --------
parameter   1 +    1 – 2  3G – E 3
Lamé = E - G G 
--------------------
parameter  21 + 
Pressure- cp = E  1 –   - ---------------------------
G  4G – E - K + 4G  3-  + 2
wave speed ----------------------------------------- ------------------------- ----------------
  1 +    1 – 2    3G – E   
Shear-wave cs = E - G G 
speed ------------------------
2  1 +  

According to Table 3-1, the elasticity matrix D for isotropic materials is written in
terms of Lamé parameters  and ,

 + 2   0 0 0
  + 2  0 0 0
D =    + 2 0 0 0 (3-21)
0 0 0  0 0
0 0 0 0  0
0 0 0 0 0 

or in terms of the bulk modulus K and shear modulus G:

MATERIAL MODELS | 427

 4G 2G 2G
K + -------- K – -------- K – -------- 0 0 0
3 3 3
2G 4G 2G
K – -------- K + -------- K – -------- 0 0 0
3 3 3
D = 2G 2G 4G (3-22)
K – -------- K – -------- K + -------- 0 0 0
3 3 3
0 0 0 G 0 0
0 0 0 0 G 0
0 0 0 0 0 G

ORTHOTROPIC AND ANISOTROPIC MATERIALS

There are two different ways to represent orthotropic or anisotropic data. The
Standard (11, 22, 33, 12, 23, 13) material data ordering converts the indices as:

11 1 x
22 2 y
33  3  z
12 21 4 xy
23 32 5 yz
13 31 6 xz

thus, Hooke’s law is presented in the form involving the elasticity matrix D and the
following vectors:

x x  x x 
 
y y  y y 
 
z z  z z 
= + D – 
 xy  xy  2 xy 2 xy 
 
 yz  yz  2 yz 2 yz 
 
 xz  xz  2 xz 2 xz 
ex inel

COMSOL Multiphysics uses the complete tensor representation internally to perform

the coordinate system transformations correctly.

Beside the Standard (11, 22, 33, 12, 23, 13) Material data ordering, the elasticity
coefficients can be entered following the Voigt notation. In the Voigt (11, 22, 33, 23,
13, 12) Material data ordering, the sorting of indices is:

428 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 11 1 x
22 2 y
33  3  z
23 32 4 yz
13 31 5 xz
12 21 6 xy

The last three rows and columns in the elasticity matrix D are thus swapped.

Orthotropic Material
The elasticity matrix for orthotropic materials in the Standard (11, 22, 33, 12, 23, 13)
Material data ordering has the following structure:

D 11 D 12 D 13 0 0 0
D 12 D 22 D 23 0 0 0
D 13 D 23 D 33 0 0 0
D = (3-23)
0 0 0 D 44 0 0
0 0 0 0 D 55 0
0 0 0 0 0 D 66

where the components are as follows:

2 2
E x  E z  yz – E y  E x E y  E z  yz  xz + E y  xy 
D 11 = ---------------------------------------- , D 12 = – -----------------------------------------------------------------
D denom D denom

2 2
E x E y E z   xy  yz +  xz  E y  E z  xz – E x 
D 13 = – ---------------------------------------------------------- , D 22 = ----------------------------------------
D denom D denom

2
E y E z  E y  xy  xz + E x  yz  E y E z  E y  xy – E x 
D 23 = – ----------------------------------------------------------------- , D 33 = -----------------------------------------------
D denom D denom

D 44 = G xy , D 55 = G yz , and D 66 = G xz

where

2 2 2 2
D denom = E y E z  xz – E x E y + 2 xy  yz  xz E y E z + E x E z  yz + E y  xy

MATERIAL MODELS | 429

 The values of Ex, Ey, Ez, xy, yz, xz, Gxy, Gyz, and Gxz are supplied in designated
fields in the physics interface. COMSOL Multiphysics deduces the remaining
components —yx, zx, and zy — using the fact that the matrices D and D1 are
symmetric. The compliance matrix has the following form:

1  yx  zx
------ – -------- – -------- 0 0 0
Ex Ey Ez
 xy 1  zy
– -------- ------ – -------- 0 0 0
Ex Ey Ez
 xz  yz 1
–1
– -------- – -------- ------ 0 0 0
D = Ex Ey Ez
1
0 0 0 --------- 0 0
G xy
1
0 0 0 0 --------- 0
G yz
1
0 0 0 0 0 ---------
G xz

The values of xy and yx are different for an orthotropic material. For a
certain set of given material data, you must make sure that the definition
of the indices is consistent with the definition used in COMSOL
Multiphysics.

The elasticity matrix in the Voigt (11, 22, 33, 23, 13, 12) Material data ordering changes
the sorting of the last three elements in the elasticity matrix:

D 44 = G yz , D 55 = G xz , and D 66 = G xy

If a pair of elastic moduli is present in the material definition, the values of Ex, Ey, Ez,
xy, yz, xz, Gxy, Gyz, and Gxz are computed automatically. Note that the resulting
elasticity matrix will be isotropic. Depending on which pair of elastic moduli that is
available, the expressions in Table 3-1 are used to find the above values.

Transversely Isotropic Material

Transversely isotropic material is a subclass of orthotropic materials, for which one
principal direction in the material is different from the other two that are equivalent.
This special direction is assumed to be the first axis of the selected coordinate system.
Because of the symmetry, the following relations hold:

430 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 E3 = E2

 13 =  12

E2
G 23 = --------------------------
2  1 +  23 

G 12 = G 13

Thus, only five elasticity parameters are needed to characterize the material.

Anisotropic Material
In the general case of fully anisotropic material, you provide explicitly all 21
components of the symmetric elasticity matrix D, in either Standard (11, 22, 33, 12, 23,
13) or Voigt (11, 22, 33, 23, 13, 12) Material data ordering.

If a pair of elastic moduli is present in the material definition, the components of the
symmetric elasticity matrix D are computed using one of Equation 3-20 to
Equation 3-22. Depending on which pair of elastic moduli that is available, the
expressions in Table 3-1 are used to compute the necessary values. In case the
orthotropic properties Ei, ij, and Gij are present in the material definition, the
components of the symmetric elasticity matrix D are computed using Equation 3-23.
Note that the resulting elasticity matrix will not be fully anisotropic in either case.

Crystal Symmetry
Here, the components of the elasticity matrix in Voigt notation (denoted by cij) are
referred to as elasticity constants. Because of the material symmetry, only certain
components need to be specified. The following Crystal systems are available in
COMSOL Multiphysics:

Cubic (3 constants) c11, c12, c44

c 11 c 12 c 12 0 0 0
c 12 c 11 c 12 0 0 0
c 12 c 12 c 11 0 0 0
0 0 0 c 44 0 0
0 0 0 0 c 44 0
0 0 0 0 0 c 44

This crystal system includes the following crystal classes: 23 m3 432 43m m3m .

MATERIAL MODELS | 431

 Hexagonal (5 constants) c11, c12, c13, c33, c44

c 11 c 12 c 13 0 0 0
c 12 c 11 c 13 0 0 0
c 13 c 13 c 33 0 0 0
0 0 0 c 44 0 0
0 0 0 0 c 44 0
0 0 0 0 0 c 66

where c 66 = 0.5  c 11 – c 12  .

This crystal system includes the following crystal classes:

6 6 6  m 622 6mm 62m 6  mmm , and it is equivalent to a Transversely Isotropic
Material.

Trigonal (6 constants) c11, c12, c13, c14, c33, c44

c 11 c 12 c 13 c 14 0 0
c 12 c 11 c 13 – c 14 0 0
c 13 c 13 c 33 0 0 0
c 14 – c 14 0 c 44 0 0
0 0 0 0 c 44 c 14
0 0 0 0 c 14 c 66

where c 66 = 0.5  c 11 – c 12  .

This crystal system includes the following crystal classes: 32 3m 3m .

Trigonal (7 constants) c11, c12, c13, c14, c25, c33, c44

c 11 c 12 c 13 c 14 – c 25 0
c 12 c 11 c 13 – c 14 c 25 0
c 13 c 13 c 33 0 0 0
c 14 – c 14 0 c 44 0 c 25
– c 25 c 25 0 0 c 44 c 14
0 0 0 c 25 c 14 c 66

where c 66 = 0.5  c 11 – c 12  .

432 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

This crystal system includes the following crystal classes: 3 3 .

Tetragonal (6 constants) c11, c12, c13, c33, c44, c66

c 11 c 12 c 13 0 0 0
c 12 c 11 c 13 0 0 0
c 13 c 13 c 33 0 0 0
0 0 0 c 44 0 0
0 0 0 0 c 44 0
0 0 0 0 0 c 66

This crystal system includes the following crystal classes: 422 4mm 43m 4  mmm .

Tetragonal (7 constants) c11, c12, c13, c16, c33, c44, c66

c 11 c 12 c 13 0 0 c 16
c 12 c 11 c 13 0 0 – c 16
c 13 c 13 c 33 0 0 0
0 0 0 c 44 0 0
0 0 0 0 c 44 0
c 16 – c 16 0 0 0 c 66

This crystal system includes the following crystal classes: 4 4 4  m .

Orthorhombic (9 constants) c11, c12, c13, c22, c23, c33, c44, c55, c66

c 11 c 12 c 13 0 0 0
c 12 c 22 c 23 0 0 0
c 13 c 23 c 33 0 0 0
0 0 0 c 44 0 0
0 0 0 0 c 55 0
0 0 0 0 0 c 66

This crystal system includes the following crystal classes: 222 mm2 mmm . This type
of crystal symmetry is equivalent to an Orthotropic Material.

AXIAL SYMMETRY
For the linear elastic material, the stress components in coordinate system are

MATERIAL MODELS | 433

 ij ij ijkl
 =  ex + C   kl –  inel kl 

For anisotropic and orthotropic materials, the 4th-order elasticity tensor is defined
from the D matrix according to:

r r  r r 
 
     
= + D  – 
z z  z z 
 
 rz  rz  2 rz 2 rz 
ex inel

The user input D matrix always contains the physical components of the elasticity
tensor

phys
C ijkl

and the corresponding tensor components are computed internally according to:

phys
ijkl Cijkl
C = -----------------------------------------------
g ii g jj g kk g ll

For an isotropic material:

ijkl ij kl ik jl il jk
C = g g + g g + g g 

where and  are the first and second Lamé elastic parameters and g is the metric
tensor.

For a hyperelastic material, the second Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor is computed as

W s
S = 2
C

which is computed as the contravariant components of the stress in the local

coordinate system:

ij W s
S = 2
 C ij

The energy variation is computed as

434 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 S
ij
Stest    = test   ij 
i j

which can be also written as

S r test   r  + S  test     + S z test   z  + 2S rz test   rz 

ENTROPY AND THERMOELASTICITY

The free energy for the linear thermoelastic material can be written as

F = f 0  T  + W s   T 

where the strain energy density Ws T is given by Equation 3-19. Hence, the stress
can be found as

F W
 =   =   = C    –  inel 
 T  T

and the entropy per unit volume can be calculated as

F 
–  = C p log  T  T 0  + S elast
 T 

where T0 is a reference temperature, the volumetric heat capacity Cp can be assumed
to be independent of the temperature (Dulong–Petit law), and the elastic entropy is

S elast = 

where  is the thermal expansion coefficient tensor. For an isotropic material, it

simplifies into

S elast =    x +  y +  z 

The heat balance equation can be written as

T 
C p + T S elast =    k T  + Q h
t t

where k is the thermal conductivity matrix, and the heat source caused by the
dissipation is

ꞏ
Q h = 

MATERIAL MODELS | 435

 where ꞏ is the strain-rate tensor and the tensor  represents all possible inelastic stresses
(for example, a viscous stress).

Using the tensor components, the heat balance can be rewritten as:

T 
C p
t
+  Tmn  t mn =    k T  + Q h (3-24)
m n

In many cases, the second term can be neglected in the left-hand side of Equation 3-24
because all Tmn are small. The resulting approximation is often called uncoupled
thermoelasticity.

WAVE SPEED COMPUTATION

In case of geometric linearity, the governing equations for a linear elastic medium of
any anisotropy can be written in terms of the structural displacement vector u as:

2
 u
 2
=    C u 
t

where C is the elasticity tensor.

Since the equations are linear, they possess the following time-harmonic wave
solutions:

it – i k  r
u = un e

where k  kn is the wave number vector, and n is the direction vector that defines the
wavefront propagation direction. The wavefront is an imaginary line connecting solid
particles of the same phase. The velocity of such wavefront in the direction normal to
it is given by the phase velocity c  k.

Using such a wave solution form leads to Christoffel’s equation:

2 (3-25)
c u n =  n  u n

where the Christoffel’s tensor is defined as

n = n  C  n .

436 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The Christoffel’s equation can be considered as an eigenvalue problem. Thus, to have
a nontrivial solution un, the phase velocity must satisfy

2
det   n   – c I  = 0

which is often called the dispersion relation. In a general case, this is a cubic polynomial
with three roots c2  cj2(n). Thus, for an arbitrary anisotropic medium, three waves
with different phase velocities can propagate in each given direction.

If the wave propagation is initiated by a small perturbation that is initially localized in

space, the solution can be found using the Fourier and Laplace transforms, and it will
represent a so-called wave packet. The wave packet will propagate with the group
velocity given by:

 j 1 
= -----------  u n j   n  u n j  j = 1 2 3
k 2c j  n

where un,j is the wave polarization vector that is the eigenvector corresponding to the
eigenvalue solution cj2(n) of Christoffel’s equation.

COMSOL Multiphysics provides predefined variables for the phase and group
velocities for waves of different types propagating in any chosen direction. These
variables do not affect the solution as such, but are available during result presentation
if the Wave Speeds node has been added to the material.

The wave speed variables can be found in the Wave speeds folder under
Solid Mechanics in the Replace Expression tree.

Mixed Formulation
Nearly incompressible materials can cause numerical problems if only displacements
are used in the interpolating functions. Small errors in the evaluation of the volumetric
strain, due to the finite resolution of the discrete model, are exaggerated by the high
bulk modulus (or low bulk modulus to shear modulus ratios). This leads to an unstable
representation of stresses, and in general, to an underestimation of the deformation, as
spurious volumetric stresses might balance applied shear and bending loads.

When the Pressure formulation is selected in the Use mixed formulation list, the
volumetric stress pw is treated as an additional dependent variable. The resulting mixed

MATERIAL MODELS | 437

 formulation is also known as a u-p formulation. This formulation removes the effect
of the volumetric strain from the original stress tensor, and replaces it with an
interpolated pressure, pw. A separate equation constrains the auxiliary pressure variable
to make it equal (in an average sense) to the original pressure which is calculated from
the strains and material model.

When the Strain formulation is selected in the Use mixed formulation list, the volumetric
strain w is treated as an additional dependent variable.

The mixed formulation is beneficial when the material data is such that the
deformation is close to being incompressible. For an isotropic elastic material, this
happens when the Poisson’s ratio approaches 0.5.

The mixed formulation is useful not only for linear elastic materials but
also for nonlinear elastic materials, elastoplastic materials, hyperelastic
materials, and viscoelastic materials.

The order of the shape function for the auxiliary variable (pw or w)
should be of lower order than that of the displacement field. Note that
some iterative solvers do not work well together with mixed formulation
because the stiffness matrix becomes indefinite.

When the Pressure formulation is selected for isotropic linear elastic materials, the stress
tensor s, computed directly from the strains, is replaced by a modified version:

s˜ = s +  p – p w I

where I is the unit tensor. The pressure p is calculated from the stress tensor as

1
p = – --- trace  s 
3

This is equivalent to define

s˜ = dev  s  – p w I

The auxiliary dependent variable pw is set equal to p using the equation

pw – p
---------------
- = 0 (3-26)
K

438 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

where K is the bulk modulus. Scaling by the bulk modulus is necessary, since typical
values for the auxiliary pressure pw are in the order of 106 to 109 Pa, while typical
values for the displacement degrees of freedom are orders of magnitude smaller.

The modified stress tensor s˜ is then used then in calculations of the energy variation.

When the Strain formulation is selected for isotropic linear elastic materials, the
auxiliary volumetric strain w is used instead of the auxiliary pressure pw, and it is the
set equal to the volumetric strain vol using the equation

– K   w –  vol  = 0 (3-27)

The modified stress tensor then reads

s˜ = s + K   w –  vol I = dev  s  + K w I

The advantage of using the Strain formulation is that the values for the auxiliary strain
w are of a similar order of magnitude as the displacement degree of freedom.

For orthotropic and anisotropic materials, the auxiliary pressure equation is scaled to
make the stiffness matrix symmetric. Note, however, that the stiffness matrix in this
formulation is not positive definite and even contains a zero block on the diagonal in
the incompressible limit. This limits the possible choices of direct and iterative linear
solver.

In case of linear elastic materials without geometric nonlinearity (and also

for hyperelastic materials), the stress tensor s in the above equations is
replaced by the 2nd Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor S, see Nearly
Incompressible Hyperelastic Materials.

Nonlinear Elastic Materials

As opposed to hyperelastic materials, where the stress-strain relationship becomes
significantly nonlinear at moderate to large strains, nonlinear elastic materials present
nonlinear stress-strain relationships even at infinitesimal strains.

Here, nonlinear effects on the strain tensor are not as relevant as the nonlinearity of
the elastic properties. Important materials of this class are Ramberg–Osgood for
modeling metal and other ductile materials, and the Duncan–Chang soil model.

MATERIAL MODELS | 439

 The nonlinear elastic materials as such do not include strain-rate nor stress-rate in the
constitutive equations. It is however possible to add linear viscoelasticity to these
materials.

For a nonlinear material to be “energetically sound” it should be possible to take any

path in stress-strain space and return to the undeformed state without producing or
dissipating any net energy. A requirement is then that the bulk modulus depends only
on the volumetric strain, and the shear modulus depends only on the shear strains.

The splitting into volumetric and deviatoric components of the stress tensor helps
ensuring the “path independent” restriction for isotropic nonlinear elastic materials.

For isotropic linear elastic materials, the stress tensor follows Hooke’s law:

 =  ex + C  el =  ex + C    –  inel 

For a more detailed discussion, see Equation 3-18.

It is possible to split the stress and elastic strain tensors into the deviatoric and
volumetric contributions

1
 = dev    + --- trace   I
3

and

1
 el = dev   el  + --- trace   el I
3

Assuming only elastic stresses in linear isotropic elastic medium, Hooke’s law simplifies
to

1
 = dev    + --- trace   I = 2Gdev   el  + Ktrace   el I
3

where K is the bulk modulus and G is the shear modulus. By using the convention that
the pressure is the mean stress defined as positive in compression,

1
p = – --- trace   
3

The volumetric strain (positive in tension) is

 el,vol = trace   el 

The linear relation between pressure and volumetric elastic strain is thus

440 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 p = – K el,vol

The deviatoric stress and deviatoric elastic strain tensors are related by the shear
modulus

dev    = 2Gdev   el 

By using the contraction of the deviatoric stress and strain tensors, the invariants of
these tensors can alternatively be related through

1 2
J 2    = --- dev   :dev    =  2G  J 2   el 
2

For a body subject to pure torsion on the plane 12, the stress tensor components are
zero except the shear stress 12  21  , and also the elastic strain tensor has zero
components beside the shear strains on that plane 12  21  el/2.

Then

1 2
J 2    = --- dev   :dev    = 
2

and

1 1 2
J 2   el  = --- dev   el :dev   el  = ---  el
2 4

The shear stress on the plane  = J 2    is then related to the elastic shear strain
 el = 2 12 = 2 J 2   el  by the shear modulus

 = G el

Nonlinear Moduli
For nonlinear elastic materials, there is a nonlinear relation between shear stress and
shear strain and/or a nonlinear relation between pressure and volumetric strain.

For the purpose of this discussion,  = J 2    and  el = 2 J 2   el  are used

alternatively as variables.

In the most general case:

p = p   el,vol  and  =    el 

MATERIAL MODELS | 441

 Tangent and Secant Moduli
The tangent shear modulus Gtel and the secant shear modulus Gsel in the most
general case depend nonlinearly on the shear strain, and are defined as

 
G t = --------- and G s = ------
 el  el

Note that the secant modulus is sometimes called the chord modulus between zero and
current strain level.

The tangent bulk modulus Ktel,vol and the secant bulk modulus Ksel,vol depend
on the elastic volumetric strain, and are defined as

p p
K t = – ---------------- and K s = – -------------
 el,vol  el,vol

For linear elastic materials, it is clear that Gt  Gs  G and Kt  Ks  K, but this is not
the case for nonlinear elastic materials.

At zero strain, the secant and shear moduli are equal to each other Gs0  Gt 0 and
Ks0  Kt 0.

The nonlinear elastic materials described in the next sections are represented by
introducing nonlinear secant shear and/or bulk moduli.

Geometric Nonlinearity
The nonlinear elastic material models are primarily intended for small strain analysis.
When used in a geometrically nonlinear study step, the strains will be interpreted as
Green–Lagrange strains and the stresses will be interpreted as second Piola–Kirchhoff
stresses. This is relevant for a situation with large rotations but small strains. If the
strains become larger than a few percent, then you must be careful when interpreting
input parameters and results since the strain and stress tensors also have a nonlinear
dependence on the displacements.

RAMBERG–OSGOOD
The Ramberg–Osgood material model (Ref. 1) is a nonlinear elastic material
commonly used to model plastic deformation in metals, but it also often used in soil
engineering. As it is an elastic model, it can only represent plasticity during pure
on-loading conditions.

For uniaxial extension, the stress-strain curve is defined by the expression

442 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

   n
 = ---- +  ref  ---------
E   ref

Here, E means the initial Young’s modulus, and ref is the strain at a reference stress
ref. The parameter n is the stress exponent. It is common to use ref  0.002, so ref
is the stress at 0.2% strain, typically denoted by the symbol 0.2. This parameter has
several names depending on the literature: 0.2% offset yield strength, 0.2% proof stress,
0.2% proof strength, or 0.2% yield stress. Typical values for stainless steel are
E  200 GPa, 0.2  600 MPa, and n  4.8.

The linear strain is given by


 el = ----
E

and the nonlinear strain by

 n
 nl =  ref  ---------
 ref

The total strain is the sum of linear and nonlinear strains

  n
 =  el +  nl = ---- +  ref  ---------
E  ref

In order to avoid a circular dependence of internal variables, the nonlinear strain nl is
defined with an auxiliary degree of freedom, so the stress reads   Enl.

Ramberg–Osgood Material in Soil Engineering

In soil engineering, it is common to write the Ramberg–Osgood material with the
stress-strain expression

  ref  n
 = ---- +  ---------  --------- (3-28)
E E   ref

so at the reference stress ref, the strain is   ref/E. It is common to use

  3/7, so ref represents the stress level at which the secant Young’s modulus has
been reduced to 70% its initial value: E0.7  E/  0.7E. At this reference stress
the strain is   ref/E0.7.

POWER LAW
For this type of material, the shear stress is related to the elastic shear strain  by the
strain exponent n and a reference shear strain ref (Ref. 2)

MATERIAL MODELS | 443

  n
 = G 0  ref  -------
  ref

The secant shear modulus is given by the power law relation

 n–1
G s = G 0  -------
  ref

The strain exponent controls the nonlinear deformation:

• For n1 the material behaves as a dilatant (shear-thickening) solid

• For n1 the material is linear elastic
• For 0nthe material behaves as pseudoplastic (shear-thinning) solid
• For n the material is perfectly plastic

BILINEAR ELASTIC
The most commonly mentioned model of “bilinear elastic” material is defined with
two different bulk moduli for either tension and compression. Commonly, brittle
materials like graphite and ceramics exhibit this behavior. The secant bulk modulus
reads:

K = K t for el,vol  

and

K = K c for el,vol  

whereel,vol is the volumetric strain, Kc is the bulk modulus for compression, and Kt
the bulk modulus for tension.

UNIAXIAL DATA
Many nonlinear stress-strain curves are measured in a tensile test, for which a nonlinear
curve of force vs displacement is obtained.

If only the uniaxial behavior is measured, the measurements do not fully define the
material behavior. An extra assumption is needed. The Uniaxial data material model
allows you to assume either a constant Poisson’s ratio, or a constant bulk modulus.
Also, if only uniaxial extension data is available, further assumptions are needed for
covering the uniaxial compressive behavior of the material.

For the uniaxial tensile test, the axial stress corresponds to the principal stresses
ax  1  mises, and the other two principal stresses are equal to zero, 2  3  0.

444 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The principal (axial) strain is positive in tension, ax  1, and the other two
(transverse) strains are negative and related by the Poisson’s ratio 2  3  1.

For uniaxial compression, the axial strain is negative, and when the principal strains are
sorted as 1  2  3 it corresponds to the third principal strain, ax  3. The other
two (transverse) strains are positive and related by the Poisson’s ratio 1  2  3.
Also, the axial stress is negative in compression, and it corresponds to the third
principal stress ax  3  mises. The other two transverse stresses are zero
1  2  0.

Other strain measures that can be obtained from the elastic strain tensor or its principal
values, are the elastic volumetric strain

 vol,el = trace   el 

and the elastic shear strain,

 el = 2 J 2   el  = 2dev   el :dev   el  .

These are used to define the elastic axial strain variable for multiaxial loading.

The uniaxial test defines the relation between the axial stress and elastic axial strain as

 ax = E s  ax

Here, Es is the secant Young’s modulus, and the axial stress ax is considered as a
function of the elastic axial strain ax. Thus

 ax
E s = ---------
 ax

At zero strain, the secant Young’s modulus is defined as

d ax
E s = -------------
d ax
 ax = 0

Assuming a constant Poisson’s ratio, the secant shear modulus is defined as

Es
G s = ---------------------
21 + 

and the secant bulk modulus as

MATERIAL MODELS | 445

 Es
K s = ------------------------
3  1 – 2 

Furthermore, if only tensile stress-strain data is available, the elastic axial strain for
multiaxial loading is computed from the elastic shear strain  and Poisson’s ratio as

3
 ax = ---------------------
21 + 

When nonsymmetric stress-strain data is available, the elastic axial strain for multiaxial
loading is computed from the elastic volumetric strain and Poisson’s ratio

 vol
 ax = ----------------
1 – 2

as this expression captures the change of sign in the elastic axial strain when changing
from a tensile to a compressive state.

When using a constant bulk modulus assumption, only the symmetric part from the
stress-strain data is considered. The secant shear modulus is instead defined as

3KE s
G s = --------------------
9K – E s

and the elastic axial strain is defined from both volumetric and shear elastic strains

  vol
 ax = ------- + -----------
3 3

It is possible to use any uniaxial data function to define the axial stress as a function of
elastic axial strain

 ax =  ax   ax 

provided that

446 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

  ax = 0 when  ax = 0

The elastic axial strain ax can be called in user defined uniaxial stress
functions by referencing the variables solid.eax, where solid is the
name of the physics interface node. See also the description of the
Uniaxial Data material model in the Solid Mechanics interface
documentation.

SHEAR DATA
Many nonlinear stress-strain curves are measured in a shear test, for which a nonlinear
curve of force vs displacement is obtained.

If only the shear behavior is measured, the measurements do not fully define the
material behavior and therefore an extra assumption is needed. The Shear data
material model assumes a constant bulk modulus.

Other strain measures that can be obtained from the strain tensor or its principal
values, are the elastic volumetric strain

 vol,el = trace   el 

and the elastic shear strain,

 = 2 J 2   el  = 2dev   el :dev   el  .

These are used to define the nonlinear stress-strain relation for multiaxial loading.

From the shear test one could define the relation between the shear stress  and the
elastic shear strain  as

 = Gs 

Here, the secant shear modulus Gs is constant for Linear Elastic materials, but in
general one could use a nonlinear relation. It is possible to use shear data to define the
shear stress as a function of elastic shear strain as follows:

 =  

provided that

 = 0 when  = 0

MATERIAL MODELS | 447

 in which case, the secant shear modulus is computed from


G s = ----------


With the help of the secant shear modulus Gs computed from shear data, Hooke’s law
simplifies to

 = 2G s dev   el  + Ktrace   el I

where K is the bulk modulus.

The elastic shear strain can be called in user defined shear stress functions
by referencing the variables solid.esh, where solid is the name of the
physics interface node. See also the description of the Shear Data material
model in the Solid Mechanics interface documentation.

HYPERBOLIC LAW
A hyperbolic relation between shear stress and shear strain is obtained by setting the
secant shear modulus

1
G s = G -------------------------n-

1 +  -------
  ref

where the strain exponent n and a reference shear strain ref control the shape of the
hyperbola.

For hyperbolic material models, the maximum shear modulus occurs at zero shear
strain, so practitioners might call G the “maximum shear modulus” and use the
notation Gmax. Sometimes it is also called “small strain shear modulus”.

HARDIN–DRNEVICH
The Hardin–Drnevich model (Ref. 3) is a hyperbolic soil model (with n  ) defined
by two input parameters: the initial shear modulus G and a reference shear strain ref:

1
G s = G -----------------

1 + -------
 ref

This nonlinear soil model is commonly used for modeling soil dynamics in earthquake
engineering problems.

448 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Since   Gs, the shear stress is bounded by max  Gref as the shear strain increases.

The hyperbolic Hardin–Drnevich model is normally used for quantifying stiffness

reduction curves in soils. Commonly, the reference shear strainref is replaced by the
reference shear strain at which the secant shear modulus has been decreased to 70% of
its initial value. Calling this shear strain value 0.7, the reference strain is written as

7
 ref = ---  0.7
3

and the secant shear modulus as

1
G s = G -----------------------
3 
1 + --- ---------
7  0.7

so that when   0.7 the secant shear modulus is Gs .7G.

DUNCAN–CHANG
The original model was originated by Kondner to fit triaxial test data for undrained
soils. Duncan and Chang (Ref. 4) and other coworkers (Ref. 5) developed this
hyperbolic model to its current state. The material model is written in terms of the axial
and radial stresses 1 and 3 and the axial strain , and it describes the stress-strain
curve by fitting the hyperbola


 1 –  3 = ----------------
a + b

here a and b are material parameters obtained by curve fitting data from the triaxial
test. The parameter a is related to the initial Young’s modulus E

1
a = ----
E

and the parameter b defines the asymptote of the hyperbola, which is related to the
ultimate value of 13 denoted qult

1
--- =   1 –  3  = q ult
b ult

The ultimate value qult is related to the strength of the soil.

For the triaxial test, the axial strain is related to the shear strain  by the Poisson’s
ratio as

MATERIAL MODELS | 449

 3
 = --------------------- 
21 + 

and the axial and radial stresses are related to the shear stress as  1 –  3 = 3 .

It is possible then to write the relation between shear stress and shear strain as

1 -
-------------------- 
21 + 
 = ---------------------------------------------
1- -------- 3 -
1 --------------------
--- + 
E q ult 2  1 +  

Since the initial shear modulus is related to the initial Young’s modulus as
G  E2(1  ), this stress-strain relation can alternatively be written as


 = ---------------------
1- --------- 3-
--- +
G q ult

which is an hyperbolic law with a secant shear modulus of

G
G s = -----------------------------
G
1 + -------- 3
q ult

DUNCAN–SELIG
The Duncan–Selig model is a combination of the Duncan’s hyperbolic material model
(Ref. 4, Ref. 5) and Selig’s model to describe nonlinear bulk modulus behavior. Selig
(Ref. 6) further developed the model of Duncan and others in order to include a
nonlinear volumetric response in soils.

The model defines the nonlinear volumetric response for the pressure as

 el,vol
p = – K -----------------------
 el,vol
1 – -------------
 ult

where el,vol is the volumetric strain, and ult is the asymptote of the hyperbola, the
maximum value for the volumetric compression. Note that K represents the bulk
modulus at zero strain.

The secant (nonlinear) bulk modulus is defined for this material model as

450 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 1
K s = K -----------------------
 el,vol
1 – -------------
 ult

USER DEFINED
This option allows you to write explicitly how the pressure depends on the elastic
volumetric strain. This could be an analytic function or data interpolated from a table.

The elastic volumetric strain vol,el can be called in user defined

expressions by referencing the variables solid.eelvol, where solid is
the name of the physics interface node.

Linear Viscoelasticity
Viscoelastic materials have a time-dependent response even if the loading is constant
in time. Many polymers and biological tissues exhibit this behavior. Linear
viscoelasticity is a commonly used approximation where the stress depends linearly on
the strain and its time derivatives (strain rate). Also, linear viscoelasticity deals with the
additive decomposition of stresses and strains. It is usually assumed that the viscous
part of the deformation is incompressible so that the volumetric deformation is purely
elastic.

THE GENERALIZED MAXWELL MODEL

For isotropic linear elastic materials in the absence of inelastic stresses, Hooke’s law in
Equation 3-18 reduces to

 = C  el

where the elastic strain tensor el    inel represents the total strain minus initial and
inelastic strains, such as thermal strains.

The stress tensor can be decomposed into a pressure and a deviatoric stress:

 = – pI +  d

The pressure, mean stress, or volumetric stress, is given with a positive sign in
compression

1
p = – --- trace   
3

MATERIAL MODELS | 451

 and the deviatoric stress is computed from the total stress minus the volumetric
contribution

1
 d = dev    =  – --- trace    =  + pI
3

The elastic strain tensor el can in the same way be decomposed into volumetric and
deviatoric components

1
 el = ---  el,vol I +  d
3

with the volumetric elastic strain defined as

 el,vol = trace   el 

and the deviatoric contribution

 d = dev   el 

For isotropic linear elastic materials, the pressure is then related to the volumetric
elastic deformation by the bulk modulus K

1
p = – --- trace    = – Ktrace   el  = – K el,vol
3

and the deviatoric stress tensor is linearly related to the deviatoric elastic strain tensor
by the shear modulus G

 d = dev    = 2Gdev   el  = 2G d

The total stress in Equation 3-18 is then

 = K el,vol I + 2G d

In case of geometric nonlinearity,  represents the second Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor

and el the elastic Green–Lagrange strain tensor.

For viscoelastic materials, the deviatoric stress d is not linearly related to the deviatoric
strain d but it also depends on the strain history. It is normally defined by the
hereditary integral:

t
 d

 d = 2   t – t'  -------- dt'
t'
0

452 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The function (t) is called the relaxation shear modulus function (or just relaxation
function) and it can be found by measuring the stress evolution in time when the
material is held at a constant strain.

The relaxation function is often approximated by a Prony series:

G m exp  – -------
t
t = G +    m
m=1

A physical interpretation of this approach, often called the generalized Maxwell

model, is shown in Figure 3-1
d

G1 G2 Gm qm
 G ..... m
1 2 m m

1 2 m
d

Figure 3-1: Generalized Maxwell model.

Hence, G is the stiffness of the main elastic branch, Gm represents the stiffness of the
spring in branch m, and m is the relaxation time constant of the spring-dashpot pair
in branch m.

The relaxation times m are normally measured in the frequency domain, so the
viscosity of the dashpot is not a physical quantity but instead it is derived from stiffness
and relaxation time measurements. The viscosity of each branch can be expressed in
terms of the shear modulus and relaxation time as

m = Gm m

The auxiliary strain variable qm is introduced to represent the extension of the

corresponding abstract spring, and the auxiliary variables m    qm represent the
extensions in the dashpots.

The shear modulus of the elastic branch G is normally called the long-term shear
modulus, or steady-state stiffness, and it is often denoted with the symbol G. The

MATERIAL MODELS | 453

 instantaneous shear modulus G0is then defined as the long-term shear modulus plus
the sum of the stiffnesses of all the viscoelastic branches

G0 = G +  Gm
m=1

This is the equivalent stiffness when the external load is applied much faster than the
shortest relaxation time of any viscoelastic branch.

Sometimes, the relaxation function (t) is expressed in terms of the instantaneous

stiffness and relative weights, so that the Prony series is given as

N
 
 w m exp  – ------- 
t
  t  = G0 w +
    m 
 m=1 

In this case, the long-term shear modulus is related to the instantaneous shear modulus
by the weight w  

G = w G0

and the shear moduli in each branch are defined by the weights wm

Gm = wm G0

It must be assumed then that the weights fulfill the constraint

454 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 N

w +  wm = 1
m=1

The long-term shear modulus G is given in the parent material model (for
example, Linear Elastic Material). If your material data consists of the
instantaneous shear modulus G0 and the weights wm, you can convert the
data using the formulas above.

If your data consists of Young’s modulus and relaxation time per branch,
you can convert it to the equivalent shear moduli. As the strain tensors in
the dashpots are isochoric (volume preserving) it means that Gm  Em

In the parent Linear Elastic Material, you can enter the long-term elastic
data in any form, for example in terms of Young’s modulus, E, and
Poisson’s ratio, . It will then be converted to the corresponding shear
modulus G internally.

The stress per branch can be written either in terms of the strain in the spring, qm, or
the strain in the dashpot, m

ꞏ
 m = 2G m q m = 2 m  m = 2G m   –  m 

The sum of the stresses in the viscoelastic branches is then computed from

N N

q =  m =  2G m   –  m 
m=1 m=1

The total stress in Hooke’s law (Equation 3-18) is then augmented by the viscoelastic
stress q

 =  0 + C  el +  q (3-29)

Computing the Stress in Each Branch

The auxiliary variable m is a symmetric isochoric (volume preserving) strain tensor,
which has as many components as the number of strain components of the problem
class. Since the stress per branch is written as

ꞏ
 m = 2G m q m = 2 m  m = 2G m   –  m 

MATERIAL MODELS | 455

 the auxiliary variables m can be computed by solving the ODE

ꞏ
m m = Gm   – m  (3-30)

The relation between viscosity and relaxation time is

m = Gm m

so that Equation 3-30 can equivalently be written as

ꞏ
m m + m =  (3-31)

The viscoelastic strain variables, m, are treated as additional degrees of freedom
(DOFs). The shape functions are chosen to be one order lower than those used for the
displacement field, because these variables add to the strains and stresses computed
from displacement derivatives. Alternatively, Equation 3-48 can be solved using a
Local Time Integration algorithm.

The viscoelastic strain variables m are called for instance

solid.lemm1.vis1.ev1_11, where solid is the tag of the physics
interface, lemm1 is the tag of the linear elastic material, and vis1 is the tag
of the viscoelasticity node. The trailing numbers indicate the branch
number and the strain tensor indices.

Volumetric Response
It is usually assumed that the viscous part of the deformation is incompressible so that
the volumetric deformation is purely elastic, but this does not have to be the case.

The same derivation as stated in previous sections can be applied to the volumetric
response, in which case the sum of the stresses in the viscoelastic branches is computed
from

N N

q =  m =  K m   el,vol – e vol m I
m=1 m=1

where el,vol is the elastic volumetric strain, and the auxiliary variables evol,m represent
the volumetric deformation per branch. These are computed by solving the ODE

ꞏ
 m e vol m =  el,vol – e vol m

456 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

where m is the relaxation time per branch.

The volumetric viscoelastic strain variables evol,m are called, for example,
solid.lemm1.vis1.evvol1, where solid is the tag of the physics
interface, lemm1 is the tag of the linear elastic material node, and vis1 is
the tag of the viscoelasticity node. The trailing number represents the
branch number (that is, the first branch in this case).

Using a Suitable Number of Branches

Only branches that have a relaxation time which is of the same order of magnitude as
the temporal variation of the loading are important for the viscoelastic response. The
cost in terms of memory consumption and computational speed increase significantly
if the model contains many branches, particularly in time domain and for
eigenfrequency analyses. In these cases many auxiliary equations of the form
Equation 3-31 have to be solved for.

However, if a viscoelastic branches relaxes much faster or much slower than the time
scale of the excitation period of external loads, the corresponding dashpots may be
considered to be either fully relaxed or rigid, depending on the relaxation time of the
branch relative to the excitation frequency. These branches can then be removed and
grouped into equivalent branches, thus reducing the computational cost.

When the frequency band of interest is bounded by two cutoff frequencies, flower and
fupper, it is possible to prune viscoelastic branches that have relaxation times such as

1- 1
----------   m  ---------
f high f low

Branches with short relaxation times k represent the response of the viscoelastic
material to high frequency excitations. When the external loads represent excitations
bounded by an upper frequency fupper, it is possible to prune branches with relaxation
times that fulfill the relation k fupper  1. These branches are grouped into an
equivalent branch, with relaxation time and stiffness such as

 Gk k2
1
 high = --------------------  Gk k
k - and G high = -----------
 high
 Gk k k
k

MATERIAL MODELS | 457

 Viscoelastic branches with relaxation times k such that 1  k flow are grouped into an
equivalent branch forming the low frequency cutoff. The stiffness and relaxation time
for the equivalent branch are computed from

1- 1 Gk
---------
 low
= ------------
G low  ------
k
- and G low =  Gk
k k

Frequency Domain
In frequency domain, the relaxation function becomes complex-valued. The complex
shear modulus for the generalized Maxwell model is then defined as the sum of the
shear modulus in the pure elastic branch plus the complex shear moduli in the
viscoelastic branches

N
j m
G GM = G +  G m -----------------------
1 + j m
m=1

The storage and loss moduli are then computed as the real and imaginary parts of the
complex shear modulus

N 2
  m 
G' = real  G GM  = G +  G m ----------------------------2
1 +   m 
m=1

and

N
 m
G'' = imag  G GM  =  G m ----------------------------2
1 +   m 
m=1

Energy Dissipation
The dissipated energy density rate (SI unit: W/m3) in each dashpot m is

ꞏ ꞏ
W m =  m : m

The rate of total dissipated energy density in the Generalized Maxwell material is then

N
ꞏ ꞏ
Wv =  Wm
m=1

458 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 ꞏ
In order to compute the dissipated energy density, the variable W v is integrated over
time. For frequency domain studies, the dissipation of viscous forces averaged over a
time period 2 is computed from the shear loss modulus G'' as

W v = G''˜d conj  ˜d 

THE MAXWELL MODEL

The Maxwell model (or Maxwell element) consists of a spring and a dashpot arranged
series. Maxwell elements are building blocks used in the generalized Maxwell model.
d

G q

 


d

Figure 3-2: Maxwell model.

In frequency domain, the compliance of the Maxwell model is defined as the sum of
the compliance modulus of the elastic part plus the compliance in the damper

1 1
J M = ---- + --------------
G jG

The complex shear modulus then reads

1 j
G M = -------- = ------------------- G
JM 1 + j

The storage and loss moduli are defined as the real and imaginary parts of the complex
shear modulus

2
  
G' = real  G M  = -----------------------2- G
1 +   

and


G'' = imag  G M  = -----------------------2- G
1 +   

MATERIAL MODELS | 459

 THE GENERALIZED KELVIN–VOIGT MODEL
The generalized Kelvin–Voigt model is used to simulate the viscoelastic deformation
in a wide range of materials such as concrete, biological tissues, and glassy polymers.

Just as for the generalized Maxwell model, the deviatoric strain d is not linearly related
to the deviatoric stress d, but it also depends on the strain history. It is normally
defined by the hereditary integral:

t
 d
d =    t – t'  2---------
t'
dt'
0

The function (t) is called the compliance function (also called creep compliance or
creep function) and it can be found by measuring the strain evolution in time when
the material is held at a constant stress.

The compliance function is often approximated by a Prony series:

J m  1 – exp  – ------- 
t
t = J +     m 
m=1

A physical interpretation of this rheological model consists of an elastic branch plus a

number of Kelvin–Voigt elements arranged in series, this approach is shown in
Figure 3-3.

1 2 N

d
1 2 N
G
G1 G2 GN

d

Figure 3-3: The generalized Kelvin–Voigt model.

Here, G is the stiffness of the main elastic branch, Gm represents the stiffness of the
spring in element m, and m is the relaxation time constant of the spring-dashpot pair
in branch m. The compliance J in the pure elastic branch is related to the shear
modulus by

460 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 1
J = ----
G

and the compliances per branch are related to the shear moduli as

1
J m = ---------
Gm

The relaxations time m is normally measured in the frequency domain, so the viscosity
of the dashpot is not a physical quantity but instead it is derived from stiffness and
relaxation time measurements. The viscosity in each branch can be expressed in terms
of the stiffness or compliance modulus and relaxation time as

m = Gm m = m  Jm

The auxiliary strain variables m are introduced to represent the extension of the
corresponding Kelvin–Voigt element. Since the elements are arranged in series, the
total viscoelastic strain is given as the sum of the auxiliary strains

 =  m (3-32)
m

The deviatoric stress d in the pure elastic branch is the same as in all the Kelvin–Voigt
elements

ꞏ
 d = 2Gdev   el  = 2G m  m + 2 m  m (3-33)

Here, the deviatoric elastic strain is defined by the difference between the total and
inelastic strains.

Computing the Strain in Each Branch

The auxiliary strain variables m represent a symmetric isochoric (volume preserving)
strain tensor, which has as many components as the number of strain components of
the problem class.

The stress in each element m is given by the sum of the stresses in the spring and
dashpot arranged in parallel

ꞏ ꞏ
 d = 2G m  m + 2 m  m = 2G m   m +  m  m 

Here, m is the strain in the element m, and m  mGm is the viscosity. The auxiliary
variables m are computed by solving the ODE

MATERIAL MODELS | 461

 ꞏ 1
 m +  m  m = ------------  d (3-34)
2G m

The compliance of the elastic branch, J  1/G, is normally called the instantaneous
compliance, and it is often denoted with the symbol J0. This gives the equivalent
stiffness when the material is loaded by an abrupt load much faster than the shortest
relaxation time of any branch.

The long-term compliance J is defined as the instantaneous compliance plus the sum
of the compliances of the viscoelastic branches

N N
1 1-
J = J +  Jm = ---- +
G  --------
Gm
m=1 m=1

The long-term shear modulus then reads G  1/J.

Sometimes, the compliance function (t) is expressed in terms of the instantaneous

compliance J and relative weights wm, so that the Prony series reads

N
 
 w m  1 – exp  – -------  
t
t = J 1 +
    m  
 m=1 

In this case, the compliance and shear modulus in each branch are

J m = w m J and G m = G  w m

and the long-term shear compliance and long-term shear modulus read

N N
   
   w m
J = J 1+
 w m and G  = G  1 +
   
 m=1   m=1 

Frequency Domain
In frequency domain, the compliance function becomes complex valued. The complex
compliance for the generalized Kelvin–Voigt model is then defined as the sum of the
compliance in the pure elastic element (parent material) plus the complex compliances
in the viscoelastic elements.

462 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 N
1 1 - ----------------------
1 -
J GVK = ---- +
G  --------
G m 1 + j m
m=1

The storage and loss compliances are then computed as the real and imaginary parts of
the complex compliance function

N N
 wm 
1 1 ----------------------------
1 1  
J' = real  J GVK  = ---- +
G  ---------
G m 1 +    2
= ---- 1 +
G 
----------------------------
1 +   m  
2
m=1 m  m=1

and

N N
1 – m 1 – w m  m
J'' = imag  J GVK  =  --------- ----------------------------
G m 1 +    2
= ----
G  ----------------------------
1 +   m 
2
m=1 m m=1

Energy Dissipation
The dissipated energy density rate (SI unit: W/m3) in each branch m is given by the
dissipation in the dashpot

ꞏ ꞏ ꞏ
W m = 2 m  m : m

The rate of total dissipated energy density in the generalized Kelvin–Voigt material is
then

N
ꞏ ꞏ
Wv =  Wm
m=1
ꞏ
In order to compute the dissipated energy density, the variable W v is integrated over
time. For frequency domain studies, the dissipation of viscous forces averaged over a
time period 2 is computed from the shear loss modulus G'' as

W v = G''˜d conj  ˜d 

MATERIAL MODELS | 463

 THE KELVIN–VOIGT MODEL
The Kelvin–Voigt viscoelastic model is represented by a spring connected in parallel
with a dashpot:
d

 G  q

d

Figure 3-4: The Kelvin–Voigt model.

The stress tensor in the viscous branch is computed from the elastic strain rate

ꞏ ꞏ
 q = 2 = 2G (3-35)

so there is no need to add the extra DOFs to compute the auxiliary strain tensor .

The relaxation time relates the viscosity and shear modulus by   G. The equivalent
shear modulus is used in case of an anisotropic linear elastic material.

The dissipated energy density rate of the Kelvin–Voigt model is then computed from
its rate

ꞏ ꞏ
W v =  q :

The Kelvin–Voigt model is equivalent to viscous damping, see Viscous

Damping.

464 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

STANDARD LINEAR SOLID MODEL
The standard linear solid model, also called SLS model, Zener model, or
three-parameter model, is a simplification of the generalized Maxwell model with only
one spring-dashpot branch:
d

G1 q1
 G q
1 1

1
d

Figure 3-5: Standard linear solid (SLS) model.

The stress in the single branch is computed as

ꞏ
 q = 2G 1 q 1 = 2 1  1 = 2G 1   –  1 

where the relaxation time is related to the stiffness and relaxation time as 1  1G1.

The auxiliary strain tensor 1 is computed by solving by the ODE

ꞏ
1 1 + 1 = 

and the dissipated energy density rate of the single branch is calculated from

ꞏ ꞏ
W v =  q : 1

The long-term shear modulus G  G is given in the parent Linear Elastic Material,
and the instantaneous stiffness is given by G  G  G.

MATERIAL MODELS | 465

 THE BURGERS MODEL
The Burgers model consists of a Maxwell (spring-dashpot) branch in series with a
Kelvin–Voigt branch. The rheological representation of this material model is shown
in Figure 3-6:
d

G 

1 1




G2 2 2

d

Figure 3-6: The Burgers model.

The strain in the first dashpot follows the ODE

ꞏ
dev    = 2G   –   = 2 1  1

where the shear modulus G is taken from the parent Linear Elastic material.

The strain in the second dashpot follows the ODE

ꞏ
2 2  2 = dev    – 2G 2  2

The total strain in the dashpots is computed from

 = 1 + 2

Combining these equations, it is possible to recover a second-order ODE for the strain
tensor :

ꞏꞏ ꞏ G2 ꞏ G2
 2 =  ---------- + ---------- dev    – -------  + ---------------- dev   
1 1
 2 1 2 2 2 2 1  2

466 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Note that the Burgers material has two relaxation times related to the stiffness and
viscosity in the springs and dashpots. The relaxation times 1 and2 are related to the
stiffness and viscosities as 1  1/G and 2  2/G2.

The instantaneous stiffness G  G is given in the parent Linear Elastic Material.

GENERALIZED MAXWELL MODEL WITH FRACTIONAL DERIVATIVES

Typically, the rheology of viscoelasticity models consists of springs and dashpots
arranged in series and in parallel. Using the framework of fractional calculus, the
constitutive equations of linear viscoelasticity can be generalized with a new type of
element, named spring-pot (Ref. 44). In some cases, viscoelasticity models with
fractional derivatives have shown to better match experimental data.

p, 

Figure 3-7: Spring-pot element.

The basic stress-strain relation of the spring-pot element is given by a proportionality

factor p and a fractional time derivative of order 


d 
dev    = 2p 
 = 2pD 
dt

The fractional order  takes a value between     . For   , the parameter p plays
the role of a stiffness in a spring, and for    the parameter plays the role of the
viscosity in a dashpot. The SI unit for such material parameter would be Pa·s.

For a pair of one spring and one spring-pot element connected in series, a so-called
Maxwell element with a fractional time derivative, the stress strain relation is given by


dev    = 2pD  = 2G   –  

MATERIAL MODELS | 467

 The rheological representation of this arrangement is shown in Figure 3-8
d

G q

p,  


d

Figure 3-8: A spring-pot element connected in series with a spring.

In frequency domain, substitute the fractional time derivative operator by

 
D   j 

The fractional derivative models are available for frequency domain

analyses only.

Thus, the stress-strain relationship reads


Gp  j 
dev    = 2 ---------------------------- 
G + p  j 

For a standard spring-dashpot branch, the relaxation time is given by the ratio of
viscosity and stiffness,   G. Equivalently, the relaxation time  for a branch with a
spring and a spring-pot element in series is derived from

 p
 = ----
G

Thus, p  G, and the stress-strain relationship in the spring-spring-pot system reads


G  j 
dev    = 2 -------------------------- 
1 +  j 

The complex-valued shear modulus for this Maxwell element reads


 j 
G M = -------------------------- G
1 +  j 

468 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Storage and loss moduli are defined as the real and imaginary part of the complex shear
modulus

G' = real  G M  and G'' = imag  G M 

The loss factor is computed from

G'' sin    2
 M = ------ = --------------------------------------------

G'    + cos   2

For The Generalized Maxwell Model with fractional derivatives, all dashpots are
replaced with spring-pot elements. The rheological representation of this material
model is shown in Figure 3-9
d

G1 G2 Gm qm
 G ..... m
1 2 m m

1 2 m
d

Figure 3-9: The generalized Maxwell model with fractional derivatives.

The complex-valued shear modulus for the generalized Maxwell model with fractional
derivatives reads


 j m  m
G GM = G +  --------------------------------
1 +  j m  m

- Gm
m

where Gm, m, and m are the shear modulus, relaxation time, and fractional order of
branch m, respectively. Storage and loss moduli are defined as the real and imaginary
part of the complex shear modulus.

G' = real  G GM  and G'' = imag  G GM 

GENERALIZED KELVIN–VOIGT MODEL WITH FRACTIONAL DERIVATIVES

The Kelvin–Voigt viscoelastic model with fractional time derivative consists of a spring
connected in parallel with a spring-pot element. The stress strain relation for such
arrangement reads

MATERIAL MODELS | 469

 
dev    = 2pD  + 2G

The rheological representation of this arrangement is shown in Figure 3-10

d

 G , 

d

Figure 3-10: Spring spring-pot elements connected in parallel.

In frequency domain, substitute the fractional time derivative operator by

 
D   j 

The stress-strain relationship for this Kelvin element then reads


dev    = 2  p  j  + G 

The relaxation time  for a spring and a spring-pot element in parallel is derived from

 p
 = ----
G

so p  G, and the stress-strain relationship in the Kelvin–Voigt element reads


dev    = 2G   j  + 1 

The complex-valued shear modulus in a spring-spring-pot arrangement reads


G KV =  1 +  j  G

Storage and loss moduli are defined as the real and imaginary part of the complex shear
modulus.


G' = real  G KV  =  1 +    cos   2 G

and

470 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 
G'' = imag  G KV  =    sin    2  G

The loss factor is computed from


G''    sin    2 -
 KV = ------ = -----------------------------------------------

G' 1 +    cos   2

The complex-valued compliance of the Kelvin–Voigt element with fractional time

derivative reads

1 1 1
J KV = ----------- = ---- --------------------------
G KV G 1 +  j 

For The Generalized Kelvin–Voigt Model with fractional derivatives, all dashpots are
replaced with spring-pot elements.

The rheological representation of this material model is shown in Figure 3-11.


1 2 N

d
11 22 NN
G
G1 G2 GN

d

Figure 3-11: The generalized Kelvin–Voigt model with fractional derivatives.

The complex-valued compliance reads

1 1 1
J GKV = ---- +
G  --------------------------------
1 +  j  G m

- ---------
m

m m

where Gm, m, and m are the shear modulus, relaxation time, and fractional order of
element m, respectively. Storage and loss moduli are defined as the real and imaginary
part of the complex shear modulus

1
G GKV = --------------
J GKV

MATERIAL MODELS | 471

 G' = real  G GKV  and G'' = imag  G GKV 

STANDARD LINEAR SOLID MODEL WITH FRACTIONAL DERIVATIVES

In the rheological representation of the Standard Linear Solid Model with fractional
derivatives, the dashpot is replaced with a spring-pot element.
d

G1 q1
 G q
1 1

d

Figure 3-12: Standard linear solid (SLS) model with fractional derivatives.

The deviatoric stress in the spring-spring-pot branch is computed as


 q = 2G 1   –  1  = 2pD  1

here, 1 is the strain in the spring-pot element. In the frequency domain this equation
translates to

 G1 
 q = 2p  j   1 = ------------------------------- 2p  j  
G 1 + p  j 

Using the relaxation time   (p/G1), this reads

G1 
 q = 2 --------------------------  j   = 2G q 
1 +  j 

where Gq  G1(j)/(1+(j)) is the complex shear modulus of the spring-pot

branch.

Subsequently, the shear modulus is for the SLS model with fractional derivatives reads


 j 
G SLS = G + G q = G + -------------------------- G 1
1 +  j 

472 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The storage and loss moduli are defined as the real and imaginary parts of the shear
modulus GSLS, respectively

G' = real  G SLS  and G'' = imag  G SLS 

BURGERS MODEL WITH FRACTIONAL DERIVATIVES

In the rheological representation of The Burgers Model with fractional derivatives, the
dashpots are replaced with a spring-pot elements. The rheological representation of
this material model is shown in Figure 3-13:
d

G 

11 1




G2 22 2

d

Figure 3-13: The Burgers model with fractional derivatives.

The deviatoric stress in the main branch is computed as


 d = 2G   –   = 2p 1 D 1  1

here, 1 is the strain in the spring-pot element. In frequency domain, and using the
relaxation times 1  (p1/G), this equation translates to

d 
- =  –  =  j 1  1  1
-------
2G

The stress in the second spring-pot follows


2p 2 D 2  2 =  d – 2G 2  2

MATERIAL MODELS | 473

 here, 2 is the strain in the second spring-pot element. In frequency domain, and using
the relaxation time 2  (p2/G2), this equation reads

 d
 j 2  2  2 = ----------- –  2
2G 2

The total strain in the spring-pots is computed from

 = 1 + 2

which combined with the relations for the strains in the spring-pots

1 1
-  and  2 = ----------------------------------------------
 1 = -----------------------------
1 d 
- d
2G  j 1  2G 2  1 +  j 2  2 

gives the stress and strain relation for Burgers model with fractional derivatives

 1 1 1 
-  d = 
- + ----------------------------------------------
 -------- + -----------------------------
2G 1 2
 2G  j 1  2G 2  1 +  j 2  

Subsequently, the compliance for the Burgers model with fractional derivatives reads

1 1 1
J B = ---- + -------------------------
- + -------------------------------------------
G  j   1 G  1 +  j  2 G
1 2 2

The storage and loss moduli are defined as the real and imaginary parts of the shear
modulus GB  1/JB, respectively

G' = real  G B  and G'' = imag  G B 

USER DEFINED
With the user-defined viscoelastic material model it is possible to directly enter
complex-valued expressions for the bulk and shear moduli or compliances, or for the
loss factor. The bulk and shear moduli or compliances are entered in terms of storage
and loss moduli or compliances, respectively. The expressions can be entered as
functions taken directly from interpolated data, or can be analytical expressions of the
frequency variable .

When the viscoelastic strain is deviatoric, the deviatoric stress is computed from the
elastic deviatoric strain as

474 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

  d = 2  G'    + jG''    

and when the viscoelastic strain is volumetric, the pressure is computed from
volumetric elastic strain

p = –  K'    + jK''      el,vol

When loss factor damping is selected, the stress-strain relation is augmented by a

complex constitutive matrix

c
D =  1 + j v    D

where D is the constitutive matrix computed from the material data, and Dc is the
complex constitutive matrix used to compute the viscoelastic stresses.

The User defined viscoelastic models are available for frequency domain
and eigenfrequency analyses only.

The internal variables for the frequencyf and angular frequency  are
named phys.freq and phys.omega. Here, phys is the name of the
physics interface, for instance solid.

TEMPERATURE EFFECTS
For many polymers, the viscoelastic properties have a strong dependence on the
temperature. A common assumption is that the material is thermorheologically simple
(TRS). In a material of this class, a change in the temperature can be transformed
directly into a change in the time scale. The reduced time is defined as

t
dt'
tr =  ------------------------
T  T  t'  
0

where T(T) is a temperature-dependent shift function.

The implication is that the problem can be solved using the original material data,
provided that the time is transformed into the reduced time.

Think of the shift function T(T) as a multiplier to the viscosity in the dashpot in the
Generalized Maxwell model. This multiplier shifts the relaxation time, so
Equation 3-31 for a TRS material is modified to

MATERIAL MODELS | 475

 ꞏ
 T  T  m  m +  m = 

For the SLS model, the shift applies to a single branch

ꞏ
 T  T  1  1 +  1 = 

and for the Kelvin–Voigt model, it applies to the viscosity in the dashpot

Williams–Landel–Ferry Shift
One commonly used shift function is defined by the WLF (Williams–Landel–Ferry)
equation:

– C 1  T – T ref 
log   T  = --------------------------------------
C 2 +  T – T ref 

where a base-10 logarithm is used. This shift is only valid over a certain temperature
range, typically around the glass transition temperature.

The first step to compute the shift function T(T) consists of building a master curve
based on experimental data. To do this, the curves of the viscoelastic properties (shear
modulus, Young’s modulus, and so forth) versus time or frequency are measured at a
reference temperature Tref. Then, the same properties are measured at different
temperatures.

The shift value of each curve, with respect to the master curve obtained at the
temperature Tref, defines the shift factor T(T). The constants C1 and C2 are material
dependent and are calculated after plotting log(T) versus T  Tref.

The shift factor at the reference temperature equals T(Tref) = 1, so that

Tref is the temperature at which the master curve is given. If the
temperature T drops below Tref  C2, the WLF equation is no longer
valid.

Since the master curve is measured at an arbitrary reference temperature Tref, the shift
factor T(T) can be derived with respect to any temperature, and it is commonly taken
as the shift with respect to the glass transition temperature. The values C1 = 17.4 and
C2 = 51.6 K are reasonable approximations for many polymers at this reference
temperature.

476 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Arrhenius Shift
Below the Vicat softening temperature, the shift factor in polymers is normally
assumed to follow an Arrhenius law. In this case, the shift factor is given by the
equation

log   T  = ----  ---- – ---------

Q 1 1
R  T T ref

here, a base-e logarithm is used, Q is the activation energy (SI unit: J/mol), and R is
the universal gas constant.

Tool–Narayanaswamy–Moynihan Shift
Structural relaxation in glass can be modeled using the so-called Tool–
Narayanaswamy–Moynihan shift factor which is given as

Q  1–
log   T  = ----  ---- + ------------ – ---------
1
RT Tf T ref

here, a base-e logarithm is used, Q is the activation energy (SI unit: J/mol), R is the
universal gas constant, T is the current temperature, Tref is a reference temperature, 
is a dimensionless activation energy fraction, and Tf is the so-called fictive
temperature. The fictive temperature is given as the weighted average of partial fictive
temperatures.

Tf =  wi Tfi with  wi = 1
i i

Here, wi are the weights and Tfi are the partial fictive temperatures. The partial fictive
temperatures are determined from a system of coupled ordinary differential equations
(ODEs) which follow Tool’s equation

d T – T fi
T fi = -----------------
dt  T  0i

here, 0i is a structural relaxation time.

STATIONARY ANALYSIS
For stationary analysis it is possible to select either the long-term stiffness, in which
case the stiffness of the viscoelastic branches is neglected, or the instantaneous stiffness,
in which case the contribution from all branches is used.

MATERIAL MODELS | 477

 The instantaneous shear modulus G0 is defined as the sum of the stiffness of all the
branches

G0 = G +  Gm
m=1

FREQUENCY DOMAIN ANALYSIS AND DAMPING

For frequency domain analysis, the frequency decomposition is performed as

 d = real  s˜ d e 
jt

 d = real  ˜d e 
jt

Equation 3-29 and Equation 3-31 are then simplified to

̃ d = 2  G' + jG'' ˜d

where the shear storage modulus G' and the shear loss modulus G'' are defined for the
generalized Maxwell model as

N 2 N
  m   m
G' = G +  G m ----------------------------2 and G'' =
1 +   m 
 G m ----------------------------2
1 +   m 
m=1 m=1

for the SLS model as

2
  1   1
G' = G + G 1 --------------------------2- and G'' = G 1 --------------------------2-
1 +   1  1 +   1 

for the Kelvin–Voigt model as

G' = G and G'' =  = G

The internal work of viscous forces averaged over a time period 2 is computed as

Q h = G''˜d conj  ˜d 

EIGENFREQUENCY ANALYSIS
The direct use of frequency-dependent shear or bulk moduli, as described in
Frequency Domain Analysis and Damping, leads to a nonlinear eigenvalue problem.

478 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

COMSOL Multiphysics solves such nonlinear problems by expanding all nonlinear
expressions with quadratic polynomials around a frequency linearization point which
you can specify in the Eigenvalue Solver node. The linearized eigenvalue problem then
reads

2
 K   L  –  M u = 0

where L is the angular frequency at the linearization point. Thus, the solution of the
linearized system of equations depends on the choice of the linearization frequency L.

Selecting the linearization frequency closer to one of the eigenfrequencies will produce
a better result for that particular frequency, but not for all eigenfrequencies in the
study. Hence, the eigenfrequencies need to be computed one by one using a certain
iterative process that updates the linearization frequency L. This iterative procedure
is needed when fractional derivatives are used, and also for the User Defined
viscoelasticity model.

In order to avoid solving a nonlinear eigenvalue problem for the built-in viscoelasticity
models, the same procedure as for time-dependent analysis is used, that is, each
viscoelastic branch is represented by additional variables. For instance, for the The
Generalized Maxwell Model in a eigenfrequency analysis, Equation 3-31 reads

j m  m +  m = 

The viscoelastic strain variables, m, are treated as additional degrees of freedom
(DOFs), and contribute to the damping and stiffness matrices of the coupled system
of equations.

This procedure results in a damped linear eigenvalue problem that can be solved using
the default eigenfrequency solver in a single run, for any specified number of
eigenfrequencies.

For more information see the Eigenfrequency section in the Studies and
Solvers chapter in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

An example of a nonlinear eigenvalue problem is shown in Eigenmodes of

a Viscoelastic Structural Damper: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Dynamics_and_Vibration/
viscoelastic_damper_eigenmodes

MATERIAL MODELS | 479

 LOCAL TIME INTEGRATION
For the The Generalized Maxwell Model and the Standard Linear Solid Model it is
possible to use a local time integration algorithm for time-dependent analysis. By using
this algorithm, the degrees-of-freedom related to viscoelasticity are treated as internal
state variables, which makes the overall solution more efficient and also leaner in terms
of memory usage. The implemented algorithm is based on the method originally
suggested in Ref. 27, and it is schematically described in the following.

Each branch in the Generalized Maxwell model is characterized by an ODE on the

following form

ꞏ
m m + m =   t  (3-36)

where m is the viscoelastic strain in the branch. The exact solution to Equation 3-36 is
n+1
t
t n  t n + 1 – 
= exp  – -------  m + -------
1

n+1
m exp  – ---------------------     d (3-37)
  m m  m 
n
t

By assuming that the strain (t) varies linearly within each time increment, the integral
in Equation 3-37 is analytically computed, so the viscoelastic strain at increment n  1
reads

t
1 – exp  – -------
t    n+1 n
– exp  – -------   –  m  – -----------------------------------  
n+1 n+1 n n m
m =  –  (3-38)
  m  t
-------
m

All variables in Equation 3-38 evaluated at increment n are stored as internal state
variables, and the equation can be applied to each branch of the Generalized Maxwell
model. The same implementation is also used for the single branch in the Standard
Linear Solid model.

See also the description of Viscoelasticity in the Solid Mechanics interface

documentation.

Large Strain Viscoelasticity

The implementation for large strain viscoelasticity follows the derivation by Holzapfel
(Ref. 1).

480 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The generalized Maxwell model is based on the splitting of the strain energy density
into volumetric, isochoric, and the contribution from the viscoelastic branches

W s = W iso + W vol +  m
m=1

The strain energy in the main hyperelastic branch is normally denoted with the
superscript  to denote the long-term equilibrium (as t  ).

The second Piola–Kirchhoff stress is computed from

N
W s
S = 2
C
= S iso + S vol +  Qm
m=1

where the auxiliary second Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensors Qm are defined as

 m
Qm = 2
C

The time evolution of the auxiliary stress tensor Qm in each viscoelastic branch is given
by the rate

ꞏ 1 ꞏ
Q m + ------- Q m = S iso,m
m

here, Siso,m is the isochoric second Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor in the branch m.
These tensors are derived from the strain energy density in the main hyperelastic
branch and the energy factors m as

W iso m W iso
S iso m = 2 = 2 m =  m S iso
C C

so the time evolution of the auxiliary stress tensor Qm is given by

ꞏ 1 ꞏ
Q m + ------- Q m =  m S iso
m

This equation is not well suited for modeling prestressed bodies. Applying the change
of variables

q m =  m S iso – Q m

MATERIAL MODELS | 481

 the time evolution of the auxiliary stress tensor qm reads

ꞏ
 m q m + q m =  m S iso

For the The Generalized Maxwell Model, it is possible to write the Prony series in
terms of weights wm with respect to the instantaneous stiffness G0

N
 
 w m exp  – ------- 
t
  t  = G0  w +    m
 m=1 

Here, w is the ratio between the long term and instantaneous stiffness, w  GG0,
and the weight wm relates the branch stiffness to the instantaneous stiffness through
wm  GmG0. The weights are bounded by

w +  wm = 1
m=1

Use this expression to relate the instantaneous stiffness in the small strain regime to the
large strain formulation. The instantaneous response for the second Piola–Kirchhoff
stress is computed from

S = S iso + S vol +   m S iso

m=1

In this expression, the isochoric response represents the long term stiffness, and the
sum of the energy factors the contribution to the overall stiffness from the Maxwell
branches.

The weights in the Generalized Maxwell model for the small strain formulation are
related to the energy factors in the large strain formulation by

G0 Gm
 m = w m -------- = ---------
G G

482 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

equivalently, the energy factors represent the ratio between the branch stiffness and the
long term stiffness in the main branch.

The volumetric contribution from the auxiliary stress tensor qm is

removed before adding these to the viscoelastic stresses per branch
Qm  mSiso  qm, so the stresses Qm are isochoric.

TEMPERATURE EFFECTS
The same options for defining Temperature Effects as described for Linear
Viscoelasticity are available for large strain viscoelasticity.

Hyperelastic Materials
A hyperelastic material is defined by its elastic strain energy density Ws, which is a
function of the elastic strain state. It is often referred to as the energy density. The
hyperelastic formulation normally gives a nonlinear relation between stress and strain,
as opposed to Hooke’s law in linear elasticity.

Most of the time, the right Cauchy–Green deformation tensor C is used to describe
the current state of strain (although one could use the left Cauchy–Green tensor B,
the deformation gradient tensor F, and so forth), so the strain energy density is written
as Ws(C).

For isotropic hyperelastic materials, any state of strain can be described in terms of
three independent variables — common choices are the invariants of the right
Cauchy–Green tensor C, the invariants of the Green–Lagrange strain tensor, or the
principal stretches.

Once the strain energy density is defined, the second Piola–Kirchhoff stress is
computed as

W s
S = 2
C

In the general case, the expression for the energy Ws is symbolically evaluated down to
the components of C using the invariants definitions prior to the calculations of the

MATERIAL MODELS | 483

 components of the second Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor. The differentiation is
performed in components on the local coordinate system.

In Equation View, the definitions of the stress components are shown as

solid.Sl11 = 2*d(solid.Ws,solid.Cl11),
solid.Sl12 = d(solid.Ws,solid.Cl12), and so on
The factor 2 in front of the differentiation operator for the shear stresses
is omitted, since the symmetry in the Cauchy–Green tensor will cause two
equal contributions.

Modeling Geometric Nonlinearity

For hyperelastic materials, the decomposition between elastic and inelastic

deformation is made using a multiplicative decomposition of the deformation gradient

–1
F el = FF in

Here, the inelastic deformation tensor Fin depends on the inelastic process, such as
thermal expansion, hygroscopic swelling, or plasticity.

In this case, the strain energy density depends on the elastic deformation only, Ws(Cel),
and the second Piola-Kirchoff stress can be written in terms of its elastic counterpart

–1 –T
S = J in F in S el F in

where Jin  det(Fin) and

W s
S el = 2
 C el

THERMAL EXPANSION
If thermal expansion is present, a stress-free volume change occurs. This is a pure
volumetric change, so the multiplicative decomposition of the deformation gradient
tensor in Equation 3-4 implies

det  F  J
J el = --------------------- = --------
det  F th  J th

484 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Here, the thermal volume ratio, Jth, depends on the thermal stretch th, which for
linear thermal expansion in isotropic materials can be written in terms of the isotropic
coefficient of thermal expansion, iso, and the absolute change in temperature

J th =  th
3 and 
th = 1 +  iso  T – T ref 

Here, the term isoTTrefis the thermal strain. The isotropic thermal gradient is
therefore a diagonal tensor defined as

F th =  th I

When the coefficient of thermal expansion  is anisotropic, the thermal strain is

computed from

 th =   T – T ref 

and the anisotropic thermal gradient is defined as

F th = I +  th

The internal variables for the thermal stretch and the thermal volume
ratio are named solid.stchth and solid.Jth.

HYGROSCOPIC SWELLING
Hygroscopic swelling is an internal strain caused by changes in moisture content. This
strain depends linearly on the moisture content

 hs =  h  c mo – c mo,ref 

where h is the coefficient of hygroscopic swelling, cmo is the moisture concentration,

and cmo,ref is the strain-free reference concentration. The coefficient of hygroscopic
swelling can represent isotropic or anisotropic swelling. The anisotropic hygroscopic
gradient is defined as

F hs = I +  hs

HYPERELASTICITY WITH PLASTICITY

It is possible to combine the hyperelastic material models with plasticity, viscoplasticity
and creep. Since these models are primarily used for large strain applications, only the
large strain formulation is available. The decomposition between elastic and plastic

MATERIAL MODELS | 485

 deformation is made using a multiplicative decomposition of the deformation gradient
tensor,

–1
F el = FF pl

Here, the plastic deformation tensor Fpl depends on the plastic flow rule, yield
function, and plastic potential.

• Multiplicative Decomposition
• Plastic Flow for Large Strains
• Creep and Viscoplasticity for Large Strains

ISOCHORIC ELASTIC DEFORMATION

For some classes of hyperelastic materials it is convenient to split the strain energy
density into volumetric (also called dilatational) and isochoric (also called
distortional or volume-preserving) contributions. The elastic deformation tensor is
then multiplicatively decomposed into the volumetric and isochoric components

F el = F el,vol F el

with Fel,vol as the volumetric elastic deformation (a diagonal tensor) and F el the
isochoric elastic deformation gradient. Isochoric deformation means that the volume
ratio is kept constant during deformation, so the isochoric elastic deformation is
computed by scaling it by the elastic volume ratio. The elastic volume ratio is defined
by

J el = det  F el  = det  F el,vol 

and the volumetric deformation as

1  3I
F el,vol = J el

By using Jel it is possible to define the isochoric-elastic deformation gradient

– 1/3
F el = J el F el

the isochoric-elastic right Cauchy–Green tensor

T – 2/3
C el = F el F el = J el C el

486 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

and the isochoric-elastic Green–Lagrange strain tensor

1
 el = ---  C el – I 
2

This scaling changes the eigenvalues of the tensor, but not its principal directions, so
the original and isochoric tensors remain coaxial to each other.

Some authors call F el and C el the modified tensors. Note that

det  F el  = det  C el  = 1

The internal variables for the isochoric-elastic Cauchy–Green

deformation tensor in local coordinate system are named solid.CIel11,
solid.CIel12, and so on.

The other two invariants normally used together with Jel are the first and second
invariant of the isochoric-elastic right Cauchy–Green deformation tensor

I 1  C el  and I 2  C el 

In these equations:

– 2/3
I 1  C el  = trace  C el  = J el I 1  C el 

1 2 2 – 4/3
I 2  C el  = ---  I 1  C el  – trace  C el   = J el I 2  C el 
2

Since I 3  C el  = det  C el  = 1 , the third invariant is never explicitly used.

The internal variables for the invariants Jel, I 1  C el  , and I 2  C el  are

named solid.Jel, solid.I1CIel, and solid.I2CIel.

The invariants of the isochoric (modified) elastic Green–Lagrange strain tensor are
related to the invariants of the isochoric-elastic right Cauchy–Green deformation
tensor

1
I 1   el  = trace   el  = ---  I 1  C el  – 3 
2

MATERIAL MODELS | 487

 1 2 1
I 2   el  = ---  I 1   el  – trace   el 2   = ---  I 2  C el  – 2I 1  C el  + 3 
2 4

1
I 3   el  = det   el  = ---  I 1  C el  – I 2  C el  
8

The internal variables for the invariants of the isochoric elastic Green–
Lagrange strain tensor are named solid.I1eIel, solid.I2eIel, and
solid.I3eIel.

COUPLED AND UNCOUPLED RESPONSES

The isochoric and volumetric responses of most materials are coupled (Ref. 11), in this
case, the strain energy density is written as a function of the elastic deformation

W s = W s  C el 

however, in many situations it is possible to assume that the pressure and deviatoric
stress are uncoupled, and therefore for numerous hyperelastic materials it is possible to
define the strain energy density as the sum of isochoric and volumetric counterparts

W s = W iso  C el  + W vol  J el 

here, C el is the isochoric elastic right Cauchy–Green deformation tensor, and Jel is
the elastic volume ratio.

VOLUMETRIC RESPONSE
The volumetric strain energy density, Wvol, is defined as an expression of the elastic
volumetric deformation Jel and the bulk modulus .

The Quadratic volumetric strain energy density is defined as:

 2
W vol  J el  = ---  J el – 1  (3-39)
2

The Logarithmic volumetric strain energy density (Ref. 11) is defined as:


W vol  J el  = --- ln J el (3-40)
2

The Hartmann–Neff volumetric strain energy density (Ref. 12) is defined as:

488 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

  5 –5
W vol  J el  = ------  J el + J el – 2  (3-41)
50

The Miehe volumetric strain energy density (Ref. 14) is defined as:

W vol  J el  =   J el – ln J el – 1  (3-42)

and the Simo–Taylor volumetric strain energy density (Ref. 15) is defined as:

 2
W vol  J el  = ---  J el – 2 ln J el – 1  (3-43)
4

For a given volumetric strain energy density, the volumetric stress (pressure) is
calculated as

W vol
p m = – -------------- (3-44)
J el

When the quadratic expression in Equation 3-39 is used, the pressure becomes linearly
related to the volume change:

p m = –   J el – 1 

but for other volumetric representations the pressure becomes a nonlinear function of
the volume change. For instance, if the expression in Equation 3-41 is used instead of
the quadratic function, the pressure reads

1 4 –6
p m = – ------   J el – J el 
10

THE LOCKING PROBLEM

A numerical scheme is said to exhibit locking if the accuracy of the approximation
deteriorates as a parameter tends to a limiting value (Ref. 16). Finite elements in solid
mechanics are said to “lock” when exhibiting an unphysical response to deformation
(Ref. 17). Locking can occur for many different reasons. For linear elastic materials,
this typically happens as Poisson’s ratio tends to 0.5, or the bulk modulus is much
larger than the shear modulus. Numerical errors arise because the shape functions are
unable to properly describe the volume preserving deformation.

To avoid the locking problem in computations, the mixed formulation replaces pm in

Equation 3-44 with a corresponding interpolated pressure help variable pw, which
adds an extra degree of freedom to the ones defined by the displacement vector u.

MATERIAL MODELS | 489

 The general procedure is the same as described in Mixed Formulation for Linear
Elastic materials.

INCOMPRESSIBLE HYPERELASTIC MATERIALS

For incompressible hyperelastic materials, the volumetric strain energy density Wvol is
not defined at all, and the strain energy density Ws consists only of the isochoric
contribution and the incompressibility constraint

W s  u p w  = W iso –  J el – 1  p w

Instead of deriving the pressure from the volumetric strain energy, a weak constraint is
added to account for the incompressibility condition

J el = 1

The auxiliary pressure variable, pw, acts as Lagrange multiplier to enforce the
constraint Jel  1. This variable, positive in compression, is then used as the pressure
when computing stresses.

The contribution to the virtual work is

W = – V S: dv + V   Jel – 1 pw dv

The second Piola–Kirchhoff stress is then given by

W iso –1
S = 2 -------------- – p w JC (3-45)
C

and the Cauchy stress tensor by

W iso
 = J –1 FSF T = 2J – 1 F -------------- F T – p w I (3-46)
C

NEARLY INCOMPRESSIBLE HYPERELASTIC MATERIALS

For nearly incompressible hyperelastic materials, the strain energy density Ws is
decoupled into isochoric and volumetric counterparts:

W s = W iso + W vol

here, Wiso is the isochoric strain energy density and Wvol is the volumetric strain energy
density.

490 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The isochoric strain energy density depends on the material model, and it can be an
expression involving the following:

• Components of the isochoric elastic right Cauchy–Green tensor C el in the local

coordinate system.
• Principal invariants of the isochoric elastic right Cauchy–Green tensor C el .
• Principal invariants of the isochoric elastic Green–Lagrange strain  el .
• For User Defined hyperelastic materials, it is also possible to define the strain energy
density in terms of components of the isochoric elastic deformation gradient F el .

The volumetric strain energy density can be any of the expression described in
Volumetric Response. The default value for the bulk modulus is set to 100 times the
equivalent shear modulus at infinitesimal deformation, which gives an initial Poisson’s
ratio of approximately   0.495.

An auxiliary variable, pw, is added to map the pressure pm derived from the volumetric
strain energy density as described in Equation 3-44.

Then the variational problem is computed by the so-called perturbed Lagrangian

method (Ref. 18), so the contribution to the virtual work reads

1
W = – V S: dv + V  ---  pw – pm pw dv
The second Piola–Kirchhoff stress is then defined as

W iso –1
S = 2 -------------- – p w JC (3-47)
C

where the extra pressure variable satisfies the weak constraint

W vol
p w = p m where p m = – --------------
J el

the Cauchy stress tensor then reads

W iso
 = J – 1 FSF T = 2J – 1 F -------------- F T – p w I
C

Using the Quadratic volumetric strain energy density results in the only
mixed formulation that returns a symmetric coupled stiffness matrix.

MATERIAL MODELS | 491

 PREDEFINED HYPERELASTIC MATERIAL MODELS
Different hyperelastic material models are constructed by specifying different elastic
strain energy expressions. There are several predefined material models, as well as the
option to enter user defined expressions for the isochoric and volumetric strain energy
densities.

NEO-HOOKEAN
The strain energy density for the Compressible, coupled version of the Neo-Hookean
material is written in terms of the elastic volume ratio Jel and the first invariant of the
elastic right Cauchy–Green deformation tensor I1Cel (Ref. 10, 13)

1 1 2
W s = ---   I 1 – 3  –  ln  J el  + ---  ln  J el 
2 2

Here,  and  are the Lamé parameters (SI unit: Pa).

In Ref. 8 the coupled strain energy density is defined from Lamé parameters

1  –  2
W s = ---   I 1 – 3  – ---  J el – 1  with  = --- = ----------------
2   1 – 2

The Compressible, uncoupled and Nearly incompressible versions use the isochoric
invariant I 1  C el  to define the isochoric strain energy density

1
W s = W iso + W vol = ---   I 1 – 3  + W vol
2

where the volumetric strain energy Wvol can use any of the expressions described in
Volumetric Response. See Nearly Incompressible Hyperelastic Materials for details.

The Incompressible option uses the same isochoric strain energy, but an extra variable
is added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  1, see Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials.

It is possible to define the isotropic hyperelastic material from other pair

of elastic moduli, see the conversion from one set of elastic moduli to
Lamé parameters in Table 3-1.

See also the description of the Neo-Hookean material model in the Solid
Mechanics interface documentation.

492 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

ST VENANT–KIRCHHOFF
One of the simplest hyperelastic material models is the St Venant–Kirchhoff material,
which is an extension of a linear elastic material into the hyperelastic regime.

For the Compressible, coupled response, the elastic strain energy density is written with
two parameters and two invariants of the elastic Green–Lagrange strain tensor, I1el
and I2el

1
W s = ---   + 2 I 12 – 2I 2
2

Here,  and  are Lamé parameters (SI unit: Pa). The bulk modulus  is calculated
from     23

The Compressible, uncoupled and the Nearly incompressible versions use the isochoric
invariants I 1   el  and I 2   el  to define the isochoric strain energy density

1
W iso = ---   + 2 I 1 2 – 2I 2
2

The elastic volume ratio Jel and the bulk modulus  are used to define the volumetric
strain energy density Wvol, see Volumetric Response and Nearly Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials.

It is possible to define the isotropic hyperelastic material from other pair

of elastic moduli, see the conversion from one set of elastic moduli to
Lamé parameters in Table 3-1.

See also the description of the St Venant–Kirchhoff material model in the

Solid Mechanics interface documentation.

MOONEY–RIVLIN, TWO PARAMETERS

For the Compressible, uncoupled and Nearly incompressible versions, the isochoric strain
energy density is written in terms of the two isochoric invariants of the elastic right
Cauchy–Green deformation tensors I 1  C el  and I 2  C el 

W iso = C 10  I 1 – 3  + C 01  I 2 – 3 

The material parameters C10 and C01 (SI unit: Pa) are related to the Lamé parameter
(shear modulus)   C10  C01

MATERIAL MODELS | 493

 The elastic volume ratio Jel and the bulk modulus are used to define the volumetric
strain energy density Wvol, see Volumetric Response and Nearly Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials.

The Incompressible option uses the same isochoric strain energy, but an extra variable
is added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  1, see Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials

See also the description of the Mooney–Rivlin, Two Parameters material

model in the Solid Mechanics interface documentation.

MOONEY–RIVLIN, FIVE PARAMETERS

Rivlin and Saunders (Ref. 2) proposed a phenomenological model for small
deformations in rubber-based materials on a polynomial expansion of the first two
invariants of the elastic right Cauchy–Green deformation, so the strain energy density
is written as an infinite series

 

Ws =   Cmn  I1 – 3  m  I2 – 3 n
m = 0n = 0

with C00  . This material model is sometimes also called polynomial hyperelastic
material.

In the first-order approximation, the material model recovers the Mooney–Rivlin

strain energy density

W s = C 10  I 1 – 3  + C 01  I 2 – 3 

while the second-order approximation incorporates second-order terms

W s = C 10  I 1 – 3  + C 01  I 2 – 3  + C 20  I 1 – 3  2 + C 02  I 2 – 3  2 + C 11  I 1 – 3   I 2 – 3 

The Compressible, uncoupled and the Nearly incompressible versions use the isochoric
invariants of the elastic right Cauchy–Green deformation tensors I 1  C el  and I 2  C el 
to define the isochoric strain energy density

2 2

  Cmn  I1 – 3   I2 – 3 n
m
W iso =
m = 0n = 0

494 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The elastic volume ratio Jel and the bulk modulus are used to define the volumetric
strain energy density Wvol, see Volumetric Response and Nearly Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials.

The incompressible option uses the same isochoric strain energy, but an extra variable
is added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  1, see Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials.

See also the description of the Mooney–Rivlin, Five Parameters material

model in the Solid Mechanics interface documentation.

MOONEY–RIVLIN, NINE PARAMETERS

The Mooney–Rivlin, nine parameters material model is an extension of the polynomial
expression to third order terms and the strain energy density is written as

3 3

  Cmn  I1 – 3   I2 – 3 n
m
W iso =
m = 0n = 0

where I 1  C el  and I 2  C el  are the isochoric invariants of the elastic right Cauchy–
Green deformation tensors.

The elastic volume ratio Jel and the bulk modulus  are used to define the volumetric
strain energy density Wvol, see Volumetric Response and Nearly Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials.

The Incompressible option uses the same isochoric strain energy, but an extra variable
is added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  , see Volumetric Response
and Incompressible Hyperelastic Materials.

See also the description of the Mooney–Rivlin, Nine Parameters material

model in the Solid Mechanics interface documentation.

YEOH
Yeoh proposed (Ref. 1) a phenomenological model in order to fit experimental data of
filled rubbers, where Mooney–Rivlin and Neo-Hookean models were to simple to
describe the stiffening effect in the large strain regime. The strain energy was fitted to
experimental data by means of three parameters (SI unit: Pa), and the first invariant of
the elastic right Cauchy–Green deformation tensors I1Cel

MATERIAL MODELS | 495

 Ws = c1  I1 – 3  + c2  I1 – 3  2 + c3  I1 – 3  3

The shear modulus depends on the deformation, and it is calculated as

 W s W s
 = 2 +  = 2c 1 + 4c 2  I 1 – 3  + 6c 3  I 1 – 3  2
  I1  I2 

This imposes a restriction on the coefficients c1, c2, c3, since   0.

The Compressible, uncoupled and the Nearly incompressible versions use the isochoric
invariant of the elastic right Cauchy–Green deformation tensor I 1  C el  to define the
isochoric strain energy density

W iso = c 1  I 1 – 3  + c 2  I 1 – 3  2 + c 3  I 1 – 3  3

The elastic volume ratio Jel and the bulk modulus are used to define the volumetric
strain energy density Wvol, see Volumetric Response and Nearly Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials.

The Incompressible option uses the same isochoric strain energy, but an extra variable
is added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  1, see Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials.

See also the description of the Yeoh material model in the Solid
Mechanics interface documentation.

OGDEN
The Neo-Hookean material model usually fits well to experimental data at moderate
strains but fails to model hyperelastic deformations at high strains. In order to model
rubber-like materials at high strains, Ogden adapted (Ref. 1) the energy of a
Neo-Hookean material to

N
p p p p
Ws =  -----
-   +  el2 +  el3 – 3 
 p el1
p=1

Here p (SI unit: Pa) and p (dimensionless) are material parameters, and el1, el2,
and el3 are the principal elastic stretches such as Jel  el1el2el3.

496 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The Ogden model is empirical, in the sense that it does not relate the material
parameters p and p to physical phenomena. The parameters p and p are obtained
by curve-fitting measured data, which can be difficult for N  2. The most common
implementation of Ogden material is with N  2, so four parameters are needed.

The Compressible, uncoupled and the Nearly incompressible versions use the isochoric
elastic stretches

13
 eli =  eli  J el

so the isochoric strain energy density is defined as

N
p p p p
W iso =  -----
-   +  el2 +  el3 – 3 
 p el1
p=1

The isochoric elastic stretches define a volume preserving deformation, since

 el1  el2  el3 =  el1  el2  el3  J el = 1

The shear modulus at infinitesimal deformation is then defined from

N
1
 = ---
2  p p
p=1

The elastic volume ratio Jel and the bulk modulus are used to define the volumetric
strain energy density Wvol, see Volumetric Response and Nearly Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials.

The Incompressible option uses the same isochoric strain energy, but an extra variable
is added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  , see Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials.

Sometimes a slightly different definition of the strain energy function for

the Ogden material is used. If you have given material data for an Ogden
material, be careful that the definitions used are the same. If not, you will
need to rescale the p coefficients.

MATERIAL MODELS | 497

 See also the description of the Ogden material model in the Solid
Mechanics interface documentation.

STORAKERS
The Storakers material (Ref. 17 and Ref. 24) is used to model highly compressible
foams. The strain energy density is written in a similar fashion as in Ogden material:

N
2 k k k k –k k
-   +  el2 +  el3 – 3 + -----  J el – 1 
1
Ws =  --------

2  el1 k 
k=1 k

The initial shear and bulk moduli are computed from the parameters k (SI unit: Pa)
and k (dimensionless) as

N N

 2k  k + --3-
1
 =   k and  =
k=1 k=1

for constantparameters k  , the initial bulk modulus becomes     , so a

stable material requires    and   . In this case, the Poisson's ratio is given by
    , which means that for a Poisson’s ratio larger than   is
needed.

See also the description of the Storakers material model in the Solid
Mechanics interface documentation.

VARGA
The Varga material model (Ref. 1) describes the strain energy in terms of the elastic
stretches as

W s = c 1   el1 +  el2 +  el3 – 3  + c 2   el1  el2 +  el2  el3 +  el1  el3 – 3 

The Compressible, uncoupled and Nearly incompressible versions use the isochoric elastic
stretches defined as

13
 eli =  eli  J el

to define the isochoric strain energy density:

498 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 W iso = c 1   el1 +  el2 +  el3 – 3  + c 2   el1  el2 +  el2  el3 +  el1  el3 – 3 

The simplest Varga model is obtained by setting c1   and c2  

W iso =    el1 +  el2 +  el3 – 3 

The elastic volume ratio Jel and the bulk modulus are used to define the volumetric
strain energy density Wvol, see Volumetric Response and Nearly Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials.

The Incompressible option uses the same isochoric strain energy, but an extra variable
is added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  , see Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials.

See also the description of the Varga material model in the Solid
Mechanics interface documentation.

ARRUDA–BOYCE
The other hyperelastic materials described are phenomenological models in the sense
that they do not relate the different material parameters (normally obtained by
curve-fitting experimental data) to physical phenomena.

Arruda and Boyce (Ref. 3) derived a material model based on Langevin statistics of
polymer chains. The strain energy density is defined by

 cp  I1 – 3
p p
Ws = 0 
p=1

Here, 0 is the initial macroscopic shear modulus, I1Cel is the first invariant of the
elastic right Cauchy–Green deformation tensor, and the coefficients cp are obtained by
series expansion of the inverse Langevin function.

Arruda and Boyce truncated the series and used only the first five terms of the series.
The coefficients cp (dimensionless) are listed in Table 3-2:
TABLE 3-2: FIRST FIVE COEFFICIENTS OF ARRUDA–BOYCE MATERIAL MODEL

C1 C2 C3 C4 C5

1/2 1/20 N 11/1050 N2 19/7000 N3 519/673750 N4

MATERIAL MODELS | 499

 Other authors (Ref. 1) use only the first three coefficients of the series. The number of
segments in the polymeric chain is specified by the parameter N so the material model
is described by only two parameters, 0 (SI unit: Pa) and N. This material model is
sometimes also called the eight-chain model.

The Compressible, uncoupled and Nearly incompressible versions use the isochoric
invariant I 1 = I 1  C el  to define the isochoric strain energy density

5
p
 cp  I1
p
W iso =  0 –3 
p=1

The elastic volume ratio Jel and the bulk modulus are used to define the volumetric
strain energy density Wvol, see Volumetric Response and Nearly Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials.

The Incompressible option uses the same isochoric strain energy, but an extra variable
is added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  , see Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials.

See also the description of the Arruda–Boyce material model in the Solid
Mechanics interface documentation.

GENT
Many hyperelastic material models are difficult to fit to experimental data. Gent
material (Ref. 19 and Ref. 20) is a simple phenomenological constitutive model based
on only two parameters,  and jm, which defines the strain energy density as:

  I 1 – 3
W s = – --- j m log  1 – --------------
2  jm 

Here,  (SI unit: Pa) is the shear modulus and jm (dimensionless) is a limiting value
for I1 3, which takes care of the limiting polymeric chain extensibility of the material.

Since the strain energy density does not depend on the second invariant I2, Gent
model is often classified as a generalized Neo-Hookean material. The strain energy
density tends to be the one of incompressible Neo-Hookean material as j m   . Gent
material is the simplest model of the limiting chain extensibility family.

500 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The Compressible, uncoupled and Nearly incompressible formulations use the isochoric
invariants I 1  C el  to define the isochoric strain energy density

  I 1 – 3
W iso = – --- j m log  1 – --------------
2  jm 

The elastic volume ratio Jel and the bulk modulus are used to define the volumetric
strain energy density Wvol, see Volumetric Response and Nearly Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials.

The Incompressible option uses the same isochoric strain energy, but an extra variable
is added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  , see Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials.

See also the description of the Gent material model in the Solid
Mechanics interface documentation.

VAN DER WAALS

Kilian and co-workers formulated a van der Waals equation of state for real networks
of polymer chains from the analogy of an ideal gas (Ref. 21–23). The constitutive
model is based on four parameters which define the averaged invariant

I = I 1 +  1 –  I 2

the variable 

I–3
 = ----------------
2
m – 3

and the function

f    = – log  1 –   – 

in order to define the isochoric strain energy density

3
---
 
2 I – 3 2
=     m – 3 f    – -------  ----------- 
2
W iso
 3  2  
 

MATERIAL MODELS | 501

 Here,  (SI unit: Pa) is the shear modulus. The maximum chain stretch m
(dimensionless) represents a limiting value for the averaged invariant I , which
accounts for the maximum chain extensibility in networks with finite chain lengths.
The dimensionless parameter  phenomenologically averages the two isochoric
invariants I 1 and I 2 , and the parameter  (dimensionless) represents the global
interaction between polymer chains.

The Compressible, uncoupled and Nearly incompressible formulations use the elastic
volume ratio Jel and the bulk modulus to define the volumetric strain energy density
Wvol, see Volumetric Response and Nearly Incompressible Hyperelastic Materials.

The Incompressible option uses the same isochoric strain energy, but an extra variable
is added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  , see Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials

See also the description of the van der Waals material model in the Solid
Mechanics interface documentation.

BLATZ–KO
The Blatz–Ko material model was developed for foamed elastomers and polyurethane
rubbers, and it is used to model compressible isotropic hyperelastic materials (Ref. 1,
25).

The elastic strain energy density is written with three parameters and the three
invariants of the elastic right Cauchy–Green deformation tensor, I1Cel, I2Cel, and
I3Cel  Jel2

  I2
W s =  ---   I 1 – 3  + ---  I 3 – 1  +  1 –   ---   ----- – 3 + ---  I 3 – 1 
1 – 1 
2   2   I3   

Here,  is an interpolation parameter bounded to 0    1, the parameter  (SI unit:

Pa) is the shear modulus, and  is an expression of Poisson’s ratio,   /1-2, or Lamé
parameters,   /2.

When the parameter    , or equivalently, the Poisson’s ratio tends to 0.5; the strain
energy simplifies to a similar form of the Mooney–Rivlin, Two Parameters model

  I2
W s =  ---  I 1 – 3  +  1 –   ---  ----- – 3
2 2  I3 

502 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

In the special case of   1, the strain energy reduces to a compressible Neo-Hookean
model (use   /  /1-2),

  – 2
W s = ---  I 1 – 3  + ------  J – 1
2 2

This expression is also equivalent to the compressible Storakers model consisting in

one term, and the material parameter defined as 1  

See also the description of the Blatz–Ko material model in the Solid
Mechanics interface documentation.

GAO
Gao proposed (Ref. 26) a simple compressible hyperelastic material where the strain
energy density is defined by two parameters, a (SI unit: Pa) and n, and two invariants
of the elastic right Cauchy–Green deformation tensors Cel:

n n
Ws = a  I1 + I–1 

Here, the invariant I-1Celis calculated as in the Blatz–Ko model:

–1 I 2  C el 
I – 1 = trace  C el  = ------------------
I 3  C el 

Gao proposed that the material is unconditionally stable when the parameters are
bounded to   n   and   a, and related these parameters under small strain to the
Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio by:

n 2
3 n 8a n–1
E = -------------------- and  = -----------------
2n + 1 2n + 1

Since n   and it is bounded to   n  , this material is stable for an initial

Poisson’s ratio in the range of     

See also the description of the Gao material model in the Solid Mechanics
interface documentation.

MATERIAL MODELS | 503

 MURNAGHAN
The Murnaghan strain energy density is used in nonlinear acoustoelasticity. Most
conveniently, it is expressed in terms of the three invariants of the elastic Green–
Lagrange strain tensor, I1el, I2el, and I3el:

1 1
W s = ---   + 2 I 12 – 2I 2 + ---  l + 2m I 13 – 2mI 1 I 2 + nI 3
2 3

Here, l, m, and n (SI unit: Pa) are the Murnaghan third-order elastic moduli, which
can be found experimentally for many commonly encountered materials such as steel
and aluminum, and  and  are the Lamé parameters. Setting the Murnaghan moduli
to zero, l  m  n  , recovers a compressible St Venant–Kirchhoff material.

See also the description of the Murnaghan material model in the Solid
Mechanics interface documentation.

DELFINO
Delfino proposed a simple hyperelastic material for modeling carotid arteries (Ref. 28).
The strain energy density is defined by two parameters, a (SI unit: Pa) and b
(dimensionless), and the first invariant of the isochoric elastic right Cauchy–Green
deformation tensors I 1  C el  :

b
---  I 1 – 3 
a 2 
W iso = ---  e – 1
b 

The parameter a plays the role of shear modulus at the small strain limit.

The Compressible, uncoupled and Nearly incompressible formulations use the elastic
volume ratio Jel and the bulk modulus to define the volumetric strain energy density
Wvol, see Volumetric Response and Nearly Incompressible Hyperelastic Materials.

The Incompressible option uses the isochoric strain energy, and an extra variable is
added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  , see Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials.

FUNG
Fung (Ref. 28) proposed one of the most popular strain energy functions to describe
the deformation in soft biological tissues and arteries. For this compressible
hyperelastic material, the strain energy density reads

504 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 c Q
W s = ---  e – 1 
2

the parameter c (SI unit: Pa) scales the global stiffness, and the quadratic form Q
(dimensionless) depends on the Green–Lagrange strain

T
Q = E AE

here, A is a six by six symmetric matrix (dimensionless), and E is a vector which

contains the elements of the elastic Green–Lagrange strain tensor sorted in either
standard or Voigt order, see Orthotropic and Anisotropic Materials.

For modeling the deformation in arteries, Fung proposed that the principal directions
of the strain tensor coincide with the radial, circumferential and axial directions of the
artery, so the coefficient matrix A is described by nine independent parameters
(Ref. 28), see Orthotropic Material to see the structure of such matrix.

The Compressible, uncoupled and Nearly incompressible formulations use the

components of the isochoric elastic Green–Lagrange strain E el to define the isochoric
strain energy density

c Q
W iso = ---  e – 1 
2

where

T
Q = E AE

also, these formulations use the elastic volume ratio Jel and the bulk modulus to
define the volumetric strain energy density Wvol, see Volumetric Response and Nearly
Incompressible Hyperelastic Materials.

The Incompressible option uses the same isochoric strain energy, but an extra variable
is added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  , see Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials.

EXTENDED TUBE
The extended tube model is a micro-mechanics inspired material model that considers
the network constraints from molecular chains and the limited chain extensibility
(Ref. 30-32). The isochoric strain energy density of the model consists of two terms

W iso = W c + W e

MATERIAL MODELS | 505

 The term Wc represents the energy from the cross-linking of the network, and We
represents the energy from confining tube constrains. These are written as

Gc   1 –    I1 – 3  
W c = ------  ------------------------------------- + log  1 –   I 1 – 3  
2  1 –  I – 3 
1

and

2G e –  – –
-   el1 +  el2 +  el3 – 3 
W e = ---------
2


Here, Gc and Ge are material parameters (SI unit: Pa), I 1 = I 1  C el  is the first
invariant of the elastic right Cauchy–Green deformation tensor,  el are the isochoric
principal stretches, and and  are dimensionless coefficients.

The parameters Gc and Ge plays the role of shear modulus at the small strain limit,
G0  Gc  Ge. The parameter  corresponds to the maximum finite chain extensibility,
as the strain energy Wc is singular for stretch values such as I 1 – 3 = 1   .

The Compressible, uncoupled and Nearly incompressible formulations use the elastic
volume ratio Jel and the bulk modulus to define the volumetric strain energy density
Wvol, see Volumetric Response and Nearly Incompressible Hyperelastic Materials.

The Incompressible option uses the isochoric strain energy, and it adds an extra variable
to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  , see Incompressible Hyperelastic
Materials.

Note that the material might be unstable for certain combinations of material
parameters, see Ref. 30-31 for a valid range of parameter values.

USER DEFINED
It is possible to define the strain energy density for compressible, nearly incompressible
or incompressible hyperelastic materials when selecting the user defined option.

For Compressible hyperelastic materials, enter an expression for the elastic strain energy
Ws, which can include any expressions involving the following:

• Components of Cel, the elastic right Cauchy–Green deformation tensor in the local
material coordinate system.
• Principal invariants of Cel
I 1  C el  = trace  C el 

506 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 1 2 2
I 2  C el  = ---  I 1  C el  – trace  C el  
2

I 3  C el  = det  C el 

The internal variables for these invariants are named solid.I1Cel,

solid.I2Cel, and solid.I3Cel.

• Components of the elastic Green–Lagrange strain tensor elin the local coordinate
system.
• Principal elastic stretches el1, el2, and el3, which are the square-root of the
eigenvalues of the elastic right Cauchy–Green deformation tensor Cel.

The internal variables for the principal elastic stretches are named
solid.stchelp1, solid.stchelp2, and solid.stchelp3.

• Invariants of the elastic Green–Lagrange strain tensor. Since

1
 el = ---  C el – I 
2

the invariants of el are written in terms of the invariants of Cel:

1
I 1   el  = trace   el  = ---  I 1  C el  – 3 
2

1 2 2 1
I 2   el  = ---  I 1   el  – trace   el   = ---  I 2  C el  – 2I 1  C el  + 3 
2 4

1
I 3   el  = det   el  = ---  I 3  C el  – I 2  C el  + I 1  C el  – 1 
8

The internal variables for these invariants are named solid.I1eel,

solid.I2eel, and solid.I3eel.

MATERIAL MODELS | 507

 When the Nearly incompressible option is selected, the elastic strain energy is decoupled
into the volumetric and isochoric components:

• The volumetric strain energy Wvol, which can be an expression involving the elastic
volume ratio J el = det  F el 
• The isochoric strain energy, Wiso, as an expression involving the invariants of the
isochoric elastic right Cauchy–Green tensor I 1  C el  and I 2  C el  ; the invariants of
the isochoric elastic Green–Lagrange strain I 1   el  , I 2   el  , and I 3   el  ; or the
principal isochoric elastic stretches defined as  eli =  eli  J el 13.

When the Nearly incompressible option is selected, an extra variable is added to map the
pressure, see The Locking Problem and Nearly Incompressible Hyperelastic Materials
for details.

The internal variables for Jel, I 1  C el  , and I 2  C el  are named

solid.Jel, solid.I1CIel, and solid.I2CIel.

The internal variables for I 1   el  , I 2   el  , and I 3   el  are named

solid.I1eIel, solid.I2eIel, and solid.I3eIel.

When the Incompressible option is selected, enter an expression for the isochoric elastic
strain energy Wiso, as done for the Nearly incompressible option. An extra variable is
added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  , see Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials and Mixed Formulation.

The strain energy density must not contain any other expressions
involving displacement or their derivatives. Examples of such expressions
are components of the displacement gradient u and deformation
gradient F  u  I tensors, their transpose, inversions, as well as the
global material system components of C and . If they occur, such
variables are treated as constants during symbolic differentiations.

508 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 Select the Use elastic deformation gradient check box to define the elastic
strain energy density Ws, the isochoric strain energy density, Wiso, and the
volumetric strain energy, Wvol, in terms of the components the elastic
deformation gradient Fel.

Then, the second Piola-Kirchhoff stress is defined from

– 1 W s
S = F ---------- .
F

See also the description of the User Defined material model in the Solid
Mechanics interface documentation.

MULLINS EFFECT
Some nonlinear effects observed in rubbers, such as hysteresis in stress-stretch curves,
residual strains, and stress softening effects, are not accounted in the formulation of
common hyperelastic materials. The Mullins effect (Ref. 37-39) describes the
stress-softening phenomenon observed under cyclic loading in elastomers and
biological materials.

Ogden and Roxburgh (Ref. 40) used an additional state variable to model the Mullins
effect. The state variable is introduced to memorize the microstructural damage on
reinforced rubber after repeated loading-unloading cycles. The modified isochoric
strain energy density reads

W iso = W iso +    

here, Wiso is the isochoric strain energy of the undamaged material, and     is
referred as the damage function. The choice of the damage function     is
completely arbitrary as long as some constrains are fulfilled. The authors (Ref. 40)
proposed a state function based on the error function, which defined how the state
variable  varies as a function of the isochoric strain energy

W max – W iso
 = 1 – --- erf  --------------------------------
1
r m

here, erfis the error function, r and m are positive parameters, and Wmax is the
maximum attained value of the isochoric strain energy density on the loading path.

The associated microstructural damage is computed from

MATERIAL MODELS | 509

 W max – W iso
d = 1 –  = --- erf  --------------------------------
1
r  m 

and the isochoric strain energy modified by the Mullins effect reads

W iso =  1 – d W iso

Over the years others authors (Ref. 41-42) have proposed different flavors of Ogden–
Roxburgh model, the version implemented in COMSOL Multiphysics uses by default
the hyperbolic tangent function, and a parameter to define the maximum allowed
damage d=1/r. The microstructural damage is then computed from

W max – W iso
d = d  tanh  -------------------------------------
W sat + W max

Here, d, , and Wsat are positive parameters. It is also possible to use the error
function as in the original formulation (Ref. 40), in which case the microstructural
damage is computed from

W max – W iso
d = d  erf  -------------------------------------
 W sat + W max

Miehe (Ref. 43) proposed an exponential expression for the damage variable in order
to model the Mullins effect

– W max  W sat
d = d  1 – e 

where Wsat and d are positive parameters.

Distributed Fiber Models

Composite materials are made out of an isotropic matrix reinforced with fibers. In
these reinforced materials, the fibers act as the main load carrier, while the surrounding
matrix supports the fibers and transfer loads to them. These materials are either
manufactured, or have a natural origin such as biological tissue, leafs or wood.

In COMSOL Multiphysics it is possible to add fibers to Linear Elastic or Nonlinear

Elastic materials, as well as to any of the built-in Hyperelastic material models. The
fibers are arranged in a specified orientation inside the matrix material. By subsequently
adding Fiber nodes as needed it is possible to include fibers in many directions, thus
recreating complex anisotropic structures.

510 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

FIBERS FOR LINEAR AND NONLINEAR ELASTIC MATERIALS
For Linear Elastic or Nonlinear Elastic materials, each Fiber node adds a contribution
to the stress tensor of the type

 fib = v fib  E fib – E  a a  a

Here, Efib E is the difference between the stiffness of the isotropic matrix E and the
fibers’ stiffness Efib, vfib is the fiber volume fraction, a is the direction vector for the
fiber orientation in the undeformed geometry, and  a = a   el  a is the elastic strain
in the fiber direction a.

For a Linear Elastic Material, Hooke’s law (Equation 3-18) is augmented as

 =  ex + C  el +  fib

For Nonlinear Elastic Materials, the same contribution to the stress tensor is added,
although the stress-strain relation in the isotropic matrix could be nonlinear.

FIBERS FOR HYPERELASTIC MATERIALS

For Hyperelastic Materials, the fibers are represented by additional contributions to
the strain energy density (Ref. 28 and Ref. 29).

The Holzapfel–Gasser–Ogden constitutive model captures the anisotropic mechanical

response observed in arteries. The model combines a nearly incompressible material
for the isotropic matrix, with additional terms for two fiber families

W ani = W iso + W fib,1 + W fib,2

Here, Wiso is the strain energy density of the isotropic hyperelastic material. In Ref. 28
Wiso is represented by a nearly incompressible Neo-Hookean material; in COMSOL
Multiphysics it is possible to select any of the built-in hyperelastic material models.

The second and third terms, Wfib,1 and Wfib,2 are anisotropic additions that describe
the mechanical contribution of collagen fiber networks. These terms contribute with a
strain energy density of the type

k1 Q 2
W fib = ---------  e – 1  where Q = k 2  k 3  I 1 – 3  +  1 – 3k 3   I a – 1  
2k 2

where the parameter k1 represents the fiber stiffness (SI unit: Pa), k2 is a dimensionless
tuning parameter, and k3 is the fiber dispersion (dimensionless). A value of k3  0
recovers the formulation in Ref. 28, where all the fibers are perfectly oriented in the a

MATERIAL MODELS | 511

 direction. Setting k3  1/3 means that the fibers are completely dispersed, thus
recovering a similar formulation as given in the Delfino material model.

The formulation in Ref. 28 and Ref. 29 is based on the Isochoric Elastic Deformation,
where the invariants are defined as

I 1 = trace  C el 

I a = a  C el  a
2
The invariant I a =  a represents the squared value of the isochoric elastic stretch in
the fiber direction a. A common modeling assumption for biological tissues is that
fibers cannot sustain compression, so the fiber stiffness is added only for tensile
stretches such as  a  1 .

In general, the anisotropic strain energy density for a hyperelastic material containing
N fiber families reads

W ani = W iso +  W fib m

m=1

The second Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor is then computed from

S = S iso +  S fib m
m=1

where the stress contribution from each fiber family is given by

W fib m
S fib m = 2 --------------------
C

The anisotropic strain energy density for the fiber family Wfib can also be specified as
a user-defined expression of the strain invariants I a , I b , I c , I ab , I ac , and I bc , where

I b = b  C el  b , I c = c  C el  c

I ab = a  C el  b , I ac = a  C el  c , and I bc = b  C el  c

512 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

and b and c are orthogonal directions to the main fiber direction a.

The internal variables I a , I b , I c , I ab , I ac , and I bc are named

item.IaCIe, item.IbCIe, item.IcCIe, item.IabCIe, item.IacCIe,
and item.IbcCIe. Here, item is the name of the Fiber node, for
instance solid.hmm1.fib1.

THERMAL EXPANSION IN FIBERS

Not only the stiffness in the fibers might differ by orders of magnitude to the matrix
stiffness, but also the thermal properties, so it is possible to model thermal expansion
in fibers independently from the thermal expansion in the surrounding material. The
two basic assumptions are that the volume occupied by the fibers is small as compared
to the base material, and that thermal expansion (or contraction) occurs in the fiber
direction only (there is zero transverse thermal expansion in the fibers).

For Linear Elastic and Nonlinear Elastic materials, the fibers add a contribution to the
stress tensor of the type

 fib = v fib  E fib – E  a a  a

where Efib E is the difference between the stiffness of the isotropic matrix E and the
fibers’ stiffness Efib, vfib is the fiber volume fraction, a is the direction vector for the
fiber orientation in the undeformed geometry, and  a = a   el  a is the elastic strain
in the fiber direction a. When considering the thermal expansion, the stress reads

 fib = v fib  E fib – E    a –  th,fib a  a

where th,fib is the thermal strain in the fibers.

For a Linear Elastic Material, Hooke’s law (Equation 3-18) is then augmented as

 =  ex + C  el +  fib

For Nonlinear Elastic Materials, the same contribution to the stress tensor is added,
although the stress-strain relation in the isotropic matrix could be nonlinear.

The thermal strain in the fibers, th,fib, can be specified by different means. When the
secant coefficient of thermal expansion is used, it reads

 th,fib =  s  T fib – T ref 

MATERIAL MODELS | 513

 Here, the secant coefficient of thermal expansion s can be temperature-dependent.
The reference temperature Tref is the temperature at which there are no thermal strains
in the fibers, and Tfib is the current fiber temperature.

When the tangent coefficient of thermal expansion is used, t, the thermal strain is
given by

 T fib 
 th,fib = exp 
 T ref
 t    d – 1


It is also possible to explicitly enter the thermal strain, dL, as a function of the fiber’s
temperature

 th,fib = dL  T fib 

The coefficient of the thermal expansion or the thermal strain are considered in the
fiber direction a, since thermal expansion is assumed to occur in the fiber direction
only.

In all cases, the contribution to the thermal strain tensor is defined from the fiber
volume fraction vfib, the thermal strain in the fibers th,fib, and the fiber direction a

 th = v fib  th,fib a  a

See also the description of the Fiber node in the Solid Mechanics interface
documentation.

• An example of an isotropic hyperelastic material reinforced with fibers

is shown in Arterial Wall Mechanics: Application Library path
Nonlinear_Structural_Materials_Module/Hyperelasticity/
arterial_wall_mechanics

Elastoplastic Materials
In this section:

• Plasticity
• Defining the Yield Criterion
• Isotropic Plasticity

514 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

• Yield Function
• Orthotropic Plasticity
• Soil Plasticity
• Porous Plasticity
• Isotropic Hardening
• Kinematic Hardening
• Introduction to Small and Large Plastic Strains
• Plastic Flow for Small Strains
• Plastic Flow for Large Strains
• Numerical Solution of the Elastoplastic Conditions
• Energy Dissipation
• Nonlocal Plasticity

PLASTICITY
Many materials have a distinct elastic regime, in which the deformations are
recoverable and path independent. When the stresses exceed a certain level, the yield
limit, permanent plastic strains will appear.

The elastic part of the constitutive relation can be described by either a Linear Elastic
Material, Nonlinear Elastic Materials, or by Hyperelastic Materials.

Elastoplastic material models are common, both when modeling metals and soils.

In geotechnical applications it is common to define compressive stresses as having

positive signs. In COMSOL Multiphysics, the convention is however to always use
positive signs for tensile stresses.

See also Sign Conventions.

DEFINING THE YIELD CRITERION

A yield criterion serves to define the stress condition under which plastic deformation
occurs. Stress paths inside the yield surface result in purely recoverable deformations
(elastic behavior), while paths intersecting the yield surface produces both recoverable
and permanent deformations (plastic strains).

In general, the yield surface can be described as

MATERIAL MODELS | 515

 F = f    – fc = 0

where fc can be a constant value (for perfectly plastic materials), or a variable for
strain-hardening materials. The yield surface F is a surface in the space of principal
stresses, in which the elastic regime (F  0) is enclosed.

For brittle materials, the yield surface represents a failure surface, which is a stress
level at which the material collapses instead of deforms plastically.

Some authors define the yield criterion as f () = fc, while the yield
surface is an isosurface in the space of principal stresses F = 0, which can
2 2
be chosen for numerical purposes as F = f    – f c = 0 .

ISOTROPIC PLASTICITY
For isotropic plasticity, the plastic potential Qp is written in terms of at most three
invariants of Cauchy’s stress tensor

Q p    = Q p  I 1    J 2    J 3    

where the invariants of the stress tensor are

I 1    = trace   
1
J 2    = --- dev   :dev   
2
J 3    = det  dev    

so that the increment of the plastic strain tensor ꞏ p can be decomposed into

ꞏ Q p Q p I 1 Q p J 2 Q p J 3
 p =  ---------- =   ---------- -------- + ---------- --------- + ---------- ---------
  I 1  J 2  J 3  

The increment in the plastic strain tensor ꞏ p includes in a general case both deviatoric
and volumetric parts. The tensor ꞏ p is symmetric given the following properties

516 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 I 1
-------- = I

J 2 (3-48)
--------- = dev   

J 3
--------- = dev   dev    – 2
--- J 2 I
 3

The trace of the incremental plastic strain tensor, which is called the volumetric plastic
strain rate ꞏ pvol , is only a result of dependence of the plastic potential on the first
invariant I1(), sinceJ2/ and J3/ are deviatoric tensors

ꞏ ꞏ Q p Q p
 pvol = trace   p  =  trace  ---------- = 3 ----------
   I 1

A common measure of inelastic deformation is the equivalent plastic strain rate,

which is defined from the plastic shear components

ꞏ --- dev  ꞏ p :dev  ꞏ p 

2
 pe = (3-49)
3

For metal plasticity under the von Mises or Tresca criteria, the volumetric plastic strain
rate ꞏ pvol is always zero because the plastic potential is independent of the invariant
I1. This is known as J2 plasticity.

Incompressible plastic deformation is experimentally observed in metals, but this is not

the case for most materials used in geotechnical applications. For instance, a nonzero
volumetric plastic strain is explicitly used in Porous Plasticity and Elastoplastic Soil
Models.

• The equivalent plastic strain and the volumetric plastic strain are
available in the variables solid.epe and solid.epvol.
• In a time-dependent analysis, rates of plastic strains can be computed
with expressions like d(solid.epe,TIME).

YIELD FUNCTION
When an associated flow rule is applied, the yield function must be smooth, that is,
continuously differentiable with respect to the stress. In COMSOL Multiphysics, the
following form is used:

MATERIAL MODELS | 517

 F y =     –  ys

where ys is the yield stress. The scalar function     is called equivalent stress. The
default form of the equivalent stress is the von Mises stress, which is often used in metal
plasticity:

3
 mises = 3J 2    = --- dev   :dev   
2

Other expressions can be defined, such as Tresca stress, Hill equivalent stress, or a user
defined expression.

The Tresca equivalent stress is calculated from the difference between the largest and
the smallest principal stress

 tresca =  p1 –  p2

A user defined yield function can by expressed in terms of invariants of the stress tensor
such as the pressure (volumetric stress), p  I1, the equivalent von Mises stress
mises, or other invariants, principal stresses, or stress tensor components.

The von Mises Criterion

The von Mises criterion suggests that the yielding of the material begins when the
second deviatoric stress invariant J2 reaches a critical value. This criterion can be
written in terms of the elements of Cauchy’s stress tensor (Ref. 1)

1 2 2 2 2 2 2
J 2 = ---    11 –  22  +   22 –  33  +   33 –  11   +  12 +  23 +  13 = k 2
6

The von Mises criterion is implemented with the yield surface

F = 3J 2 –  ys = 0

where ys is the yield stress level (yield stress in uniaxial tension) and 3J 2 =  mises
is the equivalent von Mises stress.

The equivalent von Mises stress  mises is available in the variable

solid.mises, where solid is the name of the physics interface node.

The Tresca Criterion

The Tresca yield surface is normally expressed in terms of the principal stress
components

518 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 1
--- max   1 –  2   1 –  3   2 –  3  = k
2

The Tresca criterion is a hexagonal prism with its axis equally inclined to the three
principal stress axes. When the principal stresses are sorted as 1  2  3, this
criterion is written as

1
---   1 –  3  = k
2

By using the representation of principal stresses in term of the invariants J2 and the
Lode angle 0    3, Tresca criterion can alternatively be written as

4J 
--- ---------2-  cos    – cos   + ------  = J 2 sin   + --- = k
1 2
2 3   3   3

or equivalently


J 2 cos   – --- = k
6

The maximum shear stress is reached at the meridians ( = 0 or  = ). The Tresca
criterion can be circumscribed by setting the Lode angle  = 0, or equivalently, by a
von Mises criterion

 mises = 3J 2 = 2k

The minimum shear is reached at = , so the Tresca criterion can be inscribed by
setting a von Mises criterion

J2 = k

When dealing with soils, the parameter k is also called undrained shear strength.

The Tresca criterion can be used with either an associated or nonassociated flow rule,
in which case von Mises stress is applied in order to get better numerical performance.

The Tresca equivalent stress, tresca = 1  3 is implemented in the

variable solid.tresca, where solid is the name of the physics interface
node.

MATERIAL MODELS | 519

  upper limit
lower limit


Tresca criterion

Figure 3-14: The upper and lower limits of the Tresca criterion.

Figure 3-15: Classical yield criteria for metals. The Tresca criterion (left) and the
von Mises criterion (right).

The von Mises and Tresca criteria are independent of the first stress invariant I1 and
are mainly used for the analysis of plastic deformation in metals and ductile materials,
though some researchers also use these criteria for describing fully saturated cohesive
soils under undrained conditions. The von Mises and Tresca criteria belong to what
researchers call volume preserving or J2 plasticity, as the plastic flow is independent
on the mean pressure.

520 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

ORTHOTROPIC PLASTICITY
Hill (Ref. 6, Ref. 7) proposed a quadratic yield function (and associated plastic
potential) in a local coordinate system given by the principal axes of orthotropy ai

Q p = F   22 –  33  2 + G   33 –  11  2 + H   11 –  22  2 +
(3-50)
2 2 2
2L 23 + 2M 31 + 2N 12 – 1

The six parameters F, G, H, L, M, and N are related to the state of anisotropy. As with
isotropic plasticity, the elastic region Qp  0 is bounded by the yield surface Qp  0.

Hill demonstrated that this type of anisotropic plasticity is volume preserving, this is,
given the associated flow rule

ꞏ Q p
 p =  ----------


the trace of the plastic strain rate tensor is zero, which follows from the expressions for
the diagonal elements of ꞏ p

ꞏ Q p
 p11 =  ------------ = 2  – G   33 –  11  + H   11 –  22  
 11
ꞏ Q p
 p22 =  ------------ = 2  F   22 –  33  – H   11 –  22  
 22
ꞏ Q p
 p33 =  ------------ = 2  – F   22 –  33  + G   33 –  11  
 33

so the plastic volumetric strain rate is zero

ꞏ ꞏ ꞏ ꞏ ꞏ
 pvol = trace   p  =  p11 +  p22 +  p33 = 0

Hill plasticity is an extension of J2 (von Mises) plasticity, in the sense that

it is volume preserving. Due to this assumption, six parameters are needed
to define orthotropic plasticity, as opposed to orthotropic elasticity, where
nine elastic coefficients are needed.

Expressions for the Coefficients F, G, H, L, M, N

Hill noticed that the parameters L, M, and N are related to the yield stress in shear with
respect to the axes of orthotropy ai, thus they are positive parameters

MATERIAL MODELS | 521

 1 1 1
L = ----------------
2
, M = ----------------
2
, N = ----------------
2
2 ys23 2 ys31 2 ys12

Here, ysij represents the yield stress in shear on the plane ij.

The material parameters ys1, ys2, and ys3 represent the tensile yield stress in the
direction, a1, a2, and a3, and they are related to Hill’s parameters F, G, and H as

1-
--------- = G+H
2
 ys1
1-
---------
2
= H+F
 ys2
1-
---------
2
= F+G
 ys3

or equivalently

1 1 - ---------
1
2F = ---------
2
- + ---------
2
– 2-
 ys2  ys3  ys1
1 1 1
2G = ---------
2
- + ---------- – ----------
2 2
 ys3  ys1  ys2
1 1 - ---------
1
2H = ---------
2
- + ---------
2
– 2-
 ys1  ys2  ys3

Note that at most one of the three coefficients F, G, and H can be negative.

In case of hardening, these coefficients (either Hill’s coefficients or the

shear and tensile yield stresses) are renamed with the “initial” prefix.

In order to define a yield function and plastic potential suitable for isotropic or
kinematic hardening, the average initial yield stress ys0 is calculated from the Hill’s
parameters F, G, and H (this is equivalent to the initial yield stress ys0 in von Mises
plasticity)

1- 2 1  1 - --------- 1 1 -
----------
2
= ---  F + G + H  = ---  --------- + 2 - + ---------  (3-51)
 ys0 3 3   ys1  ys2  2ys3
2

522 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Defining Hill’s equivalent stress as (Ref. 7)

2 2
 hill =  ys0  F   22 –  33  2 + G   33 –  11  2 + H   11 –  22  2
2 2 2
+ 2  L 23 + M 31 + N 12  

makes it possible to write the plastic potential in a similar way to von Mises plasticity.

Isotropic hardening is then applied on the average yield stress variable ys0, by using
the plastic potential

Q p =  hill –  ys

Here, the average yield stress

 ys =  ys0 +  h   pe 

now depends on the initial yield stress ys0, the hardening function h, and the
equivalent plastic strain pe.

SOIL PLASTICITY

The Mohr–Coulomb Criterion

The Mohr–Coulomb criterion is the most popular criterion in soil mechanics. It was
developed by Coulomb before the Tresca and von Mises criteria for metals, and it was
the first criterion to account for the hydrostatic pressure. The criterion states that
failure occurs when the shear stress and the normal stress acting on any element in the
material satisfy the equation

 +  tan  – c = 0

here, is the shear stress, c the cohesion, and  denotes the angle of internal friction.

With the help of Mohr’s circle, this criterion can be written as

1
---   1 –  3  + 1
---   1 +  3  sin  – c cos  = 0
2 2

The Mohr–Coulomb criterion defines an irregular hexagonal pyramid in the space of

principal stresses, which generates singularities in the derivatives of the yield function.

MATERIAL MODELS | 523

 an
i
rid
me
an

ile
i
rid
ns
Te me
ss iv e
re
omp
C

Figure 3-16: The Mohr–Coulomb criterion. The cone opens toward the compressive axis.

The Mohr–Coulomb criterion can be written in terms of the invariants I1 and J2 and
the Lode angle 0    3 (Ref. 1, Ref. 11) when the principal stresses are sorted as
1  2  3. The yield function then reads

J
F y = --- I 1 sin  + -----2-   1 + sin   cos  –  1 – sin   cos   + ------  – c cos  = 0
1 2
3 3  3 

The tensile meridian is defined when  = and the compressive meridian when  = .

Rearranging terms, the Mohr–Coulomb criterion reads

Fy = J 2 m    + I 1 – k = 0

where

---   1 + sin   cos  –  1 – sin   cos   + ------  ,  = sin   3 ,

1 2
m =
3  3 
and k = c cos 

In the special case of frictionless material, ( = 0,  = 0, k = c), the Mohr–Coulomb

criterion reduces to a Tresca’s maximum shear stress criterion, 1  3 = 2k or
equivalently

524 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 
Fy = J 2 cos   – --- – k = 0
 6

See also the description of the Mohr–Coulomb material model in the

Solid Mechanics interface documentation.

The Drucker–Prager Criterion

The Mohr–Coulomb criterion causes numerical difficulties when treating the plastic
flow at the corners of the yield surface. The Drucker–Prager model (Ref. 1, Ref. 2)
neglects the influence of the invariant J3 (introduced by the Lode angle) on the
cross-sectional shape of the yield surface. It can be considered as the first attempt to
approximate the Mohr–Coulomb criterion by a smooth function based on the
invariants I1 and J2 together with two material constants (which can be related to
Mohr–Coulomb’s coefficients)

Fy = J 2 + I 1 – k = 0

The criterion is sometimes also called the extended von Mises criterion, since it is
equivalent to the von Mises criterion for metals when setting  = 

Figure 3-17: The Drucker–Prager criterion. The cone opens toward the compressive axis.

The coefficients in the Drucker–Prager model are related to the cohesion c and angle
of internal friction  in the Mohr–Coulomb criterion by the relation

 tan -
--- = ------------
k 3c

MATERIAL MODELS | 525

 The coefficients in the Drucker–Prager model can be matched to the coefficients in the
Mohr–Coulomb criterion by (Ref. 1)

2 sin  2 3c cos 
 = -------  -------------------------- and k = ---------------------------
3  3  sin    3  sin  

The symbol ± is related to either matching the tensile meridian (positive sign) or the
compressive meridian (negative sign) of Mohr–Coulomb’s pyramid.

The matching at the tensile meridian ( = ) comes from setting

m  0  =  3 + sin     2 3 

in the Mohr–Coulomb criterion, and the matching at the compressive meridian ( = 

3) from setting

m    3  =  3 – sin     2 3 

compressive meridian tensile meridian

Figure 3-18: The Drucker–Prager criterion showing the tensile and compressive meridians
(inner and outer circles), and the Lode angle compared to the cross section of the Mohr–
Coulomb criterion in the -plane.

In the special case of frictionless material, ( = 0,  = 0, k = 2c  3 ), the Drucker–

Prager criterion reduces to the von Mises criterion

J 2 = 2c  3

526 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

When the Drucker–Prager criterion is matched to the Mohr–Coulomb criterion in 2D
plane-strain applications, the parameters are

tan  3c
 = ------------------------------------ and k = ------------------------------------
2 2
9 + 12 tan  9 + 12 tan 

when matching the criterion in 2D generalized plane-strain, the matching parameters

are:

2 sin  2 3
 = ---------------------------------- and k = ---------------------  c cos 
3  3 – sin   3 – sin 

and when matching the criterion in 2D plane-stress, the matching parameters are:

1 2
 = -------  sin  and k = -------  c cos 
3 3

Dilatation Angle
The Mohr–Coulomb criterion is sometimes used with a nonassociated plastic
potential. This plastic potential could be either a Drucker–Prager criterion, or the same
Mohr–Coulomb yield function but with a different slope with respect to the
hydrostatic axis, in which case the angle of internal friction is replaced by the dilatation
angle, which is normally smaller (Ref. 7).

Also, when using a Drucker–Prager criterion matched to the Mohr–Coulomb

criterion, the plastic potential could also be nonassociated, in which case the difference
between the dilatation angle and the angle of internal friction results in a yield surface
and plastic potential portrayed by two cones with different angles with respect to the
hydrostatic angle.

Elliptic Cap
The Mohr–Coulomb and Drucker–Prager criteria portray a conic yield surface which
opens in the hydrostatic axis direction. Normally, these soil models are not accurate
above a given limit pressure because real-life materials cannot bear infinite loads and
still behave elastically. A simple way to overcome this problem is to add an elliptical end
cap on the compressive side to these models.

The elliptic cap is an elliptic yield surface of semi-axes as shown in Figure 3-19. The
initial pressure pa (SI units: Pa) denotes the pressure at which the elastic range
circumscribed by either a Mohr–Coulomb pyramid or a Drucker–Prager cone is not

MATERIAL MODELS | 527

 valid any longer, so a cap surface is added. The limit pressure pb gives the curvature of
the ellipse, and denotes the maximum admissible hydrostatic pressure for which the
material starts deforming plastically. Pressures higher than pb are not allowed.

pa pb p

Figure 3-19: Elliptic cap model in Haigh–Westergaard coordinate system.

The sign convention for the pressure is taken from the Structural Mechanics Module:
positive sign under compression, so pa and pb are positive parameters. Figure 3-19
shows the cap in terms of the variables p and q

q = 3J 2    and p = – I 1     3

In terms of these variables, the equation for the elliptic cap reads

p – pa  2  q  2
 -----------------
- -----
 p b – p a +  q a = 1

the point (pa, qa) in the Haigh–Westergaard coordinate system is where the elliptic cap
intersects either the Mohr–Coulomb or the Drucker–Prager cone.

When the Mohr–Coulomb or the Drucker–Prager equations are represented in

J 2  I1 plane, the equation for the elliptic cap reads

2
I 1 – I a 2  J 2
 ---------------
- +  ---------- = 1
 I b – I a  Ja 

where I a = – 3p a , I b = – 3p b , and Ja is the ellipse semiaxis in the J 2  I1 plane,

given by the intersection with the Drucker–Prager criterion

528 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 J a = k – I a

This makes it easier to compute the ellipse’s semiaxis Ja in terms of Drucker–Prager

parameters and k.

Elliptic Cap With Hardening

It is also possible to add isotropic hardening to the cap surface. In this case, the center
of the ellipse is shifted as the volumetric plastic strain increases, also, the size of the
ellipse’s semi-axes grow as hardening evolves. The intersection of the elliptic cap with
the pressure axis is given by

 pvol
p b = p b0 – K iso log  1 + --------------------
  pvol,max

here, pb0 is the initial value for the limit pressure pb, Kiso is the isotropic hardening
modulus, pvol the volumetric plastic strain, and pvol,max the maximum volumetric
plastic strain. The volumetric plastic strain pvol is negative in compression, so the limit
pressure pb is increased from pb0 as hardening evolves.

Instead of providing the value for the initial pressure pa (SI units: Pa), the ellipse’s
aspect ratio R is entered. The ellipse aspect ratio R is given by

Ia – Ib pb – pa
R = ---------------- = 3 3 ------------------ where q a = 3J a
Ja qa

The ellipse semiaxis in the J 2  I1 plane is given by the aspect ratio R

k – I a
J a = -------------------------------------------
2 2
R + 1 +  R

In order to have a smooth transition, the cap intersects the failure surface at the point
of tangency (Ref. 3). The intersection coordinates (Ic, Jc) are given by

2
Ja k Ja
I c = -------------------------------- – --- and J c = -----------------------
2 2  2 2
 1+ R 1+ R

See also the description of the Drucker–Prager material model in the

Solid Mechanics interface documentation.

MATERIAL MODELS | 529

 The Matsuoka–Nakai Criterion
Matsuoka and Nakai (Ref. 5) discovered that the sliding of soil particles occurs in the
plane in which the ratio of shear stress to normal stress has its maximum value, which
they called the mobilized plane. They defined the yield surface as

F y =  9 + 9 2 I 3 – I 1 I 2 = 0

where the parameter  = /nSTP equals the maximum ratio between shear stress
and normal stress in the spatially mobilized plane (STP-plane), and the invariants are
applied over the effective stress tensor (this is the stress tensor minus the fluid pore
pressure).

The Matsuoka–Nakai criterion circumscribes the Mohr–Coulomb criterion in dry

soils, when

2 2
 = ----------- tan 
3

and  denotes the angle of internal friction in the Mohr–Coulomb criterion.

Figure 3-20: The Matsuoka–Nakai and Mohr–Coulomb criteria in the principal stress
space.

See also the description of the Matsuoka–Nakai material model in the

Solid Mechanics interface documentation.

The Lade–Duncan Criterion

The Lade–Duncan criterion was originally developed to model a large volume of
laboratory sample test data of cohesionless soils. This criterion is defined as

530 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 3
F y = kI 3 – I 1 = 0

where I1 and I3 are the first and third stress invariants, respectively, and k is a parameter
related to the direction of the plastic strain increment in the triaxial plane. The
parameter k can vary from 27 for hydrostatic stress conditions (1 = 2 = 3), up to a
critical value kc at failure. In terms of the invariants I1, J2,and J3, this criterion can be
written as

F y = J 3 – --- I 1 J 2 +  ------ – --- I 1 = 0

1 1 1 3
3 27 k

The Lade–Duncan criterion can be fitted to the compressive meridian of the Mohr–
Coulomb surface by choosing

k =  3 – sin   3 /  cos  2   1 – sin   

with  as the angle of internal friction in the Mohr–Coulomb criterion.

Lade-Duncan Matsuoka-Nakai

Mohr-Coulomb

Figure 3-21: Comparing the Mohr–Coulomb, Matsuoka–Nakai, and Lade–Duncan

criteria when matching the tensile meridian.

The Lade–Duncan criterion does not match the Mohr–Coulomb

criterion (nor the Matsuoka–Nakai criterion) at the tensile meridian.

See also the description of the Lade–Duncan material model in the Solid
Mechanics interface documentation.

MATERIAL MODELS | 531

 Tension Cutoff
It appears that the Mohr–Coulomb and Drucker–Prager criteria predict tensile
strengths larger than the experimental measurements on soil samples. This discordance
can be mended by the introduction of a tension cutoff criterion.

The Rankine criterion states that a material stops deforming elastically when the largest
principal stress 1 reaches a maximum tensile stress, also called tension cutoff limit t.

In terms of the principal stress, the Rankine criterion reads

F = 1 – t = 0

For soils and clays, the maximum tensile stress can be estimated from the material
parameters, such as the cohesion c and the friction angle  .For instance, the tip of the
cone in Mohr–Coulomb criterion is reached when

cos 
 1 = c ------------
sin 

therefore, the tension cutoff should be chosen such as

cos 
 t  c ------------
sin 

The Mohr–Coulomb criterion together with a tension cutoff is sometimes called the
modified Mohr–Coulomb criterion (Ref. 21).

There might be numerical problems when implementing Rankine cutoff criterion, as

the intersection of the cone in Mohr–Coulomb criterion with the tensile plane
produces sharp edges in the stress space. A better approach is to use the mean stress
instead of the principal stress, then the mean stress cutoff reads

F = p + m = 0

here, m is the maximum mean stress and p = -I13 is the pressure, which is negative
in tension.

The Rankine tension cutoff criterion is also available with Concrete and
Rocks material models.

532 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

POROUS PLASTICITY
The modeling of plastic deformation in soils, porous metals and aggregates has a main
difference with respect to traditional metal plasticity; the yield function and plastic
potential are not only defined in terms of the deviatoric stress tensor (or the deviatoric
stress invariant J2), but also include dependencies on the hydrostatic pressure.

A key concept for porous plasticity models is the evolution of the relative density,
which is the solid volume fraction in a porous mixture. The relative density is related
to the porosity (or void volume fraction)  by

 rel =  1 –  

When compacting a mixture of metal particles, the porosity tends to zero and the
relative density tends to one. There are different porous plasticity models to account
for the mechanism of compaction and void growth.

The Shima–Oyane Criterion

Shima and Oyane (Ref. 8) proposed a yield surface for modeling the compaction of
porous metallic structures fabricated by sintering. The criterion can be applied for
powder compaction at both low and high temperatures. The yield function and
associated plastic potential is defined by an ellipsoid in the stress space. The plastic
potential Qp is written in terms of both von Mises equivalent stress and mean pressure,
and it also considers isotropic hardening due to changes in porosity. The plastic
potential is defined by

e 2  pm
2
Q p    =  ---------- +   1 –  rel   ---------- –  rel
m
 ys0  ys0

here, e is the equivalent stress, ys0 is the initial yield stress, pm is the pressure, and
rel is the relative density. The material parameters , , and m are obtained from curve
fitting experimental data. Typical material parameter values for copper aggregates are
 = ,  = , and m = 

The Gurson Criterion

The Gurson criterion (Ref. 9) consists in a pressure dependent yield function to
describe the constitutive response of porous metals, this yield function is derived from
the analytical expression of an isolated void immersed in a continuum medium. The
void volume fraction, or porosity , is chosen as main variable. The yield function and
associated plastic potential is not an ellipse in the stress space, as in The Shima–Oyane
Criterion, but it is defined in terms of the hyperbolic cosine function. The plastic
potential for the Gurson criterion reads

MATERIAL MODELS | 533

 e 2 3p m
Q p    =  ---------- + 2 cosh  ------------- –  1 +  
2
 ys0 2 ys0

here, e is the equivalent stress, ys0 is the initial yield stress, pm is the pressure, and 
is the porosity.

The Gurson–Tvergaard–Needleman Criterion

Tvergaard and Needleman modified The Gurson Criterion for porous plasticity to
include parameters to better fit experimental data (Ref. 10-11). The resulting criterion
is called the Gurson–Tvergaard–Needleman (GTN) criterion in the literature. The
plastic potential for the GTN criterion reads

e 2  3q 2 p m
Q p    =  ---------- + 2q 1  e cosh  ----------------- –  1 + q 3  e 
2
 ys0  2 ys0 

here, e is the equivalent stress, ys0 is the initial yield stress, pm is the pressure, and
e is the effective void volume fraction (effective porosity). Typical correction
parameter values are q1 = , q2 = , and q3 = q12.

The effective void value fraction (or effective porosity)e used in the plastic potential
is a function of the current porosity  and other material parameters. It is often given
using a bilinear definition

  if    c

 m – c
 e =   + -----------------
-   –  c  if  c     f
 c f – c

 m if    f

where c is the critical void volume fraction (critical porosity) at which void coalescence
begins, and f is the void volume fraction at failure. When the porosity increases up to
the value of failure, the effective porosity takes a maximum value of m and the porous
material loses the capacity to carry stresses. The maximum porosity value is derived
from other parameters

q 1 + q 12 – q 3
 m = -----------------------------------
q3

Since typical values for the parameters are q3 = q12, the maximum porosity value is
given by m = 1/q1.

534 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

A similar definition for e that gives a smoother response as the material reaches failure
can was suggested in Ref. 13. It is based on a modification such that the effective void
volume fraction reaches its maxim value asymptotically

  if    c

 m – c
  + -----------------
-   – c  if  c     i
e =  c f – c

  – i
   m –  s  1 – exp  – --------------- +  s if    i
  f – i

where i = 0.75(f - c) + c, and

m – c
 s =  c + ------------------   i –  c 
f – c

The Fleck–Kuhn–McMeeking Criterion

The Fleck–Kuhn–McMeeking criterion (Ref. 14), also called the FKM criterion, was
developed to model the plastic yielding of metal aggregates of high porosity. The yield
function and associated plastic potential is derived from expressions for randomly
distributed particles. The criterion is considered relevant for aggregates with porosity
between 10% and 35%. The plastic potential for the FKM criterion reads

5 e 2 2 5 pm 2
Q p =  ------ ----- + --- +  --- ------- – 1
 18 p f 3  3 pf 

here, e is the equivalent stress and pm is the pressure. The flow strength of the
material under hydrostatic loading, pf, is computed from

2 m – 
p f = 2.97  1 –   ----------------  ys0
m

here, ys0 is the initial yield stress, and  is the void volume fraction (porosity). The
maximum void volume fraction m typically takes the value of 36%, the limit of dense
random packing of sintered powder.

The FKM–GTN Criterion

The FKM–GTN criterion is a combination of The Fleck–Kuhn–McMeeking Criterion
and The Gurson–Tvergaard–Needleman Criterion, intended to cover a wider range of
porosities (Ref. 15-16). The GTN model is used for low void volume fractions

MATERIAL MODELS | 535

 (porosity lower than 10%), and for void volume fractions higher than 25%, the FKM
criterion is used. In the transition zone, a linear combination of both criteria is used.

Capped Drucker–Prager
See the sections The Drucker–Prager Criterion and Elliptic Cap for details.

Void Growth
For the porous plasticity criteria, the change in relative density is by default computed
from the change in plastic volumetric strain

ꞏ ꞏ
 rel = –  rel  p,vol

Since the relative density is related to the porosity  by rel =   , the change in
porosity is also controlled by the change in plastic volumetric strain

ꞏ ꞏ
 =  1 –   p,vol

and the change in volumetric plastic strain ꞏ p,vol is given by the porous plasticity
model.

Nucleation and shear growth are other mechanism that can trigger an increase of
porosity. The increment in porosity based on growth nucleation is given by

1  – 2

fN – ---  ------------------
pm N
-
ꞏ   ꞏ
 nucleation = ------------------ e 2 sN  pm for p  0
s N 2

here, N is the mean strain for nucleation, fN is the void volume fraction for nucleating
particles, and sN is the standard deviation. Typical values for these parameters are
N = , sN = , and fN = . It is assumed that nucleation appears only in tension,
and that there is no nucleation in compression.

The other possible mechanism to change the porosity is the so-called void growth in
shear

ꞏ ꞏ
 shear = k w wn D : pl

here, kw is a material parameter,  is the current porosity, nD is a deviatoric tensor

coaxial to the stress tensor, and ꞏ pl is the plastic strain rate, which depends on the
porous plasticity model. The weight w is computed from stress invariants as

536 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 2
27 J 3
w = 1 – ------ -----3- = sin2  3 
4J
2

where  is the Lode angle. The weight variable has a value of w = at the compressive
and tensile meridians ( =  and  = 3), and it attains its maximum w =  for  = 6.

Isotropic Hardening
Porous plasticity implements different kinds of isotropic hardening models to describe
the hardening of the porous matrix. When applying isotropic hardening, the average
flow stress

 fm =  ys0 +  h   pm 

now depends on the initial yield stress ys0, the hardening function h, and the
equivalent plastic strain in the porous matrix pm.

Different isotropic hardening models are implemented for porous plasticity models,
which are described for elastoplastic materials:

• Perfect Plasticity (no isotropic hardening)

• Linear Isotropic Hardening
• Ludwik
• Hardening Function
• Exponential Hardening (Elliptic Cap With Hardening)

It is also possible to include a power law relation between the equivalent plastic strain
in the porous matrix pm, and the flow stress (yield level) fm. For uniaxial loading, the
strain stress relation is written as (ref. Ref. 11)

 ys0  fm n
 = -----------  ----------- for  fm   ys0
E  ys0

where ys0 is the initial yield stress, n is the hardening exponent, and the Young’s
modulus E is taken from the elastic material properties. By writing the onset of
plasticity as 0 = ys0/E, and noting that  = 0 + pm for fm > ys0, this reads

 fm n
 0 +  pm =  0  ----------- for  fm   ys0
  ys0

which is equivalent to Swift isotropic hardening

MATERIAL MODELS | 537

  pm 1 / n
 fm   pm  =  ys0  1 + ---------
 0 

ISOTROPIC HARDENING
There are several different kinds of isotropic hardening models for elastoplastic and
viscoplastic materials:

• Perfect Plasticity (no isotropic hardening)

• Linear Isotropic Hardening
• Ludwik
• Johnson–Cook
• Swift
• Voce
• Hockett–Sherby
• Hardening Function

Perfect Plasticity
For perfect (or ideal) elastoplastic materials, the yield surface is fixed in the space of
principal stresses, and therefore, plastic deformations occur only when the stress path
moves on the yield surface (the regime inside the yield surface is elastic, and stress paths
beyond the yield surface are not allowed).

In this case the plasticity algorithm solves either the associated or nonassociated flow
rule for the plastic potential Qp

ꞏ Q p
 p =  ----------


with the yield function

F y =     –  ys0

In the settings for plasticity you specify the equivalent stress () for the yield function
from von Mises stress, Tresca stress, Hill equivalent stress, or a user defined expression;
and ys0 is the initial yield stress that defines the onset of plastic deformation.

When Large plastic strain is selected as the plasticity model for the
Plasticity node, either the associate or nonassociated flow rule is applied
as written in Equation 3-58.

538 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Linear Isotropic Hardening
In this case the plasticity algorithm solves either the associated or nonassociated flow
rule for the plastic potential Qp

ꞏ Q p
 p =  ----------


with the yield function

F y =     –  ys   pe 

where the yield stress yspe now depends on the equivalent plastic strain pe.

The yield stress yspe is then a function of the equivalent plastic strain and the
initial yield stress ys0

 ys   pe  =  ys0 + E iso  pe

here, the isotropic hardening modulus Eiso is calculated from

1- 1 1
---------- = -------------- – ----
E iso E Tiso E

For linear isotropic hardening, the isotropic tangent modulus ETiso is defined as
(stress increment / total strain increment). A value for ETiso is entered in the isotropic
tangent modulus section for the Plasticity node. The Young’s modulus E is taken from
the parent material (Linear Elastic, Nonlinear Elastic or Hyperelastic material model).
For orthotropic and anisotropic elastic materials, E represents an equivalent Young’s
modulus.

Ludwik
In the Ludwik model for nonlinear isotropic hardening, the yield stress yspe is
defined by a nonlinear function of the equivalent plastic strain. The Ludwik equation
(also called the Ludwik–Hollomon equation) for isotropic hardening is given by the
power law

n
 ys   pe  =  ys0 + k pe

Here, k is the strength coefficient and n is the hardening exponent. Setting n = 1

would result in linear isotropic hardening.

MATERIAL MODELS | 539

 Johnson–Cook
Similar to the Ludwik hardening model, the yield stress yspe in the Johnson–Cook
model is defined as a nonlinear function of the equivalent plastic strain pe given by a
power law. The difference is that effects of the strain rate are included in the model.
The yield stress and hardening function is given by

n   ꞏ pe  (3-52)
 ys   pe  =   ys0 + k pe   1 + C log  -------
ꞏ -   1 – f  T h  
  0  

The Johnson–Cook model also adds the possibility to include thermal softening by
including a function which depends on the normalized homologous temperature Th.
It is a function of the current temperature T, the melting temperature of the metal Tm,
and a reference temperature Tref

T – T ref
T h = -------------------------
T m – T ref

m
As a default, this dependency follows a power law, f  T h  = T h . The softening
function f(Th) should have the properties f(Th<0) = 0 and f(Th>1) = 1.

The natural logarithm is used in Equation 3-52. If material data have been
determined using a base 10 logarithm, the value of C must be adjusted
accordingly.

The strain rate strength coefficient C and the reference strain rate ꞏ in the Johnson–
0
Cook model are obtained from experimental data. The flow curve properties are
normally investigated by conducting uniaxial tension tests in a temperature range
around half the melting temperature Tm, and subjected to different strain rates like
0.1/s, 1/s, and 10/s.

It should be noted that the intent of the strain rate dependent term in Equation 3-52
is to capture the hardening at high strain rates. If extrapolated to very low strain rates,
a low or even negative yield stress will be predicted. Low strain rates can however be
expected in some regions in a general finite element model. To resolve this, the
material model as implemented, never evaluates the logarithmic term to a value smaller
than zero. This means that the reference strain rate ꞏ must be considered the
0
quasistatic limit. Below this strain rate, the hardening function will be a strain rate
independent, but temperature dependent, Ludwik law:

540 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 n
 ys   pe  =   ys0 + k pe   1 – f  T h  

Swift
For nonsaturating materials, the Swift power-law equation relates the initial yield stress
ys0 and the isotropic hardening h, to the equivalent plastic strain as

n
 ys   pe  =  ys0 +  h   pe  = k   0 +  pe 

here, k is the strength coefficient, n is the hardening exponent, and 0 is a reference

strain. Noting that at zero plastic strain the initial yield stress is related to the strength
coefficient and hardening exponent as

n
 ys  0  =  ys0 = k 0

the yield stress is written as

 pe n
=  ys0  1 + -------- for  pe  0
n
 ys   pe  = k   0 +  pe 
 0 

Voce
The Voce rule for nonlinear isotropic hardening is intended for materials that exhibit
a saturating evolution of hardening. The isotropic hardening h is exponentially
related to the equivalent plastic strain as

–  pe
 h   pe  =  sat  1 – e 
 

The yield stress yspe is then defined as

–  pe
 ys   pe  =  ys0 +  h   pe  =  ys0 +  sat  1 – e 
 

The value of the saturation exponent parameter determines the saturation rate of
the hysteresis loop for cyclic loading. The saturation flow stress sat characterizes the
maximum distance by which the yield surface can expand in the stress space. For values
pe  , the yield stress saturates to

 ys   ys0 +  sat

MATERIAL MODELS | 541

 Hockett–Sherby
The Hockett–Sherby rule for nonlinear isotropic hardening is also intended for
materials which yield stress saturates as equivalent plastic strain increases. It is similar
to Voce rule, but it includes an exponential dependency of the form

n
– m pe
 ys   pe  =  ys0 +    –  ys0   1 – e 


where  is the steady-state flow stress, m the saturation coefficient and n the
saturation exponent. For values mpen   the yield stress saturates to

 ys   

Hardening Function
The yield stress versus the equivalent plastic strain can be specified with the help of a
hardening curve that could also depend on other variables, such as temperature.

In this case, define the (usually nonlinear) hardening function hpe such that the
yields stress reads

 ys   pe  =  ys0 +  h   pe 

The internal variable for the equivalent plastic strain is named solid.epe.
The equivalent plastic strain evaluated at Gauss points is named
solid.epeGp.

When Large plastic strain is selected as the plasticity model for the
Plasticity node, either the associate or nonassociated flow rule is applied
as written in Equation 3-58.

KINEMATIC HARDENING
There are few options for computing either linear or nonlinear kinematic hardening
for plasticity:

• No kinematic hardening (default)

• Linear kinematic hardening
• Armstrong–Frederick
• Chaboche

542 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

For any of the kinematic hardening models, the algorithm solves either the associated
or nonassociated flow rule for the plastic potential Qp

ꞏ Q p
 p =  ----------


with the yield function defined as

F y =    –  back  –  ys

Here, ys is the yield stress (which may include a linear or nonlinear isotropic
hardening model), and the equivalent stress () is either the von Mises, Tresca, or Hill
stress; or a user defined expression. The stress tensor used in the yield function is
shifted by what is usually called the back stress, back.

Linear Kinematic Hardening

The back stress is generally not only a function of the current plastic strain but also of
its history. In the case of linear kinematic hardening, the back stress back is a linear
function of the plastic strain tensor p, this is also known as Prager’s hardening rule.

The implementation of linear kinematic hardening assumes a linear evolution of the

back stress tensor with respect to the plastic strain tensor:

2
 back = --- C k  p
3

where the kinematic hardening modulus Ck is calculated from

1- 1 1
------ = ------- – ----
Ck Ek E

The value for Ek is entered in the kinematic tangent modulus section and the Young’s
modulus E is taken from the linear or nonlinear elastic material model. For orthotropic

MATERIAL MODELS | 543

 and anisotropic elastic materials, E represents an averaged Young’s modulus. Note that
some authors define the kinematic hardening modulus as Hk = 2/3Ck.

When kinematic hardening is added, both the plastic potential and the
yield surface are calculated with effective invariants, that is, the invariants
of the tensor defined by the difference between the stress tensor minus
the back-stress, eff =  - back. The invariant of effective deviatoric
tensor is named solid.II2sEff, which is used when a von Mises, Tresca
or Hill orthotropic plasticity is computed together with kinematic
hardening.

Armstrong–Frederick Hardening Model

Armstrong and Frederick (Ref. 1) added memory to Prager’s linear kinematic
hardening model. This nonlinear kinematic hardening model makes it possible to
capture the Bauschinger effect and nonlinear behavior by nonsymmetric
tension-compression loading.

The nonlinear evolution of the back stressback is governed by the rate

ꞏ 2 ꞏ ꞏ
 back = --- C k  p –  k  pe  back
3

here, Ck is the kinematic hardening modulus,k is a kinematic hardening parameter,

andpe the equivalent plastic strain. Setting k = 0 recovers Prager’s rule for linear
kinematic hardening.

To solve this rate, internal degrees of freedom are added to account for the back stress
components. In order to have the same units as used for the plastic strain, the
algorithm solves for the back strain back as proposed in (Ref. 2), which is related to
the back stress as

2
 back = --- C k  back
3

The nonlinear evolution for the back strain reads

ꞏ ꞏ ꞏ
 back =  p –  k  pe  back

Chaboche Hardening Model

Chaboche (Ref. 2) proposed a nonlinear kinematic hardening model based on the
superposition of N back stress tensors

544 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 N

 back =  back,i
i

each of these back stress tensorsback,i follows a nonlinear Frederick–Armstrong

kinematic hardening rule

ꞏ 2 ꞏ ꞏ
 back,i = --- C i  p –  i  pe  back,i
3

Practitioners would normally select k = 0 for one of the back stress equations, thus
recovering Prager’s linear rule for that branch

2
 back,0 = --- C 0  p
3

The back stress tensorback is then defined by the superposition of N back stress
tensors

N
2
 back = --- C 0  p +
3  back,i
i=1

As done for Armstrong–Frederick kinematic hardening, the algorithm solves for the
back strain tensors back,i instead of the back stress tensors. The change of variables is

2
 back,i = --- C i  back,i
3

and the nonlinear evolution for the back strain tensors reads

ꞏ ꞏ ꞏ
 back,i =  p –  i  pe  back,i

INTRODUCTION TO SMALL AND LARGE PLASTIC STRAINS

There are two implementations of plasticity available in COMSOL Multiphysics. One
is based on the additive decomposition of strains, which is the most suitable approach
in the case of small strains, and the other one is based on the multiplicative
decomposition of the deformation gradient, which is more suitable when large plastic
strains occurs. The additive and multiplicative decomposition of strains is described in
Inelastic Strain Contributions.

When small plastic strain is selected as the plasticity model, an additive

decomposition is used. If the elastic or plastic strains are large, the additive

MATERIAL MODELS | 545

 decomposition might produce incorrect results. As an example, the volume
preservation, which is an important assumption in metal plasticity, will no longer be
respected. The additive decomposition of strains is however widely used both for metal
and soil plasticity.

When Small strains is selected as the plasticity model for the Plasticity
node, and the Include geometric nonlinearity check box is selected on the
study Settings window, a Cauchy stress tensor is used to evaluate the yield
function and plastic potential. The components of this stress tensor are
oriented along the material directions, so it can be viewed as a scaled
second Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor. The additive decomposition of
strains is understood as the summation of Green–Lagrange strains.

When Large strains is selected as the plasticity model, the total deformation gradient
tensor is multiplicatively decomposed into an elastic deformation gradient and a plastic
deformation gradient.

PLASTIC FLOW FOR SMALL STRAINS

The flow rule defines the relationship between the increment of the plastic strain
tensor ꞏ p and the current state of stress, for a yielded material subject to further
loading. When Small strains is selected as the plasticity model for the Plasticity node,
the direction of the plastic strain increment is defined by

ꞏ Q p
 p =  ----------


Here, is a positive multiplier (also called the consistency parameter or plastic
multiplier), which depends on the current state of stress and the load history, and Qp
is the plastic potential.

The “dot” (for ꞏ p ) means the rate at which the plastic strain tensor
changes with respect to Qp/. It does not represent a true time
derivative. Some authors call this formulation rate independent
plasticity.

The direction of the plastic strain increment ꞏ p is perpendicular to the surface (in the
hyperspace spanned by the stress tensor components) defined by the plastic potential
Qp.

546 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The plastic multiplier  is determined by the complementarity or Kuhn–Tucker
conditions

  0 , F y  0 and F y = 0 (3-53)

where Fy is the yield function. The yield surface encloses the elastic region defined by
Fy < 0. Plastic flow occurs when Fy = 0.

If the plastic potential and the yield surface coincide with each other Qp = Fy, the
flow rule is called associated, and the rate in Equation 3-54 is solved together with the
conditions in Equation 3-53.

ꞏ F y
 p =  --------- (3-54)


For a nonassociated flow rule, the yield function does not coincide with the plastic
potential, and together with the conditions in Equation 3-53, the rate in
Equation 3-55 is solved for the plastic potential Qp (often, a smoothed version of Fy).

ꞏ Q p
 p =  ---------- (3-55)


The evolution of the plastic strain tensor ꞏ p (with either Equation 3-54 or
Equation 3-55, plus the conditions in Equation 3-53) is implemented at Gauss points
in the plastic element elplastic.

PLASTIC FLOW FOR LARGE STRAINS

When the Large strains formulation is selected in the Plasticity node, a multiplicative
decomposition of deformation (Ref. 3, Ref. 4, and Ref. 5) is used, and the associated
plastic flow rule can be written as the Lie derivative of the elastic left Cauchy–Green
deformation tensor Bel:

1 
– --- L  B el  =  ------- B el (3-56)
2 

The plastic multiplier  and the yield function  (written in terms of the Kirchhoff
stress tensor ) satisfy the Kuhn–Tucker condition, as done for infinitesimal strain
plasticity

MATERIAL MODELS | 547

   0 ,   0 and  = 0

The yield function in Ref. 3 and Ref. 4 was written in terms of
Kirchhoff stress and not Cauchy stress because the authors defined the
plastic dissipation with the conjugate energy pair  and d, where d is the
rate of strain tensor.

The Lie derivative of Bel is then written in terms of the plastic right Cauchy–Green rate

ꞏ
L  B el  = FC p– 1 F T (3-57)

By using Equation 3-56 and Equation 3-57the either associated or nonassociated

plastic flow rule for large strains is written as (Ref. 4)

1 ꞏ Q p
– --- FC p–1 F T =  ---------- B el (3-58)
2 

together with the Kuhn–Tucker conditions for the plastic multiplier  and the yield
function Fy

  0 , F y  0 and F y = 0 (3-59)

For the associated flow rule, the plastic potential and the yield surface coincide with
each other (Qp = Fy), and for the nonassociated case, the yield function does not
coincide with the plastic potential.

In COMSOL Multiphysics, the elastic left Cauchy–Green tensor is written in terms of

the deformation gradient and the right Cauchy–Green tensor, so Bel = FCp1FT. The
flow rule then reads

ꞏ Q p
C p– 1 = – 2 F – 1 ---------- FC p– 1 (3-60)


The plastic flow rule is then solved at Gauss points in the plastic element elplastic
for the inverse of the plastic deformation gradient Fp1, so that the variables in
Equation 3-60 are replaced by

ꞏ ꞏ ꞏ
C p– 1 = F p– 1 F p– T , C p– 1 = F p– 1 F p–T + F p– 1 F p– T and B el = FF p–1 F p– T F T

After integrating the flow rule in Equation 3-60, the plastic Green–Lagrange strain
tensor is computed from the plastic deformation tensor

548 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 1 T
 p = ---  F p F p – I 
2

and the elastic Green–Lagrange strain tensor is computed from the elastic deformation
gradient tensor Fel = FFp1

1 T
 el = ---  F el F el – I 
2

When Large strains is selected in the Plasticity node, the equivalent plastic
strain variable is computed as the true equivalent plastic strain (also called
Hencky or logarithmic plastic strain).

When either Large strains or Small strains is selected in the Plasticity node,
the out-of-plane shear strain components are not computed in 2D,
neither for plane stress nor plane strain assumption.

NUMERICAL SOLUTION OF THE ELASTOPLASTIC CONDITIONS

A backward Euler discretization of the pseudo-time derivative is used in the plastic flow
rule. For small plastic strains, this gives

Q p
 p –  p, old =  ----------


where “old” denotes the previous time step and   t, where t is the pseudo-time
step length.

For large plastic strains, Equation 3-60 is numerically solved with the so-called
exponential mapping technique

Q p
C p– 1 = F –1 exp  – 2 ---------- FC p,
–1
   old

where C p– 1 = F p– 1 F p– T and C p,
–1 –1 –T
old = F p, old F p, old .

For each Gauss point, the plastic state variables (p or Fp1, depending on whether
small strain or large strain plasticity is selected) and the plastic multiplier, , are
computed by solving either of the above time-discretized flow rules together with the
complementarity conditions

  0, F y  0, F y = 0

MATERIAL MODELS | 549

 This is done as follows (Ref. 3):

1 Elastic-predictor: Try the elastic solution p  p,old (or F p– 1 = F p,

–1
old ) and   0.
If this satisfies Fy   it is done.
2 Plastic-corrector: If the elastic solution does not work (this is Fy  ), solve the
nonlinear system consisting of the flow rule and the equation Fy   using a damped
Newton method.

The numerical tolerance to fulfill the condition Fy   is given in SI units

of Pascals, and it depends on the initial yield stress (in case of plasticity and
porous plasticity) or it is defined in terms of other material parameter (for
soil plasticity).

It is possible to specify the maximum number of iterations and the relative tolerance
used to solve the plastic flow rule. Under the Advanced section enter the following
settings:

• Maximum number of local iterations. To determine the maximum number of iteration

when solving the local plasticity equations. The default value is 25 iterations.
• Relative tolerance. To check the convergence of the local plasticity equations based
on the step size. The final tolerance is computed based on the current solution of
the local variable and the entered value. The default value is 1e-6.

To display the Advanced section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select
Advanced Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

ENERGY DISSIPATION
Since plasticity is an inelastic process, the dissipated energy density can be calculated
by integrating the pseudo-rate given by

ꞏ ꞏ Q p
W p = : p = : ----------


As plasticity is rate independent, the plastic dissipation density Wp is obtained after

integrating an extra variable in the plastic flow rule.

550 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The total energy dissipated by plasticity in a given volume can be calculated by a
volume integration of the plastic dissipation density Wp.

When the Calculate dissipated energy check box is selected, the plastic
dissipation density is available under the variable solid.Wp and the total
plastic dissipation under the variable solid.Wp_tot.

NONLOCAL PLASTICITY
The nonlocal plasticity model implemented in COMSOL Multiphysics is based on the
so-called implicit gradient method suggested in Ref. 22, and it incorporates some of
the generalizations introduced by the micromorphic theory (Ref. 23). The theory
assumes that the free energy of the elastoplastic material not only depends on the
macroscopic displacement u and macro state variables, such as the equivalent plastic
strain pe, but also on some micro motion  and its gradient. If the micro motion
variable is identified as a nonlocal version of the equivalent plastic strain, pe,nl, the free
energy potential is written as

1 2
  u u  p  pe  pe,nl  pe,nl  = W s  u u  p  + --- E iso   pe  + (3-61)
2
1
--- H nl   pe –  pe,nl  2 + 1
--- H nl  l int  2  pe,nl   pe,nl
2 2

here Ws is the elastic free energy, Hnl is a model parameter that determines the strength
of the coupling between the macro and micro motions, and lint is the length scale that
determines the influence radius of the interaction. For simplicity, Equation 3-61
assumes linear isotropic hardening, but the same concept is applicable for more general
isotropic hardening laws and can for example also be extended with kinematic
hardening.

Taking the variation of Equation 3-61 with respect to state variables pe, pe,nl, and
 pe,nl leads to the following set of equations related to the plasticity model:

2 2
 pe,nl – H nl  l int    pe,nl =  pe in 
 pe,nl  n = 0 on
 ys   pe  pe,nl  =  ys0 + E iso  pe + H nl   pe –  pe,nl 

here,  is the domain of the elastoplastic problem. Variation of Equation 3-61 with
respect to the remaining state variables leads to the standard elasticity equations. In the
nonlocal (or regularized) plasticity problem, pe,nl is an additional dependent variable

MATERIAL MODELS | 551

 that is solved as part of the global problem. The structure of the local plasticity
problem is not changed and the numerical solution remains the same as discussed
above, but the hardening law now depends on pe,nl.

For porous plasticity, the same equation applies, but pe and pe,nl are replaced by the
equivalent plastic strains in the matrix material, pm and pm,nl. It is also possible to
add nonlocal effects to the void volume fraction  .The porous plasticity model is then
extended with the following set of equations

2 2
 nl –  l int,f    nl =  in 
 nl  n = 0 on

where  nl is the nonlocal void volume fraction. In contrast to the equivalent plastic
strain, it is assumed that there is a perfect coupling between  and  nl , and that the
nonlocal void volume fraction  nl directly replaces its local counterpart in the model
equations.

Failure Criteria for Concrete, Rocks, and Other Brittle Materials

In this section:

• The Bresler–Pister Yield Criterion

• The Willam–Warnke Criterion
• The Ottosen Criterion
• The Original Hoek–Brown Criterion
• The Generalized Hoek–Brown Criterion

THE BRESLER–PISTER YIELD CRITERION

The Bresler–Pister yield criterion (Ref. 4, Ref. 19) was originally devised to predict the
strength of concrete under multiaxial stresses. This failure criterion is an extension of
The Drucker–Prager Criterion to brittle materials, and it can be expressed in terms of
the stress invariants as

2
Fy = J2 + k1 I1 + k2 I1 + k3 (3-62)

here, k1, k2, and k3 are parameters obtained from the uniaxial compressive strength
cs, the uniaxial tensile strength ts, and the biaxial compressive strength bc

552 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

  bc  cs + 2 cs  ts – 3 bc  ts
k 1 = -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3   cs +  ts   2 bc –  cs   2 bc +  ts 

  ts –  cs    bc   cs +  ts – 4 bc  –  cs  ts 
k 2 = --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3   cs +  ts   2 bc –  cs   2 bc +  ts 

–  cs  bc  ts   ts + 8 bc – 3 cs 
k 3 = -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3   cs +  ts   2 bc –  cs   2 bc +  ts 

All the strengths are considered with a positive sign. Note that for typical strength
values, the parameters k1 and k2 are positive while k3 is negative.

THE WILLAM–WARNKE CRITERION

The Willam–Warnke criterion (Ref. 12) is used to predict failure in concrete and other
cohesive-frictional materials such as rock, soil, and ceramics. Just as The Bresler–Pister
Yield Criterion, it depends only on three parameters. It was developed to describe
initial concrete failure under triaxial conditions. The failure surface is convex,
continuously differentiable, and it is fitted to test data in the low compression range.

The original “three-parameter” Willam–Warnke failure criterion was defined as

 oct
--- --------- + r      ------- – --------  oct – 1
3 1 1
Fy = (3-63)
5  cs    ts  bc 

where cs is the uniaxial compressive strength, ts is uniaxial tensile strength, and bc
is the biaxial compressive strength (all parameters are positive). The octahedral normal
and shear stresses are defined as usual; see Other Stress Invariants

 oct = I 1 /3 , and  oct = 2J 2 /3

so the criterion in Equation 3-63 can be written in term of stress invariants as

1 I1
--- r    cs   ------- – -------- ----- – 1
1
Fy = J2 + 5
2   ts  bc 3

The dimensionless function r( describes the segment of an ellipse on the octahedral
plane as a function of the Lode angle 

2
2r c  r c2 – r t2  cos  + r c  2r t – r c  4  r c2 – r t2  cos  + 5r t2 – 4 r c r t
r    = --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2
-
4  r c2 – r t2  cos  +  r c – 2r t  2

MATERIAL MODELS | 553

 Here, the tensile and compressive meridian rt and rc are defined in terms of the
strengths cs, bc, and ts:

1  bc  ts
rt = 6
--- ------- -------------------------
5  cs 2 bc +  ts

 bc  ts
rc = 6
--- ---------------------------------------------------------------
5 3 bc  ts +  bc  cs –  ts  cs

The function r( can be interpreted as the friction angle which depends on the Lode
angle (Ref. 12).



rc
r 
rt

Figure 3-22: The deviatoric section of the Willam–Warnke failure criterion.

THE OTTOSEN CRITERION

The Ottosen criterion is a four-parameter failure criterion proposed for short-time
loading of concrete. It corresponds to a smooth convex failure surface with curved
meridians, which is open in the negative (compressive) direction of the hydrostatic
axis. The curve in the pi-plane changes from almost triangular to a more circular shape
with increasing hydrostatic pressure. The criterion agrees with experimental results
over a wide range of stress states, including both triaxial tests along the tensile and the
compressive meridian and biaxial tests (Ref. 20).

The Ottosen criterion is commonly written as (Ref. 19, Ref. 20):

554 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 a
F y = ------- J 2 +     J 2 + bI 1 –  cs
 cs

Here, cs is the uniaxial compressive strength of concrete, and a > 0 and b > 0 are
dimensionless parameters. The dimensionless function depends on the Lode angle
and two dimensionless parameters k1 > 0 and k2 > 0.


 k cos  1--- acos  k 2 cos  3   J3  0
 1 3 

 = 

 k cos   --- acos  – k 2 cos  3  
--- – 1 J 3  0.
 1 3 3 


The parameter k1 is called the size factor. The parameter k2 (also called shape factor)
is positive and bounded to 0  k2  1(Ref. 19, Ref. 20).

Typical values for these parameters are obtained by curve-fitting the uniaxial
compressive strength cs, uniaxial tensile strength ts, and from the biaxial and triaxial
data (for instance, a typical biaxial compressive strength of concrete is 16% higher than
the uniaxial compressive strength). The parameters cs, bc, and ts are positive.
TABLE 3-3: TYPICAL PARAMETER VALUES FOR OTTOSEN FAILURE CRITERION ( Ref. 20).
ts/ cs a b k1 k2 t c
0.08 1.808 4.096 14.486 0.991 14.472 7.783
0.10 1.276 3.196 11.736 0.980 11.711 6.531
0.12 0.922 2.597 9.911 0.965 9.872 5.698

The compressive and tensile meridians (as defined in The Willam–Warnke Criterion)
are

1 1 1 1
r c = ----- = ------------------- and r t = ----- = -----------
 c   /3  t   0 

The ratio rt/rc = c/t normally lies between 0.54~0.58 for concrete.

The Ottosen criterion is equivalent to the Drucker–Prager criterion when

a = 0 and independent of the Lode angle.

MATERIAL MODELS | 555

 THE ORIGINAL HOEK–BROWN CRITERION
The Hoek–Brown criterion is an empirical type of model which is commonly used
when dealing with rock masses of variable quality. The Hoek–Brown criterion is widely
used within civil engineering and is popular because the material parameters can be
estimated based on simple field observations together with knowledge of the uniaxial
compressive strength of the intact rock material. The Hoek–Brown criterion is one of
the few nonlinear criteria widely accepted and used by engineers to estimate the yield
and failure of rock masses. The original Hoek–Brown failure criterion states (Ref. 7)

 1 =  3 + m cs  3 + s cs
2

where 1  2  3  0 are the principal stresses at failure (as defined in geotechnical

engineering; that is, an absolute value), cs is the uniaxial compressive strength of the
intact rock, and m and s are positive material parameters.

If the expression is converted into to the sign convention for principal stresses in the
Structural Mechanics Module, it becomes

 1 =  3 + – m cs  1 + s cs
2

with cs, m, and s positive material parameters. (In this case, note that 1  scs/m).

As developed originally, there is no relation between the parameters m and s and the
physical characteristics of a rock mass measured in laboratory tests. However, for intact
rock, s  1 and m  mi, which is measured in a triaxial test.

For jointed rock masses, 0  s  1 and m  mi. The parameter m usually lies in the
range 5  m  30 (Ref. 9).
TABLE 3-4: CHARACTERISTIC VALUES FOR DIFFERENT ROCK TYPES

m ROCK TYPE

5 Carbonate rocks, dolomite, limestone

10 Consolidated rocks, mudstone, shale
15 Sandstone
20 Fine-grained rocks
25 Coarse grained rocks

The Hoek–Brown criterion can be written in terms of the invariants I1 and J2 and the
Lode angle 0    3, so

556 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

  1
F y = 2 J 2 sin   + --- –  cs s – m ------ = 0
 3 c

THE GENERALIZED HOEK–BROWN CRITERION

The generalized Hoek–Brown criterion was developed in order to fit the Geological
Strength Index (GSI) classification of isotropic rock masses (Ref. 8). A new
relationship between GSI, m, s and the newly introduced parameter a was developed,
to give a smoother transition between very poor quality rock masses (GSI < 25) and
stronger rocks

1 a
 1 –  3 =  cs  s – m b --------
 cs

where cs is the compressive strength of the intact rock. In terms of the invariants J2
and the Lode angle 0      3 this equals

 1 a
F y = 2 J 2 sin   + --- –  cs  s – m b -------- = 0
 3  cs

where 1  2  3 are the principal stresses (using the Structural Mechanics Module
conventions) of the effective stress tensor (this is, the stress tensor minus the fluid pore
pressure).

The positive parameter mb is a reduced value of the material constant mi:

m b = m i exp  --------------------------
GSI – 100
28 – 14D

s and a are positive parameters for the rock mass given by the following relationships:

s = exp  --------------------------
GSI – 100
9 – 3D

a = --- + ---  exp  ------------- – exp  --------- 

1 1 – GSI – 20
2 6  15   3 

MATERIAL MODELS | 557

 The disturbance factor D was introduced to account for the effects of stress relaxation
and blast damage, and it varies from 0 for undisturbed in situ rock masses to 1 for very
damaged rock masses.
TABLE 3-5: DISTURBANCE FACTOR IN ROCK MASSES

D DESCRIPTION OF ROCK MASS

0 Undisturbed rock mass

0~0.5 Poor quality rock mass
0.8 Damaged rock mass
1.0 Severely damaged rock mass

Elastoplastic Soil Models

In this section:

• The Modified Cam-Clay Soil Model

• The Modified Structured Cam-Clay Soil Model
• The Extended Barcelona Basic Soil Model
• The Hardening Soil Model

THE MODIFIED CAM-CLAY SOIL MODEL

The Cam-clay material model was developed in the 1970s at the University of
Cambridge, and since then it has experienced many modifications. The modified
Cam-clay model (MCC) is the most commonly used model due to its smooth yield
surface, and it is the one implemented in the Geomechanics Module.

The modified Cam-clay model is a so-called critical state model, where the loading and
unloading of the material follow different trajectories in stress space. The model also
features hardening and softening of clays. Different formulations can be found in
textbooks, see for instance Ref. 15, Ref. 16, and Ref. 17.

The yield function is written in terms of the stress invariants

q= 3J 2   
p = –I1     3

Following the Structural Mechanics Module sign convention (the pressure is positive
in compression), the yield function reads:

558 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 F y = q 2 + M 2  p – p c p = 0

This is an ellipse in the pq-plane, with a cross section independent of the Lode angle.
Note that p, q, and pc are positive variables.

The parameter M  0 defines the slope of the critical state line in the pq-plane. This
parameter can be matched to the angle of internal friction  in the Mohr–Coulomb
criterion as

6 sin   
M = -------------------------- (3-64)
3 – sin   

critical state line

q=Mp
q

softening hardening

nonlinear elastic region

pc/2 pc p

Figure 3-23: Modified Cam-Clay ellipse in the pq-plane. The ellipse circumscribes a
nonlinear elastic region.

The slope of the critical state line M can either be a material property or
it can be matched to Mohr–Coulomb criterion and derived from the angle
of internal friction  . It can also be matched to Matsuoka–Nakai
criterion; see Equation 3-73.

MATERIAL MODELS | 559

 The soil response to isotropic compression is described by the curve of the void ratio
(or specific volume or volumetric strain) versus the logarithm of pressure as shown in
Figure 3-24.

The void ratio e is the ratio between the pore space and solid volume. It
can be written in terms of the porosity  as e = /(1).

.
e

eref

 virgin consolidation line

e0

swelling line

pref pi pc0 ln(p)

Figure 3-24: Slopes of the virgin isotropic consolidation line and swelling line in the e
versus ln  p  plane.

The compression index  is the slope of the virgin isotropic consolidation line, and
the swelling index  is the slope of the swelling line (also called unloading-reloading
line) in the e versus ln(p) plane. The reference void ratio eref is measured at the
reference pressure pref and initial void ratio e0 is measured at the initial mean stress pi.
The starting value of initial mean stress pi is the reference pressure pref. The equation
for the virgin isotropic consolidation line is written as

e = e ref –  ln  ----------
p
 p ref

The void ratio at the initial consolidation pressure pc0 is given by

p c0
e c0 = e ref –  ln  ----------
 p ref

The equation for the swelling line is

560 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 e = e 0 –  ln  -----
p
pi

where e0 is the initial void ratio calculated as

p c0
e 0 = e c0 +  ln  --------
pi

The initial void ratio e0 can be directly entered as user input. In this case,
the void ratio at initial consolidation pressure, ec0, is not needed as
intermediate variable.

Assuming small deformations and adopting the sign convention of Structural

Mechanics, the volumetric strain is related to the void ratio as

V – V0 e – e0
 vol = ----------------- = ---------------
V0 1 + e0

For elastic response, the incremental volumetric elastic strain is written as

de dp
d el, vol = --------------- = –  ------- (3-65)
1 + e0 p

Integrating Equation 3-65, the equation is reformulated as

 1 + e 0  el, vol = –  ln  -----

p
 p i

Then the nonlinear relation between pressure and volumetric strain is obtained by

– B el 
el , vol
p = pi e (3-66)

where

MATERIAL MODELS | 561

 1 + e0
B el = ---------------


The contribution to initial mean stress pi also comes from the first
invariant of the initial or external stress tensor of Initial Stress and Strain or
External Stress feature. The reference pressure is generally a unit pressure
in the used unit system, in the literature the value varies from 1 kPa to
100 kPa. In COMSOL Multiphysics the default value is 100 kPa.

At zero volumetric elastic strain and with zero contribution from Initial Stress and
Strain or External Stress features the initial mean stress is nonzero and equal to the
reference pressure pref. The reference pressure acts as an in situ stress.

p i = p ref (3-67)

The tangent bulk modulus Kt is written as

1 + e0
K t = --------------- p


The secant bulk modulus Ks (or bulk modulus K) is written as

pi – p
K s = ----------------
 el, vol

When a constant Poisson’s ratio is specified in the Modified Cam-clay

model, the shear modulus is calculated from the secant bulk modulus and
Poisson’s ratio, which in turn gives a variable shear modulus.

The total volumetric strain increment in written as

de  dp  –  dp c
d vol = --------------- = – --------------- ------- – --------------- ---------
1 + e0 1 + e0 p 1 + e0 pc

The evolution of void ratio is then written as

e =  1 + e 0  vol + e 0 or (3-68)

pc pc
e = e ref –  ln  ----- –  ln  -------- +  ln  -----
p
(3-69)
 p i  p ref  pi

562 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Equation 3-68 is used to compute the void ratio which matches exactly with
Equation 3-69 which may be used for verification purposes.

In the modified Cam-clay model, hardening is controlled by the consolidation

pressure pc, which depends on the volumetric plastic strain p,vol as

ꞏ 1 + e0 ꞏ
p c = – --------------- p c  p,vol (3-70)
–

The elastic and plastic volumetric strains are available in the variable
solid.eelvol and solid.epvol, respectively. The consolidation
pressure is available in the variable item.pc.

The evolution of the consolidation pressure depends on the values for the initial void
ratio e0, the swelling index , and the compression index , which are positive
parameters that fulfill

0     and e ref  0

If an Initial Stress and Strain node is added to the Cam-clay material, the
initial consolidation pressure pc0 must be equal or larger than one third
of minus the trace of the initial stress tensor, otherwise the initial stress
state is outside the Cam-clay ellipse.

Volumetric Elastic Deformation

The stress-strain relation beyond the elastic range is of great importance in soil
mechanics. For additive decomposition of strains, Cauchy’s stress tensor is written as

– B el 
el , vol
 = dev   0  + p i e + 2Gdev   el 

with

1 + e0
B el = ---------------


Here,  is the stress tensor,  is the total strain tensor, el is the elastic strain tensor, 0
is the initial or external stress tensor, and G is the shear modulus.

At zero volumetric strain, and with zero contribution from Initial Stress and Strain or
External Stress features, the pressure in the MCC model is equal to the reference

MATERIAL MODELS | 563

 pressure (see Equation 3-66 and Equation 3-67). This is needed as the MCC model
do not have stiffness at zero stress. The reference pressure appears as an additional term
in the variational formulation (weak equation).

As opposed to the Linear Elastic Material, the MCC model introduces a nonlinear
relation for the hydrostatic pressure as a function of the volumetric elastic strain given
by Equation 3-66.

Hardening and Softening

The yield surface for the modified Cam-clay model reads

2
F y = q 2 + M  p – p c p

The yield surface and the associated flow rule (Qp = Fy) give the rate equation for the
plastic strains. The plastic strain tensor p is calculated from the plastic multiplier p
and the derivatives of the plastic potential Qp with respect to the stress tensor 

ꞏ Q p Q p I 1 Q p J 2
 p =  p ---------- =  p  ---------- -------- + ---------- ---------
  I 1  J 2  

Here, p stands for the plastic multiplier, see Plastic Flow for Small Strains
and Isotropic Hardening.

The plastic strain rate tensor ꞏ p includes both deviatoric and isotropic parts. Note that

I 1   = I

and

J 2   = dev   

These relations can be used for writing the plastic flow as

ꞏ 1 Q p Q p 3
 p =  p  – --- ---------- I + ---------- ------- dev   
3 p q 2q

since the associated flow rule implies a plastic potential such as

2
Q p = F y = q 2 + M  p – p c p

the plastic flow rule simplifies to

564 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 ꞏ
 p =  p  – --- M  2p – p c I + 3dev   
1 2
3

The trace of the plastic strain rate tensor (the volumetric plastic strain rate ꞏ pvol )
then reads

ꞏ ꞏ 2
 pvol = trace   p  =  p M  p c – 2p 

This relation explains why there is isotropic hardening when the pressure is p > pc/2
and isotropic softening when p < pc/2. As opposed to what happens in J2 plasticity,
in the modified Cam-Clay soil model the volumetric plastic strain can either increase
or decrease as plastic deformation occurs.

In the MCC model, hardening is controlled by the consolidation pressure pc as a

function of volumetric plastic strain, as described in Equation 3-70.

Hardening introduces changes in the shape of the Cam-Clay ellipse, since its major
semiaxis depends on the value of the consolidation pressure pc. The initial
consolidation pressure pc0 defines the size of the ellipse before plastic deformation
occurs.

Including Pore Pressure

When an external pore pressure pf is added to the MCC material, the yield function is
shifted along the p axis, and the yield function reads:

2
Fy = q 2 + M  p – pf – pc   p – pf 

The quantity p  pf is normally regarded as the effective pressure, or effective stress,

which should not be confused with the equivalent von Mises stress. To add the effect
of a fluid pressure in the pores pf to the Modified Cam-Clay material, add an External
Stress feature.

See also the description of the Elastoplastic Soil Material materials in the
Solid Mechanics interface documentation.

THE MODIFIED STRUCTURED CAM-CLAY SOIL MODEL

The structured Cam-Clay model (SCC) was developed (Ref. 22, Ref. 23) to
circumvent the limitations of the Cam-Clay model when applied to structured soils and
clays. The SCC model, however, does not consider the influence of the soil structure

MATERIAL MODELS | 565

 neither on strength characteristics (especially cohesion) nor in the softening behavior,
and it is also not suitable to model cemented clays.

The modified structured Cam-clay model (MSCC) was further developed to model
destructured, naturally structured and artificially structured clays (Ref. 22), and it is
the one implemented in the Geomechanics Module.

In the MSCC model, the reduction of mean effective stress due to structure
degradation, pb, depends on the shear plastic strain p,dev. The destructuring
mechanism is the process of reducing structure strength due to the degradation and
crushing of the structure. The structure degradation is given by

p bi e –  p,dev if  p,dev   p,deve

pb = (3-71)
– d s   p,dev –  p,deve 
p bf e otherwise

Here, pbi is the initial structural strength, pbf the failure structural strength, p,devc is
the equivalent plastic strain at failure, and ds is the destructuring index due to shear
deformation.

The equivalent deviatoric plastic strain at which the crushing of the

structure begins, p,devc, has a typical value between 0.15 and 0.3 for
most clays.

Structured clays show a higher void ratio than destructured clays at the same effective
mean stress. The virgin compression behavior during the destructuring process is
expressed by

e = e + e

dv
e = e i  p c0  p c 

where is e void ratio of the structured clay, e is additional void ratio, e* is void ratio
of the destructured clay at the same stress state. The void ratio can be found by using
Equation 3-69. Further, ei is the additional void ratio at consolidation pressure, and
dv is the destructuring index due to volumetric deformation.

The yield surface for the modified structured Cam-clay model reads

2
Fy = q2 + M  p + pb   p – pc 

566 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The nonassociated plastic potential reads

2 p + pb 2  
Q p = q + -----------   p + p b  –  ------------------  p c + p b  
2 M 2 2
–1   p c + p b 

Here,  is a parameter to smooth the shape of the plastic potential. The slope of the
critical state line, M can be found by using Equation 3-64.

In the modified structured Cam-clay soil model, hardening is controlled by the

consolidation pressure pc as a function of volumetric plastic strain, and is described as

1 + e0 ꞏ
– -------------------------------------------------------- p c  p,vol if   M
 –  + d v e ---------------  M 
ꞏ  M – 
pc =
1 + e0 ꞏ
– ----------------------------------- p c  p,vol otherwise

 –  + d v e

Here, * is the compression index for destructured clay,  is the swelling index, and 
is ratio of shear stress to mean stress.

The MSCC and MCC models are equivalent when ei = 0,  = 2, and
pb = 0.

The relationship between hydrostatic pressure and volumetric elastic strain is the same
as the one outlined in The Modified Cam-Clay Soil Model,

– B el  1 + e0
el , vol
p = pi e with B el = --------------- (3-72)


The stress tensor is then computed from

– B el 
el , vol
 = dev   0  + p i e + 2Gdev   el 

At zero volumetric strain, and with zero contribution from Initial Stress and Strain or
External Stress features, the pressure in the MSCC model is equal to the reference
pressure (see Equation 3-72 and Equation 3-67). This is needed as the MSCC model
do not have stiffness at zero stress. The reference pressure appears as an additional term
in the variational formulation (weak equation).

MATERIAL MODELS | 567

 THE EXTENDED BARCELONA BASIC SOIL MODEL
The Barcelona Basic model (BBM) was developed to simulate the loading of
unsaturated and partially saturated soils, by incorporating an extra state variable for the
pore suction. The suction value depends on the amount of water in the soil, and it
affects the flow in porous soils as well as the deformation and stress distribution.

The BBM model uses the concepts of plasticity theory, incorporating the critical state
model (Ref. 24). This soil model matches the results obtained with the Modified
Cam-Clay Model in fully saturated soils.

The so-called Extended Barcelona Basic model (BBMx) was further developed to
overcome numerical limitations of the original BBM model (Ref. 25). The model
implemented in COMSOL Multiphysics follows Ref. 25 with certain modifications
described in this section.

The BBMx model implemented in the Geomechanics Module presents a smooth yield
surface with respect to both stress and suction

b  s – sy  – bs y
--------------------- -----------
2 2  p p ref
Fy = q2 + M  p – p cs   p + p s  + p ref  e ref –e 
 

Here, p and q are stress invariants as defined in The Modified Cam-Clay Soil Model,
pcs is the consolidation pressure at current suction, ps is the tensile strength due to
current suction, s is the current suction, b is a dimensionless smoothing parameter, sy
is the yield value at current suction, and pref is the reference pressure at which the
reference void ratio eref was measured.

The tensile strength due to current suction, ps, is linearly related to the suction level
as ps = ks, where k is the tension to suction ratio.

The consolidation pressure at current suction pcs is calculated from

0 –  
 -------------------
-
p c    s  – 
p cs = p ref  ---------
 p ref

where sis the compression index at current suction, 0 is the compression index at
saturation, and  is the swelling index. The compression index at current suction, s,
is given by

–s  m
  s  =  0   1 – w e + w

568 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

where w and m are weighting and soil stiffness parameters.

The slope of the critical state line M can be computed from the Matsuoka-Nakai
criterion, in which case it depends on both the Lode angle  and the angle of internal
friction 

 1  4
 6 sin      2 
M =  --------------------------  --------------------------------------------------------------------- (3-73)
3 – sin       
 1 +  –  1 –   sin  3 – --2- 

where

3 – sin    4
 =  ---------------------------
 3 + sin   

At the tensile or compressive meridians, where the Lode angle is =  or  = , the
slope of the critical state line achieves the same expression as when matched to
Mohr-Coulomb criterion, see Equation 3-64

6 sin   
M = --------------------------
3 – sin   

The associated plastic potential for the BBMx model reads

Qp = Fy

The plastic strain increments are computed from the derivatives of the plastic potential
with respect to stress only.

As in The Modified Cam-Clay Soil Model, hardening is controlled by the evolution of

the consolidation pressure pc, which depends on the volumetric plastic strain p,vol.

ꞏ 1 + e0 ꞏ
p c = – --------------- p c  p,vol (3-74)
0 – 

The initial void ratio e0, the swelling index , and the compression index at saturation
0, are positive parameters.

The evolution of the yield value at current suction, sy, is also governed by the
volumetric plastic strain pl,vol as

ꞏ 1 + e0 ꞏ
s y = – -----------------  s y + p atm  p,vol (3-75)
s – s

MATERIAL MODELS | 569

 Here, s is the compression index for changes in suction, s is the swelling index for
changes in suction, and patm is the atmospheric pressure, all positive parameters. Note
that Equation 3-74 and Equation 3-75 are normally given with opposite sign. Here,
however, the structural mechanics convention is used, so the increments in
consolidation pressure and suction are positive in compression.

The evolution of void ratio is then written as

e =  1 + e 0  vol + e 0 or

p cs p cs
e = e s ref –   s  ln  --------- +  ln  -------- –  ln  -----
p
 p ref  pi   p i

where

e s ref = e ref –  s ln   s + p atm   p atm 

In the BBMx model, the total volumetric elastic response is combination of elastic
response by pressure and suction,

 s dp ds
 el,vol =  el,vol + el,vol = – ------- – --------
K K cs

where

K cs =  1 + e 0   s + p atm    s

Here K is the bulk modulus, and Kcs the stiffness to suction. Note that the pressure p
in compression and suction s is positive variables, but the elastic volumetric strain
el,vol is negative in compression. The volumetric elastic response due to suction is
given by

s s  s + p atm 
 el,vol = – --------------- ln  ------------------------
1 + e 0  s 0 + p atm

Here, s0 is the initial suction. The volumetric elastic response due to suction is
accounted in the total strain tensor for BBMx model, so any changes in suction with
keeping pressure constant can cause volumetric strains.

The relationship between hydrostatic pressure and volumetric elastic strain is the same
as the one outlined in The Modified Cam-Clay Soil Model

570 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 – B el  1 + e0
el , vol
p = pi e with B el = --------------- (3-76)


The stress tensor is then computed from

– B el 
el , vol
 = dev   0  + p i e + 2Gdev   el 

At zero volumetric strain, and with zero contribution from Initial Stress and Strain or
External Stress features, the pressure in the BBMx model is equal to the reference
pressure (see Equation 3-76 and Equation 3-67). This is needed as the BBMx model
does not have stiffness at zero stress. The reference pressure appears as an additional
term in the variational formulation (weak equation form).

Note that the material property 0 is the compression index at saturation,

which does not depend on the suction. The variable (s), which is a
function of the current suction, is the compression index (slope) in the
void ratio versus logarithm of the mean stress plot. The material property
s is the compression index (slope) in the void ratio versus logarithm of
the matrix suction plot, which does not depend on the mean stress.

THE HARDENING SOIL MODEL

The Hardening Soil model is an elastoplastic material model with a stress and stress
path dependent stiffness. It is a so-called double stiffness model, meaning that its
stiffness is different during the primary loading and unloading/reloading cases
(Ref. 26). The yield surface for the Hardening Soil model is a combination of a conical
surface and an elliptic cap surface in stress space. Failure in shear occurs according to
a Mohr–Coulomb criterion.

The stiffness moduli for primary loading, denoted by E50, and for unloading/
reloading, denoted by Eur, are given by

c cot    –  1 m
E 50 = E 50  ----------------------------------------
ref
 c cot     + p ref 

and

ref c cot    –  1
m
E ur = E ur  -----------------------------------
 c cot    + p ref

MATERIAL MODELS | 571

 ref ref
Here E 50 and E ur are reference stiffness for primary loading and for unloading and
reloading at reference pressure, c is the cohesion,  is the angle of internal friction,
and m is the stress exponent. The ultimate deviatoric stress qf and the stress to failure
qa are derived from the Mohr–Coulomb criterion

2c cos    – 2 1 sin    qf
q f = --------------------------------------------------------- and q a = ------
1 – sin    Rf

where Rf is the failure ratio. Consider the stress invariants q = 3J 2 and

p = – I 1  3 , the yield function and plastic potential for the shear hardening cone are
given by

qa q
F y = q a  ----------------------------- – --------- –  p
2q
 E 50  q a – q  E ur 

Q p = --- –  p + --- sin   m 

q q
2 6

where p is the accumulated plastic shear strain and m is the mobilized dilatancy
angle.

The definition of the shear strain measure p in the original Hardening

Soil model is not compatible with pure volumetric loading as it does not
vanish during pure volumetric straining. Therefore, the shear strain
measure p is defined as  p = 2 J 2   pl  , see Nonlinear Elastic Materials.

The yield function for the elliptic cap, and the associated plastic potential, are also
defined in terms of stress invariants, and given by

2
 Rc q  p
2
F y = Q p = ------------------ + ------ – p c
pc pc

Here, Rc is the ellipse aspect ratio, and it can directly entered, or given as the inverse
nc
of the coefficient of earth pressure at rest k 0

1-
R c = -------
nc
k0
nc
The coefficient of earth pressure at rest k 0 is computed from the angle of internal
friction 

572 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 nc
k 0 = 1 – sin   

The special deviatoric stress q is defined as

q =  1 –   – 1  2 –  3

where

3 + sin   
 = ---------------------------
3 – sin   

The internal variables pc and p depend on the volumetric plastic strain pl,vol and the
plastic strain invariant J2 pl, and their evolution is defined as

ꞏ ꞏ
p c = – H  pl,vol

ꞏ ꞏ
 p = 2 J 2   pl 

where H is the hardening modulus which depends on the bulk modulus in

compression Kc and the bulk modulus in swelling Ks

ref
1- 1 1 E ur
---- = ------ – ------ where K s = -----------------------------
H Kc Ks 3  1 – 2 ur 

The dilatancy cutoff is implemented by setting the mobilized dilatancy angle m equal
to zero when the void ratio reaches the critical void ratio emax.

Cauchy’s stress tensor is then written as

 –  0 = C:   –  inel 

where C is a function of the stiffness modulus Eur and Poisson’s ratio .

MATERIAL MODELS | 573

 Creep and Viscoplasticity
In this section:

• Creep
- Creep Material Models
- Creep Rate Function
- Equivalent Stress, Creep Flow and Hardening Rule
- Hardening Function
- Thermal Function
- Combining Creep Models
- Time Integration
- Converting Between Different Creep Data Representations
• Viscoplasticity
- Anand Model
- Chaboche Model
- Perzyna Model
- Bingham Model
- Peric Model
• Creep and Viscoplasticity for Large Strains
• Energy Dissipation

In the literature, the terms viscoplasticity and creep are often used
interchangeably to refer to the class of problems related to
rate-dependent plasticity. A distinction is sometimes made so that creep
refers to models without a yield surface.

CREEP
Creep is an inelastic time-dependent deformation that occurs when a material is
subjected to stress (typically much less than the plastic yield stress) at sufficiently high
temperatures.

The creep strain rate depends in a general case on stress, temperature, and time, usually
in a nonlinear manner:

574 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 ꞏ
 cr = F cr   T t 

It is often possible to separate these effects multiplicatively:

ꞏ
 cr   t T  = f   g  T h  t 

Experimental data shows three different types of behavior for the creep strain rate at
constant stress as function of time. Researchers normally subdivide the creep curve into
these three regimes, based on the fact that many different materials show similar
responses:

• In the initial primary creep regime (also called transient creep) the creep strain rate
decreases with time to a minimum steady-state value.
• In the secondary creep regime the creep strain rate is almost constant. This is also
called steady-state creep.
• In the tertiary creep regime the creep strain increases with time until a failure
occurs.

When this distinction is assumed, the total creep rate can be additively split into
primary, secondary, and tertiary creep rates

ꞏ
 cr = F cr1 + F cr2 + F cr3

In most cases, Fcr1 and Fcr3 depend on stress, temperature and time, while secondary
creep, Fcr2, depends only on stress level and temperature. Normally, secondary creep

MATERIAL MODELS | 575

 is the dominant process. Tertiary creep is seldom important because it only accounts
for a small fraction of the total lifetime of a structure or mechanical component.

cr

1

primary creep 2
tertiary creep

secondary creep

1 >2

log time

Figure 3-25: Uniaxial creep as a function of logarithmic time.

Creep Material Models

The mathematical description of a general creep model can be summarized by a set of
equations given in a similar format as the flow theory of plasticity. The creep strain is
given by a flow rule that defines the relationship between the rate of the creep strain
tensor cr and the current state of stress. This flow rule can be written as

ꞏ Q cr
 cr =  cr -----------


where cris the creep multiplier, Qcr is the creep potential, and  is the stress tensor.
The creep multiplier is an explicit function of stress , temperature T, time t, and the
equivalent creep strain ce, and can be given on a general format as

 cr = f   e g  T h   ce t 

where the generic functions f, g, and h that define the creep rate and can be combined
to construct different types of creep models. The hardening rule, h(ce, t), defines the
relationship between the creep strain tensor cr and the equivalent creep strain ce. The
equivalent stress e is a scalar representation of the Cauchy stress tensor, and given
associative creep flow, it also defines the creep potential so that

576 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 Q cr =  e

Creep Rate Function

The creep rate function f is typically a function of the equivalent stress e or any other
scalar measure of the current stress state. In COMSOL Multiphysics, there are several
built-in creep rate functions:

• Norton (Power law)

• Garofalo (Hyperbolic sine law)
• Nabarro–Herring (Diffusional Creep)
• Coble (Diffusional Creep)
• Weertman (Dislocation Creep)

It is also possible to define an arbitrary expression for f so that, in principle, any creep
model can be implemented. The expressions used for the built-in creep rate functions
are described in the following sections.

The Norton model is the most common secondary creep model, where the creep rate
is assumed proportional to a power law of the equivalent stress e such that

e n
f   e  = A  --------- (3-77)
 ref

where A is the creep rate coefficient, n is the stress exponent, ref is a reference stress
level.

At very high stress levels the creep rate is proportional to the exponential of e.
Garofalo showed (Ref. 8, Ref. 9) that the power-law and exponential creep are limiting
cases for the general empirical expression

ꞏ n
 cr   sinh   e  

This equation reduces to a power-law (the Norton model) when e  0.8 and
approaches exponential creep for e  1.2, where 1 is a reference equivalent stress
level. The Garofalo (Hyperbolic sine law) creep model implemented in COMSOL
Multiphysics is given as

e n
f   e  = A  sinh  --------- 
   ref 

MATERIAL MODELS | 577

 For metals at low stress levels and high temperatures, Nabarro and Herring (Ref. 6,
Ref. 7) independently derived an expression for the creep rate as a function of atomic
diffusion, so called diffusional creep. The Nabarro-Herring model implemented in
COMSOL Multiphysics is given as

7D v b 3
f   e  = -----------------2-  e
k B Td

where d is the grain diameter, Dv is the volume diffusivity through the grain interior,
b is the Burgers vector, kB is the Boltzmann’s constant, T is the absolute temperature.

Another model for diffusional creep is the Coble creep model (Ref. 6, Ref. 7), which
is closely related to Nabarro–Herring creep, but takes into account the grain boundary
diffusivity through the parameter Dgb. The Coble creep model implemented in
COMSOL Multiphysics is given as

50D gb b 4
f   e  = ----------------------
-
k B Td 3 e

For metals at intermediate to high stress levels and temperatures close to the melting
temperature of the solid, the creep mechanism can be assumed to be
diffusion-controlled movements of dislocations in the crystal lattices (Ref. 7). This
type of creep deformation can be described by the Weertman model, which is given as

e n
f   e  = -----------  ref  ---------
Db
kB T   ref

Generally, the stress exponent n in the Weertman model takes a value between 3 and
5 when modeling dislocational creep.

Coble creep is more sensitive to grain diameter than Nabarro–Herring

creep.

Equivalent Stress, Creep Flow and Hardening Rule

For metals and alloys, creep is in most cases deviatoric (volume preserving), and can
often be described by a von Mises equivalent stress

3
e = 3J 2    = --- dev   :dev   
2

578 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

where J2 is the second invariant of the stress deviator. If creep is orthotropic, the Hill
orthotropic equivalent stress can be used, which is given by

2 3
 e = ------------------------------  F   22 –  33  2 + G   33 –  11  2
2F + H + G (3-78)
2 2 2
+ H   11 –  22  2 + 2  L 23 + M 31 + N 12  

where F, G, H, L, M, and N are Hill’s coefficients that relate the anisotropy to the local
coordinates. In the above equation it is assumed that an average equivalent stress can
be computed from F, G, and H using a von Mises like expression; this assumption leads
to the first term on the right-hand-side of Equation 3-78.

For soils and other geological materials, creep is often volumetric and can be described
by a Pressure equivalent stress

1
 e = p = --- tr   
3

where p is the pressure.

It is also possible to specify a user defined equivalent stress in terms of the stress tensor
and its invariants.

For more information and the background on the equivalent stress

definitions, see Elastoplastic Materials.

Assuming associative creep flow, the creep flow rule is given as function of the
equivalent stress

ꞏ Q cr  e
 cr =  ----------- =  ---------
 

The hardening rule is also assumed to be associative.

The dimensionless tensor N, which gives the direction of the creep flow, is computed
from the creep potential Qcr as

Q cr
N = -----------


When von Mises equivalent stress is used, the potential equals Qcr  mises, and the
deviatoric tensor Ndev is defined as done for J2 plasticity (see Isotropic Plasticity)

MATERIAL MODELS | 579

 3 dev   
N dev = --- -----------------
2 e

the creep flow rule is then written as

ꞏ Q cr
 cr =  ----------- = N dev


Given the property N dev :N dev = 3  2 , the evolution of the equivalent creep strain
reads

ꞏ --- ꞏ cr :ꞏ cr = 
2
 ce = (3-79)
3

The same hardening rule is also used when the Hill orthotropic equivalent stress is
selected.

For the Pressure equivalent stress, the flow direction is volumetric

Q cr 1
N vol = ----------- = --- I
 3

the volumetric creep flow rule is given as

ꞏ Q cr
 cr =  ----------- = N vol


and the hardening rule reads

ꞏ ꞏ ꞏ
 ce = tr   cr  =  cr,vol = 

When a user-defined equivalent stress is used, a von Mises like hardening rule is used
according to Equation 3-79.

Hardening Function
The creep hardening function h is typically a function of time t and the equivalent
creep strain ce. In COMSOL Multiphysics, there are two built-in hardening
functions, Strain hardening and Time hardening, and it is also possible to specify a
user defined expression. Also, it is possible to add hardening to any of the built-in creep
models.

A common model for modeling primary and secondary creep together is the so-called
Norton–Bailey (or Bailey–Norton) model. Here, the creep strain is proportional to a
power of the equivalent stress (Norton law) and a power of time (Bailey law)

580 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 n m
 cr   e t

by taking the time derivative of this generic expression at constant stress, it is found
that the creep strain rate and stress are related by the time hardening function

ꞏ n m–1 n
 cr  m e t = e h  t 

where the time hardening function is given by the power law

t + t shift m – 1
h  t  = m  -------------------
 t ref 

here, tshift is a time shift, tref is a reference time, and m is the hardening exponent.

Similarly, the strain hardening function is given by the power law

m – 1-
-------------
  ce +  shift  m
h   ce  = m  ----------------------------------
 t ref f   e g  T 

where shift is the equivalent creep strain shift, tref is a reference time, and m is the
hardening exponent.

The strain shift shift and the time shift tshift in the hardening functions serve two
purposes:

• To initialize a study where hardening has already taken place.

• To remove singularities. The strain rate expressions actually predict an infinite creep
rate at t = 0, unless a shift is used. This singularity is weak in the sense that the time
integral is well defined, but it will cause numerical problems. Adding a small shift
overcomes this problem.

Both the strain hardening function h(ce) and the time hardening
function h(t) return a dimensionless expression, but for elastoplastic
material models with Isotropic Hardening, the Hardening Function
returns an expression in units of stress (SI unit: Pa).

Thermal Function
The temperature shift function g typically depends on the absolute temperature T. In
COMSOL Multiphysics, an Arrhenius temperature function is built-in, but it is also
possible to specify a user defined expression.

MATERIAL MODELS | 581

 The Arrhenius temperature function is given as

g  T  = exp – ----  ---- – ---------

Q 1 1
R  T T ref

where Q is the activation energy (J/mol), R is the gas constant, T is the absolute
temperature, and Tref is a reference temperature.

Combining Creep Models

Using a combination of f, g, and h together with the definition of the equivalent stress
e makes it possible to construct sophisticate creep models. For example, the often
used temperature-dependent isotropic Norton creep model is obtained by the
following settings:

• Creep model: Norton

• Equivalent stress: von Mises
• Thermal effects: Arrhenius

The resulting creep model is then given by the following equations:

ꞏ Q cr e n
 cr =  ----------- = A  --------- exp – ----  ---- – --------- N dev
Q 1 1
  ref R  T T ref

Furthermore, selecting a time hardening function results in the Norton–Bailey creep

model:

ꞏ Q cr  e n t + t shift m – 1
 cr =  ----------- = A  --------- m  ------------------- exp – ----  ---- – --------- N dev
Q 1 1
   ref  t ref  R  T T ref

Several creep rate contributions can be added to the total creep rate to construct more
elaborate models. This is done by adding one or more Additional Creep subnodes to an
existing Creep node. There are no restrictions on how to combine models; for example,

582 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

a von Mises based creep flow contribution can be combined with a Pressure based
creep flow contribution.

• In the example Combining Creep Material Models:

Application Library path Nonlinear_Structural_Materials_Module/Creep/
combined_creep
a Norton–Bailey model for primary creep is combined with a Norton
model for secondary creep. Both creep models are
temperature-dependent. The resulting creep rate equation becomes

ꞏ  e n t + t shift m – 1 Q1 1 1
 cr = A 1  --------- m  ------------------- exp – -------  ---- – ------ N dev
  ref  t ref  R  T T 1
e Q2 1 1
+ A 2  --------- exp – -------  ---- – ------ N dev
  ref R  T T 2

Time Integration
The rate equations given by the creep flow and hardening rules have to be integrated
in time to compute the value of the creep strain tensor cr and the equivalent creep
strain ce at each time step. This can be done using any of the following methods:

• Backward Euler
• Forward Euler
• Domain ODEs

For an arbitrary number of contributions to the creep deformation, the general

equations to be solved can be formulated as

ꞏ Q cr
 cr =    -----------
  i
 =
  Ncr i (3-80)
i i

ꞏ
 ce =   Nce i (3-81)
i

where Ncr and Nce are tensors that describe the direction of cr and ce, respectively.

The Backward Euler method is used to discretize these equations as

 cr
n + 1 –  n = t
cr    n + 1 Ncrn + 1 i (3-82)
i

MATERIAL MODELS | 583

  ce
n + 1 –  n = t
ce   n + 1 Ncen + 1 i (3-83)
i

where n+1 indicates that the variable is evaluated at the current time step, and t is the
time step. The creep strain tensor  cr
n and equivalent creep strain  n at the previous
ce
time step are stored as internal state variables. Equation 3-82 and Equation 3-83
define a system of nonlinear equations that is solved locally at each Gauss point for
 cr
n + 1 and  n + 1 using Newton’s method.
ce

The Forward Euler method is used to discretize Equation 3-80 and Equation 3-81 as

 cr
n + 1 –  n = t
cr   Ncr in (3-84)
i

 ce
n + 1 –  n = t
ce   Nce in (3-85)
i

such that all quantities on the right-hand-side are evaluated at the previous time step.
This means that Equation 3-84 and Equation 3-85 define an explicit update of  cr n+1

and  ce given only known quantities from the previous time step. The forward
n + 1

Euler method is only conditionally stable, and the time step of the global time
marching scheme has to be constrained to preserve stability and accuracy of the
method. In COMSOL Multiphysics the limit for a stable time step is estimated as

 
  
= min  --- ----------------------------
1 el
t max
4 

   N ce  in

i

where el is the elastic strain tensor. This estimate in principle restricts the creep
increment to be smaller than the current state of stress, and 1/4 is a constant to make
the estimate conservative. The final value is computed as the minimum value over all
Gauss points in the domain where the creep feature is active.

For Domain ODEs, Equation 3-80 and Equation 3-81 are converted to weak-form
and solved as part of the general initial-boundary value problem. The components of

584 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

the creep strain tensor cr and the equivalent creep strain ce are then treated as
degrees-of-freedom.

For more information see the Modeling with ODEs and DAEs and The
ODE and DAE Interfaces chapters in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

Converting Between Different Creep Data Representations

The equations described in the previous sections about the different creep models
differ from the forms most commonly found in the literature. The main difference lies
in the introduction of normalizing reference values such as the reference stress ref and
reference time tref. These values are in a sense superfluous and can in principle be
chosen arbitrarily. The choice of reference values, however, affects the numerical values
to be entered for the material data. This system has two advantages:

• It is possible to use the built-in unit management system in COMSOL Multiphysics.

• There is not any need to perform any difficult unit conversions when creep data are
available in units other than the units in the model. Since many creep models
contain the stress or time raised to a noninteger power, such conversions are error
prone.

Norton Law

Material data for a Norton law is often available as the parameters AN and n in the
equation

ꞏ n
 cr = A N  e

The coefficient AN has a physical dimension that depends on the value of n, and the
unit has an implicit dependence on the stress and time units. Converting the data to
the format used in COMSOL Multiphysics (for example, Equation 3-77) requires the
introduction of the reference stress ref. It is convenient here to use the implicit stress
unit for which AN is given as the reference stress. The creep rate coefficient A will then
have the same numerical value as AN, and you do not need to do any conversions.

The physical dimension of A is, however, (time)1, whereas the physical dimension of
AN is (stress)n(time)1.

Another popular way of representing creep data is to supply the stress giving a certain
creep rate. As an example, c7 is the stress at which the creep strain rate is 107/h. Data

MATERIAL MODELS | 585

 on this form is also easy to enter: You set the reference stress ref to the value of c7
and enter the creep rate coefficient A as 1e-7[1/h].

Example

Assume that a carbon steel has the following two equivalent descriptions of its creep
properties at a certain temperature:

• c7 = 70 MPa, and stress exponent n = 4.5.

• AN = 4.98·10-16 with respect to units MPa and hours, and stress exponent n = 4.5.

In the first case, enter:

• ref as 70[MPa]
• n as 4.5
• A as 1e-7[1/h].

In the second case, enter:

• ref as 1[MPa]
• n as 4.5
• A as 4.98e-16[1/h]

These two sets of data describe the same material.

Garofalo Law

Since the stress inside in the Garofalo law appears as an argument to a sinh() function,
it must necessarily be dimensionless. Most commonly this is however written as

ꞏ n
 cr   sinh   e  

Comparing with the expression in COMSOL Multiphysics,

ꞏ e n
 cr   sinh  --------- 
   ref 

it is evident that the reference stress should be chosen as

1
 ref = ---


In this case, there is no arbitrariness in the choice of ref, since  is an actual material
parameter.

586 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

VISCOPLASTICITY
Viscoplasticity, as well as Creep, is an inelastic time-dependent deformation that occurs
when the material is subjected to stress (typically much less than the yield stress). The
growth of unrecoverable strains depend on the rate at which loads are applied, effect
that is normally enhanced by high temperatures.

The viscoplastic strain vp is computed by a flow rule that defines the relationship
between the rate of vp and the current state of stress and temperature.

When an associative flow and von Mises equivalent stress e are used, so Qvp  e, the
rate of vp is coaxial to the stress deviator and the viscoplastic flow rule is written as

ꞏ Q vp 3 dev   
 vp =  vp ------------ =  vp --- ------------------- =  vp N dev
 2 e

where Qvp is the viscoplastic potential,  is the stress tensor, and Ndev  Qvp   is
the flow direction.

The viscoplastic multiplier vp depicts a different expression for different viscoplastic
models (Anand, Chaboche, and so on), and it is equal to the equivalent viscoplastic
ꞏ
strain rate  vpe

ꞏ --- ꞏ vp :ꞏ vp =
2 2
 vpe = ---  vp
2 N
dev :N dev =  vp
3 3

given the property N dev :N dev = 3  2 .

Setting different measures for the equivalent stress e (von Mises, Tresca, Hill) allows
to define different viscoplastic multiplier and flow directions, see Equivalent Stress,
Creep Flow and Hardening Rule for details.

Anand Model
Anand viscoplasticity (Ref. 9) is a deviatoric viscoplastic model suitable for isotropic
viscoplastic deformations. As for the models described in Creep, the Anand model has
no yield surface.

The rate of vp is determined by the viscoplastic multiplier vp which is a function of
stress  and temperature T, and it is given by

1-
----
e m
sinh   -----
– Q  RT
 vp = Ae
sa

MATERIAL MODELS | 587

 here, A is the viscoplastic rate coefficient, Q is the activation energy (J/mol),  is the
stress multiplier, m is the stress sensitivity, and R is the gas constant.

The deformation resistance, sa (SI unit: Pa), controls the hardening behavior of the
Anand model. In COMSOL Multiphysics it is derived for the normalized resistance
factor, sf, and the deformation resistance saturation coefficient, ssat, such that
sa = ssat sf. The resistance factor sf is an dimensionless internal variable that is
computed by the evolution equation

ꞏ
s f = h vp

with the initial condition sf(0)  sinit / ssat. The evolution of the resistance factor sf is
controlled by the dimensionless hardening function

h0 sf a  sf  h0 sf a – 1 sf 
h = --------- 1 – ----*- sign  1 – ----*- = --------- 1 – ----*-  1 – ----*-
s sat sf  sf  s sat sf  sf 

were h0 (SI unit: Pa) represents a constant rate of athermal hardening in the curve
stress versus strain (Ref. 9). The use of the sign function and the absolute value in the
hardening function permits the modeling of either strain hardening or strain softening,
depending on whether sf is greater or smaller than the saturation value sf*.

The saturation value sf* is calculated from the expression

 vp Q  RT n
s f =  -------- e
*
A 

where n is the deformation resistance sensitivity exponent.

The Anand model computes the equivalent viscoplastic strain rate using the evolution
equation for the internal variable

1-
----
ꞏ e m
sinh   -----
– Q  RT
 vpe =  vp = Ae
sa

Chaboche Model
The equivalent viscoplastic strain rate (viscoplastic multiplier) is given by

ꞏ  e –  ys n
 vp =  vpe = A  ------------------- for F  0
 ref

and the viscoplastic strain rate tensor is given by

588 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 ꞏ
 vp =  vp N dev

Here, A is the viscoplastic rate coefficient (SI unit: 1/s), n is the stress exponent
(dimensionless), and ref is a reference stress level (SI unit: Pa).

The Macaulay brackets   are applied on the yield function, which is defined as done
for plasticity

F =  e –  ys

The equivalent stress e is either the von Mises, Tresca, or Hill orthotropic stress, or a
user defined expression; and ys is the yield stress (which may include an Isotropic
Hardening model). The stress tensor used in the equivalent stress e is shifted by what
is usually called the back stress, back when Kinematic Hardening is included.

The deviatoric tensor Ndev is computed from the viscoplastic potential Qvp

Q vp
N dev = ------------


When von Mises equivalent stress is used, the associated flow rule reads Qvp  F, and
the deviatoric tensor Ndev is defined as done for deviatoric creep.

Perzyna Model
The Perzyna model defines the equivalent viscoplastic strain rate (viscoplastic
multiplier) by

ꞏ e n
 vp =  vpe = A  ------- – 1 for F =  e –  ys  0
 ys

and the viscoplastic strain rate tensor is given by

ꞏ
 vp =  vp N dev

As described for Chaboche Model, the equivalent stress e can be either von Mises
(default), Tresca, Hill orthotropic stress, or a user defined expression. The flow
direction Ndev  Qvp   is computed from the viscoplastic potential Qvp, which can
be associated or non associated.

Bingham Model
Bingham model is equivalent to Chaboche Model when setting the exponent n  1,
and denoting the viscosity as the quotient   ref/A. The equivalent viscoplastic
strain rate (viscoplastic multiplier) is given by

MATERIAL MODELS | 589

 ꞏ 1
 vp =  vpe = ---   e –  ys for F =  e –  ys  0


and the viscoplastic strain rate tensor is given by

ꞏ
 vp =  vp N dev

As described for Chaboche Model, the equivalent stress e can be either von Mises
(default), Tresca, Hill orthotropic stress, or a user defined expression. The flow
direction Ndev  Qvp   is computed from the viscoplastic potential Qvp, which can
be associated or non associated.

Peric Model
The Peric model defines the equivalent viscoplastic strain rate (viscoplastic multiplier)
by

ꞏ e n
 vp =  vpe = A   ------- – 1 for F =  e –  ys  0
  ys

and the viscoplastic strain rate tensor is given by

ꞏ
 vp =  vp N dev

As described for Chaboche Model, the equivalent stress e can be either von Mises
(default), Tresca, Hill orthotropic stress, or a user defined expression. The flow
direction Ndev  Qvp   is computed from the viscoplastic potential Qvp, which can
be associated or non associated.

User Defined
It is possible to freely define the viscoplastic rate vp

ꞏ
 vp =  vpe for F =  e –  ys  0

The conditional evaluation F  0 is handled automatically.

By default, an associative flow and von Mises equivalent stress e are used, so Qvp  F,
the rate of vp is coaxial to the stress deviator, and the viscoplastic flow rule is written as

ꞏ Q vp 3 dev   
 vp =  vp ------------ =  vp --- ------------------- =  vp N dev
 2 e

590 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Thermal Effects
The temperature shift function g typically depends on the absolute temperature T. In
COMSOL Multiphysics, an Arrhenius temperature function is built-in, but it is also
possible to specify a user defined expression.

The Arrhenius temperature function is given as

g  T  = exp – ----  ---- – ---------

Q 1 1
R  T T ref

where Q is the activation energy (J/mol), R is the gas constant, T is the absolute
temperature, and Tref is a reference temperature.

See also the description of Viscoplasticity in the physics interface

documentation.

Time Stepping
The rate equations given by the viscoplastic flow rule and evolution equations for the
two internal variables are integrated in time to compute the value of the viscoplastic
strain tensor vp, the equivalent creep strain vpe, and other possible internal variables
(for instance, the resistance factor sf in Anand model) at each time step. This can be
done using any of the following methods:

• Backward Euler
• Domain ODEs

The Backward Euler method is used to discretize these equations as

 vp
n + 1 –  n = t n + 1 N n + 1
vp vp vp (3-86)

 vpe
n + 1 – n
vpe = t vp N vpe
n+1 n+1 (3-87)

where Nvp and Nvpe are tensors that describe the direction of vp and vpe,
respectively, n+1 indicates that the variable is evaluated at the current time step, and
t is the time step.

For Anand Model an extra equation is solved for the resistance factor, sf,

s fn + 1 – s fn = t vp
n + 1hn + 1 (3-88)

The viscoplastic strain tensor  vp

n , equivalent viscoplastic strain  n and the resistance
vpe
n
factor n s f at the previous time step are stored as internal state variables.

MATERIAL MODELS | 591

 Equation 3-86 to Equation 3-88 define a system of nonlinear equations that is solved
locally at each Gauss point for  vp
n + 1 ,  n + 1 and s n + 1 using Newton’s method.
vp f

For Domain ODEs, the evolution equations of the viscoplastic model are converted
to weak-form and solved as part of the general initial-boundary value problem. The
components of vp, vpe and sf are then treated as degrees-of-freedom.

For more information see the Modeling with ODEs and DAEs and The
ODE and DAE Interfaces chapters in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

CREEP AND VISCOPLASTICITY FOR LARGE STRAINS

When the Large strains formulation is selected in the Creep or Viscoplasticity nodes, a
Multiplicative Decomposition of deformation gradients is used

F = F el F in

here, F is the deformation gradient, Fel is the elastic deformation, and Fin is inelastic
deformation due to creep or viscoplasticity.

The velocity gradient then reads (see Strain Rate and Spin for details)

ꞏ ꞏ ꞏ ꞏ ꞏ
L = F F –1 =  F el F in + F el F in F –1 = F el F el + FF in
– 1 F in F – 1

The velocity gradient can then be split into the elastic and inelastic parts, L = Lel + Lin.
The inelastic velocity gradient

ꞏ
– 1 F in F – 1
L in = FF in

is energy conjugate to the stress tensor, and it is coaxial to it for maximum dissipation.
Neglecting the inelastic spin, so the inelastic deformation gradient is symmetric, the
formulation for large strain viscoplasticity or creep is similar to the formulation
described in the Plastic Flow for Large Strains section. The time-derivative of the
inverse inelastic deformation gradient is given by the rate

ꞏ –1 Q in
F in = –  in F – 1 ------------ FF in
–1 (3-89)


where in is the equivalent creep or viscoplastic strain rate, and Qin is the creep or
viscoplastic potential. For creep and viscoplasticity in metals (so-called J2 plasticity)

592 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

the viscoplastic potential depends on the deviatoric stress, Qin  QinJ2 , and the
flow direction is deviatoric, Ndev  Qin  .

For large strains, Equation 3-89 is numerically solved with the so-called exponential
mapping technique, as described in Numerical Solution of the Elastoplastic
Conditions, and the elastic deformation gradient then obtained from

–1
F el = FF in

ENERGY DISSIPATION
Since creep and viscoplasticity are inelastic processes, the dissipated energy density can
be calculated by integrating the creep dissipation rate density or viscoplastic
dissipation rate density given by

ꞏ ꞏ
W cr = : cr

ꞏ ꞏ
W vp = : vp

in time. The total energy dissipated in a given volume can be calculated by a volume
integration of the dissipated creep energy density Wcr or dissipated viscoplastic energy
density Wvp.

When the Calculate dissipated energy check box is selected, the dissipation
rate density due to creep is available under the variable solid.Wcdr and
the dissipation rate density due to viscoplasticity is available under the
variable solid.Wvpdr. The dissipated energy density due to creep is
available under the variable solid.Wc and due to viscoplasticity under the
variable solid.Wvp. Here solid denotes the name of the physics
interface node.

Inelastic Strain Rate

The inelastic behavior of materials is often described by the rate of the inelastic
quantity, especially if the behavior is time dependent and nonlinear. For example,
Elastoplastic Materials, Linear Viscoelasticity, Creep and Viscoplasticity all describe
material models that are implemented in dedicated features. The Inelastic Strain Rate
node provides functionality to specify a general expression for the rate of inelastic
deformation, entered either as strain tensor ie; deformation gradient Fie; deformation

MATERIAL MODELS | 593

 –1
gradient inverse F ie ; or stretch ie. The user defined expression can be a function of
any variable in the model.

Given a generic inelastic quantity Uie, the feature sets up and solves the following type
of distributed ODE

dU ie
------------- = f  t u U ie   (3-90)
dt

where t is the time, u is the displacement, and f(t, u, Uie,...) is a user defined
expression. Equation 3-90 is also subjected to the initial condition

U ie  t 0  = U ie
init

init is a user defined input.

where U ie

Time Integration
The distributed ODE in Equation 3-90 is integrated in time to compute the value of
the inelastic quantity Uie at each time step. This can be done using any of the following
methods:

• Backward Euler
• Domain ODEs

The Backward Euler method is used to discretize Equation 3-90 as

U ie n + 1 – Un
ie
- = f  t n + 1 u n + 1 U ie
------------------------------ n + 1   (3-91)
t

where n+1 indicates the current time step, and t is the time step. The inelastic
n is stored as internal state variables, their initial
quantity at the previous time step U ie
init
value is given by U ie . Equation 3-91 defines a system of nonlinear equations that is
n + 1 using Newton’s method.
solved locally at each Gauss point for U ie

For Domain ODEs, Equation 3-90 is converted to weak-form and solved as part of
the general initial-boundary value problem. The components of the inelastic quantity
Uie are here treated as a degrees-of-freedom of the model.

For more information see the Modeling with ODEs and DAEs and The
ODE and DAE Interfaces chapters in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

594 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Shape Memory Alloy
The term shape memory alloy (SMA) normally refers to alloys that can undergo large
strains, effect called superelasticity or pseudoelasticity; and also to materials that after
undergoing large deformations can remember their original shape when heated above
a certain temperature.

These alloys are mixtures of metals such as copper, aluminum, nickel, titanium and
other. Nickel-titanium (NiTi) alloys have applications in many industries due to their
thermal and mechanical properties. Most of the industrial applications of NiTi alloys
take advantage of the different mechanical properties of the two crystalline structures
found around room temperature: austenite and martensite.

Hot NiTi alloys are composed by a pure austenite phase. The martensite phase
develops upon cooling the alloy below the martensite start temperature, Ms. The
martensite volume fraction M will increase until the cooling temperature reaches the
martensite finish temperature, Mf, below which the alloy microstructure will be pure
martensite.

The reverse process has different transition temperatures: A pure martensite alloy will
develop an austenite microstructure if it is heated above the austenite start
temperature, As. The austenite phase will increase upon heating the material to the
austenite finish temperature, Af, above which the alloy microstructure becomes 100%
austenite.

Many industrial applications take advantage of this hysteresis loop, as the transition
temperatures are not the same in a heating-cooling cycle.

There are two shape memory alloy models available with the Nonlinear Structural
Material Module: the Souza–Auricchio model and the Lagoudas model. These
material models differ in the expression for the free energy density.

SOUZA–AURICCHIO MODEL
For the Souza–Auricchio model, Helmholtz free energy density depends on two state
variables: the total strain tensor  and the temperature T. An additional internal variable
is used to compute the transformation strain tensor tr (Ref. 33-34)

K 2 2 Hk 2
   T  tr  = cT  1 – ln  T   + ----  vol + G   –  tr  + -------   tr  + f  T   tr + I   tr 
2 2

here, c is the heat capacity at constant pressure, K and G are the bulk and shear moduli,
vol is the volumetric strain, Hk is the hardening modulus, and I(tr) is the indicator

MATERIAL MODELS | 595

 function for the strain limit constraint. The equivalent transformation strain tre is
used as a measure of the transformation strain tensor

2
 tre =  tr = ---  tr : tr
3

The indicator function is defined by

 0 for  tr   tr, max

I   tr  = 
 otherwise

The term ch  fTtr is denoted as the chemical energy density due to the thermally
induced martensite transformation. The function f(T) corresponds to the
temperature-dependent martensite to austenite equilibrium stress, defined from the
slope of the limit curve and the reference temperature T*

*
fT =   T – T 

Here, the operator   denotes the Macaulay brackets.

The conjugated thermodynamic stress tr associated to the transformation strain

variable is

   tr I
 tr = --------- = dev    – H tr – f  T  ------------ – ---------
 tr  tr  tr

The evolution of the transformation strain tr is given by the so-called limit function,
which takes the same form as the yield function for metal plasticity.

F =  tr –  ys0

The evolution equation for the transformation straintr is computed from the flow
rule

ꞏ F
 tr =  p ----------
 tr

where the plastic multiplierp is solved with the Kuhn–Tucker conditions, as done for
plasticity, see Plastic Flow for Small Strains.

LAGOUDAS MODEL
For Lagoudas model, Gibbs free energy density depends on two state variables: the
total stress tensor  and the temperature field T. Additional internal variables are used

596 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

to compute the transformation strain tensor tr and the martensite volume fraction 
(Ref. 35)

G   T  tr   = c   T – T 0  – Tln ------ – s 0 T – ------ :S: – --- :   th –  tr  + u 0 + --- f   

T 1 1 1
 T 0 2  
Here, c is the heat capacity at constant pressure, s0 is the specific entropy at reference
state, S is the compliance matrix,th is the thermal strain tensor,tr is the
transformation strain tensor, u0 is the specific internal energy at reference state, and
f() is the transformation hardening function. The compliance matrix S, is obtained
by a volume average of the elastic properties of martensite and austenite

S    = S M +  1 –  S A = S A + S

where S  SM  SA. Also, other material parameters are averaged this way.

As opposed to Souza–Auricchio model, the evolution equation for the transformation

straintr is computed from the flow rule

ꞏ ꞏ
 tr =  

where the normalized transformation tensor  changes principal directions

depending on the direction of the martensitic transformation.

The maximum transformation strain in Lagoudas model can be considered constant,

or stress-dependent as described in Ref. 36. A stress-dependent maximum
transformation strain can be used at low stress levels, where the martensite turns into
detwinned structures.
ꞏ
The variable for the direction of the martensitic transformation,  , is calculated from
the previous state to determine the expected increment or decrement of the
transformation strain tensor tr. This calculation is computational expensive and it can
ꞏ
lead to convergence issues. Since in many applications the transformation direction 
is known a priori (for instance, mechanical loading or unloading, or temperature
increment/decrement) a user input enables to set the transformation direction
manually to 1 or -1, thus speeding up the computational time.

For Lagoudas model, it is possible to choose from different transformation hardening

functions f()

• Quadratic
• Cosine
• Smooth
• User defined

MATERIAL MODELS | 597

 The quadratic hardening function is defined as

1 2
--- b  +   1 +  2  ꞏ
for   0
2 M
f = 
1 --- b  2 +   1 –  2  ꞏ
for   0
2 A

where the parameters bM and bA are computed from

b M = s 0  M f – M s  and b A = s 0  A f – A s  ,

and the parameters 1 and 2 from

1 1
 1 = --- s 0  M s + A f  – u 0 and  2 = --- s 0  A s – A f – M f + M s 
2 4

The smooth hardening function is defined with four smoothing parameters n1, n2, n3,
and n4:


  1
n +1
1 –   2 -
n +1
1 - + ----------------------------
 --2- b M   + ---------------
ꞏ
 for   0
 n + 1 n + 1 
 1 2
f = 
1  n +1
1 –   4 -
 3 - ----------------------------
n +1
 --- b A   + --------------- ꞏ
+  for   0
2  n3 + 1 n4 + 1 


EQUIVALENT MATERIAL PROPERTIES

In Lagoudas model, the phase transformation is described by six parameters: the
transition temperatures Ms, Mf, As, Af, and the two slopes of austenite and martensite
limit curves CA and CM.

When the experimental data consists of a uniaxial stress-strain curve taken at constant
temperature, it is handy to enter the transition stress levels instead of the transition
temperatures.

Consider a NiTi alloys at constant temperature composed by 100% of austenite volume

fraction. Upon loading, the slope in the stress-strain curve would be the Young’s
modulus of austenite, EA. The martensite phase starts to develop when the axial stress
reaches the martensite start stress, Ms. If the alloy is further loaded, the slope
reduces, entering a region called loading plateau. Above the martensite finish stress,
Mf, the microstructure becomes 100% martensite. This process is commonly called
the forward transformation.

598 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The reverse process has different transition stresses: If the 100% martensite alloy is
unloaded, the slope follows the martensite Young’s modulus EM. When the axial stress
reaches the austenite start stress, As, the austenite volume fraction A starts to
develop until the axial stress falls below the austenite finish stress, Af, at which level
the alloy microstructure is 100% austenite. This process is commonly called the reverse
transformation. Figure 3-26 illustrates this process.

axial stress

100% martensite
loading plateau

Mf
Ms
M
A
As
Af
unloading plateau
100% austenite axial strain

Figure 3-26: Uniaxial stress-strain curve at constant temperature.

The relations between the start and finish temperatures and stresses are

 Ms = C M  T  – M s  ,  Mf = C M  T  – M f 

 As = C A  T  – A s  ,  Af = C A  T  – A f 

here, T is the constant temperature at which the stress-strain curve was measured.

DISSIPATION
Since phase transformation is an inelastic process, the dissipated energy density can be
calculated by integrating the pseudo-rate given by

ꞏ ꞏ
W tr = : tr

For Souza-Auricchio model the dissipated energy density rate is then defined by

MATERIAL MODELS | 599

 ꞏ F
W tr =  p : ----------
 tr

For Lagoudas model it is defined by

ꞏ ꞏ
W tr =  :

As plasticity is rate independent, the transformation dissipation density Wtr is obtained

after integrating an extra variable in the plastic flow rule.

The total energy dissipated by plasticity in a given volume can be calculated by the
volume integration of the plastic dissipation density Wtr.

When the Calculate dissipated energy check box is selected, the

transformation dissipation density is available under the variable
solid.Wtr and the total transformation dissipation under the variable
solid.Wtr_tot.

Piezoelectricity
The piezoelectric effect manifests itself as a transfer of electric to mechanical energy
and vice versa. It is present in many crystalline materials, while some materials such as
quartz, Rochelle salt, and lead titanate zirconate ceramics display the phenomenon
strongly enough for it to be of practical use.

The direct piezoelectric effect consists of an electric polarization in a fixed direction

when the piezoelectric crystal is deformed. The polarization is proportional to the
deformation and causes an electric potential difference over the crystal.

The inverse piezoelectric effect, on the other hand, constitutes the opposite of the
direct effect. This means that an applied potential difference induces a deformation of
the crystal.

PIEZOELECTRIC CONSTITUTIVE RELATIONS

It is possible to express the relation between the stress, strain, electric field, and electric
displacement field in either a stress-charge form or strain-charge form:

600 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Stress-Charge
T
T = cE S – e E
D = eS +  0  rS E

Strain-Charge
T
S = sE T + d E
D = dT +  0  rT E

In the above relations, the naming convention used in piezoelectricity theory is

assumed, so that the structural strain is denoted by S, and the stress is denoted by T.
Thus, the naming convention differs in piezoelectricity theory compared to structural
mechanics theory.

The Piezoelectric Material uses the structural mechanics nomenclature.

The strain is named  (instead of S) and the stresses are denoted by either
 or S (instead of T). This makes the names consistent with those used in
the other structural mechanics interfaces.

The constitutive relation using COMSOL Multiphysics symbols for the different
constitutive forms are thus:

STRESS-CHARGE
T
 = cE  – e E
(3-92)
D = e +  0 vac  rS E

The stress-charge form is always used in the variational formulation (weak equation
form) which COMSOL Multiphysics uses for discretization and computation.

STRAIN-CHARGE
T
 = sE  + d E
(3-93)
D = d +  0 vac  rT E

Most material data appear in the strain-charge form, and it can be easily transformed
into the stress-charge form. In COMSOL Multiphysics both constitutive forms can be
used; simply select one, and the software makes any necessary transformations. The
following equations transform strain-charge material data to stress-charge data:

MATERIAL MODELS | 601

 –1
cE = sE
–1
e = d sE (3-94)
–1 T
 rS =  rT – d sE d   0 vac

All the necessary material data inputs are placed within the Piezoelectric Material
feature under the Solid Mechanics interface, which are added automatically when
adding a predefined Piezoelectricity multiphysics interface. Such node can be also
added manually under any Solid Mechanics interface similar to all other material model
features. The piezoelectric material uses the Voigt notation for the anisotropic material
data, as customary in this field. More details about the data ordering can be found in
Orthotropic and Anisotropic Materials section.

GOVERNING EQUATIONS
The equations of Piezoelectricity combine the momentum equation Equation 3-148
with the charge conservation equation of Electrostatics,

  D = V (3-95)

where the V is the electric charge concentration. The electric field is computed from
the electric potential V as

E = – V

In both Equation 3-95 and Equation 3-148, the constitutive relations Equation 3-92
are used, which makes the resulting system of equations closed. The dependent
variables are the structural displacement vector u and the electric potential V.

WAVE PROPAGATION IN PIEZOELECTRIC MEDIA

In case of geometric linearity, the governing equations for a linear piezoelectric
medium of any anisotropy can be written in terms of the structural displacement vector
u and electric potential V as:

2
 u
 =    C u + V  e 
t
2 (3-96)
   eu –  0  r  V  = 0

The following symmetries hold for the constitutive tensor coefficients:

602 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 ijkl jikl klij ikl ilk kl lk
C = C = C  e = e  r = r .

Piezoelectric material data inputs in COMSOL Multiphysics are based on

the matrix representation of higher-order tensors using Voigt notations.
im
Thus, to obtain coefficients of 6-by-3 coupling matrix e , the first index
ikl
of the coupling tensor components e remains the same, while the last
two indices should be replaced by a single index obtained using special
rules. Similarly, for the stiffness tensor, the first pair and the second pair
of indices must be replaced by a single index used instead of each pair. See
Orthotropic and Anisotropic Materials for the index transformation rules.

The constitutive relations in tensor notations can be derived using a thermodynamic

potential called the electrical enthalpy:

1 1
H e  u V  = --- u C u + V  e u – ---  0 V   r  V
2 2

Thus,

H e
= = C u + V  e
 u
H e
D= = eu –  0  r  V
 V

Since the relations in Equation 3-96 are linear, they possess the following
time-harmonic wave solutions:

it – i k  r
u = un e
it – i k  r
V = un e

where k = kn is the wave number vector, n is the direction vector that defines the
wavefront propagation direction. The wavefront is an imaginary line connecting solid
particles of the same phase. The velocity of such wavefront in the direction normal to
it is given by the phase velocity c  k.

A generalization of Christoffel’s equation (Equation 3-25) can then be done:

MATERIAL MODELS | 603

 2
c u n =  n  u n
un = en  un  n

where the generalized Christoffel’s tensor is defined as

n = n  C  n + en  en  n

and

en = n  e  n
n = 0 n  r  n

The generalized Christoffel’s equation can be considered as an eigenvalue problem.

Thus, to have a nontrivial solution, the phase velocity must satisfy:

2
det   n   – c I  = 0

which is called the dispersion relation. This is in general case a cubic polynomial in
2 2
terms of c2, which has three roots c = c j   n    . Thus, for an arbitrary anisotropic
medium, three waves with different phase velocities can propagate in each given
direction.

However, most piezoelectric materials exhibit only moderate degree of anisotropy. The
material data is usually given in a coordinate system, in which it is ether orthotropic or
even transversely isotropic so that only one direction (poling direction) differs from the
two others. In this case, the expressions for the phase velocity can be computed
analytically for waves of certain types, polarizations, and directions of propagations.

For example, the pressure wave propagating in the X-axis direction is a particular
solution, for which

u = uˆ exp  – i k X  X – c X t  
v=0
w=0
ˆ
V = V exp  – i k X  X – c X t  

The corresponding phase velocity is given by

604 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 2 12
1 e X1 
c pX = ---  c E 11 + -----------------------
  0  rS XX

Here, the material data coefficients are given in the same matrix form notation that is
used in COMSOL Multiphysics for data input.

The shear wave propagation in the X-axis direction and with XY-plane polarization is
a solution such that

u=0
ˆ
v = v exp  – i k X  X – c X t  
w=0
ˆ
V = V exp  – i k X  X – c X t  

and the corresponding phase velocity is computed as

2 12
1 e X6 
c sXY = ---  c E 66 + -----------------------
  0  rS XX

If the wave propagation is initiated by a small perturbation that is initially localized in

space, the solution can be found using Fourier and Laplace transforms, and it will
represent a so-called wave packet. The wave packet will propagate with the group
velocity given by:

 j 1 
= -----------  u n j   n  u n j  j = 1 2 3
k 2c j  n

where un,j is the wave polarization vector that is the eigenvector corresponding to the
2
eigenvalue solution c j   n    of the Christoffel’s equation.

COMSOL Multiphysics provides predefined variables for the phase and group
velocities for waves of different types propagating in any chosen direction. These
variables do not affect the solution as such, but are available during result presentation
if the Wave Speeds node has been added to the material.

The wave speed variables can be found in the Wave speeds folder under
Solid Mechanics in the Replace Expression tree.

MATERIAL MODELS | 605

 PIEZOELECTRIC DISSIPATION
In order to define dissipation in the piezoelectric material for a time-harmonic analysis,
all material properties in the constitutive relations can be complex-valued matrices,
where the imaginary part defines the dissipative function of the material.

Complex-valued data can be defined directly in the fields for the material properties,
or a real-valued material X and a set of loss factors X can be defined, which together
form the complex-valued material data

˜
X = X  1  j X 

The sign in the complex damping terms are defined as

c˜ E =  1 + i cE  c E
s˜ E =  1 – i sE  s E
̃ rS =  1 – i S   rS
̃ rT =  1 – i T   rT
e˜ =  1 + i e  e
d˜ =  1 + i d  d

In the four first expressions, the choice of sign is a result of the single physics
observations that

• Strain lags behind stress.

• Electric displacement (or polarization) lags behind the electric field.

For these cases, it is thus necessary that X is positive in order for the material to be
thermodynamically stable with the chosen signs.

The sign of the coupling losses requires more considerations, and the chosen sign must
be considered as a definition. All values of e and d does not necessarily have to be
positive. For some simple theoretical cases with isotropic loss factors, it can however
be shown that the definition above is reasonable:

• Consider a material which in strain-charge form only has mechanical damping.

Thus, d is real, and the second transformation law in Equation 3-94 shows that e
must have a positive loss factor.
• Consider a material with only coupling loss. Then the second transformation law in
Equation 3-94 shows that d and e must have the same loss factor multiplier. From

606 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 the third transformation law it can be inferred that e and d in this case must be
positive in order for the material to have an appropriate phase lag between D and E.

In a real material, all types of losses occur simultaneously. Then, the criteria for
allowable values of the loss factors become complicated, particularly if they are not
isotropic.

It is also possible to define the electrical conductivity of the piezoelectric material, 

Electrical conductivity appears as an additional term in the variational formulation
(weak equation form). The conductivity does not change during transformation
between the formulations.

The energy dissipation modeling is also available in time domain. The options are:
dielectric dispersion for the electrical part, and Rayleigh damping for the mechanical
and coupling parts of the problem. The total dissipated energy can be computed as a
function of time.

Piezoelectric Losses

INITIAL STRESS, STRAIN, AND ELECTRIC DISPLACEMENT

Using the functionality available under the Piezoelectric Material feature and Solid
Mechanics interface, one can define initial stress (S0), initial strain (0), and remanent
electric displacement (Dr) for models. In the constitutive relation for piezoelectric
material these additions appear in the stress-charge formulation:

T
 = cE   – 0  – e E + 0
D = e   –  0  +  0 vac  rS E + D r

MULTIPLICATIVE FORMULATION FOR PIEZOELECTRICITY

The total deformation gradient is computed from the structural displacement field as

F = u + I
T
and the right Cauchy–Green is defined as C = F F .

The decomposition between elastic and inelastic deformation is made using a

multiplicative decomposition of the deformation gradient

–1
F el = FF in

MATERIAL MODELS | 607

 where the inelastic deformation tensor depends on the inelastic process, such as
piezoelectric effect and thermal expansion F in = F in  E T  .

The elastic right Cauchy–Green deformation tensor is then computed from Fel

T –T –1
C el = F el F el = F in CF in

and the elastic Green–Lagrange strain tensor is computed as:

1
 el = ---  C el – I 
2

Note that C el = C el  C E T  .

The strain tensor C, the electric field E, and the temperature T are used as the state
variables. The free energy density in the undeformed configuration is defined as

W  C E T  = J in W el  C el  + W in  E T  + JW vac  E s 

where J = det  F  and J in = det  F in  .

For structurally linear material,

1
W el = ---  el c el
2

where c is the elasticity tensor.

The free space contribution is computed as

1 1 –1
W vac  E s  = – ---  0 vac  E s  E s  = – ---  0 vac C  E  E 
2 2

where Es and E are the electric fields in the deformed (spatial) and undeformed
configuration, respectively.

The second Piola-Kirchoff stress is computed as

W 
S = 2 = 2  J in W el  + S M
C C

The Maxwell stress SM is related to the polarization of the free space occupied by the
deformed body, and it is computed as

S M = 2   JW vac  =  0 vac J  C  E  E  – ---   C E   E I C

–1 1 –1 –1
C  2 

608 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The inelastic deformation gradient is further decomposed into a thermal and
piezoelectric parts as

F in = F th  T F pze  E 

The piezoelectric strain tensor is introduced as  pze = E  d , where d is the

piezoelectric coupling tensor. The piezoelectric deformation gradient is modeled as

2
F pze = I +  pze + O   pze 

Introduce

–T –1
C tel = F th CF th

1
 tel = ---  C tel – I 
2

S tel = c tel

which are the strain and stress tensors in the intermediate configuration, where the
thermal expansion part have been removed. These quantities are independent of the
electric field E.

Then,

2
 el =  tel – C tel  pze + O   pze 

and

1 2
J in W el = --- J  tel S tel + J th W pze + O   pze 
2 th

where

W pze =  --- tr   pze  tel – C tel  pze S tel

1
2

The stress is computed then as

W pze
S = J th F th  S tel + ----------------- F th + S M + O   pze 
–1 –T 2
  tel 

The electric displacement (in the undeformed configuration) is computed as

MATERIAL MODELS | 609

 W –1 W pze 2
D = – =  0 vac JC E + P + J th ----------------- + O   pze 
E E

where the material polarization is given by

W in
P = – -------------
E

For electrically and thermally linear material, it is computed as

P =  0 vac   r – I E + p

where r is the relative electric permittivity, p is the pyroelectric coefficient, and

 = T – T ref is the temperature variation.

Magnetomechanics
The theory for The Magnetomechanics Interface and The Magnetomechanics, No
Currents Interface is given in this section.

THE ELECTROMAGNETIC STRESS TENSOR

Within a vacuum or other medium, forces between magnetized bodies can be
computed on the assumption that a fictitious state of stress exists within the field.
Historically, the consistency of this approach led 19th-century physicists to postulate
the existence of the ether, a ubiquitous medium through which electromagnetic forces
propagate. While these ideas have been superseded by the development of particle
physics, the use of an electromagnetic stress tensor (also known as the Maxwell stress
tensor) remains an accurate and convenient technique to compute electromagnetic
forces.

Maxwell stresses exist in all materials, including air and even free space. However, the
force magnitude is rather small, and usually it can only cause significant deformations
at small dimension.

The electromagnetic stress tensor in a vacuum (in the absence of electric fields) is given
by (Ref. 1):

1
 EM, V =  0 H  H – ---  0  H  H I (3-97)
2

Where H is the magnetic field, I is the identity tensor, 0is the magnetic permeability
of free space, and

610 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

  H  H  ij = H i H j

Within an isotropic linear magnetic solid under small deformations, the magnetic flux
density vector is related to the magnetic field as (Ref. 2):

B =  0 H +  0 H

where the magnetic susceptibility  can be a function of the mechanical strain in the
material

 =  0  I – 2T + tr  T I 

where 0 is the magnetic susceptibility of the material without deformation, and T is

the small strain tensor given by

1 T
T = ---  u + u 
2

The corresponding electromagnetic tress tensor takes the following form:

1
 EM =  0  r H  H – ---  0  r  H  H I (3-98)
2

where the relative magnetic permeability is introduced as  r = 1 +  . It can be written

equivalently as

1
 EM =  EM, V +  0  H  H – ---  H  H I
2

where the two terms represent the contributions from the underlying free space and
the material magnetization, respectively.

The Magnetomechanical Forces and Magnetic Forces coupling features

apply the material and underlying free space contributions to the stress as
body load. In weak form: -EM:test(T).

MATERIAL MODELS | 611

 The electromagnetic stress tensor can be used to compute the forces acting on a solid
body.

Material 2
Material 1

The balance of forces at the surface of the solid (material 1) in vacuum or air (material
2) implies:

  2 –  1 n = 0

where the total stress tensors in media 1 and 2 are, respectively:

 1 =  EM +  mech
 2 =  EM, V – p 2 I

where mech is a mechanical component of the total stress in the material, and p2 is the
pressure in the surrounding air (or other medium). Using Equation 3-97:

1
 1 n = – p 2 n – ---  0  H  H n +  0  n  H H
2

where the magnetic field H is computed in material 2.

The Magnetomechanical Forces and Magnetic Forces coupling features

apply the above defined traction as a boundary load on the boundaries
which are external for the coupling feature selection but internal for the
corresponding magnetic fields interface.

COMSOL Multiphysics does not explicitly include the ambient pressure

definition on the coupling features. However, it is possible to add an
additional surface force to the corresponding Solid Mechanics interface if
the pressure is known or computed by another physics interface.

LARGE DEFORMATIONS
For finite deformations, the expressions for the electromagnetic stress and material
magnetization can be derived using the following thermodynamic potential called
magnetic enthalpy:

612 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 1 –1
W EM = W s  C  – ---   0  r JC :  H m  H m 
2

where the subscript m indicates that the vector components must be taken on the
material frame, and the right Cauchy–Green deformation tensor is

T
C = F F

with

F = u + I

and J = det(F). The mechanical energy function Ws(C) depends on the solid model
used.

The total second Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor is given by

W EM
S = 2
C

and the magnetic flux density vector can be calculated as

W EM
Bm = –
 Hm

ABOUT DIFFERENT STRESS FORMS

There exists a long-lasting controversy in scientific literature about the definition of
electromagnetic forces acting on solids. An extensive review can be found in Ref. 3.
Many classic textbooks (for example, Ref. 1 and Ref. 2) operate with the so-called
Minkowski magnetic stress tensor that is usually written as:

1
 EM = B  H – ---  B  H I
2

The corresponding electromagnetic body force can be written as

1
f =    EM = J  B – ---  H  H : 
2

which sometimes is referred to as the Korteweg-Helmholtz magnetic force. For

homogeneous materials without deformation, one has   0. Hence, in the absence
of electric currents (J  0), the body force becomes zero. Thus, the whole

MATERIAL MODELS | 613

 magnetomechanical load on the solid is due to the Maxwell stress jump at the
boundaries between domains with different material properties.

There exists two most often used alternatives. The first one is called the Einstein–Laub
stress tensor:

1
 EM = B  H – ---  0  H  H I
2

This form is widely accepted in modern magnetoelasticity and material science, see
Ref. 4. The corresponding body force can be written as:

f =    EM = J  B +  0  M   H

which is also called the Kelvin magnetic force. Note that it is nonzero as soon as there
are magnetic field variation and magnetization within the material

M = H

The other alternative is the Chu stress tensor:

1
 EM =  0 H  H – ---  0  H  H I
2

and the corresponding magnetic body force is given by

f =    EM = J  B –  0    M H

so that variations of both the magnetic susceptibility and magnetic field can contribute.

COMSOL Multiphysics provides a choice of the electromagnetic stress

form only in the Magnetic Forces coupling feature. Any of the above
presented three options can be selected; the default choice is the
Minkowski stress tensor.

Magnetomechanical Forces coupling feature always operates with

Minkowski stress tensor form.

Magnetostriction and Piezomagnetism

Magnetostriction describes the change in dimensions of a material due to a change in
its magnetization. This phenomenon is a manifestation of magnetoelastic coupling,
which is exhibited by all magnetic materials to some extent. The effects related to

614 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

magnetoelastic coupling are described by various names. The Joule effect describes the
change in length due to a change in the magnetization state of the material. This
magnetostrictive effect is used in transducers for applications in sonars, acoustic
devices, active vibration control, position control, and fuel injection systems.

The inverse effect accounts for the change in magnetization due to mechanical stress
in the material. This effect is also known Villari effect. This effect is mostly useful in
sensors.

Magnetostriction has a quantum-mechanical origin. The magneto-mechanical

coupling takes place at the atomic level due to spin-orbit coupling. From a system level,
the material can be assumed to consist of a number of tiny ellipsoidal magnets which
rotate due to the torque produced by the externally applied magnetic field. The
rotation of these elemental magnets produces a dimensional change leading to free
strain in the material.

PIEZOMAGNETISM
The magnetostriction has a nonlinear dependence on the magnetic field and the
mechanical stress in the material. However, the effect can be modeled using linear
coupled constitutive equations if the response of the material consists of small
deviations around an operating point (bias point). This type of coupling is reffed to as
Piezomagnetic Effect.

It is possible to express the relation between the stress S, strain , magnetic field H,
and magnetic flux density B in either a stress-magnetization form or
strain-magnetization form:

MATERIAL MODELS | 615

 Stress-Magnetization
T
S = c H  – e HS H
B = e HS  +  0  rS H

Strain-Magnetization
T
 = s H S + d HT H
B = d HT S +  0  rT H

where 0 is the magnetic permeability of free space; cH and sH are the stiffness and
compliance matrices measured at constant magnetic field, respectively; and rS and rT
are the relative magnetic permeabilities measured at constant strain and constant stress,
respectively. The matrices dHT and eHS are called piezomagnetic coupling matrices.

In COMSOL Multiphysics, both constitutive forms can be used; simply select one, and
the software makes all necessary transformations. The following equations transform
strain-magnetization material data to stress-magnetization data:

–1
cH = sH
–1
e HS = d HT s H
1 –1 T
 rS =  rT – ------ d HT s E d HT
0

One can rewrite the system of constitutive relations in the following equivalent form:

S = c H   –  me 
–1
B =  0 H +  0  M +  0 d HT S 

where the magnetostrictive strain is introduced as

T
 me = d HT H

and the material magnetization due to the applied field is given by

M =   rT – I H

Hence, the stress in material is proportional to the elastic strain

 el =  –  me

and it contributes to the material magnetization.

616 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

All the necessary material data inputs are placed within the Piezomagnetic Material
node under the Solid Mechanics interface, which are added automatically when adding
a predefined Piezomagnetism multiphysics interface. Such a node can be also added
manually under any Solid Mechanics interface similar to all other material model
features. The Piezomagnetic Material uses Voigt notation for the anisotropic material
data. More details about the data ordering can be found in the Orthotropic and
Anisotropic Materials section.

For a crystalline material with tetragonal symmetry, the strain-magnetization form of

the constitutive relations is the following:

1
 11 s 11 s 12 s 13 0 0 0 S 11 0 0 – --- d
2 33
 22 s 12 s 11 s 13 0 0 0 S 22 1
0 0 – --- d H1
 33 s 13 s 13 s 33 0 0 0 S 33 2 33
= + 0 0 d 33 H 2
2 23 0 0 0 s 44 0 0 S 23
0 d 15 0 H3
2 13 0 0 0 0 s 44 0 S 13
d 15 0 0
2 12 0 0 0 0 0 2  s 11 – s 12  S 12
0 0 0

S 11

B1 0 0 0 0 d 15 0 S 22  11 0 0 H 1
B2 = 0 0 0 d 15 0 0 S 33 +  0 
0 11 0 H2
1 1 S 23
B3 – --- d – --- d d 33 0 0 0 0 0  33 H 3
2 33 2 33 S 13
S 12

The following material data corresponds to Terfenol-D at 100 kA/m bias and 30 MPa
prestress (Ref. 6):

4.4 – 1.1 – 1.65 0 0 0

– 1.1 4.4 – 1.65 0 0 0
 – 1.65 – 1.65 3.8 0 0 0  1  Pa 
– 11
sH = 10
0 0 0 24 0 0
0 0 0 0 24 0
0 0 0 0 0 11

MATERIAL MODELS | 617

 0 0 0 0 16.5 0 8.1 0 0
–9
d HT = 10  0 0 0 16.5 0 0  m  A   rT = 0 8.1 0
– 4.3 – 4.3 8.6 0 0 0 0 0 3

MULTIPLICATIVE FORMULATION FOR PIEZOMAGNETISM

The total deformation gradient is computed from the structural displacement field as

F = u + I
T
and the right Cauchy–Green is defined as C = F F .

The decomposition between elastic and inelastic deformation is made using a

multiplicative decomposition of the deformation gradient

–1
F el = FF in

where the inelastic deformation tensor depends on the inelastic process, such as
piezomagnetic effect and thermal expansion F in = F in  H T  .

The elastic right Cauchy–Green deformation tensor is then computed from Fel

T –T –1
C el = F el F el = F in CF in

and the elastic Green–Lagrange strain tensor is computed as:

1
 el = ---  C el – I 
2

Note that C el = C el  C H T  .

The strain tensor C, the magnetic field H, and the temperature T are used as the state
variables. The free energy density in the undeformed configuration is defined as

W  C H T  = J in W el  C el  + W in  H T  + JW vac  H s 

where J = det  F  and J in = det  F in  .

For structurally linear material,

1
W el = ---  el c el
2

where c is the elasticity tensor.

618 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The free space contribution is computed as

1 1 –1
W vac  H s  = – ---  0 vac  H s  H s  = – ---  0 vac C  H  H 
2 2

where Hs and H are the magnetic fields in the deformed (spatial) and undeformed
configuration, respectively.

The second Piola-Kirchoff stress is computed as

W
S = 2 = 2   J in W el  + S M
C C

The Maxwell stress SM is related to the magnetization of the free space occupied by
the deformed body, and it is computed as


 JW vac  =  0 vac J  C  H  H  – ---   C H   H I C
–1 1 –1 –1
SM = 2
C 2

The inelastic deformation gradient is further decomposed into a thermal and

piezomagnetic parts as

F in = F th  T F pzm  H 

The piezomagnetic strain tensor is introduced as  pzm = H  d , where d is the

piezomagnetic coupling tensor. The piezomagnetic deformation gradient is modeled
as

2
F pzm = I +  pzm + O   pzm 

Introduce

–T –1
C tel = F th CF th

1
 tel = ---  C tel – I 
2

S tel = c tel

which are the strain and stress tensors in the intermediate configuration, where the
thermal expansion part have been removed. These quantities are independent of the
magnetic field H.

Then,

MATERIAL MODELS | 619

 2
 el =  tel – C tel  pzm + O   pzm 

and

1 2
J in W el = --- J  tel S tel + J th W pzm + O   pzm 
2 th

where

W pzm =  --- tr   pzm  tel – C tel  pzm S tel

1
2 

The stress is computed then as

W pzm
S = J th F th  S tel + ------------------ F th + S M + O   pzm 
–1 –T 2
  tel 

The magnetic flux density (in the undeformed configuration) is computed as

W –1 W pzm 2
B = – =  0 vac JC H +  0 vac M + J th ------------------ + O   pzm 
H H

where the material magnetization is given by

1 W in
M = – --------------- -------------
 0 vac H

For a magnetically linear material, it is computed as

M =   r – I H

where r is the relative magnetic permeability.

NONLINEAR MAGNETOSTRICTION
A commonly accepted micromagnetic description of the magnetostriction is as follows
(Ref. 2):

All domains have magnetization of the same magnitude |M|  Ms, but the
magnetization can have different orientations characterized by the corresponding

620 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

direction vector m  MMs for each domain. The applied magnetic field changes the
domain orientation.

In this section, the term domain refers to a small part of magnetic

material. This is typical for micromagnetics literature, and it should not
be mistaken with the concept of domain as part of the model geometry,
the latter is often used in COMSOL Multiphysics documentation.

For a single crystal with cubic symmetry, the magnetostrictive strain tensor can be
written as the following quadratic form using tensor notation:

 me = ---  100  m  m – --- I +   111 –  100 

3 1
2  3   mi mj  ei  ej  (3-99)
ij

where  m  m  ij = m i m j . Note that the magnetostrictive strain is represented by a

deviatoric tensor, thus trme  0. This is because the deformation is related to the
magnetic domain rotation, and such process should not change the material volume.

The strain in any direction given by the directional cosines i can be written as

l
 = ------ =
l  i j ij
i j

The notation lambda is used for strain in this section, which is typical for
micromagnetics literature. This should not be mistaken with the same
notation used for stretch in other parts of the theory in COMSOL
Multiphysics documentation.

Using Equation 3-99, one gets

 = ---   m 1  1 + m 2  2 + m 3  3 – --- +
3 2 2 2 2 2 2 1
2 100  3 (3-100)
3 111  m 1 m 2  1  2 + m 2 m 3  2  3 + m 1 m 3  1  3 

When both magnetization and measurement direction are parallel to the same crystal
direction [100], one has m1  1  1 and all other components are zero, so that

 =  || =  100

MATERIAL MODELS | 621

 In a similar way for the [111] direction, one has for all components
m i =  i = 1  3 and   111.

If the strain is measured in [100] direction, while all the magnetization vectors are
aligned perpendicular to it, one has only the following two nonzero components:
m2  1  1 and consequently:

1
 =   = – --- 
2 100

In many applications, such alignment of the domains is achieved by applying a

compressive prestress. Thus, the maximum usable magnetostriction is achieved via a
90-degree rotation of the domains

3
 || –   = --- 
2 100

For an isotropic material, 100  111  s, and Equation 3-99 becomes

 me = ---  s  m  m – --- I
3 1
2  3 

For a polycrystalline material without preferred orientation, the following

approximation can be used (Ref. 1):

2 3
 s = ---  + --- 
5 100 5 111

In COMSOL Multiphysics, this description of the magnetostriction is modeled using

the following equation for the magnetostrictive strain:

3 1
 Mi Mj  ei  ej 
 me = --- -------2-  100 dev  M  M  +   111 –  100  (3-101)
2M
s ij

The strain field is deviatoric, and Equation 3-101 exhibits the same properties as
Equation 3-99 at saturation, that is, when |M|  Ms. Equation 3-100 is replaced by

3  100
- M1  1 – 1
--- + M 2   2 – 1
--- + M 3   3 – 1
--- +
2 2 2 2 2 2
 = --- ----------
2 M2  3  3  3
s
 111
-  M1 M2  2 + M2 M3  3 + M1 M 1 3 
3 ----------
2 1 2 3
Ms

622 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Note that the strain vanishes when |M|  0, which makes the model applicable in the
whole range from full demagnetization to saturation.

For isotropic materials, the magnetostrictive strain is modeled as the following

quadratic isotropic form of the magnetization field using tensor notation (Ref. 3):

3 s
 me = --- -------2- dev  M  M  (3-102)
2M
s

If the stress and strain tensors are represented by 6-component vectors using Voigt
notation, the stress in the magnetostrictive material is modeled as

S = c H   –  me  M  

where cH is a 6-by-6 stiffness matrix. For isotropic materials, the matrix can be
represented in terms of two parameters, for example, using the Young’s modulus and
Poisson’s ratio. Cubic materials possess only three independent components: c11, c12,
and c44.

One can derive a linear response around a given bias state characterized by a
premagnetization vector M0. Thus,

M = M 0 + M 1 =  M 0 1 M 0 2 M 0 3  + M 1

 me =  me 0  M 0  +  me 1  M 0 M 1 

where M1 is a perturbation.

Using Equation 3-102,one finds

2M 0 1 – M 0 2 – M 0 3
– M 0 1 2M 0 2 – M 0 3
 s – M 0 1 – M 0 2 2M 0 3
 me 1 = -------2- M1
Ms 0 3M 0 3 3M 0 2
3M 0 3 0 3M 0 1
3M 0 2 3M 0 1 0

If one assumes a unidirectional state, for example

M 0 =  0 0 M 0 

it will further simplify into

MATERIAL MODELS | 623

 0 0 –1
0 0 –1
s M0 0 0 2 M
 me 1 = -------------
2
- 1
Ms 0 3 0
3 0 0
0 0 0

MAGNETIZATION
The magnetization in the magnetostrictive material is found from the following
nonlinear implicit relation (Ref. 4 and Ref. 5):

H eff
M = M s L  H eff  -------------- (3-103)
H eff

where L is the Langevin function

3 0 H eff Ms
L = coth  ------------------------ – -----------------------------
Ms 3 0m H eff

with 0 being the magnetic susceptibility in the initial linear region.

Other possible choices of the L function are a hyperbolic tangent, which is sometimes
referred to as the Ising model

 0 H eff
L = tanh  ---------------------
Ms

and a linear function

 0 H eff
L = ---------------------
Ms

The latter option will make it possible to find an explicit expression for the
magnetization. However, such model does not have a proper saturation behavior, and
thus it should be used only in the operating range far from saturation. Both the
Langevin function and hyperbolic tangent models requires the magnetization vector
components to be treated as extra dependent variables.

For cubic crystals, the effective field in the material is given by

624 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 3
0 Ms

H eff = H + --------------2-  100 S d +   111 –  100   S d  ij  e i  e j  M (3-104)
ij

where H is the applied magnetic field. The second term in Equation 3-104 represents
the mechanical stress contribution to the effective magnetic field, and thus to the
material magnetization, which is called the Villari effect. The deviatoric stress tensor
is related to the strain as

S d = dev  c H :   –  me  

For isotropic materials, the effective magnetic field expression simplifies into

3 s
H eff = H + --------------2- S d M (3-105)
0 Ms

In addition, the magnetization and magnetic field are related to each other and to the
magnetic flux density (also called the B-field) by

B = 0  H + M 

COMSOL Multiphysics solves for the magnetic vector potential A whose curl yields
the vector B-field. The H-field is then obtained as a function of the B-field and
magnetization

H = B  0 – M

The effective tangent piezomagnetic coupling coefficients can be computed as

 me
d = -------------
H

For an isotropic material, the derivative can be evaluated to give

s
d = 3 -------2-  M   m – ---  I  I :  M   m 
1
 3 
Ms

where

M
 m = ---------
H

MATERIAL MODELS | 625

 is the tangent magnetic susceptibility. The corresponding expression in case of cubic
material is more complicated, but it has a similar structure involving products of the
magnetization and tangent susceptibility components. An important observation from
the above formulas is that the piezomagnetic coefficients should reach their maximum
(or minimum) at certain strength of the applied bias field if the saturation effect is
taken into account. This is because M is zero at zero applied field, while mwill tends
to zero at large applied field magnitudes because of saturation.

The piezomagnetic coupling tensor d is a third order tensor. Due to the symmetry, it
can be conventionally represented by a 3-by-6 matrix dHT with only few nonzero
components.

HYSTERESIS MODELING
The Jiles–Atherton hysteresis model for magnetostrictive materials is available
COMSOL Multiphysics. The model assumes that the total magnetization can be
represented as a sum of hysteretic and anhysteretic parts, the latter one is given by
Equation 3-103, thus

H eff
M an = M s L  H eff  --------------
H eff

Compared to Equation 3-104 and Equation 3-105, the effective magnetic field Heff
gets one more term M, where  is the interdomain coupling parameter.

The change in the total magnetization caused by the change on the effective magnetic
field is represented as

dM = c r dM an + max    dH eff 0   
(3-106)
–1
 = k p  M an – M 

where cr is the reversibility parameter, and kp is the pining loss parameter.

Equation 3-106 can be solved using either a time-dependent analysis or a stationary

parametric sweep.

For more details, see The Jiles–Atherton Hysteresis Model in the AC/
DC Module User’s Guide.

626 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Electrostriction
Electrostriction is an interaction in solid dielectric materials, where an electric field
applied on the material generates the deformation of the material (direct effect), and a
mechanics stress applied on it changes the material polarization (inverse effect).

The direct electrostrictive effect for a material of arbitrary symmetry can be

represented as the following additive contribution to the strain (Ref. 3):

 em = Q  P  P 

which is quadratic in polarization P in contrast to linear piezoelectricity.

The fourth order tensor Q can be effectively represented by a 6-by-6 coupling matrix.
Further simplification due to material symmetry is possible in most cases. For example,
for piezoelectric ceramics, the coupling matrix can be characterized by three
independent components: Q11, Q12, and Q44.

If the polarization in the material is linear with the applied electric field, the
electrostrictive strain can be written equivalently in terms of the electric field:

 em = QM  E  E 

where

2
M =  0 vac Q     

where 0,vac is the electric permittivity of free space, and  is the linear electric
susceptibility tensor (measured at zero mechanical deformation).

The total polarization in the material can then be written as

P =  0 vac E + 2  MS E (3-107)

where the mechanical stress in the material is computed assuming a mechanically linear
material as

S = C    –  em 

where C is the fourth order elasticity tensor, and the strain tensor is given by

1 T
 = ---  u + u 
2

The last term in Equation 3-107 represents the inverse electrostrictive effect.

MATERIAL MODELS | 627

 The fourth order tensor Q can be effectively represented by a 6-by-6 coupling matrix.
Further simplification due to material symmetry is possible in most cases. Thus, for
cubic crystal material, the coupling matrix can be characterized by three independent
components: Q11, Q12, and Q44.

For an isotropic material, only two independent coefficients Q11 and Q12 are needed
since Q 44 = 0.5  Q 11 – Q 12  . Two corresponding M-constants can be computed as

2
M ij =   0 vac  0  Q ij

where 0 denotes the only independent component of the electric susceptibility tensor.

For isotropic materials, the fourth order elasticity tensor C has only two independent
components. The most common choice to represent those are by specifying the
Young’s modulus EYM and Poisson’s ratio .

The following alternative electrostrictive parameters are defined in Ref. 1 for a linear
isotropic material:

2  1 –  Q 11 + 2Q 12
a 1 = 2   0 vac   E YM ---------------------------------------------------
 1 +    1 – 2 
2 Q 11 + Q 12
a 2 = 2   0 vac   E YM ---------------------------------------
 1 +    1 – 2 

One more commonly used alternative definition is that introduced in Ref. 2. Using a1'
and a2' for the constants used in Ref. 2, one has a1'  a1  a2 and a2'  a2.

The SI units for different electrostrictive parameters are summarized in Table 3-6.
TABLE 3-6: UNITS FOR ELECTROSTRICTIVE CONSTANTS.

MATERIAL PARAMETER UNIT (SI)

Q m2 / V2
M m4 / C2
a F/m

Ferroelectroelasticity
The ferroelectroelasticity and ferroelectricity phenomena are related to phase
transitions in materials. In its ferroelectric phase, the material exhibits spontaneous
polarization, so that it is constituted of domains with nonzero polarization even at zero
applied field. Electrostriction in ferroelectroelastic materials can be related to the
domain rotation. Thus, the applied electric field can both rearrange the domains

628 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

resulting into the net polarization and rotate the domains mechanically. Thus, the
material extends in the direction of the electric field and contracts in the direction
perpendicular to the field. The domain rotation can be affected by an applied
mechanical stress, which also results into the effective polarization. At very large
electric fields, the electrostrictive effect saturates, as all ferroelectric domains in the
material are aligned along the direction of the applied field. Domain wall interactions
can also lead to a significant hysteresis in the polarization and strain.

The direct electrostrictive effect for a material of arbitrary symmetry can be

represented as the following additive contribution to the strain (Ref. 1):

 em = Q  P  P 

which is quadratic in polarization P. Due to the symmetry, the fourth order tensor Q
can be effectively represented by a 6-by-6 coupling matrix. The number of
independent components in the matrix depends on the material symmetry. For
example, for piezoelectric ceramics, the matrix can be characterized by three
independent components: Q11, Q12 and Q44.

For ferroelectroelastic materials, the polarization vector is nonlinear function of the

electric field and possible mechanical stress in the material.

If hysteresis in the material can be neglected, the polarization is computed from the
implicit relation

P = P an  E P 

where the anhysteretic polarization function is assumed to have the following special
form:

E eff
P an = P s L  E eff  ------------- (3-108)
E eff

where Ps is the saturation polarization.

The polarization shape is characterized by the function L with the following

properties:

For weak effective fields, the polarization is nearly linear

P   0 E eff

and can be characterized by the initial electric susceptibility matrix 0.

MATERIAL MODELS | 629

 For strong fields, the polarization magnitude approaches the saturation value

E eff
P  P s -------------
E eff

Two possible choices are the Langevin function

3 0 E eff Ps
L = coth  ------------------------ – ------------------------
 P s  3 0 E eff

and a hyperbolic tangent (Ising spin model):

 0 H eff
L = tanh  ---------------------
 Ps 

The effective electric field is given by

E eff = E + P + 2  SQ P (3-109)

where E is the applied electric field,  is a material parameter called the inter-domain
coupling, and the mechanics stress is computed assuming mechanically linear material
as

S = C    –  em 

where C is the fourth order elasticity tensor. The last term in Equation 3-109
represents the inverse electrostrictive effect.

The effective tangent piezoelectric coupling tensor can be computed as

 em
d = ------------- = 2 0 vac Q  P   e 
E

where 0,vac is the electric permittivity of free space, and

1 P
 e = --------------- -------
 0 vac E

is the tangent electric susceptibility matrix. The piezoelectric coupling tensor d is a

third order tensor. Due to the symmetry, it can be conventionally represented by a
3-by-6 matrix with only few nonzero components. An important observation from the
above formula is that the piezoelectric coefficients should reach their maximum (or
minimum) at certain strength of the applied bias field. This is because P is zero at zero

630 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

applied field, while etends to zero at large applied field magnitudes because of
saturation.

If the mechanical deformation due to the electrostriction is assumed to be volume

preserving, the following form can be used for the electrostrictive strain in case of
isotropic material:

3 s
 em = --- ------2 dev  P  P 
2P
s

where s is the saturation electrostriction, and the deviatoric part can be computed for
any matrix A as

1
dev  A  = A – ---  I  I :A
3

The stress in Equation 3-109 is replaced then by

S d = dev  C    –  em  

and tangent piezoelectric coupling tensor becomes

 0 vac  s
-  P  e – 1
d = 3 -------------------- ---  I  I :  P   e 
2  3 
Ms

HYSTERESIS MODELING
The Jiles–Atherton model for ferroelectric hysteresis assumes that the total
polarization can be represented as a sum of reversible and irreversible parts. The
polarization change is computed from the following incremental equation:

dP = c r dP an +  I – c r dP irr (3-110)

where the anhysteretic polarization is found using Equation 3-108, and the irreversible
polarization change is computed as


dP irr = max    dE eff 0  -----


–1
 = k p  P an – P irr 

where the pinning loss is characterized by the parameter kp.

MATERIAL MODELS | 631

 Equation 3-110 can be solved using either a time-dependent analysis or a stationary
parametric sweep.

Rigid Material
A rigid domain, or a rigid body, is an idealization of a body in which the deformation
is neglected. In other words, the distance between any two given points of a rigid body
remains constant in time regardless of any external forces acting on it. An object can
be assumed to be perfectly rigid if its flexibility can be neglected in comparison with
other flexibilities in the system, and when there is no need to compute the stress in the
object. To model a rigid domain, you use the Rigid Material material model.

Rigid Material is available as a material model in the Solid Mechanics, Shell,

Beam, and Multibody Dynamics interfaces. This theory section applies to
all interfaces. There are some minor differences between the versions of
the Rigid Material which will be described as they appear.

In the following, when talking about rigid domains, the geometrical

object can be a domain, a boundary, or an edge, depending on physics
interface and spatial dimension.

A rigid domain can consist of a selection of several geometrical domains.

These domains will act as a single rigid object, irrespective of whether
they are geometrically connected or not.

Adjacent geometrical objects selected in different Rigid Material nodes are

independent, and can even penetrate each other.

The Rigid Material is a material model, which is mutually exclusive to all other material
models. The only material property needed is the mass density.

RIGID DOMAIN KINEMATICS

When a body is rigid, it is sufficient to describe the motion of at least three not collinear
particles. It is then possible to reconstruct the motion of all other particles in the body.
Usually, a mathematically more convenient, but equivalent, approach is used. The
motion of the whole body is represented by:

• The linear motion of the body. The motion of one of the particles of the body,
chosen as a reference point (often coinciding with the center of mass).
• The angular motion (also known as orientation or attitude) of the body.

632 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The degrees of freedom needed to represent the linear and angular motion are known
as rigid body translation and rigid body rotation degrees of freedom.

In 2D axisymmetric interfaces, a rigid domain has only a single degree of

freedom: translation along the Z axis. The following theory sections only
describe the more general cases. The axisymmetric formulation is a trivial
specialization where all rotational parts of expressions are dropped.

In 2D, this is represented by two in-plane translations and the scalar rotation around
the z-axis.

In 3D the situation is more complex. Six degrees of freedom are necessary. They are
usually selected as three translations and three parameters for the rotation. For finite
rotations, any choice of three rotation parameters is will give a singularity at some
specific set of angles. For this reason, a four-parameter quaternion representation is
used for the rotations in COMSOL Multiphysics. Thus, each rigid domain in 3D
actually has seven degrees of freedom: three for the translation, and four for the
rotation. The quaternion parameters are called a, b, c, and d. These four parameters
are not independent, so an extra equation stating that

2 2 2 2
a +b +c +d = 1

is added.

The connection between the quaternion parameters and the rotation matrix R is:

2 2 2 2
a +b –c –d 2bc – 2 ad 2ac + 2bd
R = 2ad + 2bc
2 2
a –b +c –d
2 2
2cd – 2ab
2 2 2 2
2bd – 2 ac 2ab + 2cd a –b –c +d

For the geometrically linear case, the quaternion constraint and the rotation matrix
definition are reduced to:

1 – 2d 2c
R = 2d 1 – 2b
– 2c 2b 1
a=1

MATERIAL MODELS | 633

 In 2D, the rotational degree of freedom is the angle of rotation about the z-axis  ,
and its relation with the rotation matrix R is:

cos  – sin  0
R = sin  cos  0
0 0 1

For the geometrically linear case, the 2D rotation matrix is reduced to:

1 – 0
R =  1 0
0 0 1

Under translation and rotation of a rigid domain, the complete expression for the
displacement of any point on the rigid body is given by:

ud = u +  R – I    X – XM 

where X are the material coordinates of any point in the rigid domain, XM is the center
of mass of the rigid domain, u is the translation vector at the center of mass, and I is
the identity matrix.

The rigid body displacement at the center of mass (u) are degrees of freedom. Thus,
the rigid body translational velocity and acceleration can be evaluated by directly taking
the time derivatives of u. In the time domain it can be expressed as:

u
u= u
ꞏ ꞏꞏ ꞏ
u =
t t

In the frequency domain, they can be expressed in terms of frequency ():

ꞏ ꞏꞏ ꞏ 2
u =  i u u =  i u = –  u

The same is true for the rotation in 2D since the rigid body rotation  is the degree
of freedom. The rigid body angular velocity and acceleration can be evaluated by
directly taking the time derivatives of  .

In 3D, the situation is different and the total rotation of the rigid domain can be
presented as a function of quaternion:

634 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

  b 2 + c 2 + d 2
2 atan  ----------------------------------- b
 a 
 = ---------------------------------------------------------- c
2 2 2
b +c +d d

The parameter a can be considered as measuring the rotation, while b, c, and d can be
interpreted as the orientation of the rotation vector. For small rotations, this relation
simplifies to:

b
 = 2 c
d

The angular velocity of the rigid domain is computed as:

Q2 a
ꞏ ꞏ
 = Q3 Q = 2q  q q = b
c
Q4
d

Here q is the conjugate of q, and  denotes quaternion multiplication.

The angular acceleration of the rigid domain can be evaluated by taking the time
derivative of the angular velocity.

RIGID DOMAIN DYNAMICS

The governing equation for a rigid domain can be written as a balance between the
inertial (internal) forces and applied external forces. A rigid domain has only one
internal force, the inertial force. This means that only the mass density of a domain is
required to define the rigid domain material model.

The inertial forces and inertial moments about the center of mass are:

ꞏꞏ ꞏꞏ
F = mu M = I
ꞏꞏ ꞏꞏ
where u and  are the linear and angular accelerations of a rigid domain.

The inertial properties mass (m) and moment of inertia tensor (I) of a rigid domain
are computed as:

MATERIAL MODELS | 635

 m =  dV 
X dV
X M = -------------------
m


T T
I =    X – X M    X – X M  E 3 –  X – X M    X – X M   dV

where E3 and XM are the identity matrix and the center of mass of a rigid domain,
respectively. The special case for the Shell interface is described in Rigid Domain for
Shells.

In 2D, the expressions for inertial forces, inertial moments, and moment of inertia
reduce to:

ꞏꞏ ꞏꞏ
F = mu M = Iz 

Iz =    X – XM    X – XM  h dA
where the volume integration has been replaced by an area integration multiplied by
the out-of-plane thickness h.

The equations of motion for the rigid domain are:

ꞏꞏ
mu +  FI =  Fext
and

T ꞏꞏ ꞏ Tꞏ
RIR  +    RIR   +  MI =  Mext
Here, the subscripts I and ext denote inertial and external forces, respectively, and R
is the current rotation matrix. The inertial forces are contributions from Mass and
Moment of Inertia nodes.

In 2D, the moment equations are simplified to the scalar equation

ꞏꞏ
Iz  +  MI =  Mext

636 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

INITIAL VALUE
The Rigid Material is a separate material model, and it overrides the default Linear Elastic
Material node and the default Initial Values node in the physics interface. The initial
values are given in a separate Initial Values subnode for each Rigid Material.

In the Multibody Dynamics interface version of Rigid Material, it is also

possible to get initial values for all domains from the interface level Initial
Values section. This is the default option. The Initial Values subnode is
only present under Rigid Material if Locally defined has been selected.

If many rigid domains are present in a system and they have the same
initial values, then it is often better to define initial values at the interface
level once and to reference these in all features.

The initial values for the rigid body translation, rigid body rotation, and the first time
derivatives can be prescribed about any point—a center of rotation—in a selected
coordinate system. The center of rotation can be defined using

• The center of mass of the rigid domain

• Global coordinates of the center of rotation
• The centroid of a set of selected entities (boundaries, edges, or points)
u
Given the initial values of translation (u), rotation (  ), translational velocity ( ) and
t
angular velocity () about a center of rotation (Xc), the rigid body displacement and
quaternion degrees of freedom are initialized as:

MATERIAL MODELS | 637

 u0 = u + ur
ˆ ˆ ˆ
u r =  – r +     r    1 – cos   +    r  sin 
r = XM – Xc

 u  =     r + u   + u
t  0 r t


cos ---
a = 2
b ˆ
0 sin --- 
2

a
t 1 
= ---  0  a 
2  b 0
b
t 0

In 2D, the expressions for the initial values reduce to:

u0 = u + ur
u r = – r  1 – cos   +  e z  r  sin 
r = XM – Xc

 u  =  e   r + u    + u
t  0 z r t t
0 = 

  = 
t 0 t

The variable ur is the translation at the center of mass due to a rotation around the
center of rotation, and is thus zero when the two points coincide. In the case that you
are entering the data using a separate center of rotation, you must pay special attention
to how the initial displacement and velocity are composed if initial rotations and
rotational velocities are present.

638 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Figure 3-27: Initial displacement of a rigid body

MASS AND MOMENT OF INERTIA

Sometimes a rigid domain needs the added effect of an associated abstract rigid object,
which is physically not modeled and where the inertial properties are known. You can
model this using Mass and Moment of Inertia, where the inertial properties of this
abstract domain (center of mass, mass, and moment of inertia tensor) can be directly
entered.

The formulation for an abstract rigid object is similar to the physical rigid domain with
these exceptions:

• The inertial properties of the abstract rigid object are input by the user instead of
being computed from a physical domain.
• No extra degrees of freedom are created. The inertial forces generated by this
feature will be computed based on the distance from the center of gravity of the rigid
domain to which it belongs, and the values of the degrees of freedom there.

The inertial force contributions are

2
d
FI = m  u +  R – E 3 X mc 
2
dt

where Xmc is the vector from the center of mass of the rigid domain (XM) to the center
of mass of this contribution (Xm),

X mc = X m – X M

The inertial moment contributions are

MATERIAL MODELS | 639

 T ꞏꞏ ꞏ Tꞏ
M I = RIR  +    RIR   + X mc  F I

In 2D, there is only a scalar moment contribution:

ꞏꞏ
M I = I z  +  X mc  F I   e z

CONSTRAINTS
The constraints for a rigid domain are different in nature than those applied to flexible
domains. In a flexible domain, a constraint can be applied at various entity levels:
domains, boundaries, edges, or points. Since the degrees of freedom of the rigid
domain are global and present only at the center of mass, boundary conditions are used
to constrain these global degrees of freedom, which is why a global selection is needed.

The constraints used for a flexible domain, for example Fixed Constraint,
Prescribed Displacement, Rigid Connector, or Attachment, are not applicable
to a rigid domain.

In a rigid domain the Prescribed Displacement/Rotation or Fixed Constraint

subnode is used instead to constrain its degrees of freedom.

The Prescribed Displacement/Rotation node can be used to:

• Prescribe the displacement components in arbitrary directions at a given point.

• Constrain rotations in arbitrary directions.
• Prescribe a nonzero rotation around an arbitrary axis.

The displacement and rotation can be prescribed in a selected coordinate system about
an arbitrary center of rotation. The center of rotation can be defined using

• The center of mass of the rigid domain.

• Global coordinates of the center of rotation.
• The centroid of a set of selected entities (boundaries, edges, or points).

The displacement at the center of rotation is computed as:

uc = u +  R – I    Xc – XM  (3-111)

The components of this displacement vector are prescribed individually in the selected
coordinate system. Through Equation 3-111, a constraint on a translation will impose

640 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

a relation between translational and rotational degrees of freedom if the center of
rotation differs from the center of mass.

To prescribe the rotation in 3D, the imaginary part of the quaternion is prescribed as:

ˆ 0
b =  sin -----
2
ˆ and  are the axis of rotation and angle of rotation, respectively.
where  0

In 2D, the out-of-plane rotation angle is directly constrained to the prescribed value
of the rotation.

LOADS
The loads available for a flexible domain can also be used for a rigid domain. In
addition to these boundary conditions, a rigid domain also has global subnodes for
applying forces and moments. If you use Applied Force, a force and its location can be
prescribed in a selected coordinate system. A force implicitly also contributes to the
moment unless it is applied at the center of mass of a rigid domain. If an Applied
Moment node is used, a moment can be prescribed in a selected coordinate system.

CONNECTING TO OTHER BODIES

When a rigid domain and a flexible domain share a boundary (Shell: edge, Beam:
point), the connection is automatic. All displacements on the flexible domain are
controlled by the degrees of freedom of the rigid domain, so that

u flex =  R – I    X – X M  + u

where X is a coordinate on the boundary. If rotational degrees of freedom are present,

which is the case in the Shell and Beam interfaces, the rotations are set equal to those
of the rigid domain.

In the Multibody Dynamics interface, a rigid domain can be also be

connected to another rigid or flexible domain using joints. A rigid
component can be directly selected in the joints to establish a connection.
This stands in contrast to a flexible component, which needs an
attachment.

Adjacent domains selected in different Rigid Material nodes are

independent objects.

MATERIAL MODELS | 641

 Damage Models
The deformation of quasi-brittle materials under mechanical loads is characterized by
an initial elastic deformation. If a critical level of stress or strain is exceeded, a nonlinear
fracture phase will follow the elastic phase.

As this critical value is reached, cracks grow and spread until the material fractures. The
occurrence and growth of the cracks play an important role in the failure of brittle
materials, and there are a number of theories to describe such behavior.

In the continuum damage mechanics formalism, a damage variable represents the

amount of deterioration due to crack growth. This damage variable controls the
weakening of the material’s stiffness, and it produces a nonlinear relation between
stress and strain.

For a linear elastic material, Hooke’s law relates the undamaged stress tensorun to
the elastic strain tensor:

 un =  ex + C  el =  ex + C    –  inel  (3-112)

here, C is the fourth order elasticity tensor, “:” stands for the double-dot tensor
product (or double contraction). The elastic strain el is the difference between the
total strain  and inelastic strains inel. There may also be an external stress contribution
ex, with contributions from initial, viscoelastic, or other inelastic stresses. For a
hyperelastic material, the undamaged stress tensor follows from the definition of the
second Piola-Kirchhoff stress in Hyperelastic Materials.

For the scalar damage models, the damaged stress tensord is computed from the
undamaged stress as

 d =  1 – d  un (3-113)

This damaged stress is then used in the weak formulation. There are different ways to
compute the scalar damage variable d that controls the material weakening. These are
listed in the following sections. When a large strain formulation is used, un and d
should be interpreted as the second Piola-Kirchoff stress.

The undamaged stress tensor un is used when combining the Damage
feature with Elastoplastic Materials, Elastoplastic Soil Models, Creep and
Viscoplasticity, or Linear Viscoelasticity.

642 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

STRAIN-BASED DAMAGE MODELS
The strain-based formulation for the Scalar damage and the Mazars damage for concrete
models is based on the loading function f such as

f =  eq –   0 (3-114)

here, eq is the equivalent strain, a scalar measure of the elastic strain; and is a state
variable. The evolution of the state variable follows the Kuhn–Tucker loading/
unloading conditions

f  0 , ꞏ  0 , and ꞏ f = 0

In this formulation,  is the maximum value of eq in the load history. The damage
variable d is then computed as a function of the state variable  and other parameters.

Equivalent Strain
Different damage models use different definitions for the equivalent strain eq. The
Rankine, stress damage model defines the equivalent strain from the largest undamaged
principal stress p1 as

  p1
 eq = -------------- (3-115)
E

here, the symbol “<>” represents the Macaulay brackets, and E is Young’s modulus.
The Macaulay brackets are used since in this formulation only tensile (positive) stresses
cause damage.

Similarly, the Rankine, strain damage model defines the equivalent strain from the
largest principal elastic strain elp1 as

 eq =   elp1 (3-116)

The Smooth Rankine, stress damage model defines the equivalent strain from the three
undamaged principal stresses

  p1 2 +   p2 2 +   p3 2

 eq = --------------------------------------------------------------------- (3-117)
E

In the same way, the Smooth Rankine, strain damage model defines the equivalent strain
from the three elastic principal strains

 eq =   elp1 2 +   elp2 2 +   elp3 2 (3-118)

MATERIAL MODELS | 643

 By default, only the principal stresses in tension contribute to the damage evolution,
for both the Rankine and the Smooth Rankine damage models; but it is also possible
to include damage in compression by incorporating the compressive stresses in the
computation of the damaged stress tensord.

The Euclidean Norm of the elastic strain tensor can also be used as a measure for the
equivalent strain

 eq =  el : el (3-119)

The Euclidean norm considers both tensile and compressive strains.

For the Mazars damage for concrete model, it is also possible to select from Mazars or
Modified Mazars equivalent strain. Mazars equivalent strain is defined as

 eq =   el :   el (3-120)

In the modified Mazars equivalent strain (Ref. 2 and Ref. 3), a correction factor  is
added to improve the approximation of the failure surface of concrete in multiaxial
compression.

 eq =    el :   el (3-121)

It is also possible to apply a User defined expression for defining the equivalent strain
as a function of undamaged stress, stress components or strains.

Damage Evolution
A key component in a scalar damage model is the definition of the damage evolution
law. The Linear strain softening law defines the damage variable from

0 f
d    =  1 – -----  ---------------   0
   f –  0
  , (3-122)
d  = 0   0

Here,0 denotes the onset of damage, computed from the tensile strength ts and
Young’s modulus E, so that 0  ts/E. The parameter f is derived from other
material parameters such as the tensile strength, the characteristic element size hcb and
the fracture energy per unit area Gf, or the fracture energy per unit volume gf.

2G f 0
 f = ---------------- + ----- (3-123)
 ts h cb 2

644 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The Exponential strain softening law defines the damage evolution from

0  – 0
d    = 1 – ----- exp  – ---------------   0 (3-124)
 f – 0
d  = 0   0

where

Gf 0
 f = ---------------- + ----- (3-125)
 ts h cb 2

The Polynomial strain softening law defines the damage evolutions from

0  – 0 2  – 0
d    = 1 – ----- 1 +  ---------------  2 --------------- – 3   0
 f – 0 f – 0 (3-126)
d = 0   0

with f according to Equation 3-123.

The Multilinear strain softening law defines the damage evolutions from

0 f – 
d    = 1 – ----- ---------------   p
 f – p
0 (3-127)
d    = 1 – ----- 0    p

d  = 0   0

with f according to Equation 3-123 and

Gf 
 p =  ---------------- +  0  1 – --- (3-128)
 ts h cb 2

where is an input parameter that defines the shape of the curve.

Mazars Damage for Concrete

The Mazars damage for concrete utilizes two different damage evolution laws, one for
tensile damage and another for compressive damage. These two damage functions are
combined as

 
d    = t dt    + c dc    (3-129)

MATERIAL MODELS | 645

 here, t and c are weight functions depending on the current stress state, and  is the
so-called shear exponent which determines the response in shear, that is, the evolution
of the combined damage function in states where both damage functions are active.

To define the tensile damage evolution law dt(Ref. 3), it is possible to use either
Linear strain softening, Exponential strain softening, described in Damage Evolution
section; or Mazars damage evolution function. A tensile Mazars damage evolution
function is obtained by a combination of linear and exponential strain softening

 0t
d t    = 1 –  1 – A t  ------- – A t exp  – B t   –  0t      0t
 (3-130)
dt    = 0    0t

Here, At and Bt are tensile damage evolution parameters, and 0t is the tensile strain
threshold.

The compressive Mazars damage evolution function dcis obtained by

 0c
d c    = 1 –  1 – A c  ------- – A c exp  – B c   –  0c      0c
 (3-131)
dc    = 0    0c

Here, Ac and Bc are compressive damage evolution parameters, and 0c is the
compressive strain threshold. Both the tensile and compressive damage evolution laws
can also be specified by User defined expressions.

Spatial Regularization
The most common application for the damage models is to describe strain localization,
due to cracking in quasi-brittle materials. In a damage model without regularization,
the deformation during strain softening will always localize in the narrowest possible
band, following the principle of least action. This means that large strains will develop
in a narrow band of elements (or even Gauss points). As a consequence, the amount
of energy dissipated during softening will decrease upon mesh refinement. The results
of a damage model without regularization will therefore be mesh dependent and
possibly unstable; hence the need for these models to be regularized for the solution
to maintain its mesh objectivity.

The simplest regularization method is to modify the stress-strain relation to account

for the mesh size. More advanced regularization techniques introduce length scales in
the constitutive equation, and additional equations and variables acting as localization

646 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

limiters. The following sections describe the two methods for damage regularization
available in COMSOL Multiphysics.

The Crack Band Method

This simplest regularization technique is based on stress-strain curves (damage
evolution laws) that depend on the mesh and element characteristics. The method is
often called the Crack Band method (Ref. 4, Ref. 5). The method regularizes the
solution from a global viewpoint, which dissipates the correct amount of energy during
strain localization. The main difficulty when using the crack band method is to find the
correct width of the crack band, hcb; which can depend on the element size and shape,
as well as the order of the interpolation and the current stress state (that is, the
inclination of the crack with respect to the mesh).

hcb
hcb

The length scale used in the crack band method is computed by using the volume to
area ratio in the mesh elements. By using the element volume v in 3D or the area a in
2D, the crack bandwidth hcb is defined as:

• h cb = 2a , for 2D triangles
• h cb = a , for 2D rectangles
• h cb = 3
6  2v , for 3D tetrahedra
• h cb = 3
6v  2 , for 3D pyramids
• h cb = 3 2v , for 3D wedges
• h cb = 3 v , for 3D hexahedra

The crack band width hcb is then used to modify the Damage Evolution law in which
the damage variable d is computed. Note that the damage evolution laws
(Equation 3-130 and Equation 3-131) are unaffected by the crack band method.

MATERIAL MODELS | 647

 The Implicit Gradient Method
The Implicit Gradient method (Ref. 6) enforces a predefined width of the damage
zone through a localization limiter. This is achieved by adding a nonlocal strain
variable, the nonlocal equivalent strain nl, through an additional PDE where the
equivalent strain eq acts as source term. This PDE is solved simultaneously with the
displacement field:

2
 nl – c  nl =  eq (3-132)

Here, the parameter c controls the width of the localization band. This parameter is
defined from the internal length scale, lint, and the geometry dimension n (two or
three dimension)

2
l int
c = ------- (3-133)
2n

If the fracture energy per unit area is used to define the softening behavior, the size of
the damage zone is also needed as input. This parameter does not necessarily have the
same value as lint.

The strain-based formulation for the damage model (Equation 3-114) is then
redefined by the nonlocal equivalent strainnl instead of the equivalent strain eq

f =  nl –   0 (3-134)

Viscous Regularization
A rate dependency can be introduced to the damage model by using the Delayed
damage viscous regularization method available for time-dependent studies. The
method can be used to model a real rate-dependent fracture problem, as well as for
stabilizing a rate-independent problem. In both cases, a viscous damage variable dv is
introduced. This variable is defined through the following ODE

d v
 + dv = d    (3-135)
t

where  is the characteristic relaxation time. For the case when the viscous
regularization is used to stabilize a rate-independent fracture problem, should be
significantly smaller than the time step used by the solver in order not to modify the
properties of the problem too much. The viscous damage variable dv is then used in
Equation 3-113 to define the damaged stress tensor.

648 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

PHASE FIELD DAMAGE MODELS
The Phase field damage model is closely related to the Strain-based Damage Models,
but it is derived from a different starting point. Following a similar derivation as
reported in Ref. 7, the model is based on the regularization of a variational formulation
of the classical theory by Griffith for brittle fracture; where the geometric crack
discontinuity is regularized by a second-order phase field. Including a viscous
regularization of the crack phase field , the energy functional governing the crack
propagation takes the following form:


E  x t u u    =   1 – d    Ws0 dx +    t dx
 
(3-136)
1 2 l int
+ G c  ------------  + ---------   dx

2
 2l int 2 


where d is the damage function, Ws0 is the elastic strain energy density,  is the
viscosity, Gc is the critical energy release rate, and lint is the internal length scale that
appears form the regularization of the discrete fracture.

Given the two dependent variables, u and the main contributions to the coupled
initial boundary value problem (including inertial terms), are:


2u
  ---------
 t 2- =    d + F V on 

  d    2 2
(3-137)
  = --------------- H d –  – l int   on 
 t t
 0 = –   n on 


where the characteristic time  and the state variable Hd have been introduced. The
state variable Hd is a function of the crack driving force Dd, and it satisfies the
Kuhn-Tucker conditions so that:

H d  t u  = max    0 t  D d   u  (3-138)

The momentum balance in Equation 3-137 is included for completeness but is not
implemented directly as part of the phase field damage model. However, the equation
gives an indication that the damaged stress, as defined by Equation 3-113, is used for
the mechanical equilibrium.

MATERIAL MODELS | 649

 Crack Driving Force
The crack driving force, Dd, can be either a function of the elastic strain energy density,
or it can also include dissipation processes.

By selecting the Elastic strain energy density, the crack driving force is derived from

l int + G c0
D d = ----------------------  W s0 – --------- (3-139)
G c – G c0 l int

where Ws0+ is the tensile part of the undamaged elastic strain energy density. The
strain energy threshold Gc0 is an ad hoc variable introduced to establish an elastic
threshold before damage occurs. By setting Gc0 equal to zero recovers the model
reported in Ref. 7.

By selecting Total strain energy density, additional contributions from dissipative

material features, such as creep, plasticity and viscoelasticity, are added. Select the
Calculate energy dissipation check box in the parent material model to compute these
variables.

An alternative definition for the crack driving force based on stress measures is
suggested in Ref. 9. By selecting the Principal stress criterion, the crack driving force is
defined as

3
 pi 2
Dd =     -------
c 
-  (3-140)
i=1

where c is the critical fracture stress, pi are the undamaged principal stresses, and
 is a dimensionless parameter which determines the post peak slope.

It is also possible to enter a User defined expression for the crack driving force Dd.

Damage Evolution for Phase Field Damage

The damage variable d is in the phase field damage model a function of the crack phase
field By selecting Power law, the damage evolution function is defined as

m
d = 1 – 1 –  (3-141)

where the exponent m is a user input. Often a quadratic function is used so that m  2.
An alternative damage function was suggested in Ref. 10. By selecting Cubic, Borden,
the damage evolution function d reads

3 2 2 3
d   = 1 – s 1 –   –  1 –   – 3 1 –  + 2 1 –   (3-142)

650 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

where the model parameter s controls the shape of the damage evolution function.
The Cubic, Borden option is only available when the crack driving force is defined
through the strain energy density.

It is also possible to enter a User defined expression for the damage evolution d as a
function of the phase field variable .

Strain Energy Split

Typically, phase field damage models use a decomposition of the undamaged strain
energy density Ws0 into a tensile and compressive parts. Only the tensile part Ws0+
affects the phase field, and consequently the damage growth and fracture. Several
alternative definitions of Ws0+ are available in COMSOL Multiphysics.

The simplest alternative is to set Ws0+ equal to the complete strain energy density Ws0,
which means that no split is made into tensile and compressive counterparts. Select No
split in the Exclude compressive energy list to achieve this. This option has the advantage
that it greatly simplifies the structure of the equations, although that comes at the cost
of physical correctness, especially for shear and cyclic loading.

A more accurate method is to use the volumetric-deviatoric split by selecting

Volumetric only in the Exclude compressive energy list. Here, only the positive part of
the volumetric stress is considered while the entire undamaged deviatoric stress
dev  dev(un) is included in Ws0+. The definition of Ws0+ then reads

1  I 1
W s0 = ---  ----------  el,vol +  dev : el,dev
+
(3-143)
2 3 

where I1  trace(un) is the first invariant of the undamaged stress tensor defined in
Equation 3-112 (see Invariants of the Stress Tensor); and el,vol and el,dev are the
volumetric and deviatoric parts of the elastic strain tensor, respectively (see Invariants
of Strain). For hyperelastic materials, Equation 3-143 is replaced by


+  W + W vol if J el  1
W s0 =  iso
 W iso if J el  1


where Wiso is the isochoric strain energy density, Wvol is the volumetric strain energy
density, and Jel is the elastic volume ratio. The split is only available if the parent
hyperelastic model permits a clear split of Ws into two parts.

Another alternative is to define Ws0+ by performing a spectral decomposition of the

stress tensor such that

MATERIAL MODELS | 651

 3
1
  pi el pi
+
W s0 = --- (3-144)
2
i=1

where pi are the principal values of the undamaged stress tensor un, and el,pi are the
principal values of the elastic strain tensorel (see Principal Strains).

Similarly, a spectral decomposition can be made directly on the elastic strain tensor as
suggested in Ref. 7. The tensile part of the elastic strain tensor is then

  el pi ni  ni
+
 el = (3-145)
i=1

and the tensile part of the undamaged stress tensor is defined as

+ +
 = C  el (3-146)

Using these two tensors, the tensile part of the elastic strain energy density is

+ 1 + +
W s0 = ---  : el (3-147)
2

Both the Spectral decomposition, stress and Spectral decomposition, strain options
involve computing the principal values and principal vectors. Such operations are
comparatively expensive and typically increase the computational cost of the phase field
damage method, however, these are the most physically correct formulations to use.

The choice of how to split the elastic strain energy density also affects how the
damaged stress tensor is constructed form the tensile part of the undamaged stress
tensor.

Safety Factor Evaluation

There are many theories available in the literature for predicting material failure, these
can predict, for instance whether a ductile material will yield or not, or if a brittle
material will crack under a given set of loads.

Tsai and Wu (Ref. 7, Ref. 17) proposed a stress-dependent criterion intended at

modeling failure in composites. Under the Tsai–Wu criterion, failure occurs when a
given quadratic function of stress is greater than zero. The failure criterion is given by

g    = :  F  + f: – 1

652 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

where,  is the stress tensor, F a fourth rank tensor (SI unit: 1/Pa2) and f is a second
rank tensor (SI unit: 1/Pa). For the Tsai–Wu criterion, failure occurs when g()  

Due to the symmetry of these tensors, the fourth rank tensor can be represented by a
symmetric 6-by-6 matrix, and the second rank tensor by a 6-by-1 vector (see Voigt
order in the section Tensor vs. Matrix Formulations).

Certain constraints ensure that the failure surface g() =  forms a closed ellipsoid in
the stress space. Also, thermodynamic considerations restrict the value of some
components of the fourth rank tensor to be positive. These restrictions are summarized
as (no summation of the indices)

2
F ii  0 and F ii F jj  F ij

The failure index is computed from the failure criterion as

fi = g    + 1

so failure is predicted for a failure index greater than one, fi  

The damage index is given by a Boolean expression based on the failure criterion

1 g  0
di =
0 otherwise

here di =  means damage, and di =  represents a healthy material.

The safety factor, also called reserve factor or strength ratio, is computed by scaling
the stress tensor such as the failure criterion is equal to zero

g  sf   = 0

For a quadratic failure criterion, as the Tsai–Wu criterion, this means solving a
quadratic equation for the safety factor variable sf

2
s f  :  F   + s f  f:  – 1 = 0

the safety factor is then obtained from the smallest positive root.

For an isotropic criterion, such as the von Mises criterion, g() = misests  , and
the safety factor is given by sf = tsmises.

The margin of safety (Ref. 17) is then computed from the safety factor

ms = s f – 1

MATERIAL MODELS | 653

 Following the Tsai–Wu formalism, different orthotropic criteria can be defined by
setting appropriate values for the coefficients in F and f tensors.

Use the Safety subnode to set up variables which can be used to check the risk of failure
according to various criteria. It can be used in combination with Linear Elastic
Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, or Nonlinear Elastic Materials.

THE ANISOTROPIC TSAI–WU CRITERION

For this anisotropic criterion, enter 21 coefficients to define the 6-by-6 matrix F, and
six coefficients to define the vector f. The failure criterion is evaluated from the
expression

T T
 11 F 11 F 12 F 13 F 14 F 15 F 16  11 f1  11
 22 F 12 F 22 F 23 F 24 F 25 F 26  22 f2  22
 33 F 13 F 23 F 33 F 34 F 35 F 36  33 f3  33
g  = + –1
 23 F 14 F 24 F 34 F 44 F 45 F 46  23 f4  23
 13 F 15 F 25 F 35 F 45 F 55 F 56  13 f5  13
 12 F 16 F 26 F 36 F 46 F 56 F 66  12 f6  12

here, ij are the stress tensor components given in the local coordinate system of the
parent node.

THE ORTHOTROPIC TSAI–WU CRITERION

For this orthotropic criterion, enter nine coefficients corresponding to the tensile
strengths tsi, compressive strengths csi, and shear strengths ssij given in the local
coordinate system of the parent node. The Tsai–Wu coefficients are then computed
from

1 1 1
F 11 = -------------------- , F 22 = -------------------- , F 33 = -------------------- ,
 cs1  ts1  cs2  ts2  cs3  ts3

1 - 1 - 1 -
F 44 = ----------- , F 55 = ----------- , F 66 = ----------- ,
 ss23
2  ss13
2  ss12
2

1 1 1
F 12 = – --- F 11 F 22 , F 13 = – --- F 11 F 33 , F 23 = – --- F 22 F 33
2 2 2

1 1 1 1 1 1
f 1 = --------- – ---------- , f 2 = --------- – ---------- , f 3 = --------- – ----------
 ts1  cs1  ts2  cs2  ts3  cs3

654 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

all the other coefficients in F and f are set to zero.

In the plane stress version of Tsai-Wu orthotropic criterion, the only nonzero
coefficients are

1 1 1 - 1
F 11 = -------------------- , F 22 = -------------------- , F 66 = ----------- , F 12 = – --- F 11 F 22
 cs1  ts1  cs2  ts2  ss12
2 2

1 1 1 1
f 1 = --------- – ---------- , f 2 = --------- – ----------
 ts1  cs1  ts2  cs2

THE TSAI–HILL CRITERION

For this orthotropic criterion, enter six coefficients corresponding to the tensile
strengths tsi and shear strengths ssij given in the local coordinate system of the
parent node. The equivalent coefficients for The Anisotropic Tsai–Wu Criterion are
then computed from

1- 1-
F 11 = --------- for  11  0 , or F 11 = --------- for  11  0
 ts1
2  cs1
2

1- 1-
F 22 = --------- for  22  0 , or F 22 = --------- for  22  0
 ts2
2  cs2
2

1- 1-
F 33 = --------- for  33  0 , or F 33 = --------- for  33  0
 ts3
2  cs3
2

1 - 1 - 1 -
F 44 = ----------- , F 55 = ----------- , F 66 = ----------- ,
 ss23
2  ss13
2  ss12
2

1
F 12 = – ---  F 11 + F 22 – F 33  ,
2
1 1
F 13 = – ---  F 11 + F 33 – F 22  , F 23 = – ---  F 22 + F 33 – F 11 
2 2

all the other coefficients in F and f tensors are set to zero. See also Orthotropic
Plasticity.

In the plane stress version of Tsai-Hill criterion, some terms become zero

F 33 = F 13 = F 23 = F 55 = F 44 = 0

and the F12 term is modified as follows

MATERIAL MODELS | 655

 1 -
– ------------
2
for sign( 11  = sign( 22 
2 ts1
F 12 =
1 -
– -------------
2 for sign( 11   sign( 22 
2 tc1

THE HOFFMAN CRITERION

For this orthotropic criterion, enter nine coefficients corresponding to the tensile
strengths tsi, compressive strengths csi, and shear strengths ssij given in the local
coordinate system of the parent node. The equivalent coefficients for The Anisotropic
Tsai–Wu Criterion are then computed from

1 1 1
F 11 = -------------------- , F 22 = -------------------- , F 33 = -------------------- ,
 cs1  ts1  cs2  ts2  cs3  ts3

1 - 1 - 1 -
F 44 = ----------- , F 55 = ----------- , F 66 = ----------- ,
 ss23
2  ss13
2  ss12
2

1
F 12 = – ---  F 11 + F 22 – F 33  ,
2
1 1
F 13 = – ---  F 11 + F 33 – F 22  , F 23 = – ---  F 22 + F 33 – F 11 
2 2

1 1 1 1 1 1
f 1 = --------- – ---------- , f 2 = --------- – ---------- , f 3 = --------- – ----------
 ts1  cs1  ts2  cs2  ts3  cs3

all the other coefficients are set to zero.

THE JENKINS CRITERION

For Jenkins orthotropic criterion, enter nine coefficients corresponding to the tensile
strengths tsi, compressive strengths csi, and shear strengths ssij given in the local
coordinate system of the parent node. The failure criterion is then computed from

 1  2  3  23  13  12
g    = max  --------- --------- --------- ------------ ------------ ------------ – 1
  s1  s2  s3  ss23  ss13  ss12

here, si is either the tensile strength or the compressive strength depending whether
the stress in the i direction, i, is positive or negative. The absolute value of the shear
stress ij in the ij-plane is compared to the corresponding shear strength ssij.

656 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

THE WADDOUPS CRITERION
The Waddoups orthotropic criterion is similar to the Jenkins criterion, but the failure
criterion is given in terms of strains, not strengths. For this criterion, enter nine
coefficients corresponding to the ultimate tensile strains tsi, ultimate compressive
strains csi, and ultimate shear strains ssij given in the local coordinate system of the
parent node. The failure criterion is then computed from

 1  2  3  23  13  12
g    = max  -------- -------- -------- ----------- ----------- ----------- – 1
 s1  s2  s3  ss23  ss13  ss12

here, si is either the ultimate tensile strain or the ultimate compressive strain
depending whether the strain in the i direction, i, is positive or negative. The absolute
value of the shear strain ij in the ij-plane is compared to the corresponding ultimate
shear strain ssij.

THE AZZI–TSAI–HILL CRITERION

This criterion is derived from the Tsai–Wu theory for two-dimensional plane stress
problems. It is available in 2D for the Plate interface, for the Solid Mechanics interface
in plane stress, and for the Shell interface in 3D. Enter the coefficients corresponding
to the tensile strengths tsi, compressive strengths csi, and shear strengths ssij given
in the local coordinate system of the parent node. The failure criterion is then
computed from the in-plane stresses

g    = F 11  11
2 + F  2 + 2F   + F  2 – 1
22 22 12 11 22 66 12

The Tsai–Wu coefficients are then computed from

1- 1-
F 11 = --------- for  11  0 , or F 11 = --------- for  11  0
 ts1
2  cs1
2

1- 1-
F 22 = --------- for  22  0 , or F 22 = --------- for  22  0
 ts2
2  cs2
2

1 1- 1 1-
F 12 = – --- --------- for  11  0 or F 12 = – --- --------- for  11  0
2  ts1 2 2  cs1 2

1 -
F 66 = -----------
 ss12
2

all the other coefficients are set to zero.

MATERIAL MODELS | 657

 THE NORRIS CRITERION
This criterion is derived from the Tsai–Wu theory for two-dimensional plane stress
problems. It is available in 2D for the Plate interface and the Solid Mechanics interface
in plane stress, and for the Shell interface in 3D. Enter the coefficients corresponding
to the tensile strengths tsi, compressive strengths csi, and shear strengths ssij given
in the local coordinate system of the parent node. The failure criterion is then
computed from the in-plane stresses

g    = F 11  11
2 + F  2 + 2F   + F  2 – 1
22 22 12 11 22 66 12

The Tsai–Wu coefficients are then computed from

1- 1-
F 11 = --------- for  11  0 , or F 11 = --------- for  11  0
 ts1
2  cs1
2

1- 1-
F 22 = --------- for  22  0 , or F 22 = --------- for  22  0
 ts2
2  cs2
2

1 -
F 66 = -----------
 ss12
2

1
F 12 = – --- F 11 F 22
2

all the other coefficients are set to zero.

THE VON MISES CRITERION

The von Mises criterion is one of the simplest isotropic criteria to predict yielding in
metals and other ductile materials. The failure criterion is computed from the isotropic
tensile strength ts

 mises
g    = -------------- – 1
 ts

The equivalent von Mises stress mises is defined from the deviatoric stress tensor, see
the section about plasticity and The von Mises Criterion. For ductile materials the
tensile strength corresponds to the yield stress, while for brittle materials it corresponds
to the failure strength.

658 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

THE TRESCA CRITERION
Tresca criterion is similar to the von Mises criterion. For this isotropic criterion, the
failure criterion is computed from the isotropic tensile strength ts

 tresca
g    = --------------- – 1
 ts

Here, the Tresca equivalent stress is defined in terms of principal stresses,

tresca = 1  3; see The Tresca Criterion. For ductile materials the tensile strength
corresponds to the yield stress, while for brittle materials it corresponds to the failure
strength.

THE RANKINE CRITERION

The Rankine criterion is similar to the Tresca criterion, as the failure criterion is given
in terms of principal stresses. For this isotropic criterion, enter the tensile strength ts,
and the compressive strength cs. The failure criterion is then computed from

 p1  p2  p3
g    = max  ------------ ------------ ------------ – 1
 s s s 

here, s is either the tensile strength or the compressive strength depending whether
the principal stress, pi, is positive or negative. For ductile materials the tensile strength
corresponds to the yield stress, while for brittle materials it corresponds to the failure
strength.

THE ST. VENANT CRITERION

The St. Venant criterion is similar to the Waddoups criterion, as the failure criterion is
given in terms of strains, not strengths. For this isotropic criterion, enter the ultimate
tensile strains ts, and the ultimate compressive strains cs. The failure criterion is then
computed from

 p1  p2  p3
g    = max  -------- -------- -------- – 1
s s s

here, s is either the ultimate tensile strain or the ultimate compressive strain
depending whether the principal strain, pi, is positive or negative. For ductile materials
the ultimate tensile strain corresponds to the strain at yielding, while for brittle
materials it corresponds to the strain at failure.

MATERIAL MODELS | 659

 THE MOHR–COULOMB CRITERION
The Mohr–Coulomb criterion is similar to the Tresca criterion, as the failure criterion
is given in terms of principal stresses, see The Mohr–Coulomb Criterion for soil
plasticity. For this isotropic criterion, enter the cohesion c, and the angle of internal
friction  . The failure criterion is then computed from

J2 m   
g    = ------------------------ – 1
k – I 1

and the failure index from

J2 m   
fi = ------------------------
k – I 1

where

---   1 + sin   cos  –  1 – sin   cos   + ------  ,  = sin   3 ,

1 2
m =
3 3
and k = c cos 

The cohesion and the angle of internal friction are related to the tensile and
compressive strengths by the expressions

 cs1 –  ts1  cs1  ts1

sin    = -------------------------- and c cos    = --------------------------
 cs1 +  ts1  cs1 +  ts1

THE DRUCKER–PRAGER CRITERION

The Drucker–-Prager criterion approximates the Mohr–Coulomb criterion by a
smooth function (a cone in the stress space), see The Drucker–Prager Criterion for soil
plasticity. The failure isotropic criterion is computed from the stress invariants I1 and
J2, and two material parameters,  and k,

J2
g    = ------------------ – 1
k – I 1

The material parameters  and k are related to the cohesion c and angle of internal
friction  in the Mohr–Coulomb criterion, see The Drucker–Prager Criterion for
details. Also, the cohesion and the angle of internal friction can be related to the tensile
and compressive strengths, see The Mohr–Coulomb Criterion for details. The failure
index is computed from

660 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 J2
fi = ------------------
k – I 1

THE BRESLER–PISTER CRITERION

The Bresler–Pister criterion was originally devised to predict the strength of concrete
under multiaxial stresses. This isotropic failure criterion is an extension of The
Drucker–Prager Criterion to brittle materials. The failure criterion is computed from
the stress invariants I1 and J2, and three parameters, k1k2and k3,

J2
g    = --------------------------------------------
2
–1
– k1 I1 – k2 I1 – k3

The parameters k1, k2, and k3 are computed from the uniaxial compressive strength
c, the uniaxial tensile strength t, and the biaxial compression strength b, see The
Bresler–Pister Yield Criterion for details. The failure index is computed from

J2
fi = --------------------------------------------
2
–k1 I1 – k2 I1 – k3

THE WILLAM–WARNKE CRITERION

The Willam–Warnke isotropic criterion is used to predict failure in concrete and other
cohesive-frictional materials such as rock, soil, and concrete. Just as The Bresler–Pister
Criterion, failure is computed from the stress invariants I1 and J2, and the Lode angle
, and three material parameters

J2
g    = ---------------------------------------------------------------------- – 1
1 1 I1
--- r    c  1 +  ------ – ----- -----
5
2    b  t 3 

here, c is the uniaxial compressive strength, t is uniaxial tensile strength, and b is

the biaxial compressive strength. The function r( describes the segment of an ellipse
on the octahedral plane, see The Willam–Warnke Criterion for details. The failure
index is computed from

J2
fi = ----------------------------------------------------------------------
1 1 I1
--- r    c  1 +  ------ – ----- -----
5
2    b  t 3 

MATERIAL MODELS | 661

 THE OTTOSEN CRITERION
The Ottosen criterion is a five-parameter failure isotropic criterion developed to model
short-time loading of concrete. It corresponds to a smooth convex failure surface with
curved meridians

aJ 2     J2
g    = ------------------------------- + ---------------------- – 1
 c   c – bI 1   c – bI 1

In this formulation, the parameters a and b are positive and dimensionless, and c is
the uniaxial compressive strength for concrete (also with a positive sign). The
dimensionless function ( depends on the Lode angle  and two positive parameters
k1 and k2, see The Ottosen Criterion for details. The failure index is computed from

aJ 2     J2
fi = ------------------------------- + ----------------------
 c   c – bI 1   c – bI 1

USER DEFINED
This option allows to explicitly write how the failure criterion and the safety factor
depend on stress and/or strain. These could be analytic functions of stress or strain
tensor components, principal stresses, principal strains, stress or strain invariants, or
data interpolated from tables.

Add any number of Safety nodes to a single material model; the contents of these
features will not affect the analysis results as such, since they do not account for
post-failure analysis. Add Safety nodes after having performed an analysis and just do
an Update Solution in order to access to the new variables for result evaluation.

FIBER COMPOSITE SPECIFIC FAILURE CRITERIA

There are certain advanced composite specific criteria that account for multi-axial state
of stress, and different failure modes for tensile and compressive loading. For example,
in fiber composites, failure can happen due to fiber rupture in tension or fiber buckling
in compression; matrix failure in tension or matrix failure in compression, and so on.

662 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Figure 3-28: The fiber and matrix failure modes and respective failure planes in a
unidirectional composite.

The basic types of failure modes in unidirectional composites are (Figure 3-29)

• Fiber rupture in tension

• Fiber buckling in compression
• Matrix failure in tension
• Matrix failure in compression
• Matrix failure for out-of-plane shear
• Matrix failure for in-plane shear
• Interlaminar failure in tension
• Interlaminar failure in compression

MATERIAL MODELS | 663

 Figure 3-29: Different fiber failure (FF) modes and interfiber failure (IFF) modes of a
unidirectional composite under different loading conditions. The plane where the brittle
fracture occurs is also shown.

The list of fiber composite specific failure criteria includes:

• Zinoviev Criterion
• The Hashin–Rotem Criterion
• The Hashin Criterion
• Puck Criterion
• LARC-03 Criterion

664 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Table 3-7 shows failure criterion and considered failure modes by that criterion.
TABLE 3-7: COMPOSITE FAILURE CRITERIA AND FAILURE MODES

FAILURE CRITERION CONSIDERED FAILURE MODE

Zenoviev Fiber rupture in tension

Fiber buckling in compression
Matrix failure in tension
Matrix failure in compression
Matrix failure in-plane shear
Hashin–Rotem Fiber rupture in tension
Fiber buckling in compression
Matrix failure in tension and in-plane shear
Matrix failure in compression and in-plane shear
Hashin Fiber rupture in tension and shear
Fiber buckling in compression
Matrix failure in tension and shear
Matrix failure in compression and shear
Interlaminar failure in tension
Interlaminar failure in compression
Puck Fiber rupture in tension
Fiber buckling in compression
Matrix failure in tension and in-plane shear (Interfiber
failure: Mode A)
Matrix failure in compression and in-plane shear (Interfiber
failure: Mode B)
Matrix failure in compression and in-plane shear (Interfiber
failure: Mode C
LaRC03 Fiber rupture in tension (Mode LaRC03-3)
Fiber buckling in compression with matrix compression
(Mode LaRC03-5)
Fiber buckling in compression with matrix tension (Mode
LaRC03-4)
Matrix failure in compression and in-plane shear (Mode
LaRC03-1)
Matrix failure in tension and in-plane shear (Mode
LaRC03-2)
Matrix failure in biaxial compression (Mode LaRC03-6)

MATERIAL MODELS | 665

 ZINOVIEV CRITERION
This criterion was developed from a maximum stress failure theory to a well-structured
set of noninteracting criteria to identify failure modes. The theory, in general, gives
reasonably good failure envelopes for unidirectional laminates and a good fit to the
experimental final failure envelopes for multidirectional laminates (Ref. 20). The
approach is one of the most used due to its simplicity. The failure criteria for different
failure modes are defined as follows.

The longitudinal failure criterion in tension is

 11
g lT    = --------- – 1 for  11  0
 ts1

The longitudinal failure criterion in compression is

 11
g lC    = ---------
- – 1 for  11  0
 cs1

The transverse failure criterion in tension is

 22
g tT    = --------- – 1 for  22  0
 ts2

The transverse failure criterion in compression is

 22
g tC    = ---------
- – 1 for  22  0
 cs2

The in-plane shear failure criterion is

 12
g s    = -------------
- –1
 ss12

The failure criterion for the composite is then computed by selecting the most critical
failure mode

g    = max  g lT g lC g tT g tC g s 

THE HASHIN–ROTEM CRITERION

This criterion is based on the first ply failure theory and designed for unidirectional
laminates. The Hashin–Rotem failure theory considers tensile and compressive stresses
while predicting the failure of fiber or matrix, however it does not distinguish whether

666 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

the failure occurs at the fiber-matrix interface or inside the matrix. This criterion
involves four failure modes associated with fiber failure and the matrix failure,
distinguishing between tension and compression.

The fiber failure criterion in tension is defined by

 11
g fT    = --------- – 1 for  11  0
 ts1

The fiber failure criterion in compression is defined by

 11
g fC    = ---------
- – 1 for  11  0
 cs1

The matrix failure criterion in tension is defined by

 22 2  12 2
g mT    =  --------- +  ------------- – 1 for  22  0
 ts2  ss12

The matrix failure criterion in compression is defined by

 22 2  12 2
g mC    =  ---------- +  ------------- – 1 for  22  0
 cs2  ss12

The failure criterion for the composite is then computed by selecting the most critical
failure mode

g    = max  g fT g fC g mT g mC 

THE HASHIN CRITERION

The Hashin failure theory is an extension of Hashin–Rotem failure theory, as it
includes six failure modes for fiber failure, matrix failure and interlaminar failure
(Ref. 19). Stress interactions are considered for the determination of the tensile fiber
failure mode, tensile matrix failure mode and compressive matrix failure mode.

The fiber failure criterion in tension is defined by

2 2 2
 11  12 +  13
g fT    = --------
2
- + ------------------------ – 1 for  11  0
2
 ts1  ss12

The fiber failure criterion in compression is defined by

MATERIAL MODELS | 667

 2
 11
g fC    = ---------
2
- – 1 for  11  0
 cs1

The matrix failure criterion in tension is defined by

2 2 2 2
  22 +  33    23 –  22  33    12 +  13 
g mT    = -------------------------------
2 2
- + ------------------------------ – 1 for  22 +   0
- + -------------------------------------
2 33
 ts2  ss23  ss12

The matrix failure criterion in compression is defined by

2 2 2 2 2
  cs2   22 +  33   22 +  33   23 –  22  33  12 +  13
g mC    =  ---------------- – 1 ------------------------ + -------------------------------
- + --------------------------------- + ------------------------
-–1
 4 ss23 2
  cs2 4 ss23
2 2
 ss23
2
 ss12

for  22 +  33  0

The interlaminar failure criterion in tension is defined by

2
 33
g iT    = ----------
2
– 1 for  33  0
 ts3

The interlaminar failure criterion in compression is defined by

2
 33
g iC    = ----------
2
- – 1 for  33  0
 cs3

The failure criterion for the composite is then computed by selecting the most critical
failure mode

g    = max  g fT g fC g mT g mC g iT g iC 

The plane stress version of Hashin criterion is obtained by setting 13 = 23 =33 = 0,
however, the interlaminar failure cannot be predicted.

PUCK CRITERION
The Puck criterion is based on 3-D phenomenological models, where the experimental
results are matched with theoretical formulation. Based on fracture mechanics and
experimental observation, three different failure criteria called as modes A, B and C for

668 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

matrix failure are considered. Mode A corresponds to tensile loading, while mode B
and mode C correspond to compressive and shear loading.

Figure 3-30: Interfiber failure (IFF) mode using Puck criterion.

The Puck criterion is mainly used for predicting strength of unidirectional laminate
and for predicting the initial strength of multidirectional laminates, for which the other
methods do not predict the failure correctly (Ref. 20). This criterion is also
recommended by World Wide Failure Exercise. It is distinguishing and treating
separately failure criteria the fiber failure (FF) and interfiber failure (IFF).

The fiber failure criterion in tension is

 f12
g fT     = --------   11 + ---------- m f  22 – 1 for  11  0
1
 ts1  E f1 

where Ef1 is the Young’s modulus of the fiber in the longitudinal direction, f12 is the
in-plane Poisson’s ratio of the fiber, and mf is the mean stress magnification factor.

The fiber failure criterion in compression is

 f12
g fC     = ---------   11 + ---------- m f  22 +  10 12  – 1 for  11  0
1 2
 cs1 E f1

The failure criterion for interfiber failure mode A is

 12  2 
 ------------  ts2 p tl 2   22  2  22 p tl 
g mA    = - ------------------ ----------- -----------------
  ss12 +  1 –  ss12    ts2 +  ss12 + ---------
11 – 1 for   0
- 22
 1D

MATERIAL MODELS | 669

 where ptl is the slope of the in-plane fracture envelope in tension, and 1D is the linear
degradation stress.

The failure criterion for interfiber failure mode B is

1 2 2  11
g mB    = -------------   12 +   22 p cl  +  22 p cl  + ---------
- –1
 ss12  1D

A
 22 R tt
for  22  0 and 0  --------
-  -------------
-
 12 c
 ss12

where pcl is the slope of the in-plane fracture envelope in compression, RAtt is the
fracture resistance against transverse shear loading, and css12 is the modified shear
strength.

The failure criterion for interfiber failure mode C is

 cs2    12 2  22 2  11
g mC    = ------------   ----------------------------------------- +  -----------  + ---------
- –1
–  22   2  1 + p ct  ss12  cs2  
1D

c
 12  ss12
for  22  0 and 0  --------
-  -------------
-
 22 R tt
A

where pct is the slope of the transverse fracture envelope in compression.

The failure criterion for the composite is then computed by selecting the most critical
failure mode

g    = max  g fT g fC g mA g mB g mC 

LARC-03 CRITERION
This criterion is used for accurate predicting the failure of unidirectional FRP laminates
with in-plane stress state. The criterion is composed of six phenomenological failure
modes describing matrix and fiber failure accurately without the use of curve-fitting
parameters (Ref. 21), and it assumes a fragile fracture for the matrix failure in
compression. This criterion implements the action plane concept according to the
Mohr–Coulomb theory. This failure theory considers failure modes based on the fiber
kinking due to misalignment and on the tensile matrix cracking associated with
interlaminar crack propagation.

The matrix failure criterion under transverse compression (LaRC03-1) is

670 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

  eff, t 2   eff, l  2
g mC    =  ------------- +  --------------
- – 1 for  22  0
  ss23   i ss12

where eff,t and eff,l are effective shear stresses in transverse and longitudinal
directions, respectively, andiss12 is longitudinal in situ shear strength. The effective
shear stresses are functions of the fracture plane angle which is found out by
maximizing the Mohr–Coulomb effective stresses.

The matrix failure criterion under transverse tension (LaRC03-2) is

  22    22  2   12  2
g mT    =  1 – r   ----------- - +  --------------- – 1 for  22  0
- + r  -----------
  i ts2   i ts2   i ss12

where its2 is in situ tensile strength, and r is a material constant based on fracture
toughness.

The fiber failure criterion under longitudinal compression (LaRC03-3) is

 11
g fT    = ---------- – 1 for  11  0
 ts1

The fiber failure criteria with matrix tension (LaRC03-4) is

2 2
  m 22   m 22   m 12 
g fCmT    =  1 – r   ------------
- + r  ------------ - – 1 for  m 22  0
- +  --------------
  i ts2    i ts2    i ss12

The fiber failure criteria with matrix compression (LaRC03-5) is

m m
 12 +  22  l m
g fCmC    = < -----------------------------------------
i
> – 1 for  22  0
 ss12

where mij are the ply stresses transformed in the misalignment coordinate frame, and
l is a nondimensional parameter based on the failure strength and fracture plane angle
under uniaxial transverse compression.

The matrix failure criterion under biaxial compression (LaRC03-6) is

2 2
  m eff, t   m eff, l
g mB    =  ----------------- +  ----------------
- – 1 for  11  0 and  22  0
  ss23    i ss12 

MATERIAL MODELS | 671

 where the effective shear stresses in transverse and longitudinal directions, meff,t and
meff,l, are calculated from stresses in the misalignment coordinate frame.

The failure criterion for the composite is then computed by selecting the most critical
failure mode

g    = max  g mC g mT g fT g fCmT g fCmC g mB 

672 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Formulation of the Equilibrium
Equations
• Equation Implementation

Equation Implementation
The equilibrium equations for solid mechanics are given by Newton’s second law. It is
usually written using a spatial formulation in terms of the Cauchy stress tensor :

2
 u
 2
=  x + f V
t

Here fV is a body force per unit deformed volume, and  is the current mass density.
For the material frame formulation used in COMSOL Multiphysics, it is more
appropriate to use a Lagrangian version if the equation:

2
 u T
0 2
= X P + F V
t

Now that the first Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor, P, is used. FV is a body force with
components in the current configuration but given with respect to the undeformed
volume, and 0 is the initial mass density. Note the gradient operators are not the same:
in the first case the gradient is taken with respect to the spatial coordinates, and in the
second case with respect to the material coordinates. Using the more common second
Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor, S, the same equation reads

2
 u
0 2
= X FS  + F V (3-148)
t

where F is the deformation gradient. The COMSOL Multiphysics implementation of

the equations in the Solid Mechanics interface is however not based on the equation
of motion directly, but rather on the principle of virtual work.

The principle of virtual work states that the sum of the internal virtual work and the
external virtual work are equal. The internal virtual work is the work done by the
current stress state on a kinematically admissible variation in strains. The external

FORMULATION OF THE EQUILIBRIUM EQUATIONS | 673

 virtual work is the work done by all forces (acting on domains, boundaries, edges, or
points) when multiplied with the variation in displacements corresponding to the
variation in strains. The virtual displacements u are in the finite element formulation
represented by the test() operator in COMSOL Multiphysics. For a stationary case,
the virtual work W is written as

W = V  –  + u  FV dv +

  u  FS  ds +   u  FL  dl +   u  Fp  
S L p

The strains are computed from the gradients of the displacements, and the stresses are
given by the constitutive relation.

In a dynamic analysis, the inertial forces are included in the volume forces, according
to d’Alembert’s principle.

W =   –  + u  FV – u  utt dv +

V (3-149)

  u  FS  ds +   u  FL  dl +   u  Fp 
S L p

Since the equations are formulated on the material frame, all integrals are taken over
the undeformed geometry. The stress and strain contributions must be interpreted
differently depending on whether the formulation is geometrically nonlinear or not.

• If the study step is geometrically linear, the strain  is the engineering strain. The
stress  could in principle be any of the stress measures, as they all converge to the
same engineering stress in this case.
• If the study step is geometrically nonlinear, the variation of strain  is taken from
the displacement gradient, and the stress conjugate  is the first Piola–Kirchhoff
stress. The integration V
dv is done in the undeformed configuration.
The Solid Mechanics interface supports Stationary (static), Eigenfrequency, Time
Dependent (transient), Frequency Domain, and Modal solver study types as well as
linear buckling.

674 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Study Types
In this section:

• Frequency-Domain Studies
• Eigenfrequency Studies
• Random Vibration Theory
• Response Spectrum Analysis Theory
• Linear Buckling

Frequency-Domain Studies
In the frequency domain, the frequency response is studied when applying harmonic
loads. Harmonic loads are specified using two components:

• The amplitude value in direction m, Fm

• The corresponding phase,  m

To derive the equations for the linear response from harmonic excitation loads

F m freq = F m  f  cos  t +  m 

F x freq
F freq = F y freq
F z freq

Assume a harmonic response with the same angular frequency as the excitation load

u = u amp cos  t +  u 

u
u= v
w

The relationship can also be described using complex notation with

 = Re  u˜ e  where u˜ = u amp e u
j u jt jt j
u = Re  u amp e e

STUDY TYPES | 675

 ˜ e jt 
u = Re  u

and

 = Re  F˜m e 
j m jt jt
F m freq = Re  F m   e e

F˜x
˜
F = F˜
y

F˜z

The primary results, such as displacements, velocities, accelerations, and stress and
strain components are all complex valued.

CYCLE MAXIMUM
Quantities that are nonlinear with respect to the degrees of freedom will in general not
have a harmonic variation. In some cases, it is however possible to derive maximum
values for a cycle. The norm of a vector is defined as

 vj  t 
2
v t =
j

The components of the vector can have different phases, so that the temporal variation
is

v j  t  = a j cos  t +  j 

where aj is the amplitude, and j is the phase angle. Then,

2
aj
  
2 2 2
vj  t  = a j  cos  t +  j   = -------  1 + cos  2t + 2 j  
2
j j j

The square of the norm is thus a harmonic function with double the excitation
frequency. The harmonic term can, using standard trigonometric expressions be
rewritten as

1 1
 aj
2
--- cos  2t + 2 j  = --- a cos  2t +  
2 2
j

where

676 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

   aj
2 2
a = a k cos  2 j – 2 k 
j k

The maximum value of the vector norm during the cycle is thus

1   1  
 aj  aj   aj
2 2 2 2
v  t  max = ---  + a = ---  + a k cos  2 j – 2 k 
2  2 
j j j k

The expressions above can be generalized to any quadratic form of the type

  cjk vj  t vk  t 
j k

In particular, the von Mises equivalent stress is of this form, with

x
y
z
v =
 xy
 xz
 yz

2 –1 –1 0 0 0
–1 2 –1 0 0 0
1
c = --- – 1 –1 2 0 0 0
2 0 0 0 6 0 0
0 0 0 0 6 0
0 0 0 0 0 6

Using the same development as above,

  cjk vj  t vk  t  =   cjk aj ak cos  t + j  cos  t + k  =

j k j k
c jk a j a k
 -  cos   j –  k  + cos  2t +  j +  k  
------------------
2
j k

STUDY TYPES | 677

 This expression can be split into a constant (period average) term, and a periodic term,
so that

1
  cjk vj  t vk  t  = ---  b + a cos  2t +   
2
j k

where

b =   cjk aj ak cos  j – k 
j k

and

a =     cjk clm aj ak al am cos  j + k – l – m 

j k l m

The maximum value of the norm is thus

1
---  b + a  =
2

  cjk aj ak cos  j – k  +     cjk clm aj ak al am cos  j + k – l – m 

j k j k l m

Since, for the von Mises stress, the matrix c is symmetric and have many zero elements,
the number of terms in the sums that actually contribute are far less than the nominal
number.

When computing the cycle maximum of the von Mises stress, there is an alternative,
simpler approach. The von Mises stress can be written as

3
 vM = --- s:s
2

where s is the deviatoric stress defined as

1
s =  – --- trace( I
3

Note that on this form, there are no cross product between different components of
the tensor. By defining

678 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 3
--- s
2 xx
3
--- s
2 yy
v = 3
--- s
2 zz
3s xy
3s xz
3s yz

the expression for the maximum of a vector norm can be used directly to compute the
maximum von Mises stress.

Eigenfrequency Studies
The eigenfrequency equations are derived by assuming a harmonic displacement field,
similar as for the frequency response formulation. The difference is that this study type
uses a new variable j explicitly expressed in the eigenvalue j  The
eigenfrequency f is then derived from j as


f = – ---------
2j

Damped eigenfrequencies can also be studied, so  is not necessarily a purely imaginary

number. Any damping included in the problem will automatically cause the
eigenfrequencies to become complex valued.

In addition to the eigenfrequency, the quality factor, Q, and decay factor, for the
model can be examined:

Im   
Q = -------------------
2Re   

 = Re   

MODAL PARTICIPATION FACTORS

It is common to present modal participation factors in terms of the discretized system
of equations, that is on matrix form. For a discretized system, the modal mass for the
i-th mode can be defined as:

STUDY TYPES | 679

  i Mnm i
n m
mi =
n m

where Mnm is the mass matrix, and  i is the eigenmode in terms of a vector of degrees
of freedom. The modal participation factors are defined as

1
 i Mnm j
n m
 ij = -------
mi
n m
m
where j represent the unit rigid-body modes for translation and rotation.

The effective mass in direction j for mode i can then be computed as

eff 2
m ij = m i  ij

For physics interfaces with only displacements as dependent variables (for example
Solid Mechanics), each eigenmode is given by the solution vector u = u v w . The
rigid body modes  can be represented as columns of the following matrix:

 TX  TY  TZ  RX  RY  RZ

L 0 0 0 Z – Z0 – Y – Y0 
0 L 0 – Z – Z0  0 X – X0
0 0 L Y – Y0 – X – X0  0

where L represents a unit length.

The translational and rotational participation factors can be computed as, respectively:

L
 T =  TX  TY  TZ = -------- u dm
mF 
and

1

 R =  RX  RY  RZ = --------  r – r 0   u dm
mF

where the normalization factor is computed as

 u
T
mF =  u  dm

680 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The integration involves the entire selection of the corresponding physics interface.
The definition of dm in the above formulas depends on the dimensions. For example,
one has dm  dV for solid domains in 3D. Contributions to the structural mass come
not only from the mass density of the domains, but also from features like Rigid
Connector, Added Mass, Point Mass, and so on. Thus, integrations are in general
performed over all selected domains, boundaries, and edges. Contributions from
points are also added.

If the mass matrix normalization was selected when computing the eigenmodes, then
mF  1.

Note that the rotational participation factor computed with respect to a certain
reference point r0 can be expressed in terms of the participation factors computed with
respect to the origin as:

R  r0  = R  0  + T  r0

For structural elements (and features) that also use rotational degrees of freedom as
dependent variables, there is also a direct contribution from these degrees of freedom.
In this case, the corresponding expressions are:

1

 R = --------  r  u + J  dm
mF

with

 u
T T
mF =  u +  J  dm

where matrix J presents the moment of inertia, and  =  X  Y  Z are rotation

angles with respect to the corresponding axes. The angles can be computed at given
local position as certain functions of the actual rotational degrees of freedom which can
be different for different structural element types.

An alternative definition of the participation factors is:

norm mF
 =  ------------
2
ML

where M denotes a unit mass. The advantage of such definition is independence of the
normalization type selected when computing the eigenmodes.

The effective modal mass for X-translation and rotation are defined, respectively, as

STUDY TYPES | 681

 eff mF 2 norm 2 eff 2
m TX = -------2-  TX = M   TX  and m RX = m FX  R
L

Similar definitions are used for other components.

Only structural mechanics physics interfaces contribute to the mass and

participation factor variables as described in this section. In a multiphysics
context, there can be also other contributions to the total mass matrix.
This would for example be the case when coupling acoustics and
structural mechanics. Such contributions are not taken into account.

Random Vibration Theory

Random vibration analysis is applicable in a situation where the loading has a random
variation which can be statistically described by its power spectral density (PSD). The
duration of the loading must be such that the situation can be considered as a steady
state. The key assumptions are:

• The system is linear and can be represented by a superposition of a limited number

if eigenmodes.
• The process is ergodic, meaning that its statistical properties do not change over
time.

STATISTICS PRELIMINARIES
Assume a random process x(t). In the following, T denotes a time span which is ‘long’
compared to any frequencies of interest.

The meaning of a ‘long’ time T in this context is that any vibration mode
will experience a large number of cycles. If the lowest frequency of
interest is fl, then its corresponding period is Tl = 1/fl. It is then
reasonable to require that T > kTl, where k is at least 1000, but probably
more.

The mean value is defined using the expectancy value operator E[] as

T
1

E  x  = lim ---- x  t  dt = m
T  T
0

682 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

In vibration problems most quantities have zero mean values. Nonlinear quantities,
like an equivalent stress, will however have nonzero mean values. Also, if the total
effect of a static preload and the vibration is considered, the total result will in general
have a nonzero mean value.

The variance (the square of the standard deviation) is defined as

2 2 2
Ex – m  = Ex  – m

The standard deviation is in this context usually called the root mean square (RMS)
value of the signal, xrms.

A representation of the “degree of similarity over time” of a signal is given by the

autocorrelation function

T
1

R x    = E  x  t x  t +    = lim ---- x  t x  t +   dt
T  T
0

It can be seen from the definition that the autocorrelation is an even function of the
time difference . An interpretation of the autocorrelation is that it compares how
similar the signal is to itself after a certain time has elapsed.

Also, it can be seen from the definitions above that

2
x rms = R x  0 

For two different processes x(t) and y(t), the cross-correlation is similarly defined as

T
1

R xy    = E  x  t y  t +    = lim ---- x  t y  t +   dt
T  T
0

The power spectral density (PSD) of a signal x is defined through the Fourier
transform (denoted by F[]) of the autocorrelation,

 Rx   e
– 2i f
G x  f  = 2F  R x     = 2 d
–

The term PSD comes from the fact that the physical dimension of Gx is
(input signal)2 / frequency. Thus, Gx(f)f represents the power of the signal
contained in the small frequency interval f.

STUDY TYPES | 683

 The inverse relation is


1 –1 1
 Gx  f e
2if
R x    = --- F  G x  f   = --- df
2 2
–

Since the autocorrelation is a real-valued and even function of , Gx is also real-valued.

Because of this property, Gx can also be written as


G x  f  = 4 R x    cos  2f  d
0

The RMS value can be derived from the PSD by integrating the PSD over all
frequencies.

 
1
 Gx  f  df =  Gx  f  df
2
x rms = R x  0  = ---
2
– 0

It is possible to compute the mean square of x (the power) for only a certain frequency
range

f2

 G x  f  df
2
E  x  (f 1,f 2) =
f1

This can be interpreted as the energy content of the signal between the two
frequencies.

In the same way as for the PSD, the cross spectral density for two signals is defined as

G xy  f  = 2F  R xy    

The cross spectral density is in general a complex-valued function, and Gyx is the
complex conjugate of Gxy.

It is often more convenient to work with the angular frequency  = 2f, and define
the PSD as

1
S x    = ------ G x  f 
2

so that

684 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 
2

S x = --- R x    cos    d

0

and

 Sx    d
2
x rms =
0

There are some other scalar statistical properties that can be used to characterize the
properties of the spectrum. Define the k:th moment of the spectrum as

f
k
mk = G  f  df
0

The moments can be used to compute the following properties:

• RMS

x rms = m0

• Number of (upward) zero crossings per unit time, also called apparent frequency

m2
n0 = --------
m0

• Number of peaks per unit time

m4
np = --------
m2

• Irregularity factor
n0
 = ------
np

TRANSFER FUNCTION
For a linear system, the response in the frequency domain for a single variable u to the
input x can be written

u    = H   x   

STUDY TYPES | 685

 where H is the complex-valued transfer function. It can then be shown that the
corresponding spectral densities have the relation

2 *
S u    = H ux    S x    = H ux   H ux   S x   

Here, the superscript ‘*’ denotes complex conjugate. When generalizing to matrices,
it denotes the Hermitian conjugate (that is transpose and conjugation).

This type of relation is true not only for the degrees of freedom, but for any quantity
that is linearly related to the input. This includes components of stress and engineering
strain, but not quantities as equivalent or principal stresses.

When there are multiple input signals (loads), the situation is more complicated. If the
inputs are uncorrelated (all cross correlations between them are zero), then the
resulting output spectrum can be obtained as a pure superposition of the input spectra
weighted by the transfer functions

 Hux   
2
Su = k
S xk
k

When the input signals are correlated, the loading must be described by a complete
matrix of cross correlation spectra, where the diagonal consists of the individual PSD.
Placing the transfer functions from all inputs (N) to all outputs (M) into a rectangular
matrix H of size MxN, the operation of computing the output spectral densities and
cross correlation spectra can formally be written as

*
S U = H   S X   H   

686 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

SX is a square matrix having the size of number of inputs, N, while the size of the
square matrix SU is the number of outputs, M.

In practice, large sets of output cross-correlation data are uncommon.

The most common cases are:

• Only the diagonal of SU is important. It represents the response of a

certain quantity without information about correlation to other
quantities. If you are designing a structure, you are interested in the
size of the stress, not its covariation with the stress somewhere else.
• A small set of full correlations are sought. This is the case where the
current analysis provides input for another analysis, so that a full
spectral input is needed for a number of attachment points.

MODAL REPRESENTATION
The random vibration analysis is implemented based on a mode superposition,
encapsulated in a reduced-order model. This approach imposes some limitations:

• The material data cannot be frequency dependent.

• There are no inhomogeneous Dirichlet conditions. The common case when there
is a fully correlated base excitation can however be handled by shifting the base
acceleration into an equivalent inertial load. The Base Excitation feature is used for
this.

In the modal representation, the assumption that the displacements can be described as

u t =  yk qk  t  = Yq  t 
k

where the vector yk contains eigenmode k, and the mode matrix Y has the eigenmodes
yk as columns. The modal coordinates (amplitudes of each mode) are collected in the
vector q.

Using the common notation that M is the mass matrix, C is the damping matrix and
K is the stiffness matrix, the full set equations of motion is

ꞏꞏ ꞏ
Mu + Cu + Ku = L

Projecting to the modal base, the corresponding equations are

STUDY TYPES | 687

 ꞏꞏ ꞏ
mq + cq + kq = l

Lowercase matrices are used to indicate a quantity in the modal space.

The projections for the matrices are

T
m = Y MY
T
c = Y CY
T
k = Y KY
T
l=Y L

In frequency domain, any quantity a can be written using a complex notation as

a = aˆ e
it

where â is a complex-valued amplitude. With an assumption about harmonic

excitation,

 –  m + ic + k qˆ = lˆ
2

In terms of a transfer function, this can be written as

qˆ = h   l̂

where

2 –1
h    =  –  m + ic + k 

If the applied load is given in terms of its cross-correlation spectra, SL(), then it can
be shown that the corresponding cross correlation for the modal loads, Sl(), is
obtained by a similar projection into modal space,

T
s l    = Y S L   Y

Since the number of modes used typically is rather small, the projected
cross-correlation matrix is of a manageable size.

It is now possible to compute the cross-correlation spectrum for the modal degrees of
freedom as

*
s q    = h   s l   h   

688 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The cross-correlation spectrum in the physical space is

T
S U    = Ys q   Y

The spectral distribution of all quantities linearly related to the degrees of freedom can
be computed from the modal cross-correlation. Assume that two quantities y(t) and
z(t) are linear functions of the degrees of freedom u, so that

T
y t = a ut
T
zt  = b ut

Then, by using the definitions above and the linearity of the Fourier transform,

1 1 T T T T
S yz    = --- F  R xy     = --- F  a R u u   b  = a S U   b = a Ys q   Y b
 

Response Spectrum Analysis Theory

Response spectrum analysis is used for computing an approximation of the structural
response to transient, nondeterministic events, such as earthquakes or shocks. The idea
is that the event is characterized by the peak response that it would give a single degree
of freedom (SDOF) oscillator having a certain natural frequency and damping ratio.
This response value is provided as a function of the natural frequency of the oscillator.
The actual load history of the event is not known explicitly.

This theory section contains:

• Single Degree of Freedom System

• Definition of a Response Spectrum
• Solution Using Response Spectrum

STUDY TYPES | 689

 • Mode Summation
- Partitioning into Periodic and Rigid Modes
- The Gupta Method
- The Lindley–Yow Method
- Combining Periodic and Rigid Modes
- Summing the Periodic Modes
- SRSS Method
- Grouping Method
- Ten Percent Method
- Double Sum Method
- Der Kiureghian Correlation Coefficient (CQC)
- Absolute Value Sum
- Summing the Rigid Modes
- Rigid Mode Combination Method A
- Rigid Mode Combination Method B
- Missing Mass Correction
- The Static ZPA Method
• Summation Over Spatial Directions
- SRSS Method
- 100-40-40 Method (Percent Method)
- CQC3 Method
- SRSS3 Method

SINGLE DEGREE OF FREEDOM SYSTEM

Response spectrum analysis is based on the response of a set of single degree of
freedom (SDOF) systems.

Consider a mass-spring-damper system, attached to a moving base. The base

movement is b(t).

690 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The equation of motion for the mass can, if there are no external loads, be written as

ꞏꞏ ꞏ ꞏ
mu + c  u – b  + k  u – b  = 0

Dividing by the mass, and using customary notation,

ꞏꞏ ꞏ 2 ꞏ 2
u + 2 0 u +  0 u = 2 0 b +  0 b

Here, the undamped natural (angular) frequency is

k-
0 = ----
m

and the damping ratio is

c
 = ----------------
2 km

It can be seen that the support movement acts as a forcing term, and that the solution
depends only on two parameters 0and , and not on the individual values of m, c,
and k.

Instead of using the absolute displacement as DOF, one can use the relative
displacement between the mass and the base,

ur = u – b

The equation of motion can then be stated as

ꞏꞏ ꞏ 2 ꞏꞏ
u r + 2 0 u r +  0 u r = – b (3-150)

In practice, such approach means a frame transformation, where the support

movement appears as a gravity-like load.

DEFINITION OF A RESPONSE SPECTRUM

For given values of 0, , and b(t), it is a trivial task to solve Equation 3-150 for the
whole duration of the event plus some extra time to allow for the response to reach a
possible maximum. The acceleration, velocity, and displacement response spectra are
defined as

STUDY TYPES | 691

 ꞏꞏ
S a   0  b  t   = max u  t  0  
ꞏ
S v   0  b  t   = max u  t  0  
S d   0  b  t   = max u  t  0  

These are absolute spectra. One can do a similar definition of the relative spectra by
using instead the relative displacement ur. It is clear from the definition that there is
not a one-to-one relation between the response spectrum and the base acceleration
history. The response spectrum gives information about the peak value, but not about
when it occurs.

The velocity and acceleration response spectra often are approximated by

Sv  0 Sd
2
Sa  0 Sd

Such spectra are called the pseudovelocity spectrum and the pseudoacceleration
spectrum, respectively. The expressions contain an assumption about harmonic
motion, so that the response is dominated by the homogeneous solution to the
equation of motion.

SOLUTION USING RESPONSE SPECTRUM

Assume that one has a structure discretized by FEM, so that the equations of motion
on matrix form are

ꞏꞏ ꞏ
Mu + Cu + Ku = f  t  (3-151)

Now, let the structure be connected to a common “ground” at a number of points.

These points then have a base motion given by

bx  t 
by  t 
bz  t 

692 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Let b(t) be a vector that has the same size as the displacement vector u (the total
number of DOF), but it contains only three different values: bx(t) in all x-translation
DOFs, by(t) in all y-translation DOF, and bz(t) in all z-translation DOF. The relative
displacement is now ur  u  b. With no external load, Equation 3-151 can be written
as

ꞏꞏ ꞏꞏ ꞏ
M  u r + b  + Cu r + Ku r = 0

or

ꞏꞏ ꞏ ꞏꞏ
Mu r + Cu r + Ku r = – Mb

Then, the fact that a rigid body motion does not give any elastic or viscous forces has
been used, so that

Kb = 0
ꞏ
Cb = 0

By solving the undamped eigenvalue problem

2
 K –  M  = 0

with the grounded nodes being fixed, a set of eigenmodes that can represent the
relative displacements is obtained. Since the mode displacements are zero at the
support points, it is however clear that the modes cannot represent the absolute
displacements, for which the support points are moving.

By standard operations for mode superposition (and assuming mass matrix

normalization and a diagonalizable damping matrix) the decoupled modal equations
are

STUDY TYPES | 693

 ꞏꞏ ꞏ 2 T ꞏꞏ
q j + 2 0 q j +  0 q j = –  j Mb (3-152)

The equation is similar to the standard SDOF system in Equation 3-150.

The assumption about mass matrix normalization is not essential, but

some expressions are simplified. In COMSOL Multiphysics, the
computed modal participation factors are consistent with the chosen mass
matrix normalization. See also Modal Participation Factors.

In Equation 3-152, qj is the modal coordinate for mode j, so that the relative
displacement can be written as a superposition of the eigenmodes  j .

ur =  j qj = q
j

The support motion can be written as

b  t  = b x  t 1 x + b y  t 1 y + b z  t 1 z (3-153)

The notation 1x mean a vector that has the value 1 in all DOF representing
x-translation, and the value 0 in all other DOF. Inserting Equation 3-153 in
Equation 3-152 gives

ꞏꞏ ꞏ 2 ꞏꞏ ꞏꞏ ꞏꞏ
q j + 2 0 q j +  0 q j = –  xj b x  t  –  yj b y  t  –  zj b z  t 

The multipliers kj are the modal participation factors defined as

T
 kj =  j M1 k

Thus, the maximum amplitude of mode j, when loaded by a base motion described by
a response spectrum in direction k, is

qˆ kj = S d   j  j b k  t   kj = S d,k  kj

or, using the pseudoacceleration spectrum

S a   j  j b k  t   kj S a,k  kj
qˆ kj = -------------------------------------------------
2
- = -------------------
2
-
j j

In practice, several modes will have natural frequencies in the frequency range covered
by the Design Response Spectrum. This means that a superposition is needed. There

694 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

are several rules for how this superposition can be done, as will be described in detail
below.

MODE SUMMATION
The summation rules are nonlinear. Thus, all result quantities must be summed based
on its own modal response. For example, stress components are computed using the
modal stresses and cannot be recovered from the response spectrum superposition of
displacements.

The general approach is to consider the excitation in three directions, I, (I = 1,2,3)

separately. First all modal responses are summed for each direction, and then the results
for the three directions are summed. Some methods, however, do both combinations
in one sweep.

In a high frequency mode, the mass of the SDOF oscillator will mainly be translated
in phase with the support. Such modes constitute the rigid modes. Their responses are
synchronous with each other (and with the base motion). This means that for rigid
modes, a pure summation should be used, since they are fully correlated.

Modes with a significant dynamic response constitute the periodic modes. The
maximum value for such modes will be more or less randomly distributed in time since
their periods differ. For this reason, the periodic part of the response requires more
sophisticated summation techniques. A plain summation of the maximum values will
in general significantly overestimate the true response.

Modes which are in a transition region will partially contribute to the periodic modes,
and partially to the rigid ones.

In addition, it is sometimes necessary to add some static load cases, containing a

missing mass correction. The reason is that when only a limited set of eigenmodes is
used in the superposition, those modes do not represent the total mass of the structure.

In the following, RI denotes any result quantity caused by excitation in direction I. RI

can be for example be displacement, velocity, acceleration, strain component, stress
component, equivalent stress, or a beam section force. The periodic part of RI is
denoted RpI, and the rigid part is denoted RrI. Similarly, RpI,j and RrI,j denote the
results from an individual eigenmode j.

Not all analyses require a separation into periodic and rigid modes. In such case, all
modes are treated as periodic.

STUDY TYPES | 695

 Partitioning into Periodic and Rigid Modes

Figure 3-31: A schematic tripartite plot of a design response spectrum. Both axes have
logarithmic scales.

There are two different methods in use, by which the partitioning can be done. In
either case, for mode j,

R rI,j =  j R I j
2
R pI,j = 1 –  j R I j

This definition has the property that

2 2 2
R I,j = R pI j + R rI j

The difference between the two methods lies in how the coefficients j are
determined. For low frequencies, it should approach the value 0 (fully periodic
modes). And for high frequencies, the value is 1 (fully correlated rigid modes).

The Gupta Method

In the Gupta method, j is a linear function of the logarithm of the natural frequency.

696 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 j = 0 fj  f1
log  f j  f 1 
 j = --------------------------- f1  fj  f2
log  f 2  f 1 
j = 1 fj  f2

where f1 and f2 are two key frequencies. Thus, for eigenfrequencies below f1, the
modes are considered as purely periodic, and above f2 as purely rigid. In the original
Gupta method, the lower key frequency is given by

S a,max
f 1 = -----------------------
2S v,max

where Sa,max and Sv,max are the maximum values of the acceleration and velocity
spectra, respectively. In the idealized spectrum shown in Figure 3-31, this exactly
matches the point D.

The second key frequency should be chosen so that the modes above this frequency
behave as rigid modes. The frequency can be taken as the one where response spectra
for different damping ratios converge to each other.

The Lindley–Yow Method

In the Lindley–Yow method, the coefficient j depends directly on the response
spectrum values, and not only on the frequency. As a consequence, it is possible that a
certain mode can be considered as having a different degree of rigidness for different
excitation directions

2 2
S a,I  f j  – S ZPA,I
R pI,j = ------------------------------------------------ R I,j
S a,I  f j 

The so-called zero period acceleration (ZPA) is the maximum ground acceleration
during the event

ꞏꞏ
S ZPA,I = max t b I  t 

This is the high frequency asymptotic value of the absolute acceleration (or
pseudoacceleration). It also corresponds to the F-G part of the spectrum in
Figure 3-31.

Thus,

STUDY TYPES | 697

 S ZPA,I
 j,I = -------------------
S a,I  f j 

The value of j must be in the range from 0 to 1, and it must increase with frequency.
For this reason, NRC RG 1.92 requires that j must be set to zero for any eigenmodes
below point C in Figure 3-31. For a general spectrum, this is implemented as a strict
requirement that j has a monotonous decrease with decreasing frequency from fZPA.
As soon as an increase in j is found, the value is set to zero for all lower frequencies.

Combining Periodic and Rigid Modes

Once the periodic and rigid responses have been summed up separately, they are
combined as

2 2
R I = R pI + R rI

Summing the Periodic Modes

All summation rules for periodic modes except Absolute Value Sum can be
summarized by the following expression:

N N

  Cij RpI,i RpI,j

2
R pI =
i = 1j = 1

Here, RpI is the total periodic response of some result quantity R with respect to
excitation in direction I (I=1,2,3). RpI,j is the result from an individual eigenmode j,
and N modes are used in the summation. The interaction between the modes is
determined by the coefficient Cij ( 0  C ij  1 ). The different evaluation methods vary
only in the definition of Cij.

Since Cij is symmetric and Cij = 1 when i = j, it is more efficient to use the expression

N N N

  
2 2
R pI = R pI,i +2 C ij R pI,i R pI,j
i=1 i = 1j = i + 1

The result quantity R is computed using the ordinary definitions of how a variable is
obtained from the DOF fields. This can be expressed as R = g(u). The operator g is
however applied to the mode shape, multiplied by a scalar (spectrum value times
participation factor)

R I j = g  S d,I  Ij  j 

698 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Next, the different evaluation methods are presented.

SRSS Method
In the SRSS method, it is assumed that the modes are statistically independent, so that

C ij = 1 i=j
C ij = 0 ij

Grouping Method
The modes are grouped according to the following rule:

1 Start a new group m, by inserting the lowest, not yet grouped eigenmode k.
2 Step up through the eigenfrequencies from k.
3 As long as f i  1.1f k , add mode i to the group.
4 When 3 is not fulfilled any longer, go back to 1.

There are now a number of groups (where some could contain just a single
eigenmode), and the coupling coefficient are defined as

C ij = sgn  R pI,i R pI,j  when the modes are in the same group
C ij = 0 when the modes are not in the same group

The use of the sign function indicates that the term is always added with a positive sign,
that is a cross term can never decrease the total sum. There is also an option to allow
signed contributions, so that

C ij = 1 when the modes are in the same group

C ij = 0 when the modes are not in the same group

Ten Percent Method

The ten percent method is similar to the grouping method, and has the following
definition:

C ij = sgn  R pI,i R pI,j  f i  1.1f j

C ij = 0 else

As can be seen, the ten percent method will always give a higher value than the
grouping method, since all pairs that are inside a group will also fulfill the criterion for

STUDY TYPES | 699

 including the cross term. As in the previous method, there is also an option to use
summation with signs, in which case

C ij = 1 f i  1.1f j
C ij = 0 else

Double Sum Method

In the double sum method, the correlation between two modes depends on three
factors:

• The frequency spacing between the two modes

• The damping
• The duration of the event

Note that there exist two distinct versions of this method. In NRC Regulatory Guide
1.92 revision 1, the mode correlation coefficient is given by

f i' – f j' 2 –1
C ij = sgn  R pI,i R pI,j  1 +  --------------------------
 i'f i +  j'f j

whereas in revision 2 and later version of the same Regulatory Guide the expression is

f i' – f j' 2 –1
C ij = 1 +  --------------------------
 i'f i +  j'f j

The latter expression should be considered as more correct and in line with the original
theory.

The modified frequency, f i' , is defined as

2
f i' = f i 1 –  i

where i is the modal damping. In the implementation in COMSOL Multiphysics, all

modes are assumed to have the same damping.

The modified damping,  i , is defined as

1
 i' =  i + ------------
t d f i

where td is a separate input, called the time of duration. The value of  i differs between
modes, even though the damping is constant.

700 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Der Kiureghian Correlation Coefficient (CQC)
This method, which is often called complete quadratic combination (CQC), is similar
to the previous double sum method. The general expression contains modal damping
values. Given that a single damping value is used here, the mode correlation expression
can be simplified to

2
8 f i f j  f i + f j f i f j
C ij = --------------------------------------------------------------------
- (3-154)
2 2 2 2 2
 f i – f j  + 4 f i f j  f i + f j 

Absolute Value Sum

This is the most conservative method, where the peak responses for all modes are
summed

R pI =  R pI,i
i=1

This would happen only if all modes reached their peaks simultaneously.

Summing the Rigid Modes

There are two possible combination methods for summing the rigid modes. The
method is chosen implicitly, depending on other settings.

Rigid Mode Combination Method A

This is the more common method. The rigid modes are summed algebraically as

R rI =  RrI,i + Rmm I
i=1

where Rmm,I is the term for the missing mass correction, if used.

Rigid Mode Combination Method B

This method is only used when the Lindley–Yow method is used together with the
Static ZPA missing mass correction. In this case, the whole rigid mode contribution
comes from the static load case, so that

R rI = R StaticZPA I

Missing Mass Correction

In general, a mode superposition using a limited number of modes will miss some
mass. With the assumption that the higher order modes do not have any dynamic

STUDY TYPES | 701

 amplification, it is possible to device a correction by solving some extra static load
cases, containing the acceleration excitation acting on the 'lost' mass. So-called static
correction can be used for mode superposition in general. For the case of response
spectrum analysis, the expressions are somewhat simplified.

In terms of the assembled finite element equations, the static correction load fc can be
written as

fc = f –  rk  Mk 
k

Here, f is the original load vector, M is the mass matrix, and rk are the modal loads,
given by the projection of the load vector on the eigenmodes  ,

T
rk = k f

In the base excitation context when response spectrum analysis is used,

ꞏꞏ
f I = – Mb I  t 1 I

so the modal load is

ꞏꞏ
r k I = –  Ik b I  t 

Thus, the missing mass load is

ꞏꞏ ꞏꞏ
f c I = – Mb I 1 I +  Ik bI  Mk 
k

For the rigid body modes, the maximum ground acceleration during the event is equal
to the ZPA. The static load is thus

  (3-155)
f c I = S ZPA M  – 1 I +
  Ik k
k

The extra displacement correcting for the missing mass is then given by the standard
stationary problem

Ku rc I = f c I

To actually compute the load in Equation 3-155, the participation factors from a
corresponding eigenfrequency study step are needed. The structure of the load is

702 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

similar to that of a gravity load, but with the acceleration of gravity replaced by the
space-dependent field

 Ik k – 1I (3-156)
k

The load is implemented by using Gravity nodes in the Structural Mechanics interface.
The sum of the products between participation factors and mode shapes is performed
in a Combined Solutions study step.

The Static ZPA Method

In this method, there is no need to deduce the actual missing mass. It can only be used
together with the Lindley–Yow method. According to the Lindley–Yow method, all
rigid modes have acceleration SZPA. This acceleration is given to the whole structure.
The static load cases are thus just pure gravity loads, but scaled by SZPA instead of the
acceleration of gravity.

SUMMATION OVER SPATIAL DIRECTIONS

The three orthogonal directions in which the design response spectrum is applied
cannot, in general, be chosen arbitrarily. The structure may be more susceptible to
excitation in a certain direction.

For earthquakes, it is usually assumed that the excitations in the three orthogonal
directions are statistically independent. In most cases, there is no reason to assume that
the excitations in the two horizontal directions have different spectral properties.
Thus, a single design response spectrum is used in the two horizontal directions, and
a different one is used in the third vertical (Z) direction.

Often, it is reasonable to assume that the excitations in the two horizontal directions
have different amplitudes, even though they share the same spectral properties. The
spectrum in the local Y direction is then a scaled version of the spectrum in the local
X direction.

S Y = S X 01

The X direction is not a property of the geographical location, but should be chosen
as the one giving the worst case for a certain structure. The loading direction which
causes the highest response may however not be the same for different result
quantities, or for different locations in the structure. For some structures, there is an

STUDY TYPES | 703

 obvious “weak” direction which can then be chosen as X direction. More often, this is
not the case. There are then three possible approaches:

• Use the same spectrum in both horizontal directions — that is,  = 1. This will be a
conservative approach.
• Run a number of separate analyses where the X direction is rotated to different
orientations. If 15 degrees can be considered as a small enough rotation increment,
then seven analyses are needed.
• Use a combination rule (CQC3), which takes the possible rotation into account.

SRSS Method
In the SRSS (square root of sum of squares) method, the total resultant is computed as

 RI
2
R =
I=1

This expression contains an assumption of a statistical independence between the peak

responses in three directions.

100-40-40 Method (Percent Method)

In this method, the contribution from the worst direction is taken at full value, whereas
the two other contributions are reduced. There are two variants in commonly in use,
the 40% (100-40-40) method and the 30% (100-30-30) method. The interpretation
is clear: at the time when the peak values is reached in the worst direction, the values
in the other direction are not higher than 40% (or 30%) of their individual peak values.

Let the response for the three directions be reordered so that

R1  R2  R3

The total response for the 40% method is then computed as

R = R 1 + 0.4 R 2 + 0.4 R 3

In some formulations of this rule, the renumbering is not done, and the expression is
written instead as

704 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 
   R X  0.4R Y  0.4R Z , or

R =    R Y  0.4R Z  0.4R X , or

   R Z  0.4R X  0.4R Y 


In practice, the same result is obtained as long as signs are properly taken into account
when summing the results for multiple responses.

The 40% method is mostly slightly conservative when compared to the SRSS
summation. The 30% method is significantly less conservative, and it will often give
lower predictions than the SRSS method.

The percent methods are not spatially isotropic. For a symmetric structure, members
which for symmetry reason should have the same level of loading will not experience
that. The orientation of the reference axes for the acceleration orientation will matter.

CQC3 Method
The CQC3 method extends the CQC principles also to the spatial combination. In the
CQC3 method, the modal and spatial combination are performed simultaneously. It
is however only formally applicable if only the periodic modes are taken into account.

As in the standard CQC method, the modal response for each loading direction is
summed as

N N

  Cij RpI,i RpI,j

2
R pI =
i = 1j = 1

where the Der Kiureghian expression Equation 3-154 for Cij is used.

In addition, a similar expression giving the cross coupling between the responses to the
spectra in the two horizontal directions is formed:

N N

  Cij RpX,i RpY,j

2
R pXY =
i = 1j = 1

It is now conceptually assumed that the response spectra are instead applied in a local
coordinate system X'-Y' which is rotated an angle  with respect to the X-Y
orientations. It can then be shown that

STUDY TYPES | 705

 R pX',i = R pX,i cos  + R pY,i sin 
R pY',i = R pY,i cos  – R pX,i sin 

Also, if the relation between the two spectra in the horizontal plane is such that

S Y = S X

the same ratio  will apply to the responses. The peak response as function of the
rotation angle is obtained by an SRSS type summation

2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
R    =   R pX +  R pY cos  +  R pY +  R pX sin  +
2 2 2 12
2 sin  cos   1 –  R pXY + R pZ 

It can be seen that for  = 1, the standard SRSS expression is retrieved.

The angle max giving the maximum response R(max) turns out to be independent
of , and it has the value

2
1 2R pXY
 max = --- atan ---------------------------
2 2
R pX – R pY
2

There are two roots for max, both of which must be checked.

The attractiveness of the CQC3 method is that the same spectrum can be applied to
an arbitrary pair of orthogonal axes. The scaling of the secondary spectrum, as well as
the orientation of the worst direction, is taken care of by the method.

Extending to Rigid Modes

As mentioned above, the original CQC3 method only deals with the periodic part of
the solution, so it is limited to cases dominated by such modes. It is however possible
to make an extension taking also the rigid (high frequency) modes.

Studying how the rigid modes enter the problem when using CQC (or any of the
similar combination rules) together with SRSS spatial combination gives some insight:

3 3 3
 N N 
 2
   
2 2 2 2
R = RI =  R pI + R rI  = C R R + R
 ij pI,i pI,j rI
I=1 I=1 I = 1i = 1j = 1 

706 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Thus, the rigid responses enter the final results as an extra mode, not coupled to the
periodic modes. Define a cross term also for the rigid response

2
R rXY = R rX R rY

Now, it is possible to have the rigid modes too in a CQC3 context. Another way of
expressing this is that the rigid response is treated as mode N + 1, the summation in
the CQC3 rule is extended to N + 1, and

 C
 N + 1N + 1 = 1
 C
 iN + 1 = 0 when i  N + 1

In the GUI, this extension is selected by checking the Augment with rigid response
check box.

SRSS3 Method
The SRSS3 method is a special case of the CQC3 rule, in which the mode correlation
is ignored, that is

C ij = 1 i=j
C ij = 0 ij

It retains the property of selecting the worst orientation, through the search for max.
The extension to rigid modes is the same as for CQC3.

For information about how to perform a response spectrum analysis, see

Response Spectrum Analysis Study

Linear Buckling
The most common linear buckling analysis consists of two steps. First, a stationary
problem is solved using a unit load of arbitrary size. The critical load is then obtained
by solving an eigenvalue problem, where the eigenvalue  is the multiplier to the
original load that would cause buckling.

For a general introduction, see Linearized Buckling Analysis

STUDY TYPES | 707

 The formulation in terms of virtual work is

W = V  –  –  GL –    dV = 0 (3-157)

Here,  is the engineering strain, GL is the Green–Lagrange strain. In terms of stiffness
matrices, this corresponds to

 K L + K NL  u 0  u = 0

where KL is the linear stiffness matrix, and KNL is the nonlinear contribution to the
full stiffness matrix. The symbolic linearization point u0 is the displacement vector
caused by the unit load.

Strictly speaking, this formulation assumes that geometric nonlinearity is not used in
the eigenvalue step. The Green–Lagrange tensor is inserted explicitly in the second
term of Equation 3-157, while the first term uses the linear (engineering) strain tensor.

If, however, geometric nonlinearity is selected in the linear buckling study step,
Equation 3-157 is replaced by

W = V  –GL  –  – 1   GL –    dV = 0

By using the term (-1), the effect of using the Green–Lagrange strain tensor in the
first term is to a large extent removed. Unless the unit load is significantly larger than
the buckling load, the result will be the same as the intended, even if geometric
nonlinearity was inadvertently selected in the eigenvalue study step.

708 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Damping
For dynamic problems, the damping of the structure is usually an important property.

In this section:

• Rayleigh Damping
• Loss Factor Damping
• Viscous Damping
• Maximum Loss Factor
• Wave Attenuation

Rayleigh Damping
Rayleigh damping is described by two coefficients: the mass damping coefficient dM
and the stiffness damping coefficient dK. Rayleigh damping will give the following
contribution to the virtual work

P u
W =   –  u  dK ------
t dM
–  u  -------  dv
t 
V

Here P is the first Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor.

Since Rayleigh damping is added directly to the virtual work equation, it does not
affect the constitutive relation. As a consequence, the stresses and strains will for a
linear elastic material still be in phase. This stands in contrast to the other damping
models.

DAMPING | 709
 Rayleigh damping can be used both in the time domain and in the frequency domain.

Rayleigh damping is not directly related to any physical property.

Historically, it was introduced since it was numerically attractive to have
a damping matrix which was a linear combination of the mass and stiffness
matrices

C = M + K

This operation is usually implied to be done at the global assembled

matrix level. Such an interpretation is however only meaningful for pure
structural mechanics problems, but not in a general multiphysics context.
For this reason, Rayleigh damping in COMSOL Multiphysics is a material
property, rather than a global property of the system of equations. Enter
the same Rayleigh damping parameters for all materials, and solve a pure
structural mechanics problem to retrieve the classical definition.

Loss Factor Damping

Loss factor damping is only applicable in frequency domain. When using loss factor
damping, a complex constitutive matrix is used. With an isotropic loss factor s, this
means that

c
D =  1 + j s D

where D is the constitutive matrix computed from the material data, and Dc is the
complex constitutive matrix used when computing the stresses. For a linear elastic
material, this would be equivalent to multiplying Young’s modulus by the factor
1  js. For a nonlinear elastic material, this applies to the tangential stiffness.

It is also possible to give individual loss factors for each entry in the constitutive matrix,
so that

c
D mn =  1 + j s mn D mn

In the case of an orthotropic material, yet another option is available, where each
individual component of Young’s modulus and shear modulus can be given an
individual loss coefficient:

710 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 c
E m =  1 + j E m E m
c
G m =  1 + j G m G m
m = 1 2 3

The complex moduli are then used to form the constitutive matrix.

For hyperelastic materials, the loss information appears as a contribution to the second
Piola–Kirchhoff stress:

W s
S q = j s ----------
E

For loss factor damping, the following definition is used for the elastic part of the
entropy:

S elast =   s – j s  C   

note that Selast here denotes the entropy contribution and not any stress.

This is because the entropy is a function of state and thus independent of the strain
rate, while the damping represents the rate-dependent effects in the material (for
example, viscous or viscoelastic effects). The internal work of such inelastic forces
averaged over the time period 2 can be computed as:

1
Q h = ---  s real  conj  C   
2

Qh can be used as a heat source for modeling of the heat generation in vibrating
structures, when coupled with the frequency-domain analysis for the stresses and
strains.

Viscous Damping
Viscous damping can be added to the material models. It will cause an extra stress
proportional to the rate of elastic strain in the material,

ꞏ ꞏ
s q =  b  el, vol + 2 v  el, dev

where b and v are the bulk and shear viscosity coefficients, respectively.

Viscous damping can be used in both frequency and time domain analyses.

DAMPING | 711
 In case of geometric nonlinearity, the viscous stress is treated as being a Cauchy stress
acting in the actual configuration (spatial frame). The resulting contribution to the
second Piola–Kirchhoff stress is calculated as

ꞏ –T ꞏ
S q =   b – ---  v J el C el + 2 v J el C el E el C el
2 –1 –1
3
ꞏ
where C el is the elastic Cauchy–Green tensor, E el is the rate of the elastic Green–
Lagrange strain, and Jel is the elastic volume ratio.

Maximum Loss Factor

Maximum Loss Factor is a special damping model which can be used in frequency as
well as in time domain studies. The model approximates a target loss factor, max,
when the material is loaded at a given reference frequency, fref. The formulation of this
damping model is very similar to the Standard Linear Solid (SLS) viscoelastic model
with both deviatoric and viscoelastic strains. The SLS model is often represented with
a spring-dashpot analogy where an additional branch consisting of a spring and a
dashpot are coupled in parallel to the parent material model (for instance a Linear
Elastic Material). The loss factor is defined as

G'' K''
 = ------ = ------
G' K'

where G'' and K'' are the shear and bulk loss moduli, and G' and K' are the shear and
bulk storage moduli, respectively. The parallel coupled SLS branch adds an inelastic
stress, Sq.

S q = K v tr( el –  v I + 2G v dev( el –  v 

Here, the auxiliary viscous strain, v, in the SLS branch follows the relation

ꞏ
 v  v +  v =  el

The shear and bulk viscoelastic moduli and the relaxation time are derived from the
target maximum loss factor, max, and the reference frequency, fref

2 max 2 max
G v = ----------------- G and K v = ----------------- K
 ref  v  ref  v

712 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 2
 max + 1 +  max
 v = -------------------------------------------------- where  ref = 2f ref
 ref

Here G and K are the equivalent shear and bulk moduli of the parent material model,
for instance a Linear Elastic Material. The loss factor is then defined from the
frequency-dependent expression

   ref
    = 2 max -----------------------------------2-
1 +     ref 

The loss factor equals the target maximum loss factor when the material is loaded with
an harmonic load at the reference frequency

   =  ref  =  max

Wave Attenuation
For linear elastic isotropic material, the effective bulk and shear viscosity coefficients
can be computed based on the spatial attenuation for elastic pressure and shear waves.

Without loss of generality, consider waves propagating along the x-axis. The waves are
linear, so that small strains are assumed.

The pressure waves are solutions of the form: u =  u  x  0 0  . The corresponding

momentum balance equation is

2
 u s xx
 =
t
2 x

where the stress component can be represented as

2
4 u   u
s xx =  K + --- G +  + ---  
4
 3   x  b 3 v  tx

where K and G are the bulk and shear moduli, respectively; and b and v are the bulk
and shear viscosity coefficients, respectively.

The shear waves are solutions of the form: u =  0 v  x  0  , where the y-polarization
is assumed, again without loss of generality. The corresponding momentum balance
equation is

DAMPING | 713
 2
 u s xy
 =
t
2 x

where

2
v  v
s xy = G + v
x  tx

Consider the following generic form of the momentum balance as a representation of

either case, pressure or shear waves:

2 2 3
 U  U  U
 2
= D 2
+ 2
t t  tx

In an infinite domain, the solution can be expressed for any specified angular frequency
 in the following complex-values form:

U  x t  = U + exp  it – ik +   x  + U - exp  it – ik -   x 

where U+ and U- are constant amplitudes, and

k ± = ±      – i    

are two solutions of the dispersion relation

2 2 2
 = Dk + ik

Separation of the real and imaginary parts of the above equation gives

 2
  1 +  -------- + 1
2
  D  
2
3  2  4
 = -------------------------------------------------------- = ----------  1 – ---  -------- + O  -------- 
 2 D 8 D D
2D  1 +  -------- 
D

 2
  1 +  -------- – 1
2
  D  
2
1   3
 = -------------------------------------------------------- = ----------  --- -------- + O  -------- 
 2 D  2 D  D 
2D  1 +  -------- 
  D 

Note that for most materials,  « D even for very large values of .

The phase velocity is given by

714 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

  2
2D  1 +  -------- 
   D  3  2  4
----  1 + ---  -------- + O  -------- 
c    = ---- = D
------------------------------------------------- =
  2  8 D D
  1 +  -------- + 1
D

The solution takes the form

–    x – i     x – c   t     x i     x + c   t 
U  x t  = U + e e + U- e e

which can be seen as a superposition of two plane waves propagating in the opposite
directions; both waves are spatially attenuated in the corresponding direction of
propagation.

For each wave, the spatial attenuation is characterized by () which is often called the
attenuation coefficient. It has a SI unit (1/m), but is often given using neper per meter
(Np/m). Alternatively, the value can be given in decibel per meter (dB/m). Both Np
and dB are relative units (dimensionless). Values given in Np or Np/m can be used
directly in any formula using SI units. The conversion formula needs to be applied for
values using dB:

(value in Np) = (value in dB) ln(10)/20 = 0.1151 (value in dB)

The wave attenuation can be also specified as attenuation per wavelength , which is
defined as

    D 1   3
    =     = 2 ------------- = 2 ---------------------------------------- = 2  --- -------- + O  -------- 
  2 D  D 
 2
1 +  -------- + 1
D

which allows to find the viscosity as

2D   2 –1
 = -------- ------  1 –  ------ 
 2 2

The above formula can be directly applied to the cases of pressure and shear waves.
Using given values of the attenuation per wavelength p and s measured in Np at the
corresponding references frequencies fp,ref and fs,ref, the shear and bulk viscosity are
found as

2G  s s 2 –1
 v = --------------- ------  1 –  ------ 
 s, ref 2 2

DAMPING | 715
 2  K + --- G
4
3 p p 2 –1 4
 b = ---------------------------- ------  1 –  ------  – ---  v
 p, ref 2   2  3

where  p, ref = 2f p, ref and  s, ref = 2f s, ref . If the values are given in dB per
wavelength, the conversion factor ln(10)/20 needs to be inserted.

For given values of attenuation coefficients p and s measured in Np/m at the

corresponding references frequencies fp,ref and fs,ref the approximate formulas for the
viscosity coefficients are

2Gc s
 v = --------------
2
- s
 s, ref

2  K + --- G c p
4
 3  4
 b = ---------------------------------
2
-  s – – ---  v
 p, ref 3

where the approximate phase velocity for the pressure and shear waves are given by

c p =  K + 4G  3    and c s = G   . If the values of p and s are given in dB/

m, the conversion factor ln(10)/20 needs to be inserted.

REFERENCES FOR THEORY OF WAVE ATTENUATION

1. Newnham R.E., Properties of Materials. Anisotropy, Symmetry, Structure.
Oxford University Press, New York, 2005.

2. Ono K., “Review on Structural Health Evaluation with Acoustic Emission,”

Applied Sciences, vol. 8, issue 6, p. 958, 2018; doi.org/10.3390/app8060958-

716 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

L o a ds a nd C on st rai n t s
In this section:

• Distributed Loads
• Gravity and Base Excitation
• Frame Acceleration Forces
• Spring Foundation and Thin Elastic Layer
• Added Mass
• Rigid Motion Suppression
• Limited Displacement
• Low-Reflecting Boundary Condition
• Cyclic Symmetry and Floquet Periodic Conditions
• Symmetry Condition with Translation
• Roller Boundary Condition
• Thermal Expansion of Constraints
• Fluid-Structure Interaction
• Periodic Cell Theory
• Rigid Connector
• Continuity Condition

Distributed Loads
The direction of an explicitly applied distributed load must be given with reference to
a local or global coordinate system in the spatial frame, but its magnitude must be with
reference to the undeformed reference (or material) area. That is, the relation between
the true force f acting on the current area da and the specified distributed load F
acting on the material area dA is f da= FdA.

When the solid is subjected to an external pressure, p, the true force on a surface
element acts with magnitude p in the current area da in the normal direction n:

f = pnda

Therefore, the pressure load type specifies the distributed load as

LOADS AND CONSTRAINTS | 717

 da
F = pn --------
dA

where both the normal n and area element da are functions of the current
displacement field.

Another view of how to interpret the load, is to express it in the first Piola–Kirchhoff
stress tensor P via the following formula:

F = P  n0

where the normal n0 corresponds to the undeformed surface element. Such a force
vector is often referred to as the nominal traction.

Plane Stress
In a plane stress condition, the out-of-plane deformation causes the thickness to
change, and this area effect is included explicitly.

The equation transforms to

w
F = pn --------  1 + 
dl
dL z

where l and L are the current and original in-plane lengths of the boundary.

Axial Symmetry
To account for the radial deformation changing the circumference and therefore the
area element, the distributed load is applied as

da  R + u 
F = pn -------- -------------------
dA R

Gravity and Base Excitation

Gravity is a global feature that applies forces to all features in the physics interface
having a density, mass, or mass distribution. The gravitational force acts in a fixed
spatial direction eg. Consider a domain feature having a density of , the gravitational
force is

g = ge g

where g is the acceleration of gravity. The default value of g is the earth’s standard
acceleration of gravity, having the value of g_const = 9.8066 m/s2.

718 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Base excitation is similar to gravity, but has two distinct properties: The sign is reversed
(the acceleration of the foundation is given) and it defines variables for the global,
room fixed, accelerations.

Frame Acceleration Forces

Add Rotating Frame and Linearly Accelerated Frame nodes to create the loads caused by
the frame acceleration. This gives load contributions from all nodes in the physics
interface that have a density or mass, such as Linear Elastic Material, Rigid Material, Added
Mass, or Point Mass.

Only features which have a geometrical selection contribute to the mass

forces. The Mass and Moment of Inertia nodes are global features and will
not get any contribution from Rotating Frame and Linearly Accelerated
Frame nodes.

In the following, the mass density  should be considered as generalized. It can

represent mass per unit volume, mass per unit area, mass per unit length, or even mass,
depending on the dimensionality of the object giving the contribution.

LINEARLY ACCELERATED FRAME

The force acts in a fixed spatial direction and is computed as

f = – a f

where af is a specified linear frame acceleration vector. Alternatively, the effective

acceleration in the accelerated frame can be augmented to include the frame
acceleration effect:

ꞏꞏ
a tot = u + a f

ROTATING FRAME
Centrifugal, Coriolis and Euler forces are fictitious forces that need to be introduced
in a rotating frame of reference, since it is not an inertial system. They can be added as
loads. Alternatively, the effective acceleration in the rotating frame can be augmented
to include the frame rotation effects:

ꞏꞏ
a tot = u + a f

LOADS AND CONSTRAINTS | 719

 where the rotating frame acceleration is computed as

a f = a cen + a cor + a eul

CENTRIFUGAL FORCE
A centrifugal force acts radially outward from the axis of rotation defined by the axial
direction vector eax. The rotation is represented by the angular velocity vector:

 = eax

where is the angular velocity. In vector form, the acceleration contribution and the
loads are:

a cen =      r p 

F cen = – a cen

where rp is the rotation position vector that contains the coordinates with respect to
any point on the axis of rotation. The point is given by its radius vector in the global
coordinate system rbp.

SPIN-SOFTENING EFFECT
The structural displacement can be accounted for when computing the rotation
position, so that

r p = X + u – r bp

This results in a contribution from the extra acceleration terms caused by the
deformation into the system’s stiffness matrix. The effect is often called spin-softening.

CORIOLIS FORCE
For a Coriolis force to appear, the object studied must have a velocity relative to the
rotating frame. The acceleration contribution and the load are:

u
a cor = 2 
t

F cor = – a cor

This gives a damping contribution since it is proportional to the velocity.

720 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

EULER FORCE
The Euler force occurs when the rate of rotation is not constant in time. The force acts
in the plane of rotation perpendicular to the centrifugal force. The acceleration
contribution and the load are:


a eul =  rp
t

F eul = – a eul

Spring Foundation and Thin Elastic Layer

In this section, the equations for the spring type physics nodes are developed using
boundaries, but the generalizations to geometrical objects of other dimensions are
obvious. Also, for cases where rotational springs are present, the relations between
moments and rotations are analogous to the relations between forces and
displacements described below.

SPRING FOUNDATION
A spring gives a force that depends on the displacement and acts in the opposite
direction. In the case of a force that is proportional to the displacement, this is called
Hooke’s law. In a suitable coordinate system, a spring condition can be represented as

fs = –K   u – u0 

where fs is a force/unit area, u is the displacement deforming the spring, and K is a

stiffness matrix. u0 is an optional deformation offset, which describes the stress-free
state of the spring.

If the spring stiffness is not constant, then it is in general easier to directly describe the
force as a function of the displacement, so that

fs = f  u – u0 

In the same way, a viscous damping can be described as a force proportional to the
velocity

ꞏ ꞏ
fv = –D  u – u 0 

where D is a matrix representing the viscosity.

LOADS AND CONSTRAINTS | 721

 Structural (“loss factor”) damping is only relevant for frequency domain analysis and
is defined as

f l = – iK   u – u 0 

where  is the loss factor and i is the imaginary unit. It is also possible to give individual
loss factors for each component in the stiffness matrix K.

If the elastic part of the spring definition is given as a force versus displacement
relation, the stiffness K is taken as the stiffness at the linearization point at which the
frequency response analysis is performed. Since the loss factor force is proportional to
the elastic force, the equation can be written as

f l = if s

The contribution to the virtual work is

W =   fs + fl + fv   u dA
A

THIN ELASTIC LAYER BETWEEN TWO PARTS

A spring or damper can also act between two boundaries of an identity pair. The spring
force then depends on the difference in displacement between the two boundaries.

f sD = – f sS = – K  u D – u S – u 0 

The uppercase indices refer to “source” and “destination”. When a force versus
displacement description is used,

f sD = – f sS = f  u – u 0 
u = uD – uS

The viscous and structural damping forces have analogous properties,

ꞏ ꞏ ꞏ
f vD = – f vS = – D  u D – u S – u 0 

f lD = – f lS = – iK  u D – u S – u 0 

or

f lD = if sD

722 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The virtual work expression is formulated on the destination side of the pair as

W =   fsD + flD + fvD     uD – uS  dAD

AD

Here the displacements from the source side are obtained using the src2dst operator
of the identity pair. Select the side with the finer mesh as destination if there is a
difference in mesh density on the two sides of the pair.

THIN ELASTIC LAYER ON INTERIOR BOUNDARIES

On an interior boundary, the Thin Elastic Layer decouples the displacements between
two sides of the boundary. The two boundaries are then connected by elastic and
viscous forces with equal size but opposite directions, proportional to the relative
displacements and velocities.

If an interface which is active on boundaries (Shell or Membrane in 3D

for example) is added on the same interior boundary as a Thin Elastic
Layer, then the virtual slit between the two sides of the boundary may be
closed again. This happens if the domain interface and the boundary
interface share the same displacement degrees of freedom.

The spring force can be written as

f su = – f sd = – K  u u – u d – u 0 

or

f su = – f sd = f  u – u 0 
u = uu – ud

The viscous force is

ꞏ ꞏ ꞏ
f vu = – f vd = – D  u u – u d – u 0 

and the structural damping force is

f lu = – f ld = – iK  u u – u d – u 0 

or

LOADS AND CONSTRAINTS | 723

 f lu = if su

The subscripts u and d denote the “upside” and “downside” of the interior boundary,
respectively.

The virtual work expression is formulated as

W =   fsd + fld + fvd     uu – ud  dAu

Au

STIFFNESS FROM MATERIAL DATA

When the stiffness is given in terms of actual material data and layer thickness ds, the
stiffness in the normal direction is computed based on a state of plane strain, so that

E1 – 
k n = ---------------------------------------------
d s  1 +    1 – 2 

The assumption of plane strain conditions is relevant when the material in the elastic
layer is softer than its surroundings, and this is normally the case.

The shear stiffness is isotropic in the tangential plane, having the value

G E
k t = ------ = ---------------------------
ds 2d s  1 +  

Since the layer thickness is known in this case, it is also possible to compute a strain in
the elastic layer. The strain tensor has the is stored in a variable with a name like
<interface>.<feature>.etelij, for example solid.tel1.etelxx for the normal
strain. The two shear strains are stored in the xy and xz components of the tensor. In
3D, the orientation of the two local directions y and z used for the two shear strain
directions is obtained using the following scheme:

1 Choose an auxiliary direction. Unless the normal to the layer is very close to the
global X direction, use e aux = e X . If the X direction cannot be used, the
Y direction is instead used as the auxiliary direction, e aux = e Y .
2 The local y direction is obtained from the part of the auxiliary direction which is
orthogonal to the normal direction n:
e aux –  e aux  n n
e y = ---------------------------------------------------
e aux –  e aux  n n

3 The local z direction is orthogonal to the normal and the local y direction:

724 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 ez = n  ey

Springs and Dampers in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

Spring-Damper Theory
The Spring-Damper node is used to define elastic and dissipative forces between a source
and a destination attachment. Two different spring types are available. When using the
directional spring (Figure 3-32), all forces act in the direction of the spring extension.
With the matrix spring formulation, more general dependencies between the
displacements and forces can be defined.

Figure 3-32: Conceptual sketch of a Spring-Damper.

• Connection Points and Spring Extension

• Deactivation
• Spring and Damping Forces
• Spring and Damping Energies

CONNECTION POINTS AND SPRING EXTENSION

The current position of the source and destination points, xs and xd, can be written as

xs = Xs + us
xd = Xd + ud

LOADS AND CONSTRAINTS | 725

 where Xs and Xd are the original positions of the two points, and us and ud are their
respective displacements. For the special case where the source point is selected as a
fixed point,

xs = Xs

The relative displacements between the source and destination points determines the
forces in the spring-damper. Depending on the chosen spring type (directional or
matrix), the relative displacement is defined by different quantities.

Directional
For the directional spring, the extension is given in terms of a scalar spring length. The
initial spring length, l0, is

l0 = Xd – Xs =  Xd – Xs    Xd – Xs 

The current spring length, l, is

l = xd – xs

In the case of a geometrically linear analysis, the current spring length is linearized to

 xd – xs    Xd – Xs 
l = ----------------------------------------------------
l0

Specify an initial spring extension l0 in addition to the initial geometrical distance
between the two points, so that the free length of the spring is

l f = l 0 – l 0

It is also possible to specify the free length of the spring explicitly. The spring extension
l is then computed as the difference between the current spring length and the free
length lf,

l = l – l f

Matrix
When choosing the matrix spring type, the spring-damper forces are instead computed
based on the relative displacement and the relative rotation vectors. If the study is
geometrically linear, the relative rotation vector is

 =  d –  s

726 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

where s and d are the rotations of the source and destination attachments,
respectively. In case of geometrically nonlinear studies, the relative rotation vector is
instead computed from the quaternion multiplication,

q d = q  q s

where qs and qd are the source and destination rotations represented by unit
quaternions, and q is a quaternion representing the differential rotation, which can
be converted to an axis-angle representation defining the relative rotation vector.

 = f  q 

By default, the relative displacement vector is simply defined as

u = u d – u s

If the check box Include rotational contribution in displacement in the Spring-Damper

section is selected, an additional term is included in the relative displacement vector
which can be interpreted as the displacement at the tip of a bar element which connects
the source and destination due to the rotation at the destination point. In a
geometrically linear study, the relative displacement is then defined as

u = u d – u s –  d   X d – X s 

In a geometrically nonlinear study, the cross product is replaced with the rotation
matrix.

u = u d – u s –  R   d  – I   X d – X s 

DEACTIVATION
The spring-damper can be deactivated under certain conditions. In terms of the
implementation, this means that many expressions are multiplied by an activation
indicator, iac. The activation indicator has the value 1 when the component is active,
and 0 when deactivated.

SPRING AND DAMPING FORCES

Spring and damper forces are computed differently for the directional and the matrix
spring types.

Directional
When the directional spring is chosen, the spring force is proportional to the spring
constant k:

LOADS AND CONSTRAINTS | 727

 F s = kl

If k depends on the extension, so that the spring is nonlinear, it should be interpreted

as a secant stiffness, that is

F s = k  l   l

Specify the spring force as function of extension explicitly as

F s = F s  l 

To create the expression for the function, use the built-in variable for the spring
extension. It has the form <physicsTag>.<SpringNodeTag>.dl (for example,
solid.spd1.dl).

In a dynamic analysis, the viscous damping force is computed as

F d = c d  l 
dt

where c is the viscous damping coefficient.

The magnitude of the total force is

F = Fs + Fd

The total forces in the global coordinate system, acting on the destination and source
points are

 xd – xs 
F dst = – F src = – F -----------------------
l

In a geometrically linear case, the orientation of the force is kept fixed, so that

 Xd – Xs 
F dst = – F src = – F ------------------------
l

The contribution to the virtual work is

F dst   u d – u s 

Matrix
When choosing the matrix formulation, the spring and the damper forces are
computed from the relative displacements and rotations. In the most general case, the
spring-damper force, F, and the spring-damper moment, M, are

728 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 ꞏ
F = F s + F d = k u k u u + c u c u u
M Ms Md k u k   ꞏ
c u c  

where the subscripts s and d refer to the spring and damper, respectively; the different
k and c represent sub-matrices of size 3x3, describing the elastic and the dissipative
forces and moments. In 2D, some of the matrices related to the rotation and to the
translational-rotational coupling have components which are zero by definition.

SPRING AND DAMPING ENERGIES

In stationary and time-dependent analysis, the elastic energy in the spring is computed.

Directional
With the directional spring formulation, the energy is

l


W s = i ac F s d l 
0

In a time-dependent analysis, the energy dissipated in the damper, Wd, is computed

using an extra degree of freedom. The following equation is added:

dW d l 
-----------d- = i ac F --------------
dt d dt

In a frequency domain analysis, the elastic energy in the spring and the energy
dissipated in the damper are computed as

1
W s = i ac --- Re  lindev  F s   conj  lindev  l   
4
1
W d = i ac --- Re  lindev  F d   conj  lindev  l   
4

These energy quantities represent the cycle average, and only the perturbation terms
are included.

Matrix
If instead the matrix formulation is used, the elastic energy in the spring is

1
W s = i ac ---  F s  u + M s  
2

LOADS AND CONSTRAINTS | 729

 In a time-dependent analysis, the energy dissipated in the damper, Wd, is computed
using an extra degree of freedom. The following equation is added:

dW d ꞏ
------------ = i ac  F s  uꞏ + M s  
dt

In a frequency domain analysis, the elastic energy in the spring and the energy
dissipated in the damper are computed as

1
W s = i ac ---  R e  lindev  F s   conj  lindev  u    +
4
Re  lindev  M s   conj  lindev      
1
W d = i ac ---  R elindev  F d   conj  lindev  u    +
4
Re  lindev  M d   conj  lindev      

Added Mass
The Added Mass node can be used for supplying inertia that is not part of the material
itself. Such inertia does not need to be isotropic, in the sense that the inertial effects
are not the same in all directions. This is, for example, the case when a structure
immersed in a fluid vibrates. The fluid is added to the inertia for acceleration in the
direction normal to the boundary, but not tangential to it.

Other uses for added mass are when sheets or strips of a material that is heavy, but
having a comparatively low stiffness, are added to a structure. The data for the base
material can then be kept unaltered, while the added material is represented purely as
added mass.

The value of an added mass can also be negative. Use such a negative value for
adjusting the mass when a part imported from a CAD system does not get exactly the
correct total mass due to simplifications of the geometry.

Added mass can exist on domains, boundaries, and edges. The inertial forces from
added mass can be written as

2
 u
fm = –M 2
t

where M is a diagonal mass distribution matrix. For added mass on a boundary (and
for objects of other dimensions), the contribution to the virtual work is:

730 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 W =  fm  u dA
A

Rigid Motion Suppression

The Rigid Motion Suppression feature is a convenient way to automatically create a set
of constraints which are sufficient to inhibit rigid body modes. The constraints are
selected so that no reaction forces are introduced as long as the external loads are in
equilibrium.

Consider that the undeformed and deformed positions of a body are measured in the
same coordinate system, see Lagrangian Formulation for details. These are related by
the displacement vector as

x = X + u  X t 

where x is the spatial coordinate, X is the material coordinate, and u is the

displacement.

An average displacement of the body can be obtained by a volume average, which

requires a domain integration. However, a computationally leaner operation is to only
consider the domain boundaries or geometrical points when averaging the
displacement. When defining the rigid motion constraints, it is sufficient to only
consider the geometric points of the body.

Constraining the average displacement to zero is equivalent to having the same average
position (barycenter or centroid) in the undeformed and deformed body. Since the
average displacement can be written as

x = X+u

The constraint

u  X t  = 0

is imposed, so the average centroid is the same for the deformed and undeformed
body. This is enforced by adding three displacement constraints in 3D or two
constraints in 2D.

The averaging is done by considering all the geometrical points in the domain, but it
is also possible to consider a subset of points.

LOADS AND CONSTRAINTS | 731

 Three additional constraints in 3D, or one additional constraint in 2D are required to
constrain the rotation with respect to the average centroid position X

X – X  u

Limited Displacement
In some physics interfaces, displacements can be prescribed not only to a certain value,
but also to move freely within given limits. This is specified using the Limited option
in the Prescribed Displacement or Prescribed Displacement/Rotation nodes.

The limit conditions are implemented as a weak inequality constraint. For each
displacement component ui, a gap distance is computed as

g i = min  – u i + u 0i,max , u i – u 0i,min  (3-158)

where u0i,max and u0i,min are the maximum and minimum limits. Given
Equation 3-158, the weak inequality constraint is formulated as

0 =  fi gi dX (3-159)

and is subjected to the Kuhn-Tucker conditions

g i  0, f i  0, f i g i = 0

where fi is the constraint force (or contact reaction force).

Using the penalty method to regularize the constraint, the contact reaction force is
defined as

f i = max  – k p g i , 0 

where kp is the penalty factor. With the above definition of fi, Equation 3-159 is added
as a weak contribution to the model to implement the constraint.

The augmented Lagrangian implementation of the inequality constraint is based on

the following augmentation of Equation 3-159


0 = f i g i dX
(3-160)
1

0 = – ------  f i – f lm,i f lm,i dX
kp

732 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

where flm,i is a Lagrange multiplier that is added as an extra degree of freedom to the
model. The penalized contact reaction force fi is for the augmented Lagrangian
method defined as

f i = max  – k p g i + f lm,i , 0 

and the constraint is implemented by adding the weak contributions defined in

Equation 3-160 to the model.

Low-Reflecting Boundary Condition

The low-reflecting boundary condition is mainly intended for letting waves pass out
from the model domain without reflection in time-dependent analyses. It is also
available in the frequency domain, but then adding a perfectly matched layer (PML) is
usually a better option.

As a default, the low-reflecting boundary condition takes the material data from the
adjacent domain in an attempt to create a perfect impedance match for both pressure
waves and shear waves, so that

u u 
  n = – c p   n n – c s  t t
t t 

where n and t are the unit normal and tangential vectors at the boundary, respectively,
and cp and cs are the speeds of the pressure and shear waves in the material. This
approach works best when the wave direction in close to the normal at the wall.

In the general case use

u
  n = – d im   c p c s 
t

where the mechanical impedance dim is a diagonal matrix available as the user input,
and by default it is set to

cp + cs
d im =  ---------------- I
2

More information about modeling using low-reflecting boundary

conditions can be found in Ref. 1.

LOADS AND CONSTRAINTS | 733

 Cyclic Symmetry and Floquet Periodic Conditions
These boundary conditions are based on the Floquet theory which can be applied to
the problem of small-amplitude vibrations of spatially periodic structures.

If the problem is to determine the frequency response to a small-amplitude

time-periodic excitation that also possesses spatial periodicity, the theory states that the
solution can be sought in the form of a product of two functions. One follows the
periodicity of the structure, while the other one follows the periodicity of the
excitation. The problem can be solved on a unit cell of periodicity by applying the
corresponding periodicity conditions to each of the two components in the product.

This section describes the theory for solids in 3D, but is equally applicable
to shells. In the case of shells, the periodicity condition is applied to edges,
and the rotational degrees of freedom (displacements of the normal
vector) are treated in the same way as the translational displacements.

The problem can be modeled using the full solution without applying the above
described multiplicative decomposition. For such a solution, the Floquet periodicity
conditions at the corresponding boundaries of the periodicity cell are expressed as

u destination = exp  – ik F  r destination – r source   u source

where u is a vector of dependent variables, r is the position, and the vector kF

represents the spatial periodicity of the excitation.

The cyclic symmetry boundary condition presents a special but important case of
Floquet periodicity, for which the unit periodicity cell is a sector of a structure that
consists of a number of identical sectors. The frequency response problem can then be
solved in one sector of periodicity by applying the periodicity condition. The situation
is often referred to as dynamic cyclic symmetry.

For an eigenfrequency study, all the eigenmodes of the full problem can be found by
performing the analysis on one sector of symmetry only and imposing the cyclic
symmetry of the eigenmodes with an angle of periodicity  = m , where the cyclic
symmetry mode number m can vary from 0 to N, with N being the total number of
sectors so that   2N.

The Floquet periodicity conditions at the sides of the sector of symmetry can be
expressed as

734 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 – i T
u destination = e R  u source

where the u represents the displacement vectors with the components given in the
default Cartesian coordinates. Multiplication by the rotation matrix given by

cos    – sin    0
R = sin    cos    0
0 0 1

makes the corresponding displacement components in the cylindrical coordinate

system differ by the factor exp  – i  only. For scalar dependent variables, a similar
condition applies, for which the rotation matrix is replaced by a unit matrix.

The angle  represents either the periodicity of the eigenmode for an eigenfrequency
analysis or the periodicity of the excitation signal in case of a frequency-response
analysis. In the latter case, the excitation is typically given as a load vector

F = – F 0 exp  – im atan  Y  X  

when modeled using the Cartesian coordinates. The parameter m is often referred to
as the azimuthal wave number.

Ref. 2 contains more information about cyclic symmetry conditions.

Symmetry Condition with Translation

A standard symmetry condition prohibits translation in the symmetry direction.

u  ns = 0

The normal to the symmetry plane, ns, is either computed from the geometry, or given
as a user input.

When allowing translation of the symmetry plane, the constraint is modified to

u  ns – un = 0

Here, un is a single scalar displacement offset which is the same for all locations where
the symmetry constraint is applied.

LOADS AND CONSTRAINTS | 735

 If the selected normal direction condition is Prescribed displacement, then un is the
given value.

If the selected normal direction condition is Free displacement or Prescribed force, then
un is added as a degree of freedom to be determined during the solution.

The weak contribution for this equation is

F n test  u n 

where Fn is the prescribed force. Note that in the Free displacement case, the force is
zero, so no weak contribution is added. This corresponds to a solution with zero
reaction force.

Roller Boundary Condition

The Roller boundary condition is similar to a Symmetry boundary condition, since it
constrains the displacement in a direction normal to the boundary. A Roller is however
intended to be used also on curved boundaries. The constraint can be formulated as

u  nr = 0

where the normal nr is computed using different methods depending on the selection
in the Roller Constraint section.

When Normal orientation is set to Automatic, the normal orientation is computed from
the mesh, or its underlying geometry. Consider for example a roller condition on a
planar surface. Theoretically, the normal at all mesh nodes should be parallel. But if
there are inaccuracies in the node locations, the computed normals may not be exactly
the same everywhere. They can differ not only between nodes, but also between
neighboring elements connected to the same node. Thus, there may be constraints
acting in somewhat different directions. Such constraints can make the boundary
appear as fixed, rather than sliding. This potential problem can be reduced if you select
Nodal as Constraint method in the Constraint Setting section.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Settings
In the modeling section of the Structural Mechanics User’s Guide:

• Elemental and Nodal Constraints

736 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

If you select one of the explicit shapes (Plane, Cylinder, or Sphere) as Normal orientation,
then the orientation of the normal nr is instead a user input, so there will be no
problem with numerical inaccuracies.

If you select Plane, you give the direction explicitly as a constant vector.

If you select Cylinder, the normal is computed as being perpendicular to the cylinder
axis at each mesh node. The input defining the cylinder is a Point on axis, Xc, and the
vector along the cylinder axis, es. For a node located at an original coordinate X, the
normal orientation is computed as

X' = X – X c
n r = X' –  X'  e s e s

Here it is not necessary to normalize nr. It is actually the radial vector from the cylinder
axis to the location X.

In the case of geometric nonlinearity, the orientation of the normal would change. This
is implemented as a nonlinear constraint, where the node is forced to maintain its
distance from the cylinder axis, while allowed to move freely in the axial and
circumferential directions. Thus, the normal orientation is not explicitly computed.

The constraint expression is

2 2 2 2
 x' –  x'  e s   –  X' –  X'  e s   = 0

where

X' = X – X c
x' = x – X c

The radius of the cylinder is not given explicitly, so each node will maintain its own
original distance from the cylinder axis.

If you select Sphere, the normal is computed as the direction from the center of the
sphere to each mesh node. The only input is a Center of sphere, Xc. For a node located
at an original coordinate X, the normal (actually, the radial vector) is computed as

n r = X – Xc

LOADS AND CONSTRAINTS | 737

 In the case of geometric nonlinearity, the orientation of the normal would change. This
is implemented as a nonlinear constraint, where the node is forced to maintain its
distance from the center of the sphere, while allowed to move freely in the two
directions on the sphere surface. Thus, the normal orientation is not explicitly
computed. The constraint is written as

2 2
x – Xc – X – Xc = 0

The radius of the sphere is not given explicitly, so each node will maintain its own
original distance from the center.

Thermal Expansion of Constraints

Constraints like Fixed Constraint and Prescribed Displacement will in general cause
stresses near the constrained boundaries when the structure undergoes temperature
changes. The same is true also for rigid objects like Rigid Material, Rigid Connector, and
Attachment. By adding a Thermal Expansion subnode to these features, you can allow
the constrained boundaries to have a thermal expansion displacement.

The thermal strains will in general have a spatial distribution given by

  X  =   X T   T – T ref 

Note that this is the thermal expansion of the virtual surroundings of the structure
being analyzed, so it is unrelated to the thermal strains of the structure itself.

The strain field must be converted into a displacement field u(X) such that

1 u i u j
 ij = ---  -------- + --------
2  X j x i 

If the strain field fulfills the general compatibility relations, it is in principle possible to
integrate the above relation. The procedure is outlined in Ref. 3, giving

X  il  kl
ui  X  = ui  X0  + X  il +  Xk – X'k   ---------
0
- – ----------  dX' l
X k X i  

Summation over double indices is implied. The rigid body rotation term given in
Ref. 3 is omitted, since it cannot be derived from the strain field. The reference point
is chosen so that the displacement (caused by the strain field) is zero, so that the uix0
term can be omitted. The integral is path independent when the compatibility is
fulfilled. Because the constrained region is a virtual object, the integration path does

738 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

not have to be inside a domain. For simplicity, a straight line from X0 to X is used for
the integration. Let p be the vector between the two points,

p = X – X0

The distance along the integration path can then be parameterized by a parameter s
running from 0 to 1as

X' = X 0 + sp

giving

1  il  kl
ui  X  = 0  il +  1 – s pk  ---------
- – ----------  p ds
X k X i   l
(3-161)

This integral can be computed using the built-in integrate() operator as long as the
strain field is an explicit function of the material frame coordinates X.

For the physics interfaces which have rotational degrees of freedom (Beam, Shell and
Plate), not only the displacement, but also the rotation of the constraint is needed. For
a given displacement field u(X), the infinitesimal rotation vector  is given by

1
 = --- u
2

Applying the rotation operator to Equation 3-161 gives

2
1 1  il   il 
 m  X  = ---  mni
2    3 – 2s  ---------- +  1 – s p k
0  X n  X k X
 p l ds
n

where mni is the permutation tensor.

Note that the general compatibility requirements will not be fulfilled for arbitrary
expressions for the thermal strain distribution. In such cases, the stresses caused by the
constraints cannot completely be removed, but they will be significantly decreased.
The results will then depend on the choice of reference point.

Constraints and Thermal Expansion in the Structural Mechanics

Modeling chapter.

LOADS AND CONSTRAINTS | 739

 Fluid-Structure Interaction
Fluid-Structure Interaction multiphysics coupling combines fluid flow with structural
mechanics to capture the interaction between the fluid and the solid structure. A
structural mechanics interface (Solid Mechanics, Shell, Membrane, or Multibody
Dynamics) and a Single-Phase Flow interface model the solid and the fluid,
respectively. The Fluid-Structure Interaction (FSI) couplings appear on the boundaries
between the fluid and the solid. The physics interface uses an arbitrary
Lagrangian-Eulerian (ALE) method to combine the fluid flow formulated using an
Eulerian description and a spatial frame with solid mechanics formulated using a
Lagrangian description and a material (reference) frame.

The fluid flow is described by the Navier-Stokes equations, which provide a solution
for the velocity field ufluid. The total force exerted on the solid boundary by the fluid
is the negative of the reaction force on the fluid,

 
f = n   – pI +    u fluid +  u fluid  T  – ---     u fluid I 
2
(3-162)
 3 
 

where p denotes pressure,  the dynamic viscosity for the fluid, n the outward normal
to the boundary, and I the identity matrix. Because the Navier-Stokes equations are
solved in the spatial (deformed) frame while the structural mechanics interfaces are
defined in the material (undeformed) frame, a transformation of the force is necessary.
This is done according to

dv
F = f  --------
dV

where dv and dV are the mesh element scale factors for the spatial frame and the
material (reference) frame, respectively.

The coupling in the other direction consists of the structural velocity

u struct
t

(the rate of change for the displacement of the structure), which acts as a moving wall
for the fluid domain.

The structural mechanics formulations support geometric nonlinearity (large

deformations). The spatial frame also deforms with a mesh deformation that is equal
to the displacements ustruct of the solid within the solid domains. The mesh is free to

740 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

move inside the fluid domains, and it adjusts to the motion of the solid walls. This
geometric change of the fluid domain is automatically accounted for in COMSOL
Multiphysics by the ALE method.

ONE-WAY FLUID-STRUCTURE INTERACTION

For small values of the structural displacement and its rate of change, the
Fluid-Structure Interaction interface includes one-way model formulations. The
one-way models sequentially solve for the fluid flow, compute the load from
Equation 3-162, and then apply it in the solution for the solid displacement. Since
these methods are unidirectional, the mesh deformation is excluded from the solution.
When applicable, the one-way versions offer computationally cheaper alternatives to a
fully coupled counterpart.

Stationary and Time Dependent one-way studies are available for selection from the
Preset Studies branch when adding a study. These studies include a Fluid study step and
a Solid study step. When an additional physics interface is added to the model, it is by
default added to both study steps.

In this case the one-way study steps display under Preset Studies for Some Physics
Interfaces branch since the Fluid study step does not solve for the solid displacement
and vice versa. When using a turbulence model requiring the distance to the closest
wall, the Preset Studies includes a Wall Distance Initialization study step.

When solving a transient one-way FSI model, besides saving the solution from the
Fluid study step with adequate frequency, it is advisable to save the solution from the
Solid study step at the same times as the fluid solution. This way, all the information
from the Fluid study step is used in the Solid study step.

Studies and Solvers in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

Periodic Cell Theory

The heterogeneous properties of a material in the microscopic scale are often
unfeasible to use directly on a macroscopic scale, in which a structure is typically
analyzed. There one needs to use a homogeneous material model, but with
appropriately averaged properties.

LOADS AND CONSTRAINTS | 741

 The Cell Periodicity feature facilitates the evaluation of such average properties. It is
based on the idea of a representative volume element (RVE). The RVE is a domain
that is representative for the material on a microscopic scale.

An RVE is typically identified as the smallest possible unit cell of a material. If the
material has a random distribution of for example porosity, it should be large enough
to be representative for the average properties of the material on a macroscopic scale.

The only requirement on the shape of the RVE is that it should be possible to fill space
with a repetitive pattern of RVEs. This means that there are a set of matching boundary
pairs, each of them having the same geometry, but offset by a given distance.

To model an RVE, you add a Cell Periodicity node, and select the domains representing
the unit cell. For each pair of matching boundaries, add a Boundary Pair subnode, and
select the boundaries.

In principle, there are no limitations on the physics features you can use for modeling
the RVE, as long as the basic assumptions about periodicity are not violated. You
should however not add any displacement constraints, since the possible rigid body
motions are automatically constrained by the Cell Periodicity node.

HOMOGENIZATION METHOD
The homogenization method introduces two scales: a macro scale and a micro scale.
The macro scale usually refers to the homogenized continuous media, and the micro
scale to the heterogeneous unit cell, that is, the RVE. The macro stress tensor  and
the macro strain tensor  are derived by averaging the stresses and strains in the
periodic cell

1 1
V  V 
 = ----  dV and  = ----  dV (3-163)
V V

where V is the volume of the cell. The macroscopic elasticity tensor of the
homogenized continuum is then defined by

 = C : (3-164)

DISPLACEMENT CONTINUITY
For a periodic structure that consists of an array of repeated unit cells, the displacement
field is written as

u = X + u

742 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

where  is global average strain tensor, and u* is a function that is periodic from one
unit cell to another. As the array of cells is a continuous structure, displacement
continuity must be satisfied across the boundaries between the cells. The boundaries
in a Boundary Pair subnode must always appear in parallel pairs. One of them is labeled
as source and the other as destination. The displacements on a pair of parallel and
opposite boundary surfaces can be written as

u dst = X dst + u and u src = X src + u

Hence, the displacement continuity is established by

u dst – u src =   X dst – X src  (3-165)

Together with displacement continuity, the traction continuity should be satisfied for
the RVE, which is done implicitly in the displacement based finite element method.
There are different options available to enforce the displacement continuity constraint:

• Free Expansion
• Prescribed Average Strain
• Prescribed Average Stress
• Mixed

FREE EXPANSION
In order to determine the homogeneous coefficient of thermal expansion of a
heterogeneous material, the material is subjected to unit rise in temperature, while it
is allowed to expand freely. To model this behavior, the global average strain tensor 
in Equation 3-165 is considered as a global degree of freedom that varies freely. The
averaged coefficient of thermal expansion  is computed as

1 

 = ---- ------- dV
V T
V

Similarly, to determine the homogeneous coefficient of hygroscopic swelling, the

material is subjected to a unit rise in concentration. The averaged coefficient of
hygroscopic swelling  is then computed as

1 

 = ---- -------- dV
V C
V

LOADS AND CONSTRAINTS | 743

 If no averaged properties are computed, the free expansion option only computes the
average stress and strain tensors by enforcing Equation 3-165 as a constraint.

PRESCRIBED AVERAGE STRAIN

In order to determine the homogeneous elasticity tensor of a heterogeneous material,
the material is subjected to a unit strain in each direction, one-by-one, while keeping
the other strain components equal to zero. To model this behavior, the global average
strain tensor  in Equation 3-165 is a user input. The average stress is computed from
Equation 3-163, and the elasticity tensor is obtained from Equation 3-164.

PRESCRIBED AVERAGE STRESS

In order to determine the homogeneous compliance tensor of a heterogeneous
material, the material is subjected to a unit stress in each direction, one-by-one, while
keeping the other stress components equal to zero. The average stress is a user input,
and the global average strain tensor  in Equation 3-165 is a global degree of freedom,
which is defined by a global weak equation

:V (3-166)

The compliance tensor is then obtained from the following equation

–1
 = C :

MIXED
This option studies the response of the unit cell when subjected to a combination of
prescribed stress and strain. You can choose which components of the average stress
and strain tensors to enter as user inputs; the remaining components are computed
from Equation 3-163 and Equation 3-166 by enforcing Equation 3-165 as a
constraint.

Rigid Connector
The rigid connector is a special kinematic constraint, which can be attached to one or
several boundaries, edges, or points. The effect is that all connected entities behave as
if they were connected by a common rigid body.

There are two different formulations of the rigid connector, rigid and flexible. In the
flexible form, the rigid motion is prescribed only in an average sense, and instead an
assumption about linearly distributed traction fields is used.

744 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The only degrees of freedom needed to represent this assembly are the ones needed to
represent the movement of a rigid body. In 2D this is simply two in-plane translations,
and the rotation around the z-axis.

In 3D the situation is more complex. Six degrees of freedom, usually selected as three
translations and three parameters for the rotation, are necessary. For finite rotations,
however, any choice of three rotation parameters is singular at some specific set of
angles. For this reason, a four-parameter quaternion representation is used for the
rotations in COMSOL Multiphysics. Thus, each rigid connector in 3D actually has
seven degrees of freedom, three for the translation and four for the rotation. The
quaternion parameters are called a, b, c, and d. These four parameters are not
independent, so an extra equation stating that the following relation is added:

2 2 2 2
a +b +c +d = 1

The connection between the quaternion parameters and a rotation matrix R is

2 2 2 2
a +b –c –d 2bc – 2 ad 2ac + 2bd
R = 2ad + 2bc
2 2
a –b +c –d
2 2
2cd – 2ab
2 2 2 2
2bd – 2 ac 2ab + 2cd a –b –c +d

Under pure rotation, a vector from the center of rotation (Xc) of the rigid connector
to a point X on the undeformed object is rotated into

x – Xc = R   X – Xc 

where x is the new position of the point originally at X. The displacement is by

definition

u = x – X =  R – I    X – Xc 

where I is the unit matrix.

When the center of rotation of the rigid connector also has a translation uc, then the
complete expression for the rigid body displacements is

ur =  R – I    X – Xc  + uc (3-167)

The total rotation of the rigid connector can be also presented as a rotation vector. Its
definition is

LOADS AND CONSTRAINTS | 745

  b 2 + c 2 + d 2
2 atan  ----------------------------------- b
 a 
 = ---------------------------------------------------------- c
2 2 2
b +c +d d

The parameter a can be considered as measuring the rotation, while b, c, and d can be
interpreted as the orientation of the rotation vector. For small rotations, this relation
simplifies to

b
 = 2 c
d

The rotation vector is available as the variables thx_tag, thy_tag, and thz_tag. Here
tag is the tag of the Rigid Connector node in the Model Builder tree.

It is possible to apply forces and moments directly to a rigid connector. A force

implicitly contributes also to the moment if it is not applied at the center of rotation
of the rigid connector. The directions of the forces and moments can either be in space
and or follow the rotation of the rigid connector.

WEAK FORMULATION
Instead of enforcing the rigid body constraint on the selected boundaries in the
pointwise form, it is possible to use a weak form of the constraint. This is invoked by
selecting Use weak constraints for rigid-flexible connection in the Constraint Settings
section for a rigid connector. The weak form is implemented as

 u – u r   test  F rs  + F rs  test  u – u r  = 0 (3-168)

Here u is the displacement field on the boundaries, ur is the rigid body displacement
as given by Equation 3-167, and Frs is the reaction force field (Lagrange multiplier).

The weak formulation cannot be combined with the flexible formulation described
below.

FLEXIBLE FORMULATION
The flexible formulation of the rigid connector is based on the weak expression of the
constraint, Equation 3-168. In the original weak form, however, the reaction force
field can have any distribution, in order to enforce the rigid body motion.

746 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

In the flexible formulation, it is assumed that the reaction force field has a linear
distribution, given by

F rs = F c + F d   X – X c  (3-169)

Here Fc (unit: N) and Fd (unit: N/m) are two global vectors, each having three
degrees of freedom in 3D. Fc can be directly interpreted as the reaction force at the
center of rotation. Fd can be considered as a representation of the gradient of the
reaction force field.

In the case of geometric nonlinearity, Equation 3-169 is replaced by

F rs = F c + F d   R   X – X c   (3-170)

where R is the rotation matrix. In 2D, Fc is a vector with two components, whereas
Fd is a scalar.

If the boundaries selected in the rigid connector are not contiguous, then each set of
connected boundaries will have its own set of Fc and Fd degrees of freedom. The
center of rotation, Xc, is then taken as the center of gravity for each individual group
of boundaries.

When using the flexible formulation, the reaction force degrees of

freedom are named
<physics>.<rigid_tag>.F<c|d><boundary_group><DOF>, and so
on. Examples are solid.rig1.Fc1x or solid.rig2.Fd5z.

Continuity Condition
The Continuity node is a way to connect disconnected parts of an assembly by adding
constraints or equations on a shared boundary. Consider a problem with two domains
src and dst with a fully or partially shared boundary int such that
 int =  src   dst , as is schematically shown in Figure 3-33.

LOADS AND CONSTRAINTS | 747

 Nsrc
src

src dst

Ndst
dst

Figure 3-33: Schematic illustration of a continuity interface between two disconnected

parts of an assembly.

To enforce continuity between the two domains, the following conditions has to hold
on the shared boundary

u src – u dst = 0 on  int (3-171)

P src N src + P dst N dst = T src + T dst = 0 on  int (3-172)

where Pi is the fist Piola-Kirchoff stress tensor, Ti is the nominal traction, and Ni is
the normal vector in the material frame for the respective sides of the interface. The
first condition represents the continuity of displacements and the second follows from
the Newton’s third law. If the Classical constraints method in the Continuity node is
used, pointwise constraints are set up on dst to enforce the continuity of
displacements given by Equation 3-171. This is accomplished with the help of the
mapping operator map(E, x) that is set up by the Identity pair, where E is some
generic quantity to be mapped and x is the point to which E is mapped. Using this
operator, the constraint equation is written as

map  u X dst  – u = 0 on  dst

where it is here implied that the mapping is made using material coordinates X, and
that the mapping is made from src to dst. The above pointwise constraint implicitly
enforces the condition given by Equation 3-172. The above constraint equation can
also be implemented as weak constraints by introducing Lagrange multipliers.

Another alternative is to use the Nitsche method, which was originally suggested by
J. Nitsche in 1971 to weakly impose Dirichlet conditions without having to add
Lagrange multipliers. To implement the continuity condition by the Nitsche method,

748 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

one can, following for example Ref. 4, start from the weak form of a generic boundary
condition

0 = +  A  u   B  u  dA (3-173)


where A(u) is a flux-like operator and B(u) is a trace-like operator that can be seen as
a conjugate pair, and  represents the test function. The next step is to reformulate
these operators as

A u =  A u –  Bu  – c  

1 
B  u  = – ---  A  u  – B  u   + --- A  u 
 

where c is a known quantity such as a prescribed displacement, is a stabilization

factor, and is a parameter used to control the symmetry of the formulation. Inserting
these reformulations of A(u) and B(u) into Equation 3-173, after simplification, leads
to the following weak contribution for implementing the Nitsche method for a generic
boundary condition


0 =  +  B  u   A  u  dA +  A  u   B  u  dA –   B  u   B  u  dA
  


– c   A  u  – B  u   dA


To implement the continuity condition the unknowns A(u), B(u), and c has to be
identified. Considering the continuity of displacements in Equation 3-171, the
displacement jump across the interface is defined as


 u – map  u X ds  on  dst
ud = 
 u – map  u X src  on  src


By also using the average traction defined as


 0.5  T – map  T X dst   on  dst
T avg = 
 0.5  T – map  T X src   on  src


LOADS AND CONSTRAINTS | 749

 the action-reaction principle in Equation 3-172 can be weakly imposed as

0 = +  Tavg  ud dA


From the above and Equation 3-173, it can identify that

A  u  = T avg

B  u  = ud

and one can also realize that for continuity, c = 0. The Nitsche formulation of the
continuity conditions then follows as


0 =  +  u d  T avg dA +  Tavg  ud dA –   u  ud dA
  

From the above weak equation several variants of the Nitsche formulation can then be
set up. Firstly, it is possible to parameterize the integrals on both sides of the interface,
or alternatively on either src or dst only. The first option is less sensitive to the mesh
on either side, but can be more expensive since it involves more mapping operations
to evaluate. Secondly, the parameter makes it possible to set up formulations with
different properties and stability:

• Setting  = 1 results in a symmetric formulation that maintains the symmetry of the

overall system of equations. The main drawback of this setting is that is requires a
suitable choice for to maintain accuracy and stability.
• Setting  = -1 results in a skew-symmetric formulation. This formulation is much
less sensitive to the choice of  but makes the overall system of equations
nonsymmetric.
• Setting  = 0 results in a nonsymmetric formulation. This formulation is less
sensitive to the choice of  than the symmetric one, but not as robust as the
skew-symmetric. However, this choice causes the term Tavg to cancel out. For
large deformations and nonlinear materials in particular, this term can be expensive
to evaluate, making the nonsymmetric formulation an attractive choice.

750 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Contact Analysis Theory
In this section:

• Contact Search and Kinematics

• Definition of Contact Tractions
• Normal Contact
• Tangential Contact with Friction
• Unbiased Formulation and Self-Contact
• Adhesion
• Decohesion
• Wear

In COMSOL Multiphysics you can model contact between a group of boundaries in

1D, 2D or 3D. There are three classes of algorithms available: the penalty method, the
augmented Lagrangian method, and the Nitsche method.

• Contact Modeling
• Documentation of the Contact, Friction, Slip Velocity, Adhesion,
Decohesion, and Wear features
• Identity and Contact Pairs in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference
Manual

Contact Search and Kinematics

A prerequisite for setting up the mechanical contact problem is to define the contact
search between the source boundary and the destination boundary. The purpose of the
search is to detect points on the contacting boundaries that are in contact or may come
in contact, and also to map quantities between such points. This part of the contact
problem is defined in the Contact Pair that sets up relevant variables and operators to
map quantities between the selected source and destination boundaries. In COMSOL
Multiphysics, the contact search is made using a ray-tracing strategy as depicted in
Figure 3-34. For mechanical contact, most variables and equations are formulated on
the destination boundary. Hence, the typical mapping of interest here is from the

CONTACT ANALYSIS THEORY | 751

 source boundary to the destination boundary, however, it is possible to map quantities
in the opposite direction as well.

Destination

xdst dst

ndst
nsrc

xsrc src

Source

Figure 3-34: Schematic illustration of the contact search and mapping between a source
and destination boundary.

For each point xdst in the spatial frame on the destination boundary dst, the closest
point xsrc in the spatial frame on the source boundary src in the direction of the
destination spatial normal ndst is sought. Such a mapping can be described through an
operator map(E, x), where E is some generic quantity or expression, and x is the point
to which E is mapped. Using this mapping operator, the coordinates of the mapped
point on src is

x src = map  x x dst 

where x is the spatial coordinates that parameterize src. For brevity, the second
argument of the mapping operator is omitted in the following and it should be
understood that the mapping occurs to a point xdst on dst if nothing else is specified.

An important quantity for contact mechanics is the gap function ggeom(x) defined as
the geometric distance between the source and the destination boundary. Note that
ggeom(x) is not necessarily the closest distance between the two boundaries. Using the
mapping operator, the gap distance at xdst is defined as

g geom  x dst  = – n dst   x dst – map  x  

752 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

With the above definitions, a positive gap infers that there is a geometrical separation
between the points, while a negative gap that there is an overclosure. Apart from the
mapping operator, the Contact Pair also defines a dedicated variable for the gap
function with the name geomgap_dst_<pair_tag>.

• A Contact Pair sets up mapping operators that can be used in any

expression to map quantities from the source to the destination
boundary with the syntax src2dst_<pair_tag>(expr).
• An operator is also defined for mapping quantities from the destination
to the source boundary with the syntax dst2src_<pair_tag>(expr).
Similarly, a gap variable is defined with the name
geomgap_src_<pair_tag>.

• The mapping by default uses the spatial frame normal. If the Mapping
method in the Contact Pair is changed to Initial configuration, the
mapping is instead performed in the direction of the material frame
normal. This means that the direction of the mapping is constant and
not affected by how the contacting boundaries deform.

For the mechanical contact problem, it is additionally possible to define a physical

offset from the geometric source and destination boundary. This means that the
physical gap function gn(x) and geometrical gap function do not necessarily coincide.
The physical gap distance including offsets at xdst is defined as

map  d offset, s 
g n  x dst  = g geom – d offset, d – -------------------------------------- (3-174)
–  n  map  n  

where doffset,s and doffset,d is the offset from the source and destination boundary,
respectively. Each offset variable can vary along the geometry, and may also vary in
time (or by the parameter value when using the continuation solver). The correction
of the source side offset is necessary since the normal of xsrc, nsrc = map(n), is not
necessarily pointing towards xdst as illustrated in Figure 3-34. When the geometric
surfaces are in contact, the normals will be exactly opposite such that nsrc = -ndst.

In some cases, the discretization of the geometry, especially at curved boundaries, will
give small irregularities in the gap function. You can then choose to adjust the physical
gap by removing the geometric gap computed in the initial configuration, ginit, smaller
than the tolerance gap. In this case, the physical gap function at xdst is

CONTACT ANALYSIS THEORY | 753

  map  d offset, s 
 g if g init   gap
 geom – d offset, d – --------------------------------------
–  n  map  n  
g n  x dst  = 
 map  d offset, s 
 g geom – g init – d offset, d – -------------------------------------- else
 –  n  map  n  

For problems including friction or adhesion, it is also necessary to know the tangential
movement, or slip, between the source and destination boundary. The rate of the
relative slip vector gt between the two boundaries at xdst is defined as

 X
g  x  = map  F x dst map   x dst (3-175)
 t t dst t 

where X is the material coordinates, and F is the deformation gradient that contains
information about the local rotation and stretch. Note that the mapping is made
between points in the spatial frame as clarified in the equation. Both quantities are
mapped from the source to the destination boundary. Constitutive models for the
mechanical problem are typically formulated on an incremental form. COMSOL
Multiphysics applies a backward Euler approximation to Equation 3-175 so that the
incremental slip at xdst is

g t  x dst  = map  F   map  X  – X src, old 

where Xsrc,old is the mapped material coordinates at the previous increment.

When a Contact node is added to a Shell, Layered Shell, or Membrane interface, the
material and spatial frames used in the contact mapping are adjusted to account for the
thickness of the structural element by considering the physical position of its top and
bottom surface relative to the geometric boundary. This also applies to boundaries that
intersect the selection of a Thin Layer node in the Solid Mechanics interface. For
example, the contact material coordinates Xcnt and the spatial coordinates xcnt in a
Contact node added in the Shell interface are defined as

cnt
X = X + zN

cnt
x = x + zn

where z is the offset from the geometric boundary to the considered contact boundary.
The definition of the geometric gap is then accordingly adjusted and given as

cnt cnt cnt cnt

g geom  x dst  = – n dst   x dst – map  x  x dst  

754 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

where ndst is to be interpreted as the normal of the contact boundary. For the Shell
interface, the direction of ndst coincides with the normal of the geometric boundary,
but so is not always the case. This applies to nsrc as well. Note also the that mapping
is made between the modified spatial coordinates. Similar corrections are also made for
other quantities such as the incremental slip gt where the Xcnt is used instead of X.
The same concept is used for other cases where the contact boundary does not
coincide with the geometric boundary, but the definition of Xcnt and xcnt may differ.

Definition of Contact Tractions

Since contact enforces geometric nonlinearity, contact tractions (for example the
contact pressure and friction forces) are represented as nominal tractions. They are
thus to be viewed as a density with components in the current configuration (that is,
on the spatial frame) but related to the undeformed area of the corresponding surface
element.

Normal Contact
The contact constraint in the normal direction to the contacting boundaries can be
represented by the nonpenetration condition. On the destination boundary dst, the
normal contact condition can in a weak sense be written as (the contribution of normal
contact to the virtual work)

0 =  T n g n dA (3-176)
 dst

where Tn is the contact pressure, assumed positive in compression. To complete the

contact condition, Equation 3-176 is subjected to the Kuhn–Tucker conditions

gn  0
Tn  0 (3-177)
Tn gn = 0

where the first inequality represents the nonpenetration condition. Equation 3-176
and Equation 3-177 together represents a unilateral constraint that require special
techniques to implement. Several different techniques for doing so are available in
COMSOL Multiphysics, which can be divided into two main classes: the penalty
method, the augmented Lagrangian method, and the Nitsche method.

CONTACT ANALYSIS THEORY | 755

 An alternative way of expressing the contact condition is to view the contact pressure
as a force acting on both source and destination described as a distributed load.
Making use of Newton’s second law, an alternative to Equation 3-176 can then be
formulated as

0 = –  T n n dst   u – map  u   dA (3-178)

 dst

In principle, Equation 3-176 and Equation 3-178 describes the same contribution to
the virtual work. However, when the system of equations are linearized they will
produce different results. The main difference originates from the variation gn with
respect to u that, for the ray-tracing mapping strategy used by COMSOL Multiphysics,
includes several terms that can be difficult and expensive to evaluate. These are not
present if Equation 3-178 is used, which can increase the robustness of the solution.
What formulation that is used can be controlled by the Jacobian contribution setting in
the Contact node. When set to Symmetric or Legacy, Equation 3-176 is used. For
Symmetric, some terms of gn are omitted to improve the robustness, whereas Legacy
uses the full variation of gn. When the Nonsymmetric option is selected,
Equation 3-178 is used.

The Penalty Method

For the penalty method, the contact pressure in Equation 3-176 is represented using
a penalization of the physical gap so that

 – p n g n + p 0 if g n  p 0  p n
Tn =  (3-179)
 0 else

where pn is the penalty factor, and p0 is the pressure at zero gap. This leads to an
approximative solution of the nonpenetration condition. The penalty method as
defined by Equation 3-179 is conceptually based on the insertion of a nonlinear spring
between the contacting points. The penalty factor can be interpreted as the stiffness of
that spring. A high value of the stiffness enforces the contact conditions more strictly,
but if it is too high, it makes the problem ill-conditioned and unstable.

The pressure at zero gap, p0, can be used to reduce the overclosure between the
contacting boundaries if an estimate to the contact pressure is known. In the default
case, when p0  0, there must always be some overclosure in order for a contact
pressure to develop.

756 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

In addition to Equation 3-179, COMSOL Multiphysics also provides an alternative
penalization based on a viscous formulation intended for transient simulations,
referred to as the Penalty, dynamic method. This formulation is based on the additional
persistency condition

g n
Tn =0
t

In this case, the nonpenetration and persistency conditions are enforced by penalizing
the rate of the physical gap distance such that the contact pressure is defined by

 g n

T n =  p n  –  t  if g n, old  0 (3-180)

 0 else

where gn,old is the physical gap distance at the previous increment, and <> is the
positive parts operator. With the definition in Equation 3-180, Tn is only nonzero if
the physical gap is negative during the entire increment, which is important for energy
conservation during the initial contact event. However, there will always be some
initial penetration before the gap rate is penalized. Hence the observed overclosure will
be dependent on the size of the increment when two points come into contact. Note
that this definition of the contact pressure implies that pressure contact is dissipative.

It is possible to use the definitions of Tn in Equation 3-179 and Equation 3-180

simultaneously. In such a case, they are additive and conceptually represent a parallel
coupling of a spring and a dashpot.

The weak contribution added for normal contact when using the penalty method is

0 = +  T n g n dA
 dst

or

0 = –  T n n dst   u – map  u   dA
 dst

CONTACT ANALYSIS THEORY | 757

 THE AUGMENTED LAGRANGIAN METHOD
The augmented Lagrangian method can be seen as a compromise between using the
penalty method and enforcing the nonpenetration condition using weak constraints
and Lagrange multipliers. The augmented Lagrangian formulation for normal contact
in COMSOL Multiphysics is based on an integral formulation that in a weak sense
enforces the nonpenetration condition exactly over the contacting boundaries. It is
based on the following augmentation of Equation 3-176

1
0 = +  T np g n dA – ------
pn   T np – T n T n dA (3-181)
 dst  dst

where Tnp is the penalized (or augmented) contact pressure, and Tn is a Lagrange
multiplier that can be identified as a contact pressure. Alternatively, Equation 3-178
can be augmented, giving the following result

0 = –  T np n dst   u – map  u   dA
 dst
(3-182)
1
– ------
pn   T np – T n T n dA
 dst

The Lagrange multiplier Tn is defined as a dependent variable of the contact problem

and is typically discretized using Lagrange shape functions. There are two methods for
solving the above coupled system of equations, and this choice affects the definition of
Tnp.

The first solution method is referred to as a Segregated method and corresponds to the
so-called Uzawa algorithm. Here, the system of equations is decoupled, and the
displacement field u and the Lagrange multiplier Tn are solved in a segregated way.
This leads to two levels of iterations in the solver, where Tn is held constant when
solving for u, and vice versa when updating Tn. For this solution method, the
penalized contact pressure Tnp is defined with a smooth transition to stabilize the
problem when transitioning between contact states. The definition for Tnp for outer
iteration j+1 is defined by

758 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 
 T n j – p n g n if g n  0

T np j + 1 =  pn gn
 – ---------------g
Tn
 T n j e else


The segregated method can then for increment n+1 schematically be described as

1 Initialize increment n+1 by setting the outer iteration counter j=0, and the initial
n+1 n n+1 n
values for dependent variables u j = u and T n j = Tn
2 Compute the displacement uj+1 by solving for example

0 = +  T np j + 1 g n j + 1 dA
 dst

3 Compute the Lagrange multiplier Tn,j+1 by solving

0 =   T np j + 1 – T n j + 1 T n dA
 dst

4 If convergence, continue to the next increment, else return to step 2

The appropriate solver sequence is automatically set up by COMSOL Multiphysics for
the Segregated solution method when adding a new solver, or resetting to the default
solver.

The alternative is to use a Fully Coupled solution method, which, as the name implies,
amounts to solving the coupled system in Equation 3-181 or Equation 3-182 for the
two dependent variables u and Tn (and any other variables included in the multiphysics
model). When using this method, the penalized contact pressure is defined by

 T – p n g n if g n  0
T np j + 1 =  n j
 0 else

The Fully Coupled method can be convenient as it enforces the nonpenetration

condition exactly over the contacting boundaries, while it puts no restriction on how
to set up the solver sequence. This flexibility can be especially advantageous when
working with multiphysics problems, compared to the segregated approach. However,
one should be aware that the method comes with some of the drawbacks of a pure
Lagrange multiplier approach, albeit to a lesser extent. One drawback is that the
solution typically is a saddle point, and convergence can be sensitive to how Newton
iterations are made when solving the nonlinear problem.

CONTACT ANALYSIS THEORY | 759

 In the limit, the Segregated and the Fully Coupled solution methods converge to the
same solution, but they can have different convergence properties.

In addition to the standard augmented Lagrangian method outlined above, an

Augmented Lagrangian, dynamic method is available for transient simulations. As
discussed for the penalty method, this formulation is based on the addition of the
persistency condition. A segregated solution method is recommended for this method,
and the main difference compared to the standard method lies in the definition of the
penalized contact pressure. Both the nonpenetration and persistency conditions are
enforced by penalizing the rate of the physical gap distance so that

 g n

T np j + 1 =   T n j – p n  t  if g n, old  0 (3-183)

 0 else

where gn,old is the physical gap distance at the previous increment, and <> is the
positive parts operator. The same segregated solution strategy as described above is
applied also when the dynamic method is used.

THE NITSCHE’S METHOD

The Nitsche’s method for contact is an extension of the general method suggested by
J. Nitsche in 1971 to impose Dirichlet conditions in a weak sense without having to
add Lagrange multipliers. A general derivation of the method for such applications is
presented in Continuity Condition. Here the method is applied to large deformation
contact using Equation 3-178 as a starting point, and following similar steps as in
Ref. 1 to derive the final equations. The first step is to reformulate the contact pressure
from Equation 3-179 as

T n =  –  P  N n – p n g n =  – T a  n – p n g n

where P is the first Piola-Kirchoff stress, N is the material normal, n is the spatial
normal, and Ta is the nominal traction vector. The positive parts operator is used above
to indicate that Tn is strictly positive. The term from Equation 3-178 in brackets
including u is also reformulated as

1 
u – map  u  = – ------  p n u – p n map  u  – T a  + ------ T a
pn pn

where is a parameter used to control the symmetry of the formulation. Using the
above definitions, Equation 3-178 can, after some manipulation and simplification, be

760 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

rewritten to obtain the weak contribution added by the Nitsche method for normal
contact

1
0 =  – ------
pn  T n n dst   u – map  u   dA
 dst
(3-184)

+ ------
pn   T a + T n n dst    P  N  dA
 dst

From the above weak equation several variants of Nitsche’s formulation for contact can
be set up using different values for the parameter :

• Setting  = 1 results in a symmetric formulation. The formulation is requires a

suitable choice for pnto maintain accuracy and stability. However, it is the most
variationally consistent formulation.
• Setting  = -1 results in a skew-symmetric formulation. This formulation is less
sensitive to the choice of pn.
• Setting  = 0 results in a nonsymmetric formulation. This formulation is less
sensitive to the choice of pn than the symmetric one, but not as robust as the
skew-symmetric. However, this choice causes the term P to cancel out. For
nonlinear materials in particular, this term can be expensive to evaluate, making the
nonsymmetric formulation an attractive choice.

Note that since the derivation Equation 3-184 started from Equation 3-178, all of the
above choices of  will cause a nonsymmetric stiffness matrix when setting of the global
system of equations. Also, the penalty factor pn for the Nitsche’s method can be
considered as a stabilization factor, not directly as a spring stiffness as in the penalty
method.

DISSIPATION
The Penalty, dynamic and Augmented Lagrange, dynamic methods are based on a viscous
type formulation, and dissipate energy when the contact is active. The accumulated
dissipated energy Wcntv can be computed by solving a distributed ODE on the
destination boundary:

 g n
W cntv = T n
t t

CONTACT ANALYSIS THEORY | 761

 Tangential Contact with Friction
The tangential behavior of a contact interface, due to friction, can be divided into two
states, the stick state and the slip state. The stick state is simply defined by the
constraint that there can be no tangential movement between the two contacting
boundaries. When the contact enters the slip state, the tangential condition enforces
the direction of the relative tangential motion between points xdst and xsrc on the
respective side of the interface. On the destination boundary dst, the tangential
contact condition can be written as a weak equation (the contribution of tangential
contact to the virtual work)

0 =  T t  g t dA (3-185)
 dst

where Tt is the friction force. The stick and slip conditions are then enforced by the
constitutive model used to define Tt.

Using the same concepts as for the normal contact, and alternative to Equation 3-185
is to use the following weak equation

0 =  T t   u – map  u   dA (3-186)
 dst

CONSTITUTIVE MODEL FOR FRICTION

The constitutive model for friction, including stick and slip, is based on the Coulomb
law. In a general framework similar to plasticity theory, the model can be expressed as

F slip  T t – T t, crit  0
g t Tt
=  ----------- (3-187)
t Tt
0
 F slip = 0

where Fslip is the slip function (analogue to the yield function in plasticity theory), and
 is friction multiplier. The critical friction force Tt,crit determines when slip occurs,
and is defined as

T t, crit = min  T cohe + T n T t, max 

762 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

where Tcohe is the cohesion, and Tt,max defines the maximum friction force that is
admissible. The friction coefficient  can either be defined as an arbitrary constant
expression or through an exponential decay model in time-dependent studies. The
latter model is defined as

 =  dyn +   stat –  dyn  exp  –  dcf v s 

where stat is the static friction coefficient, dyn is the dynamic friction coefficient, vs
is the slip velocity, and dcf is a decay coefficient.

It is possible to also define the critical friction force through an arbitrary expression.
In principle, Tt,crit, or any variable described above, may be defined as a function of
any other variable or field. However, the implementation described in the following is
only valid as long as it does not dependent on Tt. In other words, the implementation
of the friction constitutive model does not allow for hardening behavior of the friction
force.

THE PENALTY METHOD

In COMSOL Multiphysics, implementation of Equation 3-187 is made using a
backward Euler integration. Together with a penalty regularization, this results in the
following set of algebraic equations to solve at increment n+1:

F slip n + 1  T t i + 1 – T t, crit n + 1  0
T t n + 1
T t n + 1 = T t n + p t  g t –  -----------------------
T t n + 1
0
F slip n + 1 = 0

where Tt,n is the friction force at the previous increment. The set of algebraic
equations is solved for unknowns Tt,n+1 and  by introducing a trial state and a return
mapping. In doing so, it is assumed that Tt,crit, n+1 is independent of Tt, n+1, which
leads to an explicit set of equations for finding Tt, n+1. The trial state is first computed
as

trial
T t n + 1 = T t n – p t g t

and the return mapping gives the current value of the friction force

CONTACT ANALYSIS THEORY | 763

  trial
 T t n + 1 if F slip n + 1  0

T t n + 1 =  trial
T t n + 1 (3-188)
 T ----------------------- if F slip n + 1  0
 t , crit  n + 1 trial
 T t  n + 1

The weak contribution added for tangential contact when using the penalty method
follows from Equation 3-185, and is given by

0 = +  T t n + 1  map  F    map  X   dA
 dst

or from Equation 3-186 as

0 = +  T t n + 1   u – map  u   dA
 dst

THE AUGMENTED LAGRANGIAN METHOD

The augmented Lagrangian formulation for tangential contact in COMSOL
Multiphysics is based on an integral formulation that in a weak sense enforces the stick
and slip conditions exactly over the contacting boundaries. It is based on the following
augmentation of Equation 3-185

1
0 = +  T tp  g t dA + -----
pt   T tp – T t   T t dA (3-189)
 dst  dst

where Ttp is the penalized (or augmented) friction, and Tt is a Lagrange multiplier that
can be identified as a traction. Alternatively, Equation 3-186 can be augmented, giving
the following result

0 = +  T tp   u – map  u   dA
 dst
(3-190)
1
+ -----
pt   T tp – T t   T t dA
 dst

The Lagrange multiplier Tt is defined as the dependent variable of the contact problem
and is typically discretized using Lagrange shape functions. There are two methods for

764 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

solving the above coupled system of equations, Segregated and Fully coupled, as selected
in the parent Contact node.

As for the penalty method, Equation 3-187 is implemented using backward Euler
integration of the evolution equations, and a trial state and return mapping to solve
the nonlinear algebraic equations.

When the Segregated solution method is selected in the parent Contact node, the trial
state for outer iteration j+1 is computed as

trial
T t j + 1 = T t j – p t g t

and the return mapping gives the current value of the penalized friction force

 trial
 T t j + 1 if F slip j + 1  0

T tp j + 1 =  trial
T t i + 1
 T - if F slip j + 1  0
---------------------
 t, crit  j + 1 trial
 T t  j + 1

This scheme then fits in to the algorithmic format described for normal contact where
the displacement field u and the Lagrange multipliers associated with contact are
solved in a segregated way. Including friction, this algorithm is schematically described
as

1 Initialize increment n+1 by setting the outer iteration counter j=0, and the initial
n+1 n n+1 n n+1 n
values for dependent variables u j = u , T n j = T n , and T t j = Tt
2 Compute the displacement uj+1 by solving for example

0 = +  T np j + 1 g n dA +  T tp j + 1  map  F    map  X   dA

 dst  dst

3 Compute the Lagrange multipliers Tn,j+1 and Tt,j+1by solving

0 =   T np j + 1 – T n j + 1 T n dA +   T tp j + 1 – T t j + 1 T n dA

 dst  dst

4 If convergence, continue to the next increment, else return to step 2

The segregated algorithm is also used when friction is used together with the
Augmented Lagrangian, dynamic formulation.

When the Fully coupled solution method is selected in the parent Contact node, the trial
friction force for iteration i+1 is computed as

CONTACT ANALYSIS THEORY | 765

 trial
T t i + 1 = T t i – p t g t

The important difference here lies in that for the coupled method, the trial state is
computed as the change from the previous nonlinear iteration every time the coupled
problem is solved. Knowing the trial state, the return mapping is performed similar to
the other methods.

The weak contribution added for tangential contact when using the Fully coupled
solution method follows from Equation 3-189, and is

1
0 = +  T t  map  F    map  X   dA + -----
pt   T tp – T t T t dA
 dst  dst

or similarly from the alternative augmentation in Equation 3-190.

THE NITSCHE’S METHOD

The derivation of Nitsche’s formulation for tangential contact with friction follows
similar steps as for the normal contact in The Nitsche’s Method. Replacing the contact
pressure vector -Tnn in Equation 3-184 with the friction force Tt, the weak
contribution becomes

1 
0 =  + ------
pn  T t   u – map  u   dA + ------
pn   T a – T t    P  N  dA
 dst  dst

The definition of Tt is done in a similar way as for the penalty method following
Equation 3-188. However, for Nitsche’s formulation of frictional contact, the trial
friction force is given as

trial
T t n + 1 = P  N –  P  N n – p n g t = T at – p n g t

where Tat is the tangential part of the nominal traction vector. Note that the same
penalty factor, pn, is always used for the normal and tangential parts of the contact
problem when using the Nitsche method.

PRESCRIBED SLIP VELOCITY

In the Slip Velocity subnode to Contact, it is assumed the tangential contact is in a slip
state when in contact, and that the relative motion between the source and destination
boundaries is known beforehand. That is

766 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 g t
= v slip
t

where vslip is the prescribed velocity on the destination boundary relative to the source
boundary. Given that the rate of the slip is known, the constitutive model for friction
in Equation 3-187 is simplified, and it follows that

– v slip
T t = T t, crit -----------------
v slip

since the slip velocity and friction force are co-linear. The weak contribution added for
tangential contact by the slip velocity follows from Equation 3-185 and is given by

0 = +  T t  map  F    map  X   dA
 dst

or from Equation 3-186 as

0 = +  T t   u – map  u   dA
 dst

DISSIPATION
Friction is a dissipative process and the accumulated dissipated energy Wfric can be
computed by solving a distributed ODE on the destination boundary:

 g t
W = –Tt 
 t fric t

Unbiased Formulation and Self-Contact

The standard formulation for contact in COMSOL Multiphysics as described in
Normal Contact and Tangential Contact with Friction can be viewed as a biased (or
unsymmetric) formulation in the sense the contact forces are added on one side of a
contact pair only, the destination boundary. Often this is a preferred formulation since
it involves the fewest possible evaluation points where equations and contact mappings
have to be evaluated, making it attractive from a performance point of view. However,
it puts requirements on, for example, the relative mesh density between source and
destination to be accurate. In some situations it might also be difficult to a priori split

CONTACT ANALYSIS THEORY | 767

 a set of boundaries in a source and destination as, for example, when objects are
self-intersecting. This situation is typically referred to as self-contact.

For such cases, it is also possible to set up an unbiased (or symmetric) formulation for
contact by using the same selection as source and destination in a Contact Pair. That is,
src = dst in the schematic problem description in Figure 3-34 and one can instead
refer to a single contact boundary cnt. Since contact forces will then be added on both
sides of a pair of mapped points, the added equations needs to be modified in order to
be consistent. To accomplish this, Equation 3-176 is instead written as

1
0 = ---
2  T n g n dA
 cnt

when it is detected that src = dst. Similarly Equation 3-178 is formulated as

1
0 = – ---
2  T n n dst   u – map  u   dA
 cnt

The specialized versions of these equations for the penalty method, the augmented
Lagrangian method, and the Nitsche method as well as those for tangential contact
then follows similarly.

Adhesion
You can model a situation where two boundaries stick together once they get into
contact by adding an Adhesion subnode to Contact. Adhesion can only be modeled
when the penalty contact method is used. The adhesion formulation can be viewed as
if a thin elastic layer is placed between the source and destination boundaries when
adhesion is activated.

The adhesion starts acting when the adhesion criterion is met in the previous time or
parameter step. An internal degree of freedom located at Gauss points is used as an
indicator of whether the adhesion criterion has been met or not.

Using the effective gap distance gn and the slip gt, the adhesion formulation defines
an incremental displacement jump vector u in the local boundary system as

–T
u = {0, 0  g n} + T b  g t

768 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

where Tb-T contains the transform from the global system to the boundary system. In
the above expression, the Macaulay brackets indicate the positive parts operator such
that


 x =  x, if x  0
 0, if x  0

Using the displacement jump vector, the adhesive stress vector f is defined as

f = ku

where k is the adhesive stiffness. For negative values of gn, the normal component of
f is zero, and the contact condition is resolved by the penalty contact formulation.
Notice that a different sign convention is used for the normal stress in the adhesion
and contact contributions, where Tn is positive in compression.

The adhesive stiffness k can be defined using three different options: From contact
penalty factor, User defined, and Use material data. For the first option, the normal
stiffness is set equal to the contact pressure penalty factor pn. The two tangential
stiffness components are then assumed to be related to the normal stiffness, so that the
stiffness vector equals

k = {n  p n, n  p n p n}

where n is a coefficient with the default value 0.17. This coefficient can either be input
explicitly, or be computed from a Poisson’s ratio. A plane strain assumption is used for
this conversion, giving

1 – 2
n  = ---------------------
21 – 

For the Use material data option, k is calculated from the elastic constants of a fictive
layer with a thickness equal to ds.

The adhesive contribution to the virtual work on the destination boundary is

  f  u  dA
dst

CONTACT ANALYSIS THEORY | 769

 Decohesion
When adhesion is active, it is possible to break the bond between the source and
destination boundaries by adding a Decohesion subnode to Contact. Decohesion
modifies the stress vector f defined by Adhesion, but does not explicitly add any new
contribution to the to the virtual work on the destination boundary. It thus requires
an active Adhesion node.

Decohesion is implemented using a Cohesive Zone Model (CZM) based on interface

damage mechanics. In essence, a CZM can be viewed as a regularization of linear
elastic fracture mechanics, where the energy release rate is distributed over a process
zone resulting in the progressive fracture of the interface. Here damage is assumed to
be a scalar variable that affects both the normal and tangential components of the stress
vector. Crack opening in the normal direction is called mode I fracture, while shear is
called mode II (or mode III) fracture.

For a general CZM, the stress vector is defined as

f =  1 – d ku = ku – dku (3-191)

where d is the damage variable. During crack opening (or shearing), the damage
variable grows, resulting in a softening behavior of the interface until it eventually
breaks when d = 1, see Figure 3-36. If the interface is unloaded, the material follows
the linear secant stiffness as defined by the current state of damage. No permanent
deformations remain at complete unloading.

The Decohesion subnode implements the second term on the right-hand side of
Equation 3-191, while the first term is implemented in Adhesion. Notice that in the
normal direction, damage only applies to separation of the boundaries, hence the
normal contact is unaffected by decohesion.

Two different CZM are available, providing different alternatives on how to define the
evolution of damage during decohesion.

DISPLACEMENT-BASED DAMAGE
In the displacement-based damage models, the damage variable d is defined using a
damage evolution function written in terms of a displacement quantity. Since, in
general, the fracture is a combination of mode I and mode II fracture, the model
introduces a mixed mode displacement um as the norm of the displacement jump
vector.

um = u

770 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

To keep track of the current state of damage, the maximum value of um over the
loading history is defined as

old
u m, max = max  u m u m, max 
old
where u m, max is and internal degree of freedom that takes the value of um,max at the
previous converged solution. The damage variable is then defined as a function of
um,max of the form


 0 if u m, max  u 0m
d = 
–1
 min  F  u m, max  1  else


where F-1 is called the damage evolution function and u0m defines the onset of
damage. Conceptually, the damage evolution function is the inverse of the softening
branch of the traction separation law F. Four different definitions of F-1 are available
in the Traction separation law list. These damage evolution functions are summarized
in Figure 3-35, and the resulting traction separations laws in Figure 3-36.

Figure 3-35: Damage evolution functions available with the displacement-based damage
model.

CONTACT ANALYSIS THEORY | 771

 Figure 3-36: Traction separation laws available with the displacement-based damage
model.

The Linear option specifies a damage evolution function that gives a bilinear traction
separation law as seen in Figure 3-36. It is defined as

u fm u m, max – u 0m
F  u m, max  = --------------------  -------------------------------------
–1
u m, max  u fm – u 0m 

where u0m and ufm define the mixed mode initiation of damage and point of complete
fracture, respectively. For the initiation of damage, a linear mixed mode criterion gives

2
um
u 0m = u 0t u 0s ----------------------------------------------
- (3-192)
2 2 2 2
 u I u 0s + u II u 0t

where uI and uII are the mode I and mode II displacements, respectively. These are
obtained from the displacement jump vector u. The constants u0t and u0s are
calculated as

t s
u 0t = ------ and u 0s = -----
kt
- (3-193)
kn

where t is the tensile strength and s is the shear strength of the adhesive layer. The
normal stiffness kn and the equivalent tangential stiffness kt are obtained from the

772 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

adhesive stiffness vector k. The mixed mode failure displacement ufm depends on the
selected Mixed mode criterion. The Power Law criterion is defined as

GI   G II 
 --------
- +  --------
- = 1
 G ct  G cs

and the Benzeggagh-Kenane criterion is defined as

G II 
G ct +  G cs – G ct   ---------------------- = G cm
 G I + G II

where Gct, Gcs and Gcm are the tensile, shear, and total energy release rates,
respectively. The exponent  is called the mode mixity exponent. From these relations,
the mixed mode failure displacement can be calculated. For the power law criterion,
the expression is

 – 1-
 2  -----

 2
2
 1 +  -  -------- k n     k t
 ----------------------- - -----------
 G ct +  G cs  if u I  0
u fm =  u 0m (3-194)

 2G cs
 ------------- if u I  0
s


with  = u II  u I . For the Benzeggagh–Kenane criterion, the corresponding

expression is

 
  kt 2 
 2u m
2  ----- -u
k n II  
 ------------------------------------------------
- G ct +  G cs – G ct   --------------------------- if u I  0
 2
u 0m  k n u I + k t u II 
2 k 2
u fm =   u 2I + -----t- u  (3-195)
  k n II

 2G cs
 ------------
- if u I  0
 s

The Exponential option specifies a damage evolution function that gives a traction
separation law which is linear up to the interface strength, and thereafter softens with
an exponential curve that reaches zero asymptotically as seen in Figure 3-36.

u 0m u m, max – u 0m
F  u m, max  = 1 – -------------------- exp  – -------------------------------------
–1
u m, max  u fm – u 0m 

CONTACT ANALYSIS THEORY | 773

 The mixed mode damage initiation displacement u0m is defined by Equation 3-192
and Equation 3-193. The mixed mode failure displacement ufm is for the power law
again given by

 –1
  2  -----

-
  u 0m 2 
2   u 0m 2 
 u 0m  1 +    k n ----------- +  k t ----------------- if u I  0
u fm =   G ct   G cs 

 G cs
 --------- if u I  0
 s

and for the Benzeggagh–Kenane criterion by

 
  kt 2 
 um
2  ----- -u
k n II  
 ------------------------------------------------
- G ct +  G cs – G ct   --------------------------- if u I  0
 2 2  2 kt 2 
u fm =  u 0m  k n u I + k t u II   u I + ------ u 
  k n II

 G cs
 --------
- if u I  0
 s

The Polynomial option specifies a damage evolution function that gives a traction
separation law that is linear up to the interface strength. and thereafter softens with a
cubic polynomial curve as seen in Figure 3-36.

u 0m u m, max – u 0m 2 u m, max – u 0m
F  u m, max  = 1 – -------------------- 1 +  -------------------------------------  2 ------------------------------------- – 3
–1
u m, max  u fm – u 0m   u fm – u 0m 

The mixed mode damage initiation displacement u0m is defined by Equation 3-192
and Equation 3-193, and the mixed mode failure displacement ufm by
Equation 3-194 or Equation 3-195.

The Multilinear option specifies a damage evolution function that gives a traction
separation law that is linear up to the interface strength. Thereafter a region of constant
stress is introduced before the interface softens linearly as seen in Figure 3-36.

 u 0m
 1 – -------------------- if u m, max  u pm
–1  u m, max
F  u m, max  = 
 u 0m u fm – u m, max
 1 – --------------------  ------------------------------------ if u m, max  u pm
 u m, max u fm – u pm

774 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The mixed mode damage initiation displacement u0m is defined by Equation 3-192
and Equation 3-193. The new constant upm defines the end of the region of constant
stress and requires the introduction of the shape factor . The shape factor defines the
ratio between the constant stress part of Gct and the total “inelastic” part of Gct:

 t  u pt – u 0t   t  u pt – u 0t 
 = ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- = ----------------------------------
1 1
 t  u pt – u 0t  + ---  t  u ft – u pt  G ct – ---  t u 0t
2 2

Note that the shape factor is similarly defined for shear and is assumed to be equal for
both components. Setting  = 0 corresponds to the linear separation law. Using the
above expression, the stress plateau displacement upi for the respective component can
be expressed as

G ci 
u pi =  -------- + u 0i  1 – ---
i  2

and the failure displacement ufi as

G ci u 0i
u fi =  2 –   -------- + ------------
i 2

where index i indicates either tension or shear. For the multilinear option, the mixed
mode criterion is always linear ( = 1). Hence the mixed mode stress plateau
displacement and failure displacements are given as

2
u m, max
u pm = --------------------------------------
-
2 2 2 2
u I u ps + u II u pt

2
1+
- –  u pm – u 0m 
u fm = 2G ct G cs -----------------------------------------------------------
2
u 0m  k n G cs +  k t G cs 

ENERGY-BASED DAMAGE
The energy-based damage models provide an alternative formulation that relates the
growth of damage to the dissipated mechanical energy of the interface. The
formulation is based on the work presented in Ref. 5 and Ref. 6. The derivation starts
from a stored energy function

CONTACT ANALYSIS THEORY | 775

 1
  u d  = ---  1 – d ku  u
2

From (u, d), the stress vector f and damage energy release rate Ydm are obtained as

    u d  
f = ---------------------------- =  1 – d ku
u

    u d   1
Y dm = – ---------------------------- = --- ku  u
d 2

To keep track of the current state of damage, the maximum value of Yd over the
loading history is defined as

old
Y dm, max = max  Y dm Y dm, max 
old
where Y d, max is and internal degree of freedom that takes the value of Ydm,max at the
previous converged solution. The energy dissipated during the decohesion process is


ꞏ
 Ydm, max dt = G cm
0

where Gcm is the critical energy release rate in the sense of fracture mechanics. The
overall behavior of the cohesive zone model is then summarized by

 Y if d = 0
 d0m
 t
 ꞏ
Y dm, max
 
=  Y dm, max dt = F  d  if 0  d  1
 0
 Y if d = 1
 dm

where Yd0m defines the damage threshold and F is a monotonically increasing function
of the damage variable. From the above, an expression for the damage variable is
obtained as


 0 Y dm, max  Y dm0
d = 
–1
 min  F  Y dm, max  1  else


776 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Three different definitions of F-1 are available under the Traction separation law list for
the energy-based damage model. These damage evolution functions are summarized
in Figure 3-37, and the resulting traction separations laws in Figure 3-38.

Figure 3-37: Damage evolution functions available with the energy-based damage model.
Note that the initial damage threshold is 10 times lower for the Exponential and
Polynomial laws.

Figure 3-38: Traction separation laws available with the energy-based damage model.
Note that the initial damage threshold is 10 times lower for the Exponential and
Polynomial laws.

CONTACT ANALYSIS THEORY | 777

 The Linear option specifies a damage evolution function that gives a bilinear traction
separation law as seen in Figure 3-38.

–1 Y dfm  Y d0m 
F  Y d, max  = ---------------------------------  ------------------
- – 1
Y d0m – Y dfm  Y d, max 

For the linear law, the equation constant Ydfm = Gcm. The Exponential option specifies
a more general damage evolution function of the following form

1
----
Y d, max – Y d0m N
F  Y d, max  = 1 – exp  ---------------------------------------
–1
Y dfm – Y d0m

where N is a smoothening parameter with a default value equal to 1. The effect of N

on the traction separation curve can be seen in Figure 3-38. For the exponential law,
Ydfm is defined as

G cm – Y d0m
Y dfm = Y d0m + -------------------------------
1 + N

where () is the gamma function. A similar damage evolution function is obtained by
the Polynomial option. It gives a generalized version of the traction separation law
proposed in Ref. 6 of the form

1
----
Y d, max – Y d0m N
F  Y d, max  =  ---------------------------------------
–1
 Y dfm – Y d0m 

where

Y dfm = N  ---- + 1 G cm – Y d0m

1
N

Left to determine are the two variables Yd0m and Gcm. Their definitions require the
introduction of a few new concepts related to the mixed mode loading. First, a mixed
mode ratio is introduced

k u II
 = -----t-  --------
kn  uI 

where uI and uII are the mode I and mode II displacements, respectively. These are
obtained from the displacement jump vector u. The energy release rates of the
respective modes are then given by

778 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 2
1 
Y dI = ---------------2 Y dm and Y dII = ---------------2 Y dm
1+ 1+

Next, two mode mixture rules are formulated, one for the initiation of damage and one
for the critical energy release rates. A power law criterion is assumed for both, such that
for the onset of damage

Y dI 0 Y dII  0
 --------
- +  ----------- = 1
 G 0t  G 0s 

where G0t and G0s define the damage threshold in tension and shear, respectively. The
corresponding criterion for the fracture toughness is

GI  c G II  c
 --------
- +  --------- = 1
 G ct  G cs

where Gct and Gcs are the critical energy release rates for tension and shear,
respectively. The variables 0 and c are called mode mixity exponents. Using these
mode mixture rules results in

2
 1 +  G 0t G 0s
Y d0m = -----------------------------------------------------
1
-
-----
0
 0 2 0 
 G 0s +   G 0t  
 

2
 1 +  G ct G cs
G cm = ---------------------------------------------------
1
-
-----
c
 c 2 c 
 G cs +   G ct  
 

REGULARIZATION
Due to the release of energy during decohesion and the softening behavior of the
damage models, models may suffer from unwanted mesh dependency. The CZM can
suffer from instability leading to nonconverging solutions, or bifurcation causing
different solutions for different meshes. Such deficiencies may be alleviated by
introducing some additional form of regularization. Under the Regularization list, it is
possible to add the Delayed damage regularization. This option adds a viscous delay to
the damage growth, and is available with time-dependent studies. The formulation
introduces a viscous damage variable dv, and redefines Equation 3-191 so that

CONTACT ANALYSIS THEORY | 779

 T T T
f =  1 – d v k u = k u – d v k u

The variation of the viscous damage variable is defined as

ꞏ 1
d v = – ---  d v – d  (3-196)


where d is the damage variable obtained from any of the available CZM, and  is the
characteristic time that defines the delay of the decohesion. If the viscous damage is
used to stabilize a rate-independent decohesion problem, the value of must be chosen
with care. As a rule of thumb,  should at least be one or two orders of magnitude
smaller than the expected time step. Too large values of can introduce significant
amounts of extra fracture energy to the model, and the actual energy dissipated due to
damage can exceed the defined critical energy release rates by orders of magnitude.
n+1
The current value of the viscous damage variable d v is obtained from numerical
integration of Equation 3-196, such that

t n t
= exp  – ------ d v + 1 – exp  – ------ d
n+1 n+1
dv
  

where t is the current time step taken by the time-dependent solver. The value of the
n
viscous damage at the previously converged step d v is stored as an internal degree of
freedom.

DAMAGE DISSIPATION
The dissipation due to damage is given as

ꞏ ꞏ ꞏ 1 T
W dmg = d W sd = d  --- k u  u
2

The energy dissipated due to damage at the current step is approximated by

n+1 n+1
n+1 n+1 n  W sd – W sd n + 1 n
W dmg =  d – d   -------------------------------------- + W sd  + W dmg
 2 

where the required values at the previously converged step n are stored as internal
degrees of freedom.

780 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Wear
By adding a Wear subnode to a Contact node, it is possible to model adhesive or
abrasive wear of the material when the contacting boundaries are sliding along each
other. Since wear involves solving evolution equations, the Wear node only adds a
contribution for time-dependent studies.

In the Solid Mechanics and the Multibody Dynamics interfaces, the removal of
material during the wear process can be modeled with two fundamentally different
techniques. The most general technique is to model the removal using the deformed
geometry concept. With this approach, the material frame X of the domains adjacent
to the contacting boundaries is updated according to the computed wear depth hwear.
This means that there is an actual removal of material during the simulation which
affects, for example, the contact search, mapping and conditions. When selecting the
Deformed geometry formulation, the wear feature adds a (hidden) Deforming Domain
feature that controls the material frame through an adaptive mesh smoothing. The
removal of material is made through a (hidden) Prescribed Normal Mesh
Displacement boundary condition controlled by hwear on the selected contact
boundaries. By adding the deformed geometry, an extra dependent variable is added,
the material mesh displacement material.disp. This adds a set of extra degrees of
freedom to the model that needs to be solved for.

Alternatively, the removal of material can be modeled using an offset-based approach.

This formulation offers a simplified approach that is computationally less expensive,
but mainly suitable when the amount of worn-off material is small. When selecting the
Offset-based formulation, hwear is subtracted from the offset variables doffset,s and
doffset,d in Equation 3-174. Hence, the material is considered removed only in the
definition of the physical gap, while the contact search and mapping are unaffected.
The latter follows from the fact that the actual coordinates and normals of the
contacting boundaries essentially remain constant with respect to the wear; they,
however, can change due to the deformation induced by the wear and changing
contact conditions.

In the Shell and Membrane interfaces, wear is modeled by simultaneously changing the
thickness variable and the offset from the midsurface to the meshed boundary. With
this approach wear can also be modeled on the top side, the bottom side, or on both
sides at the same time.

The accumulated wear is computed from an evolution equation of the following

general format

CONTACT ANALYSIS THEORY | 781

 h wear
= f  v slip T N T  
t

where the rate of the wear depth is given by some source term f that is typically a
function of the slip velocity vslip, the contact pressure Tn, and the temperature T. The
surface and material properties also play an important role, and are represented by the
generic quantity  in the above equation.

In COMSOL Multiphysics, the wear depth can be computed using a Generalized

Archard law for which the wear rate is

h wear Tn n
= k wear  ------------- v slip (3-197)
t T n,ref

Here kwear is a dimensionless wear constant and the exponent n controls the
dependence of the wear rate on the contact pressure. The reference contact pressure,
Tn,ref, can be chosen arbitrarily, and is used only to obtain consistent units. The
classical Archard wear equation is retrieved from Equation 3-197 by setting n = 1 and
Tn,ref = 1 Pa. In addition, it is also possible to enter an arbitrary expression for the
source term f that defines the wear rate.

It is possible to account for wear on both the source and destination boundaries.
However, it is generally more accurate to model wear on the destination side. This
follows from the fact that most relevant quantities, such as Tn and vslip, are defined
only on the destination boundary in the Contact node and by, for example, the Friction
node. Hence, when modeling wear on the source boundary, these quantities are
mapped from the destination to the source. For example, when applied to the source
side, Equation 3-197 actually reads

 h wear map  T n x src  n

= k wear --------------------------------------- map  v slip  x src 
t T n,ref

The definition of the wear rate thus includes multiple mappings form source to
destination, and form destination to source. As described in Contact Search and
Kinematics, these mappings are not necessarily one-to-one, which can lead to
accumulating errors. The offset-based wear formulation can be especially sensitive to
such errors.

782 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Bolt Modeling Theory
Tightening Torque
When the bolt preload is given in terms of the tightening torque, a detailed mechanical
analysis of the bolt mechanics is needed for the conversion.

The total required torque, MT, is to a large extent determined by frictional losses. It
can, however, be shown that it is directly proportional to the axial force in the bolt, F.

The torque consists of a sum of two parts, the torque in the thread, Mt, and the torque
caused by friction under the head, Mh,

MT = Mt + Mh

The moment around the bolt axis caused by rotating the bolt head can be expressed as

M h =  h Fr e

Here, h is the coefficient of friction under the bolt head (or nut, whichever is
rotating), and re is an effective radius at which the circumferential force can be
considered as acting. If the contact pressure under the bolt head is assumed to be
constant, then the effective radius can be computed as


r dA
r e = --------------

dA

Here, r is the distance from the bolt axis, and the integrals are taken over the contact
area under the bolt head.

For a circular bolt head, this gives

3 3
1 do – dh
r e = --- ------------------
-
3 d2 – d2
o h

BOLT MODELING THEORY | 783

 where do is the outer diameter of the bolt head, and dh is the bolt hole diameter.

To a first order approximation, the effective radius is

do + dh
r e  -------------------
4

For a hexagonal bolt head, the expression for the effective radius is

1 ln  3 - 3  3
--- ------------- – --- d
3 + 4  H 6 h
r e = ------------------------------------------------------
-
3  2
3H – --- d
2 h

Here, H is the width (spanner size) of the bolt.

For a wide range of bolt configurations, it is reasonable to do the

following approximations in terms of the nominal bolt diameter, d:

d h  1.1d

d o = H  1.6d

giving

r e  0.68d for a circular bolt head

r e  0.71d for a hexagonal bolt head

To compute the bolt thread moment, a detailed analysis of the thread geometry is
necessary. Omitting the details,

Fd p tan   +  
M t = --------------------------------------
2

Here, dp is the mean diameter of the bolt thread.

For a wide range of bolt sizes, the bolt thread diameter can be
approximated by d p  0.9d .

The lead angle of the bolt,  , is given by

784 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 l
tan    = ----------
d p

where l is the lead (expressed in the same units as dp). This term, which is purely
geometrical, gives the relation between torque and bolt force under ideal (frictionless)
conditions.

The friction angle  is defined as

t
tan    = -----------------------------------
cos    cos   

Here, t is the coefficient of friction in the thread, while  is half the thread angle.

Since all terms in the torque are proportional to the bolt force, the axial force in the
bolt can now be computed from the torque as

MT
F = ----------------------------------------------------
d p tan   +  
 h r e + ----------------------------------
2

For many threads, for example in the ISO and UTS standards,  = 30°.
Since the lead angle  is small (about 3°), a good approximation is
tan     1.15 t .

The sum of tangents formula gives

tan    + tan   
tan   +   = ---------------------------------------------  tan    + tan   
1 – tan    tan   

Using the estimates above,

MT
F  --------------------------------------------------------------
d  0.7 h + 0.03 + 0.5 t 

Thus, for ordinary values of the friction, 80 – 90% of the applied torque
is consumed by the friction losses.

BOLT MODELING THEORY | 785

 Stress Linearization
Stress linearization is a procedure in which the stress distribution along a line through
the thickness in a solid is approximated with an equivalent linear stress distribution,
similar to what would be the result of an analysis using shell theory. The line is
commonly referred to as a stress classification line, SCL.

First, the computed stresses are transformed into a local orthonormal coordinate
system x1-x2-x3, where the x1 direction is oriented along the SCL. In 3D, you must
specify the x2 direction, and thus implicitly the x3 direction. In 2D and 2D axial
symmetry, the x3 direction is in the out-of-plane direction — that is, the Z and
azimuthal directions, respectively.

The length of the SCL, which is assumed to be straight, start on one boundary, and
end on the opposite boundary, is denoted L.

The membrane stress tensor is the average of each local stress component along the
SCL:

L
1
 m ij 
= ----  ij dx 1
L
0

Each component of the bending stress tensor is assumed to have a linear variation along
the SCL, with the value being zero at the midpoint.

2x 1
 b ij =  1 – ---------  b  max  ij
 L 

The maximum bending stress is defined so that the linear stress distribution has the
same moment as the true stress distribution.

= ------2  ij  ---- – x 1 dx 1
6 L
 b  max  ij
L
 2 
0

The linearized stress distribution is the sum of the membrane and bending stresses,

 mb ij  x 1  =  m ij +  b ij  x 1 

786 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Finally, the peak stress tensor is defined at the two endpoints of the SCL. It is the
difference between the actual stress tensor, and the linearized stress representation.

 p  start  ij =   ij –  mb ij  x =0
=   ij  x =0
–  m ij +  b  max  ij
1 1

 p  end  ij =   ij –  mb ij  x =L
=   ij  x =L
–  m ij –  b  max  ij
1 1

The stress intensity, also known as the Tresca equivalent stress, is often the ultimate
goal of a stress linearization. It is computed as a worst case of the equivalent stress at
the two ends of the SCL. The stress intensity is computed from the principal stresses as

 int =  p1 –  p3

When computing the principal stresses at the endpoints of the SCL, it is customary to
ignore the bending part of the through-thickness oriented stresses. The principal
stresses and the stress intensity variables are the endpoints are thus computed using the
following stress tensor:

 11  m 11
 22  mb 22
 33  mb 33
=
 12  m 12
 13  m 13
 23  mb 23

Section forces, similar to what would be computed in a shell or plate analysis, are
another type of result quantities available for each SCL. The in-plane forces are
computed from the membrane stresses as

N 22  m 22
N 33 = L  m 33
N 23  m 23

The bending moments are computed from the bending stresses as

M 22 2
 b  max  22
L
M 33 = ------  b  max  33
6
M 23  b  max  23

STRESS LINEARIZATION | 787

 The out-of-plane shear forces are computed from the membrane stresses as

Q2  m 12
= L
Q3  m 13

788 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

J-Integral Theory
The J-integral is a path independent integral, used for characterizing the severity of the
loading at a crack tip. It can be used both in an elastic and an elastoplastic analysis. In
the case of elasticity, the value of the J-integral can be shown to be identical to the
strain energy release rate G, and also to be related to the stress intensity factor K.

In 2D, the J-integral is defined as

u
J =  W s dy –    m   ------- ds
x
(3-198)
 tot

where Ws is the strain energy density,  is a stress tensor, and m is the outward normal
of the integration contour . In Equation 3-198, the crack is assumed to extend in the
positive x direction, and integration is made over  tot =    face , which can be any
closed path around crack tip, see Figure 3-39. However, if there is no loading on the
crack face, the contribution to J on face is zero, and it is sufficient to only perform
the integration over .

face

Figure 3-39: Circular J-integral around a notch in two dimensions.

For a general crack extension direction p, Equation 3-198 can be generalized to

J-INTEGRAL THEORY | 789

 J =   Ws  m  p  –    m    u  p   ds


In 3D, the path integral can be taken around an arbitrary point of the crack front, and
tot can be any closed path around the point in the normal plane to the crack front. It
then turns out that there is also an additional term, to be integrated over the area
enclosed by tot. The expression is then further extended to


J =  W s  m  p  –    m    u  p   ds +


     t    u  p    t d A
A

where t is the tangent to the crack front. In practice, this is also the normal to the plane
of the integration contour.

In 2D axisymmetry, m and p are located in the rz-plane, and t is oriented in the

azimuthal direction. The surface integral can then be simplified, so that


J =  W s  m  p  –    m    u  p   ds +



 e r  p   W s –    u    dA
A

where er is the base vector of the global r direction.

LOADS ON CRACK FACES

When a boundary load FA is applied on the crack face, it contributes with an additional
term to the J-integral since the contour integrals on the crack face become nonzero.
This additional contribution, Jface, is defined by

J face = –  F A   u  p  ds
 face

where face is schematically defined in Figure 3-39.

790 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

STRESS INTENSITY FACTORS
From the J-integral, it is possible to compute the stress intensity factor K for the three
modes of fracture:

• Crack opening, or mode I, is described by stress intensity factor KI

• Crack sliding, or mode II, is described by stress intensity factor KII
• Tearing, or mode III, is described by stress intensity factor KIII

Computation of the stress intensity factors is done by utilizing the following

decomposition of the J-integral

2
J = J I + J II + J III = ----------  K I + K II + ------------ K 
1 2 2 1
(3-199)
E eff 1 –  III

where Eeff is an effective Young’s modulus that accounts for the stress state at the crack
front. Assuming that KII = KI and KIII = KI / (1 + ), where  and  are coefficients
that account for the mode mixture, it follows from Equation 3-199 that the stress
intensity factors are

E eff
KI = ---------------------------------------- J
2 1 2
1 +  + ------------ 
1+
E eff
K II = -----------------------------------------
-J
2
1 ------------ 1  (3-200)
1+ 2+ -----
- -----
-
 1 +  2

E eff
K III = ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-J
2
1 +   1 +  
 1 +   1 + ------------ 2
+ -----------------------
2
-
 

The mode mixture coefficients are defined by

u II
 = ------------
u I
u III
 = --------------
u I

J-INTEGRAL THEORY | 791

 where uI, uII, and uIII are the components of the displacement vector across the
crack, u, defined in the coordinate system corresponding to the three modes of
fracture.

In 2D, mode III is not relevant, and Equation 3-200 simplifies to

E eff
KI = --------------- J
2
1+
E eff
K II = ---------------
-J
1
1 + -----2-


The definition of the effective Young’s modulus depends on the stress state at the crack
tip

 E
 --------------- if plane strain
E eff =  1 –  2

 E if plane stress

Hence, in 2D it depends on the 2D approximation used in the physics interface, while

in 3D it is assumed that the stress state is approximately plane strain.

792 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

E m be dde d E lemen t s
The Embedded Reinforcement multiphysics coupling provides a generic method to
couple lower dimension structural elements to a solid domain. Mesh elements from the
Truss, Beam, or Membrane interfaces within or adjacent to a solid domain can be
connected by adding this multiphysics coupling. Two different formulations are
available for connecting the interfaces: Rigid or Spring connection. The rigid
connection is based on a pointwise constraint formulation, while the spring connection
is based on a penalty regularization of the constraint. When using the spring
connection, a nonlinear behavior can be included by adding a bond slip model.

To facilitate the connection between the solid domain and the embedded structure, a
nonlocal coupling is set up between the two interfaces. This coupling is made through
a General Extrusion operator that maps an expression defined on the source to an
expression that can be evaluated on the destination geometry. Here, the source is
always the solid domain, and the destination is the embedded thin structure. The latter
can be either a Truss, Beam, or Membrane interface. Mathematically, the mapping of
a generic expression E from a source domain src to a point Xdst on the destination
boundary (or edge) dst can be described by

E src = map  E  X src  X dst  on  dst   src (3-201)

The mapping is such that for each point Xdst, it finds the closest point Xsrc in src at
which to evaluate E. From Equation 3-201 it is inferred that the mapping is made in
the material frame, that is, the mapping is constant even for a geometrically nonlinear
case. Moreover, the mapping is only valid for the part of dst that lies within src.

With the definition in Equation 3-201, the rigid connection type is described by
adding a constraint on dst such that the displacement field u equals

u = map  u  X src  X dst  on  dst   src

The penalty connection is set up by first defining a relative displacement vector u

between the mapped source and the destination

u = map  u  X src  X dst  – u  X dst  on  dst   src

From the relative displacement vector u, the spring force f of the penalty formulation
is defined by Hooke’s law

EMBEDDED ELEMENTS | 793

 f = Ku on  dst   src

where K is the spring stiffness matrix, which has nonzero components on the diagonal
only. The spring stiffness matrix K is most naturally described in the local coordinate
system of the thin structure, dst, such that the spring force fl in local coordinates is
defined by

f l = K l  T  u  = K l u l

where T is the transformation matrix form local to global coordinates and Kl is the
spring stiffness matrix in the local coordinate system. The local coordinate system is
either defined by the destination physics interface, or automatically by the multiphysics
coupling. Finally, the following weak contribution is added

0 =  – f  u dS
 dst

When a Bond slip model is added to the spring connection, an additive decomposition
of u into elastic and plastic counterparts is assumed so that, in the local coordinate
system

u l, e = u l – u l, p on  dst   src

where ul,e is the elastic displacement, and ul,p is the plastic displacement (or slip) on
the destination. The definitions of the spring force and the weak contribution are
unaffected.

The slip vector ul,p is defined through a local constitutive model based on the flow
theory of plasticity. When the destination physics is either a Truss or a Beam interface,
slip can only occur in the direction of the local edge tangent, which means that the slip
vector is defined by a single scalar value, that is, ul,p = {0,0,upn}. The constitutive
model is then summarized by

F  fn – c  0
ꞏ F
u pn =  --------
f n (3-202)
ꞏ
u pe = 
F  0,   0, F=0

794 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

where fn and upn is the spring force and slip in the direction of the local edge tangent,
respectively. The cohesion c determines the sliding resistance, and it can depend on any
variable or field present in the model. The plasticity model is defined by the yield
function F, the plastic multiplier , and the accumulated slip upe. The last row of
Equation 3-202 are the Kuhn-Tucker conditions.

When the destination physics is a Membrane interface, sliding can only occur in the
direction of the local tangents of the plane given by the normal of the boundary, that
is, ul,p = {ut1,ut2,0}. The constitutive model then takes a slightly different form, and
it can be summarized by

F  ft – c  0

 ꞏ  F-
 u t1, p , uꞏ t2, p , 0  =  f
------
(3-203)
  t
ꞏ
u pe =
F  0,   0, F=0

where ft is a vector containing the two tangent components of the local spring force fl.

The rate equations in the constitutive models given by Equation 3-202 and
Equation 3-203 are implemented through a backward Euler discretization. The
resulting set of nonlinear algebraic equations is solved using Newtons method to find
upe, and ul,p. Optionally, it is also possible to compute the dissipated energy due to
friction, Wp, by also solving the following rate equation

ꞏ F
W p =  -------  f l
f l

EMBEDDED ELEMENTS | 795

 When the Embedded structure is a Beam interface, there is an option to
suppress rotation around the beam axis. This option adds a constraint for
the rotation xl around the beam axis. The constraint is implemented
using a penalty regularization, which adds the following weak
contribution to the model

GJ
0 =  -----------------
1000A lx lx
  dS
 dst

where GJ is the torsional stiffness of the beam and A is the area of the
beam. This functionality is intended to suppress unwanted rigid body
rotations that can lead to nonconvergence of the solver.

796 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

Theory for Thin Layers
Sometimes, there are thin layers between larger domains that cannot be ignored in a
structural analysis. The reasons are either because they have significant flexibility or
damping properties, or that they may fail. Examples of such layers are glue layers,
O-rings, and gaskets.

When the layer is thin compared to other dimensions of the structure, it is difficult to
produce a mesh with acceptable quality and without compromising the numerical
conditioning of the stiffness matrix.

The Thin Layer boundary feature allows to overcome this problem, through
simplifications in the definition of the Deformation Measures, thus avoiding meshing
in the through-thickness direction.

There are three different formulations available for modeling thin layers:

• Solid Approximation
• Membrane Approximation
• Spring Approximation

Deformation Gradient
The deformation gradient F is defined as the gradient of the current coordinates with
respect to the original coordinates:

x u
F = ------- = I + -------
X X

See the Lagrangian Formulation section for details.

For thin layers, the deformation gradient is approximated as

F = I + tu +  u  N   N

Here, tu is the displacement gradient computed using the tangential gradient on the
reference surface, and N is the normal vector to the undeformed surface. The term
nu =  u  N   N is the so-called normal gradient, that can be approximated by
different approaches.

THEORY FOR THIN LAYERS | 797

 Solid Approximation
For the Solid approximation on interior thin layers, the displacements between the two
sides of the boundary are decoupled. The two boundaries are then connected by elastic
and viscous forces proportional to the relative displacements and the corresponding
material model.

By using the notation u1 = down(u) and u2 = up(u), so u1 represents the

displacement of the downside (bottom), and u2 is the displacement of the upside (top)
of the thin layer. The average displacement of the midsurface reads

1
u a = ---  u 1 + u 2 
2

and the extension of the thin layer reads

ue = u2 – u1

With this notation, the normal vector N points from the downside (bottom) towards
the upside (top).

The gradient through the normal direction is approximated as

1
nu =  u  N   N  --- u e  N
d

where d is the thickness of the thin layer, and the quantity ue/d represents the strain
in the layer.

The deformation gradient in the layer is then approximated as

1
F = I + tu a + --- u e  N
d

The tangential deformation gradient on the midsurface is calculated as

F t = I – N  N + t u a

and the normal deformation gradient as

1
F n = N  N + --- u e  N
d

The normal deformation gradient contains both normal as well as transverse shear
information, and it is constant through the thickness of the layer. The tangential

798 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

deformation gradient, Ft, contains information about the stretching in the midsurface,
the so-called membrane deformation.

When Layered is selected in the Thin layer type list, the gradient through the normal
direction is approximated as

u
nu =  u  N   N  -------  N
z

where z is the extra dimension coordinate, that varies between 0 and the layer thickness
d.

The deformation gradient in the layered thin structure is then approximated as

u
F = I + tu + -------  N
z

The weak contributions are scaled by a correcting factor that accounts for the
curvature of the thin layer.

The layered formulation can handle composites and laminates, see the Theory for the
Layered Shell Interface section for details.

Membrane Approximation
For the Membrane approximation, there is no slit between the two sides of the thin
layer. The tangential deformation gradient is computed on the surface as

F t = I – N  N + t u

The tangential deformation gradient is augmented to include the normal deformation

Fn = n n  N

and the transverse shear deformation

Fs =  1 t1 + 2 t2   N

Here, n is the transverse (normal) stretch, and 1 and 2 are the transverse shears. The
vectors n, t1 and t2 are the normal and tangent unit vectors on the deformed surface.

See the Theory for the Membrane Interface section for details.

THEORY FOR THIN LAYERS | 799

 Spring Approximation
For the Spring approximation, the membrane deformation is neglected, and the
deformation gradient reads

1
F = I + --- u e  N
d

Here, the thin layer extension ue contains information about the normal as well as the
transverse shear deformation, but no membrane deformation is taken into account.

Material Models in Thin Layers

After selecting the approximation, Solid, Membrane, or Spring, the strain tensor in a
geometrically linear analysis is computed from

1
 = ---  F T + F  – I
2

and for a geometrically nonlinear analysis from

1
 = ---  F T F – I 
2

Then the material models are defined by the corresponding strain tensor.

See the Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Materials, and Hyperelastic Materials
sections for details.

For anisotropic data, the coefficients are given with respect to the boundary system.
See the Boundary System section for details.

800 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

You can incorporate inelastic effects by adding the following subnodes to a Linear
Elastic Material or Nonlinear Elastic Material nodes in thin layers:

• Thermal Expansion • Linear Viscoelasticity

• Hygroscopic Swelling • Plasticity
• Initial Stresses and Strains • Creep
• External Stress • Viscoplasticity
• External Strain • Damage Models (Linear Elastic Materials)
• Inelastic Strain Rate • Safety Factor Evaluation
• Damping

The following subnodes are available for a Hyperelastic Material:

• Thermal Expansion • Damping

• Hygroscopic Swelling • Large Strain Viscoelasticity
• External Stress • Plasticity
• External Strain • Mullins Effect
• Inelastic Strain Rate

Spring Material
When the Spring approximation is chosen, it is possible to specify a Spring material
for the thin layer.

In the geometrically linear case, the spring force fs per unit area is computed as

fs = –KA ue

where KA is the spring constant. The spring constant can be a scalar or a matrix which
components are the spring constants given with respect to the boundary system. When
using the boundary system to specify the spring constants, this matrix reads.

k t1 k t1t2 k t1n
K A = k t1t2 k t2 k t2n
k t1n k t2n k n

THEORY FOR THIN LAYERS | 801

 See the Boundary System section for details.

For the geometric nonlinear case, the spring force reads

ue 2
f s = – K A  u e + ------------ N
 2d 

LOSS FACTOR DAMPING

When the Spring approximation is chosen, it is possible to add Loss factor damping or
Viscous damping to the Spring material.

When using loss factor damping, a complex spring matrix is used to define the spring
force. With an isotropic loss factor s, this means that

c
K =  1 + j s K A

where KA is the constitutive matrix computed from the spring constants, and Kc is the
complex constitutive matrix used when computing the spring force.

For a linear elastic material, this would be equivalent to multiplying Young’s modulus
by the factor 1  js.

It is also possible to give individual loss factors for each entry in the constitutive spring
matrix, so that

c
K mn =  1 + j s mn K mn

Loss factor damping is only applicable in frequency domain.

VISCOUS DAMPING
Viscous damping causes a viscous stress proportional to the rate of strain in the
material,

ꞏ ꞏ
s q =  b  vol + 2 v  dev

where b and v are the normal and shear viscosity coefficients, respectively.

For the Spring approximation, only normal extension causes volume changes in the
thin layer. The volumetric (normal) strain in the geometric linear case is computed
from

 vol =  --- u e  N N  N

1
d

802 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

and for the geometric nonlinear case from

 vol =  --- u e  N + ---------2- u e  u e N  N

1 1
d 2d

In both cases, the deviatoric (transverse shear) strain reads

 dev = ------- u e  N + ------- N  u e –  --- u e  N N  N

1 1 1
2d 2d d 

The viscous force is then computed for the geometric linear case from

1 ꞏ 1 ꞏ ꞏ
f q = –  b ---  u e  N N –  v ---  u e –  u e  N N 
d d

and for the geometric nonlinear case from

1 ꞏ ꞏ 1 ꞏ ꞏ
f q = –  b ---  u e  N + --- u e  u e N –  v ---  u e –  u e  N N 
1
d d d

Viscous damping can be used in both frequency and time domain analyses.

THEORY FOR THIN LAYERS | 803

 Reduced Integration and Hourglass
Stabilization
COMSOL Multiphysics uses by default a full and consistent quadrature order when
numerically evaluating integrals such as the virtual work. However, a full quadrature
order does not necessarily lead to an optimal formulation of the resulting finite element
matrices in structural mechanics, where higher order terms can introduce locking and
other detrimental effects. A remedy can be to reduce the quadrature order for selected
parts of the virtual work, typically the strain energy density. When full integration is
used, the quadrature order is twice the shape order of the displacement field. And
when a reduced integration scheme is used, the quadrature order is reduced by half.

Using a reduced integration scheme not only affects the numerical integration of the
weak contribution related to the displacement field, but for consistency it also change
the shape order of auxiliary dependent variables such as the out-of-plane strain in plane
stress, the auxiliary pressure in a mixed formulation, and other auxiliary dependent
variables added by nonlinear material models. This also applies to state variables used
in material models such as plasticity, damage, and viscoelasticity. Lowering the order
of auxiliary dependent variables and state variables significantly reduces the
computation time due to the reduced assembly time.

Using reduced integration only affects the stationary part of the virtual work; a full
quadrature order is always applied to inertial term contributions. Furthermore,
reduced integration is only applied to weak contributions added by material models.
Other contributions to the virtual work such as body loads and other boundary
conditions use a full quadrature scheme.

HOURGLASS STABILIZATION
The hourglass stabilization method adds a stabilization terms Wstb to the strain energy
density and to the principle of virtual work. When using reduced integration and
hourglass stabilization, the stationary part of the virtual work is written as

W = V  –  dv + V Wstb dv + V – Wstb dv

The additional terms that include Wstb are integrated using different quadrature
orders. The first and second integrals are evaluated using reduced integration, while

804 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

the third integral is evaluated using full integration. The second and third integrals will
cancel each other for an accurate reduced integration scheme.

The exact formulation of Wstb differs from case to case, but it is in general set up so
that it is inexpensive to evaluate. For example, the expression never includes evaluation
of nonlinear materials such as plasticity.

See also Using Reduced Integration in the Structural Mechanics

Modeling chapter.

REDUCED INTEGRATION AND HOURGLASS STABILIZATION | 805

 Average Rotation
The Average Rotation node is used for computing average rotations and displacements
of a virtual rigid body, which is represented by a number of points in the structure. The
corresponding velocities and accelerations are also computed.

In the general case, the number of points can be larger than what is needed to define
a rigid body movement (3 in 3D and 2 in 2D). Unless the points are attached to a rigid
object, it is only possible to determine the rotation in an average sense.

If a certain reference point has a given translation up and a rotation p, then the
displacement of any other point i can under rigid body assumptions be computed as

˜ = u + r
u i p p i

where ri is the distance vector from the reference point to point i. The equation in this
form is valid under the assumption of small rotations. In case of large rotations, the
displacement due to rotation is instead described by a rotation matrix R:

˜ = u +  R    – I r
u i p p i

Here, I is the identity matrix. The rotation matrix is described with a quaternion
formulation where parameters a, b, c, and d are components of a unit quaternion.

2 2 2 2
a +b –c –d 2bc – 2 ad 2ac + 2bd
R = 2ad + 2bc
2 2
a –b +c –d
2 2
2cd – 2ab
2 2 2 2
2bd – 2 ac 2ab + 2cd a –b –c +d

An extra constraint must be added to enforce a unit quaternion.

2 2 2 2
a +b +c +d = 1

In 2D, points can only rotate about the z-axis. The rotation matrix requires only one
dependent variable, the rotation angle  :

cos  – sin  0
R = sin  cos  0
0 0 1

806 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

The average rotation and displacement for the set of points is determined using the
method of least squares. The square of the difference between the actual displacements
and the assumed rigid-body displacement is minimized,

˜ ˜
  ui –ui    ui –ui 
2
R =
i

Here, the up and p are replaced with the sought-after average displacement uavg and
average rotation avg respectively. The vector avg is the axis-angle representation of
the rotation. The magnitude, avg, is the rotation angle.

The average velocity and acceleration of the set of points are given as the first and
second derivative with respect to time.

 ꞏ  ꞏ ꞏꞏ
u = u avg ; u avg = u avg
 t avg t

Analogous, the average angular velocity and accelerations are defined as

 ꞏ  ꞏ ꞏꞏ
 =  avg ;  avg =  avg
 t avg t

AVERAGE ROTATION | 807

 Energy Quantities
There are several energy quantities computed in the Structural Mechanics interfaces.
This section is a summary of these quantities and how to compute in different
situations.

In this section:

• Elastic Energy
• Kinetic Energy
• Dissipated Energy
• Mechanical Energy Flux
• Energy Variables

Elastic Energy

LINEAR ELASTIC MATERIALS

The elastic energy is defined as the recoverable energy stored in an elastic material or
spring. The elastic strain energy density in an elastic material is defined as

 el

Ws =  : del (3-204)
0

If the linear elasticity is assumed, then

 =  i + C: el

where i is the initial stress. The integration can then be carried out analytically and
the result is

1 1
W s =  i : el + ---  C: el : el = ---   i +  : el
2 2

This expression is used for the Linear Elastic Material model in a Stationary or Time
Dependent analysis. An implication is that if you modify the linear elastic model in a
way that violates the assumption about stress-strain linearity above, then the computed
strain energy density may be wrong, for example, using a strain dependent Young’s
modulus or a nonconstant initial stress.

808 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

In the case of Frequency Domain analysis, only the harmonic part is considered. That
is, a constant prestress does not contribute to the strain energy density. To emphasize
this, the concept of stored energy is used. The stored energy is the cycle average of the
elastic energy; that is,

T
1 1
Wh
T 2 
= ---- ---   t :  t  dt
0

The harmonic stress and strain components are generally not in phase with each other,
so the cycle average of the stored energy is computed as

1
W h = --- real  : 
4

where the stress and strain are considered as complex quantities, and the overline
denotes a complex conjugate.

HYPERELASTIC MATERIALS
For a Hyperelastic material, the strain energy density function is the fundamental
quantity from which stresses are derived. The form of the strain energy density
function is determined by the hyperelastic model used.

Nonlinear Elastic Materials

For a Nonlinear Elastic Material, the strain energy density is computed in different
ways depending on the material model selected. If the integration in Equation 3-204
can be performed analytically, then a closed form expression is used, similar to what is
done in the linear elastic material. If not, then the integral is actually computed using
the integrate() operator.

Structural Elements
For structural elements, the strain energy density is split into membrane, bending and
shear parts, which are then summed into a total strain energy density.

The strain energy density for all elastic domains are integrated to give a total elastic
strain energy, which contains all elastic energy stored in a certain physics interface.

Elastic boundary conditions, such as Spring Foundation, Thin Elastic Layer, and
Springs in joints in the Multibody Dynamics interface, also contribute to the total

ENERGY QUANTITIES | 809

 elastic strain energy variable. In these cases, linearity is assumed, so if you enter
nonlinear data, you will probably need to adjust the strain energy expressions.

The Multibody Dynamics interface is available with the Multibody

Dynamics Module.

Kinetic Energy
For all materials, a kinetic energy density is computed. For a time-dependent study, it
is defined as

1 2
W k = --- v
2

where  is the mass density, and v is the velocity.

In Frequency Domain, the velocity is related to the displacement as v = iu , and the
kinetic energy is defined as

1 2 2
W k = ---  u
4

which represents the cycle average.

Dissipated Energy
There are many possible mechanisms for energy dissipation in a structure:

• Material damping (loss factor, Rayleigh damping, or viscous damping)

• Viscoelasticity
• Dissipation by plasticity or creep
• Viscous damping in boundary conditions, springs and joints
• Friction in mechanical contact

The general form of dissipation loss is

ꞏ
Q h = :

The treatment of dissipated energy is fundamentally different depending on whether

the analysis is in frequency domain or not. For stationary or time-dependent cases, the
dissipated energy must be accumulated over parameter ranges or time, which means

810 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

extra degrees of freedom must be added. For this reason, you must explicitly select to
compute the mechanical dissipation in these cases. This is done in the Energy
Dissipation section of the material model.

In frequency domain, the dissipated energy per cycle is computed using a closed form
expression. It is always available as postprocessing variables. The expression used is

1
Q h = --- real  :  i  
2

In the case of Rayleigh damping, the stresses are not directly affected by the damping,
since it is not part of the stress-strain relation. In a problem which is linear elastic
except for the Rayleigh damping, the stresses and strains are in phase with each other,
and does thus not give any damping contribution. This is handled by explicitly adding
an extra contribution to dissipation.

Mechanical Energy Flux

The mechanical energy flux is a vector formed by the multiplication of the stress tensor
and the velocity vector

I = –  v

The reason for the minus sign in the definition is that if you put a pressure on an
external boundary, and it moves in the direction of the load, then a positive power
input in the direction of the load is obtained.

In the time domain, the expression above is used. In frequency domain, two versions
are supplied. The complex mechanical energy flux is the complex vector formed by
multiplying the stress tensor by the complex conjugate of the velocity:

I = –   v˜

The mechanical energy flux is in the frequency domain defined as a real quantity, the
cycle average of the complex mechanical energy flux.

I = --- real  –   v˜ 
1
2

ENERGY QUANTITIES | 811

 Energy Variables
The energy variables used in the Structural Mechanics interfaces are summarized in
Table 3-8.
TABLE 3-8: ENERGY VARIABLES USED IN STRUCTURAL MECHANICS

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION SI UNIT PHYSICS 1 COMMENT

INTERFACE

phys.Ws Elastic strain J/m3 solid, mbd, shell,

energy density plate, mbrn,
beam, truss
phys.WsM Membrane strain J/m2 shell, plate Contributes to
energy density phys.Ws
phys.WsB Bending strain J/m2 shell, plate Contributes to
energy phys.Ws
phys.WsS Shear strain J/m2 shell, plate Contributes to
energy phys.Ws
phys.WsM Membrane strain J/m beam Contributes to
energy density beam.WsL
phys.WsB Bending strain J/m beam Contributes to
energy beam.WsL
phys.WsS Shear strain J/m beam Contributes to
energy beam.WsL
beam.WsT Torsional strain J/m beam Contributes to
energy beam.WsL
phys.WsL Strain energy J/m beam, truss phys.Ws =
density per unit phys.WsL/area
length
phys.Ws_tot Total elastic strain J solid, mbd, shell, Global variable
energy plate, mbrn, containing
beam, truss integration and
summation of all
phys.Ws
contributions in a
physics interface.
phys.Wk Kinetic energy J/m3 solid, mbd, shell,
density plate, mbrn,
beam, truss

812 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

TABLE 3-8: ENERGY VARIABLES USED IN STRUCTURAL MECHANICS

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION SI UNIT PHYSICS 1 COMMENT

INTERFACE

phys.Wk_tot Total kinetic J solid, mbd, shell, Global variable

energy plate, mbrn, containing
beam, truss integration and
summation of all
phys.Wk
contributions in a
physics interface.
phys.Wp Plastic dissipation J/m3 solid Energy density
density dissipated by
plasticity
phys.Wp_tot Total plastic J solid Global variable
dissipation containing
integration and
summation of all
phys.Wp
contributions in a
physics interface.
phys.Wc Creep dissipation J/m3 solid Energy density
density dissipated by creep.
phys.Wc_tot Total creep J solid Global variable
dissipation containing
integration and
summation of all
phys.Wp
contributions in a
physics interface.
phys.Wv Viscoelastic J/m3 solid Energy density
dissipation density dissipated by
viscosity.
phys.Wv_tot Total viscoelastic J solid Global variable
dissipation containing
integration and
summation of all
phys.Wv
contributions in a
physics interface.
phys.Wed Dielectric J/m3 solid Piezoelectric
dissipation density electrical damping

ENERGY QUANTITIES | 813

 TABLE 3-8: ENERGY VARIABLES USED IN STRUCTURAL MECHANICS

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION SI UNIT PHYSICS 1 COMMENT

INTERFACE

phys.Wed_tot Total dielectric J solid Global variable

dissipation containing
integration and
summation of all
phys.Wed
contributions in a
physics interface.
phys.Wmd Damping J/m3 solid Piezoelectric
dissipation density mechanical damping
phys.Wmd_tot Total damping J solid Global variable
dissipation containing
integration and
summation of all
phys.Wmd
contributions in a
physics interface.
phys.I* Mechanical W/m2 solid, mbd
energy flux, *
coordinate
phys.Icomplex* Complex W/m2 solid, mbd Frequency domain
mechanical only
energy flux,
*coordinate
1
The availability of physics interfaces is based on the license for a module.

814 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

R e f e r e nc e s
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816 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

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REFERENCES | 817
 39. L. Mullins. “Softening of rubber by deformation,” Rubber Chem. Technol.,
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42. Z. Guo and L. Sluys, “Computational modelling of the stress-softening

phenomenon of rubber-like materials under cyclic loading,” European Journal of
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44. R. Koeller, “Application of fractional calculus to the theory of viscoelasticity,” J.

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REFERENCES FOR GEOMECHANICS MATERIALS

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3. S. Dolarevic and A. Ibrahimbegovic, “A modified three-surface elasto-plastic cap

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Journal, vol. 551, no. 9, pp. 321–345, 1958.

5. H. Matsuoka and T. Nakai, “Stress-deformation and Strength Characteristics of Soil

Under Three Different Principal Stresses,” Proc. JSCE, vol. 232, 1974.

6. H. Matsuoka and T. Nakai, “Relationship Among Tresca, Mises, Mohr-Coulomb,

and Matsuoka-Nakai Failure Criteria,” Soils Found., vol. 25, no. 4, pp. 123–128,
1985.

7. H.S. Yu, Plasticity and Geotechnics, Springer, 2006.

818 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

8. V. Marinos, P. Marinos, and E. Hoek, “The Geological Strength Index: Applications
and Limitations,” Bull. Eng. Geol. Environ., vol. 64, pp. 55–65, 2005.

9. J. Jaeger, N. G. Cook, and R. Zimmerman, Fundamentals of Rock Mechanics, 4th

ed., Wiley-Blackwell, 2007.

10. G. C. Nayak and O. C. Zienkiewicz, “Convenient Form of Stress Invariants for

Plasticity,” J. Struct. Div. ASCE, vol. 98, pp. 949–954, 1972.

11. A.J. Abbo and S.W. Sloan, “A Smooth Hyperbolic Approximation to the
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1995.

12. K.J. Willam and E.P. Warnke, “Constitutive Model for the Triaxial Behavior of
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13. B.H.G. Brady and E.T. Brown, Rock Mechanics for Underground Mining, 3rd
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Geotech., vol. 35, pp. 500–503, 2008.

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16. D.M. Wood, Soil Behaviour and Critical State Soil Mechanics, Cambridge
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17. D.M. Potts and L. Zadravkovic, Finite Element Analysis in Geothechnical

Engineering, Thomas Telford, 1999.

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 22. J. Suebsuk, S. Horpibulsuk, and M. Liu, “Modified Structured Cam Clay: A
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26. T. Bower, Constitutive modelling of soils and fibre-reinforced soils, PhD Thesis,
Cardiff University 2017.

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2. A.F. Bower, Applied Mechanics of Solids, CRC Press, 2009.

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4. J.M. Duncan and C.Y. Chang, “Nonlinear analysis of stress and strain in soils,” J.
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5. J.M. Duncan, P. Byrne, K.S. Wong, and P. Mabry, “Strength, stress strain and bulk
modulus parameters for finite element analysis of stresses and movements in soil,”
Geotechnical Engineering Report: UCB/GT/80-01, University of California,
Berkeley, 1980.

6. E.T. Selig, Soil Parameters for Design of Buried Pipelines, Pipeline

Infrastructure, B.A. Bennett, ed., ASCE, New York, pp. 99–116, 1988.

REFERENCES FOR ELASTOPLASTIC MATERIALS

1. P. Armstrong and C. Frederick, “A Mathematical Representation of the Multiaxial
Bauschinger Effect”, Technical Report RD/B/N731 CEGB, 1966. Reprinted in
Mater. High Temp., vol. 24, no. 1, pp. 1–26, 2007.

2. M. Jirasek and Z. Bazant, Inelastic Analysis of Structures, Ch.20 General

Elastoplastic Constitutive Models. Wiley, 2001.

820 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

3. J. Simo and T. Hughes, Computational Inelasticity, Springer, 1998.

4. J. Simo, “Algorithms for Static and Dynamic Multiplicative Plasticity that Preserve
the Classical Return Mapping Schemes of the Infinitesimal Theory,” Comput.
Methods Appl. Mech. Eng., vol. 99, pp. 61–112, 1992.

5. J. Lubliner, Plasticity Theory, Dover, 2008.

6. R. Hill, “A Theory of the Yielding and Plastic Flow of Anisotropic Metals,” Proc.
Roy. Soc. London, vol. 193, pp. 281–297, 1948.

7. N. Ottosen and M. Ristinmaa, The Mechanics of Constitutive Modeling, Elsevier

Science, 2005.

8. S. Shima and M. Oyane. “Plasticity theory for porous metals,” Int. J. Mech. Sci.,
vol. 18, pp. 285–291, 1976.

9. A. Gurson, “Continuum theory of ductile rupture by void nucleation and growth:

Part I – Yield criteria and flow rules for porous ductile media,” J. Eng. Mater.
Technol., vol. 99, pp. 2–15, 1977.

10. V. Tvergaard and A. Needleman, “Analysis of the cup-cone fracture in a round

tensile bar,” Acta Metallurgica, vol. 32, pp. 157–169, 1984.

11. A. Needleman and V. Tvergaard. “An analysis of ductile rupture in notched bars,”
J. Mech. Phys.Solids, vol. 32, pp. 461– 490, 1984.

12. K. Nahshon and Z. Xue, “A modified Gurson model and its application to
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14. N. Fleck, L. Kuhn, and R. McMeeking, “Yielding of metal powder bonded by

isolated contacts,” J. Mech. Phys. Solids, vol. 40, pp. 1139–1162, 1992.

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Mech. - A/Solids, vol. 18, pp. 399–413, 1999.

16. J. Cedergren, N. Sorensen, and A. Bergmark, “Three-dimensional analysis of

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 18. P. Hopkins, “Benchmarks for Membrane and Bending Analysis of Laminated
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vol. 47, p. 329, 1980.

20. A.J. Sobey, J.I.R. Blake, and R.A. Shenoi, “Implications of failure criteria choices
on the rapid concept design of composite grillage structures using multiobjective
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21. C.G. Davila, P.P. Camanho, and C.A. Rose. “Failure Criteria for FRP Laminates,”
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22. R.A.B Engelen, M.G.D. Geers, and F.P.T. Baaijens, “Nonlocal implicit
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23. S. Forest, “Micromorphic approach for gradient elasticity, viscoplasticity, and

damage,” J. Eng. Mech., vol. 135, no. 3, pp. 117–131, 2009.

REFERENCES FOR DAMAGE MODELS

1. R. de Borst, M. Crisfield, J. Remmers, and C. Verhoosel, Non-linear Finite
Element Analyses of Solids and Structures, John Wiley & Sons, 2012.

2. M. Jirásek, “Damage and smeared crack models,” pp. 1–49 in Numerical Modeling
of Concrete Cracking, G. Hofstetter and G. Meschke eds., Springer, 2011.

3. J. Mazars, “A description of micro and macroscale damage of concrete structures,”

Eng. Fract. Mech., vol. 25, pp. 729–737, 1986.

4. Z. Bazant and B. Oh, “Crack band theory for fracture in concrete,” Mater. Struct.,
vol. 16, pp. 155–177, 1983.

5. M. Jirásek and M. Bauer, “Numerical aspects of the crack band approach,” Comput.
Struct., vol. 110, pp. 60–78, 2012.

6. R. Peerlings and others, “Gradient enhanced damage for quasi-brittle materials,”

Int. J. Numer. Meth. Eng., vol. 39, pp. 3391–3403, 1996.

7. C. Miehe, M. Hofhacker, and F. Welschinger, “A phase field model for

rate-independent crack propagation: Robust algorithmic implementation based on
operator splits,” Comput. Methods Appl. Mech. Eng., vol. 199, pp. 2765–2778,
2010.

822 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

8. F. Hildebrand, C. Miehe, “Comparison of Two Bulk Energy Approaches for the
Phase field Modeling of Two-variant Martensitic Laminate Microstructure,” Tech.
Mec. vol. 32, pp. 3–20, 2012.

9. C. Miehe, L.S. Schänzel, and H. Ulmer, “Phase field modeling of fracture in

multi-physics system. Part 1. Balance of crack surface and failure criteria for brittle
crack propagation in thermo-elastic solids,” Comput. Methods Appl. Mech. Eng.,
vol 294, pp. 449–485, 2014.

10. M.J Borden, Analysis of Phase-Field Models for Dynamic Brittle and Ductile
Fracture, PhD Thesis, The University of Texas at Austin, 2012.

REFERENCES FOR PIEZOELECTRICITY

1. R. Holland and E.P. EerNisse, Design of Resonant Piezoelectric Devices, Research
Monograph No. 56, The M.I.T. Press, 1969.

2. T. Ikeda, Fundamentals of Piezoelectricity, Oxford University Press, 1990.

3. A.V. Mezheritsky, “Elastic, Dielectric, and Piezoelectric Losses in Piezoceramics:

How it Works all Together,” IEEE Transactions on Ultrasonics, Ferroelectrics, and
Frequency Control, vol. 51, no. 6, 2004.

4. K. Uchino and S. Hirose, “Loss Mechanisms in Piezoelectrics: How to Measure

Different Losses Separately,” IEEE Transactions on Ultrasonics, Ferroelectrics, and
Frequency Control, vol. 48, no. 1, pp. 307–321, 2001.

5. P.C.Y. Lee, N.H. Liu, and A. Ballato, “Thickness Vibrations of a Piezoelectric Plate
with Dissipation,” IEEE Transactions on Ultrasonics, Ferroelectrics, and Frequency
Control, vol. 51, no. 1, 2004.

6. P.C.Y. Lee and N.H. Liu, “Plane Harmonic Waves in an Infinite Piezoelectric Plate
with Dissipation,” Frequency Control Symposium and PDA Exhibition, IEEE
International, pp. 162–169, 2002.

7. C.A. Balanis, “Electrical Properties of Matter,” Advanced Engineering

Electromagnetics, John Wiley & Sons, 1989.

8. J. Yang, An Introduction to the Theory of Piezoelectricity, Springer Science and

Business Media, N.Y., 2005.

REFERENCES FOR MAGNETOMECHANICS

1. J.A. Stratton, Electromagnetic Theory, Cambridge, MA, 1941.

REFERENCES | 823
 2. L.D. Landau and E.M. Lifshitz, Electrodynamics of Continuous Media, Pergamon
Press, pp. 69–73, 1960.

3. D.J. Griffiths, “Resource Letter EM-1: Electromagnetic Momentum,” Am. J.

Phys., vol. 80, pp. 7–18, 2012.

4. L. Dorfmann, R.W. Ogden, Mechanics and Electrodynamics of Electroelastic and

Magnetoelastic Interactions, Springer, 2014.

REFERENCES FOR MAGNETOSTRICTION

1. Chikazumi, Physics of Ferromagnetism, Oxford University Press, New York, 1997.

2. H. Kronmüller, “General Micromagnetic Theory,” in Handbook of Magnetism and

Advanced Magnetic Materials, edited by H. Kronmüller and S. Parkin, Vol. 2:
Micromagnetism, John Wiley & Sons, Chichester, 2007.

3. X.E. Liu and X.J. Zheng, “A Nonlinear Constitutive Model for Magnetostrictive
Materials,” Acta Mech. Sinica, vol. 21, pp. 278–285, 2005.

4. D.C. Jiles, Introduction to Magnetism and Magnetic Materials, 2nd ed.,

Chapman & Hall, London, 1998.

5. M.J. Dapino, “Nonlinear and Hysteretic Magnetomechanical Model for

Magnetostrictive Transducers,” PhD Dissertation, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa,
1999.

6. C.H. Sherman and J.L. Butler, Appendix A.7, p. 555 in Transducers and Arrays
for Underwater Sound, Springer, New York, 2007.

REFERENCES FOR ELECTROSTRICTION

1. J.A. Stratton, Electromagnetic Theory, Cambridge, MA, 1941.

2. L.D. Landau and E.M. Lifshitz, Electrodynamics of Continuous Media, Pergamon

Press, pp. 69–73, 1960.

3. R.E. Newnham, V. Sundar, R. Yimnirun, J. Su, and Q.M. Zhang, “Electrostriction:

Nonlinear Electromechanical Coupling in Solid Dielectrics,” J. Phys. Chem. B,
vol. 101, pp. 10141–10150, 1997.

REFERENCES FOR FERROELASTICITY

1. F. Li, Jin, Z. Xu, and S. Zhang, “Electrostrictive effect in ferroelectrics: An
alternative approach to improve piezoelectricity,” Appl. Phys. Reviews, vol. 1, no. 1,
pp. 011103-1–011103-21, 2014.

824 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

2. C. L. Horn and N. Shankar, “A finite element method for electrostrictive ceramic
devices,” Int. J. Solids Struct., vol. 33, pp. 1757–1779, 1995.

3. R.C. Smith and Z. Ounaies. “A Domain Wall Model for Hysteresis in Piezoelectric
Materials,” J. Int. Mat. Sys. Struct., vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 62–79, 2000.

REFERENCES FOR BOUNDARY CONDITIONS

1. M. Cohen and P.C. Jennings, “Silent Boundary Methods for Transient Analysis,”
Computational Methods for Transient Analysis, vol 1 (editors T. Belytschko and
T.J.R. Hughes), North-Holland, 1983.

2. B. Lalanne and M. Touratier, “Aeroelastic Vibrations and Stability in Cyclic

Symmetric Domains,” Int. J. Rotating Mach., vol. 6, no. 6, pp. 445–452, 2000.

3. Y.C. Fung, Foundations of Solid Mechanics, Prentice-Hall, 1965, page 99.

4. Q. Hu, F. Chouly, P. Hu, G. Cheng, and S.P.A Bordas, “Skew-symmetric Nitsche’s

formulation in isogeometric analysis: Dirichlet and symmetry conditions, patch
coupling and frictionless contact,” Computer Methods in Applied Mechanics and
Engineering, vol. 341, pp. 188–220, 2018.

REFERENCES FOR CONTACT ANALYSIS AND DECOHESION

1. R. Mlika, Y. Renard, and F. Chouly, “An unbiased Nitsche’s formulation of large
deformation fictional contact and self-contact”, Computer Methods in Applied
Mechanics and Engineering, vol. 325, pp. 265–288, 2017

2. L. De Lorenzis, D. Fernando, and J.G. Teng, “Coupled mixed-mode cohesive zone

modeling of interfacial debonding in plated beams,” Int. J. Solids Struct., vol. 50,
pp. 2477–2494, 2013.

3. R.D.S.G. Campilho, M.F.S.F. de Moura, and J.J.M.S. Domingues, “Using a

cohesive damage model to predict the tensile behavior of CFRP single-strap repairs,”
Int. J. Solids Struct., vol. 45, no. 5, pp. 1497–1512, 2008.

4. S.T. Pinho, L. Iannucci, and P. Robinson, “Formulation and implementation of

decohesion elements in an explicit finite code,” Composites Part A: Applied Science
and Manufacturing, vol. 37, no. 5, pp. 778–789, 2006.

5. N. Valoroso and L. Champeny, “A damage-mechanics-based approach for

modelling decohesion in adhesively bonded assemblies,” Eng. Fract. Mech., vol. 73,
pp. 2774–2801, 2006.

REFERENCES | 825
 6. L. Allix and A Corigliano, “Geometrical and interfacial non-linearities in the analysis
of delamination in composites,” Int. J. Solids Struct., vol. 36, pp. 2189–2216, 1999

826 | CHAPTER 3: STRUCTURAL MECHANICS THEORY

 4

Solid Mechanics

This chapter describes the Solid Mechanics interface, which is found under the
Structural Mechanics branch ( ) when adding a physics interface.

827
 T he S o li d M e c h an i cs In t erface
The Solid Mechanics (solid) interface ( ), found under the Structural Mechanics
branch ( ) when adding a physics interface, is intended for general structural
analysis of 3D, 2D, 1D, or axisymmetric bodies. In 2D, 1D, and 1D axisymmetry,
plane stress, plane strain, or generalized plane strain assumptions can be used. The
Solid Mechanics interface is based on solving the equations of motion together with a
constitutive model for a solid material. Results such as displacements, stresses, and
strains are computed.

The functionality provided by the Solid Mechanics interface depends on the products
you are using. The Acoustics Module, MEMS Module, and Structural Mechanics
Module add several features, for example geometric nonlinearity and advanced
boundary conditions such as contact, follower loads, and nonreflecting boundaries.

The default material is a Linear Elastic Material. With either the Nonlinear Structural
Materials Module or the Geomechanics Module, the physics interface is extended with
more materials, for example, material models for plasticity, hyperelasticity, creep, and
concrete. You can also add your own material models using an External Stress-Strain
Relation

For a detailed overview of the functionality available in each product, visit

https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/

When this physics interface is added, thee following default nodes are also added to the
Model Builder: Linear Elastic Material, Free (a boundary condition where boundaries are
free, with no loads or constraints), and Initial Values. For axisymmetric models, an Axial
Symmetry node is also added.

Then, from the Physics toolbar, you can add other nodes that implement, for example,
solid mechanics material models, boundary conditions, and loads. You can also
right-click Solid Mechanics to select physics features from the context menu.

SETTINGS
The Label is the default physics interface name.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the physics
interface. Refer to such physics interface variables in expressions using the pattern
<name>.<variable_name>. In order to distinguish between variables belonging to

828 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

different physics interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and
underscores (_) are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first physics interface in the model) is solid.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 829

 2D APPROXIMATION

From the 2D approximation list, select Plane strain, Plane stress, or

Generalized plane strain.

Plane strain is relevant when the 2D model can be considered as a cut

through an object that is infinitely long in the out-of-plane direction or as
a soft object confined between rigid walls. The strain in the out-of-plane
direction is assumed to be zero.

Plane stress is relevant for structures that are thin in the out-of-plane
direction, such as a thin plate. When using plane stress, the Solid
Mechanics interface solves for the out-of-plane strain displacement
w
derivative, ------- , in addition to the displacement field u, in order to fulfill
Z
the condition that there is no stress in the thickness direction.

The generalized plane strain condition is similar to plane strain, but allows
for a nonzero out-of-plane strain. It is representative for the central parts
of a long object, which is stress free at the ends. In this case, you can
choose between two assumptions: a uniform out-of-plane strain, or a full
linear distribution of the out-of-plane strain. The latter assumption
corresponds to bending in the out-of-plane direction, and is used when
the Enable out-of-plane bending check box is selected.

For more information see the theory section.

When combining Solid Mechanics with other types of physics, there is

often an assumption that the out-of-plane extension is infinitely long. This
is the case in, for example, Acoustic-Structure interaction problems. In
these cases, Plane strain is usually the correct choice.

Select Out-of-plane mode extension (time-harmonic) to prescribe an

out-of-plane wave number to be used in mode analysis, eigenfrequency,
and frequency domain studies. When selected, enter the Out-of-plane wave
number kz. The input value will only be taken into account in
eigenfrequency and frequency domain studies. For mode analysis, the
out-of-plane wave number is computed as an eigenvalue.

For more information, see Out-of-Plane Waves in the Structural

Mechanics Theory chapter.

830 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

AXIAL SYMMETRY APPROXIMATION

Select Include circumferential displacement to add a dependent variable to

account for the out-of-plane displacement. This can be used to model
axial deformation with rotation around the axis of symmetry.

Select Circumferential mode extension to prescribe a circumferential wave

number to be used in eigenfrequency or frequency domain studies. When
selected, enter the Azimuthal mode number m.

For more information, see Circumferential Displacement and

Out-of-Plane Waves in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

This section is only available with certain COMSOL products (see https:/
/www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

Eigenfrequency Analysis of a Free Cylinder: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Verification_Examples/free_cylinder.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 831

 1D APPROXIMATION

From the y direction and z direction lists, select Plane strain, Plane stress,
or Generalized plane strain.

Plane strain is relevant when the model can be considered as a cut through
an object that is infinitely long in the corresponding out-of-plane
direction (y or z), or as a soft object confined between rigid walls. The
strain in the out-of-plane direction is assumed to be zero.

Plane stress is relevant for structures that are thin in the corresponding
out-of-plane direction, such as a thin plate. When using plane stress, the
Solid Mechanics interface solves for the out-of-plane strain displacement
v w
derivatives, ------- or ------- , in addition to the displacement field u, in order to
Y Z
fulfill the condition that there is no stress in the thickness direction.

The generalized plane strain condition is similar to plane strain, but allows
for a constant nonzero out-of-plane strain. It is representative for the
central parts of a long object, which is stress free at the ends.

For more information see the theory section.

When combining Solid Mechanics with other types of physics, there is

often an assumption that the out-of-plane extension is infinitely long. This
is the case in, for example, Acoustic-Structure interaction problems. In
these cases, Plane strain is usually the correct choice.

832 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

1D AXISYMMETRIC APPROXIMATION

From the z direction list, select Plane strain, Plane stress, or Generalized
plane strain.

Plane strain is relevant when the model can be considered as a cut through
a cylinder, which is infinitely long in the z direction, or as a soft object
confined between rigid walls. The strain in the z direction is assumed to
be zero.

Plane stress is relevant for thin discs. When using plane stress, the Solid
Mechanics interface solves for the displacement derivative in the
w
z direction, ------- , in addition to the displacement field u, in order to fulfill
Z
the condition that there is no stress in the thickness direction.

The generalized plane strain condition is similar to plane strain, but allows
for a nonzero strain in z direction. It is representative for the central parts
of a long cylinder, which is stress free at the ends.

For more information see the theory section.

When combining Solid Mechanics with other types of physics, there is

often an assumption that the out-of-plane extension is infinitely long. This
is the case in, for example, Acoustic-Structure interaction problems. In
these cases, Plane strain is usually the correct choice.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 833

 THICKNESS

For 2D and 1D axisymmetric components, enter a value or expression for

the thickness d. The default value of 1 m is suitable for plane strain
models, where it represents a unit-thickness slice, for example. For plane
stress models, consider entering the actual thickness.

When manually combining Solid Mechanics with other physics interfaces,

you must make sure that the same thickness assumption is used
everywhere. In most cases, the default settings will be correct since
interfaces that do not have an explicit thickness property will implicitly
assume unit thickness. When using other unit systems than the default SI
system, you need to pay special attention to the values of this property.

Use a Change Thickness node to change thickness in parts of the

geometry if necessary.

CROSS-SECTIONAL AREA

For 1D components, enter a value or expression for the cross-section area

Ac. The default value is 1 m2, which is suitable for models where plane
strain assumptions are used in both transverse directions. For plane stress
models, consider entering actual cross-section data.

When combining Solid Mechanics with other physics interfaces, you must
make sure that the same cross-section assumption is used everywhere. In
most cases, the default settings will be correct. When using other unit
systems than the default SI system, you need to pay special attention to
the values of this property.

Use a Change Cross Section node to change thickness in parts of the

geometry if necessary.

STRUCTURAL TRANSIENT BEHAVIOR

From the Structural transient behavior list, select Include inertial terms or Quasistatic.
Use Quasistatic to treat the dynamic behavior as quasistatic (with no mass effects; that
is, no second-order time derivatives). Selecting this option gives a more efficient
solution for problems where the variation in time is slow when compared to the natural

834 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

frequencies of the system. The default solver for the time stepping is changed from
Generalized alpha to BDF when Quasistatic is selected.

For problems with creep, and sometimes viscoelasticity, the problem can be considered
as quasistatic. This is also the case when the time dependence exists only in some other
physics, like a transient heat transfer problem causing thermal strains.

TRANSIENT SOLVER SETTINGS

In this section, you can add instructions used when generating the solver sequence for
a wave-propagation transient problem. Select the Maximum frequency to resolve check
box to activate this functionality.

Enter the Maximum frequency to resolve in the model, fmax,sol.

Select the Time stepping (method) as Fixed (preferred) or Free. The Free option is in
general not recommended for wave problems.

The generated solver will be adequate in most situations if the computational mesh also
resolves the frequency content in the model. Note that any changes made to these
settings (after the model is solved the first time) will only be reflected in the solver if
Show Default Solver or Reset Solver to Defaults is selected in the study.

For highly nonlinear problems with user-defined terms, manual tuning of the solver
may be necessary. In nonlinear models, the maximum frequency to resolve should be
selected based on the number of harmonics to be resolved.

TYPICAL WAVE SPEED FOR PERFECTLY MATCHED LAYERS

The typical wave speed cref is a parameter for the perfectly matched layers (PMLs) if
used in a solid wave propagation model. The default value is solid.cp, the
pressure-wave speed. To use another wave speed, enter a value or expression in the
Typical wave speed for perfectly matched layers field.

This section is only available with COMSOL products that include PMLs (see https:/
/www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

PORT SWEEP SETTINGS

Select to enable the Activate port sweep option. This option is used to compute the full
scattering matrix when Port conditions are used. For more details see The Port Sweep
Functionality subsection. The section only exists for 3D geometries.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 835

 AUTOMATED MODEL SETUP
This section will only be displayed if a mesh on NASTRAN® format, containing RBE2
elements, has been imported in an Import node under Mesh. The purpose is to
automatically create rigid connectors from RBE2 elements in the NASTRAN file.

An RBE2 element represents a rigid connection between a set of mesh nodes. This
means that it can, and often does, connect elements from different physics interfaces.

In the drop-down menu in the section title, you can select Create Rigid Connectors from
RBE2. The effect is that one rigid connector will be created for each RBE2 element in
the imported file. This will happen for all physics interfaces in the Interfaces list.
Supported interfaces are: Solid Mechanics, Shell, Beam, and Multibody Dynamics. If
there are RBE2 elements spanning more than one physics interface, they will be
automatically connected.

The created rigid connectors will have point, edge, and boundary selections as inferred
from the nodes in the RBE2 element and the mesh connectivity. The ‘independent
node’ of the RBE2 element is used as center of rotation for the rigid connector.

The Automated Model Setup section is present in the Solid Mechanics, Shell, and Beam
interfaces. In a model that contains several physics interfaces, you should use the
automated model setup from only one of them, and make sure that all the involved
interfaces are selected in the Interfaces list.

ADVANCED SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box. Normally these settings do not
need to be changed.

You can chose how to group in the solver nodes the extra ODE variables added by
some features.

Select the Rigid connectors check box to group in the solver node the variables added
by the Rigid Connector feature.

Select the Attachments check box to group in the solver node the variables added by
the Attachment feature.

The selection made in the Advanced Settings section can be overridden by the settings
in the Advanced section of the Rigid Connector or Attachment features.

836 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

DISCRETIZATION
In the Solid Mechanics interface, you can choose not only the order of the
discretization, but also the type of shape functions: Lagrange or serendipity. For
highly distorted elements, Lagrange shape functions provide better accuracy than
serendipity shape functions of the same order. The serendipity shape functions will
however give significant reductions of the model size for a given mesh containing
hexahedral, prism, or quadrilateral elements. In 1D components there is no difference
between Lagrange and serendipity shape functions.

The default is to use Quadratic serendipity shape functions for the Displacement field.
Using Linear shape functions will give what is sometimes called constant stress
elements. Such a formulation will for many problems make the model overly stiff, and
many elements may be needed for an accurate resolution of the stresses.

To display other settings for this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and
select Advanced Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

See Table 2-4 for links to common sections and Table 2-5 for common
feature nodes. You can also search for information: press F1 to open the
Help window or Ctrl+F1 to open the Documentation window.

DEPENDENT VARIABLES
The physics interface uses the global spatial components of the Displacement field u as
dependent variables. The default names for the components are (u, v, w) in 3D. In 2D
the component names are (u, v), and in 2D axisymmetry they are (u, w). In 1D and
1D axisymmetry the default component name is (u). You can however not use the
‘missing’ component names in 2D or 1D as a parameter or variable name, since they
are used internally.

You can change both the field name and the individual component names. If a new
field name coincides with the name of another displacement field, the two fields (and
the interfaces that define them) share degrees of freedom and dependent variable
component names. You can use this behavior to connect a Solid Mechanics interface
to a Shell directly attached to the boundaries of the solid domain or to another Solid
Mechanics interface sharing a common boundary.

A new field name must not coincide with the name of a field of another type (that is,
it must contain a displacement field), or with a component name belonging to some

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 837

 other field. Component names must be unique within a model except when two
interfaces share a common field name.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual see Table 2-4 for links
to common sections and Table 2-5 to common feature nodes. You can
also search for information: press F1 to open the Help window or Ctrl+F1
to open the Documentation window.

• Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for Solid Mechanics
• Solid Mechanics Theory
• Selecting Discretization

• Stresses in a Pulley: Application Library path COMSOL_Multiphysics/

Structural_Mechanics/stresses_in_pulley
• Eigenvalue Analysis of a Crankshaft: Application Library path
COMSOL_Multiphysics/Structural_Mechanics/crankshaft

Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for Solid Mechanics
The Solid Mechanics Interface has these domain, boundary, edge, point, and pair
nodes and subnodes (listed in alphabetical order), which are available from the Physics
ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics context menu (Mac or Linux users), or
right-click to access the context menu (all users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

FEATURES AVAILABLE FROM SUBMENUS

Many features for the Solid Mechanics interface are added from submenus in the
Physics toolbar groups or context menu (when you right-click the node). The
submenu name is the same in both cases.

The submenus at the Domain level are Material Models, Volume Forces, Mass, Spring, and
Damper, Domain Constraints, and More.

838 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

The submenus at the Boundary level are Connections, Mass, Spring, and Damper, More
Constraints, Pairs, and More.

There are also the Edges and Points submenus.

Note: Some submenus are only present with certain COMSOL products.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 839

 • Added Mass • Linear Elastic Material
• Antisymmetry • Linearly Accelerated Frame
• Attachment • Local System Results
• Base Excitation • Low-Reflecting Boundary
• Body Load • Nonlinear Elastic Material
• Bolt Pretension • Piezoelectric Material
• Bolt Selection • Periodic Condition
• Bolt Thread Contact • Piezomagnetic Material
• Boundary Load • Point Load
• Boundary Pair • Point Load, Free
• Cell Periodicity • Point Load (on Axis)
• Change Thickness • Port
• Change Cross Section • Prescribed Acceleration
• Contact • Prescribed Displacement
• Continuity • Prescribed Displacement/Rotation
• Crack • Prescribed Velocity
• Edge Load • Reduced Flexible Components
• Elastic Predeformation • Rigid Motion Suppression
• Elastoplastic Soil Material • Rigid Connector
• External Strain • Rigid Material
• External Stress • Ring Load
• External Stress-Strain Relation • Ring Load, Free
• Fixed Constraint • Roller
• Fixed Joint • Rotating Frame
• Free • Section Forces
• Gravity • Shape Memory Alloy
• Hyperelastic Material • Spring Foundation
• Initial Values • Spring-Damper

840 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 • Stress Linearization • Thin Elastic Layer
• Symmetry • Thin Layer
• Test Material • Wave Speeds

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual, see Table 2-4 for links
to common sections and Table 2-5 for common feature nodes. You can
also search for information: press F1 to open the Help window or Ctrl+F1
to open the Documentation window.

Below is a list of subnodes available from main parent nodes as indicated in the
documentation:

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 841

 • Activation • Fixed Constraint (Thin Layer)
• Adhesion • Friction
• Applied Force (Rigid Connector) • Hygroscopic Swelling
• Applied Force (Rigid Material) • Initial Stress and Strain
• Applied Moment (Rigid • Initial Values (Rigid Material)
Connector) • Intercalation Strain
• Applied Moment (Rigid Material) • J-Integral
• Boundary Load (Thin Layer) • Location Nodes (Boundary, Edge,
• Center of Mass Nodes (Boundary, Point)
Edge, Point) • Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid
• Center of Rotation Nodes Connector)
(Boundary, Edge, Point) • Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid
• Component Definition Material)
• Conduction Loss • Mechanical Damping
(Time-Harmonic) • Phase
• Concrete • Plasticity
• Creep • Porous Plasticity
• Damage • Prescribed Displacement (Thin
• Damping Layer)
• Decohesion • Prescribed Displacement/Rotation
• Destination Filter • Predeformation
• Destination Point (for • Roller (Thin Layer)
Spring-Damper) • Rocks
• Dielectric Loss • Safety
• Elastic Predeformation • Set Variables
• External Stress • Slip Velocity
• Face Load (Crack) • Soil Plasticity
• Face Load (Thin Layer) • Source Filter
• Fiber • Source Point (for Spring-Damper)
• Fixed Constraint (Rigid Material)

842 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 • Spring Foundation (Rigid • Thermal Expansion (Rigid
Connector) Connector)
• Spring Foundation (Rigid Material) • Viscoelasticity
• Spring Material • Viscoplasticity
• Thermal Expansion (for • Wear
Constraints)
• Thermal Expansion (for Materials)
• Thermal Expansion (Attachment)

Initial Values
The Initial Values node adds initial values for the displacement field and structural
velocity field that can serve as an initial condition for a transient simulation or as an
initial guess for a nonlinear analysis. In addition to the default Initial Values node always
present in the interface, you can add more Initial Values nodes if needed.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Initial Values node.

INITIAL VALUES
Enter values or expressions for the initial values of the Displacement field u (the
displacement components u, v, and w in 3D), and the Structural velocity field ut.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>More>Initial Values
Layered Shell>More>Initial Values
Membrane>More>Initial Values
Truss>More>Initial Values
Wire>More>Initial Values

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 843

 Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Domains>More>Initial Values

Physics tab with Layered Shell or Membrane selected:

Boundaries>More>Initial Values

Physics tab with Truss or Wire selected:

Edges>More>Initial Values

Change Thickness
Use the Change Thickness node to model domains with a thickness other than the
overall thickness defined in the physics interface’s Thickness section. The Change
Thickness node is only available in 2D, and 1D axisymmetry.

CHANGE THICKNESS
Enter a value for the Thickness d. This value replaces the overall thickness for the
selected domains.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>More>Change Thickness
Multibody Dynamics>More>Change Thickness

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics or Multibody Dynamics selected:

Domains>More>Change Thickness

Change Cross Section

Use the Change Cross Section node to model domains with a cross section other than
the overall cross section defined in the physics interface’s Cross-Sectional Area section.
The Change Cross Section node is only available in 1D.

CHANGE CROSS SECTION

Enter a value for the cross section area Ac. This value replaces the overall cross section
area for the selected domains.

844 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>More>Change Cross Section

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Domains>More>Change Cross Section

Linear Elastic Material

The Linear Elastic Material node adds the equations for a linear elastic solid and an
interface for defining the elastic material properties.

By adding the following subnodes to the Linear Elastic Material node you can
incorporate many other effects:

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials) • Viscoplasticity

• Hygroscopic Swelling • Porous Plasticity
• Initial Stress and Strain • Soil Plasticity
• External Stress • Concrete
• External Strain • Rocks
• Damping • Damage
• Viscoelasticity • Activation
• Plasticity • Safety
• Creep

Note: Some options are only available with certain COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/). Also, the available options depend on
the physics interface in which the Linear Elastic Material is used.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 845

 SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Linear Elastic Material node.
The way the Linear Elastic Material node interacts with material definitions
differ significantly between the Layered Shell interface and the other
physics interfaces.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The Global coordinate system is selected by default. The Coordinate system list contains
all applicable coordinate systems in the component. The coordinate system is used for
interpreting directions of orthotropic and anisotropic material data and when stresses
or strains are presented in a local system. The coordinate system must have
orthonormal coordinate axes, and be defined in the material frame. Many of the
possible subnodes inherit the coordinate system settings.

This section is not present in the in the Layered Shell interface.

LINEAR ELASTIC MATERIAL

Define the Material symmetry and the linear elastic material properties.

Material Symmetry
Select the Material symmetry — Isotropic, Orthotropic, Anisotropic, or Crystal. Select:

• Isotropic for a material that has the same properties in all directions.
• Orthotropic for a material that has different material properties in orthogonal
directions. It is also possible to define Transversely isotropic material properties.
• Anisotropic for a material that has different material properties in different
directions.
• Crystal for a material that has certain crystal symmetry.

846 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Note: The Orthotropic, Anisotropic, and Crystal options are only available with certain
COMSOL products (see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/)

In the Layered Shell interface, the chosen material symmetry applies to all
selected layers, irrespective of whether the material data is entered
explicitly as User defined in the Linear Elastic Material node, or is obtained
from a Layered Material node using the default From material option.

• Material Models
• Linear Elastic Material
• Orthotropic and Anisotropic Materials
• Crystal Symmetry

Density
The default Density  uses values From material. For User defined enter another value or
expression.

If any material in the model has a temperature dependent mass density, and From
material is selected, the Volume reference temperature list will appear in the Model Input
section. As a default, the value of Tref is obtained from a Common model input. You can
also select User defined to enter a value or expression for the reference temperature
locally.

The density is needed for dynamic analysis or when the elastic data is given
in terms of wave speed. It is also used when computing mass forces for
gravitational or rotating frame loads, and when computing mass
properties (Computing Mass Properties).

See also

• Mass Density and Volume Reference Temperature.

• Using Common Model Input
• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 847

 Specification of Elastic Properties for Isotropic Materials
For an Isotropic material, from the Specify list select a pair of elastic properties for an
isotropic material — Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio, Young’s modulus and shear
modulus, Bulk modulus and shear modulus, Lamé parameters, or Pressure-wave and
shear-wave speeds. For each pair of properties, select from the applicable list to use the
value From material or enter a User defined value or expression.

Each of these pairs define the elastic properties and it is possible to convert from one
set of properties to another according to Table 4-1.
TABLE 4-1: EXPRESSIONS FOR THE ELASTIC MODULI.

DESCRIPTION VARIABLE DE DEG DKG D

Young’s E= E E 9KG - 3 + 2
------------------  --------------------
modulus 3K + G +
Poisson’s =  E-  -
---  1 – ------------------
------- –1 1 3G - --------------------
ratio 2G 2 3K + G 2 + 

Bulk K= E - EG - K 2
----------------------- --------------------------  + -------
modulus 3  1 – 2  3  3G – E  3
Shear G= E - G G 
--------------------
modulus 21 + 
Lamé = E G  E – 2G - 2G 
--------------------------------------
- --------------------------- K – --------
parameter   1 +    1 – 2  3G – E 3
Lamé = E - G G 
--------------------
parameter  21 + 
Pressure- cp = E1 –  - G  4G – E - K + 4G  3-  + 2
wave speed ----------------------------------------- --------------------------- ------------------------- ----------------
  1 +    1 – 2    3G – E   
Shear-wave cs = E - G G 
speed ------------------------
2  1 +  

The individual property parameters are:

• Young’s modulus (elastic modulus) E.

• Poisson’s ratio .
• Shear modulus G.
• Bulk modulus K.
• Lamé parameter  and Lamé parameter .

848 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

• Pressure-wave speed (longitudinal wave speed) cp.
• Shear-wave speed (transverse wave speed) cs. This is the wave speed for a solid
continuum. In plane stress, for example, the actual speed with which a longitudinal
wave travels is lower than the value given.

Specification of Elastic Properties for Orthotropic Materials

When Orthotropic is selected from the Material symmetry list, the material properties
are different in orthogonal directions (principal directions) given by the axes of the
selected coordinate system. The Material data ordering can be specified in either
Standard or Voigt notation. When User defined is selected, enter three values in the fields
for Young’s modulus E, Poisson’s ratio , and the Shear modulus G. The latter defines
the relationship between engineering shear strain and shear stress. It is applicable only
to an orthotropic material and follows the equation

 ij
 ij = --------
G ij

ij is defined differently depending on the application field. It is easy to

transform among definitions, but check which one the material uses.

You can set an orthotropic material to be Transversely isotropic. Then, one principal
direction in the material is different from two others that are equivalent. This special
direction is assumed to be the first axis of the selected coordinate system. Because of
the symmetry, the following relations hold:

E3 = E2

 13 =  12

E2
G 23 = --------------------------
2  1 +  23 

G 12 = G 13

Thus, only five elasticity moduli need to be entered when the User defined option is
selected.

Specification of Elastic Properties for Anisotropic Materials

When Anisotropic is selected from the Material symmetry list, the material properties
vary in all directions. They can be specified using either the Elasticity matrix, D or the

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 849

 Compliance matrix, D-1. Both matrices are symmetric. The Material data ordering can
be specified in either Standard or Voigt notation. When User defined is selected, a 6-by-6
symmetric matrix is displayed.

In 1D and 1D axisymmetry, the elasticity matrix is assumed to represent either

isotropic or orthotropic material. Entering components in the elasticity matrix that
couple extension and shear, for instance, should be avoided.

Specification of Elastic Properties for Crystals

Because of the material symmetry, only certain components of the elasticity matrix
need to be specified. The actual components to enter depend on the selected Crystal
system — Cubic (3 constants), Hexagonal (5 constants), Trigonal (6 constants), Trigonal (7
constants), Tetragonal (6 constants), Tetragonal (7 constants), or Orthorhombic (9
constants).

Mixed Formulation
For a material with a very low compressibility, using only displacements as degrees of
freedom may lead to a numerically ill-posed problem. You can then use a mixed
formulation, which adds an extra dependent variable for either the pressure or for the
volumetric strain. For details, see the Mixed Formulation section in the Structural
Mechanics Theory chapter.

From the Use mixed formulation list, select None, Pressure formulation, or Strain
formulation.

GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
The settings in this section affect the behavior of the selected domains in a
geometrically nonlinear analysis.

If a study step is geometrically nonlinear, the default behavior is to use a large strain
formulation in all domains. Select the Geometrically linear formulation check box to
always use a small strain formulation, irrespective of the setting in the study step.

When a geometrically nonlinear formulation is used, the elastic deformations used for
computing the stresses can be obtained in two different ways if inelastic deformations
are present: additive decomposition and multiplicative decomposition. The default is
to use multiplicative decomposition. Select Additive strain decomposition to change to
an assumption of additivity.

850 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Note: This section is only available with COMSOL products that support
geometrically nonlinear analysis (see https://www.comsol.com/products/
specifications/).

• There are some cases when a small strain formulation could be useful
for a certain domain, even though the study step is geometrically
nonlinear. One such case is in contact analysis, where the study is always
geometrically nonlinear, but it is possible that a geometrically linear
formulation is sufficient in the material.
• When a multiplicative decomposition is used, the order of the
subnodes to Linear Elastic Material matters. The inelastic deformations
are assumed to have occurred in the same order as the subnodes appear
in the model tree.
• In versions prior to 5.3, only the additive strain decomposition method
was available. If you want to revert to the previous behavior, select
Additive strain decomposition. If the results then differ significantly,
probably the assumption of additivity is questionable, however.

• Modeling Geometric Nonlinearity

• Inelastic Strain Contributions
• Studies and Solvers in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

ENERGY DISSIPATION
You can select to compute and store various energy dissipation variables in a
time-dependent analysis. Doing so will add extra degrees of freedom to the model.

Select the Calculate dissipated energy check box as needed to compute the energy
dissipated by for example creep, plasticity, viscoplasticity, viscoelasticity, or damping.

• Dissipated Energy
• Energy Variables

To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 851

 DISCRETIZATION
If Pressure formulation is used, select the discretization for the Auxiliary pressure —
Automatic, Discontinuous Lagrange, Continuous, Linear, or Constant. If Strain formulation
is used, select the discretization for the Auxiliary volumetric strain — Automatic,
Discontinuous Lagrange, Continuous, Linear, or Constant.

The Discretization section is available when Pressure formulation or Strain

formulation is selected from the Use mixed formulation list. To display the
section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

QUADRATURE SETTINGS
Select the Reduced integration check box to reduce the integration points for the weak
contribution of the feature. Select a method for Hourglass stabilization — Automatic,
Manual, or None to use in combination with the reduced integration scheme. The
default Automatic stabilization technique is based on the shape function and shape
order of the displacement field.

Control the hourglass stabilization scheme by using the Manual option. Select Shear
stabilization (default) or Volumetric stabilization.

When Shear stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization shear modulus, Gstb. The
value should be in the order of magnitude of the equivalent shear modulus.

When Volumetric stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization bulk modulus, Kstb. The
value should be in the order of magnitude of the equivalent bulk modulus.

• Using Reduced Integration

• Reduced Integration and Hourglass Stabilization

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Material Models>Linear Elastic Material
Layered Shell>Material Models>Linear Elastic Material
Multibody Dynamics>Linear Elastic Material

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

852 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Domains>Material Models>Linear Elastic Material

Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Material Models>Linear Elastic Material

Physics tab with Multibody Dynamics selected:

Domains>Multibody Dynamics>Linear Elastic Material

Nonlinear Elastic Material

The Nonlinear Elastic Material feature is used to model stress-strain relationships which
are nonlinear even at infinitesimal strains. It is available in the Solid Mechanics and
Membrane interfaces. This material model requires either the Nonlinear Structural
Materials Module or the Geomechanics Module. Nonlinear Elastic Material is available
for 3D, 2D, and 2D axisymmetry.

By adding the following subnodes to the Nonlinear Elastic Material node you can
incorporate many other effects:

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials) • Creep

• Hygroscopic Swelling • Viscoplasticity
• Initial Stress and Strain • Porous Plasticity
• External Stress • Soil Plasticity
• External Strain • Concrete
• Damping • Rocks
• Viscoelasticity • Safety
• Plasticity

Note: Some options are only available with certain COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/)

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The Global coordinate system is selected by default. The Coordinate system list contains
any additional coordinate systems that the model includes (except boundary
coordinate systems). The coordinate system is used when stresses or strains are
presented in a local system. The coordinate system must have orthonormal coordinate

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 853

 axes, and be defined in the material frame. Many of the possible subnodes inherit the
coordinate system settings.

NONLINEAR ELASTIC MATERIAL

The available material models depend on the COMSOL products you are using.

Nonlinear Structural Materials Module: Select a Material model: Ramberg-Osgood,

Power law, Uniaxial data, Shear data, Bilinear elastic, or User defined.

Geomechanics Module: Select a Material model: Ramberg-Osgood, Hyperbolic law,

Hardin-Drnevich, Duncan-Chang, Duncan-Selig, or User defined.

Density
All nonlinear elastic material models have density as an input. The default Density 
uses values From material. For User defined enter another value or expression.

If any material in the model has a temperature dependent mass density, and From
material is selected, the Volume reference temperature list will appear in the Model Input
section. As a default, the value of Tref is obtained from a Common model input. You can
also select User defined to enter a value or expression for the reference temperature
locally.

The density is needed for dynamic analysis or when the elastic data is given
in terms of wave speed. It is also used when computing mass forces for
gravitational or rotating frame loads, and when computing mass
properties (Computing Mass Properties).

See also

• Mass Density and Volume Reference Temperature

• Using Common Model Input
• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

Mixed Formulation
For a material with a very low compressibility, using only displacements as degrees of
freedom may lead to a numerically ill-posed problem. You can then use a mixed
formulation, which adds an extra dependent variable for either the pressure or for the
volumetric strain, see the Mixed Formulation section in the Structural Mechanics
Theory chapter.

854 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

From the Use mixed formulation list, select None, Pressure formulation, or Strain
formulation.

Ramberg–Osgood, Power Law, Hyperbolic Law, Hardin–Drnevich, Duncan–Chang, or

Duncan–Selig
Select from the applicable list to use the value From material or enter a User defined
value or expression.

From the Specify list select a pair of elastic properties for an isotropic material —
Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio (the default for Ramberg–Osgood, Power law,
Duncan–Chang, and Duncan–Selig) or Bulk modulus and shear modulus (the default
for Hyperbolic law and Hardin–Drnevich).

Then depending on the selections, define the applicable parameters:

• Young’s modulus E.
• Poisson’s ratio .
• Shear modulus G.
• Bulk modulus K.
• For Ramberg-Osgood:
- Reference stress ref.
- Reference strain ref.
- Stress exponent n.
• For Power law and Hyperbolic law:
- Reference shear strain ref.
- Strain exponent n.
• For Hardin-Drnevich, define the Reference shear strain ref.
• For Duncan-Chang, define the Ultimate deviatoric stress qult.
• For Duncan-Selig:
- Ultimate deviatoric stress qult.
- Ultimate strain ult.

Uniaxial Data
For Uniaxial data the Uniaxial stress function ax uses the value From material (if it exists)
or User defined. If User defined is selected from the list, the default expression for ax
is the linear function 210[GPa]*<physics>.eax, which corresponds to a linear elastic
material with a Young’s modulus of 210 GPa. The variable <physics>.eax

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 855

 corresponds to the elastic uniaxial strain in pure axial loading, and is named using the
scheme <physics>.eax, for example, solid.eax.

From the Specify list select how to specify the second elastic property for the material
— Bulk modulus or Poisson’s ratio. Then, depending on the selection, enter a value or
select from the applicable list to use the value From material or enter a User defined
value or expression:

• Bulk modulus K.
• Poisson’s ratio .

When you select Bulk modulus, the Young’s modulus is computed from the tensile part
of the Uniaxial stress function ax. When you select Poisson’s ratio, you can either use
the tensile part (default), or use the full tensile-compressive curve by selecting the
check box Use nonsymmetric stress-strain data.

Shear Data
For Shear data the Shear stress function  uses the value From material (if it exists) or
User defined. If User defined is selected from the list, the default expression for  is the
linear function 80[GPa]*<physics>.esh, which corresponds to a linear elastic
material with a shear modulus of 80 GPa. The variable <physics>.esh corresponds
to the elastic shear strain in pure shear loading, and it is named using the scheme
<physics>.esh, for example, solid.esh.

The default Bulk modulus K uses values From material. For User defined enter another
value or expression.

Bilinear Elastic
For Bilinear elastic enter a value or select from the applicable list to use the value From
material or enter a User defined value or expression.

• Bulk modulus in tension Kt.

• Bulk modulus in compression Kc.
• Shear modulus G.

User Defined
In the User defined material model, you specify the bulk modulus implicitly by entering
the relation between pressure and volumetric elastic strain. Enter a value or select from

856 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

the applicable list to use the value From material or enter a User defined value or
expression.

• Pressure p. The default expression is (-160[GPa])*solid.eelvol, which

corresponds to a linear elastic material with a bulk modulus of 160 GPa.
• Shear modulus G.

GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
The settings in this section affect the behavior of the selected domains in a
geometrically nonlinear analysis.

If a study step is geometrically nonlinear, the default behavior is to use a large strain
formulation in all domains. Select the Geometrically linear formulation check box to
always use a small strain formulation, irrespective of the setting in the study step.

When a geometrically nonlinear formulation is used, the elastic deformations used for
computing the stresses can be obtained in two different ways if inelastic deformations
are present: additive decomposition and multiplicative decomposition. The default is
to use multiplicative decomposition. Select Additive strain decomposition to change to
an assumption of additivity.

• There are some cases when a small strain formulation could be useful
for a certain domain, even though the study step is geometrically
nonlinear. One such case is in contact analysis, where the study is always
geometrically nonlinear, but it is possible that a geometrically linear
formulation is sufficient in the material.
• When a multiplicative decomposition is used, the order of the
subnodes to Nonlinear Elastic Material matters. The inelastic
deformations are assumed to have occurred in the same order as the
subnodes appear in the model tree.
• In versions prior to 5.3, only the additive strain decomposition method
was available. If you want to revert to the previous behavior, select
Additive strain decomposition. If the results then differ significantly,
probably the assumption of additivity is questionable, however.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 857

 • Modeling Geometric Nonlinearity
• Inelastic Strain Contributions
• Studies and Solvers in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

ENERGY DISSIPATION
Select the Calculate dissipated energy check box as needed to compute the energy
dissipated by Creep, Plasticity, Viscoplasticity, or Viscoelasticity.

To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

DISCRETIZATION
If Pressure formulation is used, select the discretization for the Auxiliary pressure —
Automatic, Discontinuous Lagrange, Continuous, Linear, or Constant. If Strain formulation
is used, select the discretization for the Auxiliary volumetric strain — Automatic,
Discontinuous Lagrange, Continuous, Linear, or Constant.

The Discretization section is available when Pressure formulation or Strain

formulation is selected from the Use mixed formulation list. To display the
section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

QUADRATURE SETTINGS
Select the Reduced integration check box to reduce the integration points for the weak
contribution of the feature. Select a method for Hourglass stabilization — Automatic,
Manual, or None to use in combination with the reduced integration scheme. The
default Automatic stabilization technique is based on the shape function and shape
order of the displacement field.

Control the hourglass stabilization scheme by using the Manual option. Select Shear
stabilization (default) or Volumetric stabilization.

When Shear stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization shear modulus, Gstb. The
value should be in the order of magnitude of the equivalent shear modulus.

858 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

When Volumetric stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization bulk modulus, Kstb. The
value should be in the order of magnitude of the equivalent bulk modulus.

See also Reduced Integration and Hourglass Stabilization in the

Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Material Models>Nonlinear Elastic Material
Membrane>Material Models>Nonlinear Elastic Material

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Domains>Material Models>Nonlinear Elastic Material

Physics tab with Membrane selected:

Boundaries>Material Models>Nonlinear Elastic Material

Elastoplastic Soil Material

The Elastoplastic Soil Material feature is used to model stress-strain relationships that
are nonlinear even at infinitesimal strains. It is available in the Solid Mechanics
interface. This material model requires a Geomechanics Module license (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/). Elastoplastic Soil Material is available for
3D, 2D, and 2D axisymmetry.

By adding the following subnodes to the Elastoplastic Soil Material node you can
incorporate other effects:

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials)

• Initial Stress and Strain
• External Stress
• Damping
• Safety

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 859

 Add an External Stress node in case you need to define a pore pressure in a porous soil.
The Pore pressure pA is user-defined by default. The default value is 1 atm, but you can
change it to another value or expression for the pore fluid pressure. If there are other
physics interfaces (like Darcy’s Law) in the model that make a pressure variable
available, such variables will be available in the list.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The Global coordinate system is selected by default. The Coordinate system list contains
any additional coordinate systems that the model includes (except boundary
coordinate systems). The coordinate system is used when stresses or strains are
presented in a local system. The coordinate system must have orthonormal coordinate
axes, and be defined in the material frame. Many of the possible subnodes inherit the
coordinate system settings.

ELASTOPLASTIC SOIL MATERIAL

Select a Material model from the list: Modified Cam-Clay, Modified Structured Cam-Clay,
Extended Barcelona Basic, or Hardening Soil.

Density
All elastoplastic soil models have density as an input. The default Density  uses values
From material. For User defined enter another value or expression.

If any material in the model has a temperature dependent mass density, and From
material is selected, the Volume reference temperature list will appear in the Model Input
section. As a default, the value of Tref is obtained from a Common model input. You can
also select User defined to enter a value or expression for the reference temperature
locally.

The density is needed for dynamic analysis or when the elastic data is given
in terms of wave speed. It is also used when computing mass forces for
gravitational or rotating frame loads, and when computing mass
properties (Computing Mass Properties).

860 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 See also

• Mass Density and Volume Reference Temperature

• Using Common Model Input
• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

Modified Cam-Clay
The Modified Cam-Clay options adds the equations and interface for defining the
material properties for the modified Cam-Clay soil model.

See also The Modified Cam-Clay Soil Model in the Structural Mechanics
Theory chapter.

From the Specify list, define the elastic properties either in terms of Poisson’s ratio or
Shear modulus.

The defaults for the Poisson’s ratio or the Shear modulus G, Density, Slope of critical
state line M, Swelling index , Compression index , Initial void ratio e0 , and Void ratio
at reference pressure eref are taken From material. For User defined enter other values or
expressions

Enter a value or expression for the Reference pressure pref, and the Initial consolidation
pressure pc0.

For the Slope of critical state line you can alternatively select Match to
Mohr-Coulomb criterion or Match to Matsuoka-Nakai criterion, which then
matches the slope of the virgin consolidation line to the angle of internal
friction. Then select the Angle of internal friction  as From material or
User defined.

For the Initial void ratio, you can alternatively select From void ratio at
reference pressure, which then computes the initial void ratio from the
reference pressure, the void ratio at reference pressure, the initial
consolidation pressure, and the swelling and compression indexes. Then
select the Void ratio at reference pressure eref as From material or User
defined. See also The Modified Cam-Clay Soil Model in the Structural
Mechanics Theory chapter.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 861

 Isotropic Compression with Modified Cam-Clay Material Model:
Application Library path Geomechanics_Module/Verification_Examples/
isotropic_compression

Modified Structured Cam-Clay

From the Specify list, define the elastic properties either in terms of Poisson’s ratio or
Shear modulus.

The defaults for the Poisson’s ratio or the Shear modulus G, Density , Slope of critical
state line M, Swelling index for structured clay s, Compression index for destructured
clay d, Angle of internal friction  , Initial structure strength pbi, Destructuring index for
volumetric deformation dv, Destructuring index for shear deformation ds, Plastic potential
shape parameter , Initial void ratio e0, Void ratio at reference pressure for destructured
clay erefd, Additional void ratio at initial yielding ei, and Critical equivalent deviatoric
plastic strain edcp are taken From material. For User defined enter other values or
expressions.

Enter a value or expression for the Reference pressure pref, and the Initial consolidation
pressure pc0.

For the Slope of critical state line you can alternatively select Match to
Mohr-Coulomb criterion or Match to Matsuoka-Nakai criterion, which then
matches the slope of the virgin consolidation line to the angle of internal
friction. Then select the Angle of internal friction  as From material or
User defined.

For the Initial void ratio, you can alternatively select From void ratio at
reference pressure for destructured clay, which then computes the initial
void ratio from the reference pressure, the void ratio at reference pressure
for destructured clay, the initial consolidation pressure, and the swelling
and compression indexes. Then select the Void ratio at reference pressure
for destructured clay erefd as From material or User defined. See also The
Modified Structured Cam-Clay Soil Model in the Structural Mechanics
Theory chapter.

Extended Barcelona Basic

The defaults for the Poisson’s ratio or the Shear modulus G, Density , Slope of critical
state line M, Swelling index , Swelling index for changes in suction s, Compression index
at saturation 0, Compression index for changes in suction s, Angle of internal friction  ,

862 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Weight parameter w, Soil stiffness parameter m, Plastic potential shape parameter bs,
Tension to suction ratio k, Initial void ratio e0, Void ratio at reference pressure and
saturation eref0, and Initial yield value for suction sy0 are taken From material. For User
defined enter other values or expressions.

Enter a value or expression for the Initial suction s0, Suction s, the Reference pressure
pref, and the Initial consolidation pressure pc0.

For the Slope of critical state line you can alternatively select Match to
Mohr-Coulomb criterion or Match to Matsuoka-Nakai criterion, which then
matches the slope of the virgin consolidation line to the angle of internal
friction. Then select the Angle of internal friction  as From material or
User defined.

For the Initial void ratio, you can alternatively select From void ratio at
reference pressure and saturation, which then computes the initial void
ratio from the reference pressure, the void ratio at reference pressure and
saturation, the initial consolidation pressure, and the swelling and
compression indexes. Then select the Void ratio at reference pressure and
saturation eref0 as From material or User defined. See also The Extended
Barcelona Basic Soil Model in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

Hardening Soil
The defaults for the Reference stiffness for primary loading E50ref, Reference stiffness for
unloading and reloading Eurref, Elastoplastic compression modulus Kc, Poisson’s ratio 
Density , Stress exponent m, Cohesion c, Angle of internal friction  , Dilatation angle ,
Ellipse aspect ratio R, and Initial void ratio e0 are taken From material. For User defined
enter other values or expressions. The Ellipse aspect ratio R can also be defined from
the Coefficient of earth pressure at rest k0nc.

Enter a value or expression for the Failure ratio Rf, the Reference pressure pref, and the
Initial consolidation pressure pc0.

Select the Include dilatancy cutoff check box if needed. The defaults for the Maximum
void ratio emax is taken From material. For User defined enter other value or expression.
Enter a value or expression for the Initial volumetric strain vol0.

See also The Hardening Soil Model in the Structural Mechanics Theory
chapter.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 863

 NONLOCAL PLASTICITY MODEL
The default is None. Select Implicit Gradient to add nonlocal regularization to the
equivalent plastic strain. Enter a value for the:

• Length scale, lint. The length scale should not exceed the maximum element size of
the mesh.
• Nonlocal coupling modulus, Hnl. This stiffness is the penalization of the difference
between the local and nonlocal variables. A larger value enforces the equivalent
plastic strain pe to be closer to the nonlocal equivalent plastic strain pe,nl.

See also Nonlocal Plasticity in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
The settings in this section affect the behavior of the selected domains in a
geometrically nonlinear analysis.

If a study step is geometrically nonlinear, the default behavior is to use a large strain
formulation in all domains. Select the Geometrically linear formulation check box to
always use a small strain formulation, irrespective of the setting in the study step.

When a geometrically nonlinear formulation is used, the elastic deformations used for
computing the stresses can be obtained in two different ways if inelastic deformations
are present: additive decomposition and multiplicative decomposition. The default is
to use multiplicative decomposition. Select Additive strain decomposition to change to
an assumption of additivity.

• There are some cases when a small strain formulation could be useful
for a certain domain, even though the study step is geometrically
nonlinear. One such case is in contact analysis, where the study is always
geometrically nonlinear, but it is possible that a geometrically linear
formulation is sufficient in the material.
• When a multiplicative decomposition is used, the order of the
subnodes to Elastoplastic Soil Material matters. The inelastic
deformations are assumed to have occurred in the same order as the
subnodes appear in the model tree.

864 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 • Modeling Geometric Nonlinearity
• Inelastic Strain Contributions
• Studies and Solvers in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

ENERGY DISSIPATION
Select the Calculate dissipated energy check box as needed to compute the energy
dissipated by Creep, Plasticity, Viscoplasticity, or Viscoelasticity.

To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

DISCRETIZATION
This section is available with the Implicit gradient nonlocal plasticity model. Select the
shape function for the Nonlocal equivalent plastic strain pe,nl— Automatic, Linear,
Quadratic Lagrange, Quadratic serendipity, Cubic Lagrange, Cubic serendipity, Quartic
Lagrange, Quartic serendipity, or Quintic Lagrange. The available options depend on the
order of the displacement field.

To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

QUADRATURE SETTINGS
Select the Reduced integration check box to reduce the integration points for the weak
contribution of the feature. Select a method for Hourglass stabilization — Automatic,
Manual, or None to use in combination with the reduced integration scheme. The
default Automatic stabilization technique is based on the shape function and shape
order of the displacement field.

Control the hourglass stabilization scheme by using the Manual option. Select Shear
stabilization (default) or Volumetric stabilization.

When Shear stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization shear modulus, Gstb. The
value should be in the order of magnitude of the equivalent shear modulus.

When Volumetric stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization bulk modulus, Kstb. The
value should be in the order of magnitude of the equivalent bulk modulus.

See also Reduced Integration and Hourglass Stabilization in the

Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 865

 ADVANCED
It is possible to specify the maximum number of iterations and the relative tolerance
used to solve the plastic flow rule. Enter the following settings:

• Maximum number of local iterations. To determine the maximum number of iteration

in the Newton loop when solving the local plasticity equations. The default value is
25 iterations.
• Relative tolerance. To check the convergence of the local plasticity equations based
on the step size in the Newton loop. The final tolerance is computed based on the
current solution of the local variable and the entered value. The default value is 1e-6.

To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

See also Numerical Solution of the Elastoplastic Conditions in the

Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Material Models>Elastoplastic Soil Material

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Domains>Material Models>Elastoplastic Soil Material

Hyperelastic Material
The Hyperelastic Material subnode adds the equations for hyperelasticity at large strains.
Hyperelastic materials can be suitable for modeling rubber and other polymers,
biological tissue, and also for applications in acoustoelasticity. The Hyperelastic Material
is available in the Solid Mechanics, Layered Shell, Shell, and Membrane interfaces.
Hyperelastic Material is available for 3D, 2D, and 2D axisymmetry.

When a hyperelastic material is included in your model, all studies are geometrically
nonlinear. The Include geometric nonlinearity check box in the study settings is selected
and cannot be cleared.

866 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

By adding the following subnodes to the Hyperelastic Material node you can
incorporate many other effects:

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials) • Plasticity

• Hygroscopic Swelling • Creep
• External Stress • Viscoplasticity
• External Strain • Fiber
• Inelastic Strain Rate • Mullins Effect
• Damping
• Viscoelasticity

See also Hyperelastic Materials in the Structural Mechanics Theory

chapter.

The Hyperelastic Material node is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present when Hyperelastic Material is used in the

Layered Shell interface. See the documentation for the Hyperelastic
Material node in the Layered Shell chapter.

HYPERELASTIC MATERIAL
Select a hyperelastic Material model from the list and then go to the applicable section
for more information.

Compressibility
Hyperelastic materials can use a mixed formulation by adding the negative mean
pressure as an extra dependent variable or a weak constraint to enforce the
incompressibility condition. Depending on the hyperelastic material model, select
from the Compressibility list:

• Compressible material
• Nearly incompressible material, quadratic volumetric strain energy

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 867

 • Nearly incompressible material, Hartmann-Neff volumetric strain energy
• Incompressible material

See also Nearly Incompressible Hyperelastic Materials and

Incompressible Hyperelastic Materials in the Structural Mechanics
Theory chapter.

Density
All hyperelastic material models have density as an input. The default Density  uses
values From material. For User defined enter another value or expression.

If any material in the model has a temperature dependent mass density, and From
material is selected, the Volume reference temperature list will appear in the Model Input
section. As a default, the value of Tref is obtained from a Common model input. You can
also select User defined to enter a value or expression for the reference temperature
locally.

Mixed Formulation
For a material with a very low compressibility, using only displacements as degrees of
freedom may lead to a numerically ill-posed problem. You can then use a mixed
formulation, which adds an extra dependent variable for either the pressure or for the
Lagrange multiplier to enforce incompressibility, see the Nearly Incompressible
Hyperelastic Materials and Incompressible Hyperelastic Materials sections in the
Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

From the Use mixed formulation list, select None or Pressure formulation.

The density is needed for dynamic analysis or when the elastic data is given
in terms of wave speed. It is also used when computing mass forces for
gravitational or rotating frame loads, and when computing mass
properties (Computing Mass Properties).

See also

• Mass Density and Volume Reference Temperature.

• Using Common Model Input
• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

868 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 • Neo-Hookean • Gent
• St Venant–Kirchhoff • van der Waals
• Mooney–Rivlin, Two Parameters • Blatz–Ko
• Mooney–Rivlin, Five Parameters • Gao
• Mooney–Rivlin, Nine Parameters • Murnaghan
• Yeoh • Delfino
• Ogden • Fung
• Storakers • Extended tube
• Varga • User Defined
• Arruda–Boyce

Neo-Hookean
From the Compressibility list select how the material is specified in terms of the strain
energy density — Compressible, coupled, Compressible, uncoupled, Nearly incompressible,
or Incompressible.

• If the Compressible, coupled option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Simo-Pister or Miehe.
• If the Compressible, uncoupled option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
• If the Nearly incompressible option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The pressure formulation is selected from the Use mixed formulation list, and the
default value for the Bulk modulus  is 100 times the equivalent shear modulus.
• If the Incompressible option is selected, an extra variable and weak constraint is
added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  .

From the Specify list select a pair of elastic properties for the isotropic hyperelastic
material — Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio, Young’s modulus and shear modulus,
Bulk modulus and shear modulus, Lamé parameters, or Pressure-wave and shear-wave
speeds. Each of these pairs define the Lamé parameters at infinitesimal deformation as
it is possible to convert from one set of properties to another, see Specification of
Elastic Properties for Isotropic Materials. For each property, select from the applicable
list to either use the value From material or enter a User defined value or expression.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 869

 St Venant–Kirchhoff
From the Compressibility list select how the material is specified in terms of the strain
energy density — Compressible, coupled, Compressible, uncoupled, or Nearly
incompressible.

• If the Compressible, uncoupled option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
• If the Nearly incompressible option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The pressure formulation is selected from the Use mixed formulation list, and the
default value for the Bulk modulus  is 100 times the equivalent shear modulus.

From the Specify list select a pair of elastic properties for the isotropic hyperelastic
material — Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio, Young’s modulus and shear modulus,
Bulk modulus and shear modulus, Lamé parameters, or Pressure-wave and shear-wave
speeds. For each pair of properties, select from the applicable list to either use the value
From material or enter a User defined value or expression. Each of these pairs define the
Lamé parameters at infinitesimal deformation as it is possible to convert from one set
of properties to another, see Specification of Elastic Properties for Isotropic Materials.

Mooney–Rivlin, Two Parameters

From the Compressibility list select how the material is specified in terms of the strain
energy density — Compressible, uncoupled, Nearly incompressible, or Incompressible.

The Model parameters C10 and C01 use values From material.

• If the Compressible, uncoupled option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The Bulk modulus K uses values From material.
• If the Nearly incompressible option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The pressure formulation is selected from the Use mixed formulation list, and the
default value for the Bulk modulus  is 100 times the equivalent shear modulus.
• If the Incompressible option is selected, an extra variable and weak constraint is
added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  .

Mooney–Rivlin, Five Parameters

From the Compressibility list select how the material is specified in terms of the strain
energy density — Compressible, uncoupled, Nearly incompressible, or Incompressible.

870 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

The Model parameters C10, C01, C20, C02, and C11 all use values From material.

• If the Compressible, uncoupled option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The Bulk modulus K uses values From material.
• If the Nearly incompressible option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The pressure formulation is selected from the Use mixed formulation list, and the
default value for the Bulk modulus  is 100 times the equivalent shear modulus.
• If the Incompressible option is selected, an extra variable and weak constraint is
added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  .

Mooney–Rivlin, Nine Parameters

From the Compressibility list select how the material is specified in terms of the strain
energy density — Compressible, uncoupled, Nearly incompressible, or Incompressible.

The Model parameters C10, C01, C20, C02, C11, C30, C03, C21, and C12 all use values
From material.

• If the Compressible, uncoupled option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The Bulk modulus K uses values From material.
• If the Nearly incompressible option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The pressure formulation is selected from the Use mixed formulation list, and the
default value for the Bulk modulus  is 100 times the equivalent shear modulus.
• If the Incompressible option is selected, an extra variable and weak constraint is
added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  .

Yeoh
From the Compressibility list select how the material is specified in terms of the strain
energy density — Compressible, uncoupled, Nearly incompressible, or Incompressible.

The Model parameters c1, c2, and c3 all use values From material.

• If the Compressible, uncoupled option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The Bulk modulus K uses values From material.
• If the Nearly incompressible option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 871

 The pressure formulation is selected from the Use mixed formulation list, and the
default value for the Bulk modulus  is 100 times the equivalent shear modulus.
• If the Incompressible option is selected, an extra variable and weak constraint is
added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  .

Ogden
From the Compressibility list select how the material is specified in terms of the strain
energy density — Compressible, uncoupled, Nearly incompressible, or Incompressible.

• If the Compressible, uncoupled option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The Bulk modulus K uses values From material.
• If the Nearly incompressible option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The pressure formulation is selected from the Use mixed formulation list, and the
default value for the Bulk modulus  is 100 times the equivalent shear modulus.
• If the Incompressible option is selected, an extra variable and weak constraint is
added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  .

In the table for the Ogden parameters, enter values or expressions in each column: Shear
modulus (Pa) and Alpha parameter.

Storakers
For Storakers, in the table for the Storakers parameters, enter values or expressions in
each column: Shear modulus (Pa), Alpha parameter, and Beta parameter.

Varga
From the Compressibility list select how the material is specified in terms of the strain
energy density — Compressible, uncoupled, Nearly incompressible, or Incompressible.

The Model parameters c1, c2, and c3 all use values From material.

• If the Compressible, uncoupled option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The Bulk modulus K uses values From material.
• If the Nearly incompressible option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The pressure formulation is selected from the Use mixed formulation list, and the
default value for the Bulk modulus  is 100 times the equivalent shear modulus.
• If the Incompressible option is selected, an extra variable and weak constraint is
added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  .

872 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Arruda–Boyce
From the Compressibility list select how the material is specified in terms of the strain
energy density — Compressible, uncoupled, Nearly incompressible, or Incompressible.

The default values for the Macroscopic shear modulus 0 and the Number of segments N
use values From material.

• If the Compressible, uncoupled option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The Bulk modulus K uses values From material.
• If the Nearly incompressible option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The pressure formulation is selected from the Use mixed formulation list, and the
default value for the Bulk modulus  is 100 times the equivalent shear modulus.
• If the Incompressible option is selected, an extra variable and weak constraint is
added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  .

Gent
From the Compressibility list select how the material is specified in terms of the strain
energy density — Compressible, uncoupled, Nearly incompressible, or Incompressible.

The default values for the Macroscopic shear modulus  and the model parameter jm use
values From material.

• If the Compressible, uncoupled option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The Bulk modulus K uses values From material.
• If the Nearly incompressible option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The pressure formulation is selected from the Use mixed formulation list, and the
default value for the Bulk modulus  is 100 times the equivalent shear modulus.
• If the Incompressible option is selected, an extra variable and weak constraint is
added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  .

van der Waals

From the Compressibility list select how the material is specified in terms of the strain
energy density — Compressible, uncoupled, Nearly incompressible, or Incompressible.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 873

 The default values for the Shear modulus , the Maximum chain stretch m, the Chain
network interaction , and the Weight  use values From material.

• If the Compressible, uncoupled option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The Bulk modulus K uses values From material.
• If the Nearly incompressible option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The pressure formulation is selected from the Use mixed formulation list, and the
default value for the Bulk modulus  is 100 times the equivalent shear modulus.
• If the Incompressible option is selected, an extra variable and weak constraint is
added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  .

Blatz–Ko
For Blatz-Ko the Shear modulus and the Model parameters  and  all use values From
material.

Gao
For Gao the Model parameters a and n use values From material.

Murnaghan
For Murnaghan the Murnaghan third-order elastic moduli constants l, m, and n and the
Lamé parameters  and  use values From material.

Delfino
From the Compressibility list select how the material is specified in terms of the strain
energy density — Compressible, uncoupled, Nearly incompressible, or Incompressible.

The Model parameters a and b use values From material.

• If the Compressible, uncoupled option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The Bulk modulus K uses values From material.
• If the Nearly incompressible option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The pressure formulation is selected from the Use mixed formulation list, and the
default value for the Bulk modulus  is 100 times the equivalent shear modulus.
• If the Incompressible option is selected, an extra variable and weak constraint is
added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  .

874 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Fung
The Coefficient matrix A and Fung parameter c use values From material.

The Coefficient matrix A provides the anisotropic material properties in the directions
given by the Coordinate system list. The Material data ordering can be specified in either
Standard or Voigt notation. When User defined is selected, a 6-by-6 symmetric matrix is
displayed to enter the coefficients of A.

From the Compressibility list select how the material is specified in terms of the strain
energy density — Compressible, coupled, Compressible, uncoupled, Nearly incompressible,
or Incompressible.

• If the Compressible, uncoupled option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The Bulk modulus K uses values From material.
• If the Nearly incompressible option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The pressure formulation is selected from the Use mixed formulation list, and the
default value for the Bulk modulus  is 100 times the equivalent shear modulus.
• If the Incompressible option is selected, an extra variable and weak constraint is
added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  .

Extended tube
From the Compressibility list select how the material is specified in terms of the strain
energy density — Compressible, uncoupled, Nearly incompressible, or Incompressible.

The Model parameters Gc, Ge, , and  use values From material.

• If the Compressible, uncoupled option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The Bulk modulus K uses values From material.
• If the Nearly incompressible option is selected, specify the Volumetric strain energy
density — Quadratic, Logarithmic, Hartmann-Neff, Miehe, Simo-Taylor, or User defined.
The pressure formulation is selected from the Use mixed formulation list, and the
default value for the Bulk modulus  is 100 times the equivalent shear modulus.
• If the Incompressible option is selected, an extra variable and weak constraint is
added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  .

User Defined
If a Compressible material is selected from the Compressibility list, enter an expression
for the Elastic strain energy density Ws.

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 You can also use a mixed formulation by adding the mean pressure as an extra
dependent variable. In this case, select either Nearly incompressible or Incompressible
from the Compressibility list.

If Nearly incompressible is selected, enter the Isochoric strain energy density Wsiso and
the Volumetric strain energy density Wvol.

If Incompressible is selected, enter the Isochoric strain energy density Wsiso only. An
extra weak constraint is added to enforce the incompressibility condition Jel  .

Select the Use elastic deformation gradient check box to compute the strain energy
densities based on components of the elastic deformation gradient Fel. The check box
is not selected by default, so it is assumed that Ws, Wsiso, and Wvol are expressions of
the components or invariants of the elastic right Cauchy–Green tensor Cel.

For examples of:

• Mooney-Rivlin, two-parameters and Ogden, see Inflation of a Spherical

Rubber Balloon. Application Library path
Nonlinear_Structural_Materials_Module/Hyperelasticity/balloon_inflation.
• Murnaghan, see Elasto-Acoustic Effect in Rail Steel. Application
Library path Nonlinear_Structural_Materials_Module/Hyperelasticity/
rail_steel.

ENERGY DISSIPATION
Select the Calculate dissipated energy check box to compute the energy dissipated by
Plasticity.

To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

DISCRETIZATION
If the hyperelastic material is nearly incompressible or incompressible, select the
discretization for the Auxiliary pressure — Automatic, Discontinuous Lagrange,
Continuous, Linear or Constant.

The Discretization section is available when you use mixed formulation.

To display the section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select
Advanced Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

876 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

QUADRATURE SETTINGS
Select the Reduced integration check box to reduce the integration points for the weak
contribution of the feature. Select a method for Hourglass stabilization — Automatic,
Manual, or None to use in combination with the reduced integration scheme. The
default Automatic stabilization technique is based on the shape function and shape
order of the displacement field.

Control the hourglass stabilization scheme by using the Manual option. Select Shear
stabilization (default) or Volumetric stabilization.

When Shear stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization shear modulus, Gstb. The
value should be in the order of magnitude of the equivalent shear modulus.

When Volumetric stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization bulk modulus, Kstb. The
value should be in the order of magnitude of the equivalent bulk modulus.

See also Reduced Integration and Hourglass Stabilization in the

Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

ADVANCED
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

Enter the Equivalent Young’s modulus Eeq and the Equivalent shear modulus Geq. The
defaults are 1 GPa and Eeq/3, respectively. The equivalent moduli are defined by most
hyperelastic material models, but not in the User defined option. The characteristic
stiffness is needed in expressions for the default penalty factors in contact methods, and
it should be representative for the stiffness of the destination domain material in a
direction normal to the boundary.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Material Models>Hyperelastic Material
Layered Shell>Material Models>Hyperelastic Material
Shell>Material Models>Layered Hyperelastic Material
Membrane>Material Models>Hyperelastic Material

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 877

 Domains>Material Models>Hyperelastic Material

Physics tab with Shell, Layered Shell or Membrane selected:

Boundaries>Material Models>Hyperelastic Material

Shape Memory Alloy

The Shape Memory Alloy feature is used to model stress-strain relationships that are
nonlinear even at infinitesimal strains. This material model requires the Nonlinear
Structural Materials Module. Shape Memory Alloy is available for 3D, 2D, and 2D
axisymmetry.

By adding the following subnodes to the Shape Memory Alloy node you can incorporate
other effects:

• Phase Transformation Direction

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials)
• Initial Stress and Strain
• External Stress
• External Strain
• Damping

Note: Some options are only available with certain COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/)

See also Shape Memory Alloy in the Structural Mechanics Theory

chapter.

MODEL INPUTS
From the Temperature T list, select an existing temperature variable from a heat transfer
interface (for example, Temperature (ht)), if any temperature variables exist, or select
User defined to enter a value or expression for the temperature.

If any material in the model has a temperature dependent mass density, and From
material is selected for the density, the Volume reference temperature list will appear in

878 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

the Model Input section. You can also select User defined to enter a value or expression
for the reference temperature locally.

See also

• Mass Density and Volume Reference Temperature.

• Using Common Model Input
• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The Global coordinate system is selected by default. The Coordinate system list contains
any additional coordinate systems that the model includes (except boundary
coordinate systems). The coordinate system is used when stresses or strains are
presented in a local system. The coordinate system must have orthonormal coordinate
axes, and be defined in the material frame. Many of the possible subnodes inherit the
coordinate system settings.

SHAPE MEMORY ALLOY

Select a Shape memory alloy model from the list: Lagoudas or Souza-Auricchio.

Lagoudas
For Lagoudas, the Shape memory alloy reference temperature T0, the Poisson’s ratio 
and the Density are taken From material. For User defined enter other values or
expressions.

For Austenite, select a material from the list. The Young’s modulus EA and the Heat
capacity at constant pressure Cp,A are taken from the selected material. For Martensite,
select a material from the list. The Young’s modulus EM and the Heat capacity at
constant pressure Cp,M are taken from the selected material. For User defined enter
other values or expressions.

Under Phase transformation parameters, select which Transformation parameters will

describe the phase transitions: Temperature or Stress.

• When Temperature is selected from the Transformation parameters list, enter the
Martensite start temperature Ms, the Martensite finish temperature Mf, the Slope of

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 879

 martensite limit curve CM, the Austenite start temperature As, the Austenite finish
temperature Af, and the Slope of austenite limit curve CA.
• When Stress is selected from the Transformation parameters list, enter the Martensite
start stress Ms, the Martensite finish stress Mf, the Slope of martensite limit curve
CM, the Austenite start stress As, the Austenite finish stress Af, the Slope of
austenite limit curve CA, and the Measurement temperature T.

Under the Maximum transformation strain list select Constant to directly enter the
Maximum transformation strain tr,max, or Exponential law to specify a stress-dependent
maximum transformation strain. Under Exponential law, enter the Initial maximum
transformation strain tr,min, the Ultimate transformation strain tr,sat, the Critical stress
crit, and the Saturation exponent k. Enter the Calibration stress level *.
Under Phase transformation kinetics, select the Transformation function from the list:
Quadratic, Cosine, Smooth or User defined.

For Smooth, enter the smoothing parameters 1, 2, 3, and 4.

For User defined enter the Yield stress ys, the Forward transformation law, and the
Reverse transformation law.

When Lagoudas model is selected, a Phase Transformation Direction subnode is added to

the Shape memory alloy node. Select a Transformation direction from the list: Automatic
(default) or User defined.

Souza–Auricchio
For Souza-Auricchio the defaults for the Poisson’s ratio and Density, are taken From
material. For User defined enter other values or expressions.

For Austenite, select a material from the list. The Young’s modulus EA is taken from the
selected material. For Martensite, select a material from the list. The Young’s modulus
EM is taken from the selected material. For User defined enter other values or
expressions.

Under Phase transformation parameters, enter the Reference temperature T*, the Slope
of limit curve , the Maximum transformation strain tr,max, the Elastic domain radius
0, the Hardening modulus Hk, and the Indicator function coefficient 

Initial Transformation State

For Lagoudas model, enter the Initial martensite volume fraction, the Initial
transformation strain tensor, the Initial martensite volume fraction at reverse point, and
the Initial transformation strain tensor at reverse point.

880 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

For the Souza-Auricchio model, enter the Initial transformation strain tensor.

GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
If a study step is geometrically nonlinear, the default behavior is to use a large strain
formulation in all domains. There are, however, some cases when the use of a small
strain formulation for a certain domain is needed. In those cases, select the
Geometrically linear formulation check box. When selected, a small strain formulation is
always used, independently of the setting in the study step. The check box is not
selected by default to conserve the properties of the model.

When a geometrically nonlinear formulation is used, the elastic deformations used for
computing the stresses can be obtained in two different ways if inelastic deformations
are present: additive decomposition and multiplicative decomposition. The default is
to use multiplicative decomposition. Select Additive strain decomposition to change to
an assumption of additivity.

ENERGY DISSIPATION
You can select to compute and store various energy dissipation variables in a
time-dependent analysis. Doing so will add extra degrees of freedom to the model.

Select the Calculate dissipated energy check box as needed to compute the energy
dissipation.

To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

QUADRATURE SETTINGS
Select the Reduced integration check box to reduce the integration points for the weak
contribution of the feature. Select a method for Hourglass stabilization — Automatic,
Manual, or None to use in combination with the reduced integration scheme. The
default Automatic stabilization technique is based on the shape function and shape
order of the displacement field.

Control the hourglass stabilization scheme by using the Manual option. Select Shear
stabilization (default) or Volumetric stabilization.

When Shear stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization shear modulus, Gstb. The
value should be in the order of magnitude of the equivalent shear modulus.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 881

 When Volumetric stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization bulk modulus, Kstb. The
value should be in the order of magnitude of the equivalent bulk modulus.

See also Reduced Integration and Hourglass Stabilization in the

Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

ADVANCED
It is possible to specify the maximum number of iterations and the relative tolerance
used to solve the plastic flow rule. Enter the following settings:

• Maximum number of local iterations. To determine the maximum number of iteration

in the Newton loop when solving the local plasticity equations. The default value is
25 iterations.
• Relative tolerance. To check the convergence of the local plasticity equations based
on the step size in the Newton loop. The final tolerance is computed based on the
current solution of the local variable and the entered value. The default value is 1e-6.

To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

See also Numerical Solution of the Elastoplastic Conditions in the

Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Material Models>Shape Memory Alloy
Truss>Material Models>Shape Memory Alloy

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Domains>Material Models>Shape Memory Alloy

Physics tab with Truss selected:

Edges>Material Models>Shape Memory Alloy

882 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Phase Transformation Direction
When Lagoudas is selected from the Shape memory alloy model list, the Phase
Transformation Direction node is automatically added to the Shape Memory Alloy node.
ꞏ
Since in many applications the transformation direction  is known a priori (for
instance, mechanical loading or unloading, or temperature increment/decrement) a
user input enables to set the transformation direction manually to 1 or -1, thus
speeding up the computational time.

PHASE TRANSFORMATION DIRECTION

Select a Transformation Direction — Automatic or User Defined.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Shape Memory Alloy>Phase Transformation Direction
Truss>Shape Memory Alloy>Phase Transformation Direction

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shape Memory Alloy node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Phase Transformation Direction

Piezoelectric Material
The Piezoelectric Material node defines the piezoelectric material properties either in
stress-charge form using the elasticity matrix and the coupling matrix, or in
strain-charge form using the compliance matrix and the coupling matrix. It is normally
used together with a Piezoelectric Effect multiphysics coupling node and a
corresponding Charge Conservation, Piezoelectric node in the Electrostatics interface.
This node is added by default to the Solid Mechanics interface when adding a
Piezoelectricity interface. Piezoelectric Material available for 3D, 2D, and 2D
axisymmetry.

This material model requires the Structural Mechanics Module, or MEMS Module, or
Acoustics Module.

By adding the following subnodes to the Piezoelectric Material node you can
incorporate many other effects:

• Initial Stress and Strain

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials)

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 883

 • Mechanical Damping
• Coupling Loss
• Dielectric Loss
• Conduction Loss (Time-Harmonic)

When the Piezoelectric Material node is added to the Solid Mechanics

interface in the absence of an active Piezoelectric Effect multiphysics
coupling node, the material behaves similarly to a Linear Elastic Material
node. The elastic properties correspond to the elasticity or compliance
matrix entered (see below). The piezoelectric effect is then not included
in the equation system.

See also Piezoelectricity in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

The Piezoelectric Material node is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

PIEZOELECTRIC MATERIAL PROPERTIES

Select a Constitutive relation — Stress-charge form or Strain-charge form. For each of the
following, the default uses values From material. For User defined enter other values in
the matrix or field as needed.

• For Stress-charge form, select an Elasticity matrix, Voigt notation (cE).

• For a Strain-charge form, select a Compliance matrix, Voigt notation (sE).
• Select a Coupling matrix, Voigt notation (eES or dET).
• Select a Relative permittivity (rS or rT).
• Enter values for the Remanent electric displacement (Dr).
• Select a Density ().

For entering these matrices, use the following order (Voigt notation),
which is the common convention for piezoelectric materials: xx, yy, zz, yz,
xz, zy.

884 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Check the Use multiplicative formulation check box to use a formulation based on the
multiplicative decomposition of elastic and inelastic (piezoelectric) strains.

When the Use multiplicative formulation check box is selected, all studies
in the model become geometrically nonlinear. The Include geometric
nonlinearity check box on the study step Settings window is selected and
cannot be cleared.

See also Multiplicative Formulation for Piezoelectricity in the Structural

Mechanics Theory chapter.

Density
If any material in the model has a temperature dependent mass density, and From
material is selected, the Volume reference temperature list will appear in the Model Input
section. As a default, the value of Tref is obtained from a Common model input. You can
also select User defined to enter a value or expression for the reference temperature
locally.

The density is needed for dynamic analysis and when computing mass
forces for gravitational or rotating frame loads, and when computing mass
properties (Computing Mass Properties).

See also

• Mass Density and Volume Reference Temperature.

• Using Common Model Input
• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
This section is only available when the check box Use multiplicative formulation is not
selected.

If a study step is geometrically nonlinear, the default behavior is to use a large strain
formulation in all domains. There are, however, some cases when the use of a small
strain formulation for a certain domain is needed. In those cases, select the

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 885

 Geometrically linear formulation check box. When selected, a small strain formulation is
always used, independently of the setting in the study step. The check box is not
selected by default to conserve the properties of the model.

• Modeling Piezoelectric Problems

• Modeling Geometric Nonlinearity

ENERGY DISSIPATION
You can select to compute and store various energy dissipation variables in a
time-dependent analysis. Doing so will add extra degrees of freedom to the model.

Select the Calculate dissipated energy check box as needed to compute the energy
dissipation.

To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

QUADRATURE SETTINGS
Select the Reduced integration check box to reduce the integration points for the weak
contribution of the feature. Select a method for Hourglass stabilization — Automatic,
Manual, or None to use in combination with the reduced integration scheme. The
default Automatic stabilization technique is based on the shape function and shape
order of the displacement field.

Control the hourglass stabilization scheme by using the Manual option. Select Shear
stabilization (default) or Volumetric stabilization.

When Shear stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization shear modulus, Gstb. The
value should be in the order of magnitude of the equivalent shear modulus.

When Volumetric stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization bulk modulus, Kstb. The
value should be in the order of magnitude of the equivalent bulk modulus.

See also Reduced Integration and Hourglass Stabilization in the

Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Material Models>Piezoelectric Material

886 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Domains>Material Models>Piezoelectric Material

Piezomagnetic Material
The Piezomagnetic Material node defines the linear magnetoelastic material properties.
The material data can be entered either in the strain-magnetization form using the
elasticity matrix and the coupling matrix, or in stress-magnetization form using the
compliance matrix and the coupling matrix. It is normally used as part of
Piezomagnetic Effect multiphysics interface together with a Piezomagnetic Effect
multiphysics coupling node and Ampère’s Law, Piezomagnetic node in the
corresponding Magnetic Fields interface. Piezomagnetic Material node is added by
default to the Solid Mechanics interface when adding a Piezomagnetism multiphysics
interface. This material model available for 3D, 2D, and 2D axisymmetry.

When the Piezomagnetic Material node is added to the Structural

Mechanics interface in the absence of an active Piezomagnetic Effect
multiphysics coupling node, the material behaves similarly to a Linear
Elastic Material node with some limitations on the format for the elastic
material data input. All the magnetic material data and coupling data will
have no effect. The piezomagnetic effect is then not included in the
corresponding equation system.

By adding the following subnodes to the Piezomagnetic Material node you can
incorporate other effects:

• Initial Stress and Strain

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials)
• Mechanical Damping

See also Magnetostriction and Piezomagnetism in the Structural

Mechanics Theory chapter.

The Piezomagnetic node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 887

 MAGNETOELASTIC PROPERTIES
Select a Constitutive relation — Strain-magnetization form or Stress-magnetization form.
For each of the following, the default uses values From material. For User defined, enter
other values in the matrix or field as needed.

• For Strain-magnetization form, select a Compliance matrix, Voigt notation (sH).

• For a Stress-magnetization form, select an Elasticity matrix, Voigt notation (cH).
• Select a Piezomagnetic coupling matrix, Voigt notation (dHT or eHS).
• Select a Relative permeability (rT or rS).
• Select a Density (p).

For entering these matrices, use the following order (Voigt notation),
which is the common convention for piezomagnetic materials: xx, yy, zz,
yz, xz, zy.

Check the Use multiplicative formulation check box to use a formulation based on the
multiplicative decomposition of elastic and inelastic (piezomagnetic) strains.

When the Use multiplicative formulation check box is selected, all studies
in the model become geometrically nonlinear. The Include geometric
nonlinearity check box on the study step Settings window is selected and
cannot be cleared.

See also Multiplicative Formulation for Piezomagnetism in the

Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

Density
If any material in the model has a temperature dependent mass density, and From
material is selected, the Volume reference temperature list will appear in the Model Input
section. As a default, the value of Tref is obtained from a Common model input. You can

888 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

also select User defined to enter a value or expression for the reference temperature
locally.

The density is needed for dynamic analysis or when the elastic data is given
in terms of wave speed. It is also used when computing mass forces for
gravitational or rotating frame loads, and when computing mass
properties (Computing Mass Properties).

See also

• Mass Density and Volume Reference Temperature.

• Using Common Model Input
• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
This section is only available when the check box Use multiplicative formulation is not
selected.

If a study step is geometrically nonlinear, the default behavior is to use a large strain
formulation in all domains. There are, however, some cases when the use of a small
strain formulation for a certain domain is needed. In those cases, select the
Geometrically linear formulation check box. When selected, a small strain formulation is
always used, independently of the setting in the study step. The check box is not
selected by default to conserve the properties of the model.

• Piezomagnetic Effect
• Modeling Magnetostrictive Materials
• Modeling Geometric Nonlinearity
• Ampère’s Law, Piezomagnetic
• The Magnetic Fields Interface in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

ENERGY DISSIPATION
You can select to compute and store various energy dissipation variables in a
time-dependent analysis. Doing so will add extra degrees of freedom to the model.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 889

 Select the Calculate dissipated energy check box as needed to compute the energy
dissipation.

To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

QUADRATURE SETTINGS
Select the Reduced integration check box to reduce the integration points for the weak
contribution of the feature. Select a method for Hourglass stabilization — Automatic,
Manual, or None to use in combination with the reduced integration scheme. The
default Automatic stabilization technique is based on the shape function and shape
order of the displacement field.

Control the hourglass stabilization scheme by using the Manual option. Select Shear
stabilization (default) or Volumetric stabilization.

When Shear stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization shear modulus, Gstb. The
value should be in the order of magnitude of the equivalent shear modulus.

When Volumetric stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization bulk modulus, Kstb. The
value should be in the order of magnitude of the equivalent bulk modulus.

See also Reduced Integration and Hourglass Stabilization in the

Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Material Models>Piezomagnetic Material

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Domains>Material Models>Piezomagnetic Material

890 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Magnetostrictive Material

The Magnetostrictive Material node is obsolete and will be removed in

future versions. It cannot be added in version 6.1 and later, but may be
present in models created by earlier versions of the software.

You are advised to update your model to use one of the new multiphysics
interfaces instead, either The Nonlinear Magnetostriction Interface or
The Piezomagnetism Interface (for modeling linear magnetostrictive
effects).

Viscoelasticity
Use the Viscoelasticity subnode to add viscous stress contributions to an elastic material
model. This material model is available in the Solid Mechanics, Shell, Layered Shell,
and Membrane interfaces, and can be used together with Linear Elastic Material,
Nonlinear Elastic Material, Hyperelastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, and
Layered Hyperelastic Material.

Note: Some options described below are only available with certain COMSOL
products (see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

See also Linear Viscoelasticity and Large Strain Viscoelasticity in the

Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present when Viscoelasticity is used as a subnode to:

• A material model in the Layered Shell interface. See the documentation

for the Viscoelasticity node in the Layered Shell chapter.
• Layered Linear Elastic Material or Layered Hyperelastic Elastic Material in
the Shell interface. See the documentation for the Viscoelasticity node
in the Shell and Plate chapter.
• Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Membrane interface. See the
documentation for the Viscoelasticity node in the Membrane chapter.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 891

 SKETCH
Viscoelastic models are often conceptually viewed as rheological networks consisting
of spring and damper elements. The sketch section shows the arrangement of springs
and dampers for the chosen viscoelastic material model. If fractional derivatives are
enabled, the dampers are replaced by so-called spring-pot elements. Relevant input
parameters are shown next to the spring, damper, and spring-pot elements. The elastic
stiffness contribution of the parent material model is indicated by a light gray spring
symbol representing the bulk and shear moduli, K and G, respectively.

THERMAL EFFECTS
Viscoelastic properties have a strong dependence on the temperature. For
thermorheologically simple materials, a change in the temperature can be transformed
directly into a change in the time scale. Thus, the relaxation time is modified to
aTTm, where aT(T) is a shift function.

Select a Shift function — None, Williams-Landel-Ferry, Arrhenius,

Tool-Narayanaswamy-Moynihan, or User defined.

• When the default, None, is kept, the shift function aTT is set to unity and the
relaxation time is not modified.
• For Williams-Landel-Ferry enter values or expressions for these properties:
- Reference temperature Tref The default is 293.15 K.
- WLF constant 1 C1WLF. The default is 17.44.
- WLF constant 2 C2WLF. The default is 51.6 K.

• For Arrhenius enter values or expressions for these properties:

- Reference temperature Tref. The default is 293.15 K.
- Activation energy Q.

• For Tool-Narayanaswamy-Moynihan enter values or expressions for these properties:

- Reference temperature Tref. The default is 293.15 K.
- Activation energy Q.
- Activation energy fraction  (0<<1).
- Structural relaxation times 0.
- Fictive temperature weights w.
• For User defined enter a value or an expression for the shift function aT.

892 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

VISCOELASTICITY MODEL
Select a Material model — Generalized Maxwell, Generalized Kelvin-Voigt, Maxwell,
Kelvin-Voigt, Standard linear solid, Burgers, or User defined. Then, enter the settings for
each option that follows.

From the Viscoelastic strains list select Volumetric, Deviatoric, or Volumetric and
deviatoric. Select Volumetric when the viscoelastic behavior applies only to the
volumetric deformation. The Deviatoric option (default) applies the viscoelastic
relaxation to the shear deformation only. With Volumetric and deviatoric the viscoelastic
strain is full.

For some material models, you can select the stiffness to use when solving a stationary
problem. Select the Stiffness used in stationary studies — Long-term or Instantaneous.
With Long-term all dampers are assumed to be fully relaxed, whereas with Instantaneous
all dampers are assumed to be rigid.

Generalized Maxwell
For Generalized Maxwell enter the values for the parameters that describe the
viscoelastic behavior as a series of spring-dashpot pairs.

Depending on the selection done in the Viscoelastic strains list, for each Branch row
enter the stiffness of the spring Km in the Bulk modulus (Pa) column and/or Gm in the
Shear modulus (Pa) column, and the relaxation time constant m in the Relaxation
time (s) column for the spring-dashpot pair in branch m.

When the Use fractional derivatives check box is selected, enter the fractional order m
in the Fractional order (1) column for each spring-spring-pot branch.

For large strain viscoelasticity, in each Branch row enter the energy factor of the branch,
vm, in the Energy factor (1) column and the relaxation time constant m in the
Relaxation time (s) column for the spring-dashpot pair.

• Use the Add button ( ) to add a row to the table, the Delete button ( ) to delete
a row in the table, or the Clear Table button ( ) to clear the whole table.
• Use the Load from file button ( ) and the Save to file button ( ) to load and
store data for the branches in a text file with space-separated columns.

When the Prune viscoelastic branches check box is selected, enter the Cutoff frequencies
flower and fupper. The relaxation times m are frozen and cannot be changed when the
check box is selected. In order to change these settings again, clear the check box
because pruning is only performed at the time when the check box is selected. It is also

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 893

 required that the relaxation times for each branch have constant values when Prune
viscoelastic branches is selected.

From the Stiffness used in stationary studies list, select either Long-term or
Instantaneous. With Long-term, all dampers are assumed to be relaxed; hence the
branches do not contribute to the stress. The material stiffness is therefore given by the
stiffness in the parent material model (for example, Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear
Elastic Material or Hyperelastic Material). With Instantaneous, all dampers are assumed
to be rigid, and the material stiffness is given by springs arranged in parallel.

Generalized Kelvin–Voigt
For Generalized Kelvin-Voigt enter the values for the parameters that describe the
viscoelastic behavior of multiple Kelvin–Voigt elements arranged in series.

Depending on the selection done in the Viscoelastic strains list, for each Branch row
enter the stiffness of the spring Km in the column labeled Bulk modulus (Pa) and/or
Gm in the column labeled Shear modulus (Pa), and the relaxation time m in the column
labeled Relaxation time (s) for the spring-dashpot pair in the element m.

When the Use fractional derivatives check box is selected, enter the fractional order m
in the Fractional order (1) column for each spring-spring-pot branch.

• Use the Add button ( ) to add a row to the table, the Delete button ( ) to delete
a row in the table, or the Clear Table button ( ) to clear the whole table.
• Use the Load from file button ( ) and the Save to file button ( ) to load and
store data for the elements in a text file with space-separated columns.

Select the Stiffness used in stationary studies, either Long-term or Instantaneous. With
Long-term, all dampers are assumed to be relaxed. The material stiffness is therefore
given by springs arranged in series. With Instantaneous, all dampers are assumed to be
rigid; hence the viscoelastic branches do not contribution to the strain, and the
instantaneous stiffness is determined by the parent material only (for example, Linear
Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material or Hyperelastic Material).

Maxwell
For Maxwell enter the parameters that describes the viscous behavior of a single dashpot
connected in series with a spring.

Depending on the selection done in the Viscoelastic strains list, the relaxation time or
viscosity is applied to the volumetric, deviatoric, or both volumetric and deviatoric

894 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

deformation. Select an option from the Relaxation data list and edit the default as
needed:

• Relaxation time v. The default is 3000 s.

• Viscosity v of the dashpot. The default is 6·1013 Pas.

When the Use fractional derivatives check box is selected, enter the fractional order v
of the spring-pot. The default is 0.5 (dimensionless).

Note that the instantaneous stiffness is given by the parent material model (for
example, Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material or Hyperelastic Material).

Kelvin–Voigt
For Kelvin-Voigt enter the values for the parameter that describes the viscous behavior
of the single dashpot in parallel with a spring.

Depending on the selection done in the Viscoelastic strains list, the relaxation time or
viscosity is applied to the volumetric, deviatoric, or both volumetric and deviatoric
deformation. Select an option from the Relaxation data list and edit the default as
needed:

• Relaxation time v of the dashpot. The default is 3000 s.

• Viscosity v of the dashpot. The default is 6·1013 Pas.

For large strain viscoelasticity, enter the Relaxation time v. The default is 3000 s.

When the Use fractional derivatives check box is selected, enter the fractional order v
of the spring-pot. The default is 0.5 (dimensionless).

Note that the instantaneous stiffness is given by the parent material model (for
example, Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material or Hyperelastic Material).

Standard Linear Solid

For Standard linear solid enter the values for the parameters that describe the
viscoelastic behavior of the single spring-dashpot branch.

Depending on the selection done in the Viscoelastic strains list, enter the Bulk modulus
and/or the Shear modulus of the spring in the Kv and Gv fields. The default values are
20 GPa.

For linear viscoelasticity, select an option from the Relaxation data list and edit the
default as needed:

• Relaxation time v of the dashpot. The default is 3000 s.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 895

 • Viscosity v of the dashpot. The default is 6·1013 Pas.
For large strain viscoelasticity, enter the Relaxation time v, which default value is
3000 s, and the Energy factor v of the dashpot. The default is 0.2.

When the Use fractional derivatives check box is selected, enter the fractional order v
of the spring-pot. The default is 0.5 (dimensionless).

Note that the long-term stiffness is given by the parent material model (for example,
Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material or Hyperelastic Material).

Burgers
For Burgers enter the values for the parameter that describes the viscous behavior of
the spring dashpot in series with a second spring-dashpot pair.

Depending on the selection done in the Viscoelastic strains list, enter the Bulk modulus
and/or the Shear modulus of the second spring in the Kv2 and Gv2 fields. The default
values are 20 GPa.

For linear viscoelasticity, select an option from the Relaxation data list and edit the
default as needed:

• Relaxation time. The default is 3000 s for both dashpots v1 and v2.
• Viscosity. Enter the viscosity of the dashpots. The default is 6·1013 Pas for both v1
and v2.

When the Use fractional derivatives check box is selected, enter the fractional orders,
v1 and v2, of the spring-pot pairs. The default is 0.5 (dimensionless) for each
spring-pot.

Note that the instantaneous stiffness is given by the parent material model (for
example, Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material or Hyperelastic Material).

User Defined
When Volumetric is selected from the Viscoelastic strains list, specify the Storage and loss
moduli K' and K'', the Storage and loss compliances Q' and Q'', or the Loss factorv that
defines the complex–valued bulk modulus.

When Deviatoric is selected from the Viscoelastic strains list, specify the Storage and loss
moduli G' and G'', the Storage and loss compliances J' and J'', or the Loss factorv that
defines the complex–valued shear modulus.

When Volumetric and deviatoric is selected from the Viscoelastic strains list, specify the
Storage and loss moduli K', K'', G' and G'', the Storage and loss compliances Q', Q'', J'
and J'', or the Loss factorv that defines the complex–valued bulk and shear moduli.

896 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

These expressions can be entered as functions taken directly from interpolated data, or
can be analytical expressions of the frequency variable.

The User defined viscoelastic models are applicable in Frequency Domain

and Eigenfrequency study steps only.

The internal variables for the frequencyf and angular frequency  are
named phys.freq and phys.omega, respectively. Here, phys is the tag of
the parent physics (for instance, solid).

DISCRETIZATION
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

The Use local time integration check box is selected by default. Clear it in case you want
to use the global time integration scheme. The check box is only available for the
Generalized Maxwell and Standard Linear Solid models. For all other viscoelasticity
models, the global time integration is used.

Clear the Use local time integration check box to select the Shape function type —
Discontinuous Lagrange (default) or Gauss point data for the components of the auxiliary
viscoelastic tensor. When the discontinuous Lagrange discretization is used, the shape
function order is set as one order lower than the order used for the displacement field.
This results fewer degrees of freedom being added to the model than when using
Gauss point data. The accuracy does in general not differ much. If you want to enforce
that the constitutive law is fulfilled at the integration points, select Gauss point data.

To compute the energy dissipation caused by viscoelasticity, enable the

Calculate dissipated energy check box in the Energy Dissipation section of
the parent material node.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 897

 • Viscoelastic Structural Damper: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Dynamics_and_Vibration/
viscoelastic_damper_frequency
• Eigenmodes of a Viscoelastic Structural Damper: Application Library
path Structural_Mechanics_Module/Dynamics_and_Vibration/
viscoelastic_damper_eigenmodes
• Viscoelastic Structural Damper — Transient Analysis: Application
Library path Structural_Mechanics_Module/Dynamics_and_Vibration/
viscoelastic_damper_transient

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Viscoelasticity
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Viscoelasticity
Solid Mechanics>Hyperelastic Material>Viscoelasticity
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Viscoelasticity
Shell>Layered Hyperelastic Material>Viscoelasticity
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Viscoelasticity
Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>Viscoelasticity
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Viscoelasticity
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Viscoelasticity
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Viscoelasticity
Membrane>Hyperelastic Material>Viscoelasticity

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material, Hyperelastic Material,
Layered Linear Elastic Material, Layered Hyperelastic Material node selected in the model
tree:

Attributes>Viscoelasticity

Mullins Effect
Use the Mullins effect subnode to define the properties for modeling the
stress-softening phenomenon under cyclic loading. The Mullins effect can be used
together with Hyperelastic Material.

898 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present when Mullins effect is used as a subnode to

Hyperelastic Material is used in the Layered Shell interface. See the
documentation for the Mullins Effect node in the Layered Shell chapter.

MULLINS EFFECT
The Damage function defines the model for Mullins effect. Select Ogden-Roxburgh or
Miehe.

For Ogden-Roxburgh enter the following settings:

• Maximum damage d. The default is 1.

• Damage saturation Wsat. The default is 1 MJ/m3.
• Deformation dependence coefficient The default is 0.
• Select Use error function check box to define the damage evolution with error
function instead of the hyperbolic function (default).

For Miehe enter the following settings:

• Maximum damage d. The default is 1.

• Damage saturation Wsat. The default is 1 MJ/m3.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Hyperelastic Material>Mullins Effect
Shell>Layered Hyperelastic Material>Mullins Effect
Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>Mullins Effect
Membrane>Hyperelastic Material>Mullins Effect

Ribbon
Physics tab with Hyperelastic Material or Layered Hyperelastic Material node selected in
the model tree:

Attributes>Mullins Effect

Plasticity
Use the Plasticity subnode to define the properties for modeling elastoplastic materials.
This material model is available in the Solid Mechanics, Shell, Layered Shell,

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 899

 Membrane and Truss interfaces, and can be used together with Linear Elastic Material,
Nonlinear Elastic Material, and Hyperelastic Material.

The Nonlinear Structural Materials Module or the Geomechanics Module are required
for this material model, and the available options depend on the used products. For
details, see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/.

See also Elastoplastic Materials in the Structural Mechanics Theory

chapter.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present when Plasticity is used as a subnode to:

• Linear Elastic Material in the Layered Shell interface. See the

documentation for the Plasticity node in the Layered Shell chapter.
• Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Shell interface. See the
documentation for the Plasticity node in the Shell and Plate chapter.
• Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Membrane interface. See the
documentation for the Plasticity node in the Membrane chapter.

PLASTICITY MODEL
Use this section to define the plastic properties of the material.

Formulation
Select Small strains or Large strains to apply either an additive or multiplicative
decomposition between elastic and plastic strains.

• When using plasticity together with a hyperelastic material, only the option Large
strains is available.
• When using plasticity in the Shell, Membrane and Truss interfaces, only the option
Small strains is available.

Equivalent Stress
The Yield function F defines the limit of the elastic regime, Fe ys  0, and sets the
onset for plastic deformation. Changing the equivalent stress measure allows to specify
different yield criteria. See Defining the Yield Criterion for details.

900 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Select the Equivalent stress — von Mises, Tresca, Hill orthotropic, or User defined to
define the yield criterion.

• The default is von Mises criterion with associate plastic potential.

• Select Tresca to use Tresca yield criterion. The plastic potential can be an Associated
or non associated flow rule with the von Mises stress as plastic potential.
• Select Hill orthotropic to use Hill’s criterion. From the Specify list select either the
Initial tensile and shear yield stresses ys0ij or Hill’s coefficients F, G, H, L, M, and
N. The default for either selection uses values From material (if it exists) or User
defined. The principal directions of orthotropy are inherited from the coordinate
system selection in the parent node. See Expressions for the Coefficients F, G, H,
L, M, N for details.
• For User defined enter a value or expression for the equivalent stress. Write any
expression in terms of the stress tensor components or its invariants in the field.

Initial Yield Stress

For all yield criteria, the default Initial yield stress ys0 uses values From material and
represents the stress level where plastic deformation starts.

Plastic Potential
Select the Plastic potential Qp related to the flow rule — Associated, von Mises, or User
defined (non associated). Enter a User defined value in the Qp field as needed.

Isotropic Hardening Model

For all yield criteria, select the type of linear or nonlinear isotropic hardening model
from the Isotropic hardening model list. See Isotropic Hardening for details.

• Select Perfectly plastic (ideal plasticity) if the material can undergo plastic
deformation without any increase in yield stress.
• For Linear the default Isotropic tangent modulus ETiso uses values From material (if
it exists) or User defined. The yield level ys is modified as hardening occurs, and it
is related to the equivalent plastic strain pe as
1 1 1
 ys =  ys0 + E iso  pe with ----------- = -------------- – ----
E iso E Tiso E

For the linear isotropic hardening model, the yield stress increases proportionally to
the equivalent plastic strain pe. The Young’s modulus E is taken from the elastic
material properties.
• Select Ludwik from the list to model nonlinear isotropic hardening. The yield level
ys is modified by the power-law

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 901

 n
 ys   pe  =  ys0 + k pe

The Strength coefficient k and the Hardening exponent n use values From material (if
it exists) or User defined.
• Select Johnson-Cook from the list to model strain rate dependent hardening. The
Strength coefficient k, Hardening exponent n, Reference strain rate ꞏ 0 , and Strain rate
strength coefficient C use values From material (if it exists) or User defined.
Select a Thermal softening model — No thermal softening, Power law, or User defined.
- For Power law, enter the Reference temperature Tref, the Melting temperature Tm,
and the Temperature exponent, m.
- For User defined, enter the Thermal Softening function f(Th), the Reference
temperature Tref, and the Melting temperature Tm. The softening function f(Th)
typically depends on the built-in variable for the normalized homologous
temperature Th and have the properties f(0) = 0 and f(1) = 1. The variable is
named using the scheme <physics>.<elasticTag>.<plasticTag>.Th, for
example, solid.lemm1.plsty1.Th.

The yield stress and hardening function for the Johnson–Cook model is given by

n   ꞏ pe 
 ys   pe  =   ys0 + k pe   1 + C log  -------
ꞏ -   1 – f  T h  
  0  
T – T ref
T h = -------------------------
T m – T ref

m
In the case of power law softening, f  T h  = T h .
• For Swift nonlinear isotropic hardening, the Reference strain 0 and the Hardening
exponent n use values From material (if it exists) or User defined. The yield level ys
is modified by the power-law
 pe n
 ys   pe  =  ys0  1 + --------
 0 

Typically, the reference strain equals the onset of plasticity, 0  ys0/E.

• Select Voce from the list to model nonlinear isotropic hardening. The yield level ys
is modified by the exponential law

902 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 –  pe
 ys   pe  =  ys0 +  sat  1 – e 
 

The Saturation flow stress sat and the Saturation exponent  use values From
material (if it exists) or User defined.
• For Hockett-Sherby nonlinear isotropic hardening, the Steady-state flow stress ,
the Saturation coefficient m, and the Saturation exponent n use values From material
(if it exists) or User defined. The yield level ys is increased by the exponential law
n
– m pe
 ys   pe  =  ys0 +    –  ys0   1 – e 


• For Hardening function, the isotropic Hardening functionh(pe) uses values From
material or User defined. The yield level ys is modified as

 ys =  ys0 +  h   pe 

- This definition implies that the hardening function h(pe) in the Material node
must be zero at zero plastic strain. In other words, ys  ys0 whenpe  0. With
this option it is possible to enter any nonlinear isotropic hardening curve. The
hardening function can depend on more variables than the equivalent plastic
strain, for example the temperature. Select User defined to enter any function of
the equivalent plastic strain pe. The variable is named using the scheme
<physics>.epe, for example, solid.epe.

Kinematic Hardening Model

For all yield criteria, select the type of kinematic hardening model (not available for
hyperelastic materials) from the Kinematic hardening model list. See Kinematic
Hardening for details.

• Select No kinematic hardening (when either ideal plasticity or an isotropic hardening

model is selected as isotropic hardening model) if it is a material that can undergo
plastic deformation without a shift in the yield surface.
• If Linear is selected as the Kinematic hardening model, the default Kinematic tangent
modulus Ek uses values From material. This parameter is used to calculate the back
stress b as plasticity occurs:
2 1 1 1
 b = C k  ---  p with ------- = ------- – ----
3 Ck Ek E

This is Prager’s linear kinematic hardening model, so the back stress b is

collinear to the plastic strain tensor p.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 903

 • If Armstrong-Frederick is selected from the list, the default Kinematic hardening
modulus Ck and Kinematic hardening parameter k use values From material. These
parameters are used to calculate the back stress b from the rate equation

ꞏ 2 ꞏ ꞏ
 b = --- C k  p –  k  pe  b
3

This is Armstrong–Frederick nonlinear kinematic hardening model. Replacing the

variable for the back strain instead of the back stress
2
 b = C k  ---  b
3

gives the rate for the back strain

ꞏ ꞏ ꞏ
 b =  p –  k  pe  b

• When Chaboche is selected from the Kinematic hardening model list, the default
Kinematic hardening modulus C0 uses values From material. Add branches as needed
to solve N rate equations for the back stresses:

ꞏ 2 ꞏ ꞏ
 b,i = --- C i  p –  i  pe  b,i
3
2
or equivalently, solve N rate equations for the back strain such as  b,i = C i  ---  b,i
3
ꞏ ꞏ ꞏ
 b,i =  p –  i  pe  b,i

The total back stress b is then computed from the sum of the branches
N
2 2
 b = --- C 0  p + ---
3 3  Ci b,i
i=1

For each Branch row, enter Ci (the hardening modulus of the branch i) in the
Hardening modulus (Pa) column and i (the hardening parameter of the branch i) in
the Hardening parameter (1) column.
Use the Add button ( ) and the Delete button ( ) to add or delete a row in the
table. Use the Load from file button ( ) and the Save to file button ( ) to load
and store data for the branches in a text file with three space-separated columns

904 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 (from left to right): the branch number, the hardening modulus for that branch, and
the hardening parameter for that branch.

To compute the energy dissipation caused by plasticity, enable the

Calculate dissipated energy check box in the Energy Dissipation section of
the parent material node.

NONLOCAL PLASTICITY MODEL

The default is None. Select Implicit Gradient to add nonlocal regularization to the
equivalent plastic strain. Enter a value for the:

• Length scale, lint. The length scale should not exceed the maximum element size of
the mesh.
• Nonlocal coupling modulus, Hnl. This stiffness is the penalization of the difference
between the local and nonlocal variables. A larger value enforces the equivalent
plastic strain pe to be closer to the nonlocal equivalent plastic strain pe,nl.

See also Nonlocal Plasticity in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

DISCRETIZATION
This section is available with the Implicit gradient nonlocal plasticity model. Select the
shape function for the Nonlocal equivalent plastic strain pe,nl— Automatic, Linear,
Quadratic Lagrange, Quadratic serendipity, Cubic Lagrange, Cubic serendipity, Quartic
Lagrange, Quartic serendipity, or Quintic Lagrange. The available options depend on the
order of the displacement field.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 905

 To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

• Sheet Metal Forming: Application Library path

Nonlinear_Structural_Materials_Module/Plasticity/sheet_metal_forming
• For an example of Large strains, see Necking of an Elastoplastic Metal
Bar: Application Library path Nonlinear_Structural_Materials_Module/
Plasticity/bar_necking.
• For an example of strain rate dependent plasticity, see Tensile Test with
Strain Rate Dependent Plasticity: Application Library path
Nonlinear_Structural_Materials_Module/Plasticity/
strain_rate_dependent_plasticity

ADVANCED
It is possible to specify the maximum number of iterations and the relative tolerance
used to solve the plastic flow rule. Enter the following settings:

• Maximum number of local iterations. To determine the maximum number of iteration

in the Newton loop when solving the local plasticity equations. The default value is
25 iterations.
• Relative tolerance. To check the convergence of the local plasticity equations based
on the step size in the Newton loop. The final tolerance is computed based on the
current solution of the local variable and the entered value. The default value is 1e-6.

To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

See also Numerical Solution of the Elastoplastic Conditions in the

Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Plasticity
Solid Mechanics>Hyperelastic Material>Plasticity
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity

906 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>Plasticity
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Plasticity
Truss>Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic
Material, or Hyperelastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Plasticity

Set Variables
Use the Set Variables subnode to Plasticity, Porous Plasticity, Soil Plasticity, Concrete,
Rocks, or Elastoplastic Soil Material, in order to reset plasticity variables according to
a Setting condition that you define. When the Setting condition is satisfied, the plasticity
variables are reset to the specified values.

SET VARIABLES
Enter the Setting condition. This is a Boolean expression that will determine when the
plastic variables are reset.

From the Equivalent plastic strain list, select Do not set or User defined. The default User
defined value is zero. Depending on the type of plasticity model, set additional
plasticity variables.

Plasticity
• When Small strains is selected in the Formulation list, specify the values for the
components of the Plastic strain tensor. From the Plastic strain tensor list, select Do
not set or User defined. The default User defined values are zero for all components
of the Plastic strain tensor.
• When Large strains is selected in the Formulation list, specify the values for the
components of the Plastic deformation gradient inverse. From the Plastic deformation
gradient inverse list, select Do not set or User defined. The default User defined value
is the identity tensor.
• If Armstrong-Frederick or Chaboche is selected from the Kinematic Hardening Model
list, specify the values for the components of the Back strain tensor. From the Back
strain tensor list, select Do not set or User defined. The default User defined values are
zero for all components of the Back strain tensor.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 907

 Porous Plasticity
• When Small strains is selected in the Formulation list, specify the values for the
components of the Plastic strain tensor. From the Plastic strain tensor list, select Do
not set or User defined. The default User defined values are zero for all components
of the Plastic strain tensor.
• When Large strains is selected in the Formulation list, specify the values for the
components of the Plastic deformation gradient inverse. From the Plastic deformation
gradient inverse list, select Do not set or User defined. The default User defined value
is the identity tensor.
• From the Equivalent plastic strain in the matrix material list, select Do not set or User
defined. The default User defined value is zero.
• From the Porosity rate list, select Do not set or User defined. The default User defined
value is zero.

Soil Plasticity, Concrete and Rocks

• From the Plastic strain tensor list, select Do not set or User defined. The default User
defined values are zero for all components of the Plastic strain tensor.

Elastoplastic Soil Material

• From the Plastic strain tensor list, select Do not set or User defined. The default User
defined values are zero for all components of the Plastic strain tensor.
• From the Consolidation pressure rate list, select Do not set or User defined. The
default User defined value is zero.
• When Extended Barcelona Basic is selected from the Material model list, specify the
value for the Suction rate. From the Suction rate list, select Do not set or User defined.
The default User defined value is zero.
• When Hardening Soil is selected from the Material model list, specify the value for
the Plastic shear strain. From the Plastic shear strain list, select Do not set or User
defined. The default User defined value is zero.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity>Set Variables
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Porous Plasticity>Set Variables
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Soil Plasticity>Set Variables
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Concrete>Set Variables
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Rocks>Set Variables

908 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Plasticity>Set Variables
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Porous Plasticity>Set Variables
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Soil Plasticity>Set Variables
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Concrete>Set Variables
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Rocks>Set Variables
Solid Mechanics>Hyperelastic Material>Plasticity>Set Variables
Solid Mechanics>Elastoplastic Soil Material>Set Variables
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity>Set Variables
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity>Set Variables
Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>Plasticity>Set Variables
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity>Set Variables
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity>Set Variables
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Plasticity>Set Variables
Truss>Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity>Set Variables

Ribbon
Physics tab with Plasticity, Porous Plasticity, Soil Plasticity, Concrete, Rocks, or
Elastoplastic Soil Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Set Variables

Creep
Use the Creep subnode to define the creep properties of the material. This material
model is available in the Solid Mechanics, Shell, Layered Shell, and Membrane
interfaces, and can be used together with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic
Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material, and Hyperelastic Material.

The Nonlinear Structural Materials Module or the Geomechanics Module are

required, the available options depend on the used products. For details, see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/.

See also Creep and Viscoplasticity in the Structural Mechanics Theory

chapter.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 909

 SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present when Creep is used as a subnode to:

• Linear Elastic Material in the Layered Shell interface. See the

documentation for the Creep node in the Layered Shell chapter.
• Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Shell interface. See the
documentation for the Creep node in the Shell and Plate chapter.
• Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Membrane interface. See the
documentation for the Creep node in the Membrane chapter.

CREEP MODEL
Select the Formulation — Small strains or Large strains to apply either an additive or
multiplicative decomposition between elastic and inelastic strains.

• When using creep together with a hyperelastic material, only the option Large strains
is available.
• When using creep in the Shell, Membrane and Truss interfaces, only the option
Small strains is available.

Select a Material model — Norton, Garofalo (hyperbolic sine), Nabarro-Herring, Coble,

Weertman, or User defined.

Norton
For Norton, enter the following settings:

• Creep rate coefficient A.

• Reference stress ref. The default is 1 MPa.
• Stress exponent n.

Garofalo (Hyperbolic Sine)

For Garofalo (hyperbolic sine), enter the following settings:

• Creep rate coefficient A.

• Reference stress ref. The default is 1 MPa.
• Stress exponent n.

Nabarro–Herring
For Nabarro-Herring, enter the following settings:

• Volume diffusivity Dv.

910 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

• Burgers vector b.
• Grain diameter d.

Coble
For Coble enter the following settings:

• Grain boundary diffusivity Dgb.

• Burgers vector b.
• Grain diameter d.

Weertman
For Weertman, enter the following settings:

• Diffusivity D.
• Burgers vector b.
• Stress exponent n.
• Reference stress ref. The default is 1 MPa.

User Defined
For User defined, enter an expression for the creep rate f as a function of the equivalent
stress e. The default expression is <item>.sequ/1[Pa*s], where <item> is the name
of the creep node.

For Norton, Garofalo (hyperbolic sine), Nabarro-Herring, Coble, Weertman, or User

defined, select a Equivalent stress — von Mises (the default), Hill orthotropic, pressure,
or User defined.

ISOTROPIC HARDENING MODEL

Select the isotropic hardening function h — None, Strain hardening, Time hardening, or
User defined.

Strain hardening
For Strain hardening, enter the following settings:

• Hardening exponent m. The default is 0.

• Equivalent creep strain shift shift. The default is 1e-5.
• Reference time tref. The default is 1 h.

Time hardening
For Time hardening, enter the following settings:

• Hardening exponent m. The default is 0.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 911

 • Time shift tshift. The default is 0 s.
• Reference time tref. The default is 1 h.

User defined
For User defined, enter an expression for the hardening function h as a function of
equivalent creep strain ce, time t or any other variable in the model.

THERMAL EFFECTS
Select a thermal creep function — None, Arrhenius, or User defined.

Arrhenius
For Arrhenius, enter the following setting:

• Reference temperature Tref. The default value, Inf, corresponds to omitting the
term with Tref in the Arrhenius expression.
• Creep activation energy Q. The default is 0 J/mol.

User defined
For User defined, enter an expression for the thermal creep function g as a function of
temperature T or any other variable in the model.

TIME STEPPING
Select a Method — Automatic, Backward Euler, Forward Euler, or Domain ODEs.

• The Backward Euler method is not available with the Layered Shell interface nor with
the Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Shell and Membrane interfaces.

Automatic
The Automatic method corresponds to the backward Euler method except for the
Layered Shell interface or when the Layered Linear Elastic Material is used. Domain
ODEs are solved in these cases.

Backward Euler
For the Backward Euler method, enter the following settings:

• Maximum number of local iterations. To determine the maximum number of iteration

in the Newton loop when solving the local creep equations.
• Absolute tolerance. To check the convergence of the local creep equations based on
the step size in the Newton loop.

912 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

• Relative tolerance. To check the convergence of the local creep equations based on
the step size in the Newton loop. The final tolerance is computed based on the
current solution of the local variable and the entered value.
• Residual tolerance. To check the convergence of the local creep equations based on
the residual of each equation.

If both a step size and residual convergence check is requested, it is sufficient that one
of the conditions is fulfilled. Setting either the Absolute tolerance and Relative tolerance
or the Residual tolerance to zero ignores the corresponding convergence check. An
error is returned if all are set to zero.

Forward Euler
For the Forward Euler method, enter the Maximum creep strain increment.

It is recommend to reset the solver settings to its default values when selecting the
forward Euler method, since the method is only conditionally stable. This will add a
Maximum step constraint to the Time-Dependent Solver based on an estimate of the
stability limit used to update the creep equations. The value entered in the Maximum
creep strain increment field is taken in to account, which can be used to improve the
accuracy of the method. If the solver sequence cannot be reset, the stability limit can
be entered manually in the Time-Dependent Solver settings by using the variable
<item>.tmax, where <item> is the name of the creep node.

Domain ODEs
No settings are needed for the Domain ODEs method. However, this method adds
degrees-of-freedom that are solved as part of the general solver sequence. The scaling
of these fields can affect the convergence of the overall solution.

To compute the energy dissipation caused by creep, enable the Calculate

dissipated energy check box in the Energy Dissipation section of the parent
material node (Linear Elastic Material or Nonlinear Elastic Material).

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Creep
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Creep
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Creep
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Creep
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Creep

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 913

 Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Creep
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Creep

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, or Nonlinear
Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Creep

Additional Creep
Use the Additional Creep subnode to define additional contributions to the creep model
defined by the parent Creep node, such as primary or tertiary creep behavior. A Creep
node can have any number of Additional Creep subnodes with different settings to
model advanced creep mechanisms. Note that the time-integrated creep strain cr is
computed for the sum of all creep rate contributions only; the same applies for the
equivalent creep strain ce.

The Nonlinear Structural Materials Module or the Geomechanics Module are required
for this feature, and the available options depend on the used products. For details, see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/.

See also Creep and Viscoplasticity in the Structural Mechanics Theory

chapter.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present when parent Creep node is used as a subnode
to:

• Linear Elastic Material in the Layered Shell interface. See the

documentation for the Additional Creep node in the Layered Shell
chapter.
• Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Shell interface. See the
documentation for the Additional Creep node in the Shell and Plate
chapter.
• Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Membrane interface. See the
documentation for the Additional Creep node in the Membrane
chapter.

914 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

CREEP MODEL
The available settings in this section are the same as for the Creep node. The Equivalent
stress setting has an additional option — From parent, which is default. When selected,
the Additional Creep subnode will use the same equivalent stress e as in the parent
Creep node.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Creep>Additional Creep
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Creep>Additional Creep
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Creep>Additional Creep
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Creep>Additional Creep

Ribbon
Physics tab with Creep node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Additional Creep

Viscoplasticity
Use the Viscoplasticity subnode to define the viscoplastic properties of the material
model. This material model is available in the Solid Mechanics, Layered Shell, Shell,
and Membrane interfaces, and can be used together with Linear Elastic Material, Layered
Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material, and Hyperelastic Material.

The Nonlinear Structural Materials Module is required for this feature. For details, see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/.

See also Creep and Viscoplasticity in the Structural Mechanics Theory

chapter.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 915

 SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present when Viscoplasticity is used as a subnode to:

• Linear Elastic Material in the Layered Shell interface. See the

documentation for the Viscoplasticity node in the Layered Shell
chapter.
• Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Shell interface. See the
documentation for the Viscoplasticity node in the Shell and Plate
chapter.
• Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Membrane interface. See the
documentation for the Viscoplasticity node in the Membrane chapter.

VISCOPLASTICITY MODEL
Select the Formulation — Small strains or Large strains to apply either an additive or
multiplicative decomposition between elastic and viscoplastic strains.

• When using viscoplasticity together with a hyperelastic material, only the option
Large strains is available.
• When using viscoplasticity in the Shell, Membrane and Truss interfaces, only the
option Small strains is available.

Select a Material model — Anand, Bingham, Chaboche, Peric, Perzyna, or User defined.
Then follow the instructions as below.

Anand
For Anand enter the following data:

• Viscoplastic rate coefficient A.

• Activation energy Q.
• Stress multiplier .
• Stress sensitivity m.
• Deformation resistance saturation coefficient ssat.
• Deformation resistance initial value sinit.
• Hardening coefficient h0.
• Hardening sensitivity a.
• Deformation resistance sensitivity n.

916 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Each of the material properties can either be defined obtained From material, or as User
defined. In the latter case, enter a value or an expression.

Viscoplastic Creep in Solder Joints: Application Library path

Nonlinear_Structural_Materials_Module/Viscoplasticity/
viscoplastic_solder_joints

Bingham
Enter the Viscosity . The default is 1 Pa s.

Chaboche
For Chaboche enter the following settings:

• Viscoplastic rate coefficient A.

• Reference stress ref. The default is 1 MPa.
• Stress exponent n.

Peric
For Peric enter the following settings:

• Viscoplastic rate coefficient A.

• Stress exponent n.

Perzyna
For Perzyna enter the following settings:

• Viscoplastic rate coefficient A.

• Reference stress ref. The default is 1 MPa.

For Bingham, Chaboche, Peric, Perzyna, or User defined viscoplasticity models, define the
Plasticity Model, the Isotropic Hardening Model, and the Kinematic Hardening
Model as needed.

Plasticity Model
The yield function defines the limit of the elastic regime, Fe ys  0, and sets the
onset for viscoplastic deformation. Changing the equivalent stress measure allows to
specify different criteria. See Defining the Yield Criterion for details.

Select the Equivalent stress — von Mises, Tresca, Hill orthotropic, or User defined to
define the yield criterion.

• The default is von Mises criterion with associate plastic potential.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 917

 • Select Tresca to use Tresca yield criterion. The plastic potential can be an Associated
or non associated flow rule with the von Mises stress as plastic potential.
• Select Hill orthotropic to use Hill’s criterion. From the Specify list select either the
Initial tensile and shear yield stresses ys0ij or Hill’s coefficients F, G, H, L, M, and
N. The default for either selection uses values From material (if it exists) or User
defined. The principal directions of orthotropy are inherited from the coordinate
system selection in the parent node. See Expressions for the Coefficients F, G, H,
L, M, N for details.
• For User defined enter a value or expression for the equivalent stress. Write any
expression in terms of stress tensor components or its invariants in the efield.
For all viscoplastic models, the default Initial yield stress ys0 uses values From material
and represents the stress level where viscoplastic deformation starts.

Select the Plastic potential Qvp related to the flow rule — Associated, von Mises, or User
defined (non associated). Enter a User defined value in the Qvp field as needed.

Isotropic Hardening Model

Select the type of linear or nonlinear isotropic hardening model from the Isotropic
hardening model list. See Isotropic Hardening for details.

• Select Perfectly plastic (ideal viscoplasticity) if the material can undergo viscoplastic
deformation without any increase in yield stress.
• For Linear the default Isotropic tangent modulus ETiso uses values From material (if
it exists) or User defined. The yield level ys is modified as hardening occurs, and it
is related to the equivalent viscoplastic strain vpe as
1 1 1
 ys =  ys0 + E iso  vpe with ----------- = -------------- – ----
E iso E Tiso E

For the linear isotropic hardening model, the yield stress increases proportionally to
the equivalent viscoplastic strain vpe. The Young’s modulus E is taken from the
elastic material properties.
• Select Ludwik from the list to model nonlinear isotropic hardening. The yield level
ys is modified by the power-law
n
 ys =  ys0 + k vpe

the Strength coefficient k and the Hardening exponent n use values From material (if
it exists) or User defined.

918 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

• Select Johnson-Cook from the list to model strain rate dependent hardening. The
Strength coefficient k, Hardening exponent n, Reference strain rate ꞏ 0 , and Strain rate
strength coefficient C use values From material (if it exists) or User defined.
Select a Thermal softening model — No thermal softening, Power law, or User defined.
- For Power law, enter the Reference temperature Tref, the Melting temperature Tm,
and the Temperature exponent, m.
- For User defined, enter the Thermal Softening function f(Th), the Reference
temperature Tref, and the Melting temperature Tm. The softening function f(Th)
typically depends on the built-in variable for the normalized homologous
temperature Th, and has the properties f(0) = 0 and f(1) = 1. The variable is
named using the scheme <physics>.<elasticTag>.<viscoplasticTag>.Th
(for example solid.lemm1.vpl1.Th).

The yield stress and hardening function for the Johnson–Cook model is given by

n   ꞏ vpe 
 ys   vpe  =   ys0 + k vpe   1 + C log  ---------
ꞏ -   1 – f  T h  
  0  
T – T ref
T h = -------------------------
T m – T ref

m
In the case of power law softening, f  T h  = T h .
• For Swift nonlinear isotropic hardening, the Reference strain 0 and the Hardening
exponent n use values From material (if it exists) or User defined. The yield level ys
is modified by the power-law
 vpe n
 ys =  ys0  1 + ----------
 0 

• Select Voce from the list to model nonlinear isotropic hardening. The yield level ys
is modified by the exponential law

–  vpe
 ys =  ys0 +  sat  1 – e 


the Saturation flow stress sat and the Saturation exponent  use values From material
(if it exists) or User defined.
• For Hockett-Sherby nonlinear isotropic hardening, the Steady-state flow stress ,
the Saturation coefficient m, and the Saturation exponent n use values From material
(if it exists) or User defined. The yield level ys is increased by the exponential law

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 919

 n
– m vpe
 ys =  ys0 +    –  ys0   1 – e 
 

• For Hardening function, the isotropic Hardening functionh(vpe) uses values From
material or User defined. The yield level ys is modified as

 ys =  ys0 +  h   vpe 

This definition implies that the hardening function h(vpe) in the Material node
must be zero at zero viscoplastic strain. In other words, ys  ys0 whenvpe  0.
With this option it is possible to enter any nonlinear isotropic hardening curve. The
hardening function can depend on more variables than the equivalent viscoplastic
strain, for example the temperature. Select User defined to enter any function of the
equivalent viscoplastic strain vpe. The variable is named using the scheme
<physics>.evpe, for example, solid.evpe.

Kinematic Hardening Model

Select the type of kinematic hardening model from the Kinematic hardening model list.
See Kinematic Hardening for details.

• Select No kinematic hardening when the material can undergo viscoplastic

deformation without a shift in the yield surface.
• If Linear is selected as the Kinematic hardening model, the default Kinematic tangent
modulus Ek uses values From material. This parameter is used to calculate the back
stress b as:
2 1 1 1
 b = --- C k   vp with ------- = ------- – ----
3 Ck Ek E

This is Prager’s linear kinematic hardening model, so the back stress b is

collinear to the viscoplastic strain tensor vp.

• If Armstrong-Frederick is selected from the list, the default Kinematic hardening

modulus Ck and Kinematic hardening parameter k use values From material. These
parameters are used to calculate the back stress b from the rate equation

ꞏ 2 ꞏ ꞏ
 b = --- C k  vp –  k  vpe  b
3

This is Armstrong–Frederick nonlinear kinematic hardening model.

• When Chaboche is selected from the Kinematic hardening model list, the default
Kinematic hardening modulus C0 uses values From material. Add branches as needed
to solve N rate equations for the back stresses:

920 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 ꞏ 2 ꞏ ꞏ
 b,i = --- C i  vp –  i  vpe  b,i
3

For each Branch row, enter Ci (the hardening modulus of the branch i) in the
Hardening modulus (Pa) column and i (the hardening parameter of the branch i) in
the Hardening parameter (1) column.
Use the Add button ( ) and the Delete button ( ) to add or delete a row in the
table. Use the Load from file button ( ) and the Save to file button ( ) to load
and store data for the branches in a text file with three space-separated columns
(from left to right): the branch number, the hardening modulus for that branch, and
the hardening parameter for that branch.
The total back stress b is then computed from the sum
N
2
 b = --- C 0  vp +
3  b,i
i=1

THERMAL EFFECTS
Select a thermal function g(T) — None, Arrhenius, or User defined, which acts as a
multiplier for the viscoplastic rate.

Arrhenius
For Arrhenius, enter the following setting:

• Reference temperature Tref. The default value is 293.15 K.

• Activation energy Q. The default is 0 J/mol.

User defined
For User defined, enter an expression for g(T) as a function of temperature T or other
variables in the model.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 921

 TIME STEPPING

This section is not present when Viscoplasticity is used with:

• The Layered Shell interface.

• The Layered Linear Elastic Material or the Layered Hyperelastic Material
in the Shell interface.
• The Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Membrane interface.

In the above cases, the Domain ODEs method is always used.

Select a Method — Automatic, Backward Euler, or Domain ODEs.

Automatic
The Automatic method corresponds to the backward Euler method with predefined
settings for the Newton loop used to solve the local equations.

Backward Euler
For the Backward Euler method, enter the following settings:

• Maximum number of local iterations. To determine the maximum number of iteration

in the Newton loop when solving the local creep equations.
• Absolute tolerance. To check the convergence of the local creep equations based on
the step size in the Newton loop.
• Relative tolerance. To check the convergence of the local creep equations based on
the step size in the Newton loop. The final tolerance is computed based on the
current solution of the local variable and the entered value.
• Residual tolerance. To check the convergence of the local creep equations based on
the residual of each equation.

If both a step size and residual convergence check is requested, it is sufficient that
either of the conditions are fulfilled. Setting either the Absolute tolerance and Relative
tolerance or the Residual tolerance to zero ignores the corresponding convergence
check. An error is returned if all are set to zero.

922 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Domain ODEs
No settings are needed for the Domain ODEs method. However, this method adds
degrees-of-freedom that are solved as part of the general solver sequence. The scaling
of these fields can affect the convergence of the overall solution.

To compute the energy dissipation caused by viscoplasticity, enable the

Calculate dissipated energy check box in the Energy Dissipation section of
the parent material node (Linear Elastic Material or Nonlinear Elastic
Material).

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Viscoplasticity
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Viscoplasticity
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Viscoplasticity
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Viscoplasticity
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Viscoplasticity
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Viscoplasticity
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Viscoplasticity

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, or Nonlinear
Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Viscoplasticity

Porous Plasticity
Use the Porous Plasticity subnode to define the properties of a plasticity model for a
porous material.

The Porous Plasticity node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https:/
/www.comsol.com/products/specifications/). The material model is available for
3D, 2D, and 2D axisymmetry.

POROUS PLASTICITY MODEL

Use this section to define the plastic properties of the porous material.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 923

 Formulation
Select the Formulation — Small strains or Large strains to apply either an additive or
multiplicative decomposition between elastic and plastic strains.

Material Model
Select the Material model for the porous plasticity criterion — Shima-Oyane, Gurson,
Gurson-Tvergaard-Needleman, Fleck-Kuhn-McMeeking, FKM-GTN, or Capped
Drucker-Prager.

Shima–Oyane
For Shima-Oyane enter the following data:

• Initial yield stress ys0.

• Shima-Oyane parameter .
• Shima-Oyane parameter .
• Shima-Oyane parameter m.
• Initial void volume fraction f0.

Gurson
For Gurson enter the following data:

• Initial yield stress ys0.

• Initial void volume fraction f0.

Gurson–Tvergaard–Needleman
For Gurson-Tvergaard-Needleman enter the following data:

• Initial yield stress ys0.

• Tvergaard correction coefficient q1.
• Tvergaard correction coefficient q2.
• Tvergaard correction coefficient q3.
• Initial void volume fraction f0.
• Select an Effective void volume fraction — Bilinear, Asymptotic, or User defined.
For Bilinear and Asymptotic, enter the following data:

• Critical void volume fraction fc.

• Failure void volume fraction ff.

For User defined, enter the effective void volume fraction as a function of for example
the void volume fraction, variable <phys>.f.

924 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Fleck–Kuhn–McMeeking
For Fleck-Kuhn-McMeeking enter the following data:

• Initial yield stress ys0.

• Initial void volume fraction f0.
• Maximum void volume fraction fmax.

FKM–GTN
For FKM-GTN enter the following data:

• Initial yield stress ys0.

• Tvergaard correction coefficient q1.
• Tvergaard correction coefficient q2.
• Tvergaard correction coefficient q3.
• Initial void volume fraction f0.
• Maximum void volume fraction fmax.
• Void volume fraction cutoff for GTN model fGTN.
• Void volume fraction cutoff for FKM model fFKM.

Capped Drucker–Prager
For Capped Drucker-Prager enter the following data:

• Drucker-Prager alpha coefficient .

• Drucker-Prager k coefficient k.
• Initial void volume fraction f0.
The material properties use values From material (default) or User defined.

See also Porous Plasticity, Elliptic Cap, and Elliptic Cap With Hardening
in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

Void Growth
It is possible to Include void nucleation in tension or Include void growth in shear by
selecting the corresponding check box. See the section Void Growth for details.

When Include void nucleation in tension is selected, enter the Void volume fraction of
nucleating voids, the Standard deviation for void nucleation, and the Mean strain for void
nucleation. For each property use the value From material or enter a User defined value
or expression.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 925

 When Include void growth in shear is selected, enter the Void growth rate parameter. Use
the value From material or enter a User defined value or expression.

Isotropic Hardening Model

Select the type of linear or nonlinear isotropic hardening model from the Isotropic
hardening model list.

• Select Perfectly plastic (ideal plasticity) if the material can undergo plastic
deformation without any increase in yield stress. When Capped Drucker-Prager is
selected, enter values or expressions to define the semi-axes of the cap under Elliptic
cap parameter pa and Elliptic cap parameter pb.
• For Linear the default Isotropic tangent modulus ETiso uses values From material (if
it exists) or User defined. The flow stress (yield level) fm is modified as hardening
occurs, and it is related to the equivalent plastic strain in the porous matrix pm as
1 1 1
 fm =  ys0 + E iso  pm with ----------- = -------------- – ----
E iso E Tiso E

For the linear isotropic hardening model, the flow stress (yield stress) increases
proportionally to the equivalent plastic strain in the porous matrix pm. The Young’s
modulus E is taken from the elastic material properties.
• Select Ludwik from the list to model nonlinear isotropic hardening. The flow stress
(yield level) fm is modified by the power-law
n
 fm =  ys0 + k pm

The Strength coefficient k and the Hardening exponent n use values From material (if
it exists) or User defined.
• For Power law isotropic hardening, the Hardening exponent n uses the value From
material (if it exists) or User defined. The flow stress (yield level) fm is modified by
the power-law
 ys0  fm n
 = -----------  ----------- for  fm   ys0
E   ys0

The Young’s modulus E is taken from the elastic material properties.

• For Hardening function, the isotropic Hardening functionh(pm) uses values From
material or User defined. The flow stress (yield level) fm is modified as

926 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

  fm =  ys0 +  h   pm 

- This definition implies that the hardening function h(pm) in the Material node
must be zero at zero plastic strain. In other words, fm  ys0 whenpm  0.
With this option it is possible to enter any nonlinear isotropic hardening curve.
The hardening function can depend on more variables than the equivalent plastic
strain in the porous matrix, for example the temperature. Select User defined to
enter any function of the equivalent plastic strain pm. The variable is named
using the scheme <physics>.<elasticTag>.<plasticTag>.epm, for example,
solid.lemm1.popl1.epm.

• For Exponential hardening, the cap in the Capped Drucker-Prager model evolves with
the volumetric strain. Since the volumetric plastic strain pvol is negative in
compression, the limit pressure pb in the cap increases from pb0 as hardening evolves

 pvol
p b = p b0 + K iso log  1 + --------------------
  pvol,max

The Isotropic hardening modulus Kiso, the Maximum plastic volumetric strain
pvol,max and the Ellipse aspect ratio R use values From material (if it exists) or User
defined. Enter a value or expression to define the initial semi-axis of the ellipse under
the Initial location of the cap pb0

NONLOCAL PLASTICITY MODEL

In this section, nonlocal regularization can be added to the porous plasticity model.
Select None, or Implicit Gradient. By selecting Implicit Gradient, regularization can
added the equivalent matrix plastic strain and the void volume fraction. These two
hardening variables describe different mechanisms and therefore often require
different model parameters.

If Equivalent matrix plastic strain is selected, enter values for the:

• Length scale, matrix plastic strain, lint,m.

• Nonlocal coupling modulus, Hnl, which can be seen as a penalization of the difference
between the local and nonlocal equivalent matrix plastic strains. A larger value will
force the local equivalent matrix plastic strain to be closer to the nonlocal variable.

If Void volume fraction is selected, enter a value for the Length scale, void volume
fraction, lint,f.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 927

 The two length scales lint,m and lint,f can be chosen independent of each other, but
should not exceed the mesh size. It is also not recommended to define them as
functions of the mesh size.

See also Nonlocal Plasticity in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

DISCRETIZATION
This section is available with the Implicit gradient nonlocal plasticity model. Select the
shape function for the Nonlocal equivalent matrix plastic strain pm,nl and the Nonlocal
void volume fraction fnl — Automatic, Linear, Quadratic Lagrange, Quadratic serendipity,
Cubic Lagrange, Cubic serendipity, Quartic Lagrange, Quartic serendipity, or Quintic
Lagrange. The options available depends on the chosen order of the displacement field.

To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

ADVANCED
Enter the Maximum damage, which defines the residual stiffness of the model. The
default value is 0.995.

It is possible to specify the maximum number of iterations and the relative tolerance
used to solve the plastic flow rule. Enter the following settings:

• Maximum number of local iterations. To determine the maximum number of iteration

in the Newton loop when solving the local plasticity equations. The default value is
25 iterations.
• Relative tolerance. To check the convergence of the local plasticity equations based
on the step size in the Newton loop. The final tolerance is computed based on the
current solution of the local variable and the entered value. The default value is 1e-6.

To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

See also Numerical Solution of the Elastoplastic Conditions in the

Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

928 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 To compute the energy dissipation caused by porous compaction, enable
the Calculate dissipated energy check box in the Energy Dissipation section
of the parent material node (Linear Elastic Material or Nonlinear Elastic
Material).

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Porous Plasticity
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Porous Plasticity
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Porous Plasticity
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Porous Plasticity

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material or Nonlinear Elastic Material node selected in the
model tree:

Attributes>Porous Plasticity

Soil Plasticity
In the Soil Plasticity subnode you define the properties for modeling materials
exhibiting soil plasticity. Soil Plasticity can be used together with Linear Elastic Material
and Nonlinear Elastic Material. It is available with the Geomechanics Module. Soil
Plasticity is available for 3D, 2D, and 2D axisymmetry.

The yield criteria are described in the theory section:

• The Drucker–Prager Criterion

• The Mohr–Coulomb Criterion
• The Matsuoka–Nakai Criterion
• The Lade–Duncan Criterion

SOIL PLASTICITY
Select the Material model — Drucker-Prager, Mohr-Coulomb, Matsuoka-Nakai, or
Lade-Duncan. Most values are taken From material. For User defined choices, enter other
values or expressions.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 929

 Drucker–Prager
In the standard Drucker–Prager formulation, the material parameters are given in
terms of the  and k coefficients. Often material data is expressed in the parameters c
and  used in the Mohr–Coulomb model. You can then choose to use there parameters
instead. If so, select the Match to Mohr-Coulomb criterion check box (see The Mohr–
Coulomb Criterion). If this check box is selected, the default values for Cohesion c and
the Angle of internal friction  are taken From material.

If required, select the Use dilatation angle in plastic potential check box. If this check
box is selected, then enter a value or expression for the Dilatation angle . Alternatively,
select From material. The dilatation angle replaces the angle of internal friction when
defining the plastic potential.

If the Match to Mohr-Coulomb criterion check box is not selected, then the default
Drucker-Prager alpha coefficient and Drucker-Prager k coefficient are taken From material.

If required, select the Include elliptic cap check box. Select from the list the hardening
model. When Perfectly plastic (no hardening) is selected, enter values or expressions to
define the semi-axes of the ellipse under Elliptic cap parameter pa and Elliptic cap
parameter pb. When Isotropic hardening is selected from the list, the default Isotropic
hardening modulus Kiso, the Maximum plastic volumetric strain pvol,max, and the Ellipse
aspect ratio R are taken From material (see Elliptic Cap With Hardening). Enter a value
or expression to define the initial semi-axis of the ellipse under the Initial location of the
cap pb0.

Mohr–Coulomb
The default Angle of internal friction  and Cohesion c are taken From material.

If required, select the Use dilatation angle in plastic potential check box. If this check
box is selected, then enter a value or expression for the Dilatation angle . Alternatively,
select From material. The dilatation angle replaces the angle of internal friction when
defining the plastic potential.

Under Plastic potential select either Drucker-Prager matched at compressive meridian,

Drucker-Prager matched at tensile meridian, or Associated.

If required, select the Include elliptic cap check box. Select from the list the hardening
model. When Perfectly plastic (no hardening) is selected, enter values or expressions to
define the semi-axes of the ellipse under Elliptic cap parameter pa and Elliptic cap
parameter pb. When Isotropic hardening is selected from the list, the default Isotropic
hardening modulus Kiso, the Maximum plastic volumetric strain pvol,max, and the Ellipse
aspect ratio R are taken From material (see Elliptic Cap With Hardening). Enter a value

930 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

or expression to define the initial semi-axis of the ellipse under the Initial location of the
cap pb0.

Matsuoka–Nakai
If required, select the Match to Mohr-Coulomb criterion check box. If this check box is
selected, the default Angle of internal friction  is taken From material.

If the Match to Mohr-Coulomb criterion check box is not selected, then the default
Matsuoka-Nakai mu coefficient  is taken From material.

Lade–Duncan
If required, select the Match to Mohr-Coulomb criterion check box. If this check box is
selected, then enter a value or expression for the Angle of internal friction  .
Alternatively, select From material.

If the Match to Mohr-Coulomb criterion check box is not selected, then the default
Lade-Duncan k coefficient k is taken From material.

See also Soil Plasticity in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

TENSION CUTOFF
This section is only available with the Drucker-Prager and Mohr-Coulomb models

If required, select either None, Mean stress cutoff, or Principal stress cutoff.

When Mean stress cutoff is selected from the list, enter a value or expression for the
Maximum mean stress m. Use this to constrain the soil plasticity model with an extra
yield surface which limits the maximum pressure in tension.

When Principal stress cutoff is selected from the list, enter a value or expression for the
Maximum tensile stress t. Use this to constrain the soil plasticity model with an extra
yield surface, which limits the maximum principal tensile stress.

See also Tension Cutoff in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 931

 NONLOCAL PLASTICITY MODEL
The default is None. Select Implicit Gradient to add nonlocal regularization to the
equivalent plastic strain. Enter a value for the:

• Length scale, lint. The length scale should not exceed the maximum element size of
the mesh.
• Nonlocal coupling modulus, Hnl. This stiffness is the penalization of the difference
between the local and nonlocal variables. A larger value enforces the equivalent
plastic strain pe to be closer to the nonlocal equivalent plastic strain pe,nl.

See also Nonlocal Plasticity in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

DISCRETIZATION
This section is available with the Implicit gradient nonlocal plasticity model. Select the
shape function for the Nonlocal equivalent plastic strain pe,nl— Automatic, Linear,
Quadratic Lagrange, Quadratic serendipity, Cubic Lagrange, Cubic serendipity, Quartic
Lagrange, Quartic serendipity, or Quintic Lagrange. The available options depend on the
order of the displacement field.

To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

• Deep Excavation: Application Library path Geomechanics_Module/Soil/

deep_excavation
• Flexible and Smooth Strip Footing on a Stratum of Clay: Application
Library path Geomechanics_Module/Soil/flexible_footing

ADVANCED
It is possible to specify the maximum number of iterations and the relative tolerance
used to solve the plastic flow rule. Enter the following settings:

• Maximum number of local iterations. To determine the maximum number of iteration

in the Newton loop when solving the local plasticity equations. The default value is
25 iterations.
• Relative tolerance. To check the convergence of the local plasticity equations based
on the step size in the Newton loop. The final tolerance is computed based on the
current solution of the local variable and the entered value. The default value is 1e-6.

932 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

See also Numerical Solution of the Elastoplastic Conditions in the

Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Soil Plasticity
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Soil Plasticity

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material or Nonlinear Elastic Material node selected in the
model tree:

Attributes>Soil plasticity

Concrete
In the Concrete subnode you define the properties for modeling materials with failure
criteria representative of concrete. This material model can be used together with
Linear Elastic Material and Nonlinear Elastic Material. It is available with the
Geomechanics Module. Concrete is available for 3D, 2D, and 2D axisymmetry.

The failure criteria are described in the theory section:

• The Bresler–Pister Yield Criterion

• The Willam–Warnke Criterion
• The Ottosen Criterion

CONCRETE MODEL
Select the Material model— Bresler-Pister, Willam-Warnke, or Ottosen. The default
values for the material parameters are taken From material. For User defined choices,
enter other values or expressions.

Bresler–Pister
The defaults for the Tensile strength ts, Compressive strength cs, and Biaxial
compressive strength bc are taken From material.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 933

 Willam–Warnke
The defaults for the Tensile strength ts, Compressive strengthcs, and Biaxial
compressive strength bc are taken From material.

Ottosen
The defaults for the Compressive strengthcs, Ottosen parameters a and b, Size factor
k1, and Shape factor k2 are taken From material.

TENSION CUTOFF
If required, select either None or Principal stress cutoff.

When Principal stress cutoff is selected from the list, enter a value or expression for the
Maximum tensile stress t. Use this to constrain the concrete model with an extra yield
surface, which limits the maximum principal tensile stress.

See also Tension Cutoff in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

ADVANCED
It is possible to specify the maximum number of iterations and the relative tolerance
used to solve the plastic flow rule. Enter the following settings:

• Maximum number of local iterations. To determine the maximum number of iteration

in the Newton loop when solving the local plasticity equations. The default value is
25 iterations.
• Relative tolerance. To check the convergence of the local plasticity equations based
on the step size in the Newton loop. The final tolerance is computed based on the
current solution of the local variable and the entered value. The default value is 1e-6.

To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

See also Numerical Solution of the Elastoplastic Conditions in the

Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Concrete

934 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Concrete

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material or Nonlinear Elastic Material node selected in the
model tree:

Attributes>Concrete

Rocks
In the Rocks subnode you define the properties for modeling materials with failure
criteria representative of rocks. This material model can be used together with Linear
Elastic Material and Nonlinear Elastic Material. It is available with the Geomechanics
Module. The Rocks subnode is available for 3D, 2D, and 2D axisymmetry.

The failure criteria are described in the theory section:

• The Original Hoek–Brown Criterion

• The Generalized Hoek–Brown Criterion

ROCK MODEL
Select the Material model — Original Hoek-Brown or Generalized Hoek-Brown. The
default values for the material parameters are taken From material. For User defined
choices, enter other values or expressions.

Original Hoek–Brown
The defaults for the Compressive strengthcs, Hoek-Brown parameter m, and
Hoek-Brown parameter s are taken From material.

Generalized Hoek–Brown
The defaults for the Compressive strengthcs, Geological strength index GSI,
Disturbance factor D, and Intact rock parameter mi are taken From material.

TENSION CUTOFF
If required, select either None or Principal stress cutoff.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 935

 When Principal stress cutoff is selected from the list, enter a value or expression for the
Maximum tensile stress t. Use this to constrain the rock model with an extra yield
surface, which limits the maximum principal tensile stress.

See also Tension Cutoff in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

ADVANCED
It is possible to specify the maximum number of iterations and the relative tolerance
used to solve the plastic flow rule. Enter the following settings:

• Maximum number of local iterations. To determine the maximum number of iteration

in the Newton loop when solving the local plasticity equations. The default value is
25 iterations.
• Relative tolerance. To check the convergence of the local plasticity equations based
on the step size in the Newton loop. The final tolerance is computed based on the
current solution of the local variable and the entered value. The default value is 1e-6.

To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

See also Numerical Solution of the Elastoplastic Conditions in the

Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Rocks
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Rocks

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material or Nonlinear Elastic Material node selected in the
model tree:

Attributes>Rocks

936 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Fiber
Add one or more Fiber nodes to add stiffness in specified directions to a solid material.
The Fiber feature can be used together with Linear Elastic, Nonlinear Elastic or
Hyperelastic materials. The assumption is that the volume of fibers is small when
compared to the base material.

The Fiber node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/). The Fiber subnode is available for 3D,
2D, and 2D axisymmetry.

FIBER MODEL
From the Material list, select the Domain material (the default) or any other material to
define the fiber’s properties. In most cases, you would use the domain material for the
base material, and additional Material nodes without domain selection as the fiber
material.

Linear Elastic Material or Nonlinear Elastic Material

Enter Young’s modulus Efiber and Density fiber. The defaults are taken From material.
Select User defined to enter other values or expressions.

Enter the fiber Volume fraction vfiber. To be consistent with the underlying
assumptions, it should not exceed a few percent.

Hyperelastic Material
Select a Material Model — Holzapfel-Gasser-Ogden, Linear elastic, or User defined. The
default values of the required model parameters are taken From material.

• The Holzapfel-Gasser-Ogden model defines an exponential strain energy density

Wfiber. The values for the Fiber stiffness k1, Model parameter k2, and Fiber dispersion
k3 are as a default taken From material. Select User defined to enter other values or
expressions.
• Select Linear elastic to use a linear elastic material to describe the fiber stiffness. Enter
Young’s modulus Efiber and Density fiber. The defaults are taken From material.
Select User defined to enter other values or expressions.
Enter the fiber Volume fraction vfiber. To be consistent with the underlying
assumptions, it should not exceed a few percent.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 937

 • If User defined is selected from the list, select a Material symmetry — Isotropic,
Transversely isotropic, or Anisotropic.
Depending on the choice, different stretch invariants are available to define the Fiber
strain energy density Wfiber. The default expression for Wfiber is the function
0[Pa]*(item.IaCIe-1), where the variable <item>.IaCIe is the stretch invariant
in the fiber direction, and <item> corresponds to the tags of the Fiber node, for
example solid.hmm1.fib1. See Fibers for Hyperelastic Materials in the Structural
Mechanics Theory chapter for details and more options.
Select the Stiffness in tension only check box in order to make the fibers contribute to
the total stiffness only when the strain in the fibers is tensile.

Select the Contribute to total stress check box if the stress in the fibers should be added
to the stress tensor of the parent material in an average sense. Usually, you do not want
this, since the fiber stress would then affect other material options in the matrix
material, such as plasticity.

ORIENTATION
Select a Fiber orientation from the list. The available choices are the axis directions of
the coordinate system selected in the Coordinate System Selection section, or User
defined. For User defined, enter a Direction. The direction vector a is interpreted in the
selected coordinate system.

See also Distributed Fiber Models in the Structural Mechanics Theory

chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Fiber
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Fiber
Solid Mechanics>Hyperelastic Material>Fiber

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material or Hyperelastic Material
node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Fiber

938 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Thermal Expansion (for Fibers)
When used together with Linear Elastic or Nonlinear Elastic materials, it is possible to
model thermal expansion in the fibers when these have different thermal properties
than the surrounding matrix. The assumption is that the volume of fibers is small when
compared to the base material, and that thermal expansion (or contraction) occurs in
the fiber direction only.

MODEL INPUTS
The Volume reference temperature Tref is the temperature at which there are no thermal
strains in the fibers. As a default, the value is obtained from a Common model input. You
can also select User defined to enter a value or expression for the temperature locally.

The fiber Temperature T is by default obtained from a Common model input. You can
also select an existing temperature variable from a heat transfer interface, if any
temperature variables exist, or manually enter a value or expression by selecting User
defined.

THERMAL EXPANSION PROPERTIES

Select an Input type to specify how the thermal strains in the fibers should be modeled.
The default is Secant coefficient of thermal expansion, in which case the thermal strain
in the fibers is given by

 th,fib =   T – T ref 

Here, the secant coefficient of thermal expansion  can be temperature-dependent.

When Input type is Tangent coefficient of thermal expansion, the thermal strain in the
fibers is given by

 T 
 th,fib = exp 
 T ref
 t    d – 1


where t is the tangential coefficient of thermal expansion.

When Input type is Thermal strain, enter explicitly the thermal strain in the fibers dL as
function of temperature.

In all three cases, the default is to take values From material. When entering data as
User defined, enter the coefficient of the thermal expansion or the thermal strain in the
fiber direction a, since thermal expansion is considered in the fiber direction only.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 939

 In all cases, the contribution to the thermal strain tensor is defined from the fiber
Volume fraction vfiber, the thermal strain in the fibers th,fib, and the fiber direction a

 th = v fiber  th,fib a  a

See also Thermal Expansion in Fibers in the Structural Mechanics Theory

chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Fiber>Thermal Expansion
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Fiber>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Fiber node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Thermal Expansion (for Materials)

Use the Thermal Expansion subnode to add an internal thermal strain caused by changes
in temperature.

The Thermal Expansion subnode is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present when Thermal Expansion is used as a subnode

to:

• Linear Elastic Material in the Layered Shell interface. See the

documentation for the Thermal Expansion (for Materials) node in the
Layered Shell chapter.
• Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Membrane interface. See the
documentation for the Thermal Expansion (for Materials) node in the
Membrane chapter.

940 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it is described
in the documentation for the Thermal Expansion (for Materials) node.

MODEL INPUTS
The Volume reference temperature Tref is the temperature at which there are no thermal
strains. As a default, the value is obtained from a Common model input. You can also
select User defined to enter a value or expression for the temperature locally.

The Temperature T is by default obtained from a Common model input. You can also
select an existing temperature variable from a heat transfer interface (for example,
Temperature (ht/sol1)), if any temperature variables exist, or manually enter a value or
expression by selecting User defined.

Thermal strains are proportional to the temperature, while structural

strains are computed from the gradient of the displacement field. It is a
good practice to match the discretization order of thermal and structural
strains.

When adding a Thermal Expansion subnode in a Layered Shell or

Membrane interface, and the temperature field is computed by another
physics interface (often the Heat Transfer in Shells interface); use a
discretization one order lower for the temperature field than what is used
for the displacement field.

A consistent strain discretization is automatically set up for the Solid

Mechanics interface.

See also

• Using Common Model Input

• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

THERMAL EXPANSION PROPERTIES

Select an Input type to specify how the thermal strain is entered. The default is Secant
coefficient of thermal expansion, in which case the thermal strain is given by

 th =   T – T ref 

here, the secant coefficient of thermal expansion  can be temperature dependent.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 941

 When Input type is Tangent coefficient of thermal expansion, the thermal strain is given
by

 T 
 th = exp 
 T ref
 t    d – 1


where t is the tangential coefficient of thermal expansion.

When Input type is Thermal strain, enter the thermal strain dL as function of
temperature explicitly.

In all three cases, the default is to take values From material. When entering data as
User defined, select Isotropic, Diagonal, or Symmetric to enter one or more components
for a general coefficient of the thermal expansion tensor or the thermal strain tensor.
When a nonisotropic input is used, the axis orientations are given by the coordinate
system selection in the parent node.

A heat source term will be created by this node. It can be accessed from
a Thermoelastic Damping node in a heat transfer interface in order to
incorporate the reversed effect that heat is produced by changes in stress.
The heat source term is only present when Structural Transient Behavior
is set to Include inertial terms.

• Temperature-Dependent Material Data

• Thermoelastic Damping
• Entropy and Thermoelasticity

Thermal Stresses in a Layered Plate: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Thermal-Structure_Interaction/layered_plate
MEMS_Module/Actuators/layered_plate

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Thermal Expansion
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Thermal Expansion
Solid Mechanics>Elastoplastic Soil Material>Thermal Expansion
Solid Mechanics>Hyperelastic Material>Thermal Expansion

942 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Solid Mechanics>Piezoelectric Material>Thermal Expansion
Solid Mechanics>Piezomagnetic Material>Thermal Expansion
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Thermal Expansion
Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>Thermal Expansion
Layered Shell>Piezoelectric Material>Thermal Expansion
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Thermal Expansion
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Thermal Expansion
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Thermal Expansion
Membrane>Hyperelastic Material>Thermal Expansion
Multibody Dynamics>Linear Elastic Material>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Hyperelastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material,
Elastoplastic Soil Material, Piezoelectric Material, or Piezomagnetic Material node selected
in the model tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Hygroscopic Swelling
Hygroscopic swelling is an internal strain caused by changes in moisture content. This
strain can be written as

 hs =  h M m  c mo – c mo,ref 

where h is the coefficient of hygroscopic swelling,Mm is the molar mass, cmo is the
moisture concentration, and cmo,ref is the strain-free reference concentration.

The Hygroscopic Swelling subnode is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 943

 SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present when Hygroscopic Swelling is used as a subnode

to:

• Linear Elastic Material in the Layered Shell interface. See the

documentation for the Hygroscopic Swelling node in the Layered Shell
chapter.
• Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Membrane interface. See the
documentation for the Hygroscopic Swelling node in the Membrane
chapter.

MODEL INPUTS
From the Concentration c list, select an existing concentration variable from another
physics interface, if any concentration variables exist. For User defined enter a value or
expression for the concentration. The unit for the input depends on the setting of
Concentration type in the Hygroscopic Swelling Properties section. Only concentration
variables having the chosen physical dimension are available in the Concentration list.

Hygroscopic strains are proportional to the concentration, while

structural strains are computed from the gradient of the displacement
field. It is a good practice to match the discretization order of hygroscopic
and structural strains.

When adding a Hygroscopic swelling subnode in a Layered Shell or

Membrane interface, and the concentration field is computed by another
physics interface; use a discretization one order lower for the
concentration field than what is used for the displacement field.

A consistent strain discretization is automatically set up for the Solid

Mechanics interface.

HYGROSCOPIC SWELLING PROPERTIES

In the Concentration type list, select Molar concentration or Mass concentration,
depending on the units used for the concentration.

Enter a Strain reference concentration cref . This is the concentration at which there are
no strains due to hygroscopic swelling.

944 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

If Molar concentration is selected as the Concentration type, enter also the Molar mass of
the fluid, Mm. The default value is 0.018 kg/mol, which is the molar mass of water.

The default Coefficient of hygroscopic swelling h uses values From material. For
User defined, select Isotropic, Diagonal, or Symmetric from the list to enter one or more
components for a general coefficient of hygroscopic swelling tensor h. The default
value for the User defined case is 1.5e-4 m3/kg. When a nonisotropic coefficient of
hygroscopic swelling is used, the axis orientations are given by the coordinate system
selection in the parent node.

The Include moisture as added mass check box is selected by default. When selected,
the mass of the fluid is included in a dynamic analysis, and when using mass
proportional loads. It will also contribute when computing mass properties.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling
Solid Mechanics>Hyperelastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling
Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling
Membrane>Hyperelastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic
Material, or Hyperelastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Hygroscopic Swelling

Intercalation Strain
Intercalation strain is an internal volumetric strain that occurs as a result of the
insertion of species (atoms) into interstitial sites of a host electrode material, for
instance intercalation of lithium atoms in graphite in lithium-ion battery electrodes.

The volumetric strain due to intercalation reads

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 945

 V
 ic, vol = --------
V0

where V is the change in volume due to intercalation, and V0 is the reference volume.

For small strains, the intercalation strain tensor is

1
 ic = ---  ic, vol I
3

where I is the identity tensor. In a geometrically nonlinear context, the intercalation

strain is represented by a deformation gradient,

1
---
V 3
F ic =  1 + -------- I
 V0 

The Intercalation Strain subnode is only available with the Battery Design Module, see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

INTERCALATION STRAIN
Select how to define the Volumetric strain, V/V0, — From material or User defined.

When From material is selected, the material property Volumetric strain is used. The
dependency on the concentration is then passed to the material using the input in the
Model Input section.

For User defined, enter an expression for the volumetric strain as function of a
concentration variable. As the strain is given explicitly, such an expression should be a
function of a concentration variable.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Intercalation Strain
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Intercalation Strain

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material or Nonlinear Elastic Material node selected in the
model tree:

Attributes>Intercalation Strain

946 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Initial Stress and Strain
You can add the Initial Stress and Strain subnode to several material models, in order
to specify the stress or strain state in the structure before applying any constraint or
load. The values given are not initial values in the mathematical sense, but rather a
contribution to the constitutive relation.

The Initial Stress and Strain subnode is only available with some COMSOL products
(see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

In many cases Initial Stress and Strain and External Stress are
interchangeable when prescribing stresses, but you can find some more
options in the latter.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present when Initial Stress and Strain is used in the
Layered Shell interface. See the documentation for the Initial Stress and
Strain node in the Layered Shell chapter.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The Global coordinate system is selected by default. The Coordinate system list contains
any additional coordinate systems that the model includes. The given initial stresses
and strains are interpreted in this system.

INITIAL STRESS AND STRAIN

Enter values or expressions for the Initial stress S0 and Initial strain 0. For both, enter
the diagonal and off-diagonal components (based on space dimension):

• For a 3D Initial stress model, diagonal components S0x, S0y, and S0z and
off-diagonal components S0xy, S0yz, and S0xz, for example.
• For a 3D Initial strain model, diagonal components 0x, 0y, and 0z and off-diagonal
components 0xy, 0yz, and 0xz, for example.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 947

 In a geometrically nonlinear analysis, the stresses should be interpreted as Second
Piola–Kirchhoff stresses, and the strains should be interpreted as Green–Lagrange
strains.

• For details about initial stresses and strains, see Inelastic Strain
Contributions and Initial Stresses and Strains.
• For details about the different strain measures, see Deformation
Measures.
• For details about the different stress measures, see Defining Stress.

For an example of adding initial stresses, see Prestressed Micromirror:

Application Library path MEMS_Module/Actuators/micromirror

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Initial Stress and Strain
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Initial Stress and Strain
Solid Mechanics>Elastoplastic Soil Material>Initial Stress and Strain
Solid Mechanics>Piezoelectric Material>Initial Stress and Strain
Solid Mechanics>Piezomagnetic Material>Initial Stress and Strain
Solid Mechanics>Shape Memory Alloy>Initial Stress and Strain
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Initial Stress and Strain
Multibody Dynamics>Linear Elastic Material>Initial Stress and Strain

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material, Elastoplastic Soil
Material, Piezoelectric Material, Piezomagnetic Material, or Shape Memory Alloy node
selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Initial Stress and Strain

External Stress
You can add the External Stress subnode to several material models, in order to specify
an additional stress contribution which is not part of the constitutive relation. The
external stress can be added to the total stress tensor, or act only as an extra load
contribution.

948 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

The External Stress subnode is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

In many cases External Stress and Initial Stress and Strain are
interchangeable when prescribing stresses. In Initial Stress and Strain, the
given stress is however always added to the stress tensor.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present when External Stress is used in the Layered
Shell interface. See the documentation for the External Stress node in the
Layered Shell chapter.

EXTERNAL STRESS
Select a Stress input — Stress tensor (Material), Stress tensor (Spatial), Stress tensor
(Nominal), Pore pressure, or In situ stress.

• When Stress tensor (Material) is selected, you enter the external stress in the form of
a second Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor. The External stress tensor list will contain all
stress tensors announced by any physics interface, and also the entry User defined.
When User defined is selected, you can enter the data for the External stress tensor
Sext as Isotropic, Diagonal, or Symmetric depending on the properties of the tensor.
The tensor components are interpreted in the selected coordinate system. If a stress
tensor announced by a physics interface is selected, the coordinate system setting is
ignored — the orientation is handled internally. Choose a Contribution type — Add
to stress tensor, Load contribution only, or Residual stress — to determine the effect
of the contribution.
• When Stress tensor (Spatial) is selected, you enter the external stress in the form of
first Cauchy stress tensor. The components are interpreted in the selected
coordinate system. Depending on the properties of the tensor, you can enter the
data for the External stress tensor ext as Isotropic, Diagonal, or Symmetric. Choose a
Contribution type — Add to stress tensor, Load contribution only, or Residual stress —
to determine the effect of the contribution.
• When Stress tensor (Nominal) is selected, you enter the external stress in the form of
first Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor. The components are interpreted in the selected
coordinate system. You can enter the data for the External stress tensor Pext as a full

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 949

 tensor that represents current force per undeformed area. The contribution acts as
external load.
• When Pore pressure is selected, the Absolute pressure drop down menu will always
contain the entry User defined, in which case you manually enter a value or an
expression for the absolute pressure pA. If there are other physics interfaces (like
Darcy’s Law) that compute and announce a pressure variable, such variables are also
present in the list. You can also enter a Reference pressure level pref, which is the
pressure level at which the pore pressure does not give any stress contribution. Enter
the Biot-Willis coefficient aB to specify the fraction of the pore pressure to use. As a
default, its value is taken From material. Choose User defined to enter another value
or expression. When using Pore pressure, there is no contribution to the stress
tensor, the only effect of the pressure is as a load.
• When In situ stress is selected, you enter the external stress in the form of Cauchy
stress tensor. The tensor components are interpreted in the selected coordinate
system. You can enter the data for the External stress tensor ext as Isotropic,
Diagonal, or Symmetric. When using In situ stress, there are both contributions to
the stress tensor, as well as a body load.

• Selecting a stress tensor announced by the same physics interface as

where the External Stress node is added, will result in an error
(‘Circular variable dependency detected’). This operation
would imply that the computed stress depends on itself.
• You can use a stress tensor from the same physics interface, but a
previous solution step. Select the User defined input type and enter
expressions where the withsol operator is used to point to the intended
solution.
• Since all stress tensor representations coincide in a geometrically linear
analysis, Stress tensor (Spatial) is needed only in the case of a
geometrically nonlinear analysis. The stress tensor is entered using a
Cauchy stress tensor representation, and is internally transformed to a
Second Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor.

950 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 The External stress subnode can be used to account for the effect of pore
pressure in a porous material in a Layered Shell interface.

When the pore pressure distribution is computed by another physics

interface (often the Layered Darcy’s Law interface), use a discretization
for the fluid pressure that is one order lower than what is used for the
displacement field. The discretization order of stresses in the structural
problem will then be consistent with that of the added pressure.

A consistent strain discretization is automatically set up for the Solid

Mechanics interface.

• For theory, see External Stress.

• For details about the different stress measures, see Defining Stress.

For an example of how the External Stress node is used to describe in situ
stresses, see Deep Excavation: Application Library path
Geomechanics_Module/Soil/deep_excavation

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>External Stress
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>External Stress
Solid Mechanics>Elastoplastic Soil Material>External Stress
Solid Mechanics>Hyperelastic Material>External Stress
Solid Mechanics>Shape Memory Alloy>External Stress
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>External Stress
Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>External Stress
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>External Stress
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>External Stress
Membrane>Layered Elastic Material>External Stress
Membrane>Hyperelastic Material>External Stress

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material, Elastoplastic Soil
Material, Hyperelastic Material, or Shape Memory Alloy node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>External Stress

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 951

 External Strain
The External Strain subnode allows you to provide inelastic strain contributions to the
material models Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material, and Hyperelastic
Material on a variety of formats, including using external coded functions.

The External Strain subnode is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present when External Strain is used in the Layered
Shell interface. See the documentation for the External Strain node in the
Layered Shell chapter.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Select a Coordinate system. All inputs that you give below are interpreted in the given
coordinate system. This also implies that external code should assume that strains are
passed with its local orientations. Deformation gradients are rotated by the local
system in both indices.

EXTERNAL STRAIN
Select the type of Strain input — External material, Strain tensor, Deformation gradient,
Deformation gradient, inverse, or Stretches.

• The option Strain tensor is not available for a Hyperelastic Material.

• The option External material is not available in the Layered Shell interface.

External Material
For External material, the computation of an additional inelastic strain contribution is
delegated to external code that has been compiled into a shared library. External
libraries must first be imported into an External Material node under Global
Definitions>Materials.

Select an External material from the list of compatible external materials added under
Global Definitions>Materials.

For a material to be compatible with this External Strain subnode, its Interface type
must be set to a type whose required input quantities are all defined in this node.
Allowed required inputs include Green–Lagrange strains, the deformation gradient,
second Piola–Kirchhoff stress as well as all standard model inputs. Select Inelastic

952 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

residual quantity — Strain or Deformation gradient to define the type of quantity by
which you want communicate with the external code.

• If the Interface type in the External material node is Inelastic residual strain, then
select Strain.
• If the Interface type in the External material node is Inelastic residual deformation,
then select Deformation gradient. This is the only option for a hyperelastic material.

Strain Tensor
For Strain tensor, enter an inelastic strain contribution ext. From the Strain tensor list,
you can choose User defined or any strain tensor that is announced by another physics
interface. If you select User defined, enter values or expressions for the upper diagonal
part of the symmetric strain tensor.

Deformation Gradient
For Deformation gradient, enter an inelastic deformation gradient contribution Fext.
From the External deformation gradient list, you can choose User defined or any
deformation gradient tensor that is announced by another physics interface. If you
select User defined, enter values or expressions for the components of the deformation
gradient tensor.

Deformation Gradient, Inverse

For Deformation gradient, inverse, enter an inelastic inverse deformation gradient
–1
contribution F ext . From the External deformation gradient inverse list, you can choose
User defined or any inverse deformation gradient tensor that is announced by another
physics interface. If you select User defined, enter values or expressions for the
components of the inverse deformation gradient tensor.

Stretches
For Stretches, enter values or expressions for the three principal stretches. Entering
data on this form is convenient for some simple geometries and strain states, but in
general it is difficult to provide suitable a coordinate system for the principal
orientations.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 953

 The External Strain node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https:/
/www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

• Selecting a tensor announced by the same physics interface as where

the External Strain node is added, may result in an error (‘Circular
variable dependency detected’). This operation is usually
meaningless.
• You can use a tensor from the same physics interface, but from a
previous solution step. Select the User defined input type and enter
expressions where the withsol operator is used to point to the intended
solution.
• If you select Deformation gradient form the Strain input list, and the
Additive strain decomposition check box is selected in the parent
material node during a geometrically nonlinear study step, the Green–
Lagrange strain tensor is computed from
1 T
 ext = ---  F ext F ext – I 
2

• If you select Deformation gradient form the Strain input list when
engineering strains are expected, the engineering strain tensor is
computed from
1 T
 ext = ---  F ext + F ext  – I
2

This is the case if the study step is geometrically linear, or when the
Geometrically linear formulation check box is selected in the parent
material node.
• If you select Strain tensor from the Strain input list, and the parent
material node operates with multiplicative strain decomposition, the
external strain is converted into a deformation gradient using the
infinitesimal strain assumption
F ext = I +  ext

954 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 See also

• Using External Materials

• External Material and Working with External Materials in the
COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>External Strain
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>External Strain
Solid Mechanics>Hyperelastic Material>External Strain
Solid Mechanics>Shape Memory Alloy>External Strain
Shell>Layered Hyperelastic Material>External Strain
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>External Strain
Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>External Strain

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material, Hyperelastic Material,
or Shape Memory Alloy node selected in the model builder tree:

Attributes>External Strain

Inelastic Strain Rate

The Inelastic Strain Rate node allows to enter inelastic strain contributions to the Linear
Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material, and Hyperelastic Material models on a variety
of formats. As opposed to the External Strain feature, the inelastic contribution is given
as a strain rate, and the inelastic contribution is added after integrating this rate in time.

The Inelastic Strain Rate node is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/). The node is available for 3D,
2D, and 2D axisymmetry.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 955

 SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present when Inelastic Strain Rate is used as a subnode
to:

• Linear Elastic Material in the Layered Shell interface. See the

documentation for the Inelastic Strain Rate node in the Layered Shell
chapter.
• Layered Linear Elastic Material and Layered Hyperelastic Material in the
Shell interface. See the documentation for the Inelastic Strain Rate
node in the Shell and Plate chapter.
• Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Membrane interface. See the
documentation for the Inelastic Strain Rate node in the Membrane
chapter.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Select a Coordinate system. All inputs are interpreted in the given coordinate system.
This also implies that external code should assume that strains are passed with its local
orientations. Deformation gradients are rotated by the local system in both indices.

INELASTIC STRAIN
Select the type of Strain input — Strain tensor, Deformation gradient, Deformation
gradient, inverse, or Stretches.

• The option Strain tensor is not available for a Hyperelastic Material or Layered
Hyperelastic.
• The options Deformation gradient, Deformation gradient, inverse, and Stretches are
not available with the Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Shell interface.

INITIAL VALUE
Enter an initial value for the inelastic quantity as specified by the Strain input setting.

956 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

TIME STEPPING

This section is not present when Inelastic Strain Rate is used with:

• The Layered Shell interface.

• The Layered Linear Elastic Material and Layered Hyperelastic Material in
the Shell interface.
• The Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Membrane interface.

In the above cases, the domain ODEs method is always used.

Select a Method — Automatic, Backward Euler, or Domain ODEs.

Automatic
The Automatic option corresponds to the backward Euler method except with
predefined settings for the Newton loop used to solve the local equations.

Backward Euler
For the Backward Euler method, enter the following settings:

• Maximum number of local iterations. To determine the maximum number of

iterations in the Newton loop when solving the local time-dependent equations.
• Absolute tolerance. To check the convergence of the local equations based on the
step size in the Newton loop.
• Relative tolerance. To check the convergence of the local equations based on the step
size in the Newton loop. The final tolerance is computed based on the current
solution of the local variable and the entered value.
• Residual tolerance. To check the convergence of the local equations based on the
residual of each equation.

If both a step size and residual convergence check is requested, it is sufficient that
either of the conditions are fulfilled. Setting either the Absolute tolerance and Relative
tolerance or the Residual tolerance to zero ignores the corresponding convergence
check. An error is returned if all are set to zero.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 957

 Domain ODEs
No settings are needed for the Domain ODEs method. However, this method adds
degrees-of-freedom that are solved as part of the general solver sequence. The scaling
of these fields can affect the convergence of the overall solution

See also Inelastic Strain Rate in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Inelastic Strain Rate
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Inelastic Strain Rate
Solid Mechanics>Hyperelastic Material>Inelastic Strain Rate
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Inelastic Strain Rate
Shell>Layered Hyperelastic Material>Inelastic Strain Rate
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Inelastic Strain Rate
Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>Inelastic Strain Rate
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Inelastic Strain Rate
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Inelastic Strain Rate
Membrane>Hyperelastic Material>Inelastic Strain Rate
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Inelastic Strain Rate

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material, Hyperelastic Material,
Layered Linear Elastic Material or Layered Hyperelastic Material node selected in the
model builder tree:

Attributes>Inelastic Strain Rate

Damage
Use the Damage subnode to model damage and cracking in brittle materials according
to various criteria. It is available with the Linear Elastic Material in the Solid Mechanics
and Layered Shell interfaces, and with the Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Shell
interface. Phase field damage is also available for Hyperelastic Material in the Solid
Mechanics interface.

958 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

The Damage subnode is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/). Damage is available for 3D, 2D, and 2D
axisymmetry.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present when Damage is used as a subnode to:

• Linear Elastic Material in the Layered Shell interface. See the

documentation for the Damage node in the Layered Shell chapter.
• Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Shell interface. See the
documentation for the Damage node in the Shell and Plate chapter.

DAMAGE
Select the type of Damage model — Scalar damage, Mazars damage for concrete, or Phase
field damage. Then follow the instructions below.

Scalar Damage
Select the type of Equivalent strain — Rankine, stress; Rankine, strain; Smooth Rankine,
stress; Smooth Rankine, strain; Norm of elastic strain tensor; or User defined. See
Strain-based Damage Models for details.

The Activate damage in compression check box is available for the Rankine, stress;
Rankine, strain; Smooth Rankine, stress; Smooth Rankine, strain; or User defined
equivalent strain definitions, and it is not selected by default. When selected, the
damage evolution law is applied on the total undamaged stress tensor.

Select the type of Damage evolution — Linear strain softening, Exponential strain
softening, Polynomial strain softening, Multilinear strain softening, or User defined. See
Damage Evolution for details.

• For Linear strain softening, Polynomial strain softening, Multilinear strain softening or
Exponential strain softening enter the Tensile strength ts, the default is to take the
value From material. Change to User defined to enter other value or expression.
• For Linear strain softening or Exponential strain softening select the type of Strain
softening input and enter the Fracture energy per area Gf, the Fracture energy per
volume gf, or the Strain softening parameterf accordingly. The default is to take the
value From material. Change to User defined to enter other value or expression. The
available options depend on the spatial regularization method selected.
• For Multilinear strain softening, enter the Shape factor . The default value is 0.5.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 959

 • For User defined, enter an expression for the Damage evolution function d.
Select the type of Spatial regularization method — None, Crack band, or Implicit gradient.
See Spatial Regularization for details.

• For the Crack band method select the type of Crack band calculation — Element
volume/area, or Element size. Note that when the Crack band method is selected,
only the Fracture energy per area is available as Strain softening input.
• For the Implicit gradient method enter the Internal length scale lint. If the Fracture
energy per area was selected as Strain softening input, enter also the Characteristic size
of the damage dissipation zone hdmg. The Implicit gradient method is available in the
Solid Mechanics and Layered Shell interfaces.

Select the type of Viscous regularization method — None or Delayed Damage.

For the Delayed damage method, enter the Characteristic time . The Delayed damage
method is intended for time-dependent studies, and adds no contributions for other
study types. See Viscous Regularization for details.

Mazars Damage for Concrete

Select the type of Equivalent strain — Mazars, Modified Mazars, or User defined. See
Mazars Damage for Concrete for details.

Enter the Shear exponent , the default is set to 1.06.

Select the Tensile damage evolution — Linear strain softening, Exponential strain
softening, Mazars damage evolution function, or User defined.

• For Linear strain softening or Exponential strain softening enter the Tensile strength
ts, the default is to take the value From material. Also select the type of Tensile strain
softening and enter the Fracture energy per area Gft, the Fracture energy per volume
gft, or the Strain softening parameterft accordingly. The default is to take the value
From material. Change to User defined to enter other value or expression.
• For Mazars damage evolution function, enter the Tensile strain threshold 0t, and the
Tensile damage evolution parameters At and Bt.
• For User defined, enter an expression for the Tensile damage evolution function dt.

Select the Compressive damage evolution — Mazars damage evolution function or User
defined.

960 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

• For Mazars damage evolution function, enter the Compressive strain threshold 0c, and
the Compressive damage evolution parameters Ac and Bc.
• For User defined, enter an expression for the Compressive damage evolution function
dc.

Select the type of Spatial regularization method — None, Crack band, or Implicit gradient.
See Spatial Regularization for details.

• For the Crack band method select the type of Crack band calculation — Element
volume/area, or Element size. Note that when the Crack band method is selected,
only the Fracture energy per area is available as Strain softening input.
• For the Implicit gradient method enter the Length scale lint. If the Fracture energy
per area was selected as Strain softening input, enter also the Characteristic size of the
damage dissipation zone hdmg. The Implicit gradient method is available in the Solid
Mechanics and Layered Shell interfaces.

Select the type of Viscous regularization method — None or Delayed Damage.

For the Delayed damage method, enter the Characteristic time . The Delayed damage
method is intended for time-dependent studies, and adds no contributions for other
study types. See Viscous Regularization for details.

Phase Field Damage

The Phase field damage model is available with the Linear Elastic Material or the
Hyperelastic Material in the Solid Mechanics interface. See Phase Field Damage Models
for details.

Select the type of Crack driving force — Elastic strain energy density, Total strain energy
density, Principal stress criterion, or User defined. See Crack Driving Force for details.

• For Elastic strain energy density and Total strain energy density, enter a value for the
Critical energy release rate Gc, and the Strain energy threshold Gc0. The default for
the Critical energy release rate is to take the value From material. Change to User
defined to enter other value or expression.
• For Principal stress criterion, enter a value for the Critical fracture stress c, and the
Post-peak slope parameter . The default for the Critical fracture stress is to take the
value From material. Change to User defined to enter other value or expression.
• For User defined, enter an expression for the dimensionless crack driving force.
For all options, enter a value for the Length scale lint.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 961

 Select the Damage evolution function to use — Power law; Cubic, Borden; or User defined.
See Damage Evolution for Phase Field Damage for details.

• For Power law, enter a value for the Exponent m. The default is to use a quadratic
function so that m  2.
• For Cubic, Borden, enter a value for the Model parameter s. This option is available
when Crack driving force is set to Elastic strain energy density or Total strain energy
density.
• For User defined, enter an expression for the Damage evolution function d.
Select an option for Exclude compressive energy — Volumetric only; Spectral
decomposition, stress; Spectral decomposition, strain; or No split. For Hyperelastic
Material, only some options are available from the list. See Strain Energy Split for
details.

The Viscous regularization check box is not selected by default. When selected, a viscous
term is added to the evolution of the crack phase field in time-dependent studies. Enter
a value for the Characteristic time . See Viscous Regularization for details.

DISCRETIZATION
This section is available with the Implicit gradient regularization method and the Phase
field damage model. Select the shape function for the Nonlocal equivalent strain eq, or
the Crack phase field — Automatic, Linear, Quadratic Lagrange, Quadratic serendipity,
Cubic Lagrange, Cubic serendipity, Quartic Lagrange, Quartic serendipity, or Quintic
Lagrange. The options available depends on the chosen order of the displacement field.

ADVANCED
Enter the Maximum damage. The default value is 0.99999.

When a Mixed Formulation is selected in the parent Linear Elastic Material,

the damage model can give spurious results. The Implicit gradient
regularization method is more stable in this respect, and it is
recommended when using the mixed formulation.

See also

• Modeling Damage in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

• Damage Models in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

962 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Damage
Solid Mechanics>Hyperelastic Material>Damage
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Damage
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Damage

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Hyperelastic Material, or Layered Linear Elastic
Material, node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Damage

Activation
Use the Activation subnode to activate or deactivate parts of a domain according to an
Activation expression that you define. The Activation subnode uses a scale factor that
reduces the elastic stiffness and density of the material, to emulate that material is not
present. When the Activation expression is satisfied, the material is activated in a state
of zero stress.

When the material is not active, the following is done to emulate that the material is
not present:

• The elasticity matrix is multiplied by the Activation scale factor.

• The density is multiplied by the square of the Activation scale factor.

When the material is activated, the following is done to ensure that the activation is
stress-free:

• Elastic strains at the instant of activation are removed from the total strains.
• Initial stresses are always removed, regardless of the Activation expression.

The Activation subnode can be used in combination with Linear Elastic Material, and in
the Wire interface with Elastic Wire.

ACTIVATION
Enter the Activation expression. This is the expression that will determine whether
material is active or inactive.

Enter the Activation scale factor. The default value is 105.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 963

 The Activation subnode is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/)

See also Activating and Deactivating Material in the Structural

Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Activation
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Activation
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Activation
Truss>Linear Elastic Material>Activation
Wire> Elastic Wire>Activation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material or Elastic Wire node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Activation

Safety
Use the Safety subnode to set up variables that can be used to check the risk of failure
according to various criteria. It can be used in combination with Linear Elastic Material,
Nonlinear Elastic Material, and Layered Linear Elastic Material. Four different variables
describing the failure risk are defined, as described in Table 4-2.

You can add any number of Safety nodes to a single material model. The contents of
this feature do not affect the analysis results as such, so you can add Safety nodes after
having performed an analysis, and just do an Update Solution ( ) in order to access
to the new variables for result evaluation.
TABLE 4-2: VARIABLES FOR SAFETY FACTOR EVALUATION

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION CRITERION CRITERION

FULFILLED VIOLATED

Failure index, FI For a linear criterion, this is the ratio FI<1 FI>1
between the computed value and the
given limit.
Damage index, DI A binary value, indicating whether DI=0 DI=1
failure is predicted or not. DI is based
on the value of FI.

964 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 TABLE 4-2: VARIABLES FOR SAFETY FACTOR EVALUATION

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION CRITERION CRITERION

FULFILLED VIOLATED

Safety factor, SF For a linear criterion, this is 1/FI. SF>1 SF<1

Margin of safety, MoS SF-1 MoS>0 MoS<0
For orthotropic and anisotropic failure criteria, the directions are given by the
coordinate system selection in the parent node.

When you add a Safety node in one of the Shell, Layered Shell, or
Membrane interfaces, a default plot with the failure index is generated.
Such plots are placed in a group named Failure Indices. The label of these
plots is derived from the label of the corresponding Safety node.

The Safety node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/)

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present when Safety is used as a subnode to:

• Linear Elastic Material in the Layered Shell interface. See the

documentation for the Safety node in the Layered Shell chapter.
• Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Shell interface. See the
documentation for the Safety node in the Shell and Plate chapter.
• Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Membrane interface. See the
documentation for the Safety node in the Membrane chapter.

FAILURE MODEL
Select a Failure Criterion. The available choices depend on the physics interface, as
indicated in Table 4-3.
TABLE 4-3: AVAILABLE FAILURE CRITERIA BY PHYSICS INTERFACE

CRITERION SOLID SHELL, LAYERED MEMBRANE BEAM, PIPE TRUSS

MECHANICS PLATE SHELL MECHANICS

von Mises X X X X X X
Tresca X X X X X X

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 965

 TABLE 4-3: AVAILABLE FAILURE CRITERIA BY PHYSICS INTERFACE

CRITERION SOLID SHELL, LAYERED MEMBRANE BEAM, PIPE TRUSS

MECHANICS PLATE SHELL MECHANICS

Rankine X X X X X X
St. Venant X X X X X X
Mohr-Coulomb X – – – – –
Drucker-Prager X – – – – –
Bresler-Pister X X – – – –
Willam-Warnke X X – – – –
Ottosen X X – – – –
Jenkins X X X X – –
Waddoups X X X X – –
Azzi-Tsai-Hill Plane X X X – –
stress
Norris Plane X X X – –
stress
Tsai-Hill X X X X – –
Hoffman X X X X – –
Tsai-Wu X X X X – –
Orthotropic
Zinoviev1 – X X – – –
1
Hashin-Rotem – X X – – –
Hashin1 – X X – – –
1
Puck – X X – – –
1
LaRC03 – X X – – –
Tsai-Wu X X X X – –
Anisotropic
User defined X X X X X X
1) Requires the Composite Materials Module
• When Failure Criterion is von Mises, enter Tensile strength ts.
• When Failure Criterion is Tresca, enter Tensile strength ts.
• When Failure Criterion is Rankine, enter Tensile strength ts and Compressive strength
cs.
• When Failure Criterion is St. Venant, enter Ultimate tensile strain ts and Ultimate
compressive strain cs.

966 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

• When Failure Criterion is Mohr-Coulomb, select Material parameters — Cohesion and
angle of friction or Tensile and compressive strengths to determine the type of input
data.
When Cohesion and angle of friction is used, enter Cohesion c and Angle of internal
friction  .
When Tensile and compressive strengths is used, enter Tensile strength ts and
Compressive strength cs.
In either case, you can select Include elliptic cap to limit the allowed compressive
stress. When selected, enter the Elliptic cap parameters pa and pb.
• When Failure Criterion is Drucker-Prager, select Material parameters — Drucker-Prager
parameters, Tensile and compressive strengths, or Mohr-Coulomb parameters to
determine the type of input data.
When Drucker-Prager parameters is used, enter Drucker-Prager alpha coefficient  and
Drucker-Prager k coefficient k.
When Tensile and compressive strengths is used, enter Tensile strength ts and
Compressive strength cs.
When Mohr-Coulomb parameters is used, enter Cohesion c and Angle of internal friction
.
In either case, you can select Include elliptic cap to limit the allowed compressive
stress. When selected, enter the Elliptic cap parameters pa and pb.
• When Failure Criterion is Bresler-Pister, enter Tensile strength ts, Compressive
strength cs, and Biaxial compressive strength bc.
• When Failure Criterion is Willam-Warnke, enter Tensile strength ts, Compressive
strength cs, and Biaxial compressive strength bc.
• When Failure Criterion is Ottosen, enter the Compressive strength cs, Ottosen
parameters a and b, the Size factor k1, and the Shape factor k2.
• When Failure Criterion is Jenkins, enter Tensile strengths ts, Compressive strengths
cs, and Shear strengths ss. All entries have three components, related to the
principal axes of orthotropy.
• When Failure Criterion is Waddoups, enter Ultimate tensile strains ts, Ultimate
compressive strains cs, and Ultimate shear strains ss. All entries have three
components, related to the principal axes of orthotropy.
• When Failure Criterion is Azzi-Tsai-Hill, enter Tensile strengths ts, Compressive
strengths cs, and Shear strengths ss. All entries have three components, related to
the principal axes of orthotropy.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 967

 • When Failure Criterion is Norris, enter Tensile strengths ts, Compressive strengths cs,
and Shear strengths ss. All entries have three components, related to the principal
axes of orthotropy.
• When Failure Criterion is Tsai-Hill, enter Tensile strengths ts, Compressive strengths
cs, and Shear strengths ss. All entries have three components, related to the
principal axes of orthotropy. Select the Use plane stress formulation check box to
assume plane stress conditions, see The Tsai–Hill Criterion.
• When Failure Criterion is Hoffman, enter Tensile strengths ts, Compressive strengths
cs, and Shear strengths ss. All entries have three components, related to the
principal axes of orthotropy.
• When Failure Criterion is Tsai-Wu Orthotropic, enter Tensile strengths ts, Compressive
strengths cs, and Shear strengths ss. All entries have three components, related to
the principal axes of orthotropy. Select the Use plane stress formulation check box to
assume plane stress conditions, see The Orthotropic Tsai–Wu Criterion.
• When Failure Criterion is Zinoviev, enter Tensile strengths ts, Compressive strengths
cs, and Shear strengths ss. All entries have three components, related to the
principal axes of orthotropy.
• When Failure Criterion is Hashin-Rotem, enter Tensile strengths ts, Compressive
strengths cs, and Shear strengths ss. All entries have three components, related to
the principal axes of orthotropy.
• When Failure Criterion is Hashin, enter Tensile strengths ts, Compressive strengths
cs, and Shear strengths ss. All entries have three components, related to the
principal axes of orthotropy. Select the Use plane stress formulation check box to
assume plane stress conditions, see The Hashin Criterion.
• When Failure Criterion is Puck:
- Enter Tensile strengths ts, Compressive strengths cs, and Shear strengths ss. All
entries have three components, related to the principal axes of orthotropy.
- Enter the Fiber failure data: Ultimate tensile strain in longitudinal direction, ts1,
and Ultimate compressive strain in longitudinal direction, cs1. Also, enter the fiber
material properties Young’s modulus of fiber in longitudinal direction, Ef1, and
In-plane Poisson’s ratio of fiber, f12. Enter a Mean stress magnification factor, mf.
The default value is 1.3, a value commonly assumed for GFRP. For CFRP, the
value 1.1 has been suggested.
- Enter the Interfiber failure data: Linear degradation stress, 1D. Also, enter the
Slope of in-plane fracture envelope, tension, ptl, and the Slope of in-plane fracture
envelope, compression, pcl. The default values are 0.3 and 0.25, respectively. These

968 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 values are common for GFRP. For CFRP, the values 0.35 and 0.3 have been
suggested.
• When Failure Criterion is LaRC03:
- Enter Tensile strengths ts, Compressive strengths cs, and Shear strengths ss. All
entries have three components, related to the principal axes of orthotropy. Also,
enter the Ultimate tensile strain in longitudinal direction, tsl.
i
- Enter the In situ transverse tensile strength,  ts2 , and In situ in-plane shear
i
strength,  ss12 . For both parameters, the default is to compute the value from
the data given above, as indicated by the selections From transverse tensile
strength and From in-plane shear strength respectively. You can also take the values
From material, or select User defined to enter own expressions.
- Enter Young’s modulus in longitudinal direction, E1, Young’s modulus in transverse
direction, E2, In-plane Poisson’s ratio, 12, and In-plane shear modulus, G12. For all
four parameters, the default selection is From parent, indicating that the values are
taken from the linear elastic properties in the parent node. You can also take the
values From material, or select User defined to enter own expressions.
- Enter the Fracture plane angle under transverse compression, 0. The default value
is 53°. Also enter the Fracture plane search angle, . The default value is 3°.
Under combined loading, the fracture plane angle will differ from 0, and a
numerical search for the critical angle is performed in the range 0 <  < 0. The
step in the search is .
• When Failure Criterion is Tsai-Wu Anisotropic, enter Second rank tensor, Voigt notation
f, and Fourth rank tensor F. Enter the components of the tensors with respect to the
directions of the coordinate system in the parent node, see The Anisotropic Tsai–
Wu Criterion.
• When Failure Criterion is User defined, you enter two expressions describing the
Failure criterion g(S), used in the failure index, and the Safety factor sf(S). As an
example, if you would like to replicate the von Mises Isotropic criterion with tensile
strength 350 MPa, you could enter g(S) as solid.mises/350[MPa]-1 and sf(S) as
350[MPa]/(solid.mises+eps).

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 969

 For all input fields, the default is to take the value From material. Change to User
defined to enter other values or expressions.

• For a detailed description of the various criteria, see Safety Factor

Evaluation in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.
• Updating a Solution in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference
Manual.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Variables>Safety
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Variables>Safety
Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Variables>Safety
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Variables>Safety
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Variables>Safety
Plate>Linear Elastic Material>Variables>Safety
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Variables>Safety
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Variables>Safety
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Variables>Safety
Beam>Linear Elastic Material>Variables>Safety
Truss>Linear Elastic Material>Variables>Safety
Pipe Mechanics>Fluid and Pipe Materials>Variables>Safety

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic
Material, or Fluid and Pipe Materials node selected in the model builder tree:

Attributes>Variables>Safety

Damping
Use the Damping subnode to add several types of damping to the material model.
Damping can be used in Time Dependent, Eigenfrequency, and Frequency Domain
studies; for other study types the settings in the Damping subnode are ignored.

The following types of damping are available:

• Rayleigh Damping
• Isotropic Loss Factor

970 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

• Anisotropic Loss Factor
• Viscous Damping
• Loss Factor
• Maximum Loss Factor
• Wave Attenuation

The available damping models differs between various COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

For a detailed description of the various damping models, see Mechanical

Damping and Losses in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

The applicability of the different damping models is summarized in Table 4-4.

TABLE 4-4: AVAILABLE DAMPING TYPES

DAMPING TYPE PHYSICS INTERFACES MATERIAL STUDY TYPES

MODELS

Rayleigh damping All All Time domain,

frequency domain
Isotropic loss factor All All Frequency domain
Anisotropic loss factor All, except Beam, Linear Elastic Frequency domain
Pipe Mechanics,
Truss and Wire
Viscous damping Solid Mechanics, All Time domain,
Membrane, frequency domain
Multibody Dynamics
Viscous damping Shell All Time domain,
frequency domain
Loss factor Shell, Plate Section Frequency domain
Stiffness
Maximum loss factor Solid Mechanics, All Time domain,
Membrane, frequency domain
Multibody Dynamics,
Layered Shell
Wave attenuation Solid Mechanics, Isotropic Time domain,
Multibody Dynamics, Linear Elastic frequency domain
Layered Shell

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 971

 SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present when Damping is used as a subnode to:

• A material model in the Layered Shell interface. See the documentation

for the Damping node in the Layered Shell chapter.
• Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Shell interface. See the
documentation for the Damping node in the Shell and Plate chapter.
• Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Membrane interface. See the
documentation for the Damping node in the Membrane chapter.

DAMPING SETTINGS
Select a Damping type, and enter the settings accordingly.

Rayleigh Damping
This choice can be used in Eigenfrequency, Frequency Domain, and Time Dependent
study. In this model, the damping ratio  is expressed in terms of the mass m and the
stiffness k as

 =  dM m +  dK k

That is, Rayleigh damping is proportional to a linear combination of the stiffness and
mass; there is no direct physical interpretation of the mass damping parameter dM
and the stiffness damping parameter dK.

Select Input parameters — Alpha and beta — to enter the damping parameters explicitly,
or Damping ratios to derive the damping parameters from the damping ratio at two
frequencies.

When Alpha and beta is selected, enter values or expressions for the Mass damping
parameter dM and the Stiffness damping parameter dK.

When Damping ratios is selected, enter two pairs of frequencies, f1 and f2, and the
corresponding damping ratios 1 and 2 at these frequencies. The Rayleigh damping
parameters are then computed as

972 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 1 f2 – 2 f1
 dM = 4f 1 f 2 --------------------------
2 2
-
f2 – f1
2 f2 – 1 f1
 dK = --------------------------
2 2
-
  f2 – f1 

In order to visualize the damping ratio as a function of frequency, click Damping Ratio
Preview ( ).

Isotropic Loss Factor

This choice is effective only in Eigenfrequency and Frequency Domain study. The
isotropic loss factor damping is described by the single isotropic loss factor s, which
acts on all entries in the elastic constitutive matrix. It can be used for isotropic,
orthotropic, and anisotropic materials.

When Isotropic loss factor is selected, use the Isotropic structural loss factor list to select
the way to enter s. The default is to take the value From material. For User defined,
enter another value or expression.

Anisotropic Loss Factor

This choice is effective only in Eigenfrequency and Frequency Domain study. An
elastic material is in general described by a symmetric 6-by-6 elasticity matrix D. The
loss can be isotropic or anisotropic, and is described by either the isotropic loss factor
s or by a symmetric anisotropic 6-by-6 loss factor matrix D or DVo. The
orientations are the same as in the parent node.

When Anisotropic loss factor is selected, use the Loss factor for elasticity matrix D list to
select the way to enter D or DVo. The default is to take the values From material. For
User defined enter the components of D or DVo in the upper-triangular part of a
symmetric 6-by-6 matrix.

The values for the loss factors are ordered in two different ways,
consistent with the selection of either Standard (XX, YY, ZZ, XY, YZ, XZ)
or Voigt (XX, YY, ZZ, YZ, XZ, XY) notation in the corresponding Linear
Elastic Model. If the values are taken from the material, these loss factors
are found in the Anisotropic or Anisotropic, Voigt notation property group
for the material. For an isotropic material, the anisotropic loss factor is
always given as D using the standard notation.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 973

 Viscous Damping
This choice can be used in Eigenfrequency, Frequency Domain, and Time Dependent
study. With viscous damping, the material will get additional stresses proportional to
the strain rate. Enter Bulk viscosity b and Shear viscosity v to model damping caused
by volume change and deformation, respectively.

See also Viscous Damping in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

Maximum Loss Factor

This damping model can be used in Eigenfrequency, Frequency Domain, and Time
Dependent studies. Enter the Maximum loss factor max together with the Reference
frequency fref, at which the maximum loss factor occurs. The model approximates the
maximum loss factor around the provided reference frequency.

See also Maximum Loss Factor in the Structural Mechanics Theory

chapter.

Wave Attenuation
This damping model is only available when Isotropic is selected as the Material
symmetry in the parent Linear Elastic Material feature. It can be used in
Eigenfrequency, Frequency Domain, and Time Dependent study. Enter the elastic
wave spatial Attenuation coefficient for the pressure waves (p-subscript) and shear waves
(s-subscript) together with the Reference frequency fp,ref and fs,ref at which the
respective coefficient was measured. You can also select the Attenuation unit for the
Attenuation coefficient inputs. The available options are: decibel (dB) per wavelength,
neper (Np) per wavelength, decibel per unit length, and neper per unit length. The
damping model is similar to Viscous Damping, for which the software will use the
effective bulk and shear viscosity computed automatically based on the attenuation
inputs.

See also Wave Attenuation in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

974 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Loss Factor

This option is available when working with the Section Stiffness material
model in the Shell interface.

The loss factors are directly acting on the components of the different matrices. Each
component in the given damping matrix acts on the corresponding entry in the
stiffness matrix.

Enter the Loss factor for stiffness matrix DA, DA; Loss factor for stiffness matrix DB,
DB; Loss factor for stiffness matrix DD, DD; and Loss factor for stiffness matrix DAs,
DAs.

The default for all section properties is to take the values From material. Any one of the
loss matrices can also be User defined. In that case, selecting Isotropic input is identical
to selecting Diagonal input and entering the same value in all three diagonal
components. In most cases, the Symmetric input option is the most relevant, since that
is the only one in which a loss factor can be assigned to all elements in the section
stiffness matrices.

• The time-stepping algorithms also add numerical damping, which is

independent of any explicit damping added. For the generalized alpha
time-stepping algorithm you can control the amount of numerical
damping.
• In a study using mode superposition, you can add damping to the
individual eigenmodes.

For an example of Damping, see Heat Generation in a Vibrating

Structure: Application Library path Structural_Mechanics_Module/
Thermal-Structure_Interaction/vibrating_beam

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Damping
Solid Mechanics>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Damping
Solid Mechanics>Hyperelastic Material>Damping

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 975

 Solid Mechanics>Elastoplastic Soil Material>Damping
Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Damping
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Damping
Shell>Layered Linear Hyperelastic Material>Damping
Shell>Section Stiffness>Damping
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Damping
Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>Damping
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Damping
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Damping
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Damping
Membrane>Hyperelastic Material>Damping
Plate>Linear Elastic Material>Damping
Plate>Section Stiffness>Damping
Beam>Linear Elastic Material>Damping
Beam>Section Stiffness>Damping
Pipe Mechanics>Fluid and Pipe Properties>Damping
Truss>Linear Elastic Material>Damping
Wire>Elastic Wire>Damping
Multibody Dynamics>Linear Elastic Material>Damping

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, Hyperelastic
Material, Layered Linear Hyperelastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material, Elastoplastic Soil
Material, Section Stiffness, Fluid and Pipe Properties, or Elastic Wire node selected in the
model tree:

Attributes>Damping

Mechanical Damping
The Mechanical Damping subnode allows you to model mechanical losses in the
Piezoelectric Material and Piezomagnetic Material either using loss factor material data
for the stiffness, or in the form of Rayleigh proportional damping.

The Mechanical Damping subnode is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

DAMPING SETTINGS
Select a Damping type — Loss factor for cE, Isotropic loss factor, Rayleigh damping, or
Maximum loss factor.

976 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Loss Factor for cE (Piezoelectric Material)
This choice is effective only in Eigenfrequency and Frequency Domain study. By
default, the Loss factor for elasticity matrix cE cE uses values From material. For User
defined enter other values or expressions in the matrix.

Loss Factor for sE (Piezoelectric Material)

This choice is only available if the Constitutive relation in the parent node is
Strain-charge form, and it is effective only in Eigenfrequency and Frequency Domain
study. By default, the Loss factor for compliance matrix sE sE uses values From material.
For User defined enter other values or expressions in the matrix.

Loss Factor for cH (Piezomagnetic Material)

This choice is effective only in Eigenfrequency and Frequency Domain study. By
default, the Loss factor for elasticity matrix cH cE uses values From material. For User
defined enter other values or expressions in the matrix.

Isotropic Loss Factor

This choice is effective only in Eigenfrequency and Frequency Domain study. By
default, the Isotropic structural loss factor s uses values From material. For User defined
enter another value or expression.

Rayleigh Damping
This damping model can be used in Eigenfrequency, Frequency Domain, and Time
Dependent study. Enter the Mass damping parameter dM and the Stiffness damping
parameter dK.

The damping ratio  is expressed in terms of the mass m and the stiffness k as

 =  dM m +  dK k

That is, Rayleigh damping is proportional to a linear combination of the stiffness and
mass; there is no direct physical interpretation of the mass damping parameter dM
and the stiffness damping parameter dK. Note that the beta-damping is applied only
to the mechanical part of the problem.

In order to visualize the damping ratio as a function of frequency, click Damping Ratio
Preview ( ).

To include the Rayleigh damping effect for the piezoelectric coupling terms, add a
Coupling Loss subnode.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 977

 Maximum Loss Factor
This choice can be used in Eigenfrequency, Frequency Domain, and Time Dependent
study. Enter the Maximum loss factor max together with the Reference frequency fref ,
at which the maximum occurs.

See also Piezoelectric Losses.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Piezoelectric Material>Mechanical Damping
Solid Mechanics>Piezomagnetic Material>Mechanical Damping
Layered Shell>Piezoelectric Material>Mechanical Damping

Ribbon
Physics tab with Piezoelectric Material or Piezomagnetic Material node selected in the
model tree:

Attributes>Mechanical Damping

Coupling Loss
The Coupling Loss subnode allows you to model losses in the piezoelectric coupling in
a Piezoelectric Material, either by using the loss factor material data for the coupling
matrix or as Rayleigh proportional damping.

The Coupling Loss subnode is only available with some COMSOL products (see https:/
/www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

978 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

COUPLING LOSS SETTINGS
Select a Coupling loss — Loss factor for e or Rayleigh damping.

• For Loss factor for e select a Loss factor for coupling matrix e from the list. Select User
defined to enter values or expressions for e in a 3-by-6 matrix. This choice is
effective only in Eigenfrequency and Frequency Domain study.
• For Rayleigh damping enter a Stiffness damping parameter dC. This choice can be
used in Eigenfrequency Frequency Domain, and Time Dependent study.

See also Piezoelectric Losses.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Piezoelectric Material>Coupling Loss
Layered Shell>Piezoelectric Material>Coupling Loss

Ribbon
Physics tab with Piezoelectric Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Coupling Loss

Dielectric Loss
The Dielectric Loss subnode allows you to model electrical losses in the Piezoelectric
Material. The losses can be prescribed either by using a loss factor for the electrical
permittivity, or in the form of dielectric dispersion.

The Dielectric Loss subnode is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

DIELECTRIC LOSS SETTINGS

From the Dielectric loss list, select one of the following options:

• Loss factor for S. This choice is effective only in Eigenfrequency and Frequency
Domain study. You can select the input type for Loss factor for electrical permittivity
S to be either From material to use the value from the material, or from User defined
to enter values or expressions for the loss factor in the associated fields. Select
Symmetric to enter the components of S in the upper-triangular part of a

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 979

 symmetric 3-by-3 matrix, select Isotropic to enter a single scalar loss factor, or select
Diagonal. The default values are 0.
• Loss factor for T. This choice is only available if the Constitutive relation in the parent
node is Strain-charge form, and it is effective only in Eigenfrequency and Frequency
Domain study. You can select the input type for Loss factor for electrical permittivity
T to be either From material to use the value from the material, or from User defined
to enter values or expressions for the loss factor in the associated fields. Select
Symmetric to enter the components of  T in the upper-triangular part of a
symmetric 3-by-3 matrix, select Isotropic to enter a single scalar loss factor, or select
Diagonal. The default values are 0.
• Dispersion. This choice can be used in Eigenfrequency Frequency Domain, and
Time Dependent study. Enter the Relaxation time d, and the Relative permittivity
contribution rS in the associated fields. For the latter, you can select Isotropic,
Diagonal, or Symmetric matrix input options. You can also specify how the relative
permittivity input rS on the parent node should be interpreted by selecting the
Static response (the default value is Low frequency limit).
• Complex permittivity. This choice can be used in Eigenfrequency, Frequency
Domain, and Time Dependent study. You enter the Relative permittivity (real part)
' and Relative permittivity (imaginary part) '', which can be either Isotropic or
Diagonal matrices. You also enter the Reference frequency fref at which the
permittivity values have been measured. You can also specify how the relative
permittivity input rS on the parent node should be interpreted by selecting the
Static response (the default value is Low frequency limit). You can also specify how
the relative permittivity input rS on the parent node should be interpreted by
selecting the Static response (the default value is Low frequency limit). In Time
Dependent study, the software will use the dispersion model, for which the effective
relaxation time and relative permittivity increment are computed automatically
based on the node input parameters.
• Maximum loss tangent. This choice can be used in Eigenfrequency, Frequency
Domain, and Time Dependent study. You enter the Maximum loss tangent max
together with the Reference frequency fref at which the maximum occurs. Both
inputs can be either Isotropic or Diagonal matrices. In the latter case, different
frequency can be used for the corresponding components of the loss tangent. You
can also specify how the relative permittivity input rS on the parent node should be
interpreted by selecting the Static response (the default value is Low frequency limit).
In Time Dependent study, the software will use the dispersion model, for which the

980 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 effective relaxation time and relative permittivity increment are computed
automatically based on the node input parameters.

See also Piezoelectric Losses.

If your license includes either the AC/DC Module or MEMS Module,

more options for modeling dielectric dispersion can be found in
Dispersion section in the AC/DC Module User’s Guide.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Piezoelectric Material>Dielectric Loss
Layered Shell>Piezoelectric Material>Dielectric Loss

Ribbon
Physics tab with Piezoelectric Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Dielectric Loss

Conduction Loss (Time-Harmonic)

The Conduction Loss (Time-Harmonic) subnode allows you to model possible conductive
losses in a Piezoelectric Material. The effect is only active in an eigenfrequency or
frequency-domain study.

The Conduction Loss (Time-Harmonic) subnode is only available with some COMSOL
products (see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

CONDUCTION CURRENT
By default, the Electrical conductivity e for the media is defined From material. You can
also select User defined or Linearized resistivity.

• For User defined select Isotropic, Diagonal, Symmetric, or Full depending on the
characteristics of the electrical conductivity, and then enter values or expressions for
the Electrical conductivity e in the field or matrix.
• For Linearized resistivity the default Reference temperature T0, and Resistivity
temperature coefficient r, and Reference resistivity 0 are taken From material, which

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 981

 means that the values are taken from the domain (or boundary) material. T is the
current temperature, which can be a value that is specified as a model input or the
temperature from a heat transfer interface. The definition of the temperature field
appears in the Model Inputs section.

See also Piezoelectric Losses.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Piezoelectric Material>Conduction Loss (Time-Harmonic)
Electrostatics>Charge Conservation>Conduction Loss (Time-Harmonic)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Piezoelectric Material or Charge Conservation node selected in the
model tree:

Attributes>Conduction Loss (Time-Harmonic)

External Stress-Strain Relation

The External Stress-Strain Relation is a special type of material model where the
computation of second Piola–Kirchhoff stress is delegated to external code which has
been compiled into a shared library. External libraries must first be imported into an
External Material feature under Global Definitions>Materials.

See also External Material and Working with External Materials in the
COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

The External Stress-Strain Relation node is only available with some COMSOL
products (see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

MATERIAL
Select an External material from the list of compatible external materials added under
Global Definitions>Materials. For a material to be compatible with this External Material
model node, its Interface type must be set to a type whose required input quantities are
all defined by this external material. Allowed required inputs include Green–Lagrange
strains, the deformation gradient, as well as all standard model inputs.

982 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
The use of an External Stress-Strain Relation will always force the study to be
geometrically nonlinear. The default behavior is then to use a large strain formulation
in all domains. There are, however, some cases when the use of a small strain
formulation for a certain domain is needed. This will for example be the case if the
material model you have implemented is formulated using engineering strains.

In such cases, select the Geometrically linear formulation check box. When selected, a
small strain formulation is always used, independently of the setting in the study step.

• Modeling Geometric Nonlinearity

• Studies and Solvers in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

TRANSVERSE SHEAR STRAINS

This section is only present in the Membrane interface and in 2D Plane

Stress in the Solid Mechanics interface.

As a default, it is assumed that the transverse shear strains are zero. For a state of plane
stress, this is true for an isotropic material, and for nonisotropic materials where the
normal to the surface is a principal direction. If this is not the case, select the Transverse
shear strains check box to store state variables also for the two transverse shear strains.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Material Models>External Stress-Strain Relation
Membrane>Material Models>External Stress-Strain Relation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Domains>Material Models>External Stress-Strain Relation

Physics tab with Membrane selected:

Boundaries>Material Models>External Stress-Strain Relation

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 983

 Rigid Material
Add the Rigid Material node and select one or more geometrical objects to make them
a rigid body. Rigid Material is a material model, with only one material property: the
mass density. It can be used for

• Domains in the Solid Mechanics interface (3D, 2D, and 2D axisymmetry).

• Boundaries in the Shell interface.
• Boundaries (2D) and edges (3D) in the Beam interface.

By default, an Initial Values node is added (see Initial Values (Rigid Material)).

You can add functionality to a rigid domain through the following subnodes:

• Fixed Constraint (Rigid Material) to fully constrain the rigid domain.

• Prescribed Displacement/Rotation to prescribe the displacement of individual
degrees of freedom.
• Applied Force (Rigid Material) to apply a force in given point.
• Applied Moment (Rigid Material) to apply a moment.
• Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid Material) to add extra mass and moment of
inertia in a given point.
• Spring Foundation (Rigid Material) to add a translational or rotational spring or
damper in a given point.

The Rigid Material node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

In 2D axisymmetric interfaces, the rigid domain has only a single degree

of freedom: translation along the Z-axis. In this case it is not possible to
give moment loads, mass moment of inertia, or rotational springs.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present when Rigid Material is used in the Layered
Shell interface. See the documentation for the Rigid Material node in the
Layered Shell chapter.

984 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

DENSITY
The default Density  is taken From material. In this case the material assignment for
the domain supplies the mass density. For User defined enter another value or
expression.

If any material in the model has a temperature dependent mass density, and From
material is selected, the Volume reference temperature list will appear in the Model Input
section. As a default, the value of Tref is obtained from a Common model input. You can
also select User defined to enter a value or expression for the reference temperature
locally.

The density is needed for dynamic analysis or when the elastic data is given
in terms of wave speed. It is also used when computing mass forces for
gravitational or rotating frame loads, and when computing mass
properties (Computing Mass Properties).

See also

• Mass Density and Volume Reference Temperature.

• Using Common Model Input
• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

CENTER OF ROTATION
Select a Center of Rotation — Center of mass, Centroid of selected entities, or User
defined. The center of rotation affects how displacements are interpreted, and is also
used as the default in various subnodes.

• For Center of mass, the center of rotation is taken as the center of mass of the rigid
domain.
• For Centroid of selected entities select an Entity level — Boundary, Edge, or Point. The
available choices depend on physics interface and geometrical dimension. The
center of rotation is located at the centroid of the selected entities, which do not

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 985

 need to be related to rigid domain itself. As a special case, you can select a single
point, and thus use that point as center of rotation.

Once chosen, a default Center of Rotation: Boundary, Center of

Rotation: Edge, or Center of Rotation: Point subnode is automatically
added.

• For User defined, enter the Global coordinates of center of rotation, Xc, in the table.

Select the Offset check box to add an optional offset vector to the definition of the
center of rotation. Enter values for the offset vector Xoffset.

The center of rotation used is the sum of the vector obtained from any of the input
methods and the offset vector.

X P = X P,input + X offset

This section is not available in 2D axisymmetric components.

FORMULATION
Some contributions from a rigid domain will, under geometric nonlinearity, result in a
nonsymmetric local stiffness matrix. If all other aspects of the model are such that the
global stiffness matrix would be symmetric, then such a nonsymmetric contribution
may have a heavy impact on the total solution time and memory usage. In such cases,
it is often more efficient to use an approximative local stiffness matrix that is symmetric.

986 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Select Use symmetric formulation for geometric nonlinearity to force all matrix
contributions from the rigid domain and its subnodes to be symmetric.

Using an approximative stiffness matrix will in general require more

iterations. However, since the computational cost per iteration will be cut
at least by a factor of two if a symmetric matrix can be used, it is usually
more efficient to ignore a weak nonsymmetry.

In particular, if the rotation of the rigid domain per time step or

parameter increment is small, there will in general be no increase in the
number of iterations at all if this option is used.

When the global stiffness matrix is nonsymmetric for other reasons, then
there is nothing to be gained from symmetrizing the contribution from
the rigid domain.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
When a rigid domain shares a boundary with a flexible material, all nodes on that
boundary are constrained to move as a rigid body. As a default these constraints are
implemented as pointwise constraints. If you want to use a weak constraint
formulation, select Use weak constraints for rigid-flexible connection.

Rigid Material

Modeling Rigid Bodies: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Connectors_and_Mechanisms/rigid_domain

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Material Models>Rigid Material
Shell>Material Models>Rigid Material
Layered Shell>Material Models>Rigid Material
Beam>Material Models>Rigid Material

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 987

 Domains>Material Models>Rigid Material

Physics tab with Shell or Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Material Models>Rigid Material

Physics tab with Beam selected:

Edges>Material Models>Rigid Material (3D)

Boundaries>Material Models>Rigid Material (2D)

Initial Values (Rigid Material)

The Initial Values node is automatically added as a default node to a Rigid Material
node. You can enter initial values for the rigid body displacement, rotation and
velocities, which can serve as an initial condition for a transient simulation or as an
initial guess for a nonlinear analysis. The initial values that you specify are interpreted
in the selected coordinate system.

CENTER OF ROTATION
Select an option from the list: From parent, Centroid of selected entities, or User defined.
The given initial values are interpreted at the center of rotation.

• For From parent, the center of rotation is taken as the one defined in the parent Rigid
Material node.
• For Centroid of selected entities select an Entity level — Boundary, Edge, or Point. The
available choices depend on physics interface and geometrical dimension. The initial
conditions act at the centroid of the selected entities, which do not need to be
related to rigid domain itself. As a special case, you can select a single point, and thus
prescribe the initial conditions at that point

Once chosen, a default Center of Rotation: Boundary, Center of

Rotation: Edge, or Center of Rotation: Point subnode is automatically
added.

• For User defined, enter the Global coordinates of center of rotation, Xc, in the table.

Select the Offset check box to add an optional offset vector to the definition of the
center of rotation. Enter values for the offset vector Xoffset.

The center of rotation used is the sum of the vector obtained from any of the input
methods and the offset vector.

988 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 X P = X P,input + X offset

INITIAL VALUES: TRANSLATIONAL

• Displacement at center of rotation u.
• Velocity at center of rotation u/t.

INITIAL VALUES: ROTATIONAL

• For 3D components only: Axis of rotation 
• Angle of rotation  .
• Angular velocity (3D components) and   /t (2D components)

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

This node is automatically added when the Rigid Material node is created. It cannot be
added or removed manually.

Fixed Constraint (Rigid Material)

The Fixed Constraint node adds a condition that makes the entire rigid domain fixed
(fully constrained). The displacements and rotations are zero in all directions. There
are no settings for this node. See Rigid Material.

The Fixed Constraint and Prescribed Displacement/Rotation subnodes

cannot be combined for a Rigid Material.

REACTION FORCE SETTINGS

Select Evaluate reaction forces to compute the reaction force caused by the constraint.
The default is to not compute the reaction force. When selected, the constraint is
implemented as a weak constraint.

Select Apply reaction only on rigid body variables to use a unidirectional constraint for
enforcing the prescribed motion. The default is that bidirectional constraints are used.
For a fixed constraint, there is no effect of changing this setting.

You can activate and deactivate the fixed constraint by assigning it to a

constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 989

 LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Rigid Material>Fixed Constraint
Shell>Rigid Material>Fixed Constraint
Layered Shell>Rigid Material>Fixed Constraint
Beam>Rigid Material>Fixed Constraint
Pipe Mechanics>Rigid Material>Fixed Constraint
Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Material>Fixed Constraint

Ribbon
Physics tab with Rigid Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Fixed Constraint

When this node has been added once, it is no longer available for selection in the
context menu or ribbon.

Prescribed Displacement/Rotation
The Prescribed Displacement/Rotation subnode can be used to selectively constrain or
prescribe degrees the of freedom of a Rigid Material:

• One or several displacement components can be constrained or prescribed at an

arbitrary point.
• One or several rotation components can be constrained.
• The rotation around a given axis can be prescribed.

The prescribed values that you specify are interpreted in the selected coordinate
system.

The Fixed Constraint and Prescribed Displacement/Rotation subnodes

cannot be combined for a Rigid Material.

CENTER OF ROTATION
The selection of the center of rotation only affects the prescribed displacements, not
the rotations.

990 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Select an option from the list: From parent, Centroid of selected entities, or User defined.

• For From parent, the center of rotation is taken as the one defined in the parent Rigid
Material node.
• For Centroid of selected entities select an Entity level — Boundary, Edge, or Point. The
available choices depend on physics interface and geometrical dimension. The
constraints act at the centroid of the selected entities, which do not need to be
related to rigid domain itself. As a special case, you can select a single point, and thus
constrain that point

Once chosen, a default Center of Rotation: Boundary, Center of

Rotation: Edge, or Center of Rotation: Point subnode is automatically
added.

• For User defined, enter the Global coordinates of center of rotation, Xc, in the table.

Select the Offset check box to add an optional offset vector to the definition of the
center of rotation. Enter values for the offset vector Xoffset.

The center of rotation used is the sum of the vector obtained from any of the input
methods and the offset vector.

X P = X P,input + X offset

PRESCRIBED DISPLACEMENT AT CENTER OF ROTATION

Select one or several of the Prescribed in x direction, Prescribed in y direction, and
Prescribed in z direction (3D components only) check boxes. Then enter a value or
expression for u0x, u0y, and u0z (3D components).

PRESCRIBED ROTATION
Select an option from the By list: Free, Constrained rotation, or Prescribed rotation.

For 2D components, and if Prescribed rotation is selected, enter a value or

expression for the Angle of rotation 0.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 991

 For 3D components:

• For Constrained rotation select one or several of the Constrain rotation

around x-axis, Constrain rotation around y-axis, and Constrain rotation
around z-axis check boxes.
• For Prescribed rotation enter values or expressions in the table for the
Axis of rotation  . Then enter a value or expression for the Angle of
rotation 0.

• You can add a Harmonic Perturbation subnode for specifying a

harmonic variation of the values of the prescribed displacements and
rotations in a frequency domain analysis of perturbation type.
• You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it
to a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics
Modeling chapter.
• You can assign the value of the prescribed displacement and rotation to
a load group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

REACTION FORCE SETTINGS

Select Evaluate reaction forces to compute the reaction force caused by the prescribed
motion. The default is to not compute the reaction force. When selected, the
prescribed motion is implemented as a weak constraint.

Select Apply reaction only on rigid body variables to use a unidirectional constraint for
enforcing the prescribed motion. The default is that bidirectional constraints are used.
This setting is useful in a situation where a bidirectional constraint would give an
unwanted coupling in the equations. This would happen if the prescribed value of the
motion is a variable solved for in other equations.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Rigid Material>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation
Shell>Rigid Material>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation
Layered Shell>Rigid Material>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation
Beam>Rigid Material>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation
Pipe Mechanics>Rigid Material>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation

992 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Material>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Rigid Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation

When this node has been added once, it is no longer available for selection in the
context menu or ribbon.

Applied Force (Rigid Material)

The Applied Force subnode is used to apply forces on a rigid domain. The force can act
at an arbitrary position in space. A force implicitly contributes also to the moment if it
is not applied at the center of mass of a rigid domain. The force that you specify is
interpreted in the selected coordinate system.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The Coordinate system list contains all applicable coordinate systems in the model.
Select a Coordinate system for specifying the directions of the force.

LOCATION
Select an option from the list: Center of rotation, Centroid of selected entities, or User
defined. This is the location where the force is applied.

• For Center of rotation, the location of the load is taken as the center of rotation as
defined in the parent Rigid Material node.
• For Centroid of selected entities select an Entity level — Boundary, Edge, or Point. The
available choices depend on physics interface and geometrical dimension. The force
acts at the centroid of the selected entities, which do not need to be related to rigid
domain itself. As a special case, you can select a single point, and thus place the force
at that point.

Once chosen, a default Location: Boundary, Location: Edge, or

Location: Point subnode is automatically added.

• For User defined, enter the Location (global coordinates), Xp, in the table.

Select the Offset check box to add an optional offset vector to the definition of the
location. Enter values for the offset vector Xoffset.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 993

 The location used is the sum of the vector obtained from any of the input methods and
the offset vector.

X P = X P,input + X offset

APPLIED FORCE
Select the Direction of the applied force — Space-fixed direction or Body-fixed direction.

• For Space-fixed direction, the directions of the applied force F are fixed with respect
to the selected Coordinate system.
• For Body-fixed direction, the directions of the applied force F follow the rotation of
the rigid domain.

Enter values or expressions for the components of the Applied force F. The direction
coordinate names can vary depending on the selected coordinate system.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

994 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Rigid Material>Applied Force
Shell>Rigid Material>Applied Force
Layered Shell>Rigid Material>Applied Force
Beam>Rigid Material>Applied Force
Pipe Mechanics>Rigid Material>Applied Force
Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Material>Applied Force

Ribbon
Physics tab with Rigid Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Applied Force

Location Nodes

LOCATION: BOUNDARY
The Location: Boundary subnode is used to select a set of boundaries whose centroid
represents the point of application of a force on a rigid domain.

LOCATION: EDGE
The Location: Edge subnode is used to select a set of edges whose centroid represents
the point of application of a force on a rigid domain.

LOCATION: POINT
The Location: Point subnode is used to select a set of points whose centroid represents
the point of application of a force on a rigid domain.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

These nodes are automatically added when Centroid of selected entities is selected in
the parent Applied Force node. They cannot be added or removed manually.

Applied Moment (Rigid Material)

Use the Applied Moment subnode to apply moments on a rigid domain. The moment
that you specify is interpreted in the selected coordinate system.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 995

 COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION
The Coordinate system list contains all applicable coordinate systems in the model.
Select a Coordinate system for specifying the directions of the moment.

In 2D, the moment is a scalar input and is not affected by the coordinate system
selection.

APPLIED MOMENT
For 3D components, select the Direction of the applied moment — Space-fixed direction
or Body-fixed direction.

• For Space-fixed direction, the directions of the applied moment M are fixed with
respect to the selected Coordinate system.
• For Body-fixed direction, the directions of the applied moment M follow the rotation
of the rigid domain.

Enter values or expressions for the Applied moment M.

• For 3D components, enter the x, y, and z components of M.

• For 2D components, enter the applied moment around the z-axis, Mz.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

996 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 • You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Rigid Material>Applied Moment
Shell>Rigid Material>Applied Moment
Layered Shell>Rigid Material>Applied Moment
Beam>Rigid Material>Applied Moment
Pipe Mechanics>Rigid Material>Applied Moment
Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Material>Applied Moment

Ribbon
Physics tab with Rigid Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Applied Moment

Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid Material)

Use the Mass and Moment of Inertia subnode to add an effect of associated abstract rigid
domain, which is physically not modeled and whose inertial properties are known.
These inertial properties can be specified at an arbitrary point in space, which is
assumed to be the center of gravity of this extra mass. The moment of inertia tensor
that you specify is interpreted in the selected coordinate system.

CENTER OF MASS
Here you specify the location of the center of mass for the contribution given in this
node. Select an option from the list: Center of rotation, Centroid of selected entities, or
User defined.

• For Center of rotation, the location of the load is taken as the center of rotation as
defined in the parent Rigid Material node.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 997

 • For Centroid of selected entities select an Entity level — Boundary, Edge, or Point. The
available choices depend on physics interface and geometrical dimension. The
center of mass is located at the centroid of the selected entities, which do not need
to be related to rigid domain itself. As a special case, you can select a single point,
and thus position the mass at that point

Once chosen, a default Center of Mass: Boundary, Center of Mass: Edge,

or Center of Mass: Point subnode is automatically added.

• For User defined, enter the Global coordinates of center of mass, Xm, in the table.

Select the Offset check box to add an optional offset vector to the definition of the
location. Enter values for the offset vector Xoffset.

The center of mass used is the sum of the vector obtained from any of the input
methods and the offset vector.

X m = X m,input + X offset

MASS AND MOMENT OF INERTIA

Enter values or expressions for the Mass m. Then for the Moment of inertia the axis
directions of the moment of inertia tensor are given by the selected coordinate system.

• For 3D components, select Isotropic, Diagonal, or Symmetric and enter one or more
components for the tensor I.
• For 2D components, enter a value or expression for Iz.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Rigid Material>Mass and Moment of Inertia
Shell>Rigid Material>Mass and Moment of Inertia
Layered Shell>Rigid Material>Mass and Moment of Inertia
Beam>Rigid Material>Mass and Moment of Inertia
Pipe Mechanics>Rigid Material>Mass and Moment of Inertia
Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Material>Mass and Moment of Inertia

Ribbon
Physics tab with Rigid Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Mass and Moment of Inertia

998 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Center of Mass Nodes

CENTER OF MASS: BOUNDARY

Use the Center of Mass: Boundary subnode to select a set of boundaries whose centroid
represents the center of mass of a Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid Material).

CENTER OF MASS: EDGE

The Center of Mass: Edge subnode to select a set of edges whose centroid represents the
center of mass of a Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid Material).

CENTER OF MASS: POINT

The Center of Mass: Point subnode to select a set of points whose centroid represents
the center of mass of a Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid Material).

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

These nodes are automatically added when Centroid of selected entities is selected in
the parent Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid Material) node. They cannot be added
or removed manually.

Spring Foundation (Rigid Material)

The Spring Foundation subnode is used to specify a spring or damper connecting the
rigid domain to a fixed ground. The spring can act at an arbitrary position in space. A
translational spring implicitly contributes also to the moment if it is not applied at the
center of mass of a rigid domain. The data that you specify is interpreted in the selected
coordinate system.

LOCATION
Select an option from the list: Center of rotation, Centroid of selected entities, or User
defined. This is the location where the spring will be attached.

• For Center of rotation, the location of the spring is taken as the center of rotation as
defined in the parent Rigid Material node.
• For Centroid of selected entities select an Entity level — Boundary, Edge, or Point. The
available choices depend on physics interface and geometrical dimension. The
spring is attached at the centroid of the selected entities, which do not need to be

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 999

 related to the rigid domain itself. As a special case, you can select a single point, and
thus attach the spring at that point.

Once chosen, a default Location: Boundary, Location: Edge, or

Location: Point subnode is automatically added.

• For User defined, enter the Global coordinates of center of rotation, Xc, in the table.

Select the Offset check box to add an optional offset vector to the definition of the
location. Enter values for the offset vector Xoffset.

The location used is the sum of the vector obtained from any of the input methods and
the offset vector.

X P = X P,input + X offset

SPRING
Select a Spring type — Spring constant or Force as function of extension.

When Spring constant is selected, the translational spring matrix can be entered as
Isotropic, Diagonal, Symmetric, or Full. For Isotropic the same spring constant is used in
all the diagonal elements of the spring matrix.

When Force as function of extension is selected, enter the force vector Fs. It must be a
function of the built-in variables describing the spring extension. The default value
indicates the correct variable name, for example, solid.rd1.uspring1_spf1.

ROTATIONAL SPRING
Select a Spring type — Spring constant or Moment as function of rotation.

When Spring constant is selected, the rotational spring matrix can be entered as
Isotropic, Diagonal, Symmetric, or Full. For Isotropic the same spring constant is used in
all the diagonal elements of the spring matrix.

When Moment as function of rotation is selected, enter the moment vector Ms. It must
be a function of the built-in variables describing the spring extension. The default value
indicates the correct variable name, for example, solid.rd1.thspring1_spf1.

In 2D the Spring constant is only a single scalar, representing the stiffness

for rotation around the out-of-plane direction. Similarly, the Moment as
function of rotation is a single scalar.

1000 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

LOSS FACTOR DAMPING
From the Loss factor type list, select Scalar (Same for all components) or Individual
components.

• For Scalar (Same for all components) enter a single Loss factor for spring u,s, which
is used to multiply all values of the spring matrix or spring force vector.
• For Individual components select Isotropic, Diagonal, Symmetric, or Full, then enter
values or expressions in the table for the Loss factor for spring u,k or f based on
space dimension. The loss factors act on the corresponding components of the
spring matrix or spring force vector. If you select Isotropic, the effect is the same as
when you select Diagonal and enter the same value for all diagonal elements.

ROTATIONAL LOSS FACTOR DAMPING

All settings in this section are analogous to the corresponding settings in the Loss
Factor Damping section. In 2D, only one scalar loss factor, corresponding to rotation
around the out-of-plane axis, is given.

VISCOUS DAMPING
Select Isotropic, Diagonal, Symmetric, or Full, then enter values or expressions for the
damping constants du in the table. If you select Isotropic, the effect is the same as when
you select Diagonal and enter the same value for all diagonal elements.

VISCOUS ROTATIONAL DAMPING

All settings in this section are analogous to the corresponding settings in the Viscous
Damping section. In 2D, only one scalar viscous damping, corresponding to rotation
around the out-of-plane axis, is given.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Rigid Material>Spring Foundation
Shell>Rigid Material>Spring Foundation
Layered Shell>Rigid Material>Spring Foundation
Beam>Rigid Material>Spring Foundation
Pipe Mechanics>Rigid Material>Spring Foundation
Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Material>Spring Foundation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Rigid Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Spring Foundation

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1001

 Free
The Free node is the default boundary condition. It means that there are no constraints
and no loads acting on the boundary. When the physics interface is added, a default
Free node is added. If you look at the selections for this node, it will show all
boundaries that do not have any boundary conditions applied.

In each physics interface, the Free node applies to a geometric entity that is one level
below the one on which the physics is active:

• For the Solid Mechanics, Plate, and Multibody Dynamics interfaces, the Free node
applies to boundaries.
• For the Shell, Layered Shell, and Membrane interfaces, the Free node applies to
edges.
• For the Beam, Pipe Mechanics, and Truss interfaces, the Free node applies to points.

You can manually add Free nodes to override other boundary conditions. This is
however seldom needed.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Free
Shell>Free
Plate>Free
Layered Shell>Free
Membrane>Free
Beam>Free
Pipe Mechanics>Free
Truss>Free
Wire>Free
Multibody Dynamics>Free

Ribbon
Physics tab with a physics interface selected:

Boundaries>More Constraints>Free
Edges>More Constraints>Free
Points>More Constraints>Free

1002 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Prescribed Displacement
The Prescribed Displacement node adds a condition where the displacements are
prescribed in one or more directions to the geometric entity (domain, boundary, edge,
or point).

If a displacement is prescribed in one direction, this leaves the solid free to deform in
the other directions.

You can also define more general displacements as a linear combination of the
displacements in each direction.

If a zero displacement is applied in all directions, this is the same as a Fixed

Constraint.

For details, see Prescribed Displacements, Velocities, and Accelerations.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Prescribed Displacement node.

INTERFACE SELECTION

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Prescribed Displacement,
Interface node.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The constraints are applied in the axis directions of the coordinate system selected in
this section. You should only use a coordinate system that has fixed spatial directions.

PRESCRIBED DISPLACEMENT
Select a Notation — Standard or General.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1003

 Standard Notation
To define the displacements individually, click the Standard notation button.

Select one or all of the Prescribed in x direction, Prescribed in y direction, Prescribed in

z direction check boxes (only applicable check boxes are shown based on the spatial
dimension). Then enter a value or expression for the corresponding inputs u0, v0, and
w0. For axisymmetric components, select one or both of the Prescribed in r direction
and Prescribed in z direction check boxes. Then enter a value or expression for u0 and
w0. When twist is included in 2D axisymmetry, the circumferential displacement can
also be prescribed.

General Notation
In 3D, 2D, or 2D axisymmetry, click the General notation to specify the displacements
using a general notation that includes any linear combination of displacement
components. For example, for 2D components, use the relationship

H u = R
v

For H matrix H select Isotropic, Diagonal, Symmetric, or Full and then enter values as
needed in the field or matrix. Enter values or expressions for the R vector R.

For example, to achieve the condition u = v, use the settings

H = 1 –1  R = 0 ,
0 0 0

which force the domain to move only diagonally in the xy-plane.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings
• Excluded Surfaces, Excluded Edges, and Excluded Points

1004 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 When Individual dependent variables is selected in the Apply reaction terms
on list, the constraint forces are applied directly on the degrees of
freedom, which are the displacements along the global coordinate axes. If
you use this setting together with a local coordinate system, the results
will be inconsistent since the constraint forces will not match the
constraint orientation.

• You can add a Harmonic Perturbation subnode for specifying a

harmonic variation of the values of the prescribed displacements in a
frequency domain analysis of perturbation type.
• You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it
to a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics
Modeling chapter.
• You can assign the value of the prescribed displacement to a load
group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Domain Constraints>Prescribed Displacement
Solid Mechanics>Prescribed Displacement (Boundary)
Solid Mechanics>Edges>Prescribed Displacement
Solid Mechanics>Points>Prescribed Displacement
Solid Mechanics>Thin Layer>Prescribed Displacement
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints>Prescribed Displacement
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints>Interfaces>Prescribed Displacement,
Interface
Layered Shell>Prescribed Displacement (Edge)
Layered Shell>More Constraints>Interfaces>Prescribed Displacement, Interface (Edge)
Layered Shell>Points>Prescribed Displacement
Layered Shell>Points>Interfaces>Prescribed Displacement, Interface
Membrane>Face Constraints>Prescribed Displacement
Membrane>Prescribed Displacement (Edge)
Membrane>Points>Prescribed Displacement
Truss>Line Constraints>Prescribed Displacement
Truss>Prescribed Displacement (Point)
Wire>Line Constraints>Prescribed Displacement

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1005

 Wire>Prescribed Displacement (Point)
Multibody Dynamics>Domain Constraints>Prescribed Displacement
Multibody Dynamics>Prescribed Displacement (Boundary)
Multibody Dynamics>Edges>Prescribed Displacement
Multibody Dynamics>Points>Prescribed Displacement

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Domains>Domain Constraints>Prescribed Displacement

Boundaries>Solid Mechanics>Prescribed Displacement
Edges>Solid Mechanics>Prescribed Displacement
Points>Solid Mechanics>Prescribed Displacement

Physics tab with Membrane selected:

Boundaries>Face Constraints>Prescribed Displacement

Edges>Membrane>Prescribed Displacement
Points>Membrane>Prescribed Displacement

Physics tab with Truss selected:

Edges>Line Constraints>Prescribed Displacement

Points>Truss>Prescribed Displacement

Physics tab with Wire selected:

Edges>Line Constraints>Prescribed Displacement

Points>Wire>Prescribed Displacement

Physics tab with Multibody Dynamics selected:

Domains>Domain Constraints>Prescribed Displacement

Boundaries>Multibody Dynamics>Prescribed Displacement
Edges>Multibody Dynamics>Prescribed Displacement
Points>Multibody Dynamics>Prescribed Displacement

Physics tab with Thin Layer node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Prescribed Displacement (Boundary)

Prescribed Velocity
The Prescribed Velocity node adds a boundary or domain condition where the velocity
is prescribed in one or more directions. The prescribed velocity condition is applicable

1006 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

for Time Dependent and Frequency Domain studies. It is possible to prescribe a
velocity in one direction, leaving the solid free in the other directions. The Prescribed
Velocity node is a constraint and overrides any other constraint on the same selection.
The Prescribed Velocity node is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

For details about prescribed velocities and accelerations, see Prescribed

Displacements, Velocities, and Accelerations.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Prescribed Velocity and node.

INTERFACE SELECTION

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Prescribed Velocity, Interface
node.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Select a coordinate system in which the given velocity components will be interpreted.

Coordinate systems with directions that change with time should not be
used for a prescribed velocity.

PRESCRIBED VELOCITY
Select one or all of the Prescribed in x direction, Prescribed in y direction, and Prescribed
in z direction check boxes (only applicable check boxes are shown based on the spatial
dimension). Then enter a value or expression for vx, vy, and vz. For axisymmetric
components, select one or both of the Prescribed in r direction and Prescribed in z
direction check boxes. Then enter a value or expression for vr and vz. When twist is
included in 2D axisymmetry, the circumferential displacement can also be prescribed.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1007

 In a stationary study, this node can either be ignored or treated as a constraint (similar
to a Prescribed Displacement node with zero displacement). To control this, select an
option from the Displacement in stationary study list — Free or Constrained.

• You can add a Harmonic Perturbation subnode for specifying a

harmonic variation of the values of the prescribed displacements in a
frequency domain analysis of perturbation type.
• You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it
to a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics
Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Domain Constraints>Prescribed Velocity
Solid Mechanics>More Constraints>Prescribed Velocity (Boundary)
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints>Prescribed Velocity
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints>Interfaces>Prescribed Velocity, Interface
Layered Shell>More Constraints>Prescribed Velocity (Edge)
Membrane>Face Constraints>Prescribed Velocity
Membrane>More Constraints>Prescribed Velocity (Edge)
Truss>Line Constraints>Prescribed Velocity
Truss>More Constraints>Prescribed Velocity (Point)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Domains>Domain Constraints>Prescribed Velocity

Boundaries>More Constraints>Prescribed Velocity

Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face and Domain Constraints>Prescribed Velocity

Boundaries>Interfaces>Prescribed Velocity, Interface
Edges>More Constraints>Prescribed Velocity

Physics tab with Membrane selected:

Boundaries>Face Constraints>Prescribed Velocity

Edges>More Constraints>Prescribed Velocity

Physics tab with Truss selected:

1008 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Edges>Line Constraints>Prescribed Velocity
Points>More Constraints>Prescribed Velocity

Prescribed Acceleration
The Prescribed Acceleration node adds a boundary or domain condition, where the
acceleration is prescribed in one or more directions. The prescribed acceleration
condition is applicable for Time Dependent and Frequency Domain studies. It is
possible to prescribe an acceleration in one direction, leaving the solid free in the other
directions. The Prescribed Acceleration node is a constraint and overrides any other
constraint on the same selection.

The Prescribed Acceleration node is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

For details about prescribed velocities and accelerations, see Prescribed

Displacements, Velocities, and Accelerations.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Prescribed Acceleration and
node.

INTERFACE SELECTION

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Prescribed Acceleration,
Interface node.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Select a coordinate system in which the given acceleration components will be
interpreted.

Coordinate systems with directions that change with time should not be
used for a prescribed acceleration.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1009

 PRESCRIBED ACCELERATION
Select one or all of the Prescribed in x direction, Prescribed in y direction, and Prescribed
in z direction check boxes (only applicable check boxes are shown based on the spatial
dimension). Then enter a value or expression for ax, ay, and az. For axisymmetric
components, select one or both of the Prescribed in r direction and Prescribed in z
direction check boxes. Then enter a value or expression for ar and az. When twist is
included in 2D axisymmetry, the circumferential displacement can also be prescribed.

In a stationary study, this node can either be ignored or treated as a constraint (similar
to a Prescribed Displacement node with zero displacement). To control this, select an
option from the Displacement in stationary study list — Free or Constrained.

• You can add a Harmonic Perturbation subnode for specifying a

harmonic variation of the values of the prescribed displacements in a
frequency domain analysis of perturbation type.
• You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it
to a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics
Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Domain Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration
Solid Mechanics>More Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration (Boundary)
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints>Interfaces>Prescribed Acceleration, Interface
Layered Shell>More Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration (Edge)
Membrane>Face Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration
Membrane>More Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration (Edge)
Truss>Line Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration
Truss>More Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration (Point)
Wire>Line Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration
Wire>More Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration (Point)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Domains>Domain Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration

Boundaries>More Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration

1010 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face and Domain Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration

Boundaries>Interfaces>Prescribed Acceleration, Interface
Edges>More Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration

Physics tab with Membrane selected:

Boundaries>Face Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration

Edges>More Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration

Physics tab with Truss or Wire selected:

Edges>Line Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration

Points>More Constraints>Prescribed Velocity

Fixed Constraint
The Fixed Constraint node adds a condition that makes the geometric entity fixed (fully
constrained); that is, the displacements are zero in all directions on the selected
geometrical entities. If there are rotational degrees of freedom, they will also be zero.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Fixed Constraint node.

INTERFACE SELECTION

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Fixed Constraint, Interface
node.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1011

 CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings
• Excluded Surfaces, Excluded Edges, and Excluded Points

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Domain Constraints>Fixed Constraint
Solid Mechanics>Fixed Constraint (Boundary)
Solid Mechanics>Edges>Fixed Constraint
Solid Mechanics>Points>Fixed Constraint
Solid Mechanics>Thin Layer>Fixed Constraint (Boundary)
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints>Fixed Constraint
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints>Interfaces>Fixed Constraint, Interface
Layered Shell>Fixed Constraint (Edge)
Layered Shell>More Constraints>Interfaces>Fixed Constraint, Interface (Edge)
Layered Shell>Points>Fixed Constraint
Layered Shell>Points>Interfaces>Fixed Constraint, Interface
Membrane>Face Constraints>Fixed Constraint
Membrane>Fixed Constraint (Edge)
Membrane>Points>Fixed Constraint
Beam>Line Constraints>Fixed Constraint
Beam>Fixed Constraint (Point)
Multibody Dynamics>Domain Constraints>Fixed Constraint
Multibody Dynamics>Fixed Constraint (Boundary)
Multibody Dynamics>Edges>Fixed Constraint

1012 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Multibody Dynamics>Points>Fixed Constraint

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Domains>Domain Constraints>Fixed Constraint

Boundaries>Solid Mechanics>Fixed Constraint
Edges>Solid Mechanics>Fixed Constraint
Points>Solid Mechanics>Fixed Constraint

Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face and Domain Constraints>Fixed Constraint

Boundaries>Interfaces>Fixed Constraint, Interface
Edges>Layered Shell>Fixed Constraint
Edges>Interfaces>Fixed Constraint, Interface
Points>Layered Shell>Fixed Constraint
Points>Interfaces>Fixed Constraint, Interface

Physics tab with Membrane selected:

Boundaries>Face Constraints>Fixed Constraint

Edges>Membrane>Fixed Constraint
Points>Membrane>Fixed Constraint

Physics tab with Beam selected:

Edges>Line Constraints>Fixed Constraint

Points>Truss>Fixed Constraint

Physics tab with Multibody Dynamics selected:

Domains>Domain Constraints>Fixed Constraint

Boundaries>Multibody Dynamics>Fixed Constraint
Edges>Multibody Dynamics>Fixed Constraint
Points>Multibody Dynamics>Fixed Constraint

Physics tab with Thin Layer node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Fixed Constraint (Boundary)

Thermal Expansion (for Constraints)

Add the Thermal Expansion subnode to a constraint (Fixed Constraint or Prescribed
Displacement) to prescribe a deformation of the constrained boundary caused by

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1013

 changes in the surrounding temperature. This makes it possible to reduce the stresses
caused by such boundary conditions.

Select an Input type to specify how the thermal strain is entered. The default is Secant
coefficient of thermal expansion, in which case the thermal strain is given by

 th =   T – T ref 

here, the secant coefficient of thermal expansion  can be temperature dependent.

When Input type is Tangent coefficient of thermal expansion, the thermal strain is given
by

 T 
 th = exp 
 T ref
 t    d – 1


where t is the tangential coefficient of thermal expansion.

When Input type is Thermal strain, enter the thermal strain dL as function of
temperature explicitly.

In all three cases, the default is to take values From material. When entering data as
User defined, select Isotropic, Diagonal, or Symmetric to enter one or more components
for a general coefficient of the thermal expansion tensor or the thermal strain tensor.
When a nonisotropic input is used, the axis orientations are given by the coordinate
system selection in the parent node.

The Thermal Expansion subnode is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Thermal Expansion (for
Constraints) node.

THERMAL EXPANSION PROPERTIES

Specify the thermal properties that define the thermal strain. This is a description of
the thermal expansion of surroundings idealized by the constraints.

1014 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Select Inherit from domain to take the thermal expansion data from the domain being
constrained. This should only be used when:

• The temperature and the thermal expansion coefficient do not have a spatial
variation. For this reason, it is only possible to inherit from a Thermal Expansion node
under a material model, not from the Thermal Expansion multiphysics coupling.
• The virtual surrounding material has the same thermal expansion as the domain
itself.

The Inherit from domain check box is not available when the constraint in the parent
node is applied to domains. In that case, the data is implicitly inherited from the
domain.

When Inherit from domain is not selected, enter:

• A value or expression for the Volume reference temperature Tref that is the
temperature at which there are no thermal displacements at the constraints.
• A value or expression for Temperature T, specifying the temperature distribution of
the surrounding material. Any temperature variation must be an explicit function of
the material frame coordinates. It is not possible to use a computed temperature
distribution.
• Select the Input type — Secant coefficient of thermal expansion, Tangent coefficient of
thermal expansion, or Thermal strain to specify how the thermal strain is entered. The
default values From material are used. This requires that a material has been assigned
to the boundaries, edges, or points where the constraint is active. When a
nonisotropic coefficient of thermal expansion is used, the axis orientations are given
by the coordinate system selected in the Coordinate System Selection section.

Enter the coordinates of the Reference point, the point where the displacement is zero.
The choice of reference point only affects the rigid body motion. If there are several
different constraints with a Thermal Expansion subnode, the same reference point
should usually be selected in all of them.

• Constraints and Thermal Expansion in the Structural Mechanics

Modeling chapter.
• Thermal Expansion of Constraints in the Structural Mechanics Theory
chapter.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1015

 LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Fixed Constraint>Thermal Expansion
Solid Mechanics>Prescribed Displacement>Thermal Expansion
Layered Shell>Fixed Constraint>Thermal Expansion
Layered Shell>Prescribed Displacement>Thermal Expansion
Membrane>Fixed Constraint>Thermal Expansion
Membrane>Prescribed Displacement>Thermal Expansion
Multibody Dynamics>Fixed Constraint>Thermal Expansion
Multibody Dynamics>Prescribed Displacement>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Fixed Constraint or Prescribed Displacement node selected in the model
tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Roller
The Roller node adds a roller constraint as the boundary condition; that is, the
displacement is zero in the direction perpendicular (normal) to the boundary, but the
boundary is free to move in the tangential direction. A Roller condition is similar to a
Symmetry condition, but the latter has some other options. The Roller constraint is not
available in 1D and 1D axisymmetry; use a Fixed constraint instead.

ROLLER CONSTRAINT
The default roller constraint acts along a normal to the selected boundaries, which is
computed numerically. For a certain mesh node, this direction is kept constant during
the analysis, so it cannot represent finite sliding on a curved boundary. You can
however, for some important cases, prescribe that the boundary slides on an analytical
surface. There are two situations where you may want to do this:

• The geometry or mesh representation of the actual boundary is imperfect. This can
lead to unexpected locking of the deformation, since the computed normals do not
have the intended directions.
• In a geometrically nonlinear analysis, the use of an analytical surface makes it
possible to model finite sliding also along curved boundaries.

Select a Normal orientation — Automatic, Plane, Cylinder, or Sphere.

1016 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

For Automatic, the constraint is applied in the direction normal to the boundary, as
represented by the mesh. This orientation is not updated during the analysis.

For Plane, select Orientation of normal — X-axis, Y-axis, Z-axis, or User defined to
describe the constraint direction. When User defined is used, enter the vector en,
pointing along the normal to the plane along which the boundary is sliding.

For Cylinder, select Axis type — X-axis, Y-axis, Z-axis, or User defined to describe the
orientation of the cylinder. Enter the location of a Point on axis, Xc, in order fix the
location of the cylinder. When User defined is used, enter the vector es, pointing along
the axis of the cylinder. The constraints will act radially from the cylinder axis. If the
analysis is geometrically nonlinear, each mesh node is assumed to maintain its distance
from the cylinder axis.

For Sphere, enter the location of the Center of sphere, Xc. The constraints will act
radially from this point. If the analysis is geometrically nonlinear, each mesh node is
assumed to maintain its distance from the center of the sphere.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the theory section of the Structural Mechanics User’s Guide:

• Rigid Connector
In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Constraint Settings
• Weak Constraints

EXCLUDED EDGES, EXCLUDED POINTS

To display these sections (Excluded Edges in 3D geometries only), click the Show More
Options button ( ) and select Advanced Physics Options in the Show More Options
dialog box. For more information about these sections, see Excluded Surfaces,

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1017

 Excluded Edges, and Excluded Points in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference
Manual.

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Roller
Solid Mechanics>Thin Layer>Roller (Boundary)
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints>Interfaces>Roller, Interface
Layered Shell>Roller
Multibody Dynamics>Roller

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Boundaries>Solid Mechanics>Roller

Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Interfaces>Roller, Interface
Edges>Layered Shell>Roller

Physics tab with Multibody Dynamics selected:

Boundaries>Multibody Dynamics>Roller

Physics tab with Thin Layer node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Roller (Boundary)

Symmetry
The Symmetry node adds a boundary condition that represents symmetry in the
geometry and in the loads. A symmetry condition is free in the plane and fixed in the
out-of-plane direction.

When applied to an edge (in the Membrane interface) the symmetry plane is formed
by the normal to the boundary and the edge tangent.

When the model is axisymmetric, use the Symmetry Plane node instead.

1018 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

The Symmetry node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/). The Symmetry constraint is not
available in 1D and 1D axisymmetry; use a Fixed constraint instead.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Symmetry node.

NORMAL DIRECTION CONDITION

You can allow a symmetry plane to move along its normal direction. This can be used
to model some situations where you want a plane to remain strictly planar but still relax
the property of it being fixed.

From the list, select No displacement, Free Displacement, Prescribed force, or Prescribed
displacement.

The value No displacement gives a standard symmetry condition.

Select Free Displacement to allow the symmetry plane to translate in the normal
direction. The displacement is determined by the criterion that there is no resulting
reaction force in the normal direction.

Select Prescribed force to prescribe the total reaction force acting on the direction
normal to the symmetry plane. Enter the Normal force Fn. The force is defined as
positive when acting along the outward normal of the symmetry plane. Setting the
prescribed force to zero gives the same effect as using Free Displacement.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1019

 Select Prescribed displacement to prescribe the displacement in the direction normal to
the symmetry plane. Enter the Normal displacement un0. Setting the prescribed
displacement to zero gives the same effect as using No displacement.

• Using Free Displacement, Prescribed force, or Prescribed displacement is

only meaningful if the geometry selection corresponds to a single
symmetry plane.
• When using Free Displacement or Prescribed force, an extra global
degree of freedom is added for determining the displacement in the
normal direction. This degree of freedom will have a name of the type
<component>.<interface>.<symmetry_tag>.un (for example,
comp1.solid.sym1.un).

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings
• Excluded Surfaces, Excluded Edges, and Excluded Points

Symmetry Constraints

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>More Constraints>Symmetry
Layered Shell>More Constraints>Symmetry

1020 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Membrane>More Constraints>Symmetry

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Boundaries>More Constraints>Symmetry

Physics tab with Layered Shell or Membrane selected:

Edges>More Constraints>Symmetry

Symmetry Plane
The Symmetry Plane node adds a boundary condition that represents symmetry in the
geometry and in the loads. This node is available only in 2D axisymmetry, where the
only possible symmetry plane is normal to the Z-axis. A symmetry condition is free in
the plane and fixed in the out-of-plane direction.

NORMAL DIRECTION CONDITION

You can allow a symmetry plane to move along its normal direction. This can be used
to model some situations where you want a plane to remain strictly planar but still relax
the property of it being fixed.

From the list, select No displacement, Free Displacement, Prescribed force, or Prescribed
displacement.

The value No displacement gives a standard symmetry condition.

Select Free Displacement to allow the symmetry plane to translate in the normal
direction. The displacement is determined by the criterion that there is no resulting
reaction force in the normal direction.

Select Prescribed force to prescribe the total reaction force acting on the direction
normal to the symmetry plane. Enter the Normal force Fn. The force is defined as
positive when acting along the outward normal of the symmetry plane. Setting the
prescribed force to zero gives the same effect as using Free Displacement.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1021

 Select Prescribed displacement to prescribe the displacement in the direction normal to
the symmetry plane. Enter the Normal displacement un0. Setting the prescribed
displacement to zero gives the same effect as using No displacement.

• Using Free Displacement, Prescribed force, or Prescribed displacement is

only meaningful if the geometry selection corresponds to a single
symmetry plane.
• When using Free Displacement or Prescribed force, an extra global
degree of freedom is added for determining the displacement in the
normal direction. This degree of freedom will have a name of the type
<component>.<interface>.<symmetry_tag>.un (for example,
comp1.solid.symp1.un).

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings
• Excluded Surfaces, Excluded Edges, and Excluded Points

Symmetry Constraints

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>More Constraints>Symmetry Plane
Membrane>More Constraints>Symmetry Plane

1022 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Boundaries>More Constraints>Symmetry Plane

Physics tab with Membrane selected:

Edges>More Constraints>Symmetry Plane

Antisymmetry
The Antisymmetry node adds a boundary condition for an antisymmetry boundary. An
antisymmetry condition is fixed in the plane and free in the out-of-plane direction.

When applied to an edge (in the Membrane interface) the antisymmetry plane is
formed by the normal to the boundary and the edge tangent.

The Antisymmetry node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/). It is available for 3D and 2D.

In a geometrically nonlinear analysis, large rotations must not occur at the

antisymmetry plane because this causes artificial straining.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Antisymmetry node.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings
• Excluded Surfaces, Excluded Edges, and Excluded Points

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1023

 Symmetry Constraints

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>More Constraints>Antisymmetry
Layered Shell>Antisymmetry
Membrane>More Constraints>Antisymmetry

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Boundaries>More Constraints>Antisymmetry

Physics tab with Membrane or Layered Shell selected:

Edges>More Constraints>Antisymmetry

Rigid Motion Suppression

The Rigid Motion Suppression node adds constraints required to suppress rigid body
modes. The constraints are selected so that there will be no reaction forces if the
external loads are self-equilibrating.

The constraints will, depending on the physics interface and the geometrical
dimension, be applied to reference points as needed. These points are automatically
picked from the selected geometrical domains.

This feature must not be combined with any other types of constraints, such as
prescribed displacements.

If you need to constrain several objects that are not physically connected, you must add
as many Rigid Motion Suppression nodes as there are disconnected objects. Rigid Motion
Suppression is available for 3D, 2D, and 2D axisymmetry.

1024 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Rigid Motion Suppression
node.

CONTRIBUTING POINTS
By default the selectable input is Automatic, which corresponds to using all points in
the domain. When selecting From selection input, a new Point Selection section is shown
where specific points can be selected. For 3D at least three points are expected, and for
2D at least two points are expected.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

• Rigid Body Motion in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

• Rigid Motion Suppression in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Domain Constraints>Rigid Motion Suppression
Shell>Face Constraints>Rigid Motion Suppression
Plate>Face Constraints>Rigid Motion Suppression
Layered Shell>Face Constraints>Rigid Motion Suppression
Membrane>Face Constraints>Rigid Motion Suppression
Beam>Line Constraints>Rigid Motion Suppression
Multibody Dynamics>Domain Constraints>Rigid Motion Suppression

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics or Multibody Dynamics selected:

Domains>Domain Constraints>Rigid Motion Suppression

Physics tab with Shell or Membrane selected:

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1025

 Boundaries>Face Constraints>Rigid Motion Suppression

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Domains>Face Constraints>Rigid Motion Suppression

Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face and Domain Constraints>Rigid Motion Suppression

Physics tab with Beam or Truss selected:

Edges>Line Constraints>Fixed Constraint

Body Load
Add a Body Load to domains for modeling general volumetric loads.

For loads caused by gravity or rotation, it is more convenient to use the Gravity and
Rotating Frame nodes.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Body Load node.

FORCE
Select a Load type — Force per unit volume, Total force, or for 2D components, Force
per unit area.

Then enter values or expressions for the components in the matrix based on the
selection and the space dimension.

• After selecting a Load type, the Load list normally only contains User
defined. When combining with another physics interface that can
provide this type of load, it is also possible to choose a predefined load
from this list.
• For Total force, COMSOL Multiphysics divides the total force by the
volume of the domains where the load is active. For 2D components,
and if Force per unit area is selected, the body load as force per unit
volume is then the value of F divided by the thickness.

1026 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

TABLE 4-5:

LOAD TYPE VARIABLE SI UNIT GEOMETRIC SPACE DIMENSION

ENTITY (COMPONENTS)
LEVEL

Force per unit volume FV N/m3 domains 3D (x, y, z)

2D (x, y)
1D (x)
2D axisymmetric (r, z)
1D axisymmetric (r)
Force per unit area FA Nm2 domains 2D (x, y)
Total force Ftot N domains 3D (x, y, z)
2D (x, y)
1D (x)
2D axisymmetric (r, z)
1D axisymmetric (r)

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1027

 LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Volume Forces>Body Load
Layered Shell>Face and Volume Loads>Body Load
Membrane>Face and Volume Loads>Body Load
Multibody Dynamics>Volume Forces>Body Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics or Multibody Dynamics selected:

Domains>Volume Forces>Body Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell or Membrane selected:

Boundaries>Face and Volume Loads>Body Load

Gravity
When you add a Gravity node, gravity forces are applied to all features in the physics
interface with a density, mass, or mass distribution.

The gravity acts in a fixed spatial direction. The load intensity is g  geg where g as a
default is the acceleration of gravity (a predefined physical constant).

The Gravity node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

Gravity is not available in 1D axisymmetry.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Select a coordinate system in which the gravity field vector is represented. Only systems
with space-independent axis directions are consistent with the assumptions of this
feature. The Global coordinate system is selected by default.

GRAVITY
Enter the components for Gravity g. The default value is g_const, which is the
gravitational acceleration constant at mean sea level having the value 9.80665 m/s2.

• For 3D, the default is that the gravity acts in the negative z direction.

1028 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

• For 2D, the default is that the gravity acts in the negative y direction.
• For 1D, the default is that the gravity acts in the negative x direction.
• For 2D axisymmetry, the default is that the gravity acts in the negative z direction.

Only features that have a geometrical selection contribute to the mass

forces. The Mass and Moment of Inertia nodes are global features and will
not get any contribution from Gravity. You may need to add extra force
contributions if such nodes are present.

Frame Acceleration Forces

In versions earlier than 6.1, the Gravity node was a feature with domain
selection. In a model created in an earlier version, the old Gravity node
remains unchanged. For such a model, it is recommended to use the
newer functionality. There are different options:

• In most cases, switching to the new version of Gravity is appropriate.

• If the current Gravity node has a selection, which is not the entire
model, or if it contains expressions that depends on the spatial
coordinates, you can replace it by a Linearly Accelerated Frame node.
• If the current Gravity node is used to represent an acceleration imposed
by the foundation, consider replacing it by a Base Excitation node.

• You can add a Harmonic Perturbation subnode for specifying a

harmonic variation of the values of the prescribed displacements and
rotations in a frequency domain analysis of perturbation type.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Gravity
Shell>Gravity

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1029

 Layered Shell>Gravity
Plate>Gravity
Membrane>Gravity
Beam>Gravity
Truss>Gravity
Wire>Gravity
Multibody Dynamics>Gravity

Ribbon
Physics tab with a structural mechanics interface selected:

Global>Gravity

Base Excitation
The Base Excitation node is used to represent an acceleration that is applied at all
constraints. The main use case is for modal based analyses, in which case it is not
possible to directly prescribe non-zero displacements at constrained degrees of
freedom. It is however possible to use Base Excitation in any type of dynamic analysis.

When a structure is subjected to a base excitation, displacements, velocities, and

accelerations are measured relative to a space fixed coordinate system.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Select a coordinate system in which the base acceleration vector is represented. Only
systems with space-independent axis directions are consistent with the assumptions of
the base excitation.

BASE EXCITATION
Enter the Base acceleration, ab.

A degree of freedom should either be constrained or free in the direction

where the base excitation acts. Having a constraint acting in a local
direction that is not either aligned or orthogonal to the excitation may
produce unexpected results.

1030 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 Only features that have a geometrical selection contribute to the mass
forces. The Mass and Moment of Inertia nodes are global features and will
not get any contribution from Base Excitation. You may need to add extra
force contributions if such nodes are present.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Base Excitation
Shell>Base Excitation
Layered Shell>Base Excitation
Plate>Base Excitation
Membrane>Base Excitation
Beam>Base Excitation
Truss>Base Excitation
Wire>Base Excitation
Multibody Dynamics>Base Excitation

Ribbon
Physics tab with a structural mechanics interface selected:

Global>Base Excitation

Rotating Frame
Centrifugal, Coriolis, and Euler forces are “fictitious” volume forces that need to be
introduced in a rotating frame of reference, since it is not an inertial system. Use a
Rotating Frame node to add the effect of these forces. The forces are generated by all
selected features in the physics interface having a density, mass, or mass distribution.
You select objects having the highest geometrical dimension of the interface, and all
objects with a lower dimensionality that belong to the selection are automatically
included.

The idea when using a rotating frame is that the observer rotates with the structure.
All results, such as displacements are thus relative to the rotating frame.

The Rotating Frame node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https:/
/www.comsol.com/products/specifications/). Rotating Frame is available in 3D, 2D,
and 2D axisymmetry.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1031

 SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Rotating Frame node.

ROTATING FRAME
Select an Axis of rotation — x-axis, y-axis, z-axis, or User defined. For User defined enter
a Rotation axis base point rbp and Rotation axis direction eax.

Select a Rotational direction — Counterclockwise or Clockwise. The rotational direction

does not make any difference for a centrifugal force.

Select a Rotational frequency — Angular velocity magnitude, Revolutions per time, Rigid
body, or User defined.

The option Rigid body is only available in the Solid Mechanics and
Multibody Dynamics interfaces.

• For Angular velocity magnitude enter a value for the angular velocity magnitude .
• For Revolutions per time, enter an RPM value.
• For Rigid body, enter an Applied moment, M, and an Initial angular velocity, 0. In
this case, the angular speed is variable over time, and computed by using time
integration of the angular acceleration caused by the applied moment.


I ax ------- = M
t


2
I ax = r p dV

It is assumed that axis of orientation is kept fixed. The moment of inertia around
the axis of rotation, Iax, is automatically computed from the mass properties if the
selection.
• For User defined, enter the Rotation angle  in radians as function of time (the
variable t).

1032 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

In the case of a geometrically nonlinear analysis, the displacements computed in the
Solid Mechanics interface are used to defined the spatial frame. When a rotating frame
is used, there are two possible interpretations.

• The default is that the spatial frame is also interpreted as corotating, that is only the
displacements relative to the rotation are defining the spatial frame.
• Select Define spatial frame rotation to add also the rotation to the definition of the
spatial frame. For other physics interfaces, this is similar to specifying a Rotating
Domain, but with the displacements added. This approach must be used if there are
a mix of stationary and rotating domains.

When Define spatial frame rotation is selected, the actual angle of rotation
becomes important. If the angular speed is nonconstant, you must then
enter an expression for the angle as function of time explicitly using the
User defined option. For the two other input options, the angle of rotation
is assumed to be 0 + t.

FRAME ACCELERATION EFFECT

For 3D and 2D components, use the Centrifugal force, Coriolis force, or Euler force
check boxes to determine which effects of a rotating frame that are to be incorporated
in the analysis. Only Centrifugal force is selected by default.

For 2D axisymmetric components, the only effect from a rotating frame is the
centrifugal force, which is then always included.

The Spin softening check box is selected by default. When including spin-softening
effects, an extra contribution to the centrifugal force from deformation is taken into
account. The Spin softening check box is only available if Centrifugal force or Euler force
is selected.

Frame Acceleration Forces

Only features that have a geometrical selection contribute to the mass

forces. The Mass and Moment of Inertia nodes are global features and will
not get any contribution from Rotating Frame. You may need to add extra
force contributions if such nodes are present.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1033

 You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the Structural
Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Volume Forces>Rotating Frame
Shell>Face and Volume Loads>Rotating Frame
Layered Shell>Face and Volume Loads>Rotating Frame
Plate>Face and Volume Loads>Rotating Frame
Membrane>Face and Volume Loads>Rotating Frame
Beam>Line and Volume Loads>Rotating Frame
Truss>Line and Volume Loads>Rotating Frame
Wire>Line and Volume Loads>Rotating Frame
Multibody Dynamics>Volume Forces>Rotating Frame

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics or Multibody Dynamics selected:

Domains>Volume Forces>Rotating Frame

Physics tab with Shell, Layered Shell, or Membrane selected:

Boundaries>Face and Volume Loads>Rotating Frame

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Domains>Face and Volume Loads>Rotating Frame

Physics tab with Beam, Truss or Wire selected:

Edges>Line and Volume Loads>Rotating Frame

Linearly Accelerated Frame

When you add a Linearly Accelerated Frame node, inertial forces are applied to all
selected features in the physics interface with a density, mass, or mass distribution. You
select objects having the highest geometrical dimension of the interface, and all objects
with a lower dimensionality that belong to the selection are automatically included.

The Linearly Accelerated Frame node is only available with some COMSOL products
(see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

1034 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Linearly Accelerated Frame
node.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The Global coordinate system is selected by default. The Coordinate system list contains
any additional coordinate systems that the model includes. It can be used when
prescribing the direction of the frame acceleration.

LINEARLY ACCELERATED FRAME

Enter the components of the linear Frame acceleration, af. The force is computed as
f  af and acts in a fixed spatial direction.

TIME-DEPENDENT STUDY
For a time-dependent study, you can compute the absolute velocity and absolute
displacement postprocessing variables by checking the corresponding check boxes.

Frame Acceleration Forces

Only features that have a geometrical selection contribute to the mass

forces. The Mass and Moment of Inertia nodes are global features and will
not get any contribution from Linearly Accelerated Frame. You may need
to add extra force contributions if such nodes are present.

• You can add a Harmonic Perturbation subnode for specifying a

harmonic variation of the values of the prescribed acceleration.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Volume Forces>Linearly Accelerated Frame

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1035

 Shell>Face and Volume Loads>Linearly Accelerated Frame
Layered Shell>Face and Volume Loads>Linearly Accelerated Frame
Plate>Face and Volume Loads>Linearly Accelerated Frame
Membrane>Face and Volume Loads>Linearly Accelerated Frame
Beam>Line and Volume Loads>Linearly Accelerated Frame
Truss>Line and Volume Loads>Linearly Accelerated Frame
Wire>Line and Volume Loads>Linearly Accelerated Frame
Multibody Dynamics>Volume Forces>Linearly Accelerated Frame

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics or Multibody Dynamics selected:

Domains>Volume Forces>Linearly Accelerated Frame

Physics tab with Shell, Layered Shell, or Membrane selected:

Boundaries>Face and Volume Loads>Linearly Accelerated Frame

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Domains>Face and Volume Loads>Linearly Accelerated Frame

Physics tab with Beam, Truss or Wire selected:

Edges>Line and Volume Loads>Linearly Accelerated Frame

Boundary Load
Use a Boundary Load to apply tractions or pressure on boundaries.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Boundary Load node.

FORCE
Select the Load type — Force per unit area, Pressure, Total force, Resultant, or for 2D
components, Force per unit length. Then enter values or expressions based on the
selection and the space dimension.

• For Force per unit area, the traction components are given explicitly.

1036 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

• For Total force, COMSOL Multiphysics divides the total force by the area of the
boundaries where the load is active. Then the force is applied in the same way as for
a Force per unit area. When working with curved boundaries or local coordinate
systems, use this option carefully, as the result is not always intuitive.
• For Pressure, a scalar input is given, and the orientation of the load is given by the
normal to the boundary. The pressure is positive when directed toward the solid. In
a geometrically nonlinear analysis, the current surface normal and area are used.
• For Resultant, enter the Force and Moment with respect to a point. Select the
Application point defined using — Centroid, Point, or Coordinates. For Centroid, the
coordinates of the application point is the centroid of the selected boundaries. For
Point, select a geometrical point in the section Application Point. For Coordinates,
enter the Application point coordinates xa.

When using the Resultant option, it is formally possible to select a

nonplanar boundary, but the traction distribution may then be
unpredictable.

After selecting a Load type, the Load list normally only contains User
defined. When combining with another physics interface that can provide
this type of load, it is also possible to choose a predefined load from this
list.

TABLE 4-6:

LOAD TYPE VARIABLE SI UNIT GEOMETRIC SPACE DIMENSION

ENTITY (COMPONENTS)
LEVEL

Force per unit area FA Nm2 boundaries 3D (x, y, z)

2D (x, y)
1D (x)
2D axisymmetric (r, z)
1D axisymmetric (r)
Force per unit length FL N/m boundaries 2D (x, y)
Total force Ftot N boundaries 3D (x, y, z)
2D (x, y)
1D (x)
2D axisymmetric (r, z)
1D axisymmetric (r)

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1037

 TABLE 4-6:

LOAD TYPE VARIABLE SI UNIT GEOMETRIC SPACE DIMENSION

ENTITY (COMPONENTS)
LEVEL

Pressure p Pa boundaries 3D (x, y, z)

2D (x, y)
2D axisymmetric (r, z)
Resultant F, M N, N m boundaries 3D (x, y, z)
2D (x, y)

TRACTION FIELD
This section is only shown when Resultant has been selected as Load type. The
distribution of the tractions over the boundaries is controlled by the settings here.

Select a Traction distribution — Beam or User defined.

When Beam is selected, the traction field approximately matches the stress distribution
over a beam cross section.

For User Defined, you can write expressions for the traction distributions. Enter
expressions for the six dimensionless vector-valued traction distribution functions, q1,
q2, q3, q4, q5, and q6. Usually, the local coordinates of the loaded region would be used
for this purpose, but there is no limitation on the form of the functions. The built-in
variables for the local coordinates are named <physics_tag>.<load_tag>.x2 and
<phys_tag>.<load_tag>.x3, for example solid.bndl1.x2. The default value is the
distribution that is used when the option Beam is selected.

The local coordinates of the boundary, x2 and x3, are defined in the following way:

• The origin is at the centroid of the boundary.

• The axis directions coincide with the principal axes of the boundary.
• x2 is the axis around which the principal area moment of inertia is larger.

When User Defined is selected, you can also select a Weight function — None, Circular, or
User Defined. This function acts as a multiplier to the traction distribution functions.
When None is selected, the weight function w = 1. For Circular, enter a radius rw of a
circle, outside of which no load is applied (w = 0). Inside the circle, w = 1. For User
Defined, enter a weighting expression. Usually, the built-in local coordinates of the
loaded region would be used for this purpose, but there is no limitation on the form
of the function. A time- or parameter-dependent function can, for example, be used to
model a moving load.

1038 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

The traction distribution functions have the property that the total traction field is

t x = wx  ci qi  x 
i=1

where the coefficients ci are chosen so that the given force and moment resultants are
obtained.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Boundary Load
Solid Mechanics>Thin Layer>Boundary Load
Layered Shell>Boundary Load
Multibody Dynamics>Boundary Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics or Multibody Dynamics selected:

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1039

 Boundaries>Solid Mechanics>Body Load
Boundaries>Multibody Dynamics>Body Load

Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Edges>Layered Shell>Boundary Load

Physics tab with Thin Layer selected:

Attributes>Boundary Load

Edge Load
Add an Edge Load to 3D components to apply a force distributed along an edge.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Edge Load node.

FORCE
Select a Load type — Force per unit length or Total force. Then enter values or
expressions for the components in the matrix based on the selection:

• The load per unit length FL.

• The total force Ftot. COMSOL Multiphysics then divides the total force by the
volume where the load is active.

After selecting a Load type, the Load list normally only contains User
defined. When combining with another physics interface that can provide
this type of load, it is also possible to choose a predefined load from this
list.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

1040 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Edges>Edge Load
Layered Shell>Edge Load
Multibody Dynamics>Edges>Edge Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics or Multibody Dynamics selected:

Edges>Edge Load

Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Edges>Layered Shell>Edge Load

Point Load
Add a Point Load to points for concentrated forces at points in 2D and 3D.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1041

 SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Point Load node.

Select the Load type — Force per point, Total force, or Resultant. Then enter values or
expressions based on the selection.

• For Force per point enter values or expressions for the components of the point load
Fp.
• For Total force, COMSOL Multiphysics divides the total force by the number of
points where the load is active. Then the force is applied in the same way as for Force
per point.
• For Resultant, enter the Force and Moment with respect to a point. Select the
Application point defined using — Centroid, Point, or Coordinates. For Centroid, the
coordinates of the application point is the centroid of the selected points. For Point,
select a geometrical point in the section Application Point. For Coordinates, enter the
Application point coordinates xa.

When using the Resultant option, the following should be observed

• In 3D, the selection must contain at least three points, and all points
can not be located so that they are collinear.
• in 2D, the selection must contain at lease two points.
• While it is formally possible to select points that are not located in a
plane, the force distribution may be unpredictable in such a case.

The Load list normally only contains User defined. When combining with
another physics interface that can provide this type of load, it is also
possible to choose a predefined load from this list.

TRACTION FIELD
This section is only shown when Resultant has been selected as Load type. The
distribution of the forces over the selected points is controlled by the settings here.

Select a Traction distribution — Beam or User defined.

1042 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

When Beam is selected, the force distribution approximately matches the stress
distribution over a beam cross section.

For User Defined, you can write expressions for the force distribution. Enter expressions
for the six dimensionless vector-valued distribution functions, q1, q2, q3, q4, q5, and
q6. Usually, the local coordinates of the loaded region would be used for this purpose,
but there is no limitation on the form of the functions. The built-in variables for the
local coordinates are named <physics_tag>.<load_tag>.x2 and
<phys_tag>.<load_tag>.x3, for example solid.pl1.x2. The default value is the
distribution that is used when the option Beam is selected.

The local coordinates, x2 and x3, are defined in the following way:

• The origin is at the centroid of the selected points.

• The axis directions coincide with the principal axes of a virtual collection of points
with unit mass.
• x2 is the axis around which the virtual principal area moment of inertia is larger.

When User Defined is selected, you can also select a Weight function — None, Circular, or
User Defined. This function acts as a multiplier to the force distribution functions.
When None is selected, the weight function w = 1. For Circular, enter a radius rw of a
circle, outside of which no load is applied (w = 0). Inside the circle, w = 1. For User
Defined, enter a weighting expression. Usually, the built-in local coordinates of the
loaded region would be used for this purpose, but there is no limitation on the form
of the function. A time- or parameter-dependent function can, for example, be used to
model a moving load.

The traction distribution functions have the property that the forces are distributed as

fx = wx   ci qi  x 
i=1

where the coefficients ci are chosen so that the given force and moment resultants are
obtained.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1043

 If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Points>Point Load
Layered Shell>Points>>Interfaces>Point Load
Truss>Point Load
Wire>Point Load
Multibody Dynamics>Points>Point Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics, Multibody Dynamics, or Multibody Dynamics selected:

Points>Point Load

Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Points>Interfaces>Point Load

Physics tab with Truss or Wire selected:

Points>Truss>Point Load

1044 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Point Load, Free
Use a Point Load, Free node to add concentrated loads with locations specified by
coordinates. Such loads do not have to be placed in a geometrical point or in a mesh
node. This is particularly useful for the following cases:

• Imported meshes, where there may not be suitable points for load application
• Moving loads
• Several point loads, in which case it may be impractical to create points at all load
locations

• For each free point load, there will be a search for the mesh element
that is closest to the given location. For the load to be active, the
location must be within a certain small distance from at least one
element. The actual load location is taken as the point on the element
that is closest to the given location. If no element is found, the load is
silently ignored.
You can check the number of loads that were ignored through the
variable <phys>.<load_tag>.num_ignored (for example,
solid.plf1.num_ignored).

• The local stress field in the element where a point load acts will not be
reliable.

The Point Load, Free node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https:/
/www.comsol.com/products/specifications/). It is available in 3D, 2D, and 2D
axisymmetry.

LOCATION AND FORCE

Select a Frame — Material or Spatial, which determines how the given coordinates are
interpreted in case of a geometrically nonlinear analysis. When Material is selected, the
load location on the body is interpreted with respect to the initial configuration. When
Spatial is selected, then the load location is given in space fixed coordinates, which
usually means that the material point on the body where the load is applied will change
with deformation even if the coordinate values are constant.

For each row in the table, enter the data for one load. If material frame input is used,
then the location is specified in terms of the material coordinates (X, Y, Z). If spatial
frame input is used, then the spatial coordinates (x, y, z) are used. Then, enter the force

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1045

 values, Fxl, Fyl, and Fzl. The force vector is interpreted in the coordinate system selected
in the Coordinate System Selection section.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency

domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

Pratt Truss Bridge: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Beams_and_Shells/pratt_truss_bridge

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Point Load, Free
Membrane>Point Load, Free
Truss>Point Load, Free
Wire>Point Load, Free
Multibody Dynamics>Point Load, Free

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Global>Solid Mechanics>Point Load, Free

Physics tab with Membrane selected:

1046 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Global>Membrane>Point Load, Free

Physics tab with Truss or Wire selected:

Global>Truss>Point Load, Free

Physics tab with Multibody Dynamics selected:

Global>Multibody Dynamics>Point Load, Free

Ring Load
A load applied to a point, not located at the axis of revolution, in a 2D axisymmetric
model actually represents a ring load. Add a Ring Load to points located at R > 0 to
model such loads.

FORCE
Select the Load type — Force per unit length or Total force. Enter values or expressions
for FL or Ftot.

• The Load list normally only contains User defined. When combining
with another physics interface that can provide this type of load, it is
also possible to choose a predefined load from this list.
• The Total force option should not be directly interpreted as a resultant,
since the orientation is changing. Rather, it should be interpreted as the
per unit length values, multiplied by 2r, where r is the radius of the
point.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1047

 • You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Points>Ring Load
Membrane>Ring Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Points>Ring Load

Physics tab with Membrane selected:

Points>Membrane>Ring Load

Ring Load, Free

A load applied to a point, not located at the axis of revolution, in a 2D axisymmetric
model actually represents a ring load. Add a Ring Load, Free node to describe
concentrated loads with locations specified by coordinates. Such loads do not have to
be placed in a geometrical point or in a mesh node. This is particularly useful for the
following cases:

• Imported meshes, where there may not be suitable points for load application

1048 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

• Moving loads
• Several point loads, in which case it may be impractical to create points at all load
locations

• For each free load, there will be a search for the mesh element that is
closest to the given location. For the load to be active, the location
must be within a certain small distance from at least one element. The
actual load location is taken as the point on the element that is closest
to the given location. If no element is found, the load is silently
ignored.
You can check the number of loads that were ignored through the
variable <phys>.<load_tag>.num_ignored (for example,
solid.rlf1.num_ignored).
• The local stress field in the element where a point load acts will not be
reliable.

LOCATION AND FORCE

Select a Frame — Material or Spatial that determines how the given coordinates are
interpreted in case of a geometrically nonlinear analysis. When Material is selected, the
load location on the body is interpreted with respect to the initial configuration. When
Spatial is selected, then the load location is given in space fixed coordinates, which
usually means that the material point on the body where the load is applied will change
with deformation even if the coordinate values are constant.

For each row in the table, enter the data for one load. If material frame input is used,
then the location is specified in terms of the material coordinates (R, Z). If spatial frame
input is used, then the spatial coordinates (r, z) are used. Then, enter the force values,
Fxl and Fyl. The force vector is interpreted in the coordinate system selected in the
Coordinate System Selection section.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1049

 If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency

domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Ring Load, Free
Membrane>Ring Load, Free

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Global>Solid Mechanics>Ring Load, Free

Physics tab with Membrane selected:

Global>Membrane>Ring Load, Free

Point Load (on Axis)

A Point Load (on Axis) node can be added to points located at R = 0 in 2D axially
symmetric models. This is the only true point load an axisymmetric model, since loads
applied at points having nonzero radial coordinates actually represent a ring load. You
can add a ring load using a Ring Load node.

1050 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

FORCE
Enter values or expressions for the Force Fz in the axial direction.

The Load list normally only contains User defined. When combining with
another physics interface that can provide this type of load, it is also
possible to choose a predefined load from this list.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Points>Point Load (on Axis)
Shell>Point Load (on Axis)
Membrane>Point Load (on Axis)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Points>Point Load (on Axis)

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1051

 Physics tab with Shell or Membrane selected:

Points>Shell>Point Load (on Axis)

Points>Membrane>Point Load (on Axis)

Thin Layer
Use the Thin Layer node to apply elastic and damping conditions between two parts on
interior boundaries, or a thin cladding on external boundaries to a solid.

BOUNDARY PROPERTIES
Select a Thin layer type — Nonlayered or Layered.

• For Nonlayered (the default), enter the thin layer Thickness Lth.
• For Layered, and when Use all layers is selected, all information is taken from the
definitions made in the Single Layer Material, Layered Material Link, or Layered
Material Stack nodes under the Materials node in the current component.
• For Layered, and when Use all layers is not selected, the Layered material list is
displayed. You can select from the current component:

1 Any Single Layer Material available under the Materials node.

2 Any Layered Material Link available under the Materials node.
3 Any Layered Material Stack available under the Materials node.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual: Single Layer

Materials, Layered Material Link, and Layered Material Stack

THIN LAYER
Select the thin layer Approximation — Solid, Membrane, or Spring. Only the Solid
approximation is available for Layered structures.

1052 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

By adding the following subnodes to the Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic
Material, or Hyperelastic Material nodes you can incorporate many effects in thin layers:

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials) • Damping

• Hygroscopic Swelling • Viscoelasticity
• Initial Stress and Strain • Plasticity
• External Stress • Creep
• External Strain • Viscoplasticity
• Inelastic Strain Rate • Mullins Effect

The Thin Layer node and subnodes are only available with some COMSOL products
(see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

The Thin Layer node is available in 3D, 2D, and 2D axisymmetry.

• Modeling Thin Layers in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

• Theory for Thin Layers in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Thin Layer

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Boundaries>Thin Layer

Prescribed Displacement (Thin Layer)

The Prescribed Displacement node adds a condition where the displacements are
prescribed in one or more directions to the boundary.

If a displacement is prescribed in only one direction, this leaves the thin layer free to
deform in the other directions.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1053

 You can also define more general displacements as a linear combination of the
displacements in each direction, see Prescribed Displacement.

If a zero displacement is applied in all directions, this is the same as a Fixed

Constraint (Thin Layer).

For details, see Prescribed Displacements, Velocities, and Accelerations.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The Global coordinate system is selected by default. The Coordinate system list contains
all applicable coordinate systems in the model. Prescribed displacements and rotations
are specified along the axes of this coordinate system.

PRESCRIBED DISPLACEMENT
Select a Notation — Standard or General.

Standard Notation
To define the displacements individually, click the Standard notation button.

Select one or all of the Prescribed in x direction, Prescribed in y direction, Prescribed in

z direction check boxes. Then enter a value or expression for the corresponding inputs
u0x, u0y, and u0z. For axisymmetric components, select one or both of the Prescribed
in r direction and Prescribed in z direction check boxes. Then enter a value or expression
for u0 and w0. When twist is included in 2D axisymmetry, the circumferential
displacement can also be prescribed.

General Notation
In 3D, 2D, or 2D axisymmetry, click General notation to specify the displacements
using a general notation that includes any linear combination of displacement
components. For example, for 2D components, use the relationship

H u = R
v

For the H matrix H select Isotropic, Diagonal, Symmetric, or Full and then enter values
as needed in the field or matrix. Enter values or expressions for the R vector R.

For example, to achieve the condition u = v, use the settings

1054 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 H = 1 –1  R = 0 ,
0 0 0

which force the domain to move only diagonally in the xy-plane.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box. For more information about this
section, see Constraint Settings in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

EXCLUDED POINTS
To display these sections, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box. For more information about these
sections, see Excluded Surfaces, Excluded Edges, and Excluded Points in the
COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

• Modeling Thin Layers in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

• Theory for Thin Layers in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Thin Layer>Prescribed Displacement (Edge)
Solid Mechanics>Thin Layer>Points>Prescribed Displacement

Ribbon
Physics tab with Thin Layer node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Prescribed Displacement (Edge)

Attributes>Points>Prescribed Displacement

Fixed Constraint (Thin Layer)

The Fixed Constraint and Prescribed Displacement (Thin Layer) nodes are similar, in
that the prescribed displacement of the structural part on which it is acting is
prescribed to zero. The displacements and rotations are prescribed to zero in all
directions. There are no settings for this node. See Fixed Constraint.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1055

 CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box. For more information about this
section, see Constraint Settings in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

EXCLUDED POINTS
To display these sections, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box. For more information about these
sections, see Excluded Surfaces, Excluded Edges, and Excluded Points in the
COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

• Modeling Thin Layers in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

• Theory for Thin Layers in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Thin Layer>Fixed Constraint (Edge)
Solid Mechanics>Thin Layer>Points>Fixed Constraint

Ribbon
Physics tab with Thin Layer node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Fixed Constraint (Edge)

Attributes>Points>Fixed Constraint

Roller (Thin Layer)

The Roller node adds constraints on the edges of the Thin Layer node. The displacement
is zero in the normal direction, but the thin layer is free to move in the other directions.
See Roller.

FACE DEFINING THE LOCAL ORIENTATIONS

When an edge is shared between two or more boundaries, the local directions may not
always be unique. It is then possible to use the control Face Defining the Local
Orientations to select from which boundary the normal direction should be picked. The
default is Use face with lowest number.

1056 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box. For more information about this
section, see Constraint Settings in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

EXCLUDED POINTS
To display these sections (Excluded Edges in 3D geometries only), click the Show More
Options button ( ) and select Advanced Physics Options in the Show More Options
dialog box. For more information about these sections, see Excluded Surfaces,
Excluded Edges, and Excluded Points in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference
Manual.

• Modeling Thin Layers in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

• Theory for Thin Layers in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Thin Layer>Roller (Edge)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Thin Layer node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Roller

Face Load (Thin Layer)

Add a Face Load node to apply tractions or pressure on boundaries where the Thin Layer
material is active.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The Global coordinate system is selected by default. The Coordinate system list contains
all applicable coordinate systems in the model. Prescribed loads are specified along the
axes of this coordinate system.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1057

 FORCE
Select the Load type — Force per unit area, Total force, or Pressure. Force per unit length
is also available for 2D components. Then enter values or expressions for the boundary
load components based on the selection and the space dimension.

• For Force per unit area, the traction components are given explicitly.
• For Total force, the total force is divided by the area of the boundaries where the
load is active. Then it is applied in the same way as for a Force per unit area. When
working with curved boundaries or local coordinate systems, use this option
carefully, as the result is not always intuitive.
• For Pressure, a scalar input is given, and the orientation of the load is given by the
normal to the boundary. The pressure is positive when directed toward the thin
layer. In a geometrically nonlinear analysis, the current surface normal and area are
used.

After selecting a Load type, the Load list normally only contains User
defined. When combining with another physics interface that can provide
this type of load, it is also possible to choose a predefined load from this
list.

TABLE 4-7:

LOAD TYPE VARIABLE SI UNIT GEOMETRIC SPACE DIMENSION

ENTITY (COMPONENTS)
LEVEL

Force per unit area FA Nm2 boundaries 3D (x, y, z)

2D (x, y)
2D axisymmetric (r, z)
Force per unit length FL N/m boundaries 2D (x, y)
Total force Ftot N boundaries 3D (x, y, z)
2D (x, y)
2D axisymmetric (r, z)
Pressure p Pa boundaries 3D (x, y, z)
2D (x, y)
2D axisymmetric (r, z)

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

1058 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

• Modeling Thin Layers in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

• Theory for Thin Layers in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Thin Layer>Face Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Thin Layer node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Face Load

Boundary Load (Thin Layer)

Add a Boundary Load node to apply tractions or pressure on edges adjacent to
boundaries where the Thin Layer node is active.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1059

 COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION
The Global coordinate system is selected by default. The Coordinate system list contains
all applicable coordinate systems in the model. Prescribed loads are specified along the
axes of this coordinate system.

FORCE
Select the Load type — Force per unit area, Total force, or Pressure. Force per unit length
is also available for 2D components. Then enter values or expressions for the boundary
load components based on the selection and the space dimension.

• For Force per unit area, the traction components are given explicitly.
• For Total force, the total force is divided by the area of the boundaries where the
load is active. Then it is applied in the same way as for a Force per unit area. When
working with curved boundaries or local coordinate systems, use this option
carefully, as the result is not always intuitive.
• For Pressure, a scalar input is given, and the orientation of the load is given by the
normal to the boundary. The pressure is positive when directed toward the thin
layer. In a geometrically nonlinear analysis, the current surface normal and area are
used.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

• Modeling Thin Layers in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

• Theory for Thin Layers in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

1060 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Thin Layer>Boundary Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Thin Layer node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Boundary Load

Spring Material

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The spring constants and loss factors are given with respect to the selected coordinate
system.

SPRING
Select the Spring type and its associated spring constant or force using Table 4-8 as a
guide.

Use the built-in variables for the thin layer extension for the options Force per area as
function of extension, Force per length as function of extension, or Total force as function
of extension. The names are <item>.uelt1, <item>.uelt2, and <item>.ueln, where
<item> is the name of the Thin Layer node (e.g. solid.tl1), and t1, t2, and n are
the coordinate names of the local boundary system.

The spring constants can be entered as Isotropic, Diagonal, or Symmetric. For Isotropic
the same spring constant is used in all the diagonal elements of the spring matrix.
TABLE 4-8: SPRING TYPES FOR THE SPRING MATERIAL FEATURE

SPRING TYPE VARIABLE SI UNITS SPACE DIMENSION

2
Spring constant per unit area kA N/(mm ) 3D, 2D, and 2D
axisymmetric
Spring constant per unit length kL N/(mm) 2D
Total spring constant ktot N/m 3D, 2D, and 2D
axisymmetric
Force per area as function of extension FA N/m2 3D, 2D, and 2D
axisymmetric
Force per length as function of extension FL N/m 2D
Total force as function of extension Ftot N 3D, 2D, and 2D
axisymmetric

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1061

 Enter the Mass type of the thin elastic layer — Total mass, Mass per unit volume, or Mass
per unit area. For thin layers on 2D geometries, it is also possible to enter the Mass per
unit length L.

GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
The settings in this section affect the behavior of the Spring Material in a geometrically
nonlinear analysis.

If a study step is geometrically nonlinear, the default behavior is to use a large strain
formulation in all domains. Select the Geometrically linear formulation check box to
always use a small strain formulation, irrespective of the setting in the study step.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box. For more information about this
section, see Constraint Settings in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

DAMPING
From the Damping type list, select Loss factor or Viscous damping.

When choosing Loss factor type, select Scalar (Same for all components) or Individual
components.

• For Scalar (Same for all components) enter a single Loss factor for spring s, which is
used to multiply all values of the spring matrix or spring force vector.
• For Individual components select Isotropic, Diagonal, or Symmetric, then enter values
or expressions for the Loss factor for spring k. The loss factors act on the
corresponding components of the spring matrix or spring force vector. If you select
Isotropic, the effect is the same as when you select Diagonal and enter the same value
for all diagonal elements.

When choosing Viscous damping, enter the Normal viscosity b and the Shear
viscosity v.

Spring Foundation
Use the Spring Foundation node to apply elastic and damping boundary conditions for
domains, boundaries, edges, and points.

By adding the Predeformation subnode, you can prescribe that the spring force is zero
at a nonzero spring extension.

1062 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

The Spring Foundation and Thin Elastic Layer nodes are similar, with the difference that
a Spring Foundation connects the structural part on which it is acting to a fixed
“ground”, while a Thin Elastic Layer acts between two parts, either on an interior
boundary or between two boundaries forming a pair.

The Spring Foundation node is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Spring Foundation node.

INTERFACE SELECTION

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Spring Foundation, Interface
node.

PAIR SELECTION
If this node is selected from the Pairs menu, choose the pair on which to apply this
condition. An identity pair has to be created first.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The spring and damping constants are given with respect to the selected coordinate
system.

SPRING
Select the Spring type and its associated spring constant or force using Table 4-9 as a
guide. The default option is the spring type for the type of geometric entity and space
dimension, and there are different combinations available based on this.

When the option is of the type ‘force as function of extension’, then the built-in
variables describing the spring extension must be used in the expression as described
in Springs and Dampers. The spring matrix can be entered as Isotropic, Diagonal,
Symmetric, or Full. For Isotropic the same spring constant is used in all the diagonal
elements of the spring matrix.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1063

 When Use material data is selected as Spring type, the spring stiffness values are
computed from the given material data and a layer thickness. From the Specify list,
select a pair of elastic properties — Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio, Young’s modulus
and shear modulus, or Bulk modulus and shear modulus. Each of these pairs define the
elastic properties and it is possible to convert from one set of properties to another
according to Table 4-10. For the chosen properties, select from the applicable list to
use the value From material or enter a User defined value or expression. In order to use
From material, you must have assigned a material to the selected boundaries.

Enter a Thickness, ds, to specify the physical thickness of the elastic layer.
TABLE 4-9: SPRING TYPES FOR THE SPRING FOUNDATION FEATURE

SPRING TYPE VARIABLE SI UNITS GEOMETRIC ENTITY LEVEL SPACE DIMENSION

3
Spring constant kV N/(mm ) domains 3D, 2D, 1D, and
per unit volume 2D/1D
axisymmetric
Total spring ktot N/m domains, edges 3D, 2D, 1D, and
constant 2D/1D
axisymmetric
Spring constant kA N/(mm2) boundaries 3D, 2D
per unit area
Spring constant kL N/(mm) edges, boundaries (2D) 3D, 2D, 1D
per unit length
Spring constant kP N/m points 3D, 2D, 1D, and
2D axisymmetric
Force per FV N/m3 domains 3D, 2D, 1D, and
volume as 2D/1D
function of axisymmetric
extension
Total force as Ftot N domains, boundaries, 3D, 2D, 1D, and
function of edges 2D/1D
extension axisymmetric
Force per area FA N/m2 domains, boundaries 3D, 2D
as function of
extension
Force per length FL N/m edges 3D/1D
as function of
extension

1064 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

TABLE 4-9: SPRING TYPES FOR THE SPRING FOUNDATION FEATURE

SPRING TYPE VARIABLE SI UNITS GEOMETRIC ENTITY LEVEL SPACE DIMENSION

Force as FP N points 3D, 2D, 1D, and

function of 2D/1D
extension axisymmetric
Use material N/A N/A boundaries 3D, 2D, and 2D
data axisymmetric
TABLE 4-10: EXPRESSIONS FOR THE ELASTIC MODULI.

DESCRIPTION VARIABLE DE DEG DKG

Young’s E= E E 9KG -
------------------
modulus 3K + G
Poisson’s =  E-
---  1 – ------------------
3G -
------- –1 1
ratio 2G 2 3K + G
Bulk K= E EG K
------------------------ ---------------------------
modulus 3  1 – 2  3  3G – E 
Shear G= E - G G
--------------------
modulus 21 + 

ROTATIONAL SPRING
This section is available for the Beam interface. All settings are analogous to the
corresponding settings in the Spring section, but with forces replaced by moments and
displacements replaced by rotations.

LOSS FACTOR DAMPING

From the Loss factor type list, select Scalar (Same for all components) or Individual
components. The latter option is not available for 1D or 1D axisymmetry.

• For Scalar (Same for all components) enter a single Loss factor for spring s, which is
used to multiply all values of the spring matrix or spring force vector.
• For Individual components select Isotropic, Diagonal, Symmetric, or Full, then enter
values or expressions in the table for the Loss factor for spring k or f based on space
dimension. The loss factors act on the corresponding components of the spring
matrix or spring force vector. If you select Isotropic, the effect is the same as when
you select Diagonal and enter the same value for all diagonal elements.

ROTATIONAL LOSS FACTOR DAMPING

This section is available for the Beam and Pipe Mechanics interfaces. All settings are
analogous to the corresponding settings in the Loss Factor Damping section.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1065

 VISCOUS DAMPING
Select the Damping type using Table 4-11 as a guide. The default option is the default
damping type for the type of geometric entity and space dimension, and there are
different combinations available based on this. The damping matrix can be entered as
Isotropic, Diagonal, Symmetric, or Full. For Isotropic the same viscous constant is used in
all the diagonal elements of the damping matrix
TABLE 4-11: DAMPING TYPES FOR THE SPRING FOUNDATION FEATURE

DAMPING TYPE VARIABLE SI UNITS GEOMETRIC ENTITY SPACE DIMENSION

LEVEL

Damping constant dV Ns/(mm3) domains, 3D, 2D, 1D

per unit volume boundaries (2D)
Damping constant dA Ns/(mm2) domains, 3D, 2D, and 2D
per unit area boundaries axisymmetric
Total damping dtot Ns/m domains, 3D, 2D, 1D, and
constant boundaries, 2D/1D
edges, points axisymmetric
Damping constant dL Ns/(mm) edges 3D, 1D
per unit length

ROTATIONAL VISCOUS DAMPING

This section is available for the Beam and Pipe Mechanics interfaces. All settings in this
section are analogous to the corresponding settings in the Viscous Damping section,
but with forces replaced by moments and velocities replaced by angular velocities.

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

• Springs and Dampers in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

• Spring Foundation and Thin Elastic Layer in the Structural Mechanics
Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation (Domain, Boundary)
Solid Mechanics>Edges>Spring Foundation
Solid Mechanics>Points>Spring Foundation

1066 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Shell>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation (Boundary, Edge)
Shell>Points>Spring Foundation
Plate>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation (Domain, Boundary)
Plate>Points>Spring Foundation
Layered Shell>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation (Boundary, Edge)
Layered Shell>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Interfaces>Spring Foundation, Interface
(Boundary, Edge)
Layered Shell>Points>Spring Foundation
Layered Shell>Points>Interfaces>Spring Foundation, Interface
Membrane>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation (Boundary, Edge)
Membrane>Points>Spring Foundation
Beam>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation
Pipe Mechanics>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation
Truss>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation
Multibody Dynamics>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation (Domain)
Multibody Dynamics>Spring Foundation (Boundary)
Multibody Dynamics>Edges>Spring Foundation
Multibody Dynamics>Points>Spring Foundation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Domains>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation

Boundaries>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation
Edges>Solid Mechanics>Spring Foundation
Points>Solid Mechanics>Spring Foundation

Physics tab with Shell or Membrane selected:

Boundaries>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation

Edges>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation
Points>Shell>Spring Foundation
Points>Membrane>Spring Foundation

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Domains>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation

Boundaries>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation
Points>Plate>Spring Foundation

Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1067

 Boundaries>Interfaces>Spring Foundation, Interface
Edges>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation
Edges>Interfaces>Spring Foundation, Interface
Points>Layered Shell>Spring Foundation
Points>Interfaces>Spring Foundation, Interface

Physics tab with Beam, Pipe Mechanics, or Truss selected:

Edges>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation

Points>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation

Physics tab with Multibody Dynamics selected:

Domains>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation

Boundaries>Multibody Dynamics>Spring Foundation
Edges>Multibody Dynamics>Spring Foundation
Points>Multibody Dynamics>Spring Foundation

Thin Elastic Layer

Use the Thin Elastic Layer node to apply elastic and damping conditions between two
parts, either on an interior boundary or on a boundary pair.

By adding the Predeformation subnode, you can prescribe that the spring force is zero
at a nonzero spring extension.

The Thin Elastic Layer and Spring Foundation nodes are similar, with the difference that
a Spring Foundation connects the structural part on which it is acting to a fixed
“ground”.

The Thin Elastic Layer node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https:/
/www.comsol.com/products/specifications/). Thin Elastic Material is available in 3D,
2D, and 2D axisymmetry.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Thin Elastic Layer node.

1068 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

INTERFACE SELECTION

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Thin Elastic Layer, Interface
node.

PAIR SELECTION
If this node is selected from the Pairs menu, choose the pair on which to apply this
condition. An identity pair has to be created first.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The spring and damping constants are given with respect to the selected coordinate
system, with the exception that when the stiffness is specified by Use material data, the
coordinate system selection is not used.

SPRING
Select the Spring type and its associated spring constant or force using Table 4-12 as a
guide. The default option is the spring type for the type of geometric entity and space
dimension, and there are different combinations available based on this.

When the option is of the type “force as function of extension”, then the built-in
variables describing the spring extension must be used in the expression as described
in Springs and Dampers. The spring matrix can be entered as Isotropic, Diagonal,
Symmetric, or Full. For Isotropic the same spring constant is used in all the diagonal
elements of the spring matrix.

When Use material data is selected as Spring type, the spring stiffness values are
computed from material data and layer thickness. From the Specify list, select a pair of
elastic properties — Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio, Young’s modulus and shear
modulus, or Bulk modulus and shear modulus. Each of these pairs define the elastic
properties and it is possible to convert from one set of properties to another according
to Table 4-10. For the chosen properties, select from the applicable list to use the value
From material or enter a User defined value or expression. In order to use From material,
you must have assigned a material to the selected boundaries.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1069

 Enter a Thickness, ds, to specify the physical thickness of the elastic layer.
TABLE 4-12: SPRING TYPES FOR THE THIN ELASTIC LAYER FEATURE

SPRING TYPE VARIABLE SI UNITS SPACE DIMENSION

Total spring constant ktot N/m 3D, 2D, and 2D

axisymmetric
Spring constant per unit area kA N/(mm2) 3D, 2D, and 2D
axisymmetric
Spring constant per unit length kL N/(mm) 2D
Total force as function of extension Ftot N 3D, 2D, and 2D
axisymmetric
Force per area as function of FA N/m2 3D, 2D, and 2D
extension axisymmetric
Force per length as function of FL N/m 2D
extension
Use material data N/A N/A 3D, 2D, and 2D
axisymmetric

ADDED MASS
Enter the added mass of the thin elastic layer. The type of input depends on the
selected Spring type; see Table 4-12.

• For Total spring constant and Total force as function of extension, enter the Total mass
m of the thin elastic layer.
• For Spring constant per unit area and Force per area as function of extension, enter
the Mass per unit area A of the thin elastic layer.
• For Spring constant per unit area and Force per area as function of extension, enter
the Mass per unit length L of the thin elastic layer.
• For Use material data, enter the Density  of the thin elastic layer. Either use the value
From material or enter a User defined value or expression. In order to use
From material, you must have assigned a material to the selected boundaries.

1070 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

LOSS FACTOR DAMPING
From the Loss factor type list, select Scalar (Same for all components) or Individual
components.

• For Scalar (Same for all components) enter a single Loss factor for spring s, which is
used to multiply all values of the spring matrix or spring force vector.
• For Individual components select Isotropic, Diagonal, Symmetric, or Full and enter
values or expressions in the table for the Loss factor for spring k or f based on space
dimension. The loss factors act on the corresponding components of the spring
matrix or spring force vector. If you select Isotropic, the effect is the same as when
you select Diagonal and enter the same value for all diagonal elements.

VISCOUS DAMPING
Select the Damping type using Table 4-13 as a guide. The default option is the default
damping type for the space dimension. The damping matrix can be entered as Isotropic,
Diagonal, Symmetric, or Full. For Isotropic the same viscous constant is used in all the
diagonal elements of the damping matrix
TABLE 4-13: DAMPING TYPES FOR THE THIN ELASTIC LAYER FEATURE

DAMPING TYPE VARIABLE SI UNITS SPACE DIMENSION

2
Damping constant per unit area dA Ns/(mm ) 3D, 2D, and 2D
axisymmetric
Total damping constant dtot Ns/m 3D, 2D, and 2D
axisymmetric
Damping constant per unit length dL Ns/(mm) 2D

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

• Springs and Dampers in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

• Spring Foundation and Thin Elastic Layer in the Structural Mechanics
Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Thin Elastic Layer

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1071

 Solid Mechanics>Pairs>Thin Elastic Layer
Layered Shell>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Thin Elastic Layer (Edge)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Boundaries>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Thin Elastic Layer

Pairs>Solid Mechanics>Thin Elastic Layer

Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Edges>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Thin Elastic Layer

Predeformation
Use the Predeformation subnode to specify that the elastic forces in Spring Foundation
or Thin Elastic Layer are nonzero at zero displacement. Thus, you can model cases
where the unstressed state of the spring is in another configuration than the one
described by the geometry.

The value of the predeformation can vary during the simulation, so it should not be
interpreted as an initial value.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Predeformation node.

SPRING PREDEFORMATION
Based on space dimension, enter the values for the Spring Predeformation u0.

You can assign the load caused by the predeformation to a load group.
See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Spring Foundation>Predeformation
Solid Mechanics>Thin Elastic Layer>Predeformation
Shell>Spring Foundation>Predeformation

1072 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Layered Shell>Spring Foundation>Predeformation
Layered Shell>Spring Foundation, Interface>Predeformation
Layered Shell>Thin Elastic Layer>Predeformation
Plate>Spring Foundation>Predeformation
Membrane>Spring Foundation>Predeformation
Beam>Spring Foundation>Predeformation
Truss>Spring Foundation>Predeformation
Wire>Spring Foundation>Predeformation
Multibody Dynamics>Spring Foundation>Predeformation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Spring Foundation, Spring Foundation, Interface, or Thin Elastic Layer
node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Predeformation

Spring-Damper
Use a Spring-Damper ( ) for 3D, 2D and 1D components to model — between two
points — an elastic spring, a viscous damper, or both.

The spring can either act as an axial spring between the two points, or be defined be a
general spring matrix, connecting all the degrees of freedom in the two points. The
two points are referred to as the source and destination point, respectively. The points
can be geometrical points, but there are also other methods for describing the
attachment point of the spring as a virtual point in space.

A spring-damper can connect two points belonging to two different physics interfaces.
If at least one of the physics interfaces possesses rotational degrees of freedom, the
Spring-Damper should be placed in such an interface.

The Spring-Damper node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https:/
/www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

This section is only of importance when a full matrix representation of the
spring-damper is used. In that case, the matrix is interpreted as acting on the degrees
of freedom in the local directions provided by the local coordinate system.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1073

 SKETCH
This section is only available if Directional is selected as Spring type. In that case, a
conceptual representation of the spring-damper assembly is shown.

ATTACHMENT SELECTION
In this section, you select the two points between which the spring or damper is
connected.

Source Point
Select a Source. The default is Select a connection point. You will then do the actual
selection in the Source Point subnode. If you select more than a single point, the spring
will be connected to a virtual point, the location of which is the average of the selected
points. If you make another choice than Select a connection point, the corresponding
Source Point subnode will be removed.

The other option that is always available as Source is Fixed. When Fixed is selected, the
source side of the spring is fixed in space, and not connected to any modeled parts. In
this case, you need to specify the location of the source point. For Connection point,
select User defined and enter the coordinate Xs of the source point.

If a Base Motion is defined in a Multibody Dynamics interface, it can be selected as

Source. Selecting a base motion gives a behavior similar to using Fixed, with the
exception that the base now can have a nonzero prescribed displacement, velocity or
acceleration.

Any Attachment node in the model can be selected as Source, irrespective of in which
physics interface it is defined. The use of attachments required the Multibody
Dynamics Module or the Rotordynamics Module.

From the Source list, you can also select any object that is of a rigid body type,
irrespective on in which physics interface it is defined. Such objects are:

• Rigid Material
• Spur Gear (in the Multibody Dynamics interface)
• Helical Gear (in the Multibody Dynamics interface)
• Bevel Gear (in the Multibody Dynamics interface)
• Worm Gear (in the Multibody Dynamics interface)
• Spur Rack (in the Multibody Dynamics interface)
• Helical Rack (in the Multibody Dynamics interface)

1074 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Destination Point
Most settings are the same as for the Source. The differences are the following:

• The options Fixed and Base Motion are not available for the destination point.
• There is one other option: Prescribed displacement.

The available inputs for Prescribed displacement depend on the selected Spring type in
the Spring-Damper section.

If the spring type is Directional, enter an expression for the Prescribed displacement, ud,
and for the Reference destination point, Xd. The entered values determine how the
spring extension is computed.

If the spring type is Matrix, enter expressions for the Prescribed displacement, ud, and
the Prescribed rotation, d.

Using Prescribed displacement, it is possible to connect the spring to

another physics interface. In order to do that, you can enter expressions
using Nonlocal Couplings defined in the Definitions node for a component.

When the Spring type is set to Matrix, the rotation of the source and the
destination (s and d) are determined by availability of rotational
degrees of freedom. If the physics interface itself has rotational degrees of
freedom, these will be used in a point selection. For all physics interfaces,
irrespective whether they have rotational degrees of freedom or not, a
connection to an attachment or rigid body type object will provide a
rotation.

Some settings in the GUI are only available if rotational degrees of

freedom are present.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1075

 When the Spring-Damper node is used in the Multibody Dynamics
interface, there is one more option: Use selection filter.

In large models, the list of available attachments can become very long.
You can then create geometric filters to narrow down the search. When
the Use selection filter check box is selected, two subnodes named Source
Filter and Destination Filter are added to the Spring-Damper node. In
these subnodes you can make graphic selections of the objects whose
attachments should be shown in the Source and a Destination lists.

SPRING-DAMPER
Select a Spring type — Directional or Matrix. The latter option is not available for 1D
and 1D axisymmetry.

Directional
Select a Definition — Spring constant or Force as function of extension.

• For Spring constant enter a value for k.

• For Force as function of extension enter an expression for Fs. The expression must be
a function of the extension of the spring. The built-in variable for the spring
extension has the form <physicsName>.<SpringNodeTag>.dl, for example
solid.spd1.dl.

To add viscous damping in a dynamic analysis, enter a value or expression for the
Damping coefficient c.

Matrix
• Under Spring constants, enter the stiffness matrices defining the elastic connection
between the source and destination. Input fields for the matrices ku and k are
always shown. Select Translational-rotational coupling to show input fields for the
coupling matrices ku and ku. In 2D, most elements of these matrices are by
definition zero. Only elements that can be nonzero are shown; these are elements
13 and 23 for ku and elements 31 and 32 for ku.
• Under Damping coefficients, enter the damping matrices defining the viscous
connection between the source and destination. Input fields for the matrices cu and
c are always shown. Select Translational-rotational coupling to show input fields for
the coupling matrices cu and cu. In 2D, most elements of these matrices are by
definition zero. Only elements that can be nonzero are shown; these are elements
13 and 23 for cu and elements 31 and 32 for cu.

1076 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

• By default, the relative displacement between source and destination is computed as
u  udus. In some cases, however, it can be more reasonable to also include
displacements resulting from a rigid body type rotation. If Include rotational
contribution in displacement is selected, an additional term is added to the expression
for the relative displacement. It describes the additional displacement due to the
rotation of the destination if the source and destination were connected by a rigid
bar element.

FREE LENGTH
This section is only available if Directional is selected as Spring type.

The free length is the distance between the connection points when there is no force
in the spring. Select an option from the list: Specify initial extension or Specify free
length.

• For Specify initial extension enter a value for l0. The free length is computed as
lf  l0  l0, where l0 is the initial distance between the connection points.
• For Specify free length enter a value for lf.

ACTIVATION CONDITIONS
If Directional is selected as Spring type, you can select a Spring action — Bidirectional,
Tension only, or Compression only.

If you want to activate or deactivate the entire spring-damper, select the Deactivation
check box. Then, enter a Deactivation expression idac. The expression is treated as a
Boolean expression, so that when it evaluated to a nonzero value, the spring or damper
is deactivated.

Select the Permanently deactivate check box if the spring is supposed to be removed
permanently from the simulation when the deactivation condition is fulfilled for the
first time.

As an example, if the spring should break at a certain extension, you can write an
expression like solid.spd2.dl>0.12[m], and select the Permanently deactivate check
box. If the check box is not selected, the spring would become active again when its
connection points come close enough to each other.

Spring-Damper Theory

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1077

 LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Spring-Damper
Shell>Spring-Damper
Plate>Spring-Damper
Layered Shell>Spring-Damper
Membrane>Spring-Damper
Beam>Spring-Damper
Truss>Spring-Damper
Multibody Dynamics>Spring-Damper
Pipe Mechanics>Spring-Damper

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Global>Solid Mechanics>Spring-Damper

Physics tab with Shell selected:

Global>Shell>Spring-Damper

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Global>Plate>Spring-Damper

Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Global>Layered Shell>>Spring-Damper

Physics tab with Membrane selected:

Global>Membrane>Spring-Damper

Physics tab with Beam selected:

Global>Beam>Spring-Damper

Physics tab with Truss selected:

Global>Truss>Spring-Damper

Physics tab with Multibody Dynamics selected:

Global>Multibody Dynamics>Spring-Damper

Physics tab with Pipe Mechanics selected:

1078 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Global>Pipe Mechanics>Spring-Damper

Source Point (for Spring-Damper)

Select a point, or a set of points, representing the source connection point for the
Spring-Damper. The main intent is that you should select a single connection point,
but it is also possible to select several points. If you select several points, the spring
attachment location is the average value of the coordinates of the selected points. The
displacement is computed as the average of the displacements in the selected points,
which for a flexible body might not be the same as the actual displacement in the
averaged location. The spring force is distributed over the selected points.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

When Select a connection point is chosen under Source for in the parent Spring-Damper
node, this subnode will automatically be generated. It cannot be added or removed
manually.

Destination Point (for Spring-Damper)

Select a point, or a set of points, representing the destination connection point for the
Spring-Damper. For details, see Source Point (for Spring-Damper).

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

When Select a connection point is chosen under Destination for in the parent
Spring-Damper node, this subnode will automatically be generated. It cannot be
added or removed manually.

Source Point Nodes

SOURCE POINT: BOUNDARY

Select a set of boundaries whose centroid represents the source connection point.

SOURCE POINT: EDGE

Select a set of edges whose centroid represents the source connection point.

SOURCE POINT: POINT

Select a set of points whose centroid represents the source connection point.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1079

 LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE
When Centroid of selected entities is chosen under Connection point for the source
attachment in the parent Spring-Damper, a subnode will be generated based on the
setting of Entity level. They cannot be added or removed manually.

Destination Point Nodes

DESTINATION POINT: BOUNDARY

Select a set of boundaries whose centroid represents the destination connection point.

DESTINATION POINT: EDGE

Select a set of edges whose centroid represents the destination connection point.

DESTINATION POINT: POINT

Select a set of points whose centroid represents the destination connection point.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

When Centroid of selected entities is chosen under Connection point for the destination
attachment in the parent Spring-Damper, a subnode will be generated based on the
setting of Entity level. They cannot be added or removed manually.

Added Mass
The Added Mass node is available on different geometrical entity levels and can be used
to supply inertia that is not part of the material itself. Such inertia does not need to be
isotropic in the sense that the inertial effects are not the same in all directions.

The Added Mass node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Added Mass node.

1080 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

INTERFACE SELECTION

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Added Mass, Interface node.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The added mass values are given with respect to the selected coordinate directions.

For more information about the special coordinate systems available in

the Shell and Plate interfaces, see Added Mass in the documentation for
these interfaces.

FACE DEFINING THE LOCAL ORIENTATIONS

This section is only present in the Added Mass node in the Shell interface.

ADDED MASS
Select a Mass type using Table 4-14 as a guide. The default option is the type for the
geometric entity. The added mass matrix can be entered as Isotropic, Diagonal, or
Symmetric. For Isotropic the same mass is used in all the diagonal elements of the mass
matrix.
TABLE 4-14: AVAILABLE MASS TYPES BASED ON GEOMETRIC ENTITY

MASS TYPE VARIABLE SI UNITS GEOMETRIC ENTITY LEVEL

3
Mass per unit volume pV kg/m domains, boundaries
2
Mass per unit area pA kg/m domains, boundaries, edges
Mass per unit length pL kg/m edges, points
Total mass m kg domains, boundaries, edges

FRAME ACCELERATION FORCES

Select the Exclude contribution check box to switch off the loads generated by this node
when the frame is accelerated when using a Gravity, Rotating Frame, Linearly
Accelerated Frame, or Base Excitation feature. The setting will also determine whether
the node will contribute when computing mass properties.

For more information, see Computing Mass Properties.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1081

 LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass (Domain, Boundary)
Solid Mechanics>Edges>Added Mass
Shell>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass (Boundary, Edge)
Plate>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass (Domain, Boundary)
Layered Shell>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass (Boundary, Edge)
Layered Shell>Points>Added Mass (Point)
Layered Shell>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Interfaces>Added Mass, Interface (Boundary,
Edge)
Membrane>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass (Boundary, Edge)
Beam>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass (Edge)
Truss>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass (Edge)
Wire>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass (Edge)
Multibody Dynamics>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass (Domain)
Multibody Dynamics>Added Mass (Boundary)
Multibody Dynamics>Edges>Added Mass

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Domains>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass

Boundaries>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass
Edges>Solid Mechanics>Added Mass

Physics tab with Shell or Membrane selected:

Boundaries>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass

Edges>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Domains>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass

Boundaries>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass

Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass

Boundaries>Interfaces>Added Mass, Interface
Edges>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass
Edges>Interfaces>Added Mass, Interface
Points>Layered Shell>Added Mass

1082 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Physics tab with Beam, Truss, or Wire selected:

Edges>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass

Physics tab with Multibody Dynamics selected:

Domains>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass

Boundaries>Multibody Dynamics>Added Mass
Edges>Multibody Dynamics>Added Mass

Periodic Condition
Use a Periodic Condition to prescribe that the displacements on two different sets of
boundaries with the same geometrical shape are related, as in a periodic structure.

Several different types of periodicity properties of the solution can be prescribed using
this boundary condition.

• The Continuity, Antiperiodicity, and User defined periodic conditions directly

prescribe relations between displacements and can be used for any type of study.
• The Floquet periodicity can be used for frequency domain problems with a spatial
periodicity of the geometry and solution. The modeled structure is typically a unit
cell of a repetitive structure.
• The Cyclic symmetry is a special case of a Floquet condition, intended for structures
that consist of a number of sectors that are identical when rotated around a common
axis, like in a fan.

The Floquet periodicity and Cyclic symmetry options are available only with some
COMSOL products (see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

The two sets of boundaries between which there is a periodicity condition are called
the source and destination. It is not required to have the same mesh on the source and
destination, but the local accuracy of the solution at the boundaries will be better if
you use the same mesh.

If you use physics-controlled meshing, the mesh on the source and

destination boundaries will automatically match.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1083

 BOUNDARY SELECTION

The software usually automatically identifies the boundaries as either

source boundaries or destination boundaries, as indicated in the selection
list. This works fine for cases like opposing parallel boundaries. In other
cases, right-click Periodic Condition and select Manual Destination Selection
to control the destination. By default it contains the selection that
COMSOL Multiphysics identifies.

In cases where the periodic boundary is split into several boundaries within the
geometry, it might be necessary to apply separate periodic conditions to each pair of
geometry boundaries for the matching to work properly.

DESTINATION SELECTION
This section is available for specifying the destination boundaries, if needed, when the
Manual Destination Selection option is selected in the context menu for the Periodic
Condition node. You can only select destination boundaries from the union of all source
and destination boundaries.

PERIODICITY SETTINGS
With Type of periodicity you select the form of periodicity that your solution should
have.

• For Continuity the displacements on the destination are set equal to the
displacements on the source; u  x d  = u  x s  . If the source and destination
boundaries are rotated with respect to each other, a transformation is automatically
performed, so that corresponding displacement components are connected.
• For Antiperiodicity the displacements on the destination are set equal to the
displacements on the source with the sign reversed; u  x d  = – u  x s  . If the source
and destination boundaries are rotated with respect to each other, a transformation
is automatically performed, so that corresponding displacement components are
connected.
• For Floquet periodicity enter a k-vector for Floquet periodicity kF. This is the wave
number vector for the excitation.
• For Cyclic symmetry choose how to define the sector angle that the geometry
represents using Sector angle. If Automatic is selected, the program attempts to find
out how many full repetitions of the geometry there will be on a full revolution. If
User defined is selected, enter a value for the sector angle S. In both cases, also enter

1084 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 an Azimuthal mode number for the mode to be studied. It can vary from 0 to N/2,
where N is the total number of sectors on a full revolution.
• For User defined select the check box for any of the displacement components as
needed. Then for each selection, choose the Type of periodicity — Continuity or
Antiperiodicity. Each selected displacement component will be connected by
u i  x d  = u i  x s  or u i  x d  = – u i  x s  . If the source and destination boundaries
are rotated with respect to each other, a transformation is automatically performed,
so that corresponding displacement components are connected.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

EXCLUDED EDGES, EXCLUDED POINTS

To display these sections (Excluded Edges in 3D geometries only), click the Show More
Options button ( ) and select Advanced Physics Options in the Show More Options
dialog box. For more information about these sections, see Excluded Surfaces,
Excluded Edges, and Excluded Points in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference
Manual.

ORIENTATION OF SOURCE
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box. For information about the
Orientation of Source section, see Orientation of Source and Destination in the
COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

ORIENTATION OF DESTINATION
This section appears if the setting for Transform to intermediate map in the Orientation
of Source section is changed from the default value, Automatic, and Advanced Physics
Options is selected in the Show More Options dialog box. For information about the
Orientation of Destination section, see Orientation of Source and Destination in the
COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1085

 MAPPING BETWEEN SOURCE AND DESTINATION
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box. For information about the
Mapping Between Source and Destination section, see Mapping Between Source and
Destination in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

See also Cyclic Symmetry and Floquet Periodic Conditions.

Vibrations of an Impeller: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Dynamics_and_Vibration/impeller

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Connections>Periodic Condition

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Boundaries>Connections>Periodic Condition

Adiabatic Heating
Add an Adiabatic Heating node to model abrupt changes in temperature due to fast
deformation. The increase in temperature is then defined by solving the distributed
equation

ꞏ
C p T =  ah Q h

here,  is the density, Cp is the heat capacity at constant pressure, T is the temperature
field, ah is the coefficient of adiabatic heating, and Qh corresponds to the heat sources
due to mechanical dissipative processes.

The Adiabatic Heating node is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

INITIAL VALUES
Enter the Initial temperature Tini. The default value is 293.15 K.

1086 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

THERMODYNAMICS
The density is taken from the material model (Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear
Elastic Material, Hyperelastic Material).

The default Heat capacity at constant pressure Cp uses values From material. For
User defined, enter an expression or value. The default value for the User defined is 0 J/
(kg K).

Enter the Coefficient of adiabatic heating, ah. The default value is 1 (dimensionless),
which means that dissipative processes contribute 100% as heat sources.

Select the Dissipative heat source — Include all dissipative sources or User defined.

The Dissipative heat source list makes it possible to include specific heat sources for the
adiabatic heating. Enter a value or expression for the heat source Qh to include. For
instance, the dissipated energy density due to creep is available under the variable
solid.Wc and due to viscoplasticity under the variable solid.Wvp. Here solid
denotes the name of the physics interface node.

TIME STEPPING
Select a Method — Automatic, Backward Euler, or Domain ODEs.

• The Backward Euler method is not available with the Layered Shell interface nor with
the Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Shell and Membrane interfaces.

Automatic
The Automatic method corresponds to the backward Euler method except for the
Layered Shell interface or when the Layered Linear Elastic Material is used. Domain
ODEs are solved in these cases.

Backward Euler
For the Backward Euler method, enter the following settings:

• Maximum number of local iterations. To determine the maximum number of iteration

in the Newton loop when solving the local equation.
• Absolute tolerance. To check the convergence of the local equation based on the step
size in the Newton loop.
• Relative tolerance. To check the convergence of the local equation based on the step
size in the Newton loop. The final tolerance is computed based on the current
solution of the local variable and the entered value.
• Residual tolerance. To check the convergence of the local equation based on the
residual.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1087

 If both a step size and residual convergence check is requested, it is sufficient that one
of the conditions is fulfilled. Setting either the Absolute tolerance and Relative tolerance
or the Residual tolerance to zero ignores the corresponding convergence check. An
error is returned if all are set to zero.

Domain ODEs
No settings are needed for the Domain ODEs method. However, this method adds
degrees-of-freedom that are solved as part of the general solver sequence. The scaling
of this field can affect the convergence of the overall solution.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>More>Adiabatic Heating

Membrane>More>Adiabatic Heating

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics or Membrane selected:

Domains>More>Adiabatic Heating

Boundary>More>Adiabatic Heating

Cell Periodicity
Use the Cell Periodicity node to model a unit cell (representative volume element;
RVE) of a larger repetitive structure. Periodic boundary conditions will be used on the
outer boundaries of this unit cell.

From the Cell Periodicity node, is possible to generate the elasticity matrix for the
equivalent homogenized material.

If more than one Cell Periodicity node is used, they must have disjoint selections. It is
thus possible to evaluate more than one RVE in the same study.

The Cell Periodicity node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https:/
/www.comsol.com/products/specifications/). Cell Periodicity is available for 3D and
2D.

PERIODICITY TYPE
Select a Periodicity type — Free expansion, Average strain, Average stress, or Mixed.

1088 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

With the Free expansion periodicity type, the unit cell is allowed to expand freely in a
periodic manner. This option is useful to determine the thermal expansion or
hygroscopic swelling coefficients of a heterogeneous unit cell.

Select Calculate average properties — None, Coefficient of thermal expansion, or

Coefficient of hygroscopic swelling.

In 2D, use either a Plane stress or a Generalized plane strain approximation

to calculate averaged properties with the Free expansion periodicity type.

The Average strain periodicity type makes it possible to derive homogenized elastic
properties of media with periodic structures, such as a perforated plates, porous media
or composites structures. In this case, you have to examine six load cases in 3D. Enter
values or expressions for the components of the Average strain tensor avg. In a
geometrically nonlinear analysis, the average strains are interpreted as Green–Lagrange
strains.

Select Calculate average properties — None, Elasticity matrix, Standard (XX, YY, ZZ, XY,
YZ, XZ), or Elasticity matrix, Voigt (XX, YY, ZZ, YZ, XZ, XY).

The Average stress periodicity type makes it possible to derive the homogenized
compliance matrix of media with periodic structures. Enter values or expressions for
the components of the Average stress tensor avg. In a geometrically nonlinear analysis,
the stresses are interpreted as Second Piola–Kirchhoff stresses.

Select Calculate average properties — None, Compliance matrix, Standard (XX, YY, ZZ, XY,
YZ, XZ), or Compliance matrix, Voigt (XX, YY, ZZ, YZ, XZ, XY).

In 2D, use a Generalized plane strain approximation to calculate averaged

properties with the Average strain or Average stress periodicity types.

With the Mixed periodicity type, enter either the average strain or average stress tensor
components.

When using a Plane stress or a Plane strain 2D approximation with the

Mixed periodicity type, you only need to enter three components (XX, YY,
XY) of the average strain or average stress tensors. For the Generalized
plane strain approximation, you also need to enter the ZZ component.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1089

 For all values of Periodicity type, select the Cell volume — Solid, Void volume fraction, or
User defined.

• When Solid is selected, the volume of the RVE is computed from the domains
selected in the Cell Periodicity node.
• The Void volume fraction option can be used to scale the RVE volume when there
are voids inside the RVE that are not selected as domains. Enter the void volume
fraction, f. This is the fraction of the total RVE that is occupied by voids. The
volume of the RVE is computed as
V solid
V RVE = --------------
1–f

• By using the User defined option, you can enter the volume of the RVE, V, explicitly.

The variable <item>.vol contains the volume of the RVE used when computing
average strains and stresses.

Load Group, Material and Study Generation

You can create the elasticity matrix for a homogenized material, and make it accessible
as a material to be used in other components. In order to do this, a number of
fundamental load cases must be analyzed. The necessary definitions and steps required
for such an analysis can be automated as described below.

On the Periodicity Type section toolbar, there is an icon Study and Material Generation
( ). It has a list with three entries:

• Create Load Groups and Study . This option can be selected when Periodicity Type
is Average strain or Average stress. When you select it, the following changes will be
made to the model:
- A number of load groups will be created under Global Definitions. They are
collected in a group named Load Groups for Cell Periodicity. The load groups
correspond to unit loads along different axes.
- The Average strain or Average stress tensor in the Periodicity Type section will be
populated using the load group variables.
- A new study, named Cell Periodicity Study, will be created. This study contains a
stationary study step. In the Study Extensions section of the new Cell Periodicity
Study, one load case is added for each load group.

• Create Material by Reference ( ). This option can be selected when Periodicity Type
is Average strain or Average stress, and Calculate average properties not set to None.
When you select it, a new material will be created under Global>Materials. It contains

1090 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 the elasticity matrix or the compliance matrix. The name of this material is
Homogeneous Material.
• Create Material by Value ( ). This option is similar to Create Material by Reference,
with the difference that the material properties are numerical values, and not
references to variables in the node. The benefits of this option is faster computation
when the material is used by other physics interfaces. Also, if the Cell Periodicity node
is deleted, the material created from it can still be used in sequential computations.

For this type of analysis to work correctly, it is important that you do not
edit the generated nodes manually. By clicking the Create button again,
you can reset all settings in the generated nodes to their default values.

See also

• Load Cases and Effective Properties of Periodic Structures in the

Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.
• Periodic Cell Theory in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.
• Materials and Solid Mechanics Material Properties in the Materials
chapter in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

• Micromechanical Model of a Fiber Composite: Application Library

path Structural_Mechanics_Module/Material_Models/
micromechanical_model_of_a_fiber_composite
• Micromechanics and Stress Analysis of a Composite Cylinder:
Application Library path Composite_Materials_Module/Tutorials/
composite_cylinder_micromechanics_and_stress_analysis

ADVANCED
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box. Furthermore, this section is shown
only if elasticity or compliance matrices are requested through Calculate average
properties.

In that case, you can modify the behavior of how the studies for computing the
homogenized matrices are generated by selecting a Study tag — Automatic or Legacy.
The Legacy option is mainly for maintaining compatibility with versions prior to 6.0.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1091

 With the default Automatic option, it is, for example, possible to set up nested
homogenizations. A unique tag for the study will be composed by combining the
physics interface tag and the tag of the Cell Periodicity node, for example
solid1cp1std.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>More>Cell Periodicity

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Domains>More>Cell Periodicity

Boundary Pair
In the Boundary Pair node, you supply information about the corresponding periodic
boundaries. In 2D, you need at least two such pairs, and in 3D at least three pairs. The
number of pairs depends on the shape of the unit cell. This node has no other settings
that the boundary selection.

Select all corresponding boundaries belonging to both sides of the pair. If you need to
manually specify the source and destination sides of the pairs, add a Destination
Selection subnode.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Cell Periodicity>Boundary Pair

1092 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Ribbon
Physics tab with Cell Periodicity node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Boundary Pair

Low-Reflecting Boundary
Use the Low-Reflecting Boundary node to let waves pass out from the model without
reflection in time-dependent or frequency domain analysis. As a default, it takes
material data from the domain in an attempt to create a perfect impedance match for
both pressure waves and shear waves. It can be sensitive to the direction of the
incoming wave.

The Low-Reflecting Boundary node is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/). Low-Reflecting Boundary is
available for 3D, 2D, and 2D axisymmetry.

DAMPING
Select a Damping type — P and S waves or User defined. For User defined enter values or
expressions for the Mechanical impedance dim. The defaults for all values are
0.5*solid.rho*(solid.cp+solid.cs).

Low-Reflecting Boundary Condition

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Low-Reflecting Boundary

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Boundaries >Mass, Spring, and Damper>Low-Reflecting Boundary

Rigid Connector
The Rigid Connector is a boundary condition for modeling rigid regions and kinematic
constraints such as prescribed rigid rotations. A rigid connector can connect an

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1093

 arbitrary combination of boundaries, edges, and points that all will move together as
being attached to a virtual rigid object.

You can add the Rigid Connector node at the boundary, edge, and point levels.

• When added at the boundary level, you can connect boundaries, edges (3D), and
points as long as at least one boundary is selected. Selecting edges and points is
optional.
• When added at the edge level (3D only), you can connect edges and points as long
as at least one edge is selected. Selecting points is optional.
• When added at the point level, you can connect a set of points to each other.

When the selection consists of boundaries only, you can also choose to remove the
assumption of rigidity, while still respecting force and moment equilibrium. With this
formulation, it is possible to avoid artificial constraint effects at the connected
boundaries.

If the study step is geometrically nonlinear, the rigid connector takes finite rotations
into account.

Rigid connectors are available in the Solid Mechanics, Multibody Dynamics, Shell,
Beam, and Pipe Mechanics interfaces. Rigid connectors from different interfaces can
be attached to each other.

You can add functionality to the rigid connector through the following subnodes:

• Applied Force (Rigid Connector) to apply a force in given point.

• Applied Moment (Rigid Connector) to apply a moment.
• Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid Connector) to add extra mass and moment of
inertia in a given point.
• Spring Foundation (Rigid Connector) to add a translational or rotational spring or
damper in a given point.

1094 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

When physics symbols are shown, a rigid connector is represented by a symbol at the
center of rotation, together with a set of lines connecting the center of rotation with
the centers of gravity of the selected entities.

• When the rigid connector is added at the boundary level, such symbols
are shown only for the selected boundaries, but not for auxiliary
selections of edges or points.
• When the rigid connector is added at the edge level, such symbols are
shown only for the selected edges, but not for auxiliary selections of
points.
• Because of the way physics symbols are evaluated, as a lightweight
operation when moving between physics nodes in the model builder
tree, it is sometimes not possible to determine the center of rotation.
In particular, if an offset is supplied, it will not be taken into account.

The Rigid Connector node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https:/
/www.comsol.com/products/specifications/). Rigid Connector is available for 3D and
2D.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Rigid Connector node.

INTERFACE SELECTION

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Rigid Connector, Interface
node.

BOUNDARY SELECTION
This section is present when the Rigid Connector node has been added at the boundary
level. Select one or more boundaries to be part of the rigid region.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1095

 EDGE SELECTION
This section is present in 3D when the Rigid Connector node has been added at the
boundary or edge level, and Connection Type is Rigid.

• When the Rigid Connector is added at the edge level, select one or more edges that
form part of the rigid region.
• When the Rigid Connector is added at the boundary level, this section is initially
collapsed. Here, you can add optional edges to the rigid region. The edges cannot
be adjacent to the selected boundaries.

POINT SELECTION
This section is always present when Connection Type is Rigid.

• When the Rigid Connector is added at the point level, select a number of points that
form the rigid region.
• When the Rigid Connector is added at the boundary or edge levels, this section is
initially collapsed. Here, you can add optional points to the rigid region. The points
cannot be adjacent to the selected boundaries or edges.

If your selection is too small, you may introduce rigid body motions in the
model. No exact rules can be given because there are many possible
configurations where, for example, domains are connected to each other
or affected by other constraints. Also, you can, by providing proper
constraints for the rigid connector, suppress rigid body motions.

Some suggestion for ensuring stability are

• At the point level in 3D, at least three points, not located on a straight
line, are needed.
• At the point level in 2D, at least two points are needed.
• At the edge level in 3D, a single straight edge is not sufficient since it
can act as a hinge.

A set of consistency checks where violations of these rules can be detected

is performed. You can suppress these checks by clearing the Include
consistency checks check box in the Advanced section.

1096 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION
The Global coordinate system is selected by default. The Coordinate system list contains
all applicable coordinate systems in the model. Prescribed displacements and rotations
are specified along the axes of this coordinate system. It is also used for defining the
axis directions of the moment of inertia tensor of the Mass and Moment of Inertia
subnode.

In order to be applicable, a coordinate system must have axis directions

that are independent of the location in space.

CONNECTION TYPE
Select Rigid or Flexible. When the connection type is rigid, the whole rigid connector
acts as a virtual rigid object. In the flexible formulation, the selected boundaries are
allowed to have internal deformations, and the kinematic constraints are fulfilled only
in an average sense. The flexible formulation is useful for example when applying loads,
since it will reduce local constraint effects.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1097

 If a selected boundary is located on a rigid domain, the connection type setting does
not matter. The rigid formulation is always used,

The flexible formulation can be used when the selection only consists of
boundaries.

• The Connection Type section is shown only when the Rigid Connector has
been added at the boundary level.
• When the connection type has been set to Flexible, the Edge Selection
and Point Selection sections are hidden.
• Any edges or points that have been selected prior to changing from
Rigid to Flexible will be ignored.

With the flexible formulation, some extra degrees of freedom are added
for each rigid connector. In order to get good convergence properties for
a nonlinear solution, these variables must have a good scaling.

When a new solver sequence is generated, then an appropriate manual

scaling is automatically set for these variables.

If, however, an existing solver sequence was generated while Connection

Type was set to Rigid, and you then change to Flexible, no such scaling will
be present. In this case, you either have to regenerate the solver sequence,
or set the scaling manually under the Dependent Variables node in each
study step.

CENTER OF ROTATION
The center of rotation serves two purposes.

• If you prescribe the displacement of the rigid connector, this is the location in space
where it is fixed.
• Results are interpreted with respect to the center of rotation.

Select a Center of rotation — Automatic, Centroid of selected entities, or User defined.

• For Automatic, the center of rotation is at the geometrical center of the selected
geometrical objects of the highest geometrical dimension.

1098 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

• For Centroid of selected entities select an Entity level — Boundary, Edge, or Point. The
available choices depend on the physics interface and geometrical dimension.

• When selected, a default Center of Rotation: Boundary, Center of

Rotation: Edge, or Center of Rotation: Point subnode is automatically
added.
• The center of rotation is located at the centroid of the selected entities,
which do not need to be related to the rigid connector itself. As a
special case, you can select a single point, and use it as center of
rotation.
• When Entity level is set to Point, any point in the geometry can be
selected, even if it is not part of the physics interface.

• For User defined, in the Global coordinates of center of rotation XC table enter
coordinates based on space dimension.

Select the Offset check box to add an optional offset vector to the definition of the
center of rotation. Enter values for the offset vector Xoffset.

The center of rotation used is the sum of the vector obtained from any of the input
methods and the offset vector.

X C = X C,input + X offset

PRESCRIBED DISPLACEMENT AT CENTER OF ROTATION

To define a prescribed displacement at the center of rotation for each space direction,
select one or several of the available check boxes then enter values or expressions for
the prescribed displacements. The direction coordinate names can vary depending on
the selected coordinate system.

• Prescribed in x direction u0x

• Prescribed in y direction u0y
• For 3D components: Prescribed in z direction u0z

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1099

 PRESCRIBED ROTATION
Specify the rotation at the center of rotation. Select from the By list: Free, Constrained
rotation, or Prescribed rotation about the center of rotation.

For 2D components, the Constrained rotation and Prescribed rotation is

always about the z-axis, so no component selection is necessary.

Constrained Rotation (3D Components)

For Constrained rotation select one or more of the available check boxes to enforce zero
rotation about the corresponding axis in the selected coordinate system:

• Constrain rotation about x-axis

• Constrain rotation about y-axis
• Constrain rotation about z-axis

Prescribed Rotation
For Prescribed rotation enter an Angle of rotation  0 . For 3D components also enter
an Axis of rotation  for the x, y, and z coordinates.

RELEASED DEGREES OF FREEDOM

In some cases it can be useful to not constrain the displacement in a certain direction.
For instance, the radial displacement of a Rigid Connector acting on a circular
cross-section could be allowed to be free. To do so, select a local Coordinate system for
specifying the directions in which the degree of freedom will be released. The
Coordinate system list contains only applicable coordinate systems in the model.

Select one or more of the available check boxes to release the displacement in the
corresponding axis in the selected coordinate system:

• Release displacement in x1 direction

• Release displacement in x2 direction
• For 3D components: Release displacement in x3 direction

Note that the Rigid Connector solves for global displacement degrees of freedom
(DOFs) and global rotation DOFs – unless they are explicitly prescribed. Since
releasing certain displacement field components reduces the number of equations used
to solve for the global DOFs, it may become necessary to constrain some global
displacement or rotation components to achieve static determinacy.

1100 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

The section Released Degrees of Freedom is only shown if Connection Type is Rigid (if
applicable), and if the check box Use weak constraints for rigid-flexible connection in the
section Constrain Settings is not enabled.

REACTION FORCE SETTINGS

Select Evaluate reaction forces to compute the reaction force caused by a prescribed
motion. The default is to not compute the reaction force. When selected, the
prescribed motion is implemented as a weak constraint.

Select Apply reaction only on rigid body variables to use a unidirectional constraint for
enforcing a prescribed motion. The default is that bidirectional constraints are used.
This setting is useful in a situation where a bidirectional constraint would give an
unwanted coupling in the equations. This would happen if the prescribed value of the
motion is a variable solved for in other equations.

FORMULATION
Some contributions from a rigid connector will, under geometric nonlinearity, result
in a nonsymmetric local stiffness matrix. If all other aspects of the model are such that
the global stiffness matrix would be symmetric, then such a nonsymmetric
contribution may have a heavy impact on the total solution time and memory usage.
In such cases, it is often more efficient to use an approximative local stiffness matrix
that is symmetric.

Select Use symmetric formulation for geometric nonlinearity to force all matrix
contributions from the rigid connector and its subnodes to be symmetric.

Using an approximative stiffness matrix will in general require more

iterations. However, since the computational cost per iteration will be cut
at least by a factor of two if a symmetric matrix can be used, it is usually
more efficient to ignore a weak nonsymmetry.

In particular, if the rotation of the rigid connector per time step or

parameter increment is small, there will in general be no increase in the
number of iterations at all if this option is used.

When the global stiffness matrix is nonsymmetric for other reasons, then
there is nothing to be gained from symmetrizing the contribution from
the rigid connector.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1101

 CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
On the boundaries where the rigid connector is coupled to a flexible material, all nodes
on such a boundary are constrained to move as a rigid body. As a default these
constraints are implemented as pointwise constraints. If you want to use a weak
constraint formulation, select Use weak constraints for rigid-flexible connection.

This formulation cannot be combined with the Flexible formulation of the rigid
connector, which in itself is a special form of weak constraint.

ADVANCED
When the rigid connector is added at edge or point level, automatic tests are
performed to check for selections that would result in a singularity. If these checks give
false positives, you can turn them off by clearing the Include consistency checks check
box. This could, for example, be necessary if a rigid connector, which in itself is
singular, is connected to another one in a way that forms a stable configuration.

When the Rigid Connector is added at the point level, select the Add rotational stiffness
for two-point selection check box to automatically suppress singularities when the
Include consistency checks check box is disabled. This check box allows to enter a
rotational stiffness, k, to stabilize the rigid connector. The rotational stiffness is only
added if less than three points are selected.

Select Group dependent variables in solver — From physics interface (default), Yes, or No,
to choose how to group the dependent variables added by the Rigid Connector feature
in the solver sequence.

• You can add a Harmonic Perturbation subnode for specifying a

harmonic variation of the values of the prescribed displacements and
rotations in a frequency domain analysis of perturbation type.
• You can activate and deactivate the rigid connector by assigning it to a
constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics
Modeling chapter.
• You can assign the value of the prescribed displacement and rotation to
a load group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

1102 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 • Rigid Connector
• Harmonic Perturbation
• Load Cases

Assembly with a Hinge: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Connectors_and_Mechanisms/hinge_assembly

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Connections>Rigid Connector
Solid Mechanics>Edges>Rigid Connector
Solid Mechanics>Points>Rigid Connector
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints, Interfaces>Rigid Connector, Interface
Layered Shell>Connections>Rigid Connector
Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Connector
Multibody Dynamics>Edges>Rigid Connector
Multibody Dynamics>Points>Rigid Connector

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Boundaries>Connections>Rigid Connector
Edges>Solid Mechanics>Rigid Connector
Points>Solid Mechanics>Rigid Connector

Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Interfaces>Rigid Connector, Interface

Edges>Connections>Rigid Connector

Physics tab with Multibody Dynamics selected:

Boundaries>Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Connector

Edges>Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Connector
Points>Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Connector

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1103

 Center of Rotation Nodes
For each of the following physics features, a subnode is automatically added as
indicated.

• Rigid Connector
• Initial Values (Rigid Material)
• Prescribed Displacement/Rotation
• Average Rotation

CENTER OF ROTATION: DOMAIN

Use the Center of Rotation: Domain subnode to select a set of domains whose centroid
represents the center of rotation.

CENTER OF ROTATION: BOUNDARY

Use the Center of Rotation: Boundary subnode to select a set of boundaries whose
centroid represents the center of rotation.

CENTER OF ROTATION: EDGE

Use the Center of Rotation: Edge subnode to select a set of edges whose centroid
represents the center of rotation.

CENTER OF ROTATION: POINT

Use the Center of Rotation: Point subnode to select a set of points whose centroid
represents the center of rotation.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

These nodes are automatically added when Centroid of selected entities is selected in
the parent node. They cannot be added or removed manually.

Thermal Expansion (Rigid Connector)

Add the Thermal Expansion subnode to prescribe a deformation of the rigid connector
caused by changes in temperature. This makes it possible to reduce stresses caused by
the rigid connector being rigid, while there are thermal deformations in the flexible
body to which it is attached.

Select an Input type to specify how the thermal strain is entered. The default is Secant
coefficient of thermal expansion, in which case the thermal strain is given by

1104 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

  th =   T – T ref 

here, the secant coefficient of thermal expansion  can be temperature dependent.

When Input type is Tangent coefficient of thermal expansion, the thermal strain is given
by

 T 
 th = exp 
 T ref
 t    d – 1


where t is the tangential coefficient of thermal expansion.

When Input type is Thermal strain, enter the thermal strain dL as function of
temperature explicitly.

In all three cases, the default is to take values From material. When entering data as
User defined, select Isotropic, Diagonal, or Symmetric to enter one or more components
for a general coefficient of the thermal expansion tensor or the thermal strain tensor.
When a nonisotropic input is used, the axis orientations are given by the coordinate
system selection in the parent node.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it
is described in the documentation for the Thermal Expansion (Rigid
Connector) node.

THERMAL EXPANSION PROPERTIES

Specify the thermal properties that define the thermal strain in the rigid connector.

Select Inherit from domain to take the thermal expansion data from the domain to
which it is attached. This should only be used when:

• The temperature and the thermal expansion coefficient do not have a spatial
variation.
• The virtual material in the rigid connector has the same thermal expansion as the
domain itself.

When Inherit from domain is not selected, enter:

• A value or expression for the Volume reference temperature Tref that is the
temperature at which there are no thermal displacements at the constraints.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1105

 • A value or expression for Temperature T, specifying the temperature distribution of
the surrounding material. Any temperature variation must be an explicit function of
the material frame coordinates. It is not possible to use a computed temperature
distribution.
• Select the Input type — Secant coefficient of thermal expansion, Tangent coefficient of
thermal expansion, or Thermal strain to specify how the thermal strain is entered. The
default values From material are used. This requires that a material has been assigned
to the boundaries, edges, or points where the constraint is active. When a
nonisotropic coefficient of thermal expansion is used, the axis orientations are given
by the coordinate system selected in the Coordinate System Selection section.
Enter the coordinates of the Reference point, the point where the displacement is zero.
The choice of reference point only affects the rigid body motion. If there are several
different constraints with a Thermal Expansion subnode, the same reference point
should usually be selected in all of them.

• Constraints and Thermal Expansion in the Structural Mechanics

Modeling chapter.
• Thermal Expansion of Constraints in the Structural Mechanics Theory
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Rigid Connector>Thermal Expansion
Layered Shell>Rigid Connector>Thermal Expansion
Layered Shell>Rigid Connector, Interface>Thermal Expansion
Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Connector>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Rigid Connector or Rigid Connector, Interface node selected in the model
tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Applied Force (Rigid Connector)

Use the Applied Force to apply a force to the rigid connector. The force can act at an
arbitrary position in space, and if it is not located at the center of rotation, there is also

1106 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

a moment contribution. The force that you specify is interpreted in the selected
coordinate system.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The Coordinate system list contains all applicable coordinate systems in the model.
Select a Coordinate system for specifying the directions of the force.

In order to be applicable, a coordinate system must have axis directions

that are independent of the location in space.

LOCATION
Select an option from the list: Center of rotation or User defined. This is the location
where the force is applied.

• For Center of rotation, the location of the load is taken as the center of rotation as
defined in the parent Rigid Connector node.
• For User defined, enter the Location (global coordinates), Xp, in the table.

Select the Offset check box to add an optional offset vector to the definition of the
location. Enter values for the offset vector Xoffset.

The location used is the sum of the vector obtained from any of the input methods and
the offset vector.

X P = X P,input + X offset

APPLIED FORCE
Select the Direction of the applied force — Space-fixed direction or Body-fixed direction.

• For Space-fixed direction, the directions of the applied force F are fixed with respect
to the selected Coordinate system.
• For Body-fixed direction, the directions of the applied force F follow the rotation of
the rigid domain.

Enter values or expressions for the components of the Applied force F. The direction
coordinate names can vary depending on the selected coordinate system.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1107

 If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Rigid Connector>Applied Force
Shell>Rigid Connector>Applied Force
Beam>Rigid Connector>Applied Force
Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Connector>Applied Force

Ribbon
Physics tab with Rigid Connector node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Applied Force

Applied Moment (Rigid Connector)

Use the Applied Moment subnode to apply a moment at the center of rotation. The
moment that you specify is interpreted in the selected coordinate system.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The Coordinate system list contains all applicable coordinate systems in the model.
Select a Coordinate system for specifying the directions of the moment.

1108 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

In 2D, the moment is a scalar input, and is not affected by the coordinate system
selection.

In order to be applicable, a coordinate system must have axis directions

that are independent of the location in space.

APPLIED MOMENT
For 3D components, select the Direction of the applied moment — Space-fixed direction
or Body-fixed direction.

• For Space-fixed direction, the directions of the applied moment M are fixed with
respect to the selected Coordinate system.
• For Body-fixed direction, the directions of the applied moment M follow the rotation
of the rigid domain.

Enter values or expressions for the Applied moment M.

• For 3D components, enter the x, y, and z components of M.

• For 2D components, enter the applied moment around the z-axis, Mz.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1109

 • You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Rigid Connector>Applied Moment
Shell>Rigid Connector>Applied Moment
Beam>Rigid Connector>Applied Moment
Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Connector>Applied Moment

Ribbon
Physics tab with Rigid Connector node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Applied Moment

Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid Connector)

Use the Mass and Moment of Inertia subnode to add inertia properties to the rigid
connector for dynamic analysis.

CENTER OF MASS
Here you specify the location of the center of mass for the contribution given in this
node. Select an option from the list: Center of rotation or User defined.

• For Center of rotation, the location of the load is taken as the center of rotation as
defined in the parent Rigid Connector node.
• For User defined, enter the Global coordinates of center of mass, Xm, in the table.

Select the Offset check box to add an optional offset vector to the definition of the
location. Enter values for the offset vector Xoffset.

The center of mass used is the sum of the vector obtained from any of the input
methods and the offset vector.

1110 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 X m = X m,input + X offset

MASS AND MOMENT OF INERTIA

Enter values or expressions for the Mass m. Also enter values or expressions for the
Moment of inertia I. The axis directions of the moment of inertia tensor are given by
the coordinate system selection in the parent Rigid Connector node.

• For 3D components, select Isotropic, Diagonal, or Symmetric and enter one or more
components for the tensor I.
• For 2D components, enter a value or expression for Iz.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Rigid Connector>Mass and Moment of Inertia
Shell>Rigid Connector>Mass and Moment of Inertia
Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Connector>Mass and Moment of Inertia

Ribbon
Physics tab with Rigid Connector node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Mass and Moment of Inertia

Spring Foundation (Rigid Connector)

Add a Spring Foundation subnode to specify a spring or damper connecting the rigid
connector to a fixed ground. The spring can act at an arbitrary position in space. A
translational spring implicitly contributes also to the moment if it is not applied at the
center of rotation of the rigid connector. The data that you specify is interpreted in the
selected coordinate system.

LOCATION
Select an option from the list: Center of rotation or User defined. This is the location
where the spring is attached.

• For Center of rotation, the spring will be attached to the center of rotation as defined
in the parent Rigid Connector node.
• For User defined, enter the Location (global coordinates), Xp, in the table.

Select the Offset check box to add an optional offset vector to the definition of the
location. Enter values for the offset vector Xoffset.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1111

 The location used is the sum of the vector obtained from any of the input methods and
the offset vector.

X P = X P,input + X offset

SPRING
Select a Spring type — Spring constant or Force as function of extension.

When Spring constant is selected, the translational spring matrix can be entered as
Isotropic, Diagonal, Symmetric, or Full. For Isotropic the same spring constant is used in
all the diagonal elements of the spring matrix.

When Force as function of extension is selected, enter the force vector Fs. It must be a
function of the built-in variables describing the spring extension. The default value
indicates the correct variable name, for example, solid.rig1.uspring1_spf1.

ROTATIONAL SPRING
Select a Spring type — Spring constant or Moment as function of rotation.

When Spring constant is selected, the rotational spring matrix can be entered as
Isotropic, Diagonal, Symmetric, or Full. For Isotropic the same spring constant is used in
all the diagonal elements of the spring matrix.

When Moment as function of rotation is selected, enter the moment vector Ms. It must
be a function of the built-in variables describing the spring extension. The default value
indicates the correct variable name, for example, solid.rig1.thspring1_spf1.

In 2D the Spring constant is only a single scalar, representing the stiffness

for rotation around the out-of-plane direction. Similarly, the Moment as
function of rotation is a single scalar.

LOSS FACTOR DAMPING

From the Loss factor type list, select Scalar (Same for all components) or Individual
components.

• For Scalar (Same for all components) enter a single Loss factor for spring u,s, which
is used to multiply all values of the spring matrix or spring force vector.
• For Individual components select Isotropic, Diagonal, Symmetric, or Full, then enter
values or expressions in the table for the Loss factor for spring u,k or f based on
space dimension. The loss factors act on the corresponding components of the

1112 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 spring matrix or spring force vector. If you select Isotropic, the effect is the same as
when you select Diagonal and enter the same value for all diagonal elements.

ROTATIONAL LOSS FACTOR DAMPING

All settings in this section are analogous to the corresponding settings in the Loss
Factor Dampingsection. In 2D, only one scalar loss factor, corresponding to rotation
around the out-of-plane axis, is given.

VISCOUS DAMPING
Select Isotropic, Diagonal, Symmetric, or Full, then enter values or expressions for the
damping constants du in the table. If you select Isotropic, the effect is the same as when
you select Diagonal and enter the same value for all diagonal elements.

VISCOUS ROTATIONAL DAMPING

All settings in this section are analogous to the corresponding settings in the Viscous
Damping section. In 2D, only one scalar viscous damping, corresponding to rotation
around the out-of-plane axis, is given.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Rigid Connector>Spring Foundation
Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Connector>Spring Foundation
Shell>Rigid Connector>Spring Foundation
Beam>Rigid Connector>Spring Foundation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Rigid Connector node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Spring Foundation

Attachment
The Attachment node is used to define a set of boundaries on a flexible domain which
can be used to connect it with other components through a joint in the Multibody
Dynamics interface.

There are two formulations of the attachment. In the default formulation, all the
selected boundaries behave as if they were connected by a common rigid body. In some
cases, this give an unwanted stiffening or unrealistic local stresses. You can then switch
to a flexible formulation where the constraint is applied only in an average sense.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1113

 Using attachments is optional when connecting a rigid component. It is, however,
useful if you consider switching between a rigid and a flexible representation, since you
then do not have to change the settings in the joints.

Attachments can be added to boundaries in a Multibody Dynamics or a Solid

Mechanics interface, to edges in a Shell or Layered Shell interface, or to points in a
Beam interface. This makes it possible to use a joint in the Multibody Dynamics
interface for connecting parts modeled in different physics interfaces.

The use of attachments is discussed in the Attachments section in the

Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

The Attachment node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/). It is available in 3D, 2D, and 2D
axisymmetry.

CONNECTION TYPE
Select Rigid or Flexible.

When the connection type is rigid, the whole attachment selection acts as a virtual rigid
object. This will cause a stiffening of the part with the attachment, and local stress
concentrations at the selected boundaries if the domain with the attachment is flexible.

In the flexible formulation, the selected boundaries are allowed to have internal
deformations, and the kinematic constraints are fulfilled only in an average sense. This
will essentially provide a statically equivalent load distribution over the boundaries.

If a selected boundary is located on a rigid domain, the connection type setting does
not matter. The rigid formulation is always used.

1114 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

ADVANCED
Select Group dependent variables in solver — From physics interface (default), Yes, or No,
to choose how to group in the solver sequence the dependent variables added by the
Attachment feature.

With the flexible formulation, some extra degrees of freedom are added
for each attachment. In order to get good convergence properties for a
nonlinear solution, these variables must have a good scaling.

When a new solver sequence is generated, then an appropriate manual

scaling is automatically set for these variables.

If, however, an existing solver sequence was generated while Connection

Type was set to Rigid, and you then change to Flexible, no such scaling will
be present. In this case, you either have to regenerate the solver sequence,
or set the scaling manually under the Dependent Variables node in each
study step.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Connections>Attachment

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Boundaries>Connections>Attachment

Thermal Expansion (Attachment)

Add the Thermal Expansion subnode to prescribe a deformation of the attachment
caused by changes in temperature. This makes it possible to reduce stresses caused by
the attachment being rigid, while there are thermal deformations in the flexible body
to which it is attached.

[Select an Input type to specify how the thermal strain is entered. The default is Secant
coefficient of thermal expansion, in which case the thermal strain is given by

 th =   T – T ref 

here, the secant coefficient of thermal expansion  can be temperature dependent.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1115

 When Input type is Tangent coefficient of thermal expansion, the thermal strain is given
by

 T 
 th = exp 
 T ref
 t    d – 1


where t is the tangential coefficient of thermal expansion.

When Input type is Thermal strain, enter the thermal strain dL as function of
temperature explicitly.

In all three cases, the default is to take values From material. When entering data as
User defined, select Isotropic, Diagonal, or Symmetric to enter one or more components
for a general coefficient of the thermal expansion tensor or the thermal strain tensor.
When a nonisotropic input is used, the axis orientations are given by the coordinate
system selection in the parent node.

THERMAL EXPANSION PROPERTIES

Specify the thermal properties that define the thermal strain in the attachment.

Select Inherit from domain to take the thermal expansion data from the domain to
which it is attached. This should only be used when:

• The temperature and the thermal expansion coefficient do not have a spatial
variation.
• The virtual material in the attachment has the same thermal expansion as the
domain itself.

When Inherit from domain is not selected, enter:

• A value or expression for the Volume reference temperature Tref that is the
temperature at which there are no thermal displacements at the constraints.
• A value or expression for Temperature T, specifying the temperature distribution of
the surrounding material. Any temperature variation must be an explicit function of
the material frame coordinates. It is not possible to use a computed temperature
distribution.
• Select the Input type — Secant coefficient of thermal expansion, Tangent coefficient of
thermal expansion, or Thermal strain to specify how the thermal strain is entered. The
default values From material are used. This requires that a material has been assigned
to the boundaries, edges, or points where the constraint is active. When a

1116 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 nonisotropic coefficient of thermal expansion is used, the axis orientations are given
by the coordinate system selected in the Coordinate System Selection section.
Enter the coordinates of the Reference point, the point where the displacement is zero.
The choice of reference point only affects the rigid body motion. If there are several
different constraints with a Thermal Expansion subnode, the same reference point
should usually be selected in all of them.

• Constraints and Thermal Expansion in the Structural Mechanics

Modeling chapter.
• Thermal Expansion of Constraints in the Structural Mechanics Theory
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Attachment>Thermal Expansion
Multibody Dynamics>Attachment>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Attachment node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Reduced Flexible Components

Add a Reduced Flexible Components node to define one or more flexible parts of the
structure as a reduced-order model (ROM) for component mode synthesis (CMS).
When the settings in this node and its Component Definition subnodes are ready, press
the Configure CMS Study ( ) button to set up the study sequence that generates the
ROMs for all selected components.

The Reduced Flexible Components node is only available with some COMSOL products
(see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/). It is available in 3D and
2D.

COMPONENT MODE SYNTHESIS

Select a Component Definition — Detect from geometry or User defined. If Detect from
geometry is used, then a geometric analysis is performed, and the selection is
subdivided into a number of disjoint components. For each such component found, a

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1117

 Component Definition subnode is added. In order to do manual selection of the
domains to be included in the reduced components, select User defined.

Enter a required Number of eigenmodes to be included in the dynamic representation

of each reduced component. This value can be modified for individual components in
the settings in the Component Definition nodes.

ADVANCED
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

Select the Include load contributions in Reduced Components check box if any loads in
the physics interface should be part of the reduced component. A load that is included
in a reduced component will act when that reduced component is used in a global
study. In order to avoid double contributions, that same load must then be disabled
when running the global study. The default is such that this check box is cleared, in
which case loads are not included in the reduced components and will be only active
when running the global study.

When Synchronize ‘Solve for’ study setting for Reduced Components is selected, the Solve
for column in the table in the Physics and Variables Selection section in applicable study
steps is automatically managed for consistency between ROMs and their generating
physics interface. To take manual control, clear this check box.

When Include connections and pairs in component definition is selected, geometrically

disconnected domains that are connected by pair features or connection features in the
Shell interface are merged. Such features include:

• Continuity
• Thin elastic layer
• Boundary to Boundary
• Edge to Boundary
• Edge to Edge.

See also

• Component Mode Synthesis in the Structural Mechanics Modeling

chapter.
• Model Reduction in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

1118 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>More>Reduced Flexible Components
Shell>More>Reduced Flexible Components
Multibody Dynamics>More>Reduced Flexible Components

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics, Shell, or Multibody Dynamics selected:

Domains>More>Reduced Flexible Components

Component Definition
The Component Definition subnode under Reduced Flexible Components is used for
selecting the domains that form a reduced component. By default, a number of
Component Definition nodes are automatically generated when a selection is made in the
parent node. Each Component Definition node then contains a selection of domains that
form a contiguous object, based on an analysis of the geometry.

You can modify the initial automatic selections, and add or remove Component
Definition nodes as needed. To make manual selections possible, you must set
Component Definition to User defined in the parent node.

The Component Definition node is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

COMPONENT MODE SYNTHESIS

Select the Number of eigenmodes to be used when building this reduced component.
The default is From parent. Select User defined to enter another value.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Reduced Flexible Components>Component Definition
Shell>Reduced Flexible Components>Component Definition
Multibody Dynamics>Reduced Flexible Components>Component Definition

Ribbon
Physics tab with Reduced Flexible Components node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Component Definition

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1119

 Fixed Joint
The Fixed Joint node is mainly intended for connecting reduced-order models in the
context of Component Mode Synthesis. A fixed joint connects, for example, two
attachments so that they form a common rigid region.

• If a Multibody Dynamics Module license is available, you can get access

to many different joint types by adding a Multibody Dynamics
interface to your model.
• In contexts other than component mode synthesis, connecting two
parts by a Rigid Connector is usually a more natural approach.

The Fixed Joint node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

ATTACHMENT SELECTION
Select a Source and a Destination attachment from the lists. You can select any
Attachment or Rigid Material in the model. In case that there is a Multibody Dynamics
interface in the model, also such features as Spur Gear, Helical Gear, Bevel Gear, Worm
Gear, Spur Rack, and Helical Rack can be selected. In Source, an additional option, Fixed,
is also available. When Fixed is selected, the source side of the joint is fixed in space,
and not connected to any modeled parts. If any Base Motion nodes are present in a
Multibody Dynamics interface, these also appear in the list for the Source attachment.
Selecting a base motion gives a behavior similar to using Fixed, with the exception that
the base now can have a nonzero prescribed displacement, velocity, or acceleration.

In large models, the list of available attachments can become long. You can then create
geometric filters to narrow down the search. When the Use selection filter check box is
selected, two subnodes named Source Filter and Destination Filter are added to the
joint node. In these subnodes you can make graphic selections of the objects whose
attachments should be shown in the Source and a Destination lists.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Fixed Joint
Shell>Fixed Joint

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics or Shell selected in the Model Builder tree:

1120 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Global>Solid Mechanics>Fixed Joint

Source Filter
When you select domains in this node, the Source list in the parent Fixed Joint node will
only contain attachments and rigid domains that are part of the selection. The selection
rules are:

• If any part of an active rigid domain is within the selection, that rigid domain will
appear in the list.
• If any boundary of an active attachment is adjacent to the selected domains, that
attachment will appear in the list.
• If the selection is such that no attachments or rigid domains satisfy the rules above,
the Source list in the parent node will only contain the entry None.
• If the selection is such that some attachments or rigid domains satisfy the rules
above, the None entry in the Source list in the parent node will be removed, and one
of the attachments or rigid domains will be selected as default. This means that if
the selection is such that the Source list has only one unique item, this item is
automatically selected.
• If the selection is empty, the behavior is as if Use selection filter were not selected.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

This node is automatically created when the Use selection filter check box is selected in
the Attachment Selection section in the parent Fixed Joint node. The Source Filter node
cannot be added or removed manually.

Destination Filter
When you select domains in this node, the Destination list in the parent Fixed Joint node
will only contain attachments and rigid domains which are part of the selection. The
selection rules are described in Source Filter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

This node is automatically created when the Use selection filter check box is selected in
the Attachment Selection section in the parent Fixed Joint node.The Destination Filter
node cannot be added or removed manually.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1121

 Contact
In the Contact node, you define the mechanical and numerical properties for a set of
contact pairs in a contact analysis. Use it for modeling structural contact and
multiphysics contact. In the latter case, you will also need to add corresponding pair
conditions in the other participating physics interfaces.

In the contact pair, the destination side selection must be part of the physics interface
in which you add the Contact node. The source side selection can be any kind of
meshed object, but if it is part of the current physics interface, more options are made
available. It is also possible to use the same selection for both the destination and
source side to, for example, model self-contact. Note that the source and destination
may not partially intersect each other.

• If friction is to be included in the modeling, add a Friction or a Slip Velocity

subnode. The latter provides a simplified modeling when state of the friction and
the direction of slip between the two boundaries is known.
• You can compute the wear caused by sliding by adding a Wear subnode.
• You can also model perfect bonding and debonding of the contact pair using the
Adhesion and Decohesion subnodes.

The Wear subnode is not available in the Layered Shell interface.

If contact pairs are present and active in the model component, a default Contact node
is added to the physics with all contact pairs selected. Contact pairs selected in a Contact
node are exclusive, which means that if a contact pair is selected more than once, only
its last occurrence in the physics tree will be active. Hence, by adding new Contact
nodes, physics properties and settings related to specific contact pairs can be set.

Moreover, contact equations are only added if and only if a destination boundary of an
active contact pair intersects with the selection of the physics interface. If only source
boundaries are active, it is, however, possible to for example add offsets to the contact
surface. This can be useful when setting up contact conditions across multiple physics
interfaces.

Which of the Contact settings described below are visible, depends on the applicable
selections of the specific feature.

• If both source and destination boundaries are applicable, all settings are visible.

1122 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

• If only source boundaries are applicable, only settings that affect variables on the
source boundaries are visible.
• If only destination boundaries are applicable, only settings that affect equations and
variables on the destination boundaries are visible.
• If no boundaries are applicable, no settings are visible.
If no contact pairs are selected, all settings are visible.

Updating the settings window of the Contact node based on the applicable
selections can result in some delay for models with a large number of pairs.
This functionality can be turned off by disabling the Selection Information
( ) option in the Show More Options dialog ( ), which may improve
the responsiveness of the user interface.

The Contact node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

In order to specify contact conditions, one or more Contact Pair nodes

must be available in the Definitions branch.

If you have several physics interfaces with displacement degrees of

freedom on the same geometrical objects in your model, there are special
considerations for contact modeling. The gap and slip are determined by
the locations of the contacting objects in the spatial frame. This means
that you can only model contact between physics interfaces that either
control the spatial frame, or have displacements which are identical to
such an interface.

When a Contact node is present in your model, all studies are

geometrically nonlinear. The Include geometric nonlinearity check box on
the study step Settings window is selected and cannot be cleared.

For the default Contact node, selecting Disconnect pair in the Contact
method section removes the above requirement and makes it possible to
clear the Include geometric nonlinearity check box.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1123

 • Contact Modeling
• Contact Analysis Theory

CONTACT SURFACE
When Contact is used in a Layered Shell, Shell, or Membrane interface, settings that
control which side of the boundary that can come into contact are also made available.

For Contact surface, destination and Contact surface, source, select Top or Bottom. The
top side is the one with an outward pointing normal vector.

This section is only present when Contact is used in a:

• Layered Shell interface

• Shell interface
• Membrane interface

For a longer discussion about controlling and visualizing normal vectors,

see Contact Detection

CONTACT METHOD
Select the algorithm used for computing the contact, Penalty (default); Penalty,
dynamic; Augmented Lagrangian; Augmented Lagrangian, dynamic; or Nitsche. The
augmented Lagrangian method is in general more accurate than the penalty method,
but also more expensive in terms of computer resources. The Nitsche method is also a
more accurate method that is available with it the Solid Mechanics and Multibody
Dynamics interfaces.

When Augmented Lagrangian is selected, it is also possible to choose Solution method —

Segregated (default) or Fully coupled. This setting affects how the default solver
suggestion is set up when generating a new solver sequence, as well as some variable
definitions and equations.

The Penalty, dynamic; and Augmented Lagrangian, dynamic formulations are intended
for use in time-dependent studies to model dynamics contact, such as soft impact type
events.

1124 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

The Nitsche method can conceptually be seen as an enhancement of the penalty
method where the surface traction of the adjacent domains is utilized to improve
accuracy. When selected, it is also possible to choose a Formulation — Symmetric,
Skew-symmetric, or Nonsymmetric (default). This setting controls how the equations
added to implement the contact condition are written and can influence the robustness
and performance of the solution. The default Nonsymmetric formulation is the least
expensive of the three, and, in the majority of cases, gives an accurate and robust
solution.

For the default Contact node, it is possible to disconnect the selected contact pairs by
selecting Disconnect pair. When the pairs are disconnected, they will add contributions
by adding equations or variables, but the region is still identified as a pair region. Also,
the presence of the Contact node will require the study to be geometrically nonlinear.

CONTACT PRESSURE PENALTY FACTOR

The settings in this section are used to control the penalty factor used by the pressure
contact model. The settings available depend on the chosen contact method.

In the penalty method, the penalty factor is the actual stiffness of a spring
inserted between the boundaries in the contact pair.

In the augmented Lagrangian method, the penalty factor controls how

“hard” the interface surface is during the iterations, but it does not affect
the converged results. You can consider the penalty factor as a spring
giving a resisting force if the boundaries in the contact pair have an
overclosure. For a segregated solution, a larger value gives faster but less
stable convergence to the state where there is no overclosure. A too large
value can create convergence difficulties, particularly if the overclosure is
large. For a coupled solution, the penalty factor mainly affects the
structure of the underlying equation, which can alter the convergence
properties of the model.

In the Nitsche method, the penalty factor is mainly a stabilization

parameter and, in theory, it does not affect the accuracy of the solution.
However, using a too low penalty factor causes instability which
deteriorates the accuracy of the solution.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1125

 Settings for the Penalty Method
Select the type of Penalty factor control — Automatic; Automatic, soft; Manual tuning;
Nonlinear; or User defined.

• Automatic and Automatic, soft provide predefined values for the penalty factor
multiplier fp. The Automatic, soft is mainly intended for bending dominated
problems, typically encountered when using contact with the Shell interface.
• For Manual Tuning, enter a Penalty factor multiplier fp. The default value is 1, which
corresponds to the Automatic option.
• For Nonlinear, enter an Initial penalty factor multiplier fp,init and a Final penalty factor
multiplier fp,fin. Also enter a value for the Transition gap, gn,tr to control when to
switch between the initial and final penalty factors. The default value is
<phys>.hmin_dst.*1e-3.

• For User defined, enter a Contact pressure penalty factor pn. The default value is
<phys>.<contact_tag>.E_char/<phys>.hmin_dst. The variable E_char
contains the value given as characteristic stiffness, and hmin_dst is the minimum
element size on the destination selection.

Click to select Offset penalty function if you want the contact pressure to be nonzero
when the gap is zero. In that case, also enter a value for the Contact pressure at zero
gap T0. Through this option, you can to some extent compensate for the overclosure
that is inherent to the penalty method if you know an approximate value of the
expected contact pressure.

Settings for the Penalty, Dynamic Method

Select the type of Penalty factor control — Automatic; Automatic, soft; Manual tuning;
Nonlinear; Viscous only; or User defined. The settings are the same as for the standard
penalty method, except for the Viscous only option. By selecting Viscous only, the
stiffness terms of the penalty contact are omitted from the formulation.

Select the type of Viscous penalty factor control — Automatic or User defined. For
Automatic, enter a value for the Characteristic time n. This value can be used as a
multiplier for the viscous penalty factor, but should as a rule-of-thumb be in the same
order of magnitude as the duration of the contact event. When User defined is selected,
enter the Viscous contact pressure penalty factor pnv. The default value is
(<phys>.<contact_tag>.E_char/<phys>.hmin_dst)*1[ms]. The variable E_char
contains the value given as characteristic stiffness, and hmin_dst is the minimum
element size on the destination selection.

1126 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Settings for the Segregated Augmented Lagrangian Method
Select the type of Penalty factor control — Preset (default), Manual tuning, or User
defined. The settings give access to an increasing level of detailed control of the penalty
factor, and are available when Solution method is set to Segregated.

If you select Preset, you have the options to select Tuned for to be Stability (default),
Speed, or Bending. If the contact boundaries move toward each other, so that large
overclosures can be expected in the initial outer iterations, then Stability is the better
choice since it relaxes the penalty factor during the first iterations. In many models,
where the contact state does not change much, using Speed gives significant
performance improvements. The Bending option provides a low penalty factor equal to
the one used for the first iterations when using Stability. This option thus provides a
conservative algorithm that can be particularly useful for problems dominated by
bending. However, it might require many iterations to reach convergence.

The Penalty factor control selection Manual tuning gives you access to a number of
detailed settings for the penalty factor.

Enter a Penalty factor multiplier fp. The default value is 1. From Use relaxation, select
Always (default), Never, or Conditional. When using relaxation, the penalty factor is
decreased during the first outer iterations in each parameter or time step. The purpose
is to avoid large residuals in the case of a large initial overclosure between the
contacting boundaries.

If relaxation is used, enter the Initial Relaxation Factor ri. The default is 0.005. This
factor multiplies the penalty factor in the first outer iteration. Enter Number of
iterations with relaxation Nr. The default value is 4. The penalty factor is gradually
increased up to its full value, which is used in the outer iteration after the one where
the specified number of iterations with relaxation have been reached.

If Use relaxation is set to Conditional, enter a Suppression criterion. The default is 0,

which means that the relaxation is used for all parameter or time steps. This is a
Boolean expression which, when fulfilled, suppresses the relaxation. If you, for
example, know that your problem needs relaxation only during the initial phase of the
solution, enter an expression like load_parameter>0.1. It is also possible to use
expressions based on the solution, for example abs(solid.cnt1.gap)<0.05*h. This
expression is true when the gap or overclosure is small compared to the mesh size. It
could be taken as an indication that the contact problem is almost converged, and thus
not in need of any relaxation of the penalty factor.

Using the Penalty factor control selection User defined gives you the possibility to enter
an explicit expression for penalty factor. Enter the Contact pressure penalty factor pn.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1127

 The default is (min(1e-3*(5^niterCMP,1))*<phys>.<contact_tag>.E_char)/
<phys>.hmin_dst. The default value causes the penalty factor to be increased during
the outer iterations and takes material stiffness and element size at the contact surface
into account. The variable E_char contains the value given as characteristic stiffness,
and hmin_dst is the minimum element size on the destination selection.

The default values when Manual tuning is selected corresponds to the

default expression when User defined is selected. The same expression is
also used internally when Preset is used with the Stability option.

Settings for the Fully Coupled Augmented Lagrangian Method and the Nitsche
Method
Select the type of Penalty factor control — Automatic (default), Manual tuning, or User
defined. These settings are available when Solution method is set to Fully Coupled.

• For Manual Tuning, enter a Penalty factor multiplier fp. The default value is 1, which
corresponds to the Automatic option.
• For User defined, enter a Contact pressure penalty factor pn. The default value is
<phys>.<contact_tag>.E_char/<phys>.hmin_dst. The variable E_char
contains the value given as characteristic stiffness, and hmin_dst is the minimum
element size on the destination selection.

Settings for the Augmented Lagrangian, Dynamic Method

Select the type of Viscous penalty factor control — Preset (default), Manual tuning, or
User defined. The settings give access to an increasing level of detailed control of the
penalty factor.

When Preset or Manual Tuning is selected, enter a value for the Characteristic time n.
This value can be used as a multiplier for the viscous penalty factor, but should as a
rule-of-thumb be in the same order of magnitude as the duration of the contact event.
The same settings as for the segregated augmented Lagrangian method are available
for the Preset and Manual Tuning options. However, the default is to use no relaxation
when the Augmented Lagrangian, dynamic method is used.

Using the Penalty factor control selection User defined gives you the possibility to enter
an explicit expression for penalty factor. Enter the Viscous contact pressure penalty
factor pnv. The default value is (<phys>.<contact_tag>.E_char/
<phys>.hmin_dst)*1[ms]. The variable E_char contains the value given as
characteristic stiffness, and hmin_dst is the minimum element size on the destination
selection.

1128 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

TRIGGER CUTBACK
Select the Trigger cutback check box to enable additional control over solver cutbacks
in a time-dependent study or a stationary study with an auxiliary sweep. Enter a logical
expression for Cutback criterion. When this expression evaluates to a nonzero value, the
iterations are immediately terminated, and the solver tries to use a smaller value of the
time or parameter. You can use this setting to avoid that the solver spends many
iterations trying to recover from an unphysical state. As an example, if you know that
the destination boundary is confined, so that it will not move more than 1 mm
anywhere, an entry like solid.disp > 5[mm] can be useful, since it is unlikely that a
displacement of this size should appear during a successful iteration history.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Time Dependent and Stationary

• About the Time-Dependent Solver and About the Parametric Solver

CONTACT SURFACE OFFSET AND ADJUSTMENT

Enter a value or expression for Offset from geometric destination surface doffset,d. The
offset is subtracted from the gap in the normal direction of the destination surface.

Enter a value or expression for Offset from geometric source surface doffset,s. The offset
is subtracted from the gap in the normal direction of the source surface.

Select Force zero initial gap to compensate for any difference caused by irregularities in
geometry or mesh when the two contacting boundaries should exactly coincide in the
initial state. Gaps smaller than the tolerance gap are adjusted to be zero before any

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1129

 offset is added. By default, gap is set to Inf, meaning that all gaps detected are
adjusted to be zero.

Use the offset properties to adjust initial clearances (negative values) or

interference fits (positive values) without having to change the geometry.
These properties are also useful for studying the effects of geometrical
tolerance when the structure is still modeled using its nominal size.

When combined with Force zero initial gap, the offset will be exact in the
sense that it is not affected by mesh irregularities.

The adjustment made by Force zero initial gap does not move any nodes
in the mesh. Effectively, it adds an extra hidden offset, which compensates
for the initial distance between source and destination boundaries.

Contact Surface Offset and Adjustment

INITIAL VALUE
This section is only available when Formulation is Augmented Lagrangian or Augmented
Lagrangian, dynamic. In the augmented Lagrangian method, the contact pressure is
introduced as an extra dependent variable on the destination boundaries. Enter a value
for Contact pressure Tn to supply an initial value for the contact pressure.

• It is possible to speed up the convergence by supplying a guess of the

correct order of magnitude of the contact pressure.
• If not all the contacting parts are fully constrained, it is sometimes
possible to avoid singular problems by introducing a nonzero value for
the contact pressure.

DISCRETIZATION
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

This section is only available when Formulation is Augmented Lagrangian or Augmented

Lagrangian, dynamic. In the augmented Lagrangian method, the contact pressure is
introduced as an extra dependent variable on the destination boundaries. You can

1130 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

modify the shape function type and order of this field. The default is to always use a
linear shape function order for the contact pressure, but using a higher order can
improve the accuracy of the contact condition. A value up to the discretization order
of the displacement field is allowed. This setting also affects the shape function for
dependent variables added by any subnode added to the Contact node.

To change the discretization, select Shape function type — Lagrange or Nodal

serendipity.

• For the Lagrange shape-function type, select Element order — Linear, Quadratic,
Cubic, Quartic, or (in 2D) Quintic.
• For the Nodal serendipity shape-function type, select Element order — Quadratic,
Cubic, or Quartic. The Nodal serendipity option is not available when the order of the
displacement field is linear.

The lumped solver used for the segregated augmented Lagrangian method is only
optimal when the shape function order is Linear; otherwise, use a standard segregated
step instead. The proper solver sequence is set up when adding a new default solver.

QUADRATURE SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

Typically, the expression in the contact weak equations include discontinuous

functions. It is sometimes preferable to use a high integration order to improve the
accuracy of the numerical integration of such expression. By default, the numerical
integration of the contact weak equations is two times the shape function order of the
displacement field. Clear the Use automatic quadrature settings check box to specify a
custom order. When the check box is cleared, enter an integer value between 0 and 41
in the Integration order field. This setting also affects the integration order for any
subnode added to the Contact node.

• The Integration order both affects the numerical integration of the

contact weak contributions and the number of state variables used
when, for example, computing friction forces.
• Increasing the integration order increases the time spent on assembling
the system matrices each iteration. This increase can be significant if a
too high order is used since the contact mapping is done at each
integration point on the destination boundaries.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1131

 ADVANCED
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

Enter a Characteristic stiffness Echar. The default is <phys>.Eequ, the equivalent

Young’s modulus as defined by most material models. The characteristic stiffness
(stored in a variable named <phys>.<contact_tag>.E_char) is used in expressions
for the default penalty factors for both the penalty and the augmented Lagrangian
methods. The characteristic stiffness should be representative for the stiffness of the
destination domain material in a direction normal to the boundary. You may for
example need to adjust the default value in for the following cases:

• The material is strongly anisotropic. The default value is based on an average in all
directions.
• The material is highly nonlinear. The default value is based on the stiffness at zero
strain.
• The variable <phys>.Eequ is not defined by the material. This is the case for some
user-defined materials.

Multiphysics Contact Detection

When analyzing a multiphysics contact problem, the state of being in contact or not
will be passed from the contact analysis in the structural mechanics interface to other
participating physics interfaces. For numerical reasons, the gap value will however not
be exactly zero, even when the boundaries are in contact. A certain small positive value
of the gap will thus be considered as being in contact. The default Multiphysics contact
tolerance is Automatic. If you want to explicitly specify the limit of the gap considered
as being in contact, select Manual, and enter the Contact tolerance contact.

The automatic multiphysics contact detection tolerance is based on the

size of the geometric entity.

Jacobian Contribution
The equations for the contact conditions can be implemented differently in order to
influence the robustness and stability of the discretized system of equations and its
linearization. This can be controlled by the Jacobian Contribution setting.

When the Jacobian Contribution is set to Nonsymmetric, the variations of the normal
vector on the source boundary are excluded. This is the most robust implementation
for cases where the source boundary undergoes large deformation. However, it has the

1132 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

drawback of causing the global stiffness matrix to become nonsymmetric, which
increases the memory requirement in the linear solver.

The Symmetric option can be used instead when this is problematic for the linear solver.
For this option, the main contact equations does not force a nonsymmetric stiffness
matrix, although some subnodes may still do so. Variations of the normal vector on the
source boundary are excluded also for this option, but it is not as robust as the
Nonsymmetric option.

When the Jacobian Contribution is set to Automatic, the Nonsymmetric option is used for
contact pairs using the Deformed configuration mapping method, while the Symmetric
option is used for the Initial configuration mapping method.

When the Jacobian Contribution is set to Legacy, variations of the normal vector on the
source boundary are included, and the contribution to the global stiffness matrix is
symmetric.

For the Nitsche method, the Jacobian Contribution setting is not available, since the
equations are always formulated according to the Nonsymmetric option.

Fields Excluded from Variation

In some cases, it is not desirable to include reaction forces from all physics when setting
up the variational term of the contact weak contributions. When Fields excluded from
variation is set to Automatic, variations are taken with respect all fields expect when a
Wear subnode is added. If a Wear subnode is active and uses a Deformed geometry
formulation, variations with respect to the material mesh displacement field is excluded
in all weak equations added by Contact and its subnodes. By setting Fields excluded from
variation to Manual, it is possible to exclude variations with respect to any field present
in the model. When Manual is selected, enter a comma separated list of field names to
exclude. By default, the input field is populated with material.disp, which exclude
variations with respect to material mesh displacement field added by the deformed
geometry functionality.

Select Add contact status to solver log to get printouts about the change in the contact
state in the solver log window. Doing so will add internal dependent variables used for
tracking the contact state on the destination boundaries.

The Penalty, dynamic and Augmented Lagrangian, dynamic are dissipative formulations.
When either of these are selected in the Contact Method section, select Compute
viscous contact dissipation to compute and store to the energy dissipated by the viscous

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1133

 pressure contact. This adds one extra dependent variable and an extra distributed
ODE.

Dependent Variables in Contact Analysis

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Pairs>Contact
Shell>Pairs>Contact
Layered Shell>Pairs>Contact
Membrane>Pairs>Contact
Multibody Dynamics>Pairs>Contact

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics, Layered Shell, Shell, Membrane, or Multibody Dynamics
selected:

Pairs>Contact

Friction
By adding the Friction subnode to a Contact node, you can model static and dynamic
friction in 3D, 2D, and 2D axisymmetry.

The selection in the Friction node is the same as that of its parent Contact node. There
can only be one Friction node under a specific Contact node.

In the case that the sliding velocity is known, you can replace the Friction node by Slip
Velocity, which provides a more efficient model, since there is no need to solve for the
friction forces and slip direction. The Friction and Slip Velocity nodes are mutually
exclusive.

If Friction and Adhesion are present under the same Contact node, the friction settings
will be ignored at the locations where the adhesion criterion is fulfilled.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The friction forces are defined as boundary tractions with respect to the selected
coordinate system. The selection is limited to boundary systems.

1134 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Make sure that the tangents of the selected boundary system are well defined on all
destination boundaries.

FRICTION PARAMETERS
Select a Friction model — Coulomb, Exponential dynamic Coulomb, or User defined. The
Exponential dynamic Coulomb option is only relevant for time-dependent studies, since
the value of the friction coefficient depends on the slip velocity.

For Coulomb friction, enter a Friction coefficient .

For Exponential dynamic Coulomb friction, enter a Static friction coefficient stat, a
Dynamic friction coefficient dyn and a Friction decay coefficient dcf.

The effective friction coefficient is

–  dcf vslip
 =  dyn +   stat –  dyn e

where vslip is the slip velocity.

For both Coulomb type options, you can modify the rules for sliding by providing
minimum and maximum shear tractions.

Enter a Cohesion sliding resistance Tcohe to set a tangential traction that must be
overcome before sliding can occur. The use of cohesion will give an offset to the
friction force under sliding conditions.

Independently, you can enter a Maximum tangential traction Tt,max. When the
tangential traction exceeds this value, slip will occur, independent of the normal
pressure. The default expression is Inf, indicating that no limit on the tangential
traction is active.

The tangential friction force during sliding, Tt,crit, can be written as

T t, crit = min  T n + T cohe T t max 

Here, Tn is the contact pressure. If the tangential force is less than this value, there is
no sliding.

When Friction model is set to User defined, enter an expression to define Tt,crit. This
expression can depend on any quantity. However, the implementation of the friction
model is only correct if Tt,crit does not depend on the current friction force.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1135

 PENALTY FACTOR
The settings in this section are used to control the penalty factor used by the friction
model. The available settings depend on the chosen contact method in the parent
Contact node. When the Nitsche method is used in the parent Contact node, the same
penalty factor as in the parent contact node is used for friction. Hence this section is
not available.

Settings for the Penalty and the Penalty, Dynamic Methods

When the Penalty or Penalty, dynamic method is used in the parent Contact node, select
the Penalty factor control —Automatic (default); Automatic, soft; Manual Tuning; From
Parent; or User defined.

• Automatic and Automatic, soft provide predefined values for the penalty factor
multiplier ft.
• For Manual Tuning, enter a Penalty factor multiplier ft. The default value is 1, which
corresponds to the Automatic option.
• For From Parent, the friction force penalty factor pt = pn/3. This option is not
available for the Penalty, dynamic method if the Viscous only penalty factor control is
used in the parent Contact node.
• For User defined, enter a Friction force penalty factor pt. The default value is
(<phys>.<contact_tag>.E_char/<phys>.hmin_dst)/3.

Settings for the Augmented Lagrangian Methods

When the Augmented Lagrangian or Augmented Lagrangian, dynamic method is used in
the parent Contact node, select the Penalty factor control — From Parent, Preset,
Automatic, Manual Tuning, or User defined.

• From Parent is available when Formulation is Augmented Lagrangian, and is then the
default. When selected, the friction force penalty factor pt = pn/3
• Preset is available when Solution method is Segregated in the parent Contact node and
for the Augmented Lagrangian, dynamic, for which is the default. It provides the same
settings as described in the Contact Pressure Penalty Factor.
• Automatic is available when Solution method is Fully coupled in the parent Contact
node and provides a predefined value for the penalty factor multiplier ft.
• For Manual Tuning, enter a Penalty factor multiplier ft. The default value is 1. When
Solution method is Segregated in the parent Contact node and for the Augmented

1136 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

 Lagrangian, dynamic, additional settings are available. These are the same as
described for the Contact pressure penalty factor section.
• For User defined, enter a Friction force penalty factor pt. The default value depends
on the selected Solution method in the parent Contact node.

INITIAL VALUE
If Formulation is Augmented Lagrangian or Augmented Lagrangian, dynamic in the parent
Contact node, enter values or expressions for the components of the initial force acting
on the destination surface as Friction force Tt.

To determine whether friction effects are active when starting the solution or not,
select the Previous contact state — Not in contact or In contact.

For In contact enter values or expressions for the Previous mapped source coordinates
xm, old. These serve as initial values to compute the tangential slip. The default value
is (X, Y, Z) and indicates that the contacting boundaries are perfectly coincident in the
initial state. The mapped source coordinates are defined as the location on the source
boundary where it is hit by a certain point on the destination boundary.

The entries in this section should be given as vector components in the

material frame.

ADVANCED
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

For numerical reasons, the gap value will not be exactly zero even when the boundaries
are in contact. A certain small positive value of the gap must thus be used to determine
that the boundaries touch each other, so that friction forces can be introduced. Select
a Friction detection — Automatic or Manual. For Manual, enter an absolute value for the
Friction detection tolerance friction, which is the gap when the friction becomes active.

Select Compute frictional dissipation to compute and store to the energy dissipated by
friction. This adds one extra dependent variable and an extra distributed ODE.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1137

 You can also request that the total accumulated slip distance it stored by selecting the
Store accumulated slip check box.

The automatic friction detection tolerance is in the Solid Mechanics

interface based on the mesh element size. For the Shell and Membrane
interfaces, it is based on their thickness.

See also

• Including Friction, and The Friction Node in the Structural Mechanics

Modeling chapter.
• Tangential Contact with Friction in the Structural Mechanics Theory
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Contact>Friction
Shell>Contact>Friction
Layered Shell>Contact>Friction
Membrane>Contact>Friction
Multibody Dynamics>Contact>Friction

Ribbon
Physics tab with Contact selected in the Model Builder tree:

Attributes>Friction

Slip Velocity
The Slip Velocity node facilitates a simplified form of slip friction modeling, which can
be used in the case that the direction and speed of the sliding is known. In this case,
there is no need to solve for the friction forces and slip orientation.

The selection in the Slip Velocity node is the same as that of its parent Contact node.
There can only be one Slip Velocity node under a specific Contact node.

The Slip Velocity and Friction nodes are mutually exclusive.

1138 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

The Slip Velocity node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The slip velocity is defined as acting in the tangent plane of the destination boundary,
and is given along the directions of a boundary system.

Only boundary systems can be selected. Make sure that the tangents of the selected
boundary system are well defined on all destination boundaries.

FRICTION PARAMETERS
Select a Friction model — Coulomb, Exponential dynamic Coulomb, or User defined. Since
the velocity is prescribed, a velocity dependent friction model can be used also in a
stationary analysis.

For Coulomb friction, enter the Friction coefficient .

For Exponential dynamic Coulomb friction, enter a Static friction coefficient stat, a
Dynamic friction coefficient dyn and a Friction decay coefficient dcf.

The effective friction coefficient is

–  dcf vslip
 =  dyn +   stat –  dyn e

where vslip is the slip velocity.

For both Coulomb type models, you can modify the rules for sliding by providing
minimum and maximum shear tractions.

Enter a Cohesion sliding resistance Tcohe to provide an offset to the tangential traction.

Independently, you can enter a Maximum tangential traction Tt,max. This is the
maximum tangential traction, independent of the contact pressure. The default
expression is Inf, indicating that no limit on the tangential traction is active.

The magnitude of the tangential friction traction, Tt,crit, can be written as

T t crit = min  T n + T cohe T t max 

Here, Tn is the contact pressure.

When Friction model is set to User defined, enter an expression to define Tt,crit. This
expression can depend on any quantity. However, the implementation of the friction
model is only correct if Tt,crit does not depend implicitly on the current friction force.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1139

 PRESCRIBED VELOCITY
Enter the relative velocity between the destination and source boundaries, vslip. The
velocity is expressed in the coordinate system provided in the Coordinate System
Selection section, interpreted on the destination boundary.

ADVANCED
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

For numerical reasons, the gap value will not be exactly zero even when the boundaries
are in contact. A certain small positive value of the gap must thus be used to determine
that the boundaries touch each other, so that friction forces can be introduced. Select
a Friction detection — Automatic or Manual. For Manual, enter an absolute value for the
Friction detection tolerance friction, which is the gap when the friction becomes active.

Select Compute frictional dissipation to compute and store to the energy dissipated by
friction. This adds one extra set of state variables to be stored. The integration is
explicit, and adds only marginally to the computational cost.

You can also request that the total accumulated slip distance it stored by selecting the
Store accumulated slip check box.

• The automatic friction detection tolerance is based on the mesh

element size.
• The dissipated energy and accumulated slip require a time integration,
and are thus only available for time-dependent analysis.
• The rate of energy dissipation is always computed, even in a stationary
analysis. It can for example be used as a heat source in a heat transfer
analysis. It is stored in a variable with a name like solid.cnt1.qfric.

See also

• Including Friction, and The Slip Velocity Node in the Structural

Mechanics Modeling chapter.
• Tangential Contact with Friction in the Structural Mechanics Theory
chapter.

1140 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Contact>Slip Velocity
Shell>Contact>Slip Velocity
Solid Mechanics>Contact>Slip Velocity
Membrane>Contact>Slip Velocity
Multibody Dynamics>Contact>Slip Velocity

Ribbon
Physics tab with Contact selected in the Model Builder tree:

Attributes>Slip Velocity

Adhesion
Using the Adhesion subnode, you can add adhesion properties to a contact pair. This
functionality requires that the contact is modeled using the penalty method, and that
no offset is used in the penalty stiffness function.

The selection of the Adhesion node is the same as that of its parent Contact node. There
can only be one Adhesion node under a specific Contact node. If Adhesion and Friction
are present under the same Contact node, the friction settings will be ignored at the
locations where the adhesive activation criterion is fulfilled.

The Adhesion subnode is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The adhesive stresses are defined as boundary tractions with respect to the selected
coordinate system. The selection is limited to boundary systems. Make sure that the
tangents of the selected boundary system are well defined on all destination
boundaries.

ADHESIVE ACTIVATION
Select an Activation criterion to describe the onset of the adhesion between the source
and destination boundaries.

When the criterion is Pressure, enter the minimum contact pressure p0, at which
adhesion is initiated.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1141

 When the criterion is Gap, enter the distance between the source and destination
boundaries 0, at which adhesion is initiated. A negative value indicates that there must
be a certain overclosure before adhesion is activated.

When the criterion is User Defined, enter a Boolean expression such that when it
evaluates to true, adhesion is activated.

When the criterion is Always active, the source and destination boundaries are always
in adhesive contact, unless broken by decohesion.

ADHESIVE STIFFNESS
In this section, you specify the stiffness of the adhesive layer in the normal and
tangential directions. The adhesive normal stiffness is used in tension only; in
compression the contact pressure penalty factor is always used.

Select how to specify the Adhesive stiffness of the adhesive layer — From contact penalty
factor, User defined, or Use material data. The default is to use From contact penalty
factor, in which case the normal stiffness is the same as the Contact pressure penalty
factor specified in the settings of the parent Contact node.

To define the tangential stiffness, select Shear stiffness defined using to be either Normal
to shear ratio or Adhesive Poisson’s ratio. For Normal to shear ratio, enter the ratio
between the shear stiffness and the normal stiffness n. For Adhesive Poisson’s ratio,
enter Poisson’s ratio for the adhesive layer, , explicitly.

When Adhesive stiffness is set to User defined, enter each component of the stiffness
vector k individually.

When Adhesive stiffness is set to Use material data, the stiffness vector k is computed
from material data and layer thickness. From the Specify list, select a pair of elastic
properties — Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio, Young’s modulus and shear modulus,
or Bulk modulus and shear modulus. Each of these pairs define the elastic properties and
it is possible to convert from one set of properties to another according to Table 4-10.
For the chosen properties, select from the applicable list to use the value From material
or enter a User defined value or expression. In order to use From material, you must
have assigned a material to the selected boundaries.

1142 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Enter a Thickness, ds, to specify the physical thickness of the adhesive layer.

See also

• Including Adhesion and Decohesion, and The Adhesion Node in the

Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.
• Adhesion in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Contact>Adhesion
Shell>Contact>Adhesion
Layered Shell>Contact>Adhesion
Membrane>Contact>Adhesion
Multibody Dynamics>Contact>Adhesion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Contact selected in the Model Builder tree:

Attributes>Adhesion

Decohesion
Using the Decohesion subnode, you can add decohesion properties to a contact pair.
This functionality requires that an Adhesion subnode is present and active in the same
parent Contact node.

The selection of the Decohesion node is the same as that of its parent Contact node.
There can only be one Decohesion node under a specific Contact node.

The Decohesion subnode is only available with some COMSOL products (see https:/
/www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The adhesive stresses are defined as boundary tractions with respect to the selected
coordinate system. The selection is limited to boundary systems. Make sure that the
tangents of the selected boundary system are well defined on all destination
boundaries.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1143

 DECOHESION
Select a Cohesive zone model — Displacement-based damage or Energy-based damage to
choose the type of variable that controls the damage process.

Select a Traction separation law — Linear, Exponential, Polynomial, or Multilinear. The

definition of these differ between the two cohesive zone models, and the last option is
available only for Displacement-based damage.

For the displacement-based damage models, enter:

• Tensile strength, t. This is the peak stress in pure tension.

• Shear strength, s. This is the peak stress in pure shear.
• Tensile energy release rate, Gct. This is the energy released during the whole
decohesion process in a state of pure tension.
• Shear energy release rate, Gcs. This is the energy released during the whole
decohesion process in a state of pure shear.

For the Multilinear separation law, also enter the Shape factor, .

When the traction separation law is Linear, Exponential, or Polynomial, select the Mixed
mode criterion to be either Power law or Benzeggagh-Kenane. In either case, enter the
Mode mixity exponent . The mixed mode criterion determines how normal and shear
components are combined into a single scalar failure criterion. For the Multilinear
separation law, the mixed mode criterion is always linear (equivalent to a power law
with = 1.)

For the energy-based damage models, enter:

• Tensile damage threshold, G0t. This is the elastic energy at the onset of damage in
pure tension.
• Shear damage threshold, G0s. This is the elastic energy at the onset of damage in pure
shear.
• Tensile energy release rate, Gct. This is the energy released during the whole
decohesion process in a state of pure tension.
• Shear energy release rate, Gcs. This is the energy released during the whole
decohesion process in a state of pure shear.
• Mode mixity exponent, damage initiation, 0. The value determines how normal and
shear components are combined into a single scalar criterion for damage initiation.
• Mode mixity exponent, c. The value determines how normal and shear components
are combined into a single scalar failure criterion.

1144 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

• Smoothening parameter, N. This parameter adjusts the shape of the of the traction
separation law. It is available for the Exponential and Polynomial options. By default,
N = 1; a smaller value gives a smoother behavior.
In the Regularization list, it is possible to add a viscous delay to the damage growth for
time-dependent studies. Do this by selecting Delayed damage and enter a value for the
Characteristic time, .

ADVANCED
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

Maximum damage determines the residual stiffness of the adhesive layer after
decohesion. By default, dmax = 1, which means that no residual stiffness remains.
Enter a value smaller than 1 to introduce some residual stiffness.

Select Compute damage dissipation energy to compute and store to the energy
dissipated by damage.

See also

• Including Adhesion and Decohesion, and The Decohesion Node in

the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.
• Decohesion in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Contact>Decohesion
Shell>Contact>Decohesion
Layered Shell>Contact>Decohesion
Membrane>Contact>Decohesion
Multibody Dynamics>Contact>Decohesion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Contact selected in the Model Builder tree:

Attributes>Decohesion

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1145

 Wear
Add a Wear subnode to model mechanical wear created when the contacting surfaces
are sliding along each other. Typically, the wear rate is a function of the contact
pressure and the slip velocity.

The selection of the Wear node is the same as that of its parent Contact node. If
significant wear can be expected on both surfaces in a contact pair, you can add two
Wear nodes.

As wear involves a rate equation, it is only possible to compute wear a in

time-dependent study. For other study types, the Wear node is ignored.

The Wear node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

WEAR MODEL
Select a Formulation — Deformed geometry or Offset-based. When Deformed geometry is
selected, the geometry of the domain is actually changed, and a set of extra degrees of
freedom are added to the model. For the Offset-based formulation, the computed wear
depth hwear is added as an offset to the contact condition.

This setting is not present in the Shell and Membrane interfaces. In these
interfaces, the wear is incorporated as a change in the thickness.

Select a Wear model — Generalized Archard or User defined.

For Generalized Archard, enter a Wear constant, kwear, a Reference contact pressure,
Tn,ref, and an Exponent, n. The wear rate is defined as

h wear Tn n
= k wear  ------------- v slip
t  T n,ref

Here, Tn is the contact pressure, and vslip is the slip velocity. For a classical Archard
equation, n = 1. The reference contact pressure, Tn,ref, can be chosen arbitrarily, and
is used only to obtain consistent units. In most cases, Tn,ref, should be chosen as the
unit pressure in the current unit system (for example, 1 Pa).

1146 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

For User defined, enter an expression for the general source term, f, which defines the
wear rate. The default is an expression similar to
(1e-9[m^2/N]*solid.cnt1.wear1.Tn)*solid.cnt1.wear1.vslipnorm.
This expression provides the names of the local variables for contact pressure and slip
velocity, inserted in a classical Archard equation.

Finally, select a Wear surface — Destination or Source. If both surfaces in the contact
pair are subject to wear, use two separate Wear nodes.

• In general, modeling wear on the destination side is slightly more

accurate, since it is there that the contact pressure and slip velocity are
originally computed.
• It is possible to use the Rigid Material material model on the source
side.

If the model was originally created in version 5.2 or earlier, you must
enable the possibility to use deformed geometry manually. Go to the
settings for the Component, and click the Permanently Define All Frames
button. See also The Component Node.

DEFORMING DOMAIN SETTINGS

This section is only available when Formulation is set to Deformed geometry.

Choose how to set the Deforming domain selection — Automatic or Manual. When
Automatic is selected, the deforming domains are assumed to be all domains adjacent
to the destination or source boundaries, as selected by Wear surface. This is the default.
By selecting Manual, a new section, Deforming Domain Selection, is displayed. There, you
can make a manual selection of the domains to act as deforming.

In order for the mesh smoothing in the deforming domain to work properly, the mesh
on all exterior boundaries, except the wear surface, should be free to slide in the
tangential directions. Choose how to set the Sliding boundary selection — Automatic or
Manual. When Automatic is selected, a sliding boundary condition added to all exterior
boundaries of the deforming domain, expect the wear surface. This is the default. By
selecting Manual, a new section, Sliding Boundary Selection, is displayed. There, you can
make a manual selection of the sliding boundaries. The selection on which wear is
applied is always excluded.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1147

 The remaining settings in the section affect the detailed mathematical model used for
remapping the mesh in the deforming domain. For details, see Deforming Domain.

In most cases, the Automatic option will set up an appropriate Deforming

domain selection and a corresponding Sliding boundary selection. For
complex geometries it might, however, be necessary to manually control
these selections. In case the automatic selections are incorrect, it is often
displayed as an error from the solver, or clearly visible in the results of the
exterior edges of the wear surface.

DISCRETIZATION
This section is present when Formulation is set to Offset-based, or when the Wear node
is used in the Shell or Membrane interfaces.

In these cases, the amount of wear will be a separate field that is computed by a time
integration of the wear rate expression. In the case of Solid Mechanics or Multibody
Dynamics, the field is added to the contact offset. For Shell and Membrane, it is
subtracted from the thickness of the elements.

Select a Shape function type — From physics, Discontinuous Lagrange, or Gauss point data.
When selecting From physics, the additional thickness field is approximated by the same
shape functions that are used for the dependent variables of the physics.

The order of the shape functions is in all cases selected automatically, based on the
discretization in the physics interface.

See also

• Including Wear, and The Wear Node in the Structural Mechanics

Modeling chapter.
• Wear in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.
• Deformed Geometry and Moving Mesh in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Contact>Wear
Shell>Contact>Wear

1148 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Membrane>Contact>Wear
Multibody Dynamics>Contact>Wear

Ribbon
Physics tab with Contact selected in the Model Builder tree:

Attributes>Wear

Continuity
Add a Continuity node to connect parts of an assembly using one or several Identity
pairs. Both sides of the identity pair must be part of the physics interface in which you
add the Continuity node.

METHOD
Select a method to implement the continuity conditions: Classic constraints (default)
or Nitsche. When classic constraints are selected, the continuity conditions are
implemented as pointwise constraints on the destination side of the pair.

The Nitsche method implements the continuity condition in a weak sense by adding
equations instead of constraints. If many other nodes that add constraints are present
in the model, this has the advantage of not adding extra work for the constraint
elimination algorithm of the solver. Moreover, the Nitsche method is often the more
accurate method for connecting parts with nonconforming meshes at the shared
boundary.

If Nitsche is selected, choose how to define the Stabilization factor — Automatic, Manual
Tuning, or User defined. When Manual tuning is selected, enter a value for the
Stabilization factor multiplier. This is a multiplier acting on the characteristic stiffness
defined for all selected pairs. The stiffness is based on the material properties and the
mesh element size on both sides of a pair. For User defined, enter an expression for the
stabilization factor  that will be used for all pairs.

Also, choose a Formulation — Symmetric, Skew-symmetric (default), or Nonsymmetric.

This setting controls how the equations added to implement the continuity condition
are written and can influence the robustness and performance of the solution. The
default Skew-symmetric formulation is the most robust formulation, but is more
expensive to use compared to the Nonsymmetric formulation. The Symmetric
formulation has the advantage that it maintains the symmetry of the stiffness matrix,
which can be important for large models.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1149

 It is also possible to select on which side to the pair to apply the continuity conditions
by setting Apply on to either: Source and destination (default), Source, or Destination. It
is generally recommended to apply the continuity conditions on the side with the finest
mesh. However, the unbiased formulation obtained by the default Source and
destination option is in the majority of cases equally accurate but can be more
expensive.

When using Continuity to connect parts of an assembly in a large

deformation analysis, the most robust solution is obtained by setting the
Source fame and Destination frame to Material in the used Identity pairs.
This is especially important for the Nitsche method, since it enforces
continuity in a weak sense only. For the same reason, avoid using a Contact
pair in a Continuity feature also.

The Nitsche method is not allowed for pairs where any source or
destination boundary is adjacent to a Rigid Material.

See also Continuity Condition in the Structural Mechanics Theory

chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Pairs>Continuity
Multibody Dynamics>Pairs>Continuity

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics or Multibody Dynamics selected:

Pairs>Continuity

Bolt Pretension
Use the Bolt Pretension node to define the prestress force in pretensioned bolts. It is
available for 3D and 2D axial symmetry only. Typically, the prestressed state is
established in an initial study step, which is then followed by one or more steps in
which the service loads are added.

1150 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

When you add a Bolt Pretension node, a default Bolt Selection subnode is also
automatically added. Use one such node to select each individual bolt.

The Bolt Pretension node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https:/
/www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

BOLT LABEL
Enter a name that will form the basis for the automatic generation of bolt labels when
Bolt Selection subnodes are added. The label is used for identification during
postprocessing. The default name is Bolt.

If the base name is changed, it only affects how bolt labels are generated
in Bolt Selection subnodes that are added later on. You may then, in
particular, want to manually edit the default Bolt Selection subnode.

BOLT PRETENSION
Select how to describe the pretension by selecting a Pretension type — Pretension force,
Pretension stress, or Tightening torque.

• For Pretension force enter a value or expression for Fp, the pretension force in the
bolt.
To compute the corresponding tightening torque, select the Compute tightening
torque check box. Then, enter data as described below.
• For Pretension stress enter a value or expression for p, the pretension stress in the
bolt. The pretension force is computed through multiplication by the actual area of
each selected bolt.
To compute the corresponding tightening torque, select the Compute tightening
torque check box. Then, enter data as described below.
• For Tightening torque, enter the following data:
- The tightening torque, MT.
- The Nominal bolt diameter. The default is From geometry, in which case the bolt
diameters are derived from the cross section selections in the Bolt Selection

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1151

 subnodes. To use another value, select User defined, and enter the bolt
diameter, d.
- The Bolt hole diameter. The default is Automatic, in which case the bolt hole
diameter is set to 1.1 times the nominal bolt diameter. To use anther value, select
User defined, and enter the bolt hole diameter, dh.
- The Bolt thread mean diameter. The default is Automatic, in which case the bolt
thread mean diameter is set to 0.9 times the nominal bolt diameter. To use
another value, select User defined, and enter the thread mean diameter, dt.
- The Bolt head type — Circular or Hexagonal.
For a circular bolt head, enter the Bolt head diameter. The default is Automatic, in
which case the bolt head diameter is set to 1.6 times the nominal bolt diameter.
To use another value, select User defined, and enter the bolt head diameter, do.
For a hexagonal bolt head, enter the Bolt head width. The default is Automatic, in
which case the bolt head width is set to 1.6 times the nominal bolt diameter. To
use another value, select User defined, and enter the bolt head width, H.
- The Half thread angle, . The default is 30[deg], which is used in for example the
ISO and UTS standards.
- The Lead, l.
- The Bolt head friction coefficient, h. This is the friction coefficient between the
bolt head and the material under it, including the effect of, for example, washers.
The default is 0.15.
- The Bolt thread friction coefficient, t. This is the friction coefficient between
inner and outer thread. The default is 0.15.

See also

• Modeling Pretensioned Bolts in the Structural Mechanics Modeling

chapter for a complete description of how to model pretensioned bolts.
• Bolt Modeling Theory.
• Bolt Pretension Study for information about the Bolt Pretension study
type.

Modeling of Pretensioned Bolts: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Tutorials/bolt_pretension_tutorial

1152 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

SOLVER SUGGESTION

This section is present only in models created in versions prior to 5.3, in

which the new Bolt Pretension study type was introduced. The purpose is
to maintain backward compatibility for older models.

Select Solve in bolt pretension study only check box to make the bolt
pretension degrees of freedom behave as in a version 5.3 model, that is
being solved for only in a study step of the Bolt Pretension type. By default,
the check box is cleared, and then the bolt pretension degrees of freedom
are solved for in any type of study step, unless you explicitly suppress that.

The settings of the Solve in bolt pretension study only check box only
affects new study sequences being generated. Existing study sequences
will keep the current state for the bolt pretension degrees of freedom.

Once you select the Solve in bolt pretension study only check box, the
Solver Suggestion section will be hidden. Thus, it is not possible to clear
the check box again. The degrees of freedom created under this Bolt
Pretension node from now on assumes the version 5.3 behavior.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Bolt Pretension
Beam>Bolt Pretension

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics or Beam selected in the Model Builder tree:

Global>Bolt Pretension

Bolt Selection
The Bolt Selection subnode is automatically added as a default node to the Bolt
Pretension node. It is used for selecting the individual bolts. One Bolt Selection node
is required for each bolt.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1153

 BOUNDARY SELECTION

This section is only present in the in the Solid Mechanics interface.

From the Selection list, choose the boundaries to define a cross section of
a single bolt. This cross section must be an interior boundary. It is the
section where the stress in the bolt is measured.

In 2D axial symmetry, the cross section must be perpendicular to the

Z-axis.

POINT SELECTION

This section is only present in the in the Beam interface.

From the Selection list, choose a point to define a cross section of a single
bolt. This cross section must be an interior point. It is the section where
the stress in the bolt is measured.

BOLT LABEL
Enter a Bolt label. The default is automatically generated based on the name given in
the Bolt label section of the parent Bolt Pretension node. The label is used for
identification during postprocessing.

The automatic name generation is also active when a Bolt Selection node is duplicated
or copy-pasted.

1154 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

BOLT PRETENSION
Select a Pretension type — From Parent, Pretension force, Pretension stress, or Tightening
torque. In most cases, the input for the pretension force is given in the parent node. If,
however, you need to modify the settings for individual bolts, you can do it here.

• For Pretension force enter a value or expression for Fp, the pretension force in the
bolt.
• For Pretension stress enter a value or expression for p, the pretension stress in the
bolt. The pretension force is computed through multiplication by the actual area of
each selected bolt.
• For Tightening torque, enter a value or expression for MT, the tightening torque. All
other values needed for computing the bolt force from the torque are taken from
the parent node.

If you want to include a Relaxation of the bolt pretension, enter a value or expression
for r. The relaxation is an axial displacement, which is subtracted from the
predeformation of the bolt. This value can, for example, be time-dependent in the case
of a creep relaxation of the bolt stress.

If you want to model a process where the bolt forces are not applied simultaneously,
select the Sequential tightening check box. When selected, a new input field,
Pretensioning expression, is accessible.

The Pretensioning expression is a boolean expression, giving the parameter values at

which the prestress is changed. Such an expression could, for example, be par==5 ||
par==10 if the bolt is tightened in two steps. If the tightening process is done
stepwise, you also need to use a Pretension type which is not the default From parent.
The expression for the pretension force in each individual bolt can then vary with the
continuation parameter, and should match the steps at which the pretension force is
changed.

SYMMETRY DETECTION
If a bolt is cut by a symmetry plane, the force in the modeled part is only half of the
force in the real bolt. When Automatic symmetry detection is selected, this is
compensated for. The program will then automatically detect when a bolt is located in
a symmetry plane, and apply corrections.

• If the input of the pretension load in the parent node is by Pretension force, the given
force is interpreted as the force for the whole bolt.
• All results are given for the whole bolt.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1155

 When Automatic symmetry detection is cleared, the inputs and outputs are based on the
modeled cross section area.

The Symmetry Detection section is not present in 2D axial symmetry, since

the bolt in that case always is axially symmetric.

The Symmetry Detection section is not present in the Beam interface, since
it is not possible to automatically determine the geometrical shape of the
bolt.

See also Modeling Pretensioned Bolts in the Structural Mechanics

Modeling chapter.

Modeling of Pretensioned Bolts: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Tutorials/bolt_pretension_tutorial

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Bolt Pretension>Bolt Selection
Beam>Bolt Pretension>Bolt Selection

Ribbon
Physics tab with Bolt Pretension selected in the Model Builder tree:

Attributes>Bolt Selection

Bolt Thread Contact

Use the Bolt Thread Contact node to define a simplified model for the contact between
two mating threads. The boundary between the internal and external thread is
assumed to have a cylindrical shape. This feature is available for 3D and 2D axial
symmetry only. One Bolt Thread Contact node is required for each bolt.

The Bolt Thread Contact node is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

1156 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

PAIR SELECTION
From the Pair selection list, choose the contact pair that defines the thread connection
for this bolt. The contact pair should be created so that the source boundary is the
internal thread, and the destination boundary is the external (bolt) thread.

BOLT GEOMETRY
Enter the Half thread angle, . The default angle is 30[deg], which is used in for
example the ISO and UTS standards. For 2D axial symmetry, this is the only input
required to describe the bolt geometry. For 3D, you need also to provide the following
settings:

Enter the Lead, l. This is the axial distance a single thread travels after one full
revolution of the bolt.

Select a Handedness — Right-handed or Left-Handed. Most bolts are right- handed.

Select a Bolt geometry — Automatic or User defined. If the mesh on the boundaries
selected for the contact between internal and external thread give a good
representation of a cylinder, the diameter and centerline of the bolt can be determined
automatically. If this is not sufficient, you can instead enter the data manually.

• When using Automatic, the computed orientation of the beam axis, ea, is
indeterminate with respect to its direction. If needed, you can control the direction
by selecting the Direction adjustment check box. Then, enter a vector giving an
Approximate orientation, ea,approx. The positive orientation of the bolt axis will be
chosen so that e a  e a,approx  0 .
• For User defined, enter the bolt diameter, dp. Then enter the Orientation of the bolt
axis, ea, and a Point on axis, P.

Select a Contact orientation — Both, Up, or Down. In most cases, it is obvious that only
one side of the thread will come into contact. It is then possible to decrease the size of
the contact problem by considering only that direction. For a prestressed bolt, having
the bolt axis orientation vector ea pointing toward the bolt head, it will usually be
sufficient to check contact in the Up direction.

CONTACT
Enter a value or an expression for the Penalty factor, p. A smaller value will increase
overclosure and sliding, but is in general more stable. The default value,
(2*solid.btc1.Eequ)/solid.btc1.rd, is intended to supply a stiffness that gives a
small elastic slip. This slip is related to the estimated bending stiffness of the threads.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1157

 Enter a value for the Friction coefficient, .

In order to specify contact conditions like this, one or more Contact Pair
nodes must be defined in the Definitions branch of the component.

When a contact feature is present in your model, all studies are

geometrically nonlinear. The Include geometric nonlinearity check box on
the study step Settings window is selected and cannot be cleared.

See also Simplified Modeling of Bolt Threads in the Structural Mechanics

Modeling chapter for a complete description of how to model bolt
threads.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Pairs>Bolt Thread Contact

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected in the Model Builder tree:

Pairs>Bolt Thread Contact

Crack
Add a Crack node to indicate that certain boundaries represent a crack. A crack can
either be infinitely thin, and represented by a single boundary, or being represented by
disjoint surfaces in the geometry.

A crack can have any number of branches and corresponding crack fronts.

The Crack node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/). It is available for 3D, 2D, and 2D
axisymmetry.

1158 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

CRACK FRONT
This section is only shown if Crack surface is set to Symmetric in the Crack Definition
section. In this case, it is not possible to deduce the number of crack fronts uniquely
from geometric analysis, so you must explicitly select the crack front or crack fronts.

For 3D components, select a boundary or set of edges representing the

crack fronts.

For 2D and 2D axisymmetry, select points located at the crack fronts.

CRACK FACE 1
This section is only shown if Crack surface is set to From geometry in the Crack
Definition section. In this case, the main selection will contain both sides of the crack.
In this section, select one of the crack faces, so that it is possible to discriminate
between the two faces of the crack.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The coordinate system selection is only used when a user defined crack orientation is
selected in the Crack Orientation section.

CRACK DEFINITION
In this section, you select how the crack is represented in the geometry.

Select a Crack surface — Slit, From geometry, or Symmetric.

• When the crack is represented as an internal boundary, select Slit. This will cause the
displacements of the two sides of the boundary to be decoupled from each other so
that a crack is formed.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1159

 • When the crack is physically represented in the model, so that the two crack faces
are different boundaries, select From geometry.
• If only half of a symmetric structure is modeled, so that the crack is an external
boundary, select Symmetric. In 2D axisymmetry, this is only meaningful for cracks
that are perpendicular to the axis of rotation. There are two cases:

- The crack is infinitely thin and located in the symmetry plane. Other boundary
conditions like Fixed Constraint or Symmetry will be overridden on the crack
surface, so that the crack can be opened.
- One of the crack faces is represented by the geometry. The other crack face is then
assumed to be a mirror copy on the other side of the symmetry plane.

CRACK ORIENTATION
The direction of the crack growth is important if you are going to compute a
J-Integral.

Select a Crack orientation — From crack or User defined. In most cases the crack growth
direction can be automatically deduced from the geometry of the crack. If this is not
the case, select User defined and then enter a vector for the Crack growth direction. The
vector is represented in the coordinate system selected in the Coordinate System
Selection section.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>More>Crack

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Boundaries>More>Crack

Crack Closure
Add a Crack Closure subnode under a Crack node to include contact conditions
between crack faces. These includes contact in the normal direction of the crack faces,

1160 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

and, optionally, friction in the tangential directions. Only a single Crack Closure
subnode can be added per Crack node.

The Crack Closure subnode is only applicable when Crack surface in the
parent a Crack node is set to Slit or Symmetry. If Crack surface is set to From
geometry, contact conditions can be added by a Contact node.

Friction can, furthermore, only be considered if Crack surface is set to Slit.

See also:

• Contact Between Crack Faces in the Structural Mechanics Modeling

Chapter.
• Contact Analysis Theory in the Structural Mechanics Theory Chapter,

The Crack Closure node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

CONTACT
Enter an expression for the Penalty factor, pn. The default expression,
(2*<phys>.Eequ)/h, estimates the penalty factor from the stiffness of the adjacent
domains and the mesh element size. The constant can be modified to improve accuracy
or stability of the model — a too high penalty factor can lead to ill-conditioned
matrices.

Select a Friction model — None, Coulomb, or User defined. By selecting None, frictionless
contact is considered.

When Coulomb is selected, the critical contact friction force is a function of the contact
pressure. Enter values for:

• The Friction coefficient, 

• The Cohesion sliding resistance, Tcohe,
• The Maximum tangential traction, Tt,max.

When User defined is selected, enter an expression for the Critical friction force, Tt,crit,
that may depend on any quantity in the model. This expression defines the limit
between sticking and sliding friction. Note, that the implementation of the friction
model is only correct if Tt,crit does not depend on the current friction force.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1161

 If either Coulomb or User defined, select Compute frictional dissipation to compute and
store to the energy dissipated by friction.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Crack>Crack Closure

Ribbon
Physics tab with Crack node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Crack Closure

Face Load (Crack)

Add a Face Load subnode under a Crack node to describe a load acting on a crack face.
In some cases, a Boundary Load can be used to the same effect. If, however, a
J-integral is to be computed, and it encloses a loaded part of the crack face, then the
load must be described using the Face Load node.

The Face Load node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

LOAD
Enter the Crack face pressure, p. The pressure is applied to both faces of the crack.

See also J-Integral Theory in the Structural Mechanics Theory Chapter.

You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the Structural
Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Crack>Face Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Crack node selected in the model tree:

1162 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Attributes>Face Load

J-Integral
Add a J-integral subnode under a Crack node in order to compute the J-integral along
a certain integration path. When a J-integral has been computed, stress intensity factors
will also be available.

The J-integral node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

J-INTEGRAL
The J-Integral is computed along a circular path centered at the crack front.

For 2D components, the integration path for the J-integral can be

described either by a sequence of boundaries, or as a circular path around
the crack tip. Select Integration path — Circular or On edges.

If On edges is selected, a new section, Integration path is shown. In that

section, select the boundaries that define the integration path. The
boundaries much be selected so that they form a contiguous path from
one side of the crack surface to the other. In case the crack is located on a
symmetry plane, the path should go from that plane to the crack surface.

For the case Circular, see below.

Circular Integration Path

Enter the Radius of contour integral, r. The default value is an expression of the form
solid.<crack_tag>.crackSize*0.5. The variable crackSize is estimated from the
crack geometry. For common cases, in particular in 2D, this is exactly the length of the
crack. For more complex cases, in particular for branched cracks, there is no
well-defined crack length, and the value of the variable must be considered only as
being of the right order of magnitude.

The integration path must not intersect any external boundaries or internal slits, such
as other cracks. There should also not be any holes or applied loads inside the
integration path. Integration paths with a very small radius compared to the crack
length will in general give low accuracy, since they will pass through the singular stress
field in the vicinity of the crack tip. It is good practice to evaluate the J-integral along
several paths, to assess the accuracy.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1163

 In 3D, the J-integral will vary along the crack front. It will be computed along several
circular paths, centered at different locations along the crack front.

STRESS INTENSITY FACTORS

When computing stress intensity factors from the J-integral, the

INTEGRATION
In this section, you can adjust the accuracy of the numerical evaluation of the
J-integral. The section is only shown when circular integration paths are used.

Integration on Contour
Select Number of integration points — Fixed number or Relative to path length.

When Fixed number is selected, enter the total number of points along the integration
path, N.

When Relative to path length is selected, enter a relative number of points along the
integration path, n. The total number of integration points is computed as

r
N  = -------------- n 
L crack

where r is the radius of the integration path, and Lcrack is the crack length (as
represented by the variable solid.<crack_tag>.crackSize).

Integration on Surface
In 3D and 2D axisymmetry, the J-integral also has contributions from the surface
enclosed by the integration contour.

Select Number of integration points — Fixed number or Relative to enclosed area.

When Fixed number is selected, enter the total number of integration points on the
enclosed surface, NA.

When Relative to enclosed area is selected, enter a relative number of points on the
enclosed surface, nA. The total number of integration points is computed as

r 2
N A =  -------------- n A
L crack

where r  is the radius of the integration path, and Lcrack is the crack length (as
represented by the variable solid.<crack_tag>.crackSize).

1164 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

STRESS INTENSITY FACTORS
In order to separate the stress intensity factors for the different crack modes, the
displacements on the crack surfaces are analyzed. In order to get a good value, this
analysis should be performed in a region where the theoretical solution for the fields
around a crack tip is valid. Ideally, this is close to the crack tip. It is, however, not
possible to get an accurate numerical evaluation very close to the crack tip, due to the
singularity of the fields.

The default is that the region used for the evaluation starts at a distance of 20% of the
crack length from the tip, and extends to half the crack length. You can modify these
values by entering a Lower bound, b, and an Upper bound, c.

See also J-Integral Theory in the Structural Mechanics Theory Chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Crack>J-Integral

Ribbon
Physics tab with Crack node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>J-Integral

Reverse Crack Front

Use the Reverse Crack Front node to manually control the tangent direction of a crack
front in 3D. This may be necessary, for example, if a crack front consists of several
edges that have opposing tangent directions from the geometry. The main purpose of
this node is to control the definition of what is positive and negative values of the stress
intensity factor KII.

This node has no other settings than an edge selection. The selected edges will, from
the crack analysis point of view, have a tangent direction that is reversed when
compared by the tangent direction defined by the geometry.

This node is only available in 3D.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1165

 The Reverse Crack Front node is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Crack>Reverse Crack Front

Ribbon
Physics tab with Crack node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Reverse Crack Front

Port
The Port boundary condition is used to excite and absorb elastic waves that enter or
leave waveguide structures. A given port condition supports one specific propagating
mode. To provide the full description, combine several port conditions on the same
boundary, for example, one for longitudinal, one for torsional, and one for transverse
modes. Make sure that all relevant propagating modes in the studied frequency range
are included (all modes that have a cutoff frequency in the frequency range). By doing
this, the combined port conditions provide a superior nonreflecting condition for
waveguides to, for example, a perfectly matched layer (PML) configuration or the
Low-Reflecting Boundary. The same port boundary condition feature should not be
applied to several waveguide inlets and outlets. The port condition supports
S-parameter (scattering parameter) calculation, but it can also be used as a source to
just excite a system.

The Port node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

The Port boundary condition exists only for 3D models.

See the tutorial Mechanical Multiport System: Elastic Wave

Propagation in a Small Aluminum Plate. Application Library path:
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Elastic_Waves/mechanical_multiport_system

1166 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

On a given boundary, a combination of ports will define the displacement field u (sum
of incident and outgoing waves) as


in i
u = A e  S ij u i +  ij  u i – 2n  n  u i   
i  bnd

where the summation “i” is over all ports on the given boundary “bnd”, Sij is the
scattering parameter, Ain is the amplitude of the incident field (at port “j”),  is a
possible phase, and ui is the mode shape of the ith port. The mode shape ui is
normalized to carry a unit power of 1 W. This definition means that the scattering
parameter Sij defines the amplitude of mode i when a system is exited at port j (with
mode j). This corresponds to a multi-mode expansion of the solution on the given
port. The scattering parameters are automatically calculated when a model is set up
with just one port exciting the system. To get the full scattering matrix, The Port
Sweep Functionality can be used.

Only one port should be excited at a time if the purpose is to compute

S-parameters. The S-parameters are defined as solid.Smatrix11,
solid.Smatrix21, and so on, and can be used in postprocessing.

In other cases, having more than one port exciting the system might be
wanted, but the S-parameter variables cannot be correctly computed.
When several ports are excited, the S-parameter output is turned off.

PORT PROPERTIES
Enter a unique Port name. Only nonnegative integer numbers can be used as Port name
as it is used to define the elements of the S-parameter matrix. The numeric port names
are also required for the port sweep functionality. The port name is automatically
incremented by one every time a port condition is added.

Select a Type of port: Numeric or User defined. Depending on the selection, different
options appear in the Port Mode Settings section (see below).

PORT MODE SETTINGS

Depending on the option selected in the Type of port (see above):

• In the case of a Numeric port, a boundary mode problem is solved on the port face
to compute the desired propagating mode. This option requires the use of a
Boundary Mode Analysis step in the study. It should be placed before the Frequency
Domain step. In the study, add one Boundary Mode Analysis step for each Numeric port

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1167

 and make sure to reference the proper Port name in the study step. When using the
Numeric port, it is not possible to perform a frequency sweep in the Frequency
Domain study step. Only one frequency can be used and it should correspond to the
Mode analysis frequency entered in the Boundary Mode Analysis step(s). One option is
to add a Parametric Sweep and define a parameter for the frequency used in both the
steps. In this case, care should be taken when setting up the search criteria in the
mode analysis.
• For User defined, enter user defined expressions for the Mode shape un and the Mode
wave number kn. The mode shape will automatically be scaled to unit power before
it is used in the port condition. Use the user defined option to enter a known
analytical expression.

When the Numeric port option is used and the boundary mode analysis is
run, the boundary conditions from the Solid Mechanics model are
automatically inherited in the boundary problem. For this automatic
procedure, there is only support for the Free, Fixed, Roller, Symmetry,
Antisymmetry, and Spring Foundation conditions.

INCIDENT MODE SETTINGS

Activate if the given port is excited by an incident wave of the given mode shape. For
the first Port condition added in a model, the Incident wave excitation at this port is set
to On. For subsequent conditions added the excitation is set to Off per default. If more
than one port in a model is excited, the S-parameter calculation is not performed.

When the Incident wave excitation at this port is set to On, then select how to define
the incident wave. Select the Define incident wave: Displacement amplitude or Power.

• For Displacement amplitude enter the amplitude Ain of the incident wave. This is in
general defined as the maximum amplitude for a given mode shape.
• For Power enter the power Pin of the incident wave. This is in general defined as the
RMS power of the incident wave.
• For both options enter the phase  of the incident wave. This phase contribution is
multiplied with the amplitude defined by the above options. The Displacement
amplitude input can be a complex number.

1168 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Note that when the Activate port sweep option is selected at the physics level, the
options in the Incident Mode Settings section are deactivated. This is because this option
automatically sends in a mode of unit power, sweeping through one port at the time.

All ports with incident wave excitation turned off have an arrow symbol,
added in the Graphics window, that points outward. When incident wave
excitation is turned on, the arrow symbol points inward.

If a waveguide is cut by one or several symmetry planes, care should be

taken when setting up the port modes and when postprocessing.

When postprocessing, remember that absolute values like, for example,

the outgoing power at port 1, solid.port1.P_out, needs to be
multiplied with an appropriate factor. Multiply with 2 if one symmetry
plane is used, and so on.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options.

THE PORT SWEEP FUNCTIONALITY

The port sweep functionality is used to reconstruct the full scattering matrix Sij by
automatically sweeping the port excitation through all the ports included in the model.
When the port sweep is activated, the options in the Incident Mode Settings in the port
conditions are deactivated and COMSOL controls which port that is excited with an
incident mode.

The port sweep functionality is activated at the main physics interface level by selecting
Activate port sweep in the Port Sweep Settings section. Enter the Sweep parameter
name, the default is PortName. Create a parameter with the same name under Global
Definitions>Parameters 1. This is the name of the parameter to be used in a parametric
sweep, here it should represent the Port name integer values (defined when adding the
port conditions). Add a parametric sweep study step and run the sweep over the
PortName parameter with an integer number of values representing all the ports in the
model. Once the model is solved the full scattering matrix can be evaluated using the

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1169

 defined global variables solid.Smatrix11, solid.Smatrix21, solid.Smatrix12,
ans so on.

Use the Global Matrix Evaluation under Derived Values to evaluate the full
scattering matrix solid.Smatrix.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>More>Port

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Boundaries>More>Port

Elastic Predeformation
The Elastic Predeformation node can be used for incremental solution updates using the
deformed geometry functionality. This approach can significantly speed up
computations is case of large elastic deformations.

The equations solved by the Solid Mechanics interface are formulated using the
material frame. The concept of deformed geometry implies that the geometry of the
structure on the material frame can differ from that originally drawn (using the
geometry frame).

The Elastic Predeformation subnode is only available with some COMSOL products
(see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/). It is available for 3D, 2D,
and 2D axisymmetry.

ELASTIC PREDEFORMATION
By default, the Predeformation gradient is set to From material frame, which means that
the deformation gradient relating the geometry and material frames will be used. The
predeformation gradient will enter into the definition of the elastic strains, which will
create an initial stress state on the material frame corresponding to the total
deformation starting from the original geometry configuration.

When the check box Store deformation history is checked (default) the displacement
field computed during the current solution step (using the current material frame) will
be stored in a special variable, u_pd, which can be used then on the next solution step,

1170 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

if any. When the check box Set up deformed geometry is selected (default) the material
frame will differ from the geometry frame by a prescribed displacement u_pd
computed at the previous solution step. The solution computed on each step
represents an incremental step in the total deformation. The total solution can be set
up using either a time-dependent or a stationary parametric study, for example, with
the loading gradually increasing from one step to the other. Special postprocessing
variables, u_tot_old and u_tot, are defined to store the total displacement before and
after each step, respectively.

Alternatively, you can set the Predeformation gradient to User defined. Then, you can
enter explicitly expressions referring to some previously computed solution, for
example: withsol('sol1', solid.FdxX), and so on. The contribution will enter the
elastic strain definitions, which will result into an initial stress state corresponding to
the previously computed solution.

• Adding this feature will induce the geometric nonlinearity in the

model; the corresponding check box on every study step node will be
automatically checked and become inaccessible (grayed out).
• This feature takes inelastic strain contributions into account. It is thus
possible to use it together with nonlinear material models like large
deformation plasticity.
• The domain selection is set to all domains and locked, so that all
domains selected by the corresponding Solid Mechanics interface are
always selected. This is because the material frame handling requires
consistency over the entire structure.
• When this feature is present, the displacement input in the Prescribed
Displacement nodes (domain, boundary, edge, or point) will represent
a constraint for the total displacement.

If the model was originally created in version 5.2 or earlier, you must
enable the possibility to use deformed geometry manually. Go to the
settings for the Component, and click the Permanently Define All Frames
button. See also The Component Node.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1171

 In the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter:

• Deformed Geometry
• Elastic Predeformation

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>More>Elastic Predeformation (Domain)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:

Domains>More>Elastic Predeformation

Phase
You can add a Phase subnode to nodes that define a load in order to prescribe the phase
angle in a frequency-domain analysis.

For modeling the frequency response, the physics interface splits the harmonic load
into two parameters:

• The amplitude, F, which is specified in the node for the load.

• The phase (  ), which is specified in the Phase subnode.

Together these define a harmonic load, for which the amplitude and phase shift can
vary with the excitation frequency, f:

F freq = F  f   cos  2ft +  

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the Layered Shell interface. See also The
Shell Properties and Interface Selection Sections and the documentation
for the corresponding parent nodes.

1172 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

PHASE
Enter the components of Load phase  in radians (for a pressure the load phase  is a
scalar value). Add [deg] to a phase value to specify it using degrees.

Typically, the load magnitude is a real scalar value. If the load specified in
the parent feature contains a phase (using a complex-valued expression),
the software adds the phase from the Phase node to the phase already
included in the load.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Body Load>Phase
Solid Mechanics>Boundary Load>Phase
Solid Mechanics>Edge Load>Phase
Solid Mechanics>Point Load>Phase
Solid Mechanics>Ring Load>Phase
Solid Mechanics>Point Load (on Axis)>Phase
Solid Mechanics>Rigid Connector>Applied Force>Phase
Solid Mechanics>Rigid Connector>Applied Moment>Phase
Solid Mechanics>Rigid Material>Applied Force>Phase
Solid Mechanics>Rigid Material>Applied Moment>Phase
Layered Shell>Body Load>Phase
Layered Shell>Boundary Load>Phase
Layered Shell>Edge Load>Phase
Layered Shell>Line Load>Phase
Layered Shell>Point Load>Phase
Layered Shell>Rigid Connector>Applied Force>Phase
Layered Shell>Rigid Connector>Applied Moment>Phase
Layered Shell>Rigid Material>Applied Force>Phase
Layered Shell>Rigid Material>Applied Moment>Phase
Membrane>Body Load>Phase
Membrane>Face Load>Phase
Membrane>Edge Load>Phase
Truss>Edge Load>Phase
Truss>Point Load>Phase
Wire>Edge Load>Phase
Wire>Point Load>Phase

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1173

 Membrane>Point Load>Phase
Multibody Dynamics>Body Load>Phase
Multibody Dynamics>Boundary Load>Phase
Multibody Dynamics>Edge Load>Phase
Multibody Dynamics>Point Load>Phase
Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Connector>Applied Force>Phase
Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Connector>Applied Moment>Phase
Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Material>Applied Force>Phase
Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Material>Applied Moment>Phase

Ribbon
Physics tab with Body Load, Boundary Load, Face Load, Edge Load, Point Load, Applied
Force, or Applied Moment selected:

Attributes>Phase

Harmonic Perturbation
Use the Harmonic Perturbation subnode to specify the harmonic part of nonzero
prescribed displacements, rotations, velocities, or accelerations. This node is used if the
study step contains frequency response of a perturbation type.

The settings are the same as in the parent Prescribed Displacement, Prescribed
Displacement, Interface, Prescribed Velocity, Prescribed Velocity, Interface, Prescribed
Acceleration, Prescribed Acceleration, Interface, Prescribed Displacement/Rotation
or Rigid Connector node. Only degrees of freedom selected as prescribed in the parent
node can be assigned a value.

See Harmonic Perturbation in the Structural Mechanics Modeling

chapter.

SHELL PROPERTIES

This section is only present in the Layered Shell interface. See also The
Shell Properties and Interface Selection Sections and the documentation
for the corresponding parent nodes.

1174 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Prescribed Displacement>Harmonic Perturbation
Solid Mechanics>Prescribed Velocity>Harmonic Perturbation
Solid Mechanics>Prescribed Acceleration>Harmonic Perturbation
Solid Mechanics>Rigid Material>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation>Harmonic Perturbation
Solid Mechanics>Rigid Connector>Harmonic Perturbation
Layered Shell>Prescribed Displacement>Harmonic Perturbation
Layered Shell>Prescribed Displacement, Interface>Harmonic Perturbation
Layered Shell>Prescribed Velocity>Harmonic Perturbation
Layered Shell>Prescribed Velocity, Interface>Harmonic Perturbation
Layered Shell>Prescribed Acceleration>Harmonic Perturbation
Layered Shell>Prescribed Acceleration, Interface>Harmonic Perturbation
Membrane>Prescribed Displacement>Harmonic Perturbation
Membrane>Prescribed Velocity>Harmonic Perturbation
Membrane>Prescribed Acceleration>Harmonic Perturbation
Truss>Prescribed Displacement>Harmonic Perturbation
Truss>Prescribed Velocity>Harmonic Perturbation
Truss>Prescribed Acceleration>Harmonic Perturbation
Wire>Prescribed Displacement>Harmonic Perturbation
Wire>Prescribed Velocity>Harmonic Perturbation
Wire>Prescribed Acceleration>Harmonic Perturbation
Multibody Dynamics>Prescribed Displacement>Harmonic Perturbation
Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Material>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation>Harmonic
Perturbation
Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Connector>Harmonic Perturbation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Prescribed Displacement, Prescribed Velocity, Prescribed Acceleration,
Prescribed Displacement/Rotation, or Rigid Connector node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Harmonic Perturbation

Stress Linearization
Use the Stress Linearization node to define a line (stress classification line; SCL) along
which a linearization of the stress state will be made. A number of result variables are
created for each SCL. Add one Stress Linearization node for each SCL along which you
want to compute linearized stresses.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1175

 When a Stress Linearization node has been added or modified, you do not need to
compute a new solution. It is sufficient to perform an Update Solution ( ) to make
the variables for the new SCL available.

The Stress Linearization node is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

LINEARIZATION
Select what Type of linearization to use — Line or Distributed. For Line, the stress is
linearized along a single predefined SCL, whereas for Distributed, the stress is
linearized in a domain. The direction of the SCL is in the distributed case given by the
normal of the selected boundaries from which it originates. In principle, an infinite
number of SCLs are created in the domain.

When Line is selected, the SCL can either be defined by a set of edges or by two points.
Control this by setting Defined by to either Edge or Two points.

If the SCL is defined by Edge, the Linearization Line, Edge selection can consist of several
edges, but they are assumed to form a straight line from one free boundary to another.

If the SCL is defined by Two points, you can either choose to use geometrical points
or arbitrary coordinates within the solid to define the endpoints of the SCL. An SCL
is created by connecting the two points with a straight line. To control how to specify
the endpoints, select either Point or Coordinates in the Starting point defined by and
Endpoint defined by lists.

• For Points, select a point in Linearization Line, Starting Point or Linearization Line,
Endpoint.
• For Coordinates, enter the coordinate vector of the point.

When Distributed is chosen, select entities in Boundary Selection from which the
distributed SCLs start. The SCLs are then created along the normal to the selected
boundaries, and extends through the entities selected in Domain Selection.

For 2D and 2D Axisymmetric geometries, no more inputs are need to define the SCL.
For 3D, you also need to specify the orientation of the local coordinate system in which
the linearized stresses are represented.

SECOND AXIS ORIENTATION

This section is present only in 3D. Here you specify the orientation of the local
coordinate system in which the components of the linearized stress tensor are
represented. The first direction is always along the SCL, and you indicate the second

1176 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

direction. The third direction is automatically formed by being orthogonal to the SCL
and the second direction.

For the Line linearization type, select Reference point or Orientation vector. When a
reference point is used, the second local direction will be in the plane formed by the
SCL and the selected point. When an orientation vector is used, the second local
direction will be directed in the plane formed by the SCL and the selected orientation.
The orientation is always adjusted so that it is orthogonal to the SCL.

• For Reference point, select Defined by — Point or Coordinates. When Point is used,
select the reference point in the Second Axis Orientation Reference Point section.
When Coordinates is used, enter the coordinates for the reference point in the
Reference point defining local 2 direction table.
• For Orientation vector select Defined by — Edge or Coordinates. When Edge is used,
select an edge in the geometry as orientation vector in the Second Axis Orientation
Reference Vector section. When Coordinates is used, enter the orientation vector
manually in the Orientation vector defining local 2 direction table.

For the Distributed linearization type, select a boundary system from the Defined by list.
The second direction of the SCL is always taken as the first tangent vector of the
selected boundary system.

POSTPROCESSING
This section is only present for the Distributed linearization type. Enter the coordinates
for the starting point of a SCL; it must be part of the selected boundaries. The specified
point is used to create a Linearization Line dataset to postprocess a single SCL that
extends from the point through the selected domains.

See also

• Stress Linearization in the Structural Mechanics Modeling Chapter.

• Stress Linearization in the Structural Mechanics Theory Chapter.
• Updating a Solution in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Variables>Stress Linearization

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1177

 Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected in the Model Builder tree:

Global>Variables>Stress Linearization

Section Forces
Add a Section Forces node to compute the integrated section forces for a cross section
in a solid. The cross section can consist of more than one boundary, but all the selected
boundaries must be planar and located in the same plane. The section forces are
computed in a local coordinate system. The details are described under Coordinate
System Selection below.

The local section forces are denoted as follows:

• N — Axial force
• T1 — Shear force along first local axis
• T2 — Shear force along second local axis
• Mt — Twisting moment
• M1 — Bending moment around first local axis
• M2 — Bending moment around second local axis

• The section forces will be shown in an evaluation group, named Section

Forces. Optionally, you can also generate two plot groups showing the
section forces as arrows.
• When a Section Forces node has been added or modified, you do not
need to compute a new solution. It is sufficient to perform an Update
Solution ( ) to make the variables for the new section forces available.
• Note that when you add a Section Forces node after solving a study,
then neither the evaluation group nor the plots will be generated.

CUT PLANE SELECTION

Select the boundaries that define the cross section over which the section forces are to
be computed. As a default, it is assumed that the cross section is contiguous. This
assumption can be relaxed by selecting the Allow disconnected boundaries check box.

1178 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION
Select a coordinate system that defines the orientations of the section forces. Only
boundary systems with constant axis directions can be selected. The orientation of the
local axes are defined as follows:

• The axial force and twisting moment are positive in the direction of the boundary
system normal. For an external boundary, this is by default the outward normal. For
an internal boundary, you can use the Reverse Normal subnode under a Boundary
System to control the orientation.
• If the Symmetry plane check box is cleared, the first local axis defining the section
forces is the same the first in-plane direction of the selected coordinate system.
• If the Symmetry plane check box is selected, only the normal orientation of the
boundary system is used. The first local axis is taken as the inward normal from the
symmetry plane into the structure.
• The second in-plane direction is determined by the cross product e 2 = n  e 1 .

SYMMETRY PLANE SELECTION

This section is only visible if the Symmetry plane check box is selected. In that case,
select one boundary in the symmetry plane, in order to identify its location and
orientation. The symmetry plane should be orthogonal to the cut plane.

CUT PLANE
Select the Allow disconnected boundaries check box for the case that the cross section is
defined by boundaries that are not all adjacent to each other. As a default, this situation
will generate a warning message, and no results are computed.

Select the Symmetry plane check box if the section forces are to be computed for a cross
section for which only one half is modeled due to symmetry. When selected, choose a
Symmetry type — Symmetry or Antisymmetry, matching the type of symmetry
conditions being used. Also, you need to select a boundary in the symmetry plane in
the Symmetry Plane Selection section.

Using a symmetry plane has the following effects:

• The orientation of the section forces are controlled by the orientation of the
symmetry plane, as described under Coordinate System Selection.
• The center of gravity of the section is assumed to be located in the symmetry plane.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1179

 • Section forces will be doubled, so that the value for the complete section is obtained.
• Some of the section forces are set to zero, is dictated by the type of symmetry.
TABLE 4-15: EFFECT OF SYMMETRY SETTINGS ON SECTION FORCES

TYPE N T1 T2 MT M1 M2

Symmetry Double 0 Double 0 Double 0

Antisymmetry 0 Double 0 Double 0 Double

RESULTS
Select the Add default plots check box in order to get default plots showing the
computed section forces.

The forces and moments are shown both as arrows, and with their
numerical values. The convention for the force arrows is:

• Red: Axial force N

• Green: Shear force T1
• Blue: Shear force T2

The moment arrows have a double head, and use the following colors:

• Red: Twisting moment Mt

• Green: Bending moment M1
• Blue: Bending M2

If the annotation box with the numerical values obscures the arrows, you
can just disable the Annotation node in the corresponding plot group.

Updating a Solution in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Variables>Section Forces

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected in the Model Builder tree:

Global>Variables>Section Forces

1180 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Test Material
Under large strains, several material models have regions where the material is
unstable. These instabilities might be triggered by a uniaxial deformation limit, or by
a combination of multiaxial deformations. These instabilities indicate that the material
is used outside the validity range where the material parameters were obtained.
Unstable materials generate convergence problems and unphysical solutions, and
therefore it is beneficial to test a given material model before running big models.

Some options described below are only available with certain COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

DOMAIN SELECTION
You can only select one domain, so that one material model can be tested at the time.
If you want to test different material models, you can sequentially change the domain
selection, or add several Test Material nodes with different selections.

MATERIAL TESTS
Select the Study setup — Stationary or Time dependent, and then select the Test setup
— Monotonic, Cyclic, or User defined.

For the Time dependent test, enter the Test time tf. The default is 1 second.

For either the Stationary or the Time dependent test, enter the Number of measurement
points in the study Np. The default is 50 points.

For the Monotonic test, the number of measurement points sets up the resolution for
the given load or deformation interval.

For the Cyclic test, enter the Number of cycles Nc. In a Stationary test, each cycle has
Np/Nc measurement points per cycle. In a Time dependent test, each cycle has a period
of tc  tf/Nc, and a time step given by t  tf/Np.

For the User defined test, select the Test control — Stretch driven or Force driven.
Depending on the choice, you can specify how the prescribed displacement or load
varies as a function of time or parameter range. Enter a Parameter name (default is
para) to be used in the user-defined inputs for the stretch functions or force functions.
A parameter with the given name will be created in the Parameters node when clicking
Set up Tests ( ) as shown further below.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1181

 Tests
Select one or more of the available check boxes to test the material under different load
conditions:

• Uniaxial test — Enter the stretch range for this default test. The minimum stretch
min gives the compressive limit, and the maximum stretch max gives the tensile
limit. A uniaxial compression test is achieved by setting max  1, and a uniaxial
extension test by setting min  1. The inputs should be such min  max.
• Biaxial test — Enter the minimum stretch min, the maximum stretch max, and the
biaxiality ratio  for the test.
• Shear test — Enter the maximum shear angle max for the test.
• Isotropic test — Enter the minimum stretch min and the maximum stretch max
for the test.
• Oedometer test — Enter the axial stretch min for the test.
• Triaxial test — Enter the in situ stress ins and the axial stretch min for the test.

Isotropic Compression with Modified Cam-Clay Material Model:

Application Library path Geomechanics_Module/Verification_Examples/
isotropic_compression.

Triaxial and Oedometer Test with Modified Cam-Clay Material

Model: Application Library path Geomechanics_Module/
Verification_Examples/isotropic_compression_mscc.

Load Group, Material and Study Generation

The material parameters of a given material model are tested by creating dedicated tests
on a single element. In order to do this, a number of fundamental load cases are
analyzed. These steps are described below.

1182 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

On the Material Tests section toolbar, there is an icon Auto Test Setup ( ). Select:

• Set Up Tests ( ). This option generates a new 3D Component, which contains a

single element to test the material model defined under Domain Selection. When you
select it, the following changes will be made to the model:
- A new 3D Component is created.
- A new Solid Mechanics interface is added to this component.
- A number of boundary conditions will be available to the new Solid Mechanics
interface. The boundary conditions correspond to the selected tests.
- A Mesh node containing a single element.
- A new Study node will be added based on the Study setup selection. A stationary
or time dependent study will contain the Number of measurement points for either
a Monotonic or a Cyclic test. This study runs automatically after selecting Set Up
Tests.
- A Stop Condition node will be added under the stationary or time dependent
study. This condition stops the loading when the element is fully collapsed. See
Stop Condition in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.
- A new Material Tests node will be added to the Results node. Different plots will
show the Tests and the results from the Study node.

• Clear Tests ( ). This option deletes the 3D Component, the Solid Mechanics
interface, and the Mesh, Study, and Results nodes added after selecting Set Up Tests.

Local System Results

Add a Local System Results node to create variables for common structural mechanics
quantities having vector and tensor components oriented in a local coordinate system.

When a Local System Results node has been added, you do not need to compute a new
solution. It is sufficient to perform an Update Solution ( ) to make the new variables
available for postprocessing.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1183

 COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION
Select a coordinate system defined under Definitions from the list. Only coordinate
systems with orthonormal axis directions will be shown.
TABLE 4-16: QUANTITIES TRANSFORMED BY LOCAL SYSTEM RESULTS

QUANTITY VARIABLE NAME EXAMPLE

Displacement <interface>.<tag>.<dofname>i solid.lsr1.u1

Velocity <interface>.<tag>.<dofname>_ti solid.lsr1.u_t1
Acceleration <interface>.<tag>.<dofname>_tti solid.lsr1.u_tt1
Cauchy Stress <interface>.<tag>.slij solid.lsr1.sl12
Total strain <interface>.<tag>.elij solid.lsr1.el12
(Green-Lagrange)
Elastic strain <interface>.<tag>.eelij solid.lsr1.el12
(Green-Lagrange)
Elasticity matrix <interface>.<tag>.Dij solid.lsr1.Dl12

• If you have selected a local coordinate system in a material model, stress

and strain tensors in the corresponding local directions are always
available.
• For more general transformations, and to transform other quantities
than those supplied by Local System Results, you can use Vector
Transform or Matrix Transform.

Updating a Solution in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Variables>Local System Results
Multibody Dynamics>Variables>Local System Results
Solid Rotor>Variables>Local System Results

Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics, Multibody Dynamics, or Solid Rotor selected in the
Model Builder tree:

Global>Variables>Local System Results

1184 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Average Rotation
Add an Average Rotation node to compute the average rotation and displacement for a
set of points. The points are assumed to move together as a rigid body in a least-squares
sense. Vectors for average rotation and displacement, as well as their velocities and
accelerations, are created as result variables. Add one Average Rotation node for each
set of points that you want to evaluate.

The point selection requires at least two points in 2D and three points in 3D.

CENTER OF ROTATION
Select a method for determining the Center of Rotation — Automatic, Centroid of
selected entities, or User defined.

• If Automatic is selected, the center of rotation is determined as the average position

of the selected points.
• For Centroid of selected entities, select an Entity level — Domain, Boundary, Edge, or
Point. The available choices depend on physics interface and geometrical dimension.
The center of rotation is located at the centroid of the selected entities, which do
not need to be related to the points used for computing the average rotation. As a
special case, you can select a single point, and thus use that point as center of
rotation.

Once chosen, a default Center of Rotation: Domain, Center of Rotation:

Boundary, Center of Rotation: Edge, or Center of Rotation: Point
subnode is automatically added.

• When User defined is selected, enter the location of the center of rotation manually.

ROTATION MODEL
Select a Rotation Model — Small rotations or Finite rotations. With Small rotations, the
computation of displacements caused by rotations is linearized using a cross product.
If large rotations are expected, the Finite rotation formulation is more accurate. In this
case, the rotation is described by a nonlinear rotation matrix.

FORMULATION
Select a Formulation — Symmetric segregated or Unsymmetric coupled. This affects how
the least-squares equations for computing the average rotations are formulated. Using
an appropriate setting here, and a corresponding setup of the solver strategy can

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1185

 strongly affect the computational cost. The cost of solving for the average rotation
variables as such is very small, but it can affect the structure of the system of equations.

With the Unsymmetric coupled option, you do not have to care about solver setup.
However, the majority of structural mechanics problems produce a symmetric stiffness
matrix, and that symmetry is now broken by adding the equations for average rotation.
This will lead to a significant (about a factor 2) penalty on solution time and memory
usage.

If the variables created by this feature are used in other equations, you should also
typically use the Unsymmetric coupled option.

In most cases, the average rotations and displacements are however used only during
result presentation. This means that the most efficient solution procedure is to first
compute the structural mechanics displacements, and subsequently solve the least
squares problem for the average rotations. If this is the case, using the Symmetric
segregated approach is usually the best choice. You must, however, set up the solver
sequence in a way such that you can benefit from this property. There are several
possible strategies, for example:

• Use two different study steps. In the first step, do not solve for the average rotation
and displacement variables. This can be done by disabling the Average Rotation node
in the study settings. In the second study step, solve only for those variables by
disabling the other dependent variables under the Dependent Variables node.
• A similar approach is to use a separate study, rather than a study step, for computing
the average rotation. The main difference is that you manually have to connect the
two studies using the Values of Dependent Variables section of the second study.
• Use a segregated solver. In this case, solve for the average rotation and displacement
variables only in the last segregated step. Note that in the default case, always at least
two iterations will be performed in a segregated solver. This is typically not what you
want. Set Termination technique to Iterations in the Segregated node, and terminate
after one iteration. Then, if required, set up the Segregated Step in which the
structural mechanics problem is solved so that proper nonlinear iterations are
performed until convergence.

See also Average Rotation in the Structural Mechanics Theory Chapter.

1186 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Variables>Average Rotation
Membrane>Variables>Average Rotation
Truss>Variables>Average Rotation
Wire>Variables>Average Rotation
Multibody Dynamics>Variables>Average Rotation
Solid Rotor>Variables>Average Rotation

Ribbon
Physics tab with an applicable physics interface selected in the Model Builder tree:

Global>Variables>Average Rotation

Wave Speeds
When you add a Wave Speeds node, a number of postprocessing variables containing
information about wave speeds in the material are created. This node does not
influence the solution.

When a Wave Speeds node has been added, you do not need to compute a new
solution. It is sufficient to perform an Update Solution ( ) to make the new variables
available for result presentation.

The Wave Speeds node is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/). It is available for 3D, 2D, and 2D
axisymmetry.

WAVE SPEEDS
Select a Wave propagation direction — Coordinate system axes or User Defined. This is
the propagation direction with respect to which the wave speeds will be computed.

When is Coordinate system axes used, the wave propagation direction is along the first
axis of the selected coordinate system.

When User Defined is selected, enter also the Direction vector, n. The vector, which is
interpreted in the selected coordinate system, gives the wave propagation direction.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1187

 Select Compute group velocity in order to create variables also for the group velocities.
The default is to only compute phase velocities.

See also

• Wave Speed Computation for the theory for a linear elastic material.
• Wave Propagation in Piezoelectric Media for the theory for a
piezoelectric material.
• Updating a Solution in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference
Manual.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Linear Elastic Material>Variables>Wave Speeds
Solid Mechanics>Piezoelectric Material>Variables>Wave Speeds

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material or Piezoelectric Material selected in the Model
Builder tree:

Attributes>Wave Speeds

Important Variables in the Solid Mechanics Interface

In each node in the physics interface, a number of variables are defined. In Table 4-17,
you can find a list of variables that you as a user may want to use when, for example,
creating your own variables and expressions. This list is far from exhaustive but
contains some of the most commonly used variables. To see all variables defined by a
certain node in the Model Builder tree, enable Equation View, and examine the
contents in the Equation View node under each physics node in the Model Builder tree.

The scopes of the variables in the table serve as examples only and assume the default
first instance of a certain feature in the Model Builder tree. The actual scope will
depend on the tag of a certain node in the model tree.

In the case of vectors and tensors, only a single component is shown. The actual indices
can depend on the dimensionality of the problem and names of coordinate system axis
directions.

1188 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

Variables created in contact analysis are summarized in Dependent Variables in Contact
Analysis and Important Contact Variables

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• For more information about the Equation View node, see Equation
View.
• For more information about variable scopes, see Variable Naming
Convention and Namespace.
• For more information about tags in the model tree, see Displaying
Node Names, Tags, and Types in the Model Builder.

TABLE 4-17: IMPORTANT VARIABLES IN THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION DEFINED IN COMMENTS

solid.disp Total displacement All materials1

solid.vel Velocity magnitude All materials1
solid.u_tX Velocity, X All materials1
component
solid.acc Acceleration All materials1
magnitude
solid.u_ttX Acceleration, X All materials1
component
solid.eXX Strain tensor, XX All materials1 Total (Green–
component Lagrange) strain in
global directions.
See also
Deformation
Measures.
solid.el11 Strain tensor, local All materials1 Total strain in the
coordinate system, 11 local directions.
component
solid.eel11 Elastic strain tensor, All materials1
local coordinate
system, 11
component
solid.eeldev11 Deviatoric elastic All materials1
strain tensor, local
coordinate system, 11
component

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1189

 TABLE 4-17: IMPORTANT VARIABLES IN THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION DEFINED IN COMMENTS

solid.eiel11 Inelastic strain tensor, All materials1 See also Inelastic

local coordinate Strain
system, 11 Contributions.
component
solid.FdxX Deformation gradient, All materials1 See also
xX component Deformation
Measures.
solid.Fdlx1 Deformation gradient, All materials1
local, x1 component
solid.J Volume ratio All materials1 Total relative
volume change.
solid.Cel11 Elastic Cauchy–Green All materials1
tensor, local
coordinate system, 11
component
solid.Jel Elastic volume ratio All materials1 Elastic relative
volume change.
solid.Ldxy Rate of strain tensor, All materials1 See also Strain
xy component Rate and Spin.
solid.Lwxy Spin tensor, xy All materials1 See also Strain
component Rate and Spin.
solid.SXX Second Piola– All materials1 See also Defining
Kirchhoff stress, XX Stress.
component
solid.Sl11 Second Piola– All materials1
Kirchhoff stress, local
coordinate system, 11
component
solid.SdevX Deviatoric second All material1 See also
Piola–Kirchhoff stress, Invariants of the
X component Stress Tensor.
solid.PxX First Piola–Kirchhoff All materials1 See also Defining
stress, xX component Stress.
solid.sxy Stress tensor, xy All materials1 Cauchy stress,
component See also Defining
Stress.

1190 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS

TABLE 4-17: IMPORTANT VARIABLES IN THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION DEFINED IN COMMENTS

solid.sdevx Deviatoric stress All materials1 Deviatoric

tensor, x component Cauchy stress,
See also
Invariants of the
Stress Tensor.
solid.mises von Mises stress All materials1 See also
Invariants of the
Stress Tensor.
solid.tresca Tresca stress All materials1 See also
Invariants of the
Stress Tensor.
solid.I1s First principal All materials1 See also
invariant of stress Invariants of the
Stress Tensor.
solid.I2s Second principal All materials1 See also
invariant of stress Invariants of the
Stress Tensor.
solid.I3s Third principal All materials1 See also
invariant of stress Invariants of the
Stress Tensor.
solid.II2s Second invariant of All materials1 See also
stress deviator Invariants of the
Stress Tensor.
solid.II3s Third invariant of All materials1 See also
stress deviator Invariants of the
Stress Tensor.
solid.RFx Reaction force, x All materials1
component
solid.RMx Reaction moment, y All materials1
component
solid.Tax Traction (force/area), All materials1
x component
1 - All materials: Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material, Hyperelastic Material,
Piezoelectric Material, Piezomagnetic Material, Cam-Clay Material.

THE SOLID MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1191

1192 | CHAPTER 4: SOLID MECHANICS
 5

Shell and Plate

This chapter describes the Shell and Plate interfaces, which are found under the
Structural Mechanics branch ( ) when adding a physics interface.

In this chapter:

• Modeling with Plates and Shells

• Theory for the Shell and Plate Interfaces
• The Shell and Plate Interfaces

1193
 Modeling with Plates and Shells
In this section:

• Introduction
• Dependent Variables
• Layered and Nonlayered Shells
• Working with Section Stiffness

Introduction
Shells and plates are structures which are significantly thinner in one direction than in
the other two directions. The mathematical description can then be simplified by using
the following assumptions:

• The deformation field is described by the displacements of the midsurface plus the
rotation of the midsurface normal.
• The in-plane total strains vary linearly through the thickness.
• The stress in the transverse direction is negligible.

These assumptions make it possible to reduce the number of degrees of freedom

significantly from what would be needed for a corresponding 3D solid model. In
addition, there are advantages in terms of numerical conditioning and meshing.

In shell theory, all quantities refer to the midsurface. In the Shell interface, you can
however use any boundary that is parallel to the midsurface for modeling. If the
reference surface where the mesh is located is not the midsurface, you can use an offset
distance to describe the true location. If you have a full 3D geometry, there is thus no
need to create the midsurface. You can place the mesh on either the top or bottom
surface of the actual geometry.

Plates are similar to shells but act in a single plane and usually with only out-of-plane
loads. The plate and shell elements in COMSOL Multiphysics are based on the same
formulation. The Plate interface for 2D models is a specialization of the Shell interface.
In the following, the text fully describes the Shell interface, and the Plate interface is
mentioned only where there are nontrivial differences.

A Shell interface can be active on:

• Free surfaces embedded in 3D.

1194 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

• The boundary of a solid 3D object. In this case, it can be used to model a
reinforcement on the surface of a 3D solid.
• Free boundaries in 2D axisymmetry.
• The boundary of a solid object modeled in 2D axisymmetry. In this case, it can be
used to model a reinforcement on the surface of a 3D solid.

A Plate interface can only be active on domains in 2D.

Dependent Variables
The element used for the shell interface is of Mindlin-Reissner type, which means that
transverse shear deformation is accounted for. It can thus also be used for rather thick
shells. In 3D and for plates, an MITC (mixed interpolation of tensorial components)
formulation is used. A general description of this element family is given in Ref. 1.

MODELING WITH PLATES AND SHELLS | 1195

 The dependent variables in 3D are the displacements u, v, and w in the global x, y, and
z directions, and the displacements of the shell normals ax, ay, and az in the global x,
y, and z directions.

Figure 5-1: The degrees of freedom in the shell interface. N is the normal vector in the
original configuration and n is the normal in the deformed state.

The degrees of freedom represent the displacements on the reference surface. If an

offset property is used, the reference surface differs from the physical shell midsurface.
The displacement vector on the midsurface, u, can be expressed as

u = uR + 0 a

where uR is the displacement on the reference surface (the displacement degrees of

freedom) and 0 is the offset. The rotational displacement a is the same on both
midsurface and reference surface.

In axisymmetry, there are four degrees of freedom, since u and a only has
components in the RZ-plane.

1196 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

For input and output, the Shell interface to a large extent replaces the displacements
of the shell normals by the more customary rotations x, y, and z about the global
axes. For a geometrically linear analysis, the relation between normal displacement and
rotation vector is simple: a    n where n is the unit normal of the shell.

For a standard plate analysis, only three degrees of freedom are needed: the
out-of-plane displacement w and the displacements of the shell normals ax and ay. It
is also possible to activate all six degrees of freedom, so that any type of analysis of a
shell initially positioned in the xy-plane can be performed using the Plate interface.
Using six degrees of freedom is the default, but three degrees of freedom can be
selected instead for efficiency.

For plates, the rotations x, y, and (possibly) z are used to a large extent.

• When six degrees of freedoms are used in the Plate interface, there
must be enough constraints to suppress any in-plane rigid body
motions.
• In the Shell interface, the coordinates are usually denoted with
lowercase letters (x, y, z). If a Solid Mechanics or Membrane interface
is present in the same model, then it becomes necessary to make a
difference between the material frame and the spatial frame (Material
and Spatial Coordinates). In this case, the coordinates in the Shell
interface changes to (X, Y, Z).

Layered and Nonlayered Shells

The Shell interface has two fundamental types of material models. The first is
represented by Linear Elastic Material, Rigid Material, and Section Stiffness. The other
type of material models consists of Layered Linear Elastic Material and Layered
Hyperelastic Material. In either case, the dependent variables are the same, and exist
only on the reference surface. The fundamental difference is that in the first group, the
material properties are assumed to be constant through the thickness, so that stiffness
and mass matrices can be computed by an analytical integration in the thickness
direction.

In the Layered Linear Elastic Material and Layered Hyperelastic Material models, there is
a numerical integration in the thickness direction. It is also possible to store states, such
as inelastic strains, at different through-thickness locations. Thus, the Layered Linear
Elastic Material forms the basis for all nonlinear material models even if the shell is not

MODELING WITH PLATES AND SHELLS | 1197

 layered as such. Use this material model if you want to write your own expressions as
function of through-thickness location.

When the Nonlinear Structural Materials Module is available, the Layered Linear Elastic
Material can be used to model plasticity, creep and other nonlinear materials; and when
the Composite Materials Module is available it can be used to model multilayered
shells.

The Layered Linear Elastic Material is only available for the Shell interface,
not for the Plate interface.

The accuracy of the results in a layered material model depends on the resolution in
the thickness direction. For each layer, you have the option to set the resolution. In a
layered material, this is the Mesh elements property in the layer definitions. When
working with a single layer material, then it is the Mesh elements property in the Shell
property group.

As this setting indicates, there is a virtual mesh in the transverse direction (the extra
dimension). When there is a significant variation in the thickness direction, as is the
case for plastic strains in state of bending, you need a good enough resolution.

The virtual mesh depends on the in-plane discretization, and so does the number of
integration points in the thickness direction. In Table 5-1, the number of integration
points that are used in the thickness direction are summarized.
TABLE 5-1: NUMBER OF INTEGRATION POINTS IN THICKNESS DIRECTION

DISCRETIZATI MESH MESH MESH MESH

ON ELEMENTS =1 ELEMENTS = 2 ELEMENTS = 3 ELEMENTS = 4

Linear 2 4 6 8
Quadratic 3 6 9 12

For an example showing how to model an elastoplastic shell, see Twisting

and Bending of a Metal Frame: Application Library path
Nonlinear_Structural_Materials_Module/Plasticity/
frame_with_cutout_plasticity.

1198 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Working with Section Stiffness
In some cases, shell models are used as a homogenized approximation of a thin
inhomogeneous structure. Examples of this are perforated sheets and corrugated
sheets, but also laminates. For such cases, a single material model together with a
thickness does not contain enough information to set up the model.

The Section Stiffness material model provides an option to describe the shell properties
directly in terms of quantities such as membrane stiffness, bending stiffness, and so on.

Actually, the Layered Linear Elastic Material is a special case of such a

homogenized model, where the homogenization is performed in the
thickness direction. The ABD matrices computed as side effect by this
material model provides exactly the same form of data that is used as input
in the Section Stiffness node.

In order to use the section stiffness approach, you must obtain all terms in the stiffness
matrix. In the case of dynamic analysis, also inertial matrices are needed. For some
common cases, like perforation and corrugation, expressions for these quantities may
be found in the literature. In general, however, you have to set up a finite element
model of a representative part of the structure, and compute the homogenized data
based on the results from various load cases.

Given only the homogenized stiffness and computed deformations, there is not
enough information to compute stresses. The stress state will depend on the local
geometry. In the Section Stiffness node, you have a possibility to define expressions for
the relation between section forces and stresses. Such expressions must then be based
on your knowledge of the peak stresses in the original, not homogenized structure. As
an example, for a perforated structure, the stress concentrations around the holes
should be taken into account.

Loads
Loads can be applied at an arbitrary location in the through-thickness direction.
Placing loads on the correct side of the shell is particularly important in two cases:

• When the loads act in the plane of the shell, since a tangential traction on the top or
bottom surface also creates a moment around the midsurface.
• When the shell is thick and curved, since the loaded area will then differ significantly
between the two sides.

MODELING WITH PLATES AND SHELLS | 1199

 By using the settings in the Through-Thickness Location section present in various load
features, you can take these effects into account.

1200 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Theory for the Shell and Plate
Interfaces
The theory for the Shell and Plate interfaces is discussed in this section:

• General Theory for the Shell and Plate Interfaces

• Theory for FSDT Laminated Shell
• Theory for Hyperelastic Shells
• Results Evaluation in a Laminate
• Theory for Section Stiffness
• References for the Shell Interface

General Theory for the Shell and Plate Interfaces

Several topics are discussed in this section:

• Geometry and Deformation • External Loads

• Strains • Stress and Strain Calculations
• Offset • Local Coordinate Systems
• Rotation Representation • Connection Between Shells and
• The MITC Shell Formulation Solids

• Initial Values and Prescribed Values • Connection Between Shells and

Beams
• Symmetry and Antisymmetry
Boundary Conditions

GEOMETRY AND DEFORMATION

Let r be the undeformed shell midsurface position, i be element local (possibly
nonorthogonal) coordinates with origin in the shell midsurface, and n be the normal
to the undeformed midsurface. The thickness of the shell is d, which can vary over the
element. The local coordinates 1 and 2 follow the midsurface, and 3 is the
coordinate in the normal direction. The normal coordinate has a value of d2 on the
bottom side of the element, and d2 on the top side.

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1201

 The position of the deformed midsurface is r  u, and the normal after deformation is
n  a. To keep the normal a unit vector requires that

n+a = 1 (5-1)

In a geometrically linear analysis Equation 5-1 is replaced by the simpler linearized

form

na = 0

since the formulation in that case assumes that

a «1

The vectors r, u, n, and a are interpolated by the nth-order Lagrange basis functions.
The basic assumption is that the position of a point within the shell after deformation
has a linear dependence of the thickness coordinate, and thus is

1 2 3 1 2 1 2 3 1 2 1 2
x        = r ( , ) + u ( , ) +   n ( , ) + a ( , ) 

The superscripts indicate contravariant indices, while subscripts indicate covariant

indices.

In axial symmetry, the local curvilinear coordinates have a special

interpretation: 1 is the arc-length along the line on which the shell is
modeled, and 2 is a circumferential coordinate given by 2 = R.

STRAINS
The in-plane Green-Lagrange strain in the local covariant components can then be
written as

1  3  3
  = --- r + u +  n + a  r + u +  n + a –
2   


 r 3  r 3 3 3 2
 + n   + n  =   +    +     
 
 

The indices  and  range from 1 to 2. The transverse shear strains in local covariant
components are

1202 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

  3 =  3 =

---   r + u +  3  n + a     n + a  –   r +  3 n   n =   +  3  
1
2   


The constitutive relation for the shell elements is a plane stress assumption, as is
customary in shell theory. The strain component in the normal direction 33 is thus
irrelevant. The different parts of the strain tensors above can be written out as

1 u r r u u u
  = --- --------- -------- + --------- -------- + --------- --------
2      

1 r a a r u n n u u a a u
  = --- --------- -------- + --------- -------- + --------- -------- + --------- -------- + --------- -------- + --------- --------
2            

1 a n n a a a
  = --- --------- -------- + --------- -------- + --------- --------
2      

1 r u u
  = --- ---------  a + ---------  n + ---------  a
2   

1 n a a
  = --- ---------  a + ---------  n + ---------  a
2   

In a geometrically linear analysis, the nonlinear terms (products between u, a, and

their derivatives) disappear. In all study types, the contributions from the parts  and
 are ignored. They are small unless the element has an extremely high ratio between
thickness and radius of curvature, in which case the errors from using shell theory are
large anyway.

Note that  here is a strain component, not to be confused with the local
coordinate in the normal direction or offset.

OFFSET
It is possible to model a shell with a midsurface that is not located at the meshed
surface but at a certain offset from it. The offset is assumed to occur along the normal
of the shell surface. In this case,

1 2 1 2 1 2
r ( , ) = r R ( , ) +  o n ( , )

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1203

 where rR is the position of the meshed reference surface and o is the offset distance.

Since all geometric derivatives are computed at the mesh on the reference surface, the
following type of expressions are used when evaluating the strains:

r r n
--------- = --------R- +  o ---------
  
  

The degrees of freedom are located on the reference surface.

All loads and boundary conditions are assumed to be applied at the midsurface, so a
force acting in the plane of the shell does not cause any bending action if there is an
offset.

The numerical integration of the element is performed over the reference surface. If
the shell is curved, the area of the actual midsurface and the reference surface differ.
This is compensated for by multiplying the weak expressions with an area scale factor
(ASF), defined as

r r
1
 2
  
ASF = ----------------------------
r R r R
1
 2
 

Any expressions depending on the coordinates are evaluated on the shell reference
surface.

For conditions applied to edges, a similar length scale factor (LSF) is required. It is
formally defined as

r r
1
t+ 2
t
 
LSF = -------------------------------------------
r R r R
1
t+ 2 t
 

where t is the tangent to the edge. For an internal edge, it is possible that there is a
discontinuity in thickness or offset. In such a case, the line scale factor will be an
average. Edge conditions are not well defined in such situations because the position

1204 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

of the midsurface can be discontinuous. In practice, errors caused by such effects are
small.

The LSF variable is computed from the principal curvatures, see

Curvature Variables in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

ROTATION REPRESENTATION
In a geometrically linear analysis, a rotation vector is defined as

 = na

In a geometrically nonlinear analysis, the rotation vector axis is defined by

na
e  = -----------------
na

while the amplitude of the rotation vector is computed as

 = acos  1 + n  a 

This representation is unique only for rotations up to 180 degrees, but since the
rotation vector representation is only an output convenience, it has no impact on the
analysis.

THE MITC SHELL FORMULATION

The MITC formulation (Ref. 1) does not take the strain components directly from the
shape functions of the element. Instead, meticulously selected interpolation functions
are selected for the individual strain components. The values of the interpolated strains
are then at selected points in the element tied to the value that would be computed
from the shape functions. The interpolation functions and tying points are specific to
each element shape and order.

Each contribution to the virtual work of the element is numerically integrated over the
reference surface while the integration in the thickness direction is performed
analytically. The computation of the strain energy from transverse shear deformations
uses a correction factor of 56 to compensate for the difference between the assumed
constant average shear strain and the true parabolic distribution.

In axisymmetry, the MITC formulation is not used. Instead, a reduced

integration scheme is employed in order to avoid locking for thin shells.

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1205

 FOLD LINES
In regions where the discretized surface is smooth (which is always the case for plates),
the normal of the shell surface is uniquely defined. When two or more shell elements
meet at an angle, each element must however keep its own normal direction. It is thus
not possible to have the same set of degrees of freedom for the displacement of the
normal in such a point, and this is automatically handled. The automatic search for
these fold lines compares the normals of all boundaries sharing an edge. If the angle
between the normals is larger than a certain angle (with a default of 0.001 rad, which
is approximately 0.6 degrees) it is considered as a fold line. For a fold line, the
assumption is that the angle between the shell normals remains constant. This gives

nj  nk =  nj + aj    nk + ak 

or

nj  ak + aj  nk + aj  ak = 0 (5-2)

where the values or j and k range over the number of shells elements with different
normals. The third term in Equation 5-2 is relevant only in a large deformation analysis
because it is nonlinear. A special case occurs when two adjacent boundaries are parallel
but their normal vectors have opposite directions. In this case the special constraint

ak = –aj

is applied along their common edge.

INTEGRATION
All volume integrals over a shell element are split into a surface integral, which is
performed numerically, and a thickness direction integral which is performed
analytically. It is thus not possible to enter data which depend on the thickness
direction. All material properties are evaluated at the reference surface. Formally this
can be written as

d2

 f        f1    
1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2
 dV = f 1     f 2    d dA = F 2  d  dA
V A –d  2 A

All functions of  are assumed to be of the form n. Odd powers will integrate to zero,
so typically the through-thickness integration will give factors d (for the case n  0)
and d3/12 (for the case n  2). The thickness d can be a function of the position.

1206 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

INITIAL VALUES AND PRESCRIBED VALUES
Because the normal vector displacements are quantities which are less intuitive than the
more customary nodal rotations, it is possible to specify the prescribed values in terms
of nodal rotations as well as in terms of the normal vector displacement. The
representation by normal vector direction is insensitive to whether the analysis is
geometrically nonlinear or not. The direction of the shell normal is prescribed in the
deformed state, n0. The prescribed values for the actual degrees of freedom, a0, are
internally computed as

n0
a 0 = --------- – n
n0

If the rotation vector input is used, and the analysis is geometrically linear, then

a 0 = 0  n

where 0 is the vector of prescribed nodal rotations. This relation is fully defined only
when all three components of 0 are given. It is also possible to prescribe only one or
two of the components of 0, while leaving the remaining components free. Because
it has no relevance to prescribe the rotation about the normal direction of the shell, it
is only possible prescribe individual rotations in a shell local system. In this case, the
result becomes one or two constraint relations between the components of a0. The
directions are the edge local coordinate system where t1 is the tangent to the edge and
t2 is perpendicular and inward from the edge, in the plane of the shell. These
constraints are formulated as

t 2  a 0 = –  01

t 1  a 0 =  02

Here 0i is the prescribed rotation around the axis ti.

In a geometrically nonlinear analysis, it is not possible to prescribe individual elements

of the rotation vector. If only one or two components have been specified, the
remaining components are set to zero. The actual degrees of freedom are then
computed as

a 0 =  R   0  – I n

where R is a standard rotation matrix, representing the finite rotation about the given
rotation vector.

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1207

 Initial velocities are always given using an angular velocity vector  as

ꞏ
a =    n + a0 

SYMMETRY AND ANTISYMMETRY BOUNDARY CONDITIONS

It is possible to prescribe symmetry and antisymmetry boundary conditions. As a
default, they are expressed in a shell local coordinate system. If applied to a boundary,
the normal to the shell is assumed to be the normal to the symmetry or antisymmetry
plane. The conditions are

un = 0

a  t1 = 0

a  t2 = 0

for the symmetry case and

u  t1 = 0

u  t2 = 0

for the antisymmetry case. Here t1 and t2 are two perpendicular directions in the plane
of the shell.

When applied to an edge, there is a local coordinate system where t1 is the tangent to
the edge, and t2 is perpendicular and in the plane of the shell. The assumption is then
that t2 is the normal to the symmetry or antisymmetry plane. The constraints are

u  t2 = 0

a  t2 = 0

for the symmetry case and

u  t1 = 0

u  t2 = 0

a  t1 = 0

a  t2 = 0

1208 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

for the antisymmetry case.

When symmetry or antisymmetry conditions are specified in a general coordinate

system with axis directions ei, i  1, 2, 3 with e1 as the normal to the symmetry/
antisymmetry plane the constraints are

u  e1 = 0

a   e2  n  = 0

a   e3  n  = 0

or the symmetry case and

u  e2 = 0

u  e3 = 0

a   e1  n  = 0

for the antisymmetry case. Using a general coordinate system sometimes leads to
higher accuracy, since there is no element interpolation of the constraint directions
involved.

Axisymmetric Models
In axisymmetric models, the only possible symmetry plane is the one having the Z-axis
as normal. In this case, you can use the Symmetry Plane boundary condition. The
imposed constraint is

w = 0

EXTERNAL LOADS
Contributions to the virtual work from the external load is of the form

u test  F + a test   M   n + a  

where the forces (F) and moments (M) can be distributed over a boundary or an edge
or concentrated in a point. The contribution from the normal vector displacement a
is only included in a geometrically nonlinear analysis. Loads are always referred to the
midsurface of the element. In the special case of a follower load, defined by its pressure
p, the force intensity is

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1209

 F = –p  n + a 

For a follower load, the change in midsurface area is not taken into account, in order
to be consistent with the assumption that thickness changes are ignored.

STRESS AND STRAIN CALCULATIONS

The strains calculated in the element are, as described above, the covariant tensor
components. They have little significance for the user, and are internally transformed
to a Cartesian coordinate system. This system can be global or element local. The
stresses are computed by applying the constitutive law to the thus computed strain
tensor.

Each part of the covariant strain (, , ) is transformed separately. They
correspond to membrane, bending, and shear action, respectively, and it is thus
possible to separate the stresses from each of these actions. The membrane stress is
defined as

Ni
 m = D   –  i –   T m – T ref  –  h  c m – c mo,ref   + ------
d

where D is the plane stress constitutive matrix, Ni are the initial membrane forces, and
i the initial membrane strains. The influence of thermal strains is included through the
midsurface temperature Tm, and the hygroscopic swelling through the midsurface
moisture concentration, cm. The membrane stress can be considered as the stress at the
midsurface, or as the average through the thickness.

The bending stress is defined as

Dd T c mo 6M i
 b = --------  –  i –  -------- –  h ------------- + ----------
-
2 d d d
2

where i is the initial value of the bending part of the strain tensor (actually: the
curvature), and Mi are the initial bending and twisting moments. T is the
temperature difference between the top and bottom surface of the shell, and cmo is
the difference in moisture concentration between the top and bottom. The bending
stress is the stress at the top surface of the shell if no membrane stress is present.

The average transverse shear stress is defined as

5 Qi
 s = ---  2G   –  i  + ------
6 d

1210 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

where G represent the transverse shear moduli, i is the initial average shear strain, and
Qi are the initial transverse shear forces. The correction factor 56 ensures that the
stresses are averaged so that they correspond to the ratio between shear force and
thickness. The corresponding strains  and i are averaged in an energy sense.

The actual in-plane stress at a certain level in the element is then

 =  m + z b

where z is a parameter ranging from 1 (bottom surface) to 1 (top surface). The

computation of the shear stress at a certain level in the element uses the following
analytical parabolic stress distribution:

2
3 s  1 – z 
-----------------------------
2

The shell section forces (membrane forces, bending moments, and shear forces) are
computed from the stresses as

N = d m

2
d
M = ------ 
6 b

Q = d s

In certain situations, the NMQ formulation is used to improve performance.

LOCAL COORDINATE SYSTEMS

Boundaries
Many quantities for a shell can best be interpreted in a local coordinate system aligned
to the shell surface. Material data, initial stresses and stress results are always
represented in this local coordinate system. You specify the orientation of the local
directions in a Shell Local System node under the Linear Elastic Material.

The local system for stress output coincides with the orientations defined for the
material input. Stresses are also available transformed to the global coordinate system.

If a Boundary System is selected, then the orientation of the shell local system is fully
defined by the boundary system. When using a boundary system, it also possible to
control the orientation of the shell normal by selecting the Reverse normal direction
check box.

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1211

 Other types of coordinate systems are not necessarily aligned with the shell surface. For
such systems, the definition of the local shell surface coordinate system is as follows:

1. The local z direction ezl is the positive geometry normal of the shell surface.

2. The local x direction exl is the projection of the first direction in the material
coordinate system (ex1) on the shell surface

e x1 –  e x1  e zl e zl
e xl = ----------------------------------------------------
e x1 –  e x1  e zl e zl

This projection cannot be performed if ex1 is normal to the shell. In that case, the
second axis ex2 of the material system instead defines exl using the same procedure.
Thus, if

e x1  e zl  0.99

then

e x2 –  e x2  e zl e zl
e xl = ----------------------------------------------------
e x2 –  e x2  e zl e zl

3. At last, the second in-plane direction is generated as

e yl = e zl  e xl

This procedure is followed irrespective of whether a global or a local coordinate system

defines the directions.

Note the following:

• When using an isotropic material, the only effect of selecting a local coordinate
system is that the definition directions of local stresses change.
• When defining orthotropic and anisotropic materials, local coordinate systems do
not need to be created so that they exactly follow the shell surface. It is sufficient
that the local system when projected as described above gives the intended in-plane
directions.
• For shells in the XY-plane, and for plates, the global and local directions coincide by
default.
• On curved shells, local stress components can become discontinuous if there is a
location where ex1 becomes perpendicular to the shell surface.

1212 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

• Avoid using the Shell Local System to enter loads or constraints at an edge or point
where two or more shells which do not have common orientations meet. For
prescribing edge loads, a Local Edge System is usually preferred.
• In this section, every reference to stresses is equally valid for strains.

Local Edge System

Many features, such as an edge load, allow input in an edge local coordinate system.
The orthogonal local edge coordinate system directions xl, yl, and zl are defined so
that:

• The first direction (xl) is along the edge. This direction can be visualized by
selecting the Show edge directions arrows check box in the View settings.
• The third direction (zl) is the same as the shell normal direction. The shell normal
direction can be visualized in the default plot named Undeformed geometry, or by
adding a Coordinate System Surface plot and selecting the Shell, Local System.
• The second direction (yl) is in the plane of the shell and orthogonal to the edge. It
is formed by the cross product of zl and xl; yl  zl  xl.

When an edge is shared between two or more boundaries, the directions may not
always be unique. It is then possible to use the control Face Defining the Local
Orientations to select from which boundary the normal direction zl should be picked.
The default is Use face with lowest number.

If the geometry selection contains several edges, the only available option is Use face
with lowest number, since the list of adjacent boundaries would then be different for
each edge. For each edge in the selection, the face with the lowest number attached to
that edge is then used for the definition of the normal orientation.

RESULTS EVALUATION
For visualization and results evaluation, predefined variables include all nonzero stress
and strain tensor components, principal stresses and principal strains, in-plane and
out-of-plane forces, moments, and von Mises and Tresca equivalent stresses. It is
possible to evaluate the stress and strain tensor components and equivalent stresses at
an arbitrary distance from the midsurface. The parameter zshell (variable name
shell.z) is found in, for example, the Parameters table of the Settings window of a
surface plot. It can be set to a value from 1 (downside) to 1 (upside). A value of 0
means the midsurface of the shell. The default value is given in the Default
through-thickness result location section of the Shell interface.

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1213

 Stresses and strains are available both in the global coordinate system and in the shell
local system as described in Local Coordinate Systems.

Using the Shell Dataset

The Shell dataset is tailored for display of results computed in the Shell interface. The
purpose is to simultaneously show results on the top and bottom surfaces of the shell
with a separation which matches the physics thickness. A Shell dataset with appropriate
settings is generated together with the default plots, and some of the default plots
make use of it.

Results such as stresses and strains which have an explicit thickness dependence will be
displayed with the correct values on the respective surfaces when using a Shell dataset.
Results like the degrees of freedom, which are only defined on the reference surface,
will be displayed with the same value on both sides.

For thin shells, it can be difficult to see the top and bottom side. You can then manually
increase the separation between the displayed top and bottom surfaces by changing the
value of the Distance parameter in the Shell dataset.

The Shell dataset is not available in 2D, so it cannot be used with the Plate interface.

Gauss Point Evaluation

When you evaluate stress and strain results, it is usually better to use the results at Gauss
points than at the element nodes. This is particularly important when you use the
MITC formulation, and when there are inelastic strain contributions such as thermal
expansion. You can do this by applying the gpeval() operator to the selected result
quantity.

The default stress plots generated from the Shell interface show the von Mises stress at
Gauss points, using an expression like gpeval(4,shell.mises).

RIGID DOMAIN FOR SHELLS

The inertial properties mass (m) and moment of inertia tensor (I) of a rigid shell take
the finite thickness into account. They are computed as:

1214 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

 
m =  dV = d dA 
V A
1 1 1
 
X M = ----- X dV = -----   r + n  dV = ----- dr dA
m m m 
V V A


T T
I =    X – X M    X – X M  E 3 –  X – X M    X – X M   dV =
V

    r – XM 
T T
  r – X M  E 3 –  r – X M    r – X M  d dA +
A
3
d
  E3 – nn
T
 ------ dA
12
A

where E3 and XM are the identity matrix and the center of mass of the rigid domain,
respectively. The last term in I is accounting for the finite thickness, and there the fact
that nT n  1 has been used.

CONNECTION BETWEEN SHELLS AND SOLIDS

This section describes the theory and assumptions behind the multiphysics couplings
Solid-Thin Structure Connection and Solid-Beam Connection. Only the shell version
of the connection is described in detail, since the beam version is a direct specialization
to 2D.

Solver Settings

There are three types of connections between a shell and a solid of interest:

• Type 1 connection: The shell connects to the solid in a thin region (having the same
thickness as the shell), so that shell theory is valid on both sides. This connection is
the most important from the application point of view and the most difficult to
create manually.
• Type 2 connection: The tangent plane to the shell is perpendicular to the face of a
“thick” solid, in which case the physics of the connection can, at best, be
approximate.
• Type 3 connection: The shell acts as cladding on a solid.

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1215

 The first two cases have similar physics and can be treated more or less as one case.
Usually, the shell should not connect to parts on the solid boundary further away than
what is represented by the shell thickness (or some other user-defined distance).

Shell Perpendicular to Solid

Figure 5-2 illustrates the first two cases. The shell edge can be part of the definition of
the solid but there is no assumption about that.

Figure 5-2: An example of a shell extending perpendicular to the solid boundary.

The connection of a solid to a shell is based on that shell theory is valid on both sides
of the connection. This can be divided into these assumptions:

• The dimension of the solid in the shell thickness direction is the same as the
thickness variable in the shell, shell.d.
• The midsurface of the shell to be connected to the solid is positioned at the
midsurface of the solid. The reference surface of the shell can be placed anywhere.
• The cut in the solid is orthogonal to the tangent of the shell (that is, the shell normal
vector is in the plane of the cut).
• Basic shell theory assumptions are valid, for example, the direct stress in the
transverse direction is negligible.

One basic shell theory assumption is actually not valid in practice: plane sections do
not always remain plane under deformation. A detailed analysis shows that if there is a
transverse shear force in the section, there must be a deviation from planarity to get the
correct shear strain distribution. This is more important as the shell grows thicker, but
without it, it is not possible to get a perfect connection. In Mindlin plate theory, shear
is related to the difference between rotation and the derivative of displacement, so that
plane sections remain plane, but no longer perpendicular to the midsurface. This gives

1216 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

an average shear strain, while it is known from analytical solutions that the shear strain
has a parabolic distribution through the thickness.

Consider a cut where the local coordinates are defined as follows:

• x is the outward normal to the solid boundary

• z is along the shell normal
• y is the tangent to the shell edge, directed so that x-y-z form a right-hand system

Using the plane section assumption in the shell gives the displacements in the solid as:

u' sld (y',z') = u' sh (y',0) + z'a' x (y',0)

v' sld (y',z') = v' sh (y',0) + z'a' y (y',0)

where the subscripts sld and sh represent “solid” and “shell”, respectively, and a is
the displacement of the shell normal, represented in the local directions.

The values on the solid boundaries should be interpreted as mapped using an extrusion
operator from the shell edge.

A simple connection for the transverse direction can be generated by

w' sld (y',z') = w' sh (y',0)

This connection, however, enforces a ‘plane strain condition’ in the solid, which is not
consistent with shell theory and which causes local unphysical stresses if Poisson’s ratio
is nonzero. This effect disappears within a few elements from the connection, and the
approximation can, in many situations, be acceptable. This constraint is enforced if
Method is set to Rigid in the multiphysics coupling.

A more accurate connection is derived in the following. The first approximation of the
stress state in a moderately curved shell is


  x' = A 1 + B 1 z'
  y' = A 2 + B 2 z'

  z' = 0

  x'y' = B 3 z'

 2
  x'z' = C 1  1 – z 

 2
 y'z' = C 2  1 – z 


THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1217

 2z'
where the relative thickness coordinate z = ------- has been introduced.
d
Assuming that Hooke’s law and plane stress conditions are valid, the transverse direct
strain can be computed as


 z' = – ----   x' +  y'  = K 1 (x',y') + 2K 2 (x',y')z'
E

The transverse displacement is then, after integration with respect to z:

2
w' = K 0 (x',y') + K 1 (x',y')z' + K 2 (x',y')z'

Thus, in order to obtain a stress-free transverse displacement, this deformation must

be allowed. Note that the last term makes the solid thinner on one side of the
midsurface and thicker on the other. The constant term — that is, the displacement at
the midsurface of the solid — is known from the shell midsurface displacement. The
other two terms depend on the stress state and thus on derivatives of the displacement,
which are not readily available. The K1 term is caused by the membrane action and the
K2 term by the bending action.

For the transverse shear stress, Hooke’s law gives

u' w'  x'z' C1 2

 x'z' = ------- + -------- = --------- = -------  1 – z 
z' x' G G

which can be reformulated as

------
u'- C1 2 w' C1 2 K 0 K 1 K 2 2
= -------  1 – z  – -------- = -------  1 – z  – ---------- – ---------- z' – ---------- z'
z' G x' G x' x' x'

Note that as the K1 term is related to membrane action, it cannot contribute to the
transverse shear stress. Since the derivative in the x direction cannot be controlled by
a condition on the boundary, it is necessary to make an assumption about u(z. An
integration with respect to z gives

3
u' = M 0 (x',y') + M 1 (x',y')z' + M 3 (x',y')z'

This shows that a third power of z is required in order to be able to represent the
correct shear strain contribution.

It is, however, not possible to directly determine the coefficients in front of the
additional terms, since they depend on the actual stress state. The idea is here to

1218 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

introduce them as dependent variables in the problem. These variables are defined by
extra shape functions on the shell edge.

The constraints applied on the solid can then be written as

3
u' sld (y',z') = u' sh (y',0) + z'a' x (y',0) + q u (y',0)  z – k u z d
v' sld (y',z') = v' sh (y',0) + z'a' y (y',0)
2
w' sld (y',z') = w' sh (y',0) + q w1 (y',0)zd + q w2 (y',0)  z – k w2 d

Here qu, qw1, and qw2 are the new dependent variables defined on the shell edge. They
are dimensionless, due to the multiplication with the shell thickness, d. The constants
ku  35 and kw2  15 are explained below. The variable qw1 is proportional to the
membrane axial strain, the variable qw2 is proportional to the bending strain, and the
variable qu is proportional to the transverse shear strain. Since these variables are
directly related to strains, the shape function order used is one order lower than for the
displacements.

If no extra equations defining qu, qw1, and qw2 are introduced, these variables try to
adapt to proper values through the reaction forces on the solid. The reaction force for
u is the traction x and the reaction force for w is the traction xz. When taking the
variation of the new dependent variables, these enforce the following constraints:

d
----
2

 z
3
test  q u  – k u z  x' dz' = 0
–d
-------
2
d
----
2

test  q w1   zx'z' dz' = 0

–d
-------
2
d
----
2

 z
2
test  q w2  – k w2  x'z' dz' = 0
–d
-------
2

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1219

 The equation with qw1 is trivially fulfilled because the shear stress is an even function
of z. Inserting the known stress distributions gives equations that can be solved for ku
and kw2.

The constraint expressions must now be formulated in global directions. As a start, the
constraints are written on vector form in local directions as

u' sld = u' sh + z'a' + q (5-3)

where

3
q u (y',0)  z – k u z 
q = 0
2
q w1 (y',0)z + q w2 (y',0)  z – k w2 

The fact that az  0 has been used when formulating Equation 5-3.

All coordinate directions are retrieved from the shell, because the normal to the solid
boundary is not necessarily constant.

The only coordinate value needed is actually z. For the other two coordinates, only
the direction is important. The coordinate in the normal direction can be computed as

z' =  X sld – X sh   N sh

This definition of z assumes that the thickness of the solid does not change
significantly. Under geometric nonlinearity, the computation should be based on the
current geometry.

z' =  x sld – x sh   n sh

The latter expression introduces additional nonlinearities in the model because it

depends on deformed position and deformed normal. Also, the position of the shell
midsurface with respect to the solid is actually part of the solution.

Let  be the matrix that transforms displacements from the global system to the local
system:

 = e x' e y' e z'

The expression for the constraints in global directions then becomes

1220 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

 T T T
u sld =  u' sld =   u' sh + z'a' + q  = u sh + z'a +  q

The only transformation actually needed is thus the projection of the q vector. For a
linear case, the transformation can be written as

 = st l  N sh st l N sh

where N is the undeformed shell normal (shell.an) and tl is the shell edge tangent
(shell.tle). The coefficient s is either 1 or 1, and is selected so that the x direction
coincides with the outward normal of the solid.

For a geometrically nonlinear case, the corresponding deformed directions are used.

When an offset is used for the shell, it is assumed that the center of the connection is
at the actual shell midsurface.

Beam Perpendicular to Solid

This is the analogous case in 2D. Beam theory assumes that the stress in the
out-of-plane direction is zero. It is thus only physically sound to connect to a model
where the plane stress assumption is used. The derivation above still remains valid with
the following exceptions: the displacements in the local y’ direction are zero and the
tangent direction tl is replaced by the out-of-plane direction.

The shell thickness is replaced by twice the effective radius of the beam in the equations
defining the displacements.

Shell Parallel to Solid

The case where the shell is parallel to the boundary of the solid exists in two versions
— Shared and Parallel.

In the shared case, the shell is modeled on a boundary which is a face of the solid. In
this case, it assumed that the names of the displacement degrees of freedom in the solid
and shell interfaces are not the same. If the same names are used, there is no need to
use a connection feature, since the coupling is then automatic. A shell offset can be
used to model an actual distance between the boundaries. For a layer “glued” on the
solid, the offset would equal half the shell thickness.

In the parallel case, a separate boundary is used for modeling the shell. The distance
between the shell and the face of the solid is taken into account when setting up the
constraints, so that

u sld = u shl – a

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1221

 where  is a distance from the solid to the shell. The right-hand side is mapped from
the shell to the solid using an extrusion operator. The default is that  is half the shell
thickness, but you can also use the geometrical distance between the boundaries, or a
user-defined distance.

CONNECTION BETWEEN SHELLS AND BEAMS

When connecting elements from the Shell interface with elements from the Beam
interface, the following must be noted:

• The rotational degrees of freedom have different definitions in the two interfaces.
The Beam interface uses a rotation vector representation, whereas the Shell interface
uses the normal vector displacements.
• In general, a shell element locally has three translational, but only two rotational,
degrees of freedom. The rotation around the normal is not part of the shell theory
and is constrained to zero. The corresponding rotational degree of freedom in a
beam should thus not be connected to the shell.

You can create the appropriate couplings by adding a Solid-Thin Structure Connection
multiphysics coupling. The theory of this connection is outlined below.

Beam Edge to Shell Edge

This coupling is intended for the common situation where beams are attached along a
plate to act as stiffeners. There are two variants of the coupling:

• The beam is modeled at an edge which is also an edge in the beam interface. This
case is called Shell and beam shared edges in the Shell-Beam Connection node. In
practice, the beam is usually placed on one side of the shell, and this offset plays an
important role in the stiffness of the combined section. The offset, d0, can be given
as a user input.
• The beam is modeled at a separate edge, representing the actual centerline. This case
is called Shell and beam parallel edges in the Shell-Beam Connection node, and the
closest geometrical distance between the edges directly gives d0. You do not need
to use the same mesh on both lines. Since the constraints are formed for the shell
edge, some parts of the beams could however become unconnected if the beam
elements are very short when compared to the shell element size.

The displacement at the centerline of the beam can then be written in terms of the
degrees of freedom in the shell as

u b = u s +  d 0  n a

1222 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

where n is the normal to the shell. The rotation vector in the beam can be expressed
in the shell degrees of freedom as

b = n  a

For a geometrically linear case, the constraint

na = 0

is enforced by the shell interface for each shell boundary. This is why there are only two
active rotational degrees of freedom. To avoid propagating this constraint to the beam,
only those components of the beam rotation that act in the plane of the shell should
be constrained. This can be expressed as

 b – n  a   ti i = 1 2

which can be simplified to

b  t1 + a  t2 = 0
b  t2 – a  t1 = 0

The constraints are actually formed on the shell edge, and the degrees of freedom are
taken from the beam using a General Extrusion operator which maps values from the
closest point on the beam to the shell.

The definitions of n, t1, and t2 may, however, be discontinuous over a shell edge. For
this reason, the constraint is formed using values from one boundary only if several
boundaries share the edge. Another complication arises when the edge is a fold line,
that is when the boundaries that meet do not have a common normal direction. On a
fold line all three rotational degrees of freedom do exist in the shell and should then
be connected to the corresponding degrees of freedom in the shell. In this case, also a
third rotational constraint is formed.

Beam Point to Shell Boundary

This coupling is intended for the case when the beam is not in the same plane as the
boundary modeled by shell theory. This case is called Shell boundaries to beam points
in the Shell-Beam Connection node. Physically, this can be seen as a beam with one end
welded to a plate. In order to get a correct stiffness representation of such a
connection, it is necessary that the beam is connected to an area of the shell which is
similar to the actual physical width of the beam. The connected area on the shell does

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1223

 not have to fit a boundary in the geometry. It is however necessary that the mesh size
is such that there are at least three nodes within the connected area.

You can then select the region to connect using three different criteria.

The connected region is treated as rigid. The displacement of the shell is controlled by
the displacement and rotation of the beam endpoint through

us = ub + b   Xs – Xb 

The coordinates of the shell are evaluated at the reference surface.

As it is only possible to constrain the in-plane rotations of the shell, the continuity in
rotation is projected onto the shell, giving

b  t1 + a  t2 = 0
b  t2 – a  t1 = 0

The rotation of the beam around the normal of the shell, which does not participate
in the rotation constraints, is indirectly connected through the displacement equation,
so it implicitly receives an appropriate stiffness.

Beam Point to Shell Edge

This case is identical to the previous case, with the only exception that the selection in
the Shell interface is an edge. The beam can have any orientation relative to the shell
edge. This case is called Shell edges to beam points in the Shell-Beam Connection node.

Theory for FSDT Laminated Shell

The theory of laminated shells is discussed in this section. The Layered Linear Elastic
Material node in the Shell interface allows the modeling of laminated shells, also
popularly known as composite laminates, having different orthotropic properties per
layer. The first order shear deformation theory (FSDT) is used to find homogenized
equivalent material properties of a composite laminate.

Several topics are discussed in this section:

• About Composite Laminates

• Equivalent Single Layer (ESL) Theory
• First-Order Shear Deformation Theory (FSDT)
• Integration in a Laminate

1224 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

• Lamina Constitutive Law
• Laminate Constitutive Law
• Shear Correction Factor Computation
• Results Evaluation in a Laminate

ABOUT COMPOSITE LAMINATES

A layered shell, also known as a composite laminate, is a thin-walled structure in having
many layers of different orthotropic (or optionally isotropic/anisotropic) material
stacked on top of each other.

A layered shell can be active either on free surfaces embedded in 3D, or on the
boundary of a solid object in 3D. In the latter case, it can be used to model a
reinforcement on the surface of a solid object. Similarly, it can be active on free
boundaries in 2D axisymmetry, or on the boundary of a solid object in 2D
axisymmetry.

A simple form is assumed for the variation of the displacement through the thickness
in order to develop a model for the deformation that is more similar to a 2D plane
stress condition than to a full 3D state.

Figure 5-3: Geometry of a doubly curved composite laminate.

Figure 5-3 shows a doubly curved laminated shell with uniform total thickness, d. It
is represented by orthogonal curvilinear coordinate system (1 2 ). The geometry

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1225

 representation of a layered shell is same as a single layer shell as discussed in the
Geometry and Deformation section.

A typical stacking sequence of a composite laminate having n layers is shown in

Figure 5-4. The thickness of each layer (dk), as well as the fiber direction in each layer
(k) with respect to the first principal direction (1) of the laminate are indicated. A
counterclockwise rotation of the fiber direction with respect to the  direction is
considered as positive.

Figure 5-4: A typical stacking sequence of a composite laminate showing thickness and
fiber orientation in each layer.

EQUIVALENT SINGLE LAYER (ESL) THEORY

Composite laminates are formed by stacking layers of different materials or having
different fiber orientations. In general, composite laminates have a planar dimension
that is orders of magnitude larger than the thickness. They are often used in the
applications requiring membrane and bending strengths. Therefore, composite
laminates can often be modeled using a shell element based on an equivalent single
layer (ESL) theory.

In ESL theory, a heterogeneous laminated shell is converted into a statically equivalent

single layer shell by reducing the 3D continuum problem to a 2D shell problem. In
addition to their simplicity and low computational cost, ESL theory provides
sufficiently accurate description of global response for a thin to moderately thick
laminates, for example gross deflections in a laminate, critical buckling loads, and
eigenfrequencies with corresponding mode shapes.

Assumptions and Restrictions

Some of the general assumptions when using shell theory to model a thin solid
structure are:

• Straight lines perpendicular to the midsurface remain straight after deformation.

1226 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

• Plane stress condition is assumed.
• The transverse normal strain or out-of-plane strain is nonzero, but it is not part of
the formulation and is ignored while expressing the energy of the system.
• The normal rotates in such a way that it remains perpendicular to the mid surface
after deformation.

The last assumption is present only in the classical laminate plate theory.

Some of the assumptions specific to ESL theory when used to model a composite
laminate are:

• The material in each layer is assumed linear elastic and orthotropic.

• Each layer has a uniform thickness.
• All layers are perfectly bonded together and thus interface or delamination
modeling is not possible.
• Transverse shear stresses at the top and bottom surfaces of a laminate are zero.

Classification
The ESL theories can be classified into various groups based on the description of the
transverse shear stresses.

Classical Laminate Plate Theory (CLPT)

The classical laminate plate theory is an extension of Kirchhoff or classical plate theory
used for single layer thin shells. In this theory, transverse shear stresses are neglected
and the deformation is entirely due to the bending and in-plane stretching.

First Order Shear Deformation Theory (FSDT)

The first order shear deformation theory is similar to the Mindlin-Reissner shell theory
used for single layer thick shells. This theory extends the kinematics of CLPT by
including the gross transverse shear deformation. The transverse shear strain is
assumed to be constant with respect to the thickness coordinate. As the transverse
shear strain has a constant value, this theory requires a shear correction factor.

Higher Order or Third Order Shear Deformation Theory (HSDT)

This theory is an extension of FSDT where the displacement field is approximated in

such a way that the transverse shear strain varies quadratically with respect to the

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1227

 thickness coordinate. It makes the transverse shear stresses zero at the top and bottom
surfaces of the laminate, thus eliminating the need of a shear correction factor.

FIRST-ORDER SHEAR DEFORMATION THEORY (FSDT)

In COMSOL Multiphysics, the first-order shear deformation theory (FSDT) is
implemented to model composite laminates using an equivalent single layer approach.
The element used for the shell interface is of Mindlin-Reissner type, which means that
transverse shear deformations are accounted for. It can thus also be used for rather
thick shells. It has an MITC (mixed interpolation of tensorial components)
formulation.

The FSDT theory for a layered shell extends the ordinary theory for a
single layer shell. See the following topics from the single layer shell
theory for more details:

• Geometry and Deformation

• Strains
• Offset
• Rotation Representation
• The MITC Shell Formulation
• Local Coordinate Systems

FSDT differs from the single layer shell theory in the way through-thickness
integrations are performed, constitutive equations are formed, and results are
evaluated. In the following sections, these topics are discussed in detail.

INTEGRATION IN A LAMINATE
All volume integrals over a shell element are split into a surface integration and a
through-thickness integration. Both integrations are performed numerically. The
surface geometry is used for surface integration, and an extra dimension geometry is
used for the through-thickness integration. It is thus possible to enter data which
depend on the thickness direction.

Unlike a single layer shell, where all material properties are evaluated at the reference
surface, different material and fiber orientation can be specified in each layer of the
composite laminate. Formally this can be written as:

1228 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

 n
k + 1
    
1 2 1 2 1 2
f        dV = f 1     f 2    d dA = f 1     f 2    dA
A
k
V Ak = 1

For curved laminates, an area scale factor is also included since the layers have different
surface area. This is independent of whether an offset is used or not, but the offset
affects the scale factor. The definition of the area scale factor (ASF) for a composite
laminate is similar to that of a single layer shell.

LAMINA CONSTITUTIVE LAW

In classical laminate theory, a lamina is assumed to be in a plane stress state and all three
transverse stress components (xz yz zz) are assumed to be zero. In terms of strains,
the transverse shear strain components (xz yz) are zero while the transverse normal
strain (zz) is nonzero but not part of the formulation.

FSDT extends the classical laminate theory and allows nonzero transverse shear strain
components.

In-Plane Constitutive Equations (Membrane and Bending Equations)

The linear constitutive relation for orthotropic lamina k in a composite laminate, can
be written as:

k k k

 11 Q 11 Q 12 0  11
 22 = Q 12 Q 22 0  22
 12 0 0 Q 66  12

where

• ij are the stress components in the principal material directions of a lamina
• ij are the strain components in the principal material directions of a lamina
• Qij are the elasticity matrix components in the principal material directions of a
lamina

For an orthotropic lamina, the elasticity matrix components (Qij) can be defined in
terms of the material constants ( E 1 E 2  12  21 G 12 ):

E1
Q 11 = -------------------------------
 1 –  12  21 

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1229

 E2
Q 22 = -------------------------------
 1 –  12  21 

 12 E 2  21 E 1
Q 12 = ------------------------------- = -------------------------------
 1 –  12  21   1 –  12  21 

Q 66 = 2G 12

A general composite laminate is made of several orthotropic layers, having principal

material directions with different orientations with respect to the laminate coordinates
(1 2 ) as shown in Figure 5-3. The constitutive equations for a lamina can be
transformed from its material coordinate system to the laminate coordinate system,
giving:

k k
1 1 Q 11 Q 12 Q 16  1 1
2 2 = Q Q Q
12 22 26
 2 2
1 2 Q 16 Q 26 Q 66  1 2

where

• ij are the stress components in the laminate coordinate system

• ij are the strain components in the laminate coordinate system
• Qij are the elasticity matrix components in the laminate coordinate system

The transformed in-plane elasticity matrix is defined as:

–1
Q = T QT

The principal material direction (or fiber direction) in each lamina makes an angle ()
with the first in-plane direction (1) of the laminate coordinate system. Hence the
transformation matrix can be defined as:

2 2
c s 2cs
T = s
2
c
2
– 2cs
2 2
– sc sc c – s

where c  cos and s  sin.

1230 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Out-of-Plane Constitutive Equations (Shear Equations)
The linear constitutive relation for the transverse shear in a lamina k can be written as:

k k k

4 Q 44 0 4
=
5 0 Q 55 5

where

• ij are the transverse shear stress components in the principal material directions of
a lamina
• ij are the transverse shear strain components in the principal material directions of
a lamina
• Qij are the elasticity matrix components in the principal material directions of a
lamina

For an orthotropic lamina, the elasticity matrix components (Qij) can be defined in
terms of the two shear moduli ( G 13 G 23 ):

Q 44 = G 23

Q 55 = G 13

The constitutive equations of a lamina can be transformed from its material coordinate
system to the laminate coordinate system and can be written as:

k k
 2 3 2 3
= Q 44 Q 45
 1 3 Q 45 Q 55 1 3

where

• ij are the transverse shear stress components in the laminate coordinate system
• ij are the transverse shear strain components in the laminate coordinate system
• Qij are the elasticity matrix components in the laminate coordinate system

The transformed out-of-plane elasticity matrix is defined as:

–1
Q = T QT

where the transformation matrix is defined as:

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1231

 T = cos  – sin 
sin  cos 

LAMINATE CONSTITUTIVE LAW

The laminate constitutive law relates the resultant membrane forces, bending
moments, and transverse shear forces to the membrane strains, bending strains, and
transverse shear strains.

Figure 5-5: An equivalent layer of a composite laminate having n layers. The resultant
membrane forces (Nij), bending moments (Mij), and transverse shear forces (Qi) are
shown.

The resultant membrane forces, bending moments, and transverse shear forces in a
composite laminate are computed as:

k

  1  1  1 + -------
 R 2
N 11 
n   2  2  1 + -------
N 22 k + 1  R 1
=   
d
  1  2  1 + -------
N 12 k
k=1
N 21 R2

  2  1  1 + -------
R1

1232 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

 k

  1  1  1 + -------
 R 2
M 11 
n
k + 1   2  2  1 + -------
M 22 R1
=   
 d
  1  2  1 + -------
M 12 k
k=1  R 2
M 21

  2  1  1 + -------
 R 1

k

n   2  3  1 + -------
Q2 k + 1  R 1
= Ks   
d
  1  3  1 + -------
Q1 k
k=1  R 2

where

• Nij are the membrane forces in the laminate coordinate system

• Mij are the bending moments in the laminate coordinate system
• Qi are the transverse shear forces in the laminate coordinate system
• ij are the stress components in the laminate coordinate system
• Ks is the shear correction factor
• R1 and R2 are the principal radii of curvature of the equivalent shell (actually this
implies that the laminate system is aligned with the principal curvatures, but that is
of no consequence, due to the approximations made below).

For shallow shells, the following approximation can be used:


 1 + ------
- 1
 R 1

 1 + ------
- 1
 R 2

This leads to

N 12 = N 21
M 12 = M 21

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1233

 Hence the expressions for the resultant membrane force, bending moment, and
transverse shear force reduce to the following:

k
N 11 n 1 1
k + 1
N 22 =   k
2 2 d
N 12 k=1 1 2

k
M 11 n 1 1
k + 1
M 22 =   k
2 2  d
M 12 k=1 1 2

n k
Q2 k + 1  2 3
Q1
= Ks   k  1 3
d
k=1

This formulation, with its assumption of a moderate curvature, is the one used in the
Shell interface.

The stress components can be written in terms of elasticity matrix components and
strain components by using the lamina constitutive law. This establishes the relation
between resultant forces and the midplane strains as given below:

k 0 1

N 11 n   1  1 +   1  1
k + 1 Q 11 Q 12 Q 16
N 22 =   k
Q 12 Q 22 Q 26
0 1
  2  2 +   2  2 d
N 12 k=1 0 1
Q 16 Q 26 Q 66   1  2 +   1  2

k 0 1

M 11 n   1  1 +   1 1
k + 1 Q 11 Q 12 Q 16
M 22 =   k
Q 12 Q 22 Q 26
0 1
  2  2 +   2 2  d
M 12 k=1 0 1
Q 16 Q 26 Q 66   1  2 +   1 2

n k 0
Q2 k + 1 2 3
 
= Ks Q 44 Q 45 d
Q1 0
k=1
k
Q 45 Q 55 1 3

1234 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

The resultant force and moment expressions can be further rewritten as:

0 1
N 11 A 11 A 12 A 16   1  1 B 11 B 12 B 16   1  1
N 22 = A 12 A 22 A 26   02  2 + B 12 B 22 B 26   12  2 (5-4)
   
N 12 A 16 A 26 A 66 0 B 16 B 26 B 66 1
1 2 1 2

0 1
M 11 B 11 B 12 B 16   1  1 D 11 D 12 D 16  1  1
M 22 = B 12 B 22 B 26   02  2 + D 12 D 22 D 26   12  2 (5-5)
   
M 12 B 16 B 26 B 66 0 D 16 D 26 D 66 1
1 2  1 2

0
Q2 A 44 A 45   2  3
= Ks (5-6)
Q1 A 45 A 55   01  3
 

where
0
•  ij is the membrane part of strain
1
•  ij is the bending/flexural part of strain or (curvatures)
• Aij is the extensional stiffness matrix
• Bij is the bending-extensional coupling stiffness matrix
• Dij is the bending stiffness matrix

The extensional, bending, and coupling stiffnesses are defined as:

n n
k + 1 k k
A ij =   k
Q ij d =  Qij  k + 1 – k 
k=1 k=1

n n
k + 1 k k
1
   Qij
2 2
B ij = Q ij  d = ---  k + 1 – k 
k
2
k=1 k=1

n n
k + 1 k 2 k
1
   Qij
3 3
D ij = Q ij  d = ---  k + 1 – k 
k
3
k=1 k=1

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1235

 The in-plane laminate constitutive law, relating resultant forces and midplane strains,
can also be written in matrix form as:

0
N = A B  
M  B   D    1  

The midplane strains can be written using resultant forces and flexibility matrices as:

0 –1
  = A B N
1
  B D M

0
  = a b N

1
 b d M

where

• a is the extensional flexibility matrix

• b is the bending-extensional coupling flexibility matrix
• d is the bending flexibility matrix

The stiffness and flexibility matrices are available for output, using for
example Derived Values->Point Matrix Evaluation. The following matrix
variables are defined:

• Stiffness matrix — shell.ABD

• Flexibility matrix — shell.abd
• Extensional stiffness matrix — shell.DA
• Extensional stiffness matrix — shell.DA
• Bending stiffness matrix — shell.DD
• Bending-extensional stiffness matrix — shell.DB
• Extensional flexibility matrix — shell.Da
• Bending flexibility matrix — shell.Dd
• Bending-extensional flexibility matrix — shell.Db

1236 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

SHEAR CORRECTION FACTOR COMPUTATION
The transverse shear strains and stresses computed from the FSDT theory are averaged
values. For this reason, they need shear correction factors in order to give correct strain
energy contributions.

In order to compute the shear correction factor, the following assumptions are taken:

• Based on 3D elasticity theory, it is known that the first derivative of the transverse
shear strain with respect to the thickness coordinate is a straight line. Thus, the
transverse shear strains in each lamina are assumed to have parabolic profiles.
• In order to avoid nonlinear equations, it is assumed that there is no cross coupling
between transverse shear stresses and transverse shear strains, that is,
Q 45 = Q 54 = 0 .
• It is assumed that shear modulus Gij is only a function of the thickness and does
not change in the plane of laminate.

These assumptions are only satisfied exactly for a laminate with isotropic layers. For a
laminate with orthotropic layers, the first assumption does not hold exactly but is
approximately satisfied. The second assumption only holds for a cross-ply laminate
having 0- and 90-degree layers.

For a laminate with isotropic layers, the transverse shear stresses are zero at free surfaces
and they are continuous at interfaces between two layers. The through-thickness
profile matches the 3D elasticity solution very closely. For a laminate with orthotropic
layers, the vanishing shear stress condition is achieved at free surfaces of a laminate,
while shear stress continuity at the interfaces is not guaranteed.

Based on the first assumption, the through-thickness derivative of a transverse strain

component can be defined as:


------ =  E + F    avg


Integrating the above equation in through-thickness direction, the transverse shear

strain in each layer can be written as:

2
 i =  E + F + K i    avg

where

• E and F are constant for a given laminate

• Ki is the integration constant for each layer in the laminate

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1237

 The transverse shear stress for each layer can be written as:

2
 i = G i   E + F + K i    avg

For n number of layers in a laminate, there are n+2 variables (unknowns) and thus n+2
equations are needed to solve them. The first n+1 equations are the form of shear stress
continuity can be written as:

 bot 
1 = 0

 top   bot 
i = i + 1

 top 
n = 0

Here, the subscript indicates the layer index, and the superscript indicates the interface
position (top or bottom) of a particular layer.

The missing equation can be expressed in the form of the average shear stress:

n n
k + 1
  k
 i d =  Gi avg i
k=1 k=1

Using this set of equations, it is possible to solve for the correct distribution of shear
stresses and strains. In order to compute the shear correction factor for the strain
energy contribution, an additional equation is needed. It can be obtained through an
energy equivalence approach between 3D elasticity and FSDT formulations.

The transverse shear strain energy based on the 3D elasticity theory is written as:

1 1
   d dA   4f   
2 2
U s = --- = --- G    avg d dA
2 2
A A

where the shear strain distribution is defined as:

2
f    = E + F + K i

The transverse shear strain energy, corresponding to (13), based on FSDT theory is
written as:

1238 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

 1 1
 
2
U s = ------------- 2Q 1  avg dA = ------------- 4A 55  avg dA
2K 13 2K 13
A A

The shear correction factor can be obtained by equating the two energy equations:

 A55 dA
A
K 13 = -----------------------------------------------------
-

2
f    G 13    d dA
A

Similarly, the shear correction factor corresponding to (23) is:

 A44 dA
A
-----------------------------------------------------
-
K 23 =
  f
2
G 23    d dA
A

Theory for Hyperelastic Shells

Different hyperelastic material models are constructed by specifying different elastic
strain energy expressions. Several predefined material models are included, and also the
option to enter user defined expressions for the strain energy density. See Hyperelastic
Materials in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

Results Evaluation in a Laminate

For visualization and results evaluation, predefined variables include all nonzero stress
and strain tensor components, principal stresses and principal strains, in-plane and
out-of-plane forces, moments, and von Mises and Tresca equivalent stresses.

Stresses and strains are available in the global coordinate system, laminate coordinate
system, as well as in the layer local coordinate system.

LAYERED MATERIAL SLICE PLOT

It is possible to evaluate the stress and strain tensor components and equivalent stresses
in each layer of a laminate using Layered Material Slice plot.

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1239

 The through-thickness location can be set to evaluate a quantity in the middle of a
layer, at an interface between two layers, top or bottom of a laminate, and so on. The
top, bottom, and the middle of a laminate can be defined as:

• Bottom of a laminate: 1 (relative) and 0 (physical)

• Middle of a laminate: (relative) and d/2 (physical)
• Top of a laminate: 1 (relative) and d (physical)

The default value for the through-thickness location is given in the Default
through-thickness result location section of the Layered Shell interface.

THROUGH THICKNESS PLOT

The through-thickness variation of a quantity at one or more locations on the reference
surface can be plotted using a Through Thickness plot. In this plot, the reference surface
locations can be specified through following ways:

• By selecting one or more geometric points

• By specifying the coordinate of one or more points
• By creating a cut point dataset

LAYERED MATERIAL DATASET

The Layered Material dataset allows the display of results in 3D solid even though the
equations are solved on a 2D surface.

Using this dataset, results can either be visualized on a 3D object or on slices created
in the through-thickness direction of a 3D object. The following options are available
in the dataset to create slices in the through-thickness direction:

• Mesh nodes
• Interfaces
• Layer midplanes

Sometimes, when a laminate is very thin, it becomes difficult to distinguish between a

surface or a solid object. In such cases it is possible to scale the through-thickness
direction in the dataset for better visualization.

Theory for Section Stiffness

The Section Stiffness node in the Shell interface allows modeling of a shell by directly
entering the effective stiffness or compliance matrices without specifying the

1240 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

geometrical and material properties of the cross section. A typical use case is for
modeling shells with homogenized properties, for example, perforated or corrugated
sheets.

The background and theory of the Section Stiffness model is based on the Theory for
FSDT Laminated Shell. However, instead of performing a numerical integration in the
extra dimension to account for the through thickness variation of geometrical and
material properties, this is assumed to have been done beforehand. Hence, you directly
enter the coefficients of the A, B, and D matrices in Equation 5-4 to Equation 5-6 to
define the effective properties of the cross section. Additionally, shear correction
factors are needed so that the transverse strains and stresses give the correct
contributions to the strain energy.

A consequence of this formulation is that stresses are not straightforwardly available

for result evaluation, since they are not part of the formulation. Stresses can, however,
be evaluated using the following equations

 11 N 11 M 11
 22 = S N N 22 + S M M 22
 12 N 12 M 12

 13 Q1
= SQ
 23 Q2

where matrices SN, SM, and SQ are user inputs. They are by default populated with
coefficient that gives the stress on the top surface of the shell.

References for the Shell Interface

1. D. Chapelle and K.J. Bathe, The Finite Element Analysis of Shells —
Fundamentals, Springer-Verlag, Berlin Heidelberg, 2003.

2. J.N. Reddy, Mechanics of Laminated Composite Plates and Shells — Theory and
Analysis, CRC Press, Second Edition, 2004.

THEORY FOR THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1241

 T he S he ll a nd Pl at e In t erfaces
The Shell (shell) interface ( ), found under the Structural Mechanics branch ( )
when adding a physics interface, is used to model structural shells on boundaries in 3D
or 2D axisymmetry. Shells are thin flat or curved structures, having significant bending
stiffness. The interface uses shell elements of the MITC type, which can be used for
analyzing both thin (Kirchhoff theory) and thick (Mindlin theory) shells.

The Plate (plate) interface ( ), found under the Structural Mechanics branch ( )
when adding a physics interface, provides the ability to model structural plates in 2D.
Plates are thin flat structures with significant bending stiffness, being loaded in a
direction out of the plane.

The Shell interface is for 3D and 2D axisymmetry models.

The Plate interface is for 2D models — domains are selected instead of

boundaries, and boundaries instead of edges. Otherwise the Settings
windows are similar to those for the Shell interface.

The Linear Elastic Material is the default material model. It adds a linear elastic
equation for the displacements and has a Settings window to define the elastic material
properties. With this material model, the material is assumed to be homogeneous
through the thickness of the shell.

When this interface is added, these default nodes are also added to the Model Builder
— Linear Elastic Material, Thickness and Offset, Free (a boundary condition where edges
are free, with no loads or constraints), and Initial Values. Then, from the Physics
toolbar, add other nodes that implement, for example, boundary conditions. You can
also right-click Shell or Plate to select physics features from the context menu.

SETTINGS
The Label is the default physics interface name.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the physics
interface. Refer to such physics interface variables in expressions using the pattern
<name>.<variable_name>. In order to distinguish between variables belonging to

1242 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

different physics interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and
underscores (_) are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first physics interface in the model) is shell or plate.

SKETCH
In the Sketch section, a conceptual sketch of the degrees of freedom in the Shell and
Plate interfaces appears.

AXIAL SYMMETRY APPROXIMATION

Select Circumferential mode extension to prescribe a circumferential wave

number to be used in eigenfrequency or frequency-domain studies. When
selected, enter the Azimuthal mode number m.

For more information, see Circumferential Displacement and

Out-of-Plane Waves in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

Eigenfrequency Analysis of a Free Cylinder: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Verification_Examples/free_cylinder.

STRUCTURAL TRANSIENT BEHAVIOR

From the Structural transient behavior list, select Include inertial terms (the default) or
Quasistatic. Use Quasistatic to treat the dynamic behavior as quasi static (with no mass
effects; that is, no second-order time derivatives). Selecting this option gives a more
efficient solution for problems where the variation in time is slow when compared to
the natural frequencies of the system. The default solver for the time stepping is
changed from Generalized alpha to BDF when Quasistatic is selected.

For problems with creep, and sometimes viscoelasticity, the problem can be considered
as quasistatic. This is also the case when the time dependence exists only in some other
physics, like a transient heat transfer problem causing thermal strains.

FOLD-LINE SETTINGS

This section is available for the Shell interface only. Also see The MITC
Shell Formulation.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1243

 The fold-line limit angle  is the smallest angle between the normals of two boundaries
that makes their intersection to be treated as a fold line. The normal to the shell is
discontinuous along a fold-line. Enter a value or expression in the  field. The default
value is 0.01 radians (approximately 0.6 degrees). The value must be larger than 0, and
less than /2, but angles larger than a few degrees are not usually meaningful.

Since the rotational degrees of freedom have different meaning across a fold line, they
are separate degrees of freedom, which a joined by a constraint. This constraint is, as
default, implemented as a pointwise constraint. Select Use weak constraints to use a
weak constraint instead.

DEFAULT THROUGH-THICKNESS RESULT LOCATION

Enter a number between -1 and 1 for the Local z-coordinate [-1,1] for
thickness-dependent results Z. The value can be changed from 1 (downside) to 1
(upside). The default is +1. A value of 0 means the midsurface of the shell. This is the
default position for stress and strain evaluation during the results analysis. During the
results and analysis stage, the coordinates can be changed in the Parameters section in
the result features.

ADVANCED SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box. Normally these settings do not
need to be changed.

The Use MITC interpolation check box is selected by default, and this interpolation,
which is part of the MITC shell formulation, should normally always be active.

For the Plate interface, the Use 3D formulation check box is used to select
whether six or three variables are used in the formulation. For
geometrically nonlinear analyses, or when in-plane (membrane) forces are
active, six variables must be used. This check box is selected by default.

1244 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

 As a default, a selective integration scheme is used for the weak
contributions used to form the stiffness matrix in 2D axisymmetry. The
membrane part of the strain energy is integrated using reduced integration
in order to remove locking effects for thin shells. Deselect the Use reduced
integration scheme check box to use full integration instead.

In order to maintain the property that the shell normal has unit length, a constraint is
applied on the shell normal displacement degrees of freedom in each node. This
constraint is, as default, implemented as a pointwise constraint. Select Use weak
constraints for shell normals to use a weak constraint instead.

You can chose how to group in the solver nodes the extra ODE variables added by
some features.

Select the Rigid connectors check box to group in the solver node the variables added
by the Rigid Connector feature.

Select the Attachments check box to group in the solver node the variables added by
the Attachment feature.

The selection made in the Advanced Settings section can be overridden by the settings
in the Advanced section of the Rigid Connector or Attachment features.

AUTOMATED MODEL SETUP

This section will only be displayed if a mesh on NASTRAN® format, containing RBE2
elements, has been imported in an Import node under Mesh. The purpose is to
automatically create rigid connectors from RBE2 elements in the NASTRAN file.

An RBE2 element represents a rigid connection between a set of mesh nodes. This
means that it can, and often does, connect elements from different physics interfaces.

In the drop-down menu in the section title, you can select Create Rigid Connectors from
RBE2. The effect is that one rigid connector will be created for each RBE2 element in
the imported file. This will happen for all physics interfaces in the Interfaces list.
Supported interfaces are: Solid Mechanics, Shell, Beam, and Multibody Dynamics. If
there are RBE2 elements spanning more than one physics interface, they will be
automatically connected.

The created rigid connectors will have point, edge, and boundary selections as inferred
from the nodes in the RBE2 element and the mesh connectivity. The ‘independent
node’ of the RBE2 element is used as center of rotation for the rigid connector.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1245

 The Automated Model Setup section is present in the Solid Mechanics, Shell, and Beam
interfaces. In a model that contains several physics interfaces, you should use the
automated model setup from only one of them, and make sure that all the involved
interfaces are selected in the Interfaces list.

DISCRETIZATION
Select the order of the Displacement field — Linear or Quadratic. The degrees of
freedom for the displacement of the shell normals will always have the same shape
functions as the displacements.

DEPENDENT VARIABLES
Both interfaces define two dependent variables (fields) — the displacement field u and
the field of normal displacements ar. The names can be changed, but the names of
fields and dependent variables must in general be unique within a model. If you
intentionally use the same name for fields from different physics interfaces, these
degrees of freedom are treated as being the same. This can be used when mixing
different type of structural mechanics interfaces, where you often want the
displacements to be the equal.

• Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Shell and
Plate Interfaces
• Theory for the Shell and Plate Interfaces

• Vibrations of a Disk Backed by an Air-Filled Cylinder: Application

Library path Structural_Mechanics_Module/Acoustic-Structure_Interaction/
coupled_vibrations_manual
• Pinched Hemispherical Shell: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Verification_Examples/
pinched_hemispherical_shell

1246 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Shell and
Plate Interfaces
The Shell and Plate Interfaces have the following domain, boundary, edge, point, and
pair nodes available from the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics context
menu (Mac or Linux users), or right-click to access the context menu (all users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

FEATURES AVAILABLE FROM SUBMENUS

Many features for the Shell or Plate interface are added from submenus in the Physics
toolbar groups or context menu (when you right-click the node). The submenu name
is the same in both cases.

The submenus at the Boundary (Shell interface) or Domain (Plate interface) level are

• Material Models
• Face and Volume Loads
• Mass, Spring, and Damper
• Connections
• Face Constraints

The submenus at the Edge (Shell interface) or Boundary (Plate interface) level are

• Mass, Spring, and Damper

• Connections (Shell interface only)
• More Constraints
• Pairs

There is also the Points submenu.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1247

 LINKS TO FEATURE NODE INFORMATION
These nodes are described in this section (listed in alphabetical order):

• Added Mass • Point Load, Free

• Layered Adiabatic Heating • Point Mass
• Antisymmetry • Point Mass Damping
• Attachment • Predeformation
• Body Load • Prescribed Acceleration
• Boundary to Boundary • Prescribed Displacement/Rotation
• Damping • Prescribed Velocity
• Edge Load • Rigid Connector
• Edge to Boundary • Ring Load
• Boundary to Boundary • Ring Load, Free
• External Stress • Safety
• Face Load • Section Stiffness
• Fixed Constraint • Shell Local System
• Hygroscopic Swelling • Simply Supported
• Inelastic Strain Rate • Spring Foundation
• Initial Values • Symmetry
• Initial Stress and Strain • Symmetry Plane
• Layered Linear Elastic Material • Thermal Expansion (for
• Layered Hyperelastic Material Constraints)

• Linear Elastic Material • Thermal Expansion (for Materials)

• No Rotation • Thermal Expansion (Attachment)

• Periodic Condition • Thermal Expansion (Rigid

Connector)
• Phase
• Thickness and Offset
• Pinned
• Point Load

1248 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

 If there are subsequent constraints specified on the same geometrical
entity, the last one takes precedence. The exception is that “Pinned” and
“No Rotation” boundary conditions do not override each other.

These nodes are described in the documentation for the Solid Mechanics interface:

• Adhesion • Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid

• Applied Force (Rigid Connector) Connector)Gravity

• Applied Moment (Rigid Connector) • Plasticity

• Base Excitation • Point Load (on Axis)

• Center of Rotation Nodes • Reduced Flexible Components

• Component Definition • Rigid Material

• Contact • Rigid Motion Suppression

• Creep • Rotating Frame1

• Damage • Slip Velocity

• Fixed Joint • Spring-Damper

• Free • Wear

• Friction • Viscoelasticity

• Linearly Accelerated Frame1 • Viscoplasticity

1
This is selected from the Face and Volume Loads submenu for this interface.

Harmonic Perturbation, Prestressed Analysis, and Small-Signal Analysis

in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual see Table 2-4 for links
to common sections and Table 2-5 to common feature nodes. You can
also search for information: press F1 to open the Help window or Ctrl+F1
to open the Documentation window.

Initial Values
The Initial Values node adds initial values for the translational displacement and velocity
field as well as the for the normal displacement and velocity field. It can serve as an

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1249

 initial condition for a transient simulation or as an initial guess for a nonlinear analysis.
In addition to the default Initial Values node always present in the interface, you can
add more Initial Values nodes if needed.

INITIAL VALUES
Enter values or expressions for the initial values:

• Displacement field u (the displacement components u, v, and w)

u
• Velocity field ------
t
• Displacement of shell normals ar
ar
• Displacement of shell normals, first time derivative ----------
t
Context Menus
Shell>Initial Values
Shell>Boundaries>Initial Values
Plate>Initial Values
Plate>Domains>Initial Values

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Boundaries>Shell>Initial Values

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Domains>Plate>Initial Values

Thickness and Offset

Use the Thickness and Offset node to define the thickness for the different parts of a
shell or membrane structure. In addition to the default Thickness and Offset node
always present in the interface, you can add more Thickness and Offset nodes if needed.

If the actual midsurface is not on the selected boundaries, you can also prescribe an
offset in the direction of the surface normal. The offset is defined as positive if the
midsurface is displaced from the meshed boundary in the direction of the positive
boundary normal.

THICKNESS AND OFFSET

Enter a value for the Thickness d0 of the selected boundaries. The default is 0.01 m in
the Shell and Plate interfaces, and 0.0001 m in the Membrane interface. If an

1250 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

expression is used, the thickness can be variable so that a tapered shell or membrane
can be modeled.

You can also add a Thickness Change subnode to take into account that the thickness
may change over time.

For the offset, select a Position — Top surface on boundary, Midsurface on boundary,
Bottom surface on boundary, or User defined.

For User defined, enter a value or expression in the zrel_offset field for the offset. It is
given as the ratio between the offset distance and half the thickness. A value of +1
means that the actual bottom surface is located on the meshed boundary, and a value
of 1 means that the top surface is located on the meshed boundary.

Figure 5-6: Meshed boundary indicated in red. The vector n indicates the positive
orientation of the boundary normal.

Values of zrel_offset outside the range [-1,1] are also allowed.

The offset settings are not available for the Plate interface.

Thickness and offset settings specified on this node are not applicable for
a Layered Linear Elastic Material or a Layered Hyperelastic Material node as
this information is then provided on Layered Material and Layered Material
Link nodes.

For theory, see Offset.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Thickness and Offset
Plate>Thickness and Offset
Membrane>Thickness and Offset

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1251

 Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Boundaries>Shell>Thickness and Offset

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Domains>Plate>Thickness and Offset

Physics tab with Membrane selected:

Boundaries>Membrane>Thickness and Offset

Thickness Change
Add a Thickness Change node to incorporate an expression for how the thickness of a
shell or membrane changes as a function of time. This feature is only used in
time-dependent studies. The intended applications are when the thickness varies due
to wear, corrosion, electrodeposition, or similar processes. In many cases, the
expression for the rate of change will thus depend on variables computed elsewhere.

THICKNESS CHANGE
To incorporate a changing thickness, select Thickness rate, top surface and/or Thickness
rate, bottom surface, as applicable. Then, enter expressions for the thickness change
 top  bot
rates, ------------- and ------------- .
t t
The current thickness will be computed as d0 + top(t) + bot(t), where d0 is the
original thickness given in the parent Thickness and Offset node.

DISCRETIZATION
The additional thickness is a field as function of the spatial coordinates, and it will be
approximated by a set of shape functions. Select a Shape function type — From physics,
Discontinuous Lagrange, or Gauss point data. When selecting From physics, the additional
thickness field is approximated by the same shape functions that are used for the
dependent variables of the physics.

The order of the shape functions is in all cases selected automatically, based on the
discretization in the physics interface.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Thickness and Offset>Thickness Change

1252 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Membrane>Thickness and Offset>Thickness Change

Ribbon
Physics tab with Thickness and Offset node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Thickness Change

Linear Elastic Material

The Linear Elastic Material node adds the equations for a linear elastic shell and an
interface for defining the elastic material properties.

By adding the following subnodes to the Linear Elastic Material node you can
incorporate many other effects:

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials)

• Hygroscopic Swelling
• Initial Stress and Strain
• External Stress
• Damping
• Safety

A Shell Local System subnode is always added. In this node you specify the coordinate
system in which material orientations and results are interpreted. You can add several
Shell Local System nodes in order to control the local directions on different
boundaries.

LINEAR ELASTIC MATERIAL

Select Material symmetry— Isotropic, Orthotropic, or Anisotropic and enter the settings
as described for the Linear Elastic Material for the Solid Mechanics interface. Note
that:

• For Orthotropic no values for Ez, yz, or xz need to be entered due to the shell
assumptions. It is also possible to define Transversely isotropic material properties.
• For User defined Anisotropic a 6-by-6 symmetric matrix is displayed. Due to the shell
assumptions, you only need to enter values for D11, D12, D22, D14, D24, D55, D66,
and D56.
• The material orientation is always interpreted in a local coordinate system aligned
with the shell boundary as described in Local Coordinate Systems.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1253

 OUT-OF-PLANE STRAIN
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If the Solve for out-of-plane strain components check box is selected, extra degrees of
freedom will be added for computing the out-of-plane strain components. This
formulation is similar to what is used for plane stress in the Solid Mechanics and
Membrane interfaces, and it is computationally somewhat more expensive than the
standard formulation. In the default formulation, the out-of-plane strain in the shell is
explicitly computed from the stress. This may cause circular references of variables if
you for example want the constitutive law to be strain-dependent. If you encounter
such problems, use the alternative formulation.

GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
The settings in this section affect the behavior of the selected domains in a
geometrically nonlinear analysis.

If a study step is geometrically nonlinear, the default behavior is to use a large strain
formulation in all domains. Select the Geometrically linear formulation check box to
always use a small strain formulation, irrespective of the setting in the study step.

The default value is that the check box is cleared, except when opening a model created
in a version prior to 4.3.

When a geometrically nonlinear formulation is used, the elastic deformations used for
computing the stresses can be obtained in two different ways if inelastic deformations
are present: additive decomposition and multiplicative decomposition. The default is
to use multiplicative decomposition. Select Additive strain decomposition to change to
an assumption of additivity.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Material Models>Linear Elastic Material
Plate>Material Models>Linear Elastic Material

Ribbon
Physics tab with Plasticity node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Set Variables

Physics tab with Plate selected:

1254 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Domains>Material Models>Linear Elastic Material

Layered Linear Elastic Material

The Layered Linear Elastic Material node adds the equations for a layered linear elastic
shell.

If the Composite Materials Module analysis is available, this material model can be
applied to arbitrary layers in a multilayered shell. The material properties, orientations,
and layer thicknesses are defined using Layered Material node. The offset, and local
coordinate system, in which material orientations and results are interpreted, is defined
by Layered Material Link or Layered Material Stack node.

Without the Composite Materials Module, only single layer shells can be modeled.
This is still useful. In particular, it is used for nonlinear material models, but also for
some multiphysics couplings. For single layer materials, an ordinary Material node can
be used, as long you include a Shell property group in which, for example, the thickness
is given.

• For a general description about layered materials, see Layered Materials

in the documentation for the Composite Materials Module.
• See also the discussion in Layered and Nonlayered Shells.

By adding the following subnodes to the Layered Linear Elastic Material node you can
incorporate many other effects:

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials)

• Hygroscopic Swelling
• Initial Stress and Strain
• External Stress
• Inelastic Strain Rate
• Damping
• Viscoelasticity
• Plasticity
• Creep
• Viscoplasticity

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1255

 • Damage
• Safety

Some of these material models are only available together with the Nonlinear
Structural Materials Module (see https://www.comsol.com/products/
specifications/).

The Layered Linear Elastic Material is only available for the Shell interface,
but not for the Plate interface.

SHELL PROPERTIES
For this node, the Shell Properties section is mainly used for selecting a material model,
but not individual layers. There is one exception: it is possible to select a single stack
member. This is useful when combining the Shell interface and the Layered Shell
interface on the same boundary (sometimes called the multiple model method)
TABLE 5-2: LAYER SELECTIONS; LAYERED LINEAR ELASTIC MATERIAL

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Default when added When a Layered Material

Stack is used, it is possible to
select a single stack member

For a general description of this section, see Layer and Interface

Selections in the documentation for the Composite Materials Module.

BOUNDARY SELECTION
The boundary selection in this node is similar to the Linear Elastic Material node. It is
however only possible to select boundaries which are part of the selection of a layered
material defined in a Layered Material Link or a Layered Material Stack node.

LINEAR ELASTIC MATERIAL

Select Material symmetry— Isotropic, Orthotropic, or Anisotropic and enter the settings
as described for the Linear Elastic Material for the Solid Mechanics interface. If the
layers have different types of anisotropy properties, select the one that is most complex.

1256 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Note that:

• For Orthotropic no values for Ez, yz, or xz need to be entered due to the shell
assumptions. It is also possible to define Transversely isotropic material properties.
• For User defined Anisotropic a 6-by-6 symmetric matrix is displayed. Due to the shell
assumptions, you only need to enter values for D11, D12, D22, D14, D24, D55, D66,
and D56.
• The material orientation is always interpreted in a laminate coordinate system
aligned with the shell boundary as described in Local Coordinate Systems together
with the orientation of each layer specified on a layered material.

Mixed Formulation
For a material with a very low compressibility, using only displacements as degrees of
freedom may lead to a numerically ill-posed problem. You can then use a mixed
formulation, which adds an extra dependent variable for either the pressure or for the
volumetric strain, see the Mixed Formulation section in the Structural Mechanics
Theory chapter.

From the Use mixed formulation list, select None, Pressure formulation, or Strain
formulation.

OUT-OF-PLANE STRAIN
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If the Solve for out-of-plane strain components check box is selected, extra degrees of
freedom will be added for computing the out-of-plane strain components. This
formulation is similar to what is used for plane stress in the Solid Mechanics and
Membrane interfaces, and it is computationally somewhat more expensive than the
standard formulation. See Plane Stress.

In the default formulation, the out-of-plane strain in the shell is explicitly computed
from the stress, and no extra degree of freedom is added. This may cause circular
references of variables if you for example want the constitutive law to be strain
dependent. If you encounter such problems, select the Solve for out-of-plane strain
components check box.

When the Mixed Formulation is used, the Solve for out-of-plane strain components
check box is selected, the extra degrees of freedom are added, and the section
Out-of-Plane Strain is hidden.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1257

 SHEAR CORRECTION FACTOR
In this section there is a list for defining the value of shear correction factors. The two
options available are Automatic and User defined. Once User defined option is selected,
you can enter the values of k23 and k13.

To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
The settings in this section affect the behavior of the selected domains in a
geometrically nonlinear analysis.

If a study step is geometrically nonlinear, the default behavior is to use a large strain
formulation in all domains. Select the Geometrically linear formulation check box to
always use a small strain formulation, irrespective of the setting in the study step.

When a geometrically nonlinear formulation is used, the elastic deformations used for
computing the stresses can be obtained in two different ways if inelastic deformations
are present: additive decomposition and multiplicative decomposition. The default is
to use multiplicative decomposition. Select Additive strain decomposition to change to
an assumption of additivity.

ENERGY DISSIPATION
The section is available when you also have the Nonlinear Structural Materials Module.
Then, to display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select
Advanced Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

DISCRETIZATION
If Pressure formulation is used, select the discretization for the Auxiliary pressure —
Automatic, Discontinuous Lagrange, Continuous, Linear, or Constant. If Strain formulation
is used, select the discretization for the Auxiliary volumetric strain — Automatic,
Discontinuous Lagrange, Continuous, Linear, or Constant.

The Discretization section is available when Pressure formulation or Strain

formulation is selected from the Use mixed formulation list. To display the
section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

1258 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Material Models>Layered Linear Elastic Material

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Boundaries>Material Models>Layered Linear Elastic Material

Shell Local System

The Shell Local System subnode is used for interpreting directions of orthotropic and
anisotropic material data as well as when stresses or strains are presented in a local
system.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The Global coordinate system is selected by default. The Coordinate system list contains
any valid additional coordinate system that the model includes. If the selected
coordinate system is not a boundary system, it is projected onto the shell surface as
described in Local Coordinate Systems.

When a Shell or Plate interface is added, there is also a Shell Local System
node added under Definitions. This coordinate system can be used to
reference the local directions selected in a Shell interface. It is used
internally in the Shell interface, and can also be accessed from other
physics interfaces. The coordinate system can also be used in a Coordinate
System Surface plot to visualize the local directions.

• Do not edit or duplicate the Shell Local System node added under
Definitions.
• If you add more than one Shell physics interface to the same
component, one Shell Local System node is added under Definitions by
each interface. Do not reference a coordinate system that belongs to
another Shell interface.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1259

 LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Shell Local System
Shell>Rigid Domain>Shell Local System
Plate>Linear Elastic Material>Shell Local System

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material or Rigid Domain node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Shell Local System

Layered Hyperelastic Material

The Layered Hyperelastic Material node adds the equations for a layered hyperelasticity
at large strains. Hyperelastic materials can be suitable for modeling rubber and other
polymers, biological tissue, and also for applications in acoustoelasticity.

The Nonlinear Structural Materials Module is required for this feature. For details, see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/.

If the Composite Materials Module is available, this material model can be applied to
arbitrary layers in a multilayered shell. The material properties and layer thicknesses are
defined using Layered Material node. The offset, and local coordinate system, in which
material orientations and results are interpreted, is defined by Layered Material Link or
Layered Material Stack node.

When a hyperelastic material is included in your model, all studies are geometrically
nonlinear. The Include geometric nonlinearity check box in the study settings is selected
and cannot be cleared.

By adding the following subnodes to the Layered Hyperelastic Material node you can
incorporate many other effects. Some of these material models are only available
together with the Nonlinear Structural Materials Module (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials) • Inelastic Strain Rate

• Hygroscopic Swelling • Damping
• External Stress • Viscoelasticity
• External Strain • Mullins Effect

1260 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Without the Composite Materials Module, only single layer hyperelastic shells can be
modeled. This is still useful. In particular, it is used for nonlinear material models, but
also for some multiphysics couplings. For single layer materials, an ordinary Material
node can be used, as long you include a Shell property group in which, for example,
the thickness is given.

• For a general description about layered materials, see Layered and

Nonlayered Shells.

The Layered Hyperelastic Material is only available for the Shell interface,
but not for the Plate interface.

SHELL PROPERTIES
For this node, the Shell Properties section is only used for selecting a material model,
but not individual layers.
TABLE 5-3: LAYER SELECTIONS; LAYERED HYPERELASTIC MATERIAL

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Default when added. When Use all layers is not

selected.

Data given in the other sections of this node applies to all layers. Thus, if you enter
material data explicitly, rather relying on the default From material option, you will
override that material property for all selected layers.

• All other settings for the Hyperelastic Material node are described in the
documentation for Hyperelastic Material in the Solid Mechanics
interface.
• You can provide material parameters with a through-thickness variation
by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra
dimension coordinate.

BOUNDARY SELECTION
The boundary selection in this node is similar to the Linear Elastic Material node. It is
however only possible to select boundaries which are part of the selection of a layered
material defined in Layered Material Link or Layered Material Stack node.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1261

 HYPERELASTIC MATERIAL
Select a Material model and enter the settings as described for the Hyperelastic Material
for the Solid Mechanics interface.

SHEAR CORRECTION FACTOR

Enter the shear correction factors for transverse shear k23 and k13.

When computing the contribution from shear stiffness to the total virtual work, it is
necessary to take into account that the shell approximation assumes that shear stresses
and strains in the thickness direction are constant, whereas in reality the distribution is
more complicated. The shear correction factors are used to compensate for this, so that
the total strain energy density is correct.

ENERGY DISSIPATION
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Material Models>Layered Hyperelastic Material

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Boundaries>Material Models>Layered Hyperelastic Material

Viscoelasticity
Use the Viscoelasticity subnode to add viscous stress contributions to a Layered Linear
Elastic Material or to a Layered Hyperelastic Material.

If the Composite Materials Module analysis is available, the viscoelastic model can be
applied to arbitrary layers in a multilayered shell.

See also Layered and Nonlayered Shells.

1262 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this viscoelastic model is to be used.
TABLE 5-4: LAYER SELECTIONS; VISCOELASTICITY

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

If the viscoelastic model differs between layers, you will need to add several
Viscoelasticity nodes with different layer selections.

If the same layer is selected in two Viscoelasticity nodes being active on the boundary,
then there will be two viscoelastic contributions.

• All other settings for the Viscoelasticity node are described in the
documentation for Viscoelasticity in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Viscoelasticity
Shell>Layered Hyperelastic Material>Viscoelasticity

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Linear Elastic Material or Layered Hyperelastic Material node
selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Viscoelasticity

Plasticity
Use the Plasticity subnode to define the properties for modeling elastoplastic materials.
This material model can be used together with the Layered Linear Elastic Material.

The Nonlinear Structural Materials Module is required for this feature. For details, see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1263

 If the Composite Materials Module is available, the plasticity model can be applied to
arbitrary layers in a multilayered shell.

See also Layered and Nonlayered Shells.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this plasticity model is to be used.
TABLE 5-5: LAYER SELECTIONS; PLASTICITY

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection When Use all layers is not selected.
when the node is added. Only a subset of the layers selected in
the parent can be selected.

If the plasticity model differs between layers, you will need to add several Plasticity
nodes with different layer selections. If the model is the same, and only the material
data values differ, you can use a single Plasticity node where From material is used to
define the values. The data for each layer is then received from global Layered Material
nodes.

If there are two Plasticity nodes where the same layer is selected on the same boundary,
the latter will be overridden on the common selections.

• All other settings for the Plasticity node are described in the
documentation for Plasticity in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Plasticity

1264 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Set Variables
Use the Set Variables subnode to Plasticity of a Layered Linear Elastic Material to reset
plasticity variables according to a Setting condition that you define. When the Setting
condition is satisfied, the plasticity variables are reset to the specified values.

SET VARIABLES
Enter the Setting condition. This is a Boolean expression that will determine when the
plastic variables are reset.

From the Equivalent plastic strain list, select Do not set or User defined. The default User
defined value is zero. Depending on the type of plasticity model, set additional
plasticity variables.

From the Plastic strain tensor list, select Do not set or User defined. The default User
defined values are zero for all components of the Plastic strain tensor.

If Armstrong-Frederick or Chaboche is selected from the Kinematic Hardening Model

list, specify the values for the components of the Back strain tensor. From the Back
strain tensor list, select Do not set or User defined. The default User defined values are
zero for all components of the Back strain tensor.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity>Set Variables

Ribbon
Physics tab with Plasticity node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Set Variables

Creep
Use the Creep subnode to define the creep properties of a Layered Linear Elastic
Material.

The Nonlinear Structural Materials Module is required for this feature. For details, see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1265

 If the Composite Materials Module is available, creep models can be applied to
arbitrary layers in a multilayered shell.

See also Layered and Nonlayered Shells.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this creep model is to be used.
TABLE 5-6: LAYER SELECTIONS; CREEP

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

When the creep model differs between layers, you will need to add several Creep nodes
with different layer selections. If the model is the same, and only the material data
values differ, you can use a single Creep node where From material is used to define the
values. The data for each layer is then received from global Layered Material nodes.

• All other settings for the Creep node are described in the
documentation for Creep in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Creep

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Creep

1266 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Additional Creep
Use the Additional Creep subnode to define additional contributions to the creep model
defined by the parent Creep node, such as primary or tertiary creep behavior. A Creep
node can have any number of Additional Creep subnodes with different settings to
model advanced creep mechanisms.

The Nonlinear Structural Materials Module is required for this feature. For details, see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/.

If the Composite Materials Module is available, the creep model can be applied to
arbitrary layers in a multilayered shell.

See also Layered and Nonlayered Shells.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this creep model is to be used.
TABLE 5-7: LAYER SELECTIONS; CREEP

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

When the creep model differs between layers, you will need to add several Additional
Creep nodes with different layer selections. If the model is the same, and only the
material data values differ, you can use a single Additional Creep node where From
material is used to define the values. The data for each layer is then received from global
Layered Material nodes.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1267

 If the same layer is selected in two Additional Creep nodes being active on the boundary,
then there will be two creep strain contributions

• All other settings for the Additional Creep node are described in the
documentation for Additional Creep in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Creep>Additional Creep

Ribbon
Physics tab with Creep node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Additional Creep

Viscoplasticity
Use the Viscoplasticity subnode to define the viscoplastic properties of a Layered Linear
Elastic Material.

The Nonlinear Structural Materials Module is required for this feature. For details, see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/.

If the Composite Materials Module is available, the viscoplastic model can be applied
to arbitrary layers in a multilayered shell.

See also Layered and Nonlayered Shells.

1268 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this viscoplasticity model is to be used.
TABLE 5-8: LAYER SELECTIONS; VISCOPLASTICITY

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

When the viscoplasticity model differs between layers, you will need to add several
Viscoplasticity nodes with different layer selections. If the model is the same, and only
the material data values differ, you can use a single Viscoplasticity node where From
material is used to define the values. The data for each layer is then received from global
Layered Material nodes.

If the same layer is selected in two Viscoplasticity nodes being active on the same
boundary, the second definition will override the previous.

• All other settings for the Viscoplasticity node are described in the
documentation for Viscoplasticity in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Viscoplasticity

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Viscoplasticity

Thermal Expansion (for Materials)

Use the Thermal Expansion subnode to add an internal thermal strain caused by changes
in temperature. It is possible to model bending due to a temperature gradient in the
thickness direction of the shell.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1269

 Thermal expansion can be modeled for the Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear
Elastic Material, or Layered Hyperelastic Material. The thermal expansion can be
applied to arbitrary layers in a multilayered shell when the Composite Materials
Module analysis is available.

See also Layered and Nonlayered Shells.

SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is present when this node is added under Layered Linear Elastic Material or
Layered Hyperelastic Elastic Material node. In this section, select the layers in which
thermal expansion needs to be modeled.
TABLE 5-9: LAYER SELECTIONS; THERMAL EXPANSION

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

For a multilayered shell, it is often easiest to add one Thermal Expansion node per layer,
if the temperature input is manual.

If the same layer is selected in two Thermal Expansion nodes being active on the same
boundary, the second definition will override the previous.

• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can provide parameters for the expansion with a through-thickness
variation by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the
extra dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

MODEL INPUTS
The Volume reference temperature Tref is the temperature at which there are no thermal
strains. As a default, the value is obtained from a Common model input. You can also
select User defined to enter a value or expression for the temperature locally.

1270 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

The Temperature T is by default obtained from a Common model input. You can also
select an existing temperature variable from a heat transfer interface (for example,
Temperature (htsh/sol1)), if any temperature variables exist, or manually enter a value
or expression by selecting User defined. This is the midsurface temperature of the shell,
controlling the membrane part of the thermal expansion. For layered shells, it is the
mid-layer temperature for each layer.

If needed, you can add a through-thickness temperature gradient in the Thermal

Bending section.

Thermal strains are proportional to the temperature, while structural

strains are computed from the gradient of the displacement field. It is
good practice to match the discretization order of thermal and structural
strains.

When adding a Thermal Expansion subnode, and the temperature field is

computed by another physics interface (often the Heat Transfer in Shells
interface); use a discretization one order lower for the temperature field
than what is used for the displacement field.

See also:

• Using Common Model Input

• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual

THERMAL EXPANSION PROPERTIES

Select an Input type to specify how the thermal strain is entered. For the default Secant
coefficient of thermal expansion the thermal strain is given by

 th =   T – T ref 

wherethe secant coefficient of thermal expansion  can be temperature dependent.

When Input type is Tangent coefficient of thermal expansion, the thermal strain is given
by

 T 
 th = exp 
 T ref
 t    d – 1


THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1271

 where t is the tangential coefficient of thermal expansion.

When Input type is Thermal strain, enter the thermal strain dL as function of
temperature explicitly.

In all three cases, the default is to take values From material. When entering data as
User defined, select Isotropic, Diagonal, or Symmetric to enter one or more components
for a general coefficient of the thermal expansion tensor or the thermal strain tensor.
When Diagonal or Symmetric input is used, the axis orientations are given by the
coordinate system selection in the parent node

THERMAL BENDING

The settings in this section differ slightly depending on if the Thermal

Expansion subnode is added under Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear
Elastic Material, Layered Hyperelastic Material,or Section Stiffness.

If the temperature distribution is obtained from another physics interface

of a layered type, such as Heat Transfer in Shells, then the temperature
variation in the through-thickness direction is automatically known. No
input in this section is needed.

The temperature is assumed to vary linearly through the thickness.

Linear Elastic Material

Enter the Temperature difference in thickness direction Tz. This is the temperature
difference between the top and bottom surfaces.

Layered Linear Elastic or Layered Hyperelastic Material

From the list, select Temperature difference in thickness direction or Temperature
gradient in thickness direction.

When Temperature difference in thickness direction is selected, enter the temperature

difference Tz between the top surface of the topmost of the selected layers and
bottom surface of the bottommost of the selected layers.

When Temperature gradient in thickness direction is selected, enter the temperature

gradient T’ in the direction from the bottom surface to the top surface.

1272 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Thermal Expansion
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Thermal Expansion
Shell>Layered Hyperelastic Material>Thermal Expansion
Shell>Section Stiffness>Thermal Expansion
Plate>Linear Elastic Material>Thermal Expansion
Plate>Section Stiffness>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, Layered
Hyperelastic Material or Section Stiffness node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Hygroscopic Swelling
Hygroscopic swelling is an internal strain caused by changes in moisture content. This
strain can be written as

 hs =  h  c mo – c mo,ref 

where h is the coefficient of hygroscopic swelling, cmo is the moisture concentration,

and cmo,ref is the strain-free reference concentration. It is possible to model bending
due to a concentration gradient in the thickness direction of the shell.

Hygroscopic swelling can be modeled for the Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear
Elastic Material, and Layered Hyperelastic Material. The swelling can be applied to
arbitrary layers in a multilayered shell when the Composite Materials Module analysis
is available.

See also Layered and Nonlayered Shells.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1273

 SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is present when this node is added under Layered Linear Elastic Material or
Layered Hyperelastic Material node. In this section, select the layers in which
hygroscopic swelling needs to be modeled.
TABLE 5-10: LAYER SELECTIONS; HYGROSCOPIC SWELLING

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

If the Moisture concentration type differs between layers, you will need to add several
Hygroscopic Swelling nodes with different layer selections. If only the material data
values differ, you can use a single Hygroscopic Swelling node with From material. The
data for each layer is then received from global Layered Material nodes.

For a multilayered shell, it is often easiest to add one Hygroscopic Swelling node per
layer, if the temperature input is manual.

If the same layer is selected in two Hygroscopic Swelling nodes being active on the same
boundary, the second definition will override the previous.

• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can provide parameters for the expansion with a through-thickness
variation by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the
extra dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

MODEL INPUTS
From the Concentration c list, select an existing concentration variable from another
physics interface, if any concentration variables exist. For User defined enter a value or
expression for the concentration. This is the midsurface concentration in the shell,
controlling the membrane part of the hygroscopic swelling.

The unit for the input depends on the setting of Concentration type in the Hygroscopic
Swelling Properties section. Only concentration variables having the chosen physical
dimension are available in the Concentration list.

1274 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

If needed, you can add a through-thickness concentration gradient in the Hygroscopic
Bending section.

Hygroscopic strains are proportional to the concentration, while

structural strains are computed from the gradient of the displacement
field. It is good practice to match the discretization order of hygroscopic
and structural strains.

When adding a Hygroscopic Swelling subnode, and the concentration field

is computed by another physics interface; use a discretization one order
lower for the concentration field than what is used for the displacement
field.

HYGROSCOPIC SWELLING PROPERTIES

In the Concentration type list, select Molar concentration (the default) or Mass
concentration, depending on the units used for the concentration.

Enter a Strain reference concentration cref. This is the concentration at which there are
no strains due to hygroscopic swelling.

If Molar concentration is selected as Concentration type, also enter the Molar mass of the
fluid, Mm. The default value is 0.018 kg/mol, which is the molar mass of water.

The default Coefficient of hygroscopic swelling h uses values From material. For
User defined select Isotropic (the default), Diagonal, or Symmetric to enter one or more
components for a general coefficient of hygroscopic swelling tensor h. The default
value for the User defined case is 1.5e-4 m3/kg. When a nonisotropic coefficient of
hygroscopic swelling is used, the axis orientations are given by the coordinate system
selection in the parent node.

The Include moisture as added mass check box is selected by default. When selected,
the mass of the fluid is included in a dynamic analysis, and when using mass
proportional loads. It will also contribute when computing mass properties.

HYGROSCOPIC BENDING

The settings in this section differ slightly depending on if the Hygroscopic

Swelling subnode is added under Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear
Elastic Material, or Layered Hyperelastic Material.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1275

 The concentration is then assumed to vary linearly through the thickness.

Linear Elastic Material

Enter the Concentration difference in thickness direction cz. This is the difference
between the concentrations at the top and bottoms surfaces.

Layered Linear Elastic or Layered Hyperelastic Material

From the list, select Concentration difference in thickness direction or Concentration
gradient in thickness direction.

When Concentration difference in thickness direction is selected, enter the concentration

difference cz between the top surface of the topmost of the selected layers and
bottom surface of the bottommost of the selected layers.

When Concentration gradient in thickness direction is selected, enter the concentration

gradient c’ in the direction from the bottom surface to the top surface.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling
Shell>Layered Hyperelastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling
Plate>Linear Elastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, or Layered
Hyperelastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Hygroscopic Swelling

Initial Stress and Strain

You can add the Initial Stress and Strain subnode to the Linear Elastic Material, Layered
Linear Elastic Material, or Section Stiffness material models in order to specify the
stress or strain state in the structure before applying any constraint or load. The values
given are not initial values in the mathematical sense but rather a contribution to the
constitutive relation

1276 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

When used with the Layered Linear Elastic Material, the contribution can be applied to
arbitrary layers in a multilayered shell when the Composite Materials Module is
available.

See also Layered and Nonlayered Shells.

In many cases Initial Stress and Strain and External Stress are
interchangeable when prescribing stresses, but you can find some more
options in the latter.

SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is only present when this node is added under Layered Linear Elastic
Material node. Select the layers in which initial stress and strain needs to be modeled.

TABLE 5-11: LAYER SELECTIONS; INITIAL STRESS AND STRAIN

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

If the initial stress or strain differ between layers, you will need to add several Initial
Stress and Strain nodes with different layer selections.

If the same layer is selected in two Initial Stress and Strain nodes being active on the
same boundary, the contributions will be added.

For a general description of this section, see Layer and Interface

Selections in the documentation for the Composite Materials Module.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Select a Local coordinate system defining the directions along which the initial stresses
and strains are given.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1277

 As Subnode to Linear Elastic Material
The Shell local system is selected by default. This means that the orientations are the
same as used for the material description.

If you select Projected from coordinate system, you can select any coordinate system
present in the model. The Coordinate system list will then contain any coordinate
system present in the model. The coordinate system given is projected onto the shell
surface as described in Local Coordinate Systems.

As Subnode to Layered Linear Elastic Material or Section Stiffness

You can select any available boundary system.

INITIAL STRESS
Specify the initial stress as the Initial in-plane force, the Initial moment, and the Initial
out-of-plane shear force. Enter values or expressions in the applicable fields for the:

• Initial in-plane force N0

• Initial moment M0
• Initial out-of-plane shear force Q0

INITIAL STRAIN
Specify the initial strain as the Initial membrane strain, the Initial bending strain, and the
Initial transverse shear strain. Enter values or expressions in the applicable fields for the:

• Initial membrane strain 0

• Initial bending strain 0
• Initial transverse shear strain 0

• For definitions of the generalized strains, see Theory for the Shell and
Plate Interfaces.
• For details about initial stresses and strains, see Inelastic Strain
Contributions and Initial Stresses and Strains.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Initial Stress and Strain
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Initial Stress and Strain
Shell>Section Stiffness>Initial Stress and Strain

1278 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Plate>Linear Elastic Material>Initial Stress and Strain
Plate>Section Stiffness>Initial Stress and Strain

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, or Section
Stiffness node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Initial Stress and Strain

External Stress
You can add the External Stress subnode to the Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear
Elastic Material, Layered Hyperelastic Material, or Section Stiffness material models in
order to specify an additional stress contribution which is not part of the constitutive
relation. The external stress can be added to the total stress tensor, or act only as an
extra load contribution.

In many cases External Stress and Initial Stress and Strain are
interchangeable when prescribing stresses. In Initial Stress and Strain, the
given stress is however always added to the stress tensor, whereas the
option to use the stress as only a load contribution exists only in External
Stress.

SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is present when this node is added under Layered Linear Elastic Material or
Layered Hyperelastic Material node.

Select the layers in which external stress is to be modeled.

TABLE 5-12: LAYER SELECTIONS; EXTERNAL STRESS

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

If the external stress input type differs between layers, you will need to add several
External Stress nodes with different layer selections.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1279

 If the same layer is selected in two External Stress nodes being active on the same
boundary, the contributions will be added.

For a general description of this section, see Layer and Interface

Selections in the documentation for the Composite Materials Module.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Select a Local coordinate system defining the directions along which the components
of the input data are given.

Linear Elastic Material

The Shell local system is selected by default. This means that the orientations are the
same as used for the material description.

If you select Projected from coordinate system, you can select any coordinate system
present in the model. The Coordinate system list will then contain any coordinate
system present in the model. The coordinate system given is projected onto the shell
surface as described in Local Coordinate Systems.

Layered Linear Elastic Material, Layered Hyperelastic Material, or Section Stiffness

You can select any available boundary system.

EXTERNAL STRESS
Select a Stress input — Stress tensor or Section forces. This selection is not available
when the parent node is Section Stiffness, in which case only the section force type of
input is possible.

• When Stress tensor is selected, you enter the external stress in the form of Second
Piola-Kirchhoff stress tensors. The Membrane part of external stress, Bending part of
external stress, and Shear part of external stress lists all behave the same way:
Depending on the type, they will contain all membrane (bending, shear) stress
tensors announced by any physics interface, and also the entry User defined. When
User defined is selected, you can enter the data for the membrane (bending, shear)
part of the External stress tensor ext,m (ext,b, ext,s) as Isotropic, Diagonal, or
Symmetric depending on the properties of the tensor. The tensor components are
interpreted in the selected coordinate system. If a stress tensor announced by a

1280 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

 physics interface is selected, the coordinate system setting is ignored — the
orientation is handled internally.
Choose a Contribution type — Add to stress tensor, Load contribution only, or Residual
stress to determine the effect of the contribution.
• When Section forces is selected, specify the external stress as values or expressions for
the In-plane force Next, the Moment Mext, and the Out-of-plane shear force Qext.
Choose a Contribution type — Add to stress tensor, Load contribution only, or Residual
stress to determine the effect of the contribution.

Selecting a stress tensor announced by the same physics interface as where

the External Stress node is added, will result in an error (‘Circular
variable dependency detected’). This operation would imply that
the computed stress depends on itself.

For theory, see External Stress.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Linear Elastic Material>External Stress
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>External Stress
Shell>Layered Hyperelastic Material>External Stress
Shell>Section Stiffness>External Stress
Plate>Linear Elastic Material>External Stress
Plate>Section Stiffness>External Stress

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, Layered
Hyperelastic Material, or Section Stiffness node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>External Stress

External Strain
Many of the material models in COMSOL Multiphysics will compute a stress based on
an elastic strain. The elastic strain tensor is obtained after removing any inelastic
deformation contribution from the total deformation from the displacements.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1281

 In the finite deformation case, the inelastic strain is instead removed using a
multiplicative decomposition of the deformation gradient tensor. The elastic
deformation gradient tensor is the basis for all strain energy formulations in
hyperelastic materials, and also for the elastic strain in linear and nonlinear elasticity. It
is derived by removing the inelastic deformation from the total deformation gradient
tensor. See Multiplicative Decomposition in the Structural Mechanics Theory
chapter.

The External Strain subnode allows you to provide inelastic strain contributions to the
Layered Hyperelastic Material.

SHELL PROPERTIES
See the documentation for the External Strain node in the Layered Shell chapter.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Select a Coordinate system. All inputs that you give below are interpreted in the given
coordinate system. Deformation gradients are rotated by the local system in both
indices.

EXTERNAL STRAIN
Select the type of Strain input — Deformation gradient, Deformation gradient, inverse, or
Stretches.

Deformation Gradient
For Deformation gradient, enter an inelastic deformation gradient contribution Fext.
From the External deformation gradient list, you can choose User defined, or any
deformation gradient tensor which is announced by another physics interface. If you
select User defined, enter values or expressions for the components of the deformation
gradient tensor.

Deformation Gradient, Inverse

For Deformation gradient, inverse, enter an inelastic inverse deformation gradient
–1
contribution F ext . From the External deformation gradient inverse list, you can choose
User defined, or any inverse deformation gradient tensor which is announced by
another physics interface. If you select User defined, enter values or expressions for the
components of the inverse deformation gradient tensor.

Stretches
For Stretches, enter values or expressions for the three principal stretches. Entering
data on this form is convenient for some simple geometries and strain states, but in

1282 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

general it is difficult to provide suitable a coordinate system for the principal
orientations.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Layered Hyperelastic Material>External Strain

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Hyperelastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>External Strain

Inelastic Strain Rate

The Inelastic Strain Rate subnode allows you to provide inelastic strain contributions to
the material models Layered Linear Elastic Material and Layered Hyperelastic Material on
a variety of formats as in External Strain. Here, however, the inelastic contribution is
given as a rate, and the total inelastic contribution is computed by integrating this rate
in time.

SHELL PROPERTIES
See the documentation for the Inelastic Strain Rate node in the Layered Shell chapter.

All other settings for the Inelastic Strain Rate node are described in the
documentation for Inelastic Strain Rate in the Solid Mechanics interface.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Inelastic Strain Rate
Shell>Layered Hyperelastic Material>Inelastic Strain Rate

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Creep

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1283

 Damage
The Damage subnode allows you to model damage and cracking in brittle materials
according to various criteria. It is available in the Solid Mechanics, Shell and Layered
Shell interfaces, and it can be used in combination with the Layered Linear Elastic
Material.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which the damage is to be computed.
TABLE 5-13: LAYER SELECTIONS; DAMAGE

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection When Use all layers is not selected.
when the node is added. Only a subset of the layers selected in
the parent can be selected.

If the damage input type differs between layers, you will need to add several Damage
nodes with different layer selections.

If the same layer is selected in two Damage nodes being active on the same boundary,
the contributions will be overridden.

• All other settings for the Damage node are described in the
documentation for Damage in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can describe strain values with a through-thickness variation by
explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra dimension
coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension Coordinates.

See also

• Modeling Damage in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

• Damage Models in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Damage

1284 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Damage

Mullins Effect
Some nonlinear effects observed in rubbers, such as hysteresis in stress-stretch curves,
residual strains, and stress softening effects, are not accounted in the formulation of
common hyperelastic materials. See Mullins Effect in the Structural Mechanics
Theory chapter.

Use the Mullins effect subnode to define the properties for modeling the
stress-softening phenomenon under cyclic loading. The Mullins effect can be used
together with Layered Hyperelastic Material.

SHELL PROPERTIES
See the documentation for the Mullins Effect node in the Layered Shell chapter.

MULLINS EFFECT
The Damage function defines the model for Mullins effect. Select Ogden-Roxburgh or
Miehe.

For Ogden-Roxburgh enter the following settings:

• Maximum damage d.The default is 1.

• Damage saturation Wsat. The default is 1 MJ/m3.
• Deformation dependence coefficient The default is 0.

For Miehe enter the following settings:

• Maximum damage d.The default is 1.

Damage saturation Wsat. The default is 1 MJ/m3.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Layered Hyperelastic Material>Mullins Effect

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Hyperelastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Mullins Effect

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1285

 Safety
Use the Safety subnode to set up variables which can be used to check the risk of failure
according to various criteria. It can be used in combination with Linear Elastic Material,
and Layered Linear Elastic Material. Four different variables describing the failure risk
are defined, as described in Table 5-14.

You can add any number of Safety nodes to a single material model. The contents of
this feature do not affect the analysis results as such, so you can add Safety nodes after
having performed an analysis, and just do an Update Solution in order to access to the
new variables for result evaluation.
TABLE 5-14: VARIABLES FOR SAFETY FACTOR EVALUATION

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION CRITERION CRITERION

FULFILLED VIOLATED

Failure index, FI For a linear criterion, this is the ratio FI<1 FI>1
between the computed value and the
given limit.
Damage index, DI A binary value, indicating whether DI=0 DI=1
failure is predicted or not. DI is based
on the value of FI.
Safety factor, SF For a linear criterion, this is 1/FI. SF>1 SF<1
Margin of safety, MoS SF-1 MoS>0 MoS<0

For orthotropic and anisotropic failure criteria, the directions are given by the
coordinate system selection in the parent node.

SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is only present when this node is added under Layered Linear Elastic
Material node.

Select the layer or layers for which the safety factor variables are to be defined.
TABLE 5-15: LAYER SELECTIONS; SAFETY

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection When Use all layers is not selected.
when the node is added. Only a subset of the layers selected in
the parent can be selected.

1286 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Each Safety subnode defines its own set of variables, so there is no interaction if you
add several such nodes with the same selection.

• All other settings for the Safety node are described in the
documentation for Safety in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can describe parameters for the allowable values with a
through-thickness variation by explicitly or implicitly using expressions
containing the extra dimension coordinate as described in Using the
Extra Dimension Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Variables>Safety
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Variables>Safety
Plate>Linear Elastic Material>Variables>Safety

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material or Layered Linear Elastic Material node selected
in the model builder tree:

Attributes>Variables>Safety

Damping
Use the Damping subnode to add several types of damping to the material model.
Damping can be used in Time Dependent, Eigenfrequency, and Frequency Domain
studies; for other study types the settings in the Damping subnode are ignored.

SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is only present when this node is added under Layered Linear Elastic
Material node.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1287

 Select the layer or layers for which this damping model is to be used.
TABLE 5-16: LAYER SELECTIONS; DAMPING

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection When Use all layers is not selected.
when the node is added. Only a subset of the layers selected in
the parent can be selected.

When the damping model differs between layers, you will need to add several Damping
nodes with different layer selections. If the model is the same, and only the material
data values differ, you can for most models use a single Damping node with From
material. The data for each layer is then received from global Layered Material nodes.

• All other settings for the Damping node are described in the
documentation for Damping in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can describe damping values with a through-thickness variation by
explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra dimension
coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Damping
Shell>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Damping
Shell>Layered Linear Hyperelastic Material>Damping
Shell>Section Stiffness>Damping
Plate>Linear Elastic Material>Damping
Plate>Section Stiffness>Damping

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, Layered
Hyperelastic Elastic Material, or Section Stiffness node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Damping

1288 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Section Stiffness
The Section Stiffness material model provides a way of directly entering the stiffness or
compliance of a shell without direct knowledge about the cross-section thickness and
material distribution. Its main purpose is for entering homogenized properties of for
example perforated or corrugated sheets.

Since only the stiffness, but not the section geometry is known, it is not possible to
deduce the stresses. You can however provide an expression for stress computation
based on the computed section forces.

In many cases, the properties of the shell cross section are anisotropic. All input data
are interpreted along the local directions specified in the Coordinate System Selection
section.

By adding the following subnodes to the Section Stiffness node you can incorporate
other effects:

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials)

• Initial Stress and Strain
• External Stress
• Damping

SECTION PROPERTIES
From the Specify list, select Effective stiffness or Effective flexibility in order to specify
the representation of the section stiffness.

For Effective stiffness, enter the Extensional stiffness matrix, DA; Bending-extensional
stiffness matrix, DB; Bending stiffness matrix, DD; and Shear stiffness matrix, DAs.

For Effective flexibility, enter the Extensional flexibility matrix, Da; Bending-extensional
flexibility matrix, Db; Bending flexibility matrix, Dd; and Shear flexibility matrix, Das.

If required, enter also the Translational inertia, I0; Rotational-translational inertia

matrix, I1; and Rotational inertia matrix, I2. The translational inertia is the average mass
per unit area. As long as the shell is not thick or shear flexible, the two latter
contributions to the inertia can usually be ignored. If the mass distribution of the shell
is symmetric with respect to the midplane, then I1 is identically zero.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1289

 The default for all section properties is to take the values From material. Any one of the
matrices can also be User defined.

The inertia matrices are needed only for dynamic analysis. They are also
used when computing mass forces for gravitational or rotating frame
loads, and when computing mass properties (Computing Mass
Properties).

STRESS EVALUATION PROPERTIES

If you want a certain stress value to be computed, you can enter a linear relation
between section forces and stress here.

Enter an In-plane force factor, SN. This is a matrix which transforms the local membrane
force (N11, N22, N12) into a local in-plane stress (s11, s22, s12).

Enter a Moment factor, SM. This is a matrix which transforms the local bending
moment (M11, M22, M12) into a local in-plane stress (s11, s22, s12).

Enter an Out-of-plane force factor, SQ. This is a matrix which transforms the local shear
force (Q1, Q2) into a local transverse shear stress (s13, s23).

SHEAR CORRECTION FACTOR

Enter the shear correction factors for transverse shear k23 and k13.

When computing the contribution from shear stiffness to the total virtual work, it is
necessary to take into account that the shell approximation assumes that shear stresses
and strains in the thickness direction are constant, whereas in reality the distribution is
more complicated. The shear correction factors are used to compensate for this, so that
the total strain energy density is correct. When operating with stiffness and flexibility
matrices, this correction can also be built directly into the matrices DAs and Das. Is so,
set both shear correction factors to 1.

GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
The settings in this section affect the behavior of the selected domains in a
geometrically nonlinear analysis.

If a study step is geometrically nonlinear, the default behavior is to use a large strain
formulation in all domains. Select the Geometrically linear formulation check box to
always use a small strain formulation, irrespective of the setting in the study step.

1290 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

When a geometrically nonlinear formulation is used, the elastic deformations used for
computing the stresses can be obtained in two different ways if inelastic deformations
are present: additive decomposition and multiplicative decomposition. The default is
to use multiplicative decomposition. Select Additive strain decomposition to change to
an assumption of additivity.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Material Models>Section Stiffness
Plate>Material Models>Section Stiffness

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Boundaries>Material Models>Section Stiffness

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Domains>Material Models>Section Stiffness

Fixed Constraint
The Fixed Constraint node adds a condition that makes the geometric entity fixed (fully
constrained); that is, the displacements and rotations are zero in all directions.

FACE DEFINING THE LOCAL ORIENTATIONS

This setting is used in conjunction with weak constraints. In order to be able to
interpret the orientations of rotations to which the Lagrange multipliers are defined,
you must know to which boundary they are applied. Select the boundary which should
be used when setting up the weak constraints. The default is Use face with lowest
number.

This section is available only for edges and points in the Shell interface
and is only visible if Advanced Physics Options has been selected.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1291

 CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Face Constraints>Fixed Constraint
Shell>More Constraints>Fixed Constraint (Edge)
Shell>Points>Fixed Constraint
Plate>Face Constraints>Fixed Constraint
Plate>More Constraints>Fixed Constraint (Boundary)
Plate>Points>Fixed Constraint

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face Constraints>Fixed Constraint

Edges>More Constraints>Fixed Constraint
Points>Shell>Fixed Constraint

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Boundaries>Face Constraints>Fixed Constraint

Edges>More Constraints>Fixed Constraint
Points>Plate>Fixed Constraint

1292 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Prescribed Displacement/Rotation
The Prescribed Displacement/Rotation node adds an edge, boundary, domain, or point
condition to a model where the displacements and rotations are prescribed in one or
more directions.

With this condition it is possible to prescribe one or more displacement components,

as well as one or more rotational components, leaving the shell free to deform or rotate
in the remaining directions.

• Prescribing all displacements and rotations to zero is equivalent to using a Fixed

Constraint.
• Prescribing all displacements to zero is equivalent to a Pinned condition.
• Prescribing all rotations to zero is equivalent to the No Rotation condition.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Select the coordinate system to use for specifying the prescribed displacement/
rotation. The coordinate system selection is based on the geometric entity level.

Domains (Plate Interface)

From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the default)

• Shell Local System
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system

Boundaries (Shell and Plate Interfaces)

From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the default)

• Boundary System (a predefined normal-tangential coordinate system)
• Shell Local System
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system

Edges (Shell Interface)

From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the standard global coordinate system).

• Local edge system (the default).
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1293

 Points (Shell and Plate Interfaces)
From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the default)

• Shell Local System
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system

For details about the definition of local edge systems, see Local Edge
System.

FACE DEFINING THE LOCAL ORIENTATIONS

This setting is used in conjunction with a Local edge system and Shell Local System. If
displacement or rotations is prescribed for an edge or point which is shared between
boundaries, the local system can be ambiguous. Select the boundary which should
define the local system. The default is Use face with lowest number.

This section is available only for edges and points in the Shell interface.

PRESCRIBED DISPLACEMENT
To prescribe a displacement in a certain spatial direction (x, y, or z), select one or all
of the Prescribed in x direction, Prescribed in y direction, and Prescribed in z direction
check boxes. Then enter a value or expression for the prescribed displacements u0x,
u0y, or u0z.

PRESCRIBED ROTATIONS
Select a prescribed rotation from the By list — Free, Rotation, or Normal vector. Select:

• Free (the default) to leave the rotations unconstrained.

• Rotation to activate a prescribed rotation in a certain direction. Enter a value or
expression for the prescribed rotation,  about the tangential directions t1 and t2
of the shell local system. The rotation is always interpreted the with respect to the
shell local system, and independent of the Coordinate System Selection.
For geometric linearity, select one or both of the Free rotation around t1 direction
and Free rotation around t2 direction check boxes to remove the constraint for the
corresponding rotation component. If unchecked, the rotations are constrained to
either the input value or to the default zero rotation. The status of the check boxes

1294 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

 has no effect when the geometric nonlinearity is activated under the study settings.
This is because the constraints for different rotation components are not
independent of each other in the case of finite rotations.

In 2D axisymmetry, there is only one input, the Prescribed rotation around

the out-of-plane direction, .

• Normal vector to describe the rotation by prescribing the shell normal vector in the
deformed configuration. Enter the components of the Prescribed normal vector N0.

For details, see Initial Values and Prescribed Values.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

When Individual dependent variables is selected in the Apply reaction terms

on list, the constraint forces are applied directly on the degrees of
freedom, which are the displacements along the global coordinate axes. If
you use this setting together with a local coordinate system, the results
will be inconsistent since the constraint forces will not match the
constraint orientation.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1295

 • You can add a Harmonic Perturbation subnode for specifying a
harmonic variation of the values of the prescribed displacements in a
frequency domain analysis of perturbation type.
• You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it
to a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics
Modeling chapter.
• You can assign the value of the prescribed displacement to a load
group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Face Constraints>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation
Shell>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation (Edge)
Shell>Points>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation
Plate>Face Constraints>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation
Plate>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation (Boundary)
Plate>Points>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face Constraints>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation

Edges>Shell>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation
Points>Shell>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Domains>Face Constraints>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation

Boundaries>Plate>Prescribed Displacement
Points>Plate>Prescribed Displacement

Thermal Expansion (for Constraints)

Add the Thermal Expansion subnode to Fixed Constraint to prescribe a deformation of
the constrained edge caused by changes in temperature of the surroundings. This
makes it possible to reduce the stresses caused by such boundary conditions.

1296 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

THERMAL EXPANSION PROPERTIES
Specify the thermal properties that define the thermal strain. This is a description of
the thermal expansion of the surroundings idealized by the constraints.

Select Inherit from boundary to take the thermal expansion data from the domain being
constrained. This should only be used when:

• The temperature and the thermal expansion coefficient do not have a spatial
variation.
• The virtual surrounding material has the same thermal expansion as the domain
itself.

When Inherit from boundary is not selected, enter:

• A value or expression for the Volume reference temperature Tref that is the
temperature at which there are no thermal displacements at the constraints.
• A value or expression for Temperature T, specifying the temperature distribution of
the surrounding material. Any temperature variation must be an explicit function of
the material frame coordinates. It is not possible to use a computed temperature
distribution.
• Select the Input type — Secant coefficient of thermal expansion, Tangent coefficient of
thermal expansion, or Thermal strain to specify how the thermal strain is entered. The
default values From material are used. This requires that a material has been assigned
to the boundaries, edges, or points where the constraint is active. When a
nonisotropic coefficient of thermal expansion is used, the axis orientations are given
by the coordinate system selected in the Coordinate System Selection section.
Enter the coordinates of the Reference point, the point where the displacement is zero.
The choice of reference point only affects the rigid body motion. If there are several
different constraints with a Thermal Expansion subnode, the same reference point
should usually be selected in all of them.

• Thermal Expansion Properties.

• Constraints and Thermal Expansion in the Structural Mechanics
Modeling chapter.
• Thermal Expansion of Constraints in the Structural Mechanics Theory
chapter.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1297

 LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Fixed Constraint>Thermal Expansion
Plate>Fixed Constraint>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Fixed Constraint node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Prescribed Velocity
The Prescribed Velocity node adds an edge, boundary, or domain condition where the
translational or rotational velocity is prescribed in one or more directions. The
prescribed velocity condition is applicable for Time Dependent and Frequency
Domain studies. With this condition it is possible to prescribe a velocity in one
direction, leaving the shell free in the other directions.

The Prescribed Velocity node is a constraint, and overrides any other constraint on the
same selection.

For details about prescribed velocities and accelerations, see Prescribed

Displacements, Velocities, and Accelerations.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Select the coordinate system to use for specifying the prescribed velocity. The
components are entered in the selected coordinate system.

The coordinate system selection is based on the geometric entity level.

Coordinate systems with directions that change with time should not be
used. If you choose another, local coordinate system, the velocity
components change accordingly.

Domains (Plate Interface)

From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the default)

1298 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

• Shell Local System
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system

Boundaries (Shell and Plate Interfaces)

From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the default)

• Boundary System (a predefined normal-tangential coordinate system)
• Shell Local System
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system

Edges (Shell Interface)

From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the standard global coordinate system).

• Local edge system (the default)
• Shell Local System
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system.

For details about the definition of local edge systems, see Local Edge
System.

FACE DEFINING THE LOCAL ORIENTATIONS

This setting is used in conjunction with a Local edge system and Shell Local System. If
the velocity is prescribed for an edge which is shared between boundaries, the edge
system can be ambiguous. Select the boundary which should define the edge system.
The default is Use face with lowest number.

This section is available only for edges in the Shell interface.

PRESCRIBED VELOCITY
To define a prescribed velocity for each spatial direction (x, y, and z), select one or
more of the Prescribed in x direction, Prescribed in y direction, and Prescribed in
z direction check boxes. Then enter a value or expression for the prescribed velocity
components vx, vy, and vz.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1299

 PRESCRIBED ANGULAR VELOCITY
To define a prescribed angular velocity for each spatial direction (x, y, and z), select one
or all of the Prescribed around x direction, Prescribed around y direction, and Prescribed
around z direction check boxes and enter a value or expression for in each xt, y
t, or zt field.

• You can add a Harmonic Perturbation subnode for specifying a

harmonic variation of the values of the prescribed velocity in a
frequency domain analysis of perturbation type.
• Prescribed Velocity cannot be used as a weak constraint.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Face Constraints>Prescribed Velocity
Shell>More Constraints>Prescribed Velocity (Edge)
Plate>Face Constraints>Prescribed Velocity
Plate>More Constraints>Prescribed Velocity (Boundary)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face Constraints>Prescribed Velocity

Edges>>More Constraints>Prescribed Velocity

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Domains>Face Constraints>Prescribed Velocity

Boundaries>>More Constraints>Prescribed Velocity

Prescribed Acceleration
The Prescribed Acceleration node adds an edge, boundary, or domain condition where
the translational or rotational acceleration is prescribed in one or more directions. The
prescribed acceleration condition is applicable for Time Dependent and Frequency
Domain studies. With this condition it is possible to prescribe an acceleration in one
direction, leaving the shell free in the other directions.

1300 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

The Prescribed Acceleration node is a constraint, and overrides any other constraint on
the same selection.

For details about prescribed velocities and accelerations, see Prescribed

Displacements, Velocities, and Accelerations.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Select the coordinate system to use for specifying the prescribed acceleration. The
coordinate system selection is based on the geometric entity level.

Coordinate systems with directions that change with time should not be
used. If you choose another, local coordinate system, the acceleration
components change accordingly.

Domains (Plate Interface)

From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the default)

• Shell Local System
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system

Boundaries (Shell and Plate Interfaces)

From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the default)

• Boundary System (a predefined normal-tangential coordinate system)
• Shell Local System
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system

Edges (Shell Interface)

From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the standard global coordinate system).

• Local edge system (the default)

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1301

 • Shell Local System
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system.

For details about the definition of local edge systems, see Local Edge
System.

FACE DEFINING THE LOCAL ORIENTATIONS

This setting is used in conjunction with a Local edge system and Shell Local System. If
the acceleration is prescribed for an edge which is shared between boundaries, the edge
system can be ambiguous. Select the boundary which should define the edge system.
The default is Use face with lowest number.

This section is available only for edges in the Shell interface.

PRESCRIBED ACCELERATION
To define a prescribed acceleration for each spatial direction (x, y, and z), select one or
more of the Prescribed in x direction, Prescribed in y direction, and Prescribed in
z direction check boxes. Then enter a value or expression for the prescribed
acceleration components ax, ay, and az.

PRESCRIBED ANGULAR ACCELERATION

To define a prescribed angular acceleration for each spatial direction (x, y, and z), select
one or all of the Prescribed around x, y, and z direction check boxes and enter a value
2 2 2 2 2 2
or expression for in each   x   t ,   y   t , or   z   t field.

• You can add a Harmonic Perturbation subnode for specifying a

harmonic variation of the values of the prescribed acceleration in a
frequency domain analysis of perturbation type.
• Prescribed Acceleration cannot be used as a weak constraint.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Face Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration
Shell>More Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration (Edge)

1302 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Plate>Face Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration
Plate>More Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration (Boundary)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration

Edges>>More Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Domains>Face Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration

Boundaries>>More Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration

Pinned
The Pinned node adds an edge, boundary, domain, or point condition that fixes the
translations in all directions; that is, all displacements are zero. The rotations are not
constrained.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Face Constraints>Pinned
Shell>More Constraints>Pinned (Edge)
Shell>Points>Pinned

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1303

 Plate>Face Constraints>Pinned
Plate>More Constraints>Pinned (Boundary)
Plate>Points>Pinned

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face Constraints>Pinned
Edges>More Constraints>Pinned
Points>Shell>Pinned

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Boundaries>Face Constraints>Pinned
Edges>More Constraints>Pinned
Points>Plate>Pinned

No Rotation
The No Rotation node adds an edge, boundary, domain, or point condition that fixes
the rotations around all axes. The translations are not constrained.

FACE DEFINING THE LOCAL ORIENTATIONS

This setting is used in conjunction with weak constraints. In order to be able to
interpret the orientations to which the Lagrange multipliers are defined, you must
know to which boundary they are applied. Select the boundary which should be used
when setting up the weak constraints. The default is Use face with lowest number.

This section is available only for edges and points in the Shell interface
and is only visible if Advanced Physics Options has been selected.

1304 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Face Constraints>No Rotation
Shell>More Constraints>No Rotation (Edge)
Shell>Points>No Rotation
Plate>Face Constraints>No Rotation
Plate>More Constraints>No Rotation (Boundary)
Plate>Points>No Rotation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face Constraints>No Rotation

Edges>More Constraints>No Rotation
Points>Shell>No Rotation

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Boundaries>Face Constraints>No Rotation

Edges>More Constraints>No Rotation
Points>Plate>No Rotation

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1305

 Simply Supported
The Simply Supported node adds an edge condition that constrains the displacement in
the direction perpendicular to the shell. The in-plane rotation perpendicular to the
edge is also constrained. Optionally you can constrain the in-plane displacements.

IN-PLANE DISPLACEMENT CONSTRAINTS

Select Along edge to constrain the in-plane translation along the edge.

Select Perpendicular to edge to constrain the in-plane displacement perpendicular to the

edge.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>More Constraints>Simply Supported
Plate>More Constraints>Simply Supported

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Edges>More Constraints>Simply Supported

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Boundaries>More Constraints>Simply Supported

1306 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Symmetry
The Symmetry node adds an edge or boundary condition that defines a symmetry edge
or boundary.

For 2D axisymmetric components, use the Symmetry Plane node instead.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION (EDGES ONLY)

This section is available only for edges in the Shell interface.

Select the coordinate system to use for specifying a symmetry edge. From the
Coordinate system list select from:

• Local edge system (the default).

• Global coordinate system (the standard global coordinate system).
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system.

For details about the definition of local edge systems, see Local Edge
System.

FACE DEFINING THE LOCAL ORIENTATIONS

This section is available only for edges in the Shell interface.

This setting is used in conjunction with a Local edge system and Shell Local System. If
symmetry is prescribed for an edge which is shared between boundaries, the edge
system can be ambiguous. Select the boundary which should define the edge system.
The default is Use face with lowest number.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1307

 SYMMETRY

This section is available only for edges in the Shell interface.

If another coordinate system than the Local edge system is used, select a Symmetry plane
normal — First axis, Second axis, or Third axis. This indicates which axis in the selected
coordinate system that acts as normal to the symmetry plane.

NORMAL DIRECTION CONDITION

You can allow a symmetry plane to move along its normal direction. This can be used
to model some situations where you want a plane to remain strictly planar but still relax
the property of it being fixed.

From the list, select No displacement, Free Displacement, Prescribed force, or Prescribed
displacement.

The value No displacement gives a standard symmetry condition.

Select Free Displacement to allow the symmetry plane to translate in the normal
direction. The displacement is determined by the criterion that there is no resulting
reaction force in the normal direction.

Select Prescribed force to prescribe the total reaction force acting on the direction
normal to the symmetry plane. Enter the Normal force Fn. The force is defined as
positive when acting along the outward normal of the symmetry plane. Setting the
prescribed force to zero gives the same effect as using Free Displacement.

1308 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Select Prescribed displacement to prescribe the displacement in the direction normal to
the symmetry plane. Enter the Normal displacement un0. Setting the prescribed
displacement to zero gives the same effect as using No displacement.

• Using Free Displacement, Prescribed force, or Prescribed displacement is

only meaningful if the geometry selection corresponds to a single
symmetry plane.
• When using Free Displacement or Prescribed force, an extra global
degree of freedom is added for determining the displacement in the
normal direction. This degree of freedom will have a name of the type
<component>.<interface>.<symmetry_tag>.un, for example
comp1.shell.sym1.un.

• In the Plate interface, this section is only present when Use 3D

formulation is selected in the interface settings.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

Symmetry and Antisymmetry Boundary Conditions

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Face Constraints>Symmetry

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1309

 Shell>More Constraints>Symmetry (Edge)
Plate>More Constraints>Symmetry (Boundary)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face Constraints>Symmetry
Edges>More Constraints>Symmetry

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Boundaries>More Constraints>Symmetry

Symmetry Plane

This node is only available in the 2D axisymmetric Shell interface.

In an axially symmetric problem, the only possible symmetry plane has the Z-axis as
normal. Use the Symmetry Plane node to impose such a symmetry condition.

NORMAL DIRECTION CONDITION

You can allow a symmetry plane to move along its normal direction. This can be used
to model some situations where you want a plane to remain strictly planar but still relax
the property of it being fixed.

From the list, select No displacement, Free Displacement, Prescribed force, or Prescribed
displacement.

The value No displacement gives a standard symmetry condition.

Select Free Displacement to allow the symmetry plane to translate in the normal
direction. The displacement is determined by the criterion that there is no resulting
reaction force in the normal direction.

Select Prescribed force to prescribe the total reaction force acting on the direction
normal to the symmetry plane. Enter the Normal force Fn. The force is defined as
positive when acting along the outward normal of the symmetry plane. Setting the
prescribed force to zero gives the same effect as using Free Displacement.

1310 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Select Prescribed displacement to prescribe the displacement in the direction normal to
the symmetry plane. Enter the Normal displacement un0. Setting the prescribed
displacement to zero gives the same effect as using No displacement.

• Using Free Displacement, Prescribed force, or Prescribed displacement is

only meaningful if the geometry selection corresponds to a single
symmetry plane.
• When using Free Displacement or Prescribed force, an extra global
degree of freedom is added for determining the displacement in the
normal direction. This degree of freedom will have a name of the type
<component>.<interface>.<symmetry_tag>.un, for example
comp1.shell.symp1.un.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

Symmetry Constraints

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>More Constraints>Symmetry Plane

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1311

 Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Points>More Constraints>Symmetry Plane

Antisymmetry
The Antisymmetry node adds an edge or boundary condition that defines an
antisymmetry edge or boundary.

FACE DEFINING THE LOCAL ORIENTATIONS

This setting is used in conjunction with a Local edge system. If antisymmetry is
prescribed for an edge which is shared between boundaries, the edge system can be
ambiguous. Select the boundary which should define the edge system. The default is
Use face with lowest number.

This section is available only for edges in the Shell interface.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION (EDGES ONLY)

Select the coordinate system to use for specifying a symmetry edge. From the
Coordinate system list select from:

• Local edge system (the default).

• Global coordinate system (the standard global coordinate system).
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system.

For details about the definition of local edge systems, see Local Edge
System.

ANTISYMMETRY (EDGES ONLY)

If another coordinate system than the Local edge system is used, select a Symmetry plane
normal — First axis, Second axis, or Third axis. This indicates which axis in the selected
coordinate system that acts as normal to the antisymmetry plane.

1312 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

Symmetry and Antisymmetry Boundary Conditions

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Face Constraints>Antisymmetry
Shell>More Constraints>Antisymmetry (Edge)
Plate>More Constraints>Antisymmetry (Boundary)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face Constraints>Antisymmetry
Edges>More Constraints>Antisymmetry

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Boundaries>More Constraints>Antisymmetry

Body Load
Add a Body Load to boundaries (for the Plate interface add it to domains). The loads
are defined in the given coordinate system.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1313

 FORCE
Enter values or expressions for the components (x, y, z) of the body load FV.

The list selection for FV normally only contains User defined. When
combining the Shell interface with another physics interface, it is also
possible to select a predefined load from this list.

MOMENT
Enter values or expressions for the components (x, y, z) of the moment body load ML.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Face and Volume Loads>Body Load
Plate>Face and Volume Loads>Body Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

1314 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Boundaries>Face and Volume Loads>Body Load

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Domains>Face and Volume Loads>Body Load

Face Load
Add a Face Load to boundaries (for the Plate interface add it to domains), to use it as
a pressure or tangential force acting on a surface. The loads are defined in the given
coordinate system.

THROUGH-THICKNESS LOCATION
Select a surface — Top Surface, Midsurface, or Bottom Surface. The default is that the
load is applied at the midsurface. The effect of using another surface than the
midsurface is twofold:

• For a curved boundary, the difference in area between the midsurface and the
selected surface is taken into account.
• For a tangential load, the distance from the midsurface is used to compute an
additional equivalent moment load.

To place the load at another distance from the midsurface, select the Offset check box,
and enter a value for the offset, zoffset.

If the material model is Section Stiffness, there may physically not be a well-defined top
and bottom surface. If the load is applied at such a surface, the thickness value used to
compute the load is taken from the settings in the Thickness and Offset node.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1315

 FORCE
Select a Load type — Force per unit area, Total force, or Pressure.
TABLE 5-17:

LOAD TYPE VARIABLE SI UNIT GEOMETRIC SPACE DIMENSION

ENTITY LEVEL (COMPONENTS)

Force per unit area FA N/m2 boundaries 3D (x, y, z)

domains 2D (x, y, z)
Total force Ftot N boundaries 3D(x, y, z)
domains 2D(x, y, z)
Pressure p Pa boundaries 3D
domains 2D

• A positive pressure is directed in the negative element normal

direction.
• The pressure load is a “follower load”. The direction changes with
deformation in a geometrically nonlinear analysis.
• After selecting a Load type, the Load list normally only contains User
defined. When combining with another physics interface, it is also
possible to choose a predefined load from this list.

MOMENT
Enter values or expressions for the components of the moment face load MA.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

1316 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

 • You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Face and Volume Loads>Face Load
Plate>Face and Volume Loads>Face Load
Membrane>Face and Volume Loads>Face Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell or Membrane selected:

Boundaries>Face and Volume Loads>Face Load

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Domains>Face and Volume Loads>Face Load

Edge Load
Add an Edge Load as a force or moment distributed along an edge (for the Plate
interface add it to boundaries). The load is defined in the given local coordinate
system.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Select the coordinate system to use for specifying the load. From the Coordinate system
list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the standard global coordinate system).

• Shell Local System

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1317

 • Local edge system

For details about the definition of local edge systems, see Local Edge
System.

• Any additional user-defined coordinate system.

FACE DEFINING THE ORIENTATIONS

This setting is used in conjunction with Local edge system and Shell Local System. When
the load is applied to an edge which is shared between boundaries, the coordinate
system can be ambiguous. Select the boundary which should define the edge system.
The default is Use face with lowest number.

This section is available only for edges in the Shell interface and is only
visible if the selected coordinate system is Local edge system or Shell Local
System.

THROUGH-THICKNESS LOCATION
Select a surface — Top Surface, Midsurface, or Bottom Surface. The default is that the
load is applied at the midsurface. The effect of using another surface than the
midsurface is twofold:

• For a curved boundary, the difference in area between the midsurface and the
selected surface is taken into account.
• For a tangential load, the distance from the midsurface is used to compute an
additional equivalent moment load.

To place the load at another distance from the midsurface, select the Offset check box,
and enter a value for the offset, zoffset.

If the material model is Section Stiffness, there may physically not be a well-defined top
and bottom surface. If the load is applied at such a surface, the thickness value used to
compute the load is taken from the settings in the Thickness and Offset node.

If a selected edge is connected to boundaries having different thicknesses, then the

result of specifying Top Surface or Bottom Surface is not well defined.

1318 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

FORCE
Select a Load type — Force per unit length (the default), Force per unit area, or Total
Force. Enter values or expressions for the components (x, y, z).

TABLE 5-18:

LOAD TYPE VARIABLE SI UNIT GEOMETRIC SPACE DIMENSION

ENTITY LEVEL

Force per unit length FL Nm edges 3D

boundaries 2D
2
Force per unit area FA N/m edges 3D
boundaries 2D
Total force Ftot N edges 3D
boundaries 2D

After selecting a Load type, the Load list normally only contains User
defined. When combining the Shell interface with another physics
interface, it is also possible to choose a predefined load from this list.

MOMENT
Select a Load type to define the moment load — Moment per unit length (the default)
or Moment per unit area. Enter values or expressions for the components (x, y, z).

This section is available only in the Shell and Plate interfaces.

TABLE 5-19:

LOAD TYPE VARIABLE SI UNIT GEOMETRIC SPACE DIMENSION

ENTITY LEVEL

Moment per unit length ML N edges 3D

boundaries 2D
2
Moment per unit area MA Nm/m edges 3D
boundaries 2D
Total moment Mtot Nm edges 3D
boundaries 2D

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1319

 If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Edge Load
Plate>Edge Load
Membrane>Edge Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell or Membrane selected:

Boundaries>Shell>Edge Load
Boundaries>Membrane>Edge Load

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Domains>Plate>Edge Load

Point Load
Add a Point Load to points for concentrated forces or moments at points. The loads are
defined in the given coordinate system. From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the standard global coordinate system).

1320 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

• Shell Local System
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system.

FACE DEFINING THE LOCAL ORIENTATIONS

This setting is used in conjunction with Shell Local System. When the load is applied to
an edge which is shared between boundaries, the coordinate system can be ambiguous.
Select the boundary which should define the edge system. The default is Use face with
lowest number.

This section is available only for edges in the Shell interface and is only
visible if the selected coordinate system is Shell Local System.

THROUGH-THICKNESS LOCATION
Select a surface — Top Surface, Midsurface, or Bottom Surface. The default is that the
load is applied at the midsurface. The effect of using another surface than the
midsurface is that for a tangential load, the distance from the midsurface is used to
compute an additional equivalent moment load.

To place the load at another distance from the midsurface, select the Offset check box,
and enter a value for the offset, zoffset.

If the material model is Section Stiffness, there may physically not be a well-defined top
and bottom surface. If the load is applied at such a surface, the thickness value used to
compute the load is taken from the settings in the Thickness and Offset node.

If a selected point is connected to boundaries having different thicknesses, then the

result of specifying Top Surface or Bottom Surface is not well defined.

FORCE
Enter values or expressions for the components (x, y, z) of the point load FP.

The Load list normally only contains User defined. When combining the
Shell interface with another physics interface, it is also possible to choose
a predefined load from this list.

MOMENT
Enter values or expressions for the components (x, y, z) of the point moment MP.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1321

 LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Points>Point Load
Plate>Points>Point Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell or Plate selected:

Points>Point Load

Point Load, Free

Add a Point Load, Free node to describe concentrated loads with locations specified by
coordinates. Such loads do not have to be placed in a geometrical point or in a mesh
node. This is particularly useful for the following cases:

• Imported meshes, where there may not be suitable points for load application

1322 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

• Moving loads
• Several point loads, in which case it may be impractical to create points at all load
locations

• For each free point load, there will be a search for the mesh element
that is closest to the given location. For the load to be active, the
location must be within a certain small distance from at least one
element. The actual load location is taken as the point on the element
that is closest to the given location. If no element is found, the load is
silently ignored.
You can check the number of loads that were ignored through the
variable <phys>.<load_tag>.num_ignored, for example
shell.plf1.num_ignored.
• The local stress field in the element where a point load acts will not be
reliable.

LOCATION AND FORCE

Select a Through-thickness location — Top Surface, Midsurface, or Bottom Surface. The
default is that the load is applied at the midsurface. The effect of using another surface
than the midsurface is that for a tangential load, the distance from the midsurface is
used to compute an additional equivalent moment load.

To place the load at another distance from the midsurface, select the Offset check box,
and enter a value for the offset, zoffset.

The coordinates that you enter for the load location are not affected by
this setting; they should always refer to the reference surface, that is the
coordinates of the mesh.

If the material model is Section Stiffness, there may physically not be a well-defined top
and bottom surface. If the load is applied at such a surface, the thickness value used to
compute the load is taken from the settings in the Thickness and Offset node.

Select a Frame — Material or Spatial that determines how the given coordinates are
interpreted in case of a geometrically nonlinear analysis. When Material is selected, the
load location on the body is interpreted with respect to the initial configuration. When
Spatial is selected, then the load location is given in space fixed coordinates, which

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1323

 usually means that the material point on the body where the load is applied will change
with deformation even if the coordinate values are constant.

For each row in the table, enter the data for one load. If material frame input is used,
then the location is specified in terms of the material coordinates (X, Y, Z). If spatial
frame input is used, then the spatial coordinates (x, y, z) are used. Then, enter the force
and moment values, Fxl, Fyl, Fzl, Mxl, Myl, and Mzl. The force and moment vectors are
interpreted in the coordinate system selected in the Coordinate System Selection section.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency

domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

Pratt Truss Bridge: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Beams_and_Shells/pratt_truss_bridge

Context Menus
Shell>Point Load, Free
Plate>Point Load, Free

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Global>Shell>Point Load, Free

1324 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Global>Plate>Point Load, Free

Ring Load
A load applied to a point, not located at the axis of revolution, in an axisymmetric
model actually represents a ring load. Add a Ring Load to points located at R > 0 to
model such loads.

THROUGH-THICKNESS LOCATION
Select a surface — Top Surface, Midsurface, or Bottom Surface. The default is that the
load is applied at the midsurface. The effect of using another surface than the
midsurface is that for a tangential load, the distance from the midsurface is used to
compute an additional equivalent moment load.

To place the load at another distance from the midsurface, select the Offset check box,
and enter a value for the offset, zoffset.

If the material model is Section Stiffness, there may physically not be a well-defined top
and bottom surface. If the load is applied at such a surface, the thickness value used to
compute the load is taken from the settings in the Thickness and Offset node.

If a selected point is connected to boundaries having different thicknesses, then the

result of specifying Top Surface or Bottom Surface is not well defined.

FORCE
Select the Load type — Force per unit length, Force per unit area, or Total force. Enter
values or expressions for FL, FA, or Ftot.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1325

 MOMENT
Select the Load type — Moment per unit length, Moment per unit area, or Total moment.
Enter values or expressions for ML, MA, or Mtot.

• The Load list normally only contains User defined. When combining
with another physics interface that can provide this type of load, it is
also possible to choose a predefined load from this list.
• The Total force and Total moment options should not be directly
interpreted as resultants, since the orientation is changing. Rather, it
should be interpreted as the per unit length values, multiplied by 2r,
where r is the radius of the point.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Ring Load

1326 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Points>Shell>Ring Load

Ring Load, Free

A load applied to a point, not located at the axis of revolution, in an axisymmetric
model actually represents a ring load. Add a Ring Load, Free node to describe
concentrated loads with locations specified by coordinates. Such loads do not have to
be placed in a geometrical point or in a mesh node. This is particularly useful for the
following cases:

• Imported meshes, where there may not be suitable points for load application
• Moving loads
• Several point loads, in which case it may be impractical to create points at all load
locations

• For each free load, there will be a search for the mesh element that is
closest to the given location. For the load to be active, the location
must be within a certain small distance from at least one element. The
actual load location is taken as the point on the element that is closest
to the given location. If no element is found, the load is silently
ignored.
You can check the number of loads that were ignored through the
variable <phys>.<load_tag>.num_ignored, for example
shell.rlf1.num_ignored.

• The local stress field in the element where a point load acts will not be
reliable.

LOCATION AND FORCE

Select a Through-thickness location — Top Surface, Midsurface, or Bottom Surface. The
default is that the load is applied at the midsurface. The effect of using another surface
than the midsurface is that for a tangential load, the distance from the midsurface is
used to compute an additional equivalent moment load.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1327

 To place the load at another distance from the midsurface, select the Offset check box,
and enter a value for the offset, zoffset.

The coordinates that you enter for the load location are not affected by
this setting; they should always refer to the reference surface, that is the
coordinates of the mesh.

If the material model is Section Stiffness, there may physically not be a well-defined top
and bottom surface. If the load is applied at such a surface, the thickness value used to
compute the load is taken from the settings in the Thickness and Offset node.

Select a Frame — Material or Spatial that determines how the given coordinates are
interpreted in case of a geometrically nonlinear analysis. When Material is selected, the
load location on the body is interpreted with respect to the initial configuration. When
Spatial is selected, then the load location is given in space fixed coordinates, which
usually means that the material point on the body where the load is applied will change
with deformation even if the coordinate values are constant.

For each row in the table, enter the data for one load. If material frame input is used,
then the location is specified in terms of the material coordinates (R, Z). If spatial frame
input is used, then the spatial coordinates (r, z) are used. Then, enter the force and
moment values, Fxl, Fzl, and Myl. The force and moment components are interpreted
in the coordinate system selected in the Coordinate System Selection section.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

1328 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

 • You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

Location in User Interface

Context Menus
Shell>Ring Load, Free

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Global>Shell>Ring Load, Free

Spring Foundation
Use the Spring Foundation node to apply elastic and damping boundary conditions for
domains, boundaries, edges, and points.

By adding the Predeformation subnode, you can prescribe that the spring force is zero
at a nonzero spring extension.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Select the coordinate system to use for specifying the spring properties. The coordinate
system selection is based on the geometric entity level.

Domains (Plate Interface)

From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the default)

• Shell Local System
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system

Boundaries (Shell and Plate Interfaces)

From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the default)

• Boundary System (a predefined normal-tangential coordinate system)

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1329

 • Shell Local System
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system

Edges (Shell Interface)

From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the standard global coordinate system).

• Local edge system (the default).
• Shell Local System
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system.

Points (Shell and Plate Interfaces)

From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the default)

• Shell Local System
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system

For details about the definition of local edge systems, see Local Edge
System.

SPRING
Select the Spring type and its associated spring constant or force using Table 5-20 as a
guide. The default option is the spring type for the type of geometric entity and space
dimension, and there are different combinations available based on this.

When the option is of the type ‘force as function of extension’, then the built-in
variables describing the spring extension must be used in the expression as described
in Springs and Dampers. The spring matrix can be entered as Isotropic, Diagonal,
Symmetric, or Full. For Isotropic the same spring constant is used in all the diagonal
elements of the spring matrix.
TABLE 5-20: SPRING TYPES FOR THE SPRING FOUNDATION FEATURE

SPRING TYPE VARIABLE SI UNITS GEOMETRIC ENTITY LEVEL

Spring constant per kV N/(mm3) domains (Plate), boundaries (Shell)

unit volume
Total spring constant ktot N/m domains (Plate), boundaries (Shell,
Plate), edges (Shell)

1330 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

TABLE 5-20: SPRING TYPES FOR THE SPRING FOUNDATION FEATURE

SPRING TYPE VARIABLE SI UNITS GEOMETRIC ENTITY LEVEL

Spring constant per kA N/(mm)2 domains (Plate), boundaries (Shell,

unit area Plate), edges (Shell)
Spring constant per kL N/(mm) boundaries (Plate), edges (Shell)
unit length
Spring constant kP N/m points (Shell, Plate)
Force per volume as FV N/m3 domains (Plate), boundaries (Shell)
function of
extension
Total force as Ftot N domains (Plate), boundaries (Shell,
function of Plate), edges (Shell)
extension
Force per area as FA N/m2 domains (Plate), boundaries (Shell,
function of Plate), edges (Shell)
extension
Force per length as FL N/m boundaries (Plate), edges (Shell)
function of
extension
Force as function of FP N points (Shell, Plate)
extension

LOSS FACTOR DAMPING

From the Loss factor type list, select Scalar (Same for all components) or Individual
components.

• For Scalar (Same for all components) enter a single Loss factor for spring s which is
used to multiply all values of the spring matrix or spring force vector.
• For Individual components select Isotropic, Diagonal, Symmetric, or Full, then enter
values or expressions in the table for the Loss factor for spring k or f based on space
dimension. The loss factors act on the corresponding components of the spring
matrix or spring force vector. If you select Isotropic, the effect is the same as when
you select Diagonal and enter the same value for all diagonal elements.

VISCOUS DAMPING
Select the Damping type using Table 5-21 as a guide. The default option is the default
damping type for the type of geometric entity and space dimension, and there are
different combinations available based on this. The damping matrix can be entered as

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1331

 Isotropic, Diagonal, Symmetric, or Full. For Isotropic the same viscous constant is used in
all the diagonal elements of the damping matrix
TABLE 5-21: DAMPING TYPES FOR THE SPRING FOUNDATION FEATURE

DAMPING TYPE VARIABLE SI UNITS GEOMETRIC ENTITY LEVEL

Damping constant dV Ns/(mm3) domains (Plate), boundaries (Shell)

per unit volume
Damping constant dA Ns/(mm2) domains (Plate), boundaries (Shell,
per unit area Plate), edges (Shell)
Total damping dtot Ns/m domains (Plate), boundaries (Shell,
constant Plate), edges (Shell)
Damping constant dL Ns/(mm) boundaries (Plate), edges (Shell)
per unit length

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

• Springs and Dampers in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

• Spring Foundation and Thin Elastic Layer in the Structural Mechanics
Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation (Boundary, Edge)
Shell>Points>Spring Foundation
Plate>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation (Domain, Boundary)
Plate>Points>Spring Foundation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Boundaries>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation

Edges>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation
Points>Shell>Spring Foundation
Points>Membrane>Spring Foundation

1332 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Domains>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation

Boundaries>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation
Points>Plate>Spring Foundation

Predeformation
Use the Predeformation subnode to specify that the elastic forces in Spring Foundation
are nonzero at zero displacement. Thus, you can model cases where the unstressed
state of the spring is in another configuration than the one described by the geometry.

The value of the predeformation can vary during the simulation, so it should not be
interpreted as an initial value.

SPRING PREDEFORMATION
Based on space dimension, enter the values for the Spring Predeformation u0.

You can assign the load caused by the predeformation to a load group.
See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Spring Foundation>Predeformation
Plate>Spring Foundation>Predeformation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Spring Foundation or Thin Elastic Layer node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Predeformation

Added Mass
The Added Mass node is available on boundaries and edges and can be used to supply
inertia that is not part of the material itself. Such inertia does not need to be isotropic,
in the sense that the inertial effects are not the same in all directions.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1333

 COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION
Select the coordinate system to use for specifying the mass distribution in case of a
nonisotropic mass contribution. The coordinate system selection is based on the
geometric entity level.

Domains (Plate Interface)

From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the default)

• Shell Local System
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system

Boundaries (Shell and Plate Interfaces)

From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the default)

• Boundary System (a predefined normal-tangential coordinate system)
• Shell Local System
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system

Edges (Shell Interface)

From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the standard global coordinate system).

• Local edge system (the default)
• Shell Local System
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system.

For details about the definition of local edge systems, see Local Edge
System.

FACE DEFINING THE LOCAL ORIENTATIONS

This setting is used in conjunction with a Local edge system and Shell Local System. If
the mass is prescribed for an edge which is shared between boundaries, the edge system

1334 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

can be ambiguous. Select the boundary which should define the edge system. The
default is Use face with lowest number.

This section is available only for edges in the Shell interface.

All other settings for the Added Mass node are described in the
documentation for Added Mass in the Solid Mechanics interface.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass (Boundary, Edge)
Plate>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass (Domain, Boundary)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Boundaries>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass

Edges>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Domains>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass

Boundaries>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass

Point Mass
Use the Point Mass node to model a discrete mass or mass moment of inertia that is
concentrated at a point.

The Point Mass Damping subnode can be added to specify a mass-proportional

damping.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

With the Coordinate system list, control the coordinate system around the axis of which
the principal mass moments of inertia are defined.

POINT MASS
Enter a Point mass m.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1335

 Enter a single value for an isotropic Mass moment of inertia J, or select Diagonal or
Symmetric to enter a full moment of inertia tensor.

FRAME ACCELERATION FORCES

Select the Exclude contribution check box to switch off the loads generated by this node
when the frame is accelerated when using a Gravity, Rotating Frame, Linearly
Accelerated Frame, or Base Excitation feature. The setting will also determine whether
the node will contribute when computing mass properties.

For more information, see Computing Mass Properties.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Points>Point Mass
Plate>Points>Point Mass

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell or Plate selected:

Points>Shell>Point Mass
Points>Plate>Point Mass

Point Mass Damping

Use the Point Mass Damping subnode to add damping to a Point Mass parent node.

POINT MASS DAMPING

Enter a Mass damping parameter dM. This is the mass proportional term of a Rayleigh
damping.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Point Mass>Point Mass Damping
Plate>Point Mass>Point Mass Damping

Ribbon
Physics tab with Point Mass node selected in the model tree:

1336 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Attributes>Point Mass Damping

Periodic Condition
Use a Periodic Condition to prescribe that the displacements and rotations on two
different sets of edges with the same geometrical shape are related, as in a periodic
structure. In the Plate interface the connection is between boundaries rather than
edges as is the case in the Shell interface.

Several different types of periodicity properties of the solution can be prescribed using
this boundary condition.

• The Continuity, Antiperiodicity, and User defined periodic conditions directly

prescribe relations both between displacements and between rotations. They can be
used for any type of study.
• The Floquet periodicity can be used for frequency domain problems with a spatial
periodicity of the geometry and solution. The modeled structure is typically a unit
cell of a repetitive structure.
• The Cyclic symmetry is a special case of a Floquet condition, intended for structures
which consist of a number of sectors which are identical when rotated around a
common axis, like in a fan.

The two sets of edges between which there is a periodicity condition are called the
source and destination. It is not required to have the same mesh on the source and

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1337

 destination, but the local accuracy of the solution near the edges will be better if you
use the same mesh.

For periodic conditions on shells, the periodicity condition acts on edges,

as opposed to solids and plates where it acts on boundaries. This means
that the orientation cannot be determined automatically. You must
provide coordinate systems using the Orientation of Source and Orientation
of Destination sections. The default coordinate system is the Global
coordinate system, which works well if the edges are parallel. In other
cases, you need to add a Destination Selection subnode, in order to supply
the coordinate system for the destination.

In cases of rotational symmetry, you can assign the same cylindrical

coordinate system to both source and destination. Note that cylindrical
coordinate systems in general cannot be used in situations where they are
accessed in points located on the axis of revolution, since axis orientations
are not uniquely defined there. Thus, if the edges intersect at the axis of
revolution, you must use two different coordinate systems with fixed axis
directions, rotated with respect to each other.

When there is a common point on the axis of revolution, you should

explicitly constrain it to remain on the axis and to have no rotations using
Prescribed Displacement/Rotation.

EDGE SELECTION/BOUNDARY SELECTION

Select both the source and destination edges or boundaries.

The software automatically identifies the edges as either source edges or destination
edges. This works fine for cases like opposing parallel edges. In more general cases,
right-click the Period Condition node and choose Manual Destination Selection to
add a Destination Selection section where you can specify the edges which constitute the
destination. By default, this node contains the selection that COMSOL Multiphysics
has identified.

1338 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

In cases where the periodic edge is split into several edges within the geometry, it
might be necessary to apply separate periodic conditions to each pair of geometry
edges for the matching to work properly.

In the Plate interface, Edge Selection is replaced by Boundary Selection.

DESTINATION SELECTION
This section is available for specifying the destination edges or boundaries, if needed,
when the Manual Destination Selection option is selected in the context menu for the
Periodic Condition node. You can only select destination edges or boundaries from the
union of all source and destination edge or boundaries.

PERIODICITY SETTINGS
With Type of periodicity you select the form of periodicity that your solution should
have.

• For Continuity the displacements and rotations on the destination are set equal to
their counterparts on the source; u  x d  = u  x s  and a  x d  = a  x s  . If the
source and destination objects are rotated with respect to each other, a
transformation is performed using the selected coordinate systems, so that
corresponding components of the degrees of freedom are connected.
• For Antiperiodicity the displacements and rotations on the destination are set equal
to their counterparts on the source but with the sign reversed; u  x d  = – u  x s 
and a  x d  = – a  x s  . If the source and destination objects are rotated with respect
to each other, a transformation is performed using the selected coordinate systems,
so that corresponding components of the degrees of freedom are connected.
• For Floquet periodicity enter a k-vector for Floquet periodicity kF. This is the wave
number vector for the excitation.
• For Cyclic symmetry the settings differ slightly between the Plate and Shell interfaces.

In the Plate interface, choose how to define the sector angle that the
geometry represents using the Sector angle list. If Automatic is selected, the
program attempts to find out how many full repetitions of the geometry
there will be on a full revolution. If User defined is selected, enter a value
for the sector angle S.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1339

 If any point on the edges having the periodic condition is located on the
axis of cyclic symmetry, enter the Axis direction vector, tc. This orientation
of the axis of cyclic symmetry is then needed for eliminating conflicting
constraints.

In the Shell interface, you always must enter a value for the sector angle
S.

In either case, also enter an Azimuthal mode number for the mode to be studied. It
can vary from 0 to N/2, where N is the total number of sectors on a full revolution.
• For User defined select the check box for any of the displacement or rotation
components as needed. Then for each selection, choose the Type of periodicity —
Continuity or Antiperiodicity. Each selected displacement component will be
connected by u i  x d  = u i  x s  or u i  x d  = – u i  x s  . Each selected rotation
component will be connected by a i  x d  = a i  x s  or a i  x d  = – a i  x s  If the
source and destination objects are rotated with respect to each other, a
transformation is performed using the selected coordinate systems so that
corresponding components of the degrees of freedom are connected.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

ORIENTATION OF SOURCE
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box. For information about the
Orientation of Source section, see Orientation of Source and Destination in the
COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

ORIENTATION OF DESTINATION
This section appears if the setting for Transform to intermediate map in the Orientation
of Source section is changed from the default value, Automatic, and Advanced Physics

1340 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Options is selected in the Show More Options dialog box. For information about the
Orientation of Destination section, see Orientation of Source and Destination in the
COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

MAPPING BETWEEN SOURCE AND DESTINATION

For information about the Mapping Between Source and Destination section, see
Mapping Between Source and Destination in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference
Manual.

• Cyclic Symmetry and Floquet Periodic Conditions in the Structural

Mechanics Theory chapter.
• Orientation of Source and Destination in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

Vibrations of an Impeller: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Dynamics_and_Vibration/impeller

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Connections>Periodic Condition
Plate>Periodic Condition

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Edges>Connections>Periodic Condition

Physics tab with Plate selected:

Boundaries>Periodic Condition

Layered Adiabatic Heating

The Layered Adiabatic Heating node adds the equations for adiabatic heating in layered
shells caused by abrupt changes in temperature due to fast deformation.

The increase in temperature is then defined by solving the distributed equation

ꞏ
C p T =  ah Q h

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1341

 here,  is the density, Cp is the heat capacity at constant pressure, T is the temperature
field, ah is the coefficient of adiabatic heating, and Qh corresponds to the heat sources
due to mechanical dissipative processes.

Adiabatic heating is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

If the Composite Materials Module is available, adiabatic heating can be applied to

arbitrary layers. The material properties, orientations, and layer thicknesses are defined
using Layered Material node. The offset, and local coordinate system, in which material
orientations and results are interpreted, is defined by Layered Material Link or Layered
Material Stack node.

Without the Composite Materials Module, only single layer shells and membranes can
be modeled. This is still useful, for example for some multiphysics couplings. For single
layer materials, an ordinary Material node can be used, as long you include a Shell
property group in which, for example, the thickness is given.

• For a general description about layered materials, see Layered Materials

in the documentation for the Composite Materials Module.

BOUNDARY SELECTION
It is only possible to select boundaries which are part of the selection of a layered
material defined in Layered Material Link or Layered Material Stack node.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layers in which adiabatic heating is to be modeled.
TABLE 5-22: LAYER SELECTION

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Default when added. When Use all layers is not selected.
Only a subset of the layers selected
in the parent can be selected.

If the same layer is selected in two nodes being active on the same boundary, the
contributions will be exclusive

For a general description of this section, see Layer and Interface

Selections in the documentation for the Composite Materials Module.

1342 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

INITIAL VALUES
Enter the Initial temperature Tini. The default value is 293.15 K.

THERMODYNAMICS
The density  is taken from the material model (Linear Elastic Material or Hyperelastic
Material).

The default Heat capacity at constant pressure Cp uses values From material. For
User defined, enter an expression or value. The default value for the User defined is 0 J/
(kg K).

Enter the Coefficient of adiabatic heating, ah. The default value is 1 (dimensionless),
which means that dissipative processes contribute 100% as heat sources.

Select the Dissipative heat source — Include all dissipative sources or User defined.

The Dissipative heat source list makes it possible to include specific heat sources for the
adiabatic heating. Enter a value or expression for the heat source Qh to include. For
instance, the dissipated energy density due to creep is available under the variable
shell.Wc and due to viscoplasticity under the variable shell.Wvp. Here solid
denotes the name of the physics interface node.

TIME STEPPING
The Backward Euler method is not available with the Layered Shell interface neither
with the Layered Linear Elastic Material nor the Layered Hyperelastic Material in the
Shell and Membrane interfaces.

Domain ODEs
No settings are needed for the Domain ODEs method. However, this method adds
degrees-of-freedom that are solved as part of the general solver sequence. The scaling
of this field can affect the convergence of the overall solution.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>More>Layered Adiabatic Heating

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Boundary>More>Layered Adiabatic Heating

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1343

 Boundary to Boundary
Add a Boundary to Boundary node to connect two shell boundaries that are
geometrically disjoint. It is assumed that the boundaries are parallel. The connection
between corresponding points on the two edges can be rigid or flexible.

This connection is useful in, for example, the following situations:

• Two plates are joined by a thin glue layer.

• It is physically a single plate, but for modeling reasons you want to extend it on
different boundaries in different directions.

The mesh does not have to be the same on both boundaries, but there will be less local
stress fluctuations if it is.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Select the coordinate system to use for specifying the stiffness in the case of a flexible
connection. From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the standard global coordinate system).

• Shell Local System
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system.

CONNECTION SETTINGS
Select a Connection type— Rigid or Flexible.

For Rigid, the coupling between the two boundaries is rigid in a pointwise manner.
Every node on the destination boundary is coupled by a virtual rigid bar to the nearest
point on the source boundary. This does not imply that the whole boundary is rigid.
Such a coupling can be obtained using a Rigid Connector.

For Flexible, select Connection properties — User defined or From material.

For User defined, enter the Spring constant per unit area. This is a matrix K, coupling
the displacements on the two sides.

f = – K u

Here, f is the force acting on the destination side, and u is the difference between the
destination side displacements and the source side displacements. All vectors are
expressed in the selected coordinate system.

1344 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Optionally, you can enter a Mass per unit area, u,A. This can for example be the mass
of a glue layer.

In all cases, select the Source boundary and Destination Boundary — Top or Bottom. The
information is used for two purposes: to connect to the correct set of displacements,
and to compute the distance, including the shell thickness and offset.

The two boundaries are only connected if they are within a certain tolerance from
touching each other. The distance is computed including shell thickness and offset, as
well as the selected connection boundaries. You can modify this tolerance. Select a
Connection tolerance — Automatic or User defined. For User defined, enter the maximum
allowable distance or overlap between the boundaries, .

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box. The information in this section i
sonly used if Method is set to Rigid.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Connections>Boundary to Boundary (Boundary)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Boundaries>Connections>Boundary to Boundary

Edge to Boundary
Add an Edge to Boundary node to connect a shell edge to a shell boundary in a mesh
independent configuration.

This connection is useful in, for example, the following situations:

• You have an imported geometry where there are slits in the geometry.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1345

 • A midsurface generation has left slits in the geometry.
• You want to avoid the extra flexibility that would be the effect of connecting at the
midsurface. With this type of coupling, you can take she shell thickness into account
in a more accurate way.
• You want to model and evaluate a weld. In that case, you can use the flexible version
of the coupling, and evaluate the forces in it.

If possible, use the Edge to Edge coupling, which involves fewer approximations. The
Edge to Boundary coupling has the advantage that there is no need for having matching
edges in the geometry.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Select the coordinate system to use for specifying the stiffness in the case of a flexible
connection. From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the standard global coordinate system).

• Shell Local System
• Local edge system

For details about the definition of local edge systems, see Local Edge
System.

• Any additional user-defined coordinate system.

FACE DEFINING THE ORIENTATIONS

This setting is used in conjunction with Local edge system and Shell Local System. When
the connection is used for an edge which is shared between boundaries, the coordinate
system can be ambiguous. Select the boundary which should define the edge system.
The default is Use face with lowest number.

This section is available only for edges in the Shell interface and is only
visible if the selected coordinate system is Local edge system or Shell Local
System.

CONNECTION SETTINGS
Select a Method — Rigid or Flexible.

1346 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

For Rigid, the coupling between the two parts is rigid in a pointwise manner. Every
point on the destination boundary is coupled by a virtual rigid bar to the nearest point
on the source edge. This does not imply that the whole edge is rigid.

For Rigid, select for both the source and destination sides of the connection the
Connected location — Top surface, Midsurface (default), or Bottom surface.

For Flexible, you supply a stiffness matrix, connecting the corresponding points on the
source an destination sides. The stiffness coefficients are given per unit length along
the edge. Input fields for the matrices ku,L and k,L are always shown. Select
Translational-rotational coupling to show input fields for the coupling matrices ku,L
and ku,L. In 2D axisymmetry, most elements of these matrices are by definition zero.
Only elements which can be nonzero are shown; these are elements 13 and 23 for
ku,L, and elements 31 and 32 for ku,L.

The stiffness relation can be expressed as

f = – k u L k u L u
m k u L k  L 

Here, f and m are the forces and moments per unit length acting on the destination
side, and u is the difference between the destination side displacements and the
source side displacements. Similarly,  is the difference between the destination side
rotations and the source side rotations. All vectors are expressed in the selected
coordinate system.

Optionally, you can enter a Mass per unit length, u,L. This can for example be the mass
of a not modeled weld.

On the boundary, a strip with a certain width is used for the connection. Select a
Connected area defined by — Shell thickness or Distance from shell midsurface to control
the width of the strip. The default is Shell thickness, in which case the thickness of the
shell on the source side (the edge) is used as the connection width. By choosing
Distance from shell midsurface.

The two boundaries are only connected if they are within a certain tolerance from
touching each other. The distance is computed including shell thickness and offset.
You can modify this tolerance. Select a Connection tolerance — Automatic or User
defined. For User defined, enter the maximum allowable distance or overlap between
the boundaries, .

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1347

 CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box. The information in this section i
sonly used if Method is set to Rigid.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Connections>Edge to Boundary (Edge)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Edges>Connections>Edge to Boundary

Edge to Edge
Add an Edge to Edge node to connect two shell edges that are geometrically disjoint.
It is assumed that the edges are parallel. The connection between corresponding points
on the two edges can be rigid or flexible.

This connection is useful in, for example, the following situations:

• You have an imported geometry where there are slits between edges.
• A midsurface generation has left slits between edges.
• You want to avoid the extra flexibility that would be the effect of connecting at the
midsurface using a common edge. With this type of coupling, you can take she shell
thickness into account in a more accurate way.
• You want to model and evaluate a weld. In that case, you can use the flexible version
of the coupling, and evaluate the forces in it.

If there is no good match between two edges, you can as an alternative use the Edge
to Boundary coupling.

1348 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION
Select the coordinate system to use for specifying the stiffness in the case of a flexible
connection. From the Coordinate system list select from:

• Global coordinate system (the standard global coordinate system).

• Shell Local System
• Local edge system

For details about the definition of local edge systems, see Local Edge
System.

• Any additional user-defined coordinate system.

FACE DEFINING THE ORIENTATIONS

This setting is used in conjunction with Local edge system and Shell Local System. When
the connection is used for an edge which is shared between boundaries, the coordinate
system can be ambiguous. Select the boundary which should define the edge system.
The default is Use face with lowest number.

This section is available only for edges in the Shell interface and is only
visible if the selected coordinate system is Local edge system or Shell Local
System.

CONNECTION SETTINGS
Select a Method — Rigid or Flexible.

For Rigid, the coupling between the two edges is rigid in a pointwise manner. Every
node on the destination edge is coupled by a virtual rigid bar to the nearest point on
the source edge. This does not imply that the whole edge is rigid. Such a coupling can
be obtained using a Rigid Connector.

For Rigid, select for both the source and destination sides of the connection the
Connected location — Top surface, Midsurface (default), or Bottom surface.

For Flexible, you supply a stiffness matrix, connecting the corresponding points on the
source an destination edges. The stiffness coefficients are given per unit length along
the edge. Input fields for the matrices ku,L and k,L are always shown.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1349

 Select Translational-rotational coupling to show input fields for the coupling matrices
ku,L and ku,L. In 2D axisymmetry, most elements of these matrices are by definition
zero. Only elements which can be nonzero are shown; these are elements 13 and 23
for ku,L, and elements 31 and 32 for ku,L.

The stiffness relation can be expressed as

f = – k u L k u L u
m k u L k  L 

Here, f and m are the forces and moments per unit length acting on the destination
side, and u is the difference between the destination side displacements and the
source side displacements. Similarly,  is the difference between the destination side
rotations and the source side rotations. All vectors are expressed in the selected
coordinate system.

Optionally, you can enter a Mass per unit length, u,L. This can for example be the mass
of a not modeled weld.

In order to ascertain that the two edges are parallel, a certain tolerance is used when
comparing the angles between them. You can modify this tolerance. Select the
Connection tolerance — Automatic or User defined. For, , enter the maximum angle
between the edges.

Select the Weld verification check box to compute forces and stresses per unit length
and their average along the weld.

Select the Weld type — Double-sided fillet, Single-sided fillet (top), Single-sided fillet
(bot), or Butt. For any of the options, enter the Throat size a, the Allowable equivalent
max max
stress  eq , and the Allowable normal stress (perpendicular to the weld)   .

1350 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box. The information in this section is
only used if Method is set to Rigid.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Connections>Edge to Edge (Edge)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Edges>Connections>Edge to Edge

Rigid Connector
The Rigid Connector is a boundary condition for modeling rigid regions and kinematic
constraints such as prescribed rigid rotations. A rigid connector can connect an
arbitrary combination of edges and points which all will move together as being
attached to a virtual rigid object.

You can add the Rigid Connector node at the boundary, edge, and point levels.

• When added at the boundary level, you can connect boundaries, edges, and points
as long as at least one boundary is selected. Selecting edges and points is optional.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1351

 • When added at the edge level, you can connect edges and points as long as at least
one edge is selected. Selecting points is optional.
• When added at the point level, you can connect a set of points to each other.

If your selection is too small, you may introduce rigid body motions in the
model. No exact rules can be given because there are many possible
configurations where, for example, boundaries are connected to each
other or affected by other constraints. Also, you can, by providing proper
constraints for the rigid connector, suppress rigid body motions.

When the rigid connector is added at point level, a set of consistency

checks is performed. You can suppress these checks by clearing the Include
consistency checks check box in the Advanced section.

If the study step is geometrically nonlinear, the rigid connector takes finite rotations
into account.

Rigid connectors are available in the Solid Mechanics, Multibody Dynamics, Shell,
Beam, and Pipe Mechanics interfaces. Rigid connectors from different interfaces can
be attached to each other.

You can add functionality to the rigid connector through the following subnodes:

• Applied Force (Rigid Connector) to apply a force in given point.

• Applied Moment (Rigid Connector) to apply a moment.
• Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid Connector) to add extra mass and moment of
inertia in a given point.
Spring Foundation (Rigid Connector) to add a translational or rotational spring or
damper in a given point.When physics symbols are shown, a rigid connector is

1352 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

represented by a symbol at the center of rotation, together with a set of lines
connecting the center of rotation with the centers of gravity of the selected entities.

• When the rigid connector is added at the boundary level, such symbols
are shown only for the selected boundaries, but not for auxiliary
selections of edges or points.
• When the rigid connector is added at the edge level, such symbols are
shown only for the selected edges, but not for auxiliary selections of
points.
• Because of the way physics symbols are evaluated, as a lightweight
operation when moving between physics nodes in the model builder
tree, it is sometimes not possible to determine the center of rotation.
In particular, if an offset is supplied, it will not be taken into account.

BOUNDARY SELECTION
This section is present when the Rigid Connector node has been added at the boundary
level. Select one or more boundaries to be part of the rigid region.

EDGE SELECTION
This section is present when the Rigid Connector node has been added at the boundary
or edge level.

• When the Rigid Connector is added at the edge level, select one or more edges that
form part of the rigid region.
• When the Rigid Connector is added at the boundary level, this section is initially
collapsed. Here, you can add optional edges to the rigid region. The edges cannot
be adjacent to the selected boundaries.

POINT SELECTION
This section is always present.

• When the Rigid Connector is added at the point level, select a number of points that
form the rigid region.
• When the Rigid Connector is added at the boundary or edge levels, this section is
initially collapsed. Here, you can add optional points to the rigid region. The points
cannot be adjacent to the selected boundaries or edges.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1353

 COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION
The Global coordinate system is selected by default. The Coordinate system list contains
all applicable coordinate systems in the model. Prescribed displacements or rotations
are specified along the axes of this coordinate system. It is also used for defining the
axis directions of the moment of inertia tensor of the Mass and Moment of Inertia
subnode.

In order to be applicable, a coordinate system must have axis directions

that are independent of the location in space.

CENTER OF ROTATION
The center of rotation serves two purposes.

• If you prescribe the displacement of the rigid connector, this is the place where it is
fixed.
• Results are interpreted with respect to the center of rotation.

Select a Center of rotation — Automatic, Centroid of selected entities, or User defined.

• For Automatic the center of rotation is at the geometrical center of the selected
edges. The constraints are applied at the center of rotation.
• For Centroid of selected entities, a subnode for selection of the entities is added to
the Model Builder. The center of rotation is located at the centroid of the selected
entities, which do not need to be related to the selection of the rigid connector.

1354 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

 When points are selected, It is the geometrical location of the points that is used for
computing the centroid. Any offset of the shell at the points is ignored.
- When the rigid connector is added at boundary or edge level, select an Entity
level — Edge or Point.
- When the rigid connector is added at point level, the centroid can only be defined
by a point selection. As a special case, you can select a single point, and thus locate
the center of rotation at a certain point.

• For User defined, in the Global coordinates of center of rotation XC table enter
coordinates based on space dimension.

• For a rigid connector at edge level, when Centroid of selected entities is

chosen, a default Center of Rotation: Edge or Center of Rotation:
Point subnode is added, depending on the setting of Entity level.
• For a rigid connector at point level, when Centroid of selected entities
is chosen, a default Center of Rotation: Point subnode is added.
• The center of rotation is located at the centroid of the selected entities,
which do not need to be related to the rigid connector itself. As a
special case, you can select a single point, and thus use that point as
center of rotation.
• When a Center of Rotation: Point node is used for selection, any point
in the geometry can be selected, even if it is not part of the physics
interface.

Select the Offset check box to add an optional offset vector to the definition of the
center of rotation. Enter values for the offset vector Xoffset.

The center of rotation used is the sum of the vector obtained from any of the input
methods and the offset vector.

X C = X C,input + X offset

PRESCRIBED DISPLACEMENT AT CENTER OF ROTATION

To define a prescribed displacement for each spatial direction x, y, and z select one or
all of the Prescribed in x, Prescribed in x, and Prescribed in z direction check boxes. Then
enter a value or expression for the prescribed displacements u0x, u0y, or u0z.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1355

 PRESCRIBED ROTATION
Select an option from the By list — Free (the default), Constrained rotation, or
Prescribed rotation.

• For Constrained rotation select one or more of the Constrain rotation about x,
Constrain rotation about y, and Constrain rotation about z axis check boxes in order
to enforce zero rotation about the corresponding axis in the selected coordinate
system.
• For Prescribed rotation enter an Axis of rotation  and an Angle of rotation  0 . The
axis of rotation is given in the selected coordinate system.

RELEASED DEGREES OF FREEDOM

In some cases it can be useful to not constrain the displacement in a certain direction.
For instance, the radial displacement of a Rigid Connector acting on a circular
cross-section could be allowed to be free. To do so, select a local Coordinate system for
specifying the directions in which the degree of freedom will be released. The
Coordinate system list contains only applicable coordinate systems in the model.

Select one or more of the available check boxes to release the displacement in the
corresponding axis in the selected coordinate system:

• Release displacement in x1 direction

• Release displacement in x2 direction
• For 3D components: Release displacement in x3 direction

Note that the Rigid Connector solves for global displacement degrees of freedom
(DOFs) and global rotation DOFs – unless they are explicitly prescribed. Since
releasing certain displacement field components reduces the number of equations used
to solve for the global DOFs, it may become necessary to constrain some global
displacement or rotation components to achieve static determinacy.

The section Released Degrees of Freedom is only shown if the check box Use weak
constraints for rigid-flexible connection in the section Constrain Settings is not enabled.

REACTION FORCE SETTINGS

Select Evaluate reaction forces to compute the reaction force caused by a prescribed
motion. The default is to not compute the reaction force. When selected, the
prescribed motion is implemented as a weak constraint.

Select Apply reaction only on rigid body variables to use a unidirectional constraint for
enforcing a prescribed motion. The default is that bidirectional constraints are used.

1356 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

This setting is useful in a situation where a bidirectional constraint would give an
unwanted coupling in the equations. This would happen if the prescribed value of the
motion is a variable solved for in other equations.

FORMULATION
Some contributions from a rigid connector will, under geometric nonlinearity, result
in a nonsymmetric local stiffness matrix. If all other aspects of the model are such that
the global stiffness matrix would be symmetric, then such a nonsymmetric
contribution may have a heavy impact on the total solution time and memory usage.
In such cases, it is often more efficient to use an approximative local stiffness matrix
that is symmetric.

Select Use symmetric formulation for geometric nonlinearity to force all matrix
contributions from the rigid connector and its subnodes to be symmetric.

Using an approximative stiffness matrix will in general require more

iterations. However, since the computational cost per iteration will be cut
at least by a factor of two if a symmetric matrix can be used, it is usually
more efficient to ignore a weak nonsymmetry.

In particular, if the rotation of the rigid connector per time step or

parameter increment is small, there will in general be no increase in the
number of iterations at all if this option is used.

When the global stiffness matrix is nonsymmetric for other reasons, then
there is nothing to be gained from symmetrizing the contribution from
the rigid connector.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
On the edges where the rigid connector is coupled to a flexible material, all nodes on
such an edge are constrained to move as a rigid body. As a default, these constraints
are implemented as pointwise constraints. If you want to use a weak constraint
formulation, select Use weak constraints for rigid-flexible connection.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1357

 ADVANCED
It is possible to couple rigid connectors to each other. In the Connect to list, you can
select any rigid connector defined in the Solid Mechanics or Multibody Dynamics
interfaces as being rigidly connected to the current one.

When coupling rigid connectors to each other, you must be careful not to
add conflicting settings. Typically, you should only assign constraints to
one of the connectors, and it is recommended to use a common center of
rotation. It is, however, possible to deviate from these recommendations
and create other meaningful combinations.

When the rigid connector is added at the point level, the section contains the
additional Include consistency checks check box. The check box, which is checked by
default, controls whether to perform singularity checks for the selections. If the checks
give false positives, you can turn them off by clearing the check box. This could, for
example, be necessary if a rigid connector, which in itself is singular, is connected to
another one in a way that forms a stable configuration.

When the Rigid Connector is added at the point level, select the Add rotational stiffness
for two-point selection check box to automatically suppress singularities when the
Include consistency checks check box is disabled. This check box allows to enter a
rotational stiffness, k, to stabilize the rigid connector. The rotational stiffness is only
added if less than three points are selected.

Select Group dependent variables in solver — From physics interface (default), Yes, or No,
to choose how to group the dependent variables added by the Rigid Connector feature
in the solver sequence.

• You can add a Harmonic Perturbation subnode for specifying a

harmonic variation of the values of the prescribed displacements and
rotations in a frequency domain analysis of perturbation type.
• You can activate and deactivate the rigid connector by assigning it to a
constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics
Modeling chapter.
• You can assign the value of the prescribed displacement and rotation to
a load group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

1358 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

 • Rigid Connector
• Harmonic Perturbation
• Load Cases

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Connections>Rigid Connector (Boundary)
Shell>Connections>Rigid Connector (Edge)
Shell>Points>Rigid Connector (Point)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Boundaries>Connections>Rigid Connector
Edges>Connections>Rigid Connector
Points>Shell>Rigid Connector

Thermal Expansion (Rigid Connector)

Add the Thermal Expansion subnode to prescribe a deformation of the rigid connector
caused by changes in temperature. This makes it possible to reduce stresses caused by
the rigid connector being rigid, while there are thermal deformations in the flexible
shell to which it is attached.

THERMAL EXPANSION PROPERTIES

Specify the thermal properties that define the thermal strain in the rigid connector.

Select Inherit from boundary to take the thermal expansion data from the boundary to
which it is attached. This should only be used when:

• The temperature and the thermal expansion coefficient do not have a spatial
variation.
• The virtual material in the rigid connector has the same thermal expansion as the
domain itself.

When Inherit from boundary is not selected, enter:

• A value or expression for the Volume reference temperature Tref that is the
temperature at which there are no thermal displacements in the rigid connector.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1359

 • A value or expression for Temperature T, specifying the temperature distribution of
the rigid connector. Any spatial variation must be an explicit function of the material
frame coordinates. It is not possible to use a computed temperature distribution.
• Select the Input type — Secant coefficient of thermal expansion, Tangent coefficient of
thermal expansion, or Thermal strain to specify how the thermal strain is entered. The
default values From material are used. This requires that a material has been assigned
to the boundaries of the rigid connector selection. When a nonisotropic coefficient
of thermal expansion is used, the axis orientations are given by the coordinate
system selected in the Coordinate System Selection section.

• Thermal Expansion Properties.

• Constraints and Thermal Expansion in the Structural Mechanics
Modeling chapter.
• Thermal Expansion of Constraints in the Structural Mechanics Theory
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Rigid connector>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Rigid connector node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Attachment
The Attachment node is used to define a set of edges on a flexible shell which can be
used to connect it with other components through a joint in the Multibody Dynamics
interface. All the selected edges behave as if they were connected by a common rigid
body.

Attachments can be added to boundaries in a Multibody Dynamics or a Solid

Mechanics interface, to edges in a Shell or Layered Shell interface, or to points in a

1360 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

Beam interface. This makes it possible to use a joint in the Multibody Dynamics
interface for connecting parts modeled in different physics interfaces.

All other settings for the Attachment node are described in the
documentation for Attachment in the Solid Mechanics interface.

The use of attachments is discussed in the Attachments section in the

Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Connections>Attachment

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shell selected:

Edges>Connections>Attachment

Thermal Expansion (Attachment)

Add the Thermal Expansion subnode to prescribe a deformation of the attachment
caused by changes in temperature. This makes it possible to reduce stresses caused by
the attachment being rigid, while there are thermal deformations in the flexible shell
to which it is attached.

THERMAL EXPANSION PROPERTIES

Specify the thermal properties that define the thermal strain in the attachment.

Select Inherit from boundary to take the thermal expansion data from the boundary to
which it is attached. This should only be used when:

• The temperature and the thermal expansion coefficient do not have a spatial
variation.
• The virtual material in the attachment has the same thermal expansion as the
boundary itself.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1361

 When Inherit from boundary is not selected, enter:

• A value or expression for the Volume reference Temperature Tref which is the
temperature at which there are no thermal displacements in the attachment
• A value or expression for Temperature T, specifying the temperature distribution of
the attachment. Any spatial variation must be an explicit function of the material
frame coordinates. It is not possible to use a computed temperature distribution.
• Select the Input type — Secant coefficient of thermal expansion, Tangent coefficient of
thermal expansion, or Thermal strain to specify how the thermal strain is entered. The
default values From material are used. This requires that a material has been assigned
to the boundaries of the attachment selection. When a nonisotropic coefficient of
thermal expansion is used, the axis orientations are given by the coordinate system
selected in the Coordinate System Selection section.

• Thermal Expansion Properties.

• Constraints and Thermal Expansion in the Structural Mechanics
Modeling chapter.
• Thermal Expansion of Constraints in the Structural Mechanics Theory
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Attachment>Thermal Expansion
Multibody Dynamics>Attachment>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Attachment node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Phase
You can add a Phase subnode to nodes which define a load in order to prescribe the
phase angle in a frequency domain analysis.

1362 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

For modeling the frequency response, the physics interface splits the harmonic load
into two parameters:

• The amplitude, F, which is specified in the node for the load.

• The phase (  ), which is specified in the Phase subnode.

Together these define a harmonic load, for which the amplitude and phase shift can
vary with the excitation frequency, f:

F freq = F  f   cos  2ft +  

PHASE
Add the phase angle Fph for harmonic loads. Enter the phase for each component of
the load in the corresponding fields.

MOMENT LOAD PHASE

Add the phase for the moment load Mph for harmonic loads. Enter the phase for each
component of the moment load in the corresponding fields.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Body Load>Phase
Shell>Face Load>Phase
Shell>Edge Load>Phase
Shell>Point Load>Phase
Shell>Rigid Connector>Applied Force>Phase
Shell>Rigid Connector>Applied Moment>Phase

Ribbon
Physics tab with Body Load, Face Load, Edge Load, Point Load, Applied Force, or Applied
Moment selected:

Attributes>Phase

Harmonic Perturbation
Use the Harmonic Perturbation subnode to specify the harmonic part of nonzero
prescribed displacements. This node is used if the study step is frequency response of
a perturbation type.

THE SHELL AND PLATE INTERFACES | 1363

 The settings are the same as in the parent Prescribed Displacement/Rotation,
Prescribed Velocity, Prescribed Acceleration, or Rigid Connector node. Only degrees
of freedom selected as prescribed in the parent node can be assigned a value.

See Harmonic Perturbation in the Structural Mechanics Modeling

chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Shell>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation>Harmonic Perturbation
Shell>Prescribed Velocity>Harmonic Perturbation
Shell>Prescribed Acceleration>Harmonic Perturbation
Shell>Rigid Connector>Harmonic Perturbation
Plate>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation>Harmonic Perturbation
Plate>Prescribed Velocity>Harmonic Perturbation
Plate>Prescribed Acceleration>Harmonic Perturbation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Prescribed Displacement/Rotation, Prescribed Velocity, Prescribed
Acceleration, or Rigid Connector node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Harmonic Perturbation

1364 | CHAPTER 5: SHELL AND PLATE

 6

Layered Shell

This chapter describes the Layered Shell interface, which is found under the
Structural Mechanics branch ( ) when adding a physics interface.

In this chapter:

• Theory for the Layered Shell Interface

• The Layered Shell Interface

1365
 Theory for the Layered Shell
Interface
The theory for the Layered Shell interface is discussed in this section:

• About Layered Shells

• Theory Background for the Layered Shell Interface

About Layered Shells

A layered shell, also known as a composite laminate, is a thin-walled structure in 3D
having many layers of different orthotropic (or optionally isotropic/anisotropic)
material stacked on top of each other. A layered shell can be active either on free
surfaces embedded in 3D or on the boundary of a solid object in 3D. In the latter case,
it can be used to model a reinforcement on the surface of a solid object.

Figure 6-1: Geometry of a doubly curved laminated shell.

Figure 6-1 shows the uniform thickness doubly curved laminated shell having an
1 2
orthogonal curvilinear coordinate system (      ) and a total thickness (d).

A typical stacking sequence of a composite laminate having n layers is shown in

Figure 6-2. The thickness of each layer (dk), as well as the fiber direction in each layer
(k) with respect to first principal direction (1) of the laminate are indicated. A

1366 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

counterclockwise rotation of the fiber direction with respect to the () direction is
considered as positive.

Figure 6-2: A typical stacking sequence of a composite laminate showing thickness and
fiber orientation in each layer.

For a general description of this section, see About Laminated Composite

Shells in the documentation for the Composite Materials Module.

In COMSOL Multiphysics, layered shells can be analyzed either by the layerwise

theory using the Layered Shell interface, or by the first order shear deformation theory
(ESL-FSDT) theory using the Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Shell interface. The
layerwise theory of modeling a layered shell is discussed in the next section.

The first order shear deformation theory (ESL-FSDT) of modeling a

layered shell is described in Theory for FSDT Laminated Shell.

Theory Background for the Layered Shell Interface

The Layered Shell interface is based on the layerwise theory of modeling a composite
laminate. A layerwise (LW) theory is very similar to the traditional 3D elasticity theory
where the degrees of freedom are only the displacement fields defined in the product

THEORY FOR THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1367

 geometry. The product geometry, or a domain, is defined by the reference geometric
surfaces and a virtual extra dimension in the thickness direction.

The key features of the layerwise theory and a comparison with ESL
theory and 3D elasticity theory are described in Laminated Shell Theories
in the documentation for the Composite Materials Module.

This section covers the following topics:

• Physics Interface Selection

• Governing Equations
• Gradient Definition
• Area Scale Factor
• Integration
• Discretization
• Layer Materials, Thicknesses, and Orientations
• Offset and Local Coordinate System
• Transform and Scale
• Fold-Line Connection
• Layered Shell Continuity
• Using the Extra Dimension Coordinates
• Results Evaluation in Layered Shells

PHYSICS INTERFACE SELECTION

A Layered Shell physics interface is defined using a surface (2D) geometry and an extra
dimension (1D) geometry in the through-thickness (or normal) direction. The surface
geometry is a physical geometry and supposed to be created in the model whereas the
extra dimension geometry is a virtual geometry created by Layered Material and similar
nodes.

The geometric surface (or its lower dimension) selection, together with layer (or
interface) selection creates the product geometry for the governing equations and
boundary conditions of the Layered Shell interface.

The Layered Shell interface itself exists on a domain level which is a product geometry
created using selected geometric surfaces and material layers. The physics features can

1368 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

exist on domain level or its lower dimensions. Based on whether a physics feature exists
on a layer or an interface, the physics features can be divided into two categories:

• Layer features (having boundary, edge, or point selection)

• Interface features (having boundary, edge, or point selection)

Layer features may or may not allow a layer selection. When a layer selection is not
allowed, the layer feature is applied to all layers.

Interface features, may allow only exterior interfaces, interior interfaces, or

alternatively all interfaces of a laminate.

• For a general description of layer selections, see Layer and Interface

Selections in the documentation for the Composite Materials Module.
• For a general description of layered materials, see Layered Materials in
the documentation for the Composite Materials Module.

GOVERNING EQUATIONS
The dependent variable in the Layered Shell interface is the displacement field. The
dependent variable is available in the product geometry.

The governing differential equations, constitutive relations, the definition of

deformation, stresses, strains are same as in the 3D elasticity theory as described for the
Solid Mechanics interface.

See Solid Mechanics Theory for more details.

GRADIENT DEFINITION
In the analysis of deformations in 3D, the deformation gradient F is defined as

x
F = ------- = u + I
X

An equivalent definition of a deformation gradient in a product geometry of a layered

shell can be written as

x du T
F = ------- = Tu + -------- n + I (6-1)
X dz

THEORY FOR THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1369

 where

•  T is the tangential gradient operator

• z is the extra dimension thickness coordinate (varies between 0 and d)
• n is the positive normal direction

Equation 6-1 is exact for flat laminates. For curved laminates, the deformation
gradient expression must account for the surface area of each layer. The deformation
gradient in a product geometry of a curved layered shell can be written as

x X –1
F = ------- =  Tu + -------- n + I   ---------
du T
X  dz   X r

X-
= I +  z + ---  – 1 + z off  Tn
d
--------
X r 2

where

• Xr are the reference surface coordinates

• zoff is the relative midplane offset
• d is the laminate thickness

In some applications, it is required to model variable thickness layers. This is achieved

by scaling the constant thickness of the layer (d_layer) using a thickness scale factor
(lsc), which could be a function of surface coordinates. The deformation gradient in a
scaled product geometry of a curved layered shell can be written as

x X –1
F = ------- =  Tu + ------- -------- n + I   ---------
1 du T
X  lsc dz   X r

X d
--------- = I + T  z s + -----s  – 1 + z off  n
X r  2  

where

• zs is the scaled extra dimension thickness coordinate (varies between 0 and ds)
• ds is the scaled laminate thickness

1370 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

AREA SCALE FACTOR
For a curved laminate, the change in surface area of each layer should be accounted for
while integrating the energy expressions. The area scale factor (ASF) for each layer of
the laminate can be defined as:

X-
ASF = --------
X r

Length Scale Factor

For conditions applied to edges, a similar length scale factor (LSF) is required. It is
formally defined as

r r
1
t+ 2t
 
LSF = -------------------------------------------
r R r R
1
t+ 2 t
 

where t is the tangent to the edge. For an internal edge, it is possible that there is a
discontinuity in thickness or offset. In such a case, the line scale factor will be an
average. Edge conditions are not well defined in such situations because the position
of the midsurface can be discontinuous. In practice, errors caused by such effects are
small.

The LSF variable is computed from the principal curvatures, see

Curvature Variables in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

INTEGRATION
All volume integrals over a layered shell element are split into a surface integration and
a through-thickness integration. Both integrations are performed numerically. The
surface geometry is used for surface integration and the extra dimension geometry is
used for the through-thickness integration. It is thus possible to enter data which
explicitly depends on the thickness direction.

Unlike a single layer shell, where all material properties are evaluated at the reference
surface, different material and fiber orientation can be specified in each layer of the
composite laminate. Formally this can be written as:

THEORY FOR THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1371

 n
k + 1
    
1 2 1 2 1 2
f        dV = f 1     f 2    d dA = f 1     f 2    dA
A
k
V Ak = 1

As discussed in the previous section, an area scale factor is included for curved
laminates since the layers have different surface area. This is independent of whether
an offset is used or not, but the offset affects the scale factor.

The layer thickness scale factor (lsc) is also accounted in the integrations when variable
thickness layers are present in the model.

DISCRETIZATION
The Layered Shell interface can use different shape orders for the displacement field in
the reference surface and in the through-thickness direction. The shape orders used
can be divided into categories:

• Same shape order in the reference surface and in the extra dimension (Figure 6-3
and Figure 6-4)
• Different shape orders in the reference surface and in the extra dimension
(Figure 6-5)

Based on the above two categories, 9 different elements are available:

• Linear (8 nodes)
• Quadratic Lagrange (27 nodes)
• Quadratic Serendipity (24 nodes)
• Cubic Lagrange (64 nodes)
• Cubic Serendipity (48 nodes)
• Quadratic-Linear Lagrange (18 nodes)
• Quadratic-Linear Serendipity (16 nodes)
• Quadratic-Cubic Lagrange (36 nodes)
• Quadratic-Cubic Serendipity (32 nodes)

1372 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

 Linear (8 nodes)

Figure 6-3: Element having linear shape order.

Quadratic Lagrange (27 nodes) Quadratic Serendipity (24 nodes)

Cubic Lagrange (64 nodes) Cubic Serendipity (48 nodes)

Figure 6-4: Elements having quadratic and cubic shape orders.

THEORY FOR THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1373

 Quadratic-Linear Lagrange (18 nodes) Quadratic-Linear Serendipity (16 nodes)

Quadratic-Cubic Lagrange (36 nodes) Quadratic-Cubic Serendipity (32 nodes)

Figure 6-5: Elements having different shape orders on the reference surface and in the
through-thickness direction.

LAYER MATERIALS, THICKNESSES, AND ORIENTATIONS

A layered shell can have many layers with following different properties in each layer:

• Material (isotropic, orthotropic, or anisotropic)

• Thickness
• Orientation
• Mesh elements in the through-thickness direction

For a general description of layered materials, see Layered Materials in the

documentation for the Composite Materials Module.

1374 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

OFFSET AND LOCAL COORDINATE SYSTEM
The position of the reference surface with respect to midplane of the laminate and the
local coordinate system in which material properties and results are interpreted can be
defined in Layered Material and similar nodes.

For a general description of layered materials, see Layered Materials in the

documentation for the Composite Materials Module.

TRANSFORM AND SCALE

The transform functionality can be optionally used to simplify the definition of
stacking sequence. Various transform options available are symmetric, antisymmetric,
and repeated.

The scale functionality can be optionally used to model a variable thickness layer. The
scale defined for each layer, which could be a function of reference geometry, is
multiplied to the constant layer thickness essentially making it a variable thickness layer.

The transform and scale options can be defined in Layered Material and similar nodes.

For a general description of layered materials, see Layered Materials in the

documentation for the Composite Materials Module.

FOLD-LINE CONNECTION
When two or more layered shell surfaces meet at an angle, the displacement field
cannot be same on the side faces of all the layered shell surfaces. Thus, a slit condition
is needed on the common edges and a connection needs to be established between the
displacement field of different layered shell surfaces sharing an edge.

This is automatically handled by the program. The automatic search for these fold lines
compares the normals of all the layered shell surfaces sharing an edge. If the angle
between the normals is larger than a certain angle (default 3°) it is considered as a fold
line.

In order to connect the displacement field of different shell surfaces meeting at a fold
line, the following two conditions are needed:

• The displacement at the reference surface position should be continuous. This can
be written as
u bj = u bk

THEORY FOR THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1375

 where ub is the displacement vector at the reference surface location in the
through-thickness direction.

• The angle between the shell normals remains constant. This can be written as

n j  n k = u rj  u rk

u r =  z + ---  – 1 + z off  n + u – u b
d
 2 

where ur is the displacement vector in the through-thickness direction relative to the

displacement vector at the reference surface location.

LAYERED SHELL CONTINUITY

Different layered materials have their own virtual extra dimension geometry and that
is why, by default, two layered materials sharing a common edge in the geometry do
not have a continuous displacement field. Thus, when two layered shell surfaces having
different layered materials meet side-by-side, a displacement continuity needs to be
established in the through-thickness direction on the common edge.

For an example, a layered material having 3 layers shares a common edge with another
layered material having 2 layers. For that case, some of the ways you can connect the
two layered materials in the through-thickness direction are as follows:

• Connecting the first and third layer of the left layered material to both the layers of
the right layered material. This type of connection is typically used in a ply dropping
scenario.

1376 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

• Connecting the geometrically common area of both the layered materials in
through-thickness direction.

• Connecting the first two layers of the left layered material to both the layers of the
right layered material.

THEORY FOR THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1377

 Note that continuity between different layered materials meeting side by
side is correctly established for surfaces having the same normal direction
at the common edge.

In case the two layered materials have normal orientation in opposite

directions, you may want to switch the Connection type from Straight to
Twisted in the Connection Settings section of the Continuity node in order
to connect points in extra dimension which are geometrically close to
each other.

Using the continuity condition when the two surfaces meet at an angle
may give rise to the stress concentration near the common edge, as well
as a locking of the global rotation of the layered shell surfaces.

USING THE EXTRA DIMENSION COORDINATES

Sometimes, you want to write expressions that are functions of the coordinates in the
thickness direction of the layered shell. If you write expressions based on the usual
coordinates, like X, Y, and Z, such an expression will be evaluated on the reference
surface (the meshed boundaries). In addition to this, you can access locations in the
through-thickness direction by making explicit or implicit use of the coordinates in the
extra dimension.

The extra dimension coordinate has a name like x_llmat1_xdim. The middle part of
the coordinate name is derived from the tag of the layered material definition where it
is created; in this example a Layered Material Link.

You can also access the extra dimension coordinate as wrapped into a physics interface
variable, like lshell.xd (varies from 0 to the total laminate thickness d) and
lshell.xd_rel (varies from 0 to 1).

Finally, the coordinates in 3D space are available using the physics scoped variables
lshell.X, lshell.Y, and lshell.Z. These coordinates vary also in the thickness
direction of the layered shell.

You can also write expressions that explicitly contain the number of the layer, available
in the variable lshell.num. The number of the bottommost layer is ‘1’.

1378 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

RESULTS EVALUATION IN LAYERED SHELLS
For visualization and results evaluation, predefined variables include all nonzero stress
and strain tensor components, principal stresses and principal strains, in-plane and
out-of-plane forces, moments, and von Mises and Tresca equivalent stresses.

Stresses and strains are available in the global coordinate system, laminate coordinate
system, as well as in the layer local coordinate system.

Layered Material Slice Plot

It is possible to evaluate the stress and strain tensor components and equivalent stresses
in each layer of a laminate using Layered Material Slice plot.

The through-thickness location can be set to evaluate a quantity in the middle of a

layer, at an interface between two layers, top or bottom of a laminate, and so on. The
top, bottom, and the middle of a laminate can be defined as:

• Bottom of a laminate: 1 (relative) and 0 (physical)

• Middle of a laminate: (relative) and d/2 (physical)
• Top of a laminate: 1 (relative) and d (physical)

The default value for the through-thickness location is given in the Default
through-thickness result location section of the Layered Shell interface.

Through Thickness Plot

The through-thickness variation of a quantity at one or more locations on the reference
surface can be plotted using a Through Thickness plot. In this plot, the reference surface
locations can be specified through following ways:

• By selecting one or more geometric points

• By specifying the coordinate of one or more points
• By creating a cut point dataset

Layered Material Dataset

The Layered Material dataset allows the display of results in 3D solid even though the
equations are solved on a 2D surface.

Using this dataset, results can either be visualized on a 3D object or on slices created
in the through-thickness direction of a 3D object. The following options are available
in the dataset to create slices in the through-thickness direction:

• Mesh nodes

THEORY FOR THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1379

 • Interfaces
• Layer midplanes

Sometimes, when a laminate is very thin, it becomes difficult to distinguish between a

surface or a solid object. In such cases it is possible to scale the through-thickness
direction in the dataset for better visualization.

1380 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

The Layered Shell Interface
The Layered Shell (lshell) interface ( ), found under the Structural Mechanics
branch ( ) when adding a physics interface, is used to model layered structural shells
on 3D boundaries. Shells are thin flat or curved structures, having significant bending
stiffness.

The Layered Shell interface is applicable for thick and moderately thin shells. The
formulation resembles that of a stack of fully 3D solid mechanics models, so all stress
components, including interlaminar shear stresses can be resolved. For very thin shells
this formulation tends to become numerically ill-behaved, and it is then better to use
the Shell interface with the Layered Linear Elastic Material model.

The Linear Elastic Material is the default material model. With the Nonlinear
Structural Materials Module, the physics interface is extended with more material
models, like hyperelasticity, plasticity, creep, and viscoplasticity.

When this interface is added, these default nodes are also added to the Model Builder
— Linear Elastic Material, Free (a boundary condition where edges are free, with no
loads or constraints), and Initial Values. Then, from the Physics toolbar, add other
nodes that implement, for example, boundary conditions. You can also right-click
Layered Shell to select physics features from the context menu.

The Layered Shell interface is only available with the Composite Materials Module (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

SETTINGS
The Label is the default physics interface name.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the physics
interface. Refer to such physics interface variables in expressions using the pattern
<name>.<variable_name>. In order to distinguish between variables belonging to
different physics interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and
underscores (_) are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first physics interface in the model) is lshell.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1381

 SHELL PROPERTIES
Here you select on which layers in a layered material that the physics interface should
be active. By default, the Use all layers check box is selected. This means that all layers
in all layered materials on the selected boundaries are used.

If you deselect the Use all layers check box, you can select individual layers within a
single layered material. This is a seldom used option, since it means that the physics
interface is restricted to the boundaries on which a specific layered material is defined.

For a general description of layer selections, see The Shell Properties and
Interface Selection Sections.

STRUCTURAL TRANSIENT BEHAVIOR

From the Structural transient behavior list, select Include inertial terms (the default) or
Quasistatic. Use Quasistatic to treat the dynamic behavior as quasistatic (with no mass
effects; that is, no second-order time derivatives). Selecting this option gives a more
efficient solution for problems where the variation in time is slow when compared to
the natural frequencies of the system. The default solver for the time stepping is
changed from Generalized alpha to BDF when Quasistatic is selected.

For problems with creep, and sometimes viscoelasticity, the problem can be considered
as quasistatic. This is also the case when the time dependence exists only in some other
physics, like a transient heat transfer problem causing thermal strains.

FOLD-LINE SETTINGS
A fold-line is an edge where the boundaries that meet do not have a continuous
orientation of the normal vector. Along fold lines, the degrees of freedom are in
general not continuous, but rather connected by a set of constraints.

Select a Constraint type — Full or Simplified. The full fold-line constraint formulation is
accurate, consistent with the degrees of freedom, and does not produce any stress
singularities near the fold-lines. However, it is computationally expensive, and leads to
a nonlinear problem, even in an otherwise linear model. On the other hand, the
simplified fold-line constraint formulation assumes that thin shell kinematics can be
used. It is computationally more efficient, does not force the problem to be nonlinear,
and works very well for thin or moderately thick shells.

The fold-line limit angle  is the smallest angle between the normals of two boundaries
that makes their intersection to be treated as a fold line. The normal to the layered shell
is discontinuous along a fold-line. Enter a value or expression in the  field. The default

1382 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

value is 0.05 radians (approximately 3°). The value must be larger than 0, and less than
/2, but angles larger than a few degrees are not usually meaningful.

See Fold-Line Connection for the theory of fold line constraints in

layered shell.

DEFAULT THROUGH-THICKNESS RESULT LOCATION

Enter a number between -1 and 1 for the Local z-coordinate [-1,1] for
thickness-dependent results Z. The value can be changed from 1 (downside) to 1
(upside). The default is +1. A value of 0 means the midsurface of the layered shell. This
is the default position for stress and strain evaluation during the results analysis.

ADVANCED SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box. Normally these settings do not
need to be changed.

You can chose how to group in the solver nodes the extra ODE variables added by
some features.

Select the Rigid connectors check box to group in the solver node the variables added
by the Rigid Connector and Rigid Connector, Interface features.

Select the Attachments check box to group in the solver node the variables added by
the Attachment feature.

The selection made in the Advanced Settings section can be overridden by the settings
in the Advanced section of the Rigid Connector, Rigid Connector, Interface, or
Attachment features.

DISCRETIZATION
In the Layered Shell interface you can choose not only the order of the discretization,
but also the type of shape functions: Lagrange or serendipity. For highly distorted

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1383

 elements, Lagrange shape functions provide better accuracy than serendipity shape
functions of the same order. The serendipity shape functions will however give
significant reductions of the model size for a given mesh containing hexahedral, prism,
or quadrilateral elements. The default is to use Quadratic Lagrange shape functions for
the Displacement field.

The order of the discretization is used not only in the reference surface but also in the
thickness direction. It is possible to choose different order of discretization in the
reference surface and in the thickness direction.

See Discretization for the details on discretization order for a layered

shell.

DEPENDENT VARIABLES
The physics interface uses the global spatial components of the Displacement field u as
dependent variables. The default names for the components are (u, v, w).

Since the Layered Shell Interface uses a discretization also in the thickness direction,
the degrees of freedom are allocated not only in the plane of the shell, but also in that
direction.

You can change both the field name and the individual component names. If a new
field name coincides with the name of another displacement field, the two fields (and
the interfaces which define them) share degrees of freedom and dependent variable
component names.

A new field name must not coincide with the name of a field of another type (that is,
it must contain a displacement field), or with a component name belonging to some
other field. Component names must be unique within a model except when two
interfaces share a common field name.

• Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Layered Shell
Interface
• Theory for the Layered Shell Interface

1384 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

 • Micromechanics and Stress Analysis of a Composite Cylinder:
Application Library path Composite_Materials_Module/Tutorials/
composite_cylinder_micromechanics_and_stress_analysis
• Forced Vibration Analysis of a Composite Laminate: Application
Library path Composite_Materials_Module/Dynamics_and_Vibration/
forced_vibration_of_a_composite_laminate

The Shell Properties and Interface Selection Sections

The physics features can be of two, fundamentally different, types: Those who act on
the layers themselves, and those who act on the interfaces between layers. The settings
for these two types of features are slightly different.

THE SHELL PROPERTIES SECTION

Almost all layer type of physics nodes that you add in the Layered Shell interface have
a section named Shell Properties. Selections in this section interact with the standard
selections of geometrical objects (boundary, edges, or points) in order to provide a
complete specification of where a material property or boundary condition is to be
applied. The default selection is typically inherited from the selection in the physics
interface, or from a parent node.

The Use all layers check box indicates that all layers within the geometrical selection are
used as selection. Only layers that are selected in the physics interface and parent nodes
are considered, though.

When Use all layers is deselected, you will be presented a list of all applicable layups
defined by Layered Material Link, Layered Material Stack, and Single Layer Material nodes
in the component. If the parent node has Use all layers selected, all such nodes are
selectable. If not, the same selection as in the parent is the only option.

When a single layup is selected, you can usually select individual layers within it. There
are some exceptions, because for some physics features it is not meaningful not to act
on all layers.

THE INTERFACE SELECTION SECTION

Almost all interface type of physics nodes that you add in the Layered Shell interface
have a section named Interface Selection. Selections in this section interact with the
standard selections of geometrical objects (boundary, edges, or points) in order to

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1385

 provide a complete specification of where a material property or boundary condition
is to be applied.

You can only select interfaces that are adjacent to a layer selected in the parent. Some
boundary conditions also impose other restrictions for physical reasons.

The interface selection in the Apply to list also provides a number of shortcuts:

• Top interface
• Bottom interface
• Exterior interfaces
• Interior interfaces
• All interfaces

If all layers in the laminate are selected by the parent, then Exterior interfaces means
top and bottom. If not, it means all interfaces that are ‘free’ in the sense that they have
a selected layer on one side only.

If all layers in the laminate are selected by the parent, then Interior interfaces means all
interfaces except top and bottom. If not, it means all interfaces that have a selected
layer on both sides.

When All interfaces is selected, it applies to all interfaces of layers selected in the parent.

See Physics Interface Selection for more details.

For a general description of layer selections, see Layer and Interface

Selections in the documentation for the Composite Materials Module.

Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Layered Shell
Interface
The Layered Shell Interface have the following domain, boundary, edge, point, and
pair nodes available from the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics context
menu (Mac or Linux users), or right-click to access the context menu (all users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

1386 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

FEATURES AVAILABLE FROM SUBMENUS
Many features for the Layered Shell interface are added from submenus in the Physics
toolbar groups or context menu (when you right-click the node). The submenu name
is the same in both cases.

The submenus at the Boundary level are

• Material Models
• Face and Volume Loads
• Mass, Spring, and Damper
• Face and Domain Constraints

The submenus at the Edge level are

• Connections
• Mass, Spring, and Damper
• More Constraints

There is also the Points submenu.

In order to distinguish the layer features with interface features, all the interface
features are further grouped in an Interfaces menu and placed within the respective
submenu.

LINKS TO FEATURE NODE INFORMATION

These nodes are described in this section (listed in alphabetical order):

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1387

1388 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL
• Activation • Phase
• Added Mass • Piezoelectric Material
• Added Mass, Interface • Plasticity
• Adiabatic Heating • Point Load
• Antisymmetry • Predeformation
• Attachment • Prescribed Acceleration
• Body Load • Prescribed Acceleration, Interface
• Boundary Load • Prescribed Displacement
• Continuity • Prescribed Displacement, Interface
• Coupling Loss • Prescribed Velocity
• Creep • Prescribed Velocity, Interface
• Damage • Rigid Connector
• Damping • Rigid Connector, Interface
• Delamination • Rigid Material
• Dielectric Loss • Rotating Frame
• Edge Load • Rigid Motion Suppression
• External Stress • Roller
• External Strain • Roller, Interface
• Face Load • Safety
• Fixed Constraint • Set Variables
• Fixed Constraint, Interface • Spring Foundation
• Free • Spring Foundation, Interface
• Hygroscopic Swelling • Symmetry
• Hyperelastic Material • Thermal Expansion (for Constraints)
• Initial Values • Thermal Expansion (for Materials)
• Initial Stress and Strain • Thin Elastic Layer
• Linear Elastic Material • Thin Elastic Layer, Interface
• Line Load • Viscoelasticity
• Mechanical Damping • Viscoplasticity
• Mullins Effect

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1389

 If there are subsequent constraints specified on the same geometrical
entity, the last one takes precedence.

These nodes are described in the documentation for the Solid Mechanics interface:

• Thermal Expansion (Rigid • Initial Values (Rigid Material)

Connector) • Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid
• Applied Force (Rigid Connector) Connector)
• Applied Force (Rigid Material) • Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid
• Applied Moment (Rigid Connector) Material)

• Applied Moment (Rigid Material) • Prescribed Displacement/Rotation

• Base Excitation • Spring Foundation (Rigid Material)

• Contact
• Fixed Constraint (Rigid Material)
• Gravity

Harmonic Perturbation, Prestressed Analysis, and Small-Signal Analysis

in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual see Table 2-4 for links
to common sections and Table 2-5 to common feature nodes. You can
also search for information: press F1 to open the Help window or Ctrl+F1
to open the Documentation window.

Initial Values
The Initial Values node adds initial values for the displacement and velocity fields. It can
serve as an initial condition for a transient simulation or as an initial guess for a
nonlinear analysis. In addition to the default Initial Values node always present in the
interface, you can add more Initial Values nodes if needed.

1390 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the material layers to which the initial values are to be applied.
TABLE 6-1: LAYER SELECTIONS; INITIAL VALUES

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as interface selection when the Not available

node is added.
In the default material node, the setting
is always inherited from the interface
setting and cannot be changed.

• All other settings for the Initial Values node are described in the
documentation for Initial Values in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can provide material parameters with a through-thickness variation
by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra
dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Initial Values

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Layered Shell>Initial Values

Linear Elastic Material

The Linear Elastic Material node adds the equations for a linear elastic layered shell and
an interface for defining the elastic material properties. When working with layered
shells, you almost invariably take the material data from what has been defined using
Layered Material Link, Layered Material Stack, or Single Layer Material nodes. It is
however possible to override some data from a Linear Elastic Material node too.

In order to have a correct model, all layers must have been assigned material data for
all boundaries selected in the settings for the interface. The override rules for the
material models in the Layered Shell interface cannot enforce this, in the same way as

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1391

 for other physics interfaces. You can have several Linear Elastic Material nodes with the
same (or partially overlapping) geometrical selections, but with different layer
selections.

By adding the following subnodes to the Linear Elastic Material node you can
incorporate many other effects:

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials)

• Hygroscopic Swelling
• Initial Stress and Strain
• External Stress
• External Strain
• Inelastic Strain Rate
• Damping
• Viscoelasticity
• Plasticity
• Creep
• Viscoplasticity
• Activation
• Safety

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this material model is to be used.
TABLE 6-2: LAYER SELECTIONS; LINEAR ELASTIC MATERIAL

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as interface selection when the When Use all layers is not
node is added. selected.
In the default material node, the setting Only a subset of the layers
is always inherited from the interface selected in the parent can be
setting and cannot be changed. selected.

If the properties of the layers differ in the sense of the Material symmetry setting
(Isotropic, Orthotropic, or Anisotropic) you can still use a single Linear Elastic Material
node. Select the most complex of the models. Isotropic material data available in a
Material node will automatically be converted to the two other types if needed.
Similarly, orthotropic data will automatically be converted to anisotropic.

1392 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

Data given in the other sections of this node applies to all selected layers. Thus, if you
enter material data explicitly, rather relying on the default From material option, you
will override that material property for all selected layers.

• All other settings for the Linear Elastic Material node are described in
the documentation for Linear Elastic Material in the Solid Mechanics
interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can provide material parameters with a through-thickness variation
by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra
dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Material Models>Linear Elastic Material

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Material Models>Linear Elastic Material

Hyperelastic Material
The Hyperelastic Material subnode adds the equations for hyperelasticity at large strains.
Hyperelastic materials can be suitable for modeling rubber and other polymers,
biological tissue, and also for applications in acoustoelasticity.

The Nonlinear Structural Materials Module is required for this feature. For details, see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/.

When a hyperelastic material is included in your model, all studies are geometrically
nonlinear. The Include geometric nonlinearity check box in the study settings is selected
and cannot be cleared.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1393

 By adding the following subnodes to the Hyperelastic Material node you can
incorporate many other effects:

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials) • Damping

• Hygroscopic Swelling • Viscoelasticity
• External Stress • Mullins Effect
• External Strain

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this material model is to be used.
TABLE 6-3: LAYER SELECTIONS; HYPERELASTIC MATERIAL

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as interface selection when the When Use all layers is not
node is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

Data given in the other sections of this node applies to all layers. Thus, if you enter
material data explicitly, rather relying on the default From material option, you will
override that material property for all selected layers.

• All other settings for the Hyperelastic Material node are described in the
documentation for Hyperelastic Material in the Solid Mechanics
interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can provide material parameters with a through-thickness variation
by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra
dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Material Models>Hyperelastic Material

1394 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Material Models>Hyperelastic Material

Piezoelectric Material
The Piezoelectric Material node defines the piezoelectric material properties either in
stress-charge form using the elasticity matrix and the coupling matrix, or in
strain-charge form using the compliance matrix and the coupling matrix. It is normally
used together with a Layered Piezoelectric Effect multiphysics coupling node and a
corresponding Piezoelectric Layer node in the Electric Currents in Layered Shells
interface. This node is added by default to the Layered Shell interface when adding a
Piezoelectricity, Layered Shell multiphysics interface.

This material model requires one of these products: Structural Mechanics Module,
MEMS Module, or Acoustics Module.

When working with layered shells, you almost invariably take the material data from
what has been defined using Layered Material Link, Layered Material Stack, or Single
Layer Material nodes. It is however possible to override some data from a Piezoelectric
Material node too.

In order to have a correct model, all layers must have been assigned material data for
all boundaries selected in the settings for the interface. The override rules for the
material models in the Layered Shell interface cannot enforce this, in the same way as
for other physics interfaces. You can have several Piezoelectric Material nodes with the
same (or partially overlapping) geometrical selections, but with different layer
selections.

By adding the following subnodes to the Piezoelectric Material node you can
incorporate many other effects:

• Initial Stress and Strain

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials)
• Mechanical Damping
• Coupling Loss

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1395

 • Dielectric Loss

When the Piezoelectric Material node is added to the Layered Shell

interface in the absence of an active Layered Piezoelectric Effect
multiphysics coupling node, the material behaves similarly to a Linear
Elastic Material node. The elastic properties will correspond to the
elasticity or compliance matrix entered (see below). The piezoelectric
effect is then not included in the equation system.

See also Piezoelectricity in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this material model is to be used.
TABLE 6-4: LAYER SELECTIONS; PIEZOELECTRIC MATERIAL

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as interface selection when the When Use all layers is not
node is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

Data given in the other sections of this node applies to all layers. Thus, if you enter
material data explicitly, rather relying on the default From material option, you will
override that material property for all selected layers.

PIEZOELECTRIC MATERIAL PROPERTIES

Select a Constitutive relation — Stress-charge form or Strain-charge form. For each of the
following, the default uses values From material. For User defined enter other values in
the matrix or field as needed.

• For Stress-charge form, select an Elasticity matrix, Voigt notation (cE).

• For a Strain-charge form, select a Compliance matrix, Voigt notation (sE).
• Select a Coupling matrix, Voigt notation (d).
• Select a Relative permittivity (erS or erT).

1396 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

• Enter values for the Remanent electric displacement Dr.
• Select a Density (p).

For entering these matrices, use the following order (Voigt notation),
which is the common convention for piezoelectric materials: xx, yy, zz, yz,
xz, zy.

Density
If any material in the model has a temperature dependent mass density, and From
material is selected, the Volume reference temperature list will appear in the Model Input
section. As a default, the value of Tref is obtained from a Common model input. You can
also select User defined to enter a value or expression for the reference temperature
locally.

The density is for dynamic analysis, and also when computing mass forces
for gravitational or rotating frame loads.

See also

• Mass Density and Volume Reference Temperature.

• Using Common Model Input
• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

OUT-OF-PLANE MATERIAL ORIENTATION

The layered material always operates with a boundary coordinate system on the base
surface (laminate system). For such systems, the third base vector direction is always
normal to the surface. Use a special control available in this section if you need to
change the out-of-plane orientation of the material. This is essential if your
piezoelectric device requires the pole direction to be tangential to the shell, but the
pole direction in the material data coincides with the third coordinate axis - such
material orientation is assumed for all the piezoelectric material data available in
COMSOL Material Library.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1397

 GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
If a study step is geometrically nonlinear, the default behavior is to use a large strain
formulation in all domains. There are, however, some cases when the use of a small
strain formulation for a certain domain is needed. In those cases, select the
Geometrically linear formulation check box. When selected, a small strain formulation is
always used, independently of the setting in the study step. The check box is not
selected by default to conserve the properties of the model.

When a geometrically nonlinear formulation is used, the elastic deformations used for
computing the stresses can be obtained in two different ways if inelastic deformations
are present: additive decomposition and multiplicative decomposition. The default is
to use multiplicative decomposition. Select Additive strain decomposition to change to
an assumption of additivity.

ENERGY DISSIPATION
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

Select the Calculate dissipated energy check box as needed to compute the energy
dissipated by Mechanical damping.

QUADRATURE SETTINGS
Select the Reduced integration check box to reduce the integration points for the weak
contribution of the feature. Select a method for Hourglass stabilization — Automatic,
Manual, or None to use in combination with the reduced integration scheme. The
default Automatic stabilization technique is based on the shape function and shape
order of the displacement field.

Control the hourglass stabilization scheme by using the Manual option. Select Shear
stabilization (default) or Volumetric stabilization.

When Shear stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization shear modulus, Gstb, and the
shear correction factor kstb. The value for Gstb should be in the order of magnitude of
the equivalent shear modulus.

When Volumetric stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization bulk modulus, Kstb. The
value should be in the order of magnitude of the equivalent bulk modulus.

• Modeling Piezoelectric Problems

• Modeling Geometric Nonlinearity

1398 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Material Models>Piezoelectric Material

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Material Models>Piezoelectric Material

Viscoelasticity
Use the Viscoelasticity subnode to add viscous stress contributions to an elastic material
model.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this viscoelastic model is to be used.
TABLE 6-5: LAYER SELECTIONS; VISCOELASTICITY

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

If the viscoelastic model differs between layers, you will need to add several
Viscoelasticity nodes with different layer selections.

If the same layer is selected in two Viscoelasticity nodes being active on the boundary,
then there will be two viscoelastic contributions.

• All other settings for the Viscoelasticity node are described in the
documentation for Viscoelasticity in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can provide material parameters with a through-thickness variation
by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra
dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1399

 LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Viscoelasticity
Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>Viscoelasticity

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material or Hyperelastic Material node selected in the
model tree:

Attributes>Viscoelasticity

Mullins Effect
Use the Mullins effect subnode to define the properties for modeling the
stress-softening phenomenon under cyclic loading. The Mullins effect can be used
together with Hyperelastic Material.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this Mullins effect model is to be used.
TABLE 6-6: LAYER SELECTIONS; MULLINS EFFECT

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

If the Mullins effect model differs between layers, you will need to add several Mullins
Effect nodes with different layer selections. If there are two Mullins Effect nodes where

1400 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

the same layer is selected on the same boundary, the latter will be overridden on the
common selections.

• All other settings for the Mullins Effect node are described in the
documentation for Mullins Effect in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can provide material parameters with a through-thickness variation
by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra
dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>Mullins Effect

Ribbon
Physics tab with Hyperelastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Mullins Effect

Plasticity
Use the Plasticity subnode to define the properties for modeling elastoplastic materials.
This material model can be used together with the Linear Elastic Material and
Hyperelastic Material.

The Nonlinear Structural Materials Module is required for this feature. For details, see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1401

 SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this plasticity model is to be used.
TABLE 6-7: LAYER SELECTIONS; PLASTICITY

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

If the plasticity model differs between layers, you will need to add several Plasticity
nodes with different layer selections. If the model is the same, and only the material
data values differ, you can use a single Plasticity node where From material is used to
define the values. The data for each layer is then received from global Layered Material
nodes.

If there are two Plasticity nodes where the same layer is selected on the same boundary,
the latter will be overridden on the common selections

• All other settings for the Plasticity node are described in the
documentation for Plasticity in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can provide material parameters with a through-thickness variation
by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra
dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

PLASTICITY MODEL
Use this section to define the plastic properties of the material.

Plasticity Model
Select Small strains or Large strains to apply either an additive or multiplicative
decomposition between elastic and plastic strains.

• When using plasticity together with a hyperelastic material, only the option Large
strains.
The other settings are the same as described in Plasticity Model for Solid Mechanics.

1402 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity
Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>Plasticity

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Plasticity

Set Variables
Use the Set Variables subnode to Plasticity of a Linear Elastic Material or Hyperelastic
Material to reset plasticity variables according to a Setting condition that you define.
When the Setting condition is satisfied, the plasticity variables are reset to the specified
values.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which the variables are to be defined.
TABLE 6-8: LAYER SELECTIONS; SAFETY

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when When Use all layers is not selected.
the node is added. Only a subset of the layers selected
in the parent can be selected.

SET VARIABLES
Enter the Setting condition. This is a Boolean expression that will determine when the
plastic variables are reset.

From the Equivalent plastic strain list, select Do not set or User defined. The default User
defined value is zero. Depending on the type of plasticity model, set additional
plasticity variables.

• When Small plastic strains is selected in the Plasticity Model list, specify the values
for the components of the Plastic strain tensor. From the Plastic strain tensor list,
select Do not set or User defined. The default User defined values are zero for all
components of the Plastic strain tensor.
• When Large plastic strains is selected in the Plasticity Model list, specify the values
for the components of the Plastic deformation gradient inverse. From the Plastic

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1403

 deformation gradient inverse list, select Do not set or User defined. The default User
defined value is the identity tensor.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity>Set Variables
Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>Plasticity>Set Variables

Ribbon
Physics tab with Plasticity node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Set Variables

Creep
Use the Creep subnode to define the creep properties of a Linear Elastic Material.

The Nonlinear Structural Materials Module is required for this feature. For details, see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this creep model is to be used.
TABLE 6-9: LAYER SELECTIONS; CREEP

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

When the creep model differs between layers, you will need to add several Creep nodes
with different layer selections. If the model is the same, and only the material data
values differ, you can use a single Creep node where From material is used to define the
values. The data for each layer is then received from global Layered Material nodes.

1404 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

If the same layer is selected in two Creep nodes being active on the boundary, then
there will be two creep strain contributions.

• All other settings for the Creep node are described in the
documentation for Creep in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can provide material parameters with a through-thickness variation
by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra
dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Creep

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Creep

Additional Creep
Use the Additional Creep subnode to define additional contributions to the creep model
defined by the parent Creep node, such as primary or tertiary creep behavior. A Creep
node can have any number of Additional Creep subnodes with different settings to
model advanced creep mechanisms.

The Nonlinear Structural Materials Module is required for this feature. For details, see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1405

 SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this creep model is to be used.
TABLE 6-10: LAYER SELECTIONS; CREEP

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

When the creep model differs between layers, you will need to add several Additional
Creep nodes with different layer selections. If the model is the same, and only the
material data values differ, you can use a single Additional Creep node where From
material is used to define the values. The data for each layer is then received from global
Layered Material nodes.

If the same layer is selected in two Creep nodes being active on the boundary, then
there will be two creep strain contributions

• All other settings for the Additional Creep node are described in the
documentation for Additional Creep in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can provide material parameters with a through-thickness variation
by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra
dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Creep>Additional Creep

Ribbon
Physics tab with Creep node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Additional Creep

1406 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

Viscoplasticity
Use the Viscoplasticity subnode to define the viscoplastic properties of the material
model.

The Nonlinear Structural Materials Module is required for this feature. For details, see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this viscoplasticity model is to be used.
TABLE 6-11: LAYER SELECTIONS; VISCOPLASTICITY

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

When the viscoplasticity model differs between layers, you will need to add several
Viscoplasticity nodes with different layer selections. If the model is the same, and only
the material data values differ, you can use a single Viscoplasticity node where From
material is used to define the values. The data for each layer is then received from global
Layered Material nodes.

If the same layer is selected in two Viscoplasticity nodes being active on the same
boundary, the second definition will override the previous.

• All other settings for the Viscoplasticity node are described in the
documentation for Viscoplasticity in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can provide material parameters with a through-thickness variation
by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra
dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1407

 LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Viscoplasticity

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Viscoplasticity

Thermal Expansion (for Materials)

Use the Thermal Expansion subnode to add an internal thermal strain caused by changes
in temperature.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this thermal strain contribution is to be added.
TABLE 6-12: LAYER SELECTIONS; THERMAL EXPANSION

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

If the Input type differs between layers, you will need to add several Thermal Expansion
nodes with different layer selections. If only the material data values differ, you can use
a single Thermal Expansion node with From material. The data for each layer is then
received from global Layered Material nodes.

1408 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

If the same layer is selected in two Thermal Expansion nodes being active on the same
boundary, the second definition will override the previous.

• All other settings for the Thermal Expansion node are described in the
documentation for Thermal Expansion (for Materials) in the Solid
Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can provide parameters for the expansion with a through-thickness
variation by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the
extra dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Thermal Expansion
Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>Thermal Expansion
Layered Shell>Piezoelectric Material>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Hyperelastic Material, or Piezoelectric Material
node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Hygroscopic Swelling
Hygroscopic swelling is an internal strain caused by changes in moisture content. This
strain can be written as

 hs =  h M m  c mo – c mo,ref 

where h is the coefficient of hygroscopic swelling,m is the molar mass, cmo is the
moisture concentration, and cmo,ref is the strain-free reference concentration.

You can provide a concentration with a through-thickness variation by explicitly or

implicitly use expressions containing the extra dimension coordinate as described in
Using the Extra Dimension Coordinates.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1409

 SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this swelling strain contribution is to be added.
TABLE 6-13: LAYER SELECTIONS; HYGROSCOPIC SWELLING

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

If the swelling properties differ between layers, you will need to add several Hygroscopic
Swelling nodes with different layer selections. If only the material data values differ, you
can use a single Hygroscopic Swelling node with From material. The data for each layer
is then received from global Layered Material nodes.

If the same layer is selected in two Hygroscopic Swelling nodes being active on the same
boundary, the second definition will override the previous.

Hygroscopic strains are proportional to the concentration, while

structural strains are computed from the gradient of the displacement
field. It is good practice to match the discretization order of hygroscopic
and structural strains.

When adding a Hygroscopic Swelling subnode, and the concentration field

is computed by another physics interface; use a discretization one order
lower for the concentration field than what is used for the displacement
field.

• All other settings for the Hygroscopic Swelling node are described in the
documentation for Hygroscopic Swelling in the Solid Mechanics
interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can provide parameters for the swelling with a through-thickness
variation by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the
extra dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

1410 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling
Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material or Hyperelastic Material node selected in the
model tree:

Attributes>Hygroscopic Swelling

Initial Stress and Strain

You can add the Initial Stress and Strain subnode to the Linear Elastic Material, in order
to specify the stress or strain state in the structure before applying any constraint or
load. The values given are not initial values in the mathematical sense but rather a
contribution to the constitutive relation.

In many cases Initial Stress and Strain and External Stress are
interchangeable when prescribing stresses, but you can find some more
options in the latter.

For details about initial stresses and strains, see Initial Stresses and Strains.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this stress or strain contribution is to be added.
TABLE 6-14: LAYER SELECTIONS; INITIAL STRESS AND STRAIN

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

If the initial stress or strain differ between layers, you will need to add several Initial
Stress and Strain nodes with different layer selections.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1411

 If the same layer is selected in two Initial Stress and Strain nodes being active on the
same boundary, the contributions will be added.

• All other settings for the Initial Stress and Strain node are described in
the documentation for Initial Stress and Strain in the Solid Mechanics
interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can describe stress or strain values with a through-thickness
variation by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the
extra dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Initial Stress and Strain

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Initial Stress and Strain

External Stress
You can add the External Stress subnode to the Linear Elastic Material or Hyperelastic
Material in order to specify an additional stress contribution which is not part of the
constitutive relation. The external stress can be added to the total stress tensor, act as
an extra load contribution, or behave as a residual stress.

In many cases External Stress and Initial Stress and Strain are
interchangeable when prescribing stresses. In Initial Stress and Strain, the
given stress is however always added to the stress tensor, whereas the
option to use the stress as only a load contribution exists only in External
Stress.

1412 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this stress contribution is to be added.
TABLE 6-15: LAYER SELECTIONS; EXTERNAL STRESS

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

If the external stress input type differs between layers, you will need to add several
External Stress nodes with different layer selections.

If the same layer is selected in two External Stress nodes being active on the same
boundary, the contributions will be added.

• All other settings for the External Stress node are described in the
documentation for External Stress in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can describe stress values with a through-thickness variation by
explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra dimension
coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>External Stress
Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>External Stress

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material or Hyperelastic Material node selected in the
model builder tree:

Attributes>External Stress

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1413

 External Strain
The External Strain subnode allows you to provide inelastic strain contributions to the
Linear Elastic Material or Hyperelastic Material on a variety of formats.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this strain contribution is to be added.
TABLE 6-16: LAYER SELECTIONS; EXTERNAL STRAIN

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

If the external strain input type differs between layers, you will need to add several
External Strain nodes with different layer selections.

If the same layer is selected in two External Strain nodes being active on the same
boundary, the contributions will be added.

• All other settings for the External Strain node are described in the
documentation for External Strain in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can describe strain values with a through-thickness variation by
explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra dimension
coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>External Strain
Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>External Strain

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material or Hyperelastic Material node selected in the
model builder tree:

1414 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

Attributes>External Strain

Inelastic Strain Rate

The Inelastic Strain Rate subnode allows you to provide inelastic strain contributions to
the material models Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material, and Hyperelastic
Material on a variety of formats as in External Strain. Here, however, the inelastic
contribution is given as a rate, and the total inelastic contribution is computed by
integrating this rate in time.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this strain contribution is to be added.
TABLE 6-17: LAYER SELECTIONS; EXTERNAL STRAIN

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

If the inelastic strain input type differs between layers, you will need to add several
Inelastic Strain Rate nodes with different layer selections.

If the same layer is selected in two Inelastic Strain Rate nodes being active on the same
boundary, the contributions will be added.

• All other settings for the Inelastic Strain Rate node are described in the
documentation for Inelastic Strain Rate in the Solid Mechanics
interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can describe strain values with a through-thickness variation by
explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra dimension
coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension Coordinates.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1415

 LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Inelastic Strain Rate
Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>Inelastic Strain Rate

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material or Hyperelastic Material node selected in the
model builder tree:

Attributes>Inelastic Strain Rate

Damage
The Damage subnode allows you to model damage and cracking in brittle materials
according to various criteria. It is available in the Solid Mechanics, Shell and Layered
Shell interfaces, and it can be used in combination with the Linear Elastic Material.

The Nonlinear Structural Materials Module is required for this feature. For details, see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which the damage is to be computed.
TABLE 6-18: LAYER SELECTIONS; DAMAGE

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

If the damage input type differs between layers, you will need to add several Damage
nodes with different layer selections.

1416 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

If the same layer is selected in two Damage nodes being active on the same boundary,
the contributions will be overridden.

• All other settings for the Damage node are described in the
documentation for Damage in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can describe strain values with a through-thickness variation by
explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra dimension
coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension Coordinates.

See also

• Modeling Damage in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

• Damage Models in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Damage

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Damage

Activation
Use the Activation subnode to activate or deactivate layers according to an Activation
expression that you define. When the activation expression is satisfied, the material is
activated in a state of zero stress.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1417

 SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this stress contribution is to be added.
TABLE 6-19: LAYER SELECTIONS; ACTIVATION

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

If the same layer is selected in two Activation nodes being active on the same boundary,
the second definition will override the previous.

• All other settings for the Activation node are described in the
documentation for Activation in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can describe activation properties with a through-thickness
variation by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the
extra dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Activation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model builder tree:

Attributes>External Strain

1418 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

Delamination
By adding a Delamination node, you can model interfacial failure between the layers in
a laminate.

The formulation of the delamination models is essentially identical to the

decohesion model used in contact simulations. See also:

• Including Adhesion and Decohesion, and The Decohesion Node in

the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.
• Decohesion in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

INTERFACE SELECTION
Select the interface or interfaces for which this delamination model is to be added.
TABLE 6-20: INTERFACE SELECTIONS; DELAMINATION

SELECTION APPLY TO SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

INTERFACES

Boundary When added: Interior interfaces. When Selected Interfaces is

The choice All interfaces is equivalent to selected.
Interior interfaces. Only internal interfaces
between layers selected in the
physics interface can be
selected.

If the same interface is selected in two Delamination nodes being active on the same
boundary, the second definition will override the previous.

For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The interface stresses are defined as boundary tractions with respect to the selected
coordinate system. The selection is limited to boundary systems. Make sure that the
tangents of the selected boundary system are well defined.

INITIAL STATE
Select an initial state for the interface, Bonded or Delaminated. If the state is
delaminated, the effect of this node is only to act as a contact condition between the

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1419

 two delaminated layers. In this case, only the Contact section of the settings is
displayed.

ADHESION
In this section, you specify the stiffness of the adhesive layer in the normal and
tangential directions. The adhesive normal stiffness is used in tension only; in
compression the penalty factor is always used.

The default is to set Adhesive stiffness to User defined. For this setting you enter each
component of the stiffness vector kA individually.

When Adhesive stiffness is set to Use material data, the stiffness vector kA is computed
from material data and layer thickness. From the Specify list, select a pair of elastic
properties — Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio, Young’s modulus and shear modulus,
or Bulk modulus and shear modulus. For the chosen properties, select from the
applicable list to use the value From material or enter a User defined value or expression.
In order to use From material, you must have assigned a material to the selected
boundaries.

Enter a Thickness, ds, to specify the physical thickness of the adhesive layer.

DELAMINATION
Select a Cohesive zone model — Displacement-based damage or Energy-based damage to
choose the type of variable that controls the damage process.

Select a Traction separation law — Linear, Exponential, Polynomial, or Multilinear. The

definition of these differ between the two cohesive zone models, and the last option is
available only for Displacement-based damage.

For the displacement-based damage models, enter:

• Tensile strength, t. This is the peak stress in pure tension.

• Shear strength, s. This is the peak stress in pure shear.
• Tensile energy release rate, Gct. This is the energy released during the whole
delamination process in a state of pure tension.
• Shear energy release rate, Gcs. This is the energy released during the whole
delamination process in a state of pure shear.

For Multilinear separation, also enter the Shape factor, .

When the traction separation law is Linear, Exponential, or Polynomial select the Mixed
mode criterion to be either Power law or Benzeggagh-Kenane. In either case, enter the

1420 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

Mode mixity exponent . The mixed mode criterion determines how normal and shear
components are combined into a single scalar failure criterion. For the Multilinear
separation law, the mixed mode criterion is always linear (equivalent to a power law
with = 1.)

For the energy-based damage models, enter:

• Tensile damage threshold, G0t. This is the elastic energy at the onset of damage in
pure tension.
• Shear damage threshold, G0s. This is the elastic energy at the onset of damage in pure
shear.
• Tensile energy release rate, Gct. This is the energy released during the whole
delamination process in a state of pure tension.
• Shear energy release rate, Gcs. This is the energy released during the whole
delamination process in a state of pure shear.
• Mode mixity exponent, damage initiation, 0. The value determines how normal and
shear components are combined into a single scalar criterion for damage initiation.
• Mode mixity exponent, c. The value determines how normal and shear components
are combined into a single scalar failure criterion.
• Smoothening parameter, N. This parameter adjusts the shape of the of the traction
separation law. It is only available for the Exponential and Polynomial options. By
default, N = 1; a smaller value gives a smoother behavior.
In the Regularization list it is possible to add a viscous delay to the damage growth for
time-dependent studies. Do this by selecting Delayed damage and enter a value for the
Characteristic time, .

CONTACT
In this section you specify the Penalty factor used to minimize the overclosure of the
two layers during compression in the normal direction. The default is to use From
adhesive stiffness, in which case the normal component of the stiffness vector kA is
used.

When Penalty factor is set to User defined, enter the Contact pressure penalty factor pn.
The default value is <phys>.Eequ/<phys>.d_ad.

ADVANCED
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1421

 Maximum damage determines the residual stiffness of the adhesive layer after
delamination. By default, dmax = 1, which means that no residual stiffness remains.
Enter a value smaller than 1 to introduce some residual stiffness.

Select Compute damage dissipation energy to compute and store to the energy
dissipated by damage.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Material Models>Delamination

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected in the Model Builder tree:

Boundaries>Delamination

Safety
Add the Safety subnode to a Linear Elastic Material to set up variables which can be
used to check the risk of failure according to various criteria. Four different variables
describing the failure risk are defined, as described in Table 6-21

You can add any number of Safety nodes to a single material model. The contents of
this feature do not affect the analysis results as such, so you can add Safety nodes after
having performed an analysis, and just do an Update Solution in order to access to the
new variables for result evaluation.
TABLE 6-21: VARIABLES FOR SAFETY FACTOR EVALUATION

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION CRITERION CRITERION

FULFILLED VIOLATED

Failure index, FI For a linear criterion, this is the ratio FI<1 FI>1
between the computed value and the
given limit.
Damage index, DI A binary value, indicating whether DI=0 DI=1
failure is predicted or not. DI is based
on the value of FI.
Safety factor, SF For a linear criterion, this is 1/FI. SF>1 SF<1
Margin of safety, MoS SF-1 MoS>0 MoS<0

For orthotropic and anisotropic failure criteria, the directions are given by the
coordinate system selection in the parent node.

1422 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which the safety factor variables are to be defined.
TABLE 6-22: LAYER SELECTIONS; SAFETY

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

Each Safety subnode defines its own set of variables, so there is no interaction if you
add several such nodes with the same selection.

• All other settings for the Safety node are described in the
documentation for Safety in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can describe parameters for the allowable values with a
through-thickness variation by explicitly or implicitly using expressions
containing the extra dimension coordinate as described in Using the
Extra Dimension Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Variables>Safety

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model builder tree:

Attributes>Variables>Safety

Damping
Using the Damping subnode, you can add several types of damping to the material
model. Damping can be used in Time Dependent, Eigenfrequency, and Frequency
Domain studies; for other study types the settings in the Damping subnode are ignored.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1423

 SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this damping model is to be used.
TABLE 6-23: LAYER SELECTIONS; DAMPING

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

When the damping model differs between layers, you will need to add several Damping
nodes with different layer selections. If the model is the same, and only the material
data values differ, you can for most models use a single Damping node with From
material. The data for each layer is then received from global Layered Material nodes.

• All other settings for the Damping node are described in the
documentation for Damping in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can describe damping values with a through-thickness variation by
explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra dimension
coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Linear Elastic Material>Damping
Layered Shell>Hyperelastic Material>Damping

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material or Hyperelastic Material node selected in the
model tree:

Attributes>Damping

1424 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

Mechanical Damping
The Mechanical Damping subnode allows you to model mechanical losses in the
Piezoelectric Material, either using loss factor material data for the stiffness, or in the
form of Rayleigh proportional damping.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this damping model is to be used.
TABLE 6-24: LAYER SELECTIONS; MECHANICAL DAMPING

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

When the damping model differs between layers, you will need to add several
Mechanical Damping nodes with different layer selections. If the model is the same, and
only the material data values differ, you can for most models use a single Mechanical
Damping node with From material. The data for each layer is then received from global
Layered Material nodes.

• All other settings for the Mechanical Damping node are described in the
documentation for Mechanical Damping in the Solid Mechanics
interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can describe damping values with a through-thickness variation by
explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra dimension
coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Piezoelectric Material>Mechanical Damping

Ribbon
Physics tab with Piezoelectric Material node selected in the model tree:

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1425

 Attributes>Mechanical Damping

Coupling Loss
The Coupling Loss subnode allows you to model losses in the piezoelectric coupling in
a Piezoelectric Material, either by using the loss factor material data for the coupling
matrix or as Rayleigh proportional damping.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this loss model is to be used.
TABLE 6-25: LAYER SELECTIONS; COUPLING LOSS

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

When the loss model differs between layers, you will need to add several Coupling Loss
nodes with different layer selections. If the model is the same, and only the material
data values differ, you can for most models use a single Coupling Loss node with From
material. The data for each layer is then received from global Layered Material nodes.

• All other settings for the Coupling Loss node are described in the
documentation for Coupling Loss in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can describe loss values with a through-thickness variation by
explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra dimension
coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Piezoelectric Material>Coupling Loss

Ribbon
Physics tab with Piezoelectric Material node selected in the model tree:

1426 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

Attributes>Coupling Loss

Dielectric Loss
The Dielectric Loss subnode allows you to model losses in the electrical losses in a
Piezoelectric Material. The losses can be prescribed either by using a loss factor for the
electrical permittivity, or in the form of dielectric dispersion.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers for which this loss model is to be used.
TABLE 6-26: LAYER SELECTIONS; DIELECTRIC LOSS

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

When the loss model differs between layers, you will need to add several Dielectric Loss
nodes with different layer selections. If the model is the same, and only the material
data values differ, you can for most models use a single Dielectric Loss node with From
material. The data for each layer is then received from global Layered Material nodes.

• All other settings for the Dielectric Loss node are described in the
documentation for Dielectric Loss in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can describe loss values with a through-thickness variation by
explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra dimension
coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Piezoelectric Material>Dielectric Loss

Ribbon
Physics tab with Piezoelectric Material node selected in the model tree:

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1427

 Attributes>Dielectric Loss

Rigid Material
Add the Rigid Material node and select one or more boundaries to make them a rigid
body. Rigid Material is a material model, with only one material property: the mass
density. All layers through the shell thickness act together as a single rigid body, so it
is not possible to select individual layers.

By default, an Initial Values node is added (see Initial Values (Rigid Material)).

You can add functionality to the rigid domain through the following subnodes:

• Fixed Constraint (Rigid Material) to fully constrain the rigid domain.

• Prescribed Displacement/Rotation to prescribe the displacement of individual
degrees of freedom.
• Applied Force (Rigid Material) to apply a force in given point.
• Applied Moment (Rigid Material) to apply a moment.
• Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid Material) to add extra mass and moment of
inertia in a given point.
• Spring Foundation (Rigid Material) to add a translational or rotational spring or
damper in a given point.

SHELL PROPERTIES
The selection in this section only acts as a filter for the boundary selection.
TABLE 6-27: LAYER SELECTIONS; RIGID DOMAIN

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as interface selection when the No

node is added.

• All other settings for the Rigid Material node are described in the
documentation for Rigid Material in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

1428 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Material Models>Rigid Material

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Material Models>Rigid Material

Free
The Free node is the default boundary condition. It means that there are no constraints
and no loads acting on the edge. When the physics interface is added, a default Free
node is added. If you look at the selections for this node, it will show all edges which
do not have boundary conditions applied to all layers.

You can manually add Free nodes to override other boundary conditions. This is
however seldom needed.

SHELL PROPERTIES
The selection in this section only acts as a filter for the boundary selection.
TABLE 6-28: LAYER SELECTIONS; FREE

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Edge Same as interface selection when the No

node is added.

If you manually add a Free node, it will override loads and constraints on all layers from
the selected edges.

For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Free

Ribbon
Physics tab with a physics interface selected:

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1429

 Edges>Layered Shell>Free

Prescribed Displacement
The Prescribed Displacement node adds a condition where the displacements are
prescribed in one or more directions to the selected geometric entity (boundary, edge,
or point).

If a displacement is prescribed in one direction, this leaves the material free to deform
in the other directions.

To prescribe displacements on interfaces between the material layers, use Prescribed

Displacement, Interface.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers on which this constraint is to be used.
TABLE 6-29: LAYER SELECTIONS; PRESCRIBED DISPLACEMENT

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary, Same as interface selection when the When Use all layers is not
Edge, node is added. selected.
Point Only a subset of the layers
selected in the physics
interface can be selected.

If the same layer is selected in two Prescribed Displacement nodes being active on the
same boundary, the second definition will override the previous.

• All other settings for the Prescribed Displacement node are described in
the documentation for Prescribed Displacement in the Solid
Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can prescribe displacements with a through-thickness variation by
explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra dimension
coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension Coordinates.

1430 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints>Prescribed Displacement
Layered Shell>Prescribed Displacement (Edge)
Layered Shell>Points>Prescribed Displacement

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face and Domain Constraints>Prescribed Displacement

Edges>Layered Shell>Prescribed Displacement
Points>Layered Shell>Prescribed Displacement

Prescribed Displacement, Interface

The Prescribed Displacement, Interface node adds a condition where the displacements
are prescribed in one or more directions to interfaces between material layers in the
selected geometric entity (boundary, edge, or point).

If a displacement is prescribed in one direction, this leaves the material free to deform
in the other directions.

To prescribe displacements to the actual material layers, use Prescribed Displacement.

INTERFACE SELECTION
Select the interface or interfaces for which this constraint is to be added.
TABLE 6-30: INTERFACE SELECTIONS; PRESCRIBED DISPLACEMENT, INTERFACE

SELECTION APPLY TO SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

INTERFACES

Boundary When added: Exterior interfaces. When Selected Interfaces is

selected.
Only exterior interfaces can
be selected.
Edge, When added: Top interface. When Selected Interfaces is
Point selected.
Any interface can be selected.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1431

 If the same layer is selected in two Prescribed Displacement, Interface nodes being active
on the same boundary, the second definition will override the previous.

• All other settings for the Prescribed Displacement, Interface node are
described in the documentation for Prescribed Displacement in the
Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints>Interfaces>Prescribed Displacement, Interface
Layered Shell>More Constraints>Interfaces>Prescribed Displacement, Interface (Edge)
Layered Shell>Points>Interfaces>Prescribed Displacement, Interface

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Interfaces>Prescribed Displacement, Interface

Edges>Interfaces>Prescribed Displacement, Interface
Points>Interfaces>Prescribed Displacement, Interface

Prescribed Velocity
The Prescribed Velocity node adds a boundary or domain condition where the velocity
is prescribed in one or more directions. This condition is applicable for time-
dependent and frequency domain studies. It is possible to prescribe a velocity in one
direction, leaving the structure free in the other directions. The Prescribed Velocity
node is a constraint and overrides any other constraint on the same selection.

To prescribe velocities on the top or bottom surfaces of the shell, use Prescribed
Velocity, Interface.

1432 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

SHELL PROPERTIES
The selection in this section only acts as a filter for the boundary selection. The
condition is applied all through the thickness of the shell.
TABLE 6-31: LAYER SELECTIONS; PRESCRIBED VELOCITY

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary, Same as interface selection when the No

Edge node is added.

If the same layer is selected in two Prescribed Velocity nodes being active on the same
boundary, the second definition will override the previous.

• All other settings for the Prescribed Velocity node are described in the
documentation for Prescribed Velocity in the Solid Mechanics
interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can prescribe velocities with a through-thickness variation by
explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra dimension
coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints>Prescribed Velocity
Layered Shell>More Constraints>Prescribed Velocity (Edge)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face and Domain Constraints>Prescribed Velocity

Edges>More Constraints>Prescribed Velocity

Prescribed Velocity, Interface

The Prescribed Velocity, Interface node adds a boundary condition on the top or
bottom face of the shell where the velocity is prescribed in one or more directions. This
condition is applicable for time- dependent and frequency domain studies. It is possible
to prescribe a velocity in one direction, leaving the structure free in the other

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1433

 directions. The Prescribed Velocity, Interface node is a constraint and overrides any
other constraint on the same selection.

To prescribe velocities on the actual material layers, use Prescribed Velocity.

INTERFACE SELECTION
Select the interface or interfaces for which this constraint is to be added.
TABLE 6-32: INTERFACE SELECTIONS; PRESCRIBED VELOCITY, INTERFACE

SELECTION APPLY TO SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

INTERFACES

Boundary When added: Exterior interfaces. When Selected Interfaces is

selected.
Only exterior interfaces can
be selected.

If the same layer is selected in two Prescribed Velocity, Interface nodes being active on
the same boundary, the second definition will override the previous.

• All other settings for the Prescribed Velocity, Interface node are
described in the documentation for Prescribed Velocity in the Solid
Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints>Interfaces>Prescribed Velocity, Interface

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Interfaces>Prescribed Velocity, Interface

Prescribed Acceleration
The Prescribed Acceleration node adds a boundary or domain condition where the
acceleration is prescribed in one or more directions. This condition is applicable for
time- dependent and frequency domain studies. It is possible to prescribe an
acceleration in one direction, leaving the structure free in the other directions. The

1434 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

Prescribed Acceleration node is a constraint and overrides any other constraint on the
same selection.

To prescribe accelerations on the top or bottom surfaces of the shell, use Prescribed
Acceleration, Interface.

SHELL PROPERTIES
The selection in this section only acts as a filter for the boundary selection. The
condition is applied all through the thickness of the shell.
TABLE 6-33: LAYER SELECTIONS; PRESCRIBED ACCELERATION

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary, Same as interface selection when the No

Edge node is added.

If the same layer is selected in two Prescribed Acceleration nodes being active on the
same boundary, the second definition will override the previous.

• All other settings for the Prescribed Acceleration node are described in
the documentation for Prescribed Acceleration in the Solid Mechanics
interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can prescribe accelerations with a through-thickness variation by
explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra dimension
coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration
Layered Shell>More Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration (Edge)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face and Domain Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration

Edges>More Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1435

 Prescribed Acceleration, Interface
The Prescribed Acceleration, Interface node adds a boundary condition on the top or
bottom face of the shell where the acceleration is prescribed in one or more directions.
This condition is applicable for time- dependent and frequency domain studies. It is
possible to prescribe an acceleration in one direction, leaving the structure free in the
other directions. The Prescribed Acceleration, Interface node is a constraint and
overrides any other constraint on the same selection.

To prescribe accelerations on the actual material layers, use Prescribed Acceleration.

INTERFACE SELECTION
Select the interface or interfaces for which this constraint is to be added.
TABLE 6-34: INTERFACE SELECTIONS; PRESCRIBED ACCELERATION, INTERFACE

SELECTION APPLY TO SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

INTERFACES

Boundary When added: Exterior interfaces. When Selected Interfaces is

selected.
Only exterior interfaces can
be selected.

If the same layer is selected in two Prescribed Acceleration, Interface nodes being active
on the same boundary, the second definition will override the previous.

• All other settings for the Prescribed Acceleration, Interface node are
described in the documentation for Prescribed Acceleration in the
Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints>Interfaces>Prescribed Acceleration, Interface

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Interfaces>Prescribed Acceleration, Interface

1436 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

Fixed Constraint
Use the Fixed Constraint node to set all displacements on the selected geometric entity
(boundary, edge, or point) to zero.

To constrain interfaces between the material layers, use Fixed Constraint, Interface.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers on which this constraint is to be used.
TABLE 6-35: LAYER SELECTIONS; FIXED CONSTRAINT

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary, Same as interface selection when the When Use all layers is not
Edge, node is added. selected.
Point Only a subset of the layers
selected in the physics
interface can be selected.

• All other settings for the Fixed Constraint node are described in the
documentation for Fixed Constraint in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints>Fixed Constraint
Layered Shell>Fixed Constraint (Edge)
Layered Shell>Points>Fixed Constraint

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face and Domain Constraints>Fixed Constraint

Edges>Layered Shell>Fixed Constraint
Points>Layered Shell>Fixed Constraint

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1437

 Fixed Constraint, Interface
Use the Fixed Constraint, Interface to add a condition where the displacements
constrained in all directions at interfaces between material layers in the selected
geometric entity.

To constrain the actual material layers, use Fixed Constraint.

INTERFACE SELECTION
Select the interface or interfaces for which this constraint is to be added.
TABLE 6-36: INTERFACE SELECTIONS; PRESCRIBED DISPLACEMENT, INTERFACE

SELECTION APPLY TO SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

INTERFACES

Boundary When added: Exterior interfaces. When Selected Interfaces is

selected.
Only exterior interfaces can
be selected.
Edge, When added: Top interface. When Selected Interfaces is
Point selected.
Any interface can be selected.

• All other settings for the Fixed Constraint, Interface node are described
in the documentation for Fixed Constraint in the Solid Mechanics
interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints>Interfaces>Fixed Constraint, Interface
Layered Shell>More Constraints>Interfaces>Fixed Constraint, Interface (Edge)
Layered Shell>Points>Interfaces>Fixed Constraint, Interface

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Interfaces>Fixed Constraint, Interface

Edges>Interfaces>Fixed Constraint, Interface
Points>Interfaces>Fixed Constraint, Interface

1438 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

Thermal Expansion (for Constraints)
Add the Thermal Expansion subnode to a constraint (Fixed Constraint or Prescribed
Displacement, or to Fixed Constraint, Interface or Prescribed Displacement, Interface) to
prescribe a deformation of the constrained boundary caused by changes in temperature
of the surroundings. This makes it possible to reduce the stresses caused by such
boundary conditions.

SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is only present when the parent node has layer selection.
TABLE 6-37: LAYER SELECTIONS; THERMAL EXPANSION

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Same level Same as parent selection when the node When Use all layers is not
as parent is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the parent can be
selected.

INTERFACE SELECTION
This section is only present when the parent node has interface selection.

Select the interface or interfaces for which this thermal expansion is to be added.
TABLE 6-38: INTERFACE SELECTIONS; THERMAL EXPANSION

SELECTION APPLY TO SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

INTERFACES

Same level Same as parent selection when the node When Selected Interfaces is
as parent is added. selected.
Only a subset of the interfaces
selected in the parent can be
selected.

• All other settings for the Thermal Expansion node are described in the
documentation for Thermal Expansion (for Constraints) in the Solid
Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1439

 LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Fixed Constraint>Thermal Expansion
Layered Shell>Fixed Constraint, Interface>Thermal Expansion
Layered Shell>Prescribed Displacement>Thermal Expansion
Layered Shell>Prescribed Displacement, Interface>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Fixed Constraint, Fixed Constraint, Interface, Prescribed Displacement, or
Prescribed Displacement, Interface node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Roller
Use the Roller node to add a roller constraint as boundary condition on the boundaries
formed by the edge of the shell. The displacement is zero in the direction
perpendicular (normal) to the boundary, but the boundary is free to move in the
tangential direction. A Roller condition is similar to a Symmetry condition, but the
latter has more options.

To apply a roller condition on one of the faces of the shell, use Roller, Interface.

SHELL PROPERTIES
The selection in this section only acts as a filter for the boundary selection. The
constraint is applied all through the thickness of the shell.
TABLE 6-39: LAYER SELECTIONS; ROLLER

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Edge Same as interface selection when the No

node is added.

• All other settings for the Roller node are described in the
documentation for Roller in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

1440 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Roller

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Edges>Layered Shell>Roller

Roller, Interface
Use the Roller, Interface node to add a roller constraint as boundary condition to one
of the faces of the shell. The displacement is zero in the direction perpendicular
(normal) to the boundary, but the boundary is free to move in the tangential direction.

To apply a roller conditions on the boundaries formed by the edge of the shell, use
Roller.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the interface or interfaces at which the constraint is to be applied.
TABLE 6-40: INTERFACE SELECTIONS; PRESCRIBED ACCELERATION, INTERFACE

SELECTION APPLY TO SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

INTERFACES

Boundary When added: Exterior interfaces. When Selected Interfaces is

selected.
Only exterior interfaces can
be selected.

• All other settings for the Roller node are described in the
documentation for Roller in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints>Interfaces>Roller, Interface

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1441

 Boundaries>Interfaces>Roller, Interface

Symmetry
Use the Symmetry node to add a boundary condition that represents symmetry in the
geometry and in the loads. A symmetry condition is free in the plane and fixed in the
out-of-plane direction.

SHELL PROPERTIES
The selection in this section only acts as a filter for the boundary selection. The
constraint is applied all through the thickness of the shell.
TABLE 6-41: LAYER SELECTIONS; SYMMETRY

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Edge Same as interface selection when the No

node is added.

• All other settings for the Symmetry node are described in the
documentation for Symmetry in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Symmetry

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Edges>More Constraints>Symmetry

Antisymmetry
Use the Antisymmetry node adds a boundary condition for an antisymmetry boundary.
An antisymmetry condition is fixed in the plane and free in the out-of-plane direction.

When applied to an edge the antisymmetry plane is formed by the normal to the
boundary and the edge tangent.

1442 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

SHELL PROPERTIES
The selection in this section only acts as a filter for the boundary selection. The
constraint is applied all through the thickness of the shell.
TABLE 6-42: LAYER SELECTIONS; ANTISYMMETRY

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Edge Same as interface selection when the No

node is added.

• All other settings for the Antisymmetry node are described in the
documentation for Antisymmetry in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Antisymmetry

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Edges>More Constraints>Antisymmetry

Rigid Motion Suppression

The Rigid Motion Suppression node adds a minimum number of constraints required to
suppress rigid body modes. The constraints are selected so that there will be no
reaction forces if the external loads are self-equilibrating. If you need to constrain
several objects which are not physically connected, you must add as many Rigid Motion
Suppression nodes as there are disconnected objects.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1443

 SHELL PROPERTIES
As the constraints are added automatically to the geometrical selection, it is not
possible to select individual layers. The selection in this section only acts as a filter for
the boundary selection.
TABLE 6-43: LAYER SELECTIONS; RIGID MOTION SUPPRESSION

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as interface selection when the No

node is added.

All other settings for the Rigid Motion Suppression node are described in
the documentation for Rigid Motion Suppression in the Solid Mechanics
interface.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Face Constraints>Rigid Motion Suppression

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face and Domain Constraints>Rigid Motion Suppression

Body Load
Add a Body Load to boundaries for modeling general volumetric loads.

For loads caused by gravity or rotation, it is more convenient to use the Gravity,
Linearly Accelerated Frame, and Rotating Frame nodes.

1444 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers to which this load is to be applied.
TABLE 6-44: LAYER SELECTIONS; BODY LOAD

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as interface selection when the When Use all layers is not
node is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the interface can
be selected.

Contributions from several Body Load nodes having a common selection will be added
to each other.

• All other settings for the Body Load node are described in the
documentation for Body Load in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can prescribe loads with through-thickness variation by explicitly
or implicitly using expressions containing the extra dimension
coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension Coordinates.
• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Face and Volume Loads>Body Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face and Volume Loads>Body Load

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1445

 Face Load
Add a Face Load to boundaries to use it as a pressure or tangential force acting on a
surface. The loads are defined in the given coordinate system.

INTERFACE SELECTION
Select the interface or interfaces at which the load is to be applied.
TABLE 6-45: INTERFACE SELECTIONS; FACE LOAD

SELECTION APPLY TO SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL INTERFACES

Boundary When added: Exterior interfaces. When Selected Interfaces is selected.

Only exterior interfaces can be
selected.

• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

FORCE
Select a Load type — Force per unit area, Total force, or Pressure.

Select a Load type — Force per unit area, Pressure, Total force, or for 2D components,
Force per unit length. Then enter values or expressions for the components in the
matrix based on the selection and the space dimension.

• For Force per unit area, the traction components are given explicitly.
• For Total force, COMSOL Multiphysics then divides the total force by the area of
the boundaries where the load is active. Then it is applied in the same way as for a
Force per unit area. When working with curved boundaries or local coordinate
systems, use this option carefully, as the result is not always intuitive.
• For Pressure, a scalar input is given, and the orientation of the load is along the
direction of the shell boundary normal. The sign convention is such that for a
positive value of the pressure, the load acts toward the shell, when considered as a
solid object. Thus, the orientation of the load is flipped if it is moved from the top
side to the bottom side
TABLE 6-46: LOAD TYPES.

LOAD TYPE VARIABLE SI UNIT

Force per unit area FA N/m2

1446 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

TABLE 6-46: LOAD TYPES.

LOAD TYPE VARIABLE SI UNIT

Total force Ftot N

Pressure p Pa

• The pressure load is a ‘follower load’. The direction changes with

deformation in a geometrically nonlinear analysis.
• After selecting a Load type, the Load list normally only contains User
defined. When combining with another physics interface, it is also
possible to choose a predefined load from this list.
• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Face and Volume Loads>Face Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face and Volume Loads>Face Load

Rotating Frame
Centrifugal, Coriolis, and Euler forces are “fictitious” volume forces that need to be
introduced in a rotating frame of reference, since it is not an inertial system. Use a
Rotating Frame node to add the effect of these forces. The forces are generated by all
selected features in the physics interface having a density, mass, or mass distribution.
You select boundaries, and all edges and points which belong to the selection are
automatically included.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1447

 SHELL PROPERTIES
As a frame rotation always acts on the entire structure, it is not possible to select
individual layers. The selection in this section only acts as a filter for the boundary
selection.
TABLE 6-47: LAYER SELECTIONS; ROTATING FRAME

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as interface selection when the No

node is added.

• All other settings for the Rotating Frame node are described in the
documentation for Rotating Frame in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Face and Volume Loads>Rotating Frame

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face and Volume Loads>Rotating Frame

Linearly Accelerated Frame

When you add a Linearly Accelerated Frame node, inertial forces are applied to all
selected features in the physics interface with a density, mass, or mass distribution. You
select boundaries, and all edges and points which belong to the selection are
automatically included.

1448 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers to which the frame acceleration force is to be applied.
TABLE 6-48: LAYER SELECTIONS; LINEARLY ACCELERATED FRAME

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary Same as interface selection when the When Use all layers is not
node is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the interface can
be selected.

• All other settings for the Linearly Accelerated Frame node are described
in the documentation for Linearly Accelerated Frame in the Solid
Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Face and Volume Loads>Linearly Accelerated Frame

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Face and Volume Loads>Linearly Accelerated Frame

Boundary Load
Use a Boundary Load to apply forces distributed on the layers along an edge of the
layered shell. The load is defined in the given local coordinate system.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1449

 SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers to which this load is to be applied.
TABLE 6-49: LAYER SELECTIONS; BOUNDARY LOAD

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Edge Same as interface selection when the When Use all layers is not
node is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the interface can
be selected.

Contributions from several Boundary Load nodes having a common selection will be
added to each other

• All other settings for the Boundary Load node are described in the
documentation for Boundary Load in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can prescribe loads with through-thickness variation by explicitly
or implicitly using expressions containing the extra dimension
coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension Coordinates.
• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Boundary Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Edges>Layered Shell>Boundary Load

1450 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

Edge Load
Add an Edge Load as a force distributed on the interfaces between the layers along an
edge of the layered shell. The load is defined in the given local coordinate system.

INTERFACE SELECTION
Select the interface or interfaces at which the load is to be applied.
TABLE 6-50: INTERFACE SELECTIONS; EDGE LOAD

SELECTION APPLY TO SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

INTERFACES

Edge When added: Top interface. When Selected Interfaces is

selected.
Any interface can be selected.

Contributions from several Edge Load nodes having a common selection will be added
to each other

• All other settings for the Edge Load node are described in the
documentation for Edge Load in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Edge Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Edges>Layered Shell>Edge Load

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1451

 Line Load
Use a Line Load to apply forces distributed on the layers on a point the layered shell.
The load is defined in the given local coordinate system. A point represents an edge
going through the thickness of the shell.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or layers to which this load is to be applied.
TABLE 6-51: LAYER SELECTIONS; LINE LOAD

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Point Same as interface selection when the When Use all layers is not
node is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the interface can
be selected.

Contributions from several Line Load nodes having a common selection will be added
to each other

• All other settings for the Line Load node are described in the
documentation for Edge Load in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Points>Line Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

1452 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

Points>Layered Shell>Line Load

Point Load
Add an Point Load as a force on the interfaces between the layers on a point of the
layered shell. The load is defined in the given local coordinate system.

INTERFACE SELECTION
Select the interface or interfaces at which the load is to be applied.
TABLE 6-52: INTERFACE SELECTIONS; POINT LOAD

SELECTION APPLY TO SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

INTERFACES

Point When added: Top interface. When Selected Interfaces is

selected.
Any interface can be selected.

Contributions from several Point Load nodes having a common selection will be added
to each other

• All other settings for the Point Load node are described in the
documentation for Point Load in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Points>Interfaces>Point Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Points>Interfaces>Point Load

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1453

 Phase
You can add a Phase subnode to nodes which define a load in order to prescribe the
phase angle in a frequency domain analysis.

For modeling the frequency response, the physics interface splits the harmonic load
into two parameters:

• The amplitude, F, which is specified in the node for the load.

• The phase (  ), which is specified in the Phase subnode.

Together these define a harmonic load, for which the amplitude and phase shift can
vary with the excitation frequency, f:

F freq = F  f   cos  2ft +  

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layer or interfaces based on this node is added under which type of load
feature. You can select individual layers or interfaces in this node which are allowed on
the parent node.

All other settings for the Phase node are described in the documentation
for Phase in the Solid Mechanics interface.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Body Load>Phase
Layered Shell>Face Load>Phase
Layered Shell>Boundary Load>Phase
Layered Shell>Edge Load>Phase
Layered Shell>Line Load>Phase
Layered Shell>Point Load>Phase

Ribbon
Physics tab with Body Load, Face Load, Boundary Load, Edge Load, Line Load, or Point
Load node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Phase

1454 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

Spring Foundation
Use the Spring Foundation node to apply elastic and damping boundary conditions on
the material layers (on boundaries, edges, and points) of a layered shell. For applying
spring conditions on an interface, see Spring Foundation, Interface.

• When the selection is a boundary, a volumetric spring is added to the selected layers
• When the selection is an edge, a spring per area is added to the faces of the layers at
the edge.
• When the selection is a point, a spring is added to the layer edges in the
through-thickness direction for the selected layers.

By adding the Predeformation subnode, you can prescribe that the spring force is zero
at a nonzero spring extension.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the material layers to which the spring condition is to be applied.
TABLE 6-53: LAYER SELECTIONS; SPRING FOUNDATION

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary, Same as interface selection when the When Use all layers is not
Edge, node is added. selected.
Point Only a subset of the layers
selected in the physics
interface can be selected.

• All other settings for the Spring Foundation node are described in the
documentation for Spring Foundation in the Solid Mechanics
interface.
• For more information about the use of springs, see Springs and
Dampers in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.
• For a theoretical background, see Spring Foundation and Thin Elastic
Layer in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it
to a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics
Modeling chapter.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1455

 LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation (Boundary, Edge)
Layered Shell>Points>Spring Foundation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation

Edges>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Spring Foundation
Points>Layered Shell>Spring Foundation

Spring Foundation, Interface

Use the Spring Foundation, Interface node to apply elastic and damping boundary
conditions on the interfaces of material layers (on boundaries, edges, and points) of a
layered shell. For applying spring conditions on a layer, see Spring Foundation.

By adding the Predeformation subnode, you can prescribe that the spring force is zero
at a nonzero spring extension.

1456 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

INTERFACE SELECTION
Select the interface or interfaces for which this spring condition is to be added.
TABLE 6-54: INTERFACE SELECTIONS; SPRING FOUNDATION, INTERFACE

SELECTION APPLY TO SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

INTERFACES

Boundary When added: Exterior interfaces. When Selected Interfaces is

selected.
Only exterior interfaces can
be selected.
Edge, When added: Top interface. When Selected Interfaces is
Point selected.
Any interface can be selected.

• All other settings for the Spring Foundation, Interface node are described
in the documentation for Spring Foundation in the Solid Mechanics
interface.
• For more information about the use of springs, see Springs and
Dampers in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.
• For a theoretical background, see Spring Foundation and Thin Elastic
Layer in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it
to a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics
Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Interfaces>Spring Foundation, Interface
(Boundary, Edge)
Layered Shell>Points>Interfaces>Spring Foundation, Interface

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Interfaces>Spring Foundation, Interface

Edges>Interfaces>Spring Foundation, Interface

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1457

 Points>Interfaces>Spring Foundation, Interface

Thin Elastic Layer

Use the thin Elastic Layer node to apply elastic and damping boundary conditions on
the interior edges of a layered shell. Physically, this means that the spring condition is
added at the interface between two layers located in adjacent boundaries.

By adding the Predeformation subnode, you can prescribe that the spring force is zero
at a nonzero spring extension.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the material layers to which the spring condition is to be applied.
TABLE 6-55: LAYER SELECTIONS; THIN ELASTIC LAYER

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Edge Same as interface selection when the When Use all layers is not
node is added. selected.
Only a subset of the layers
selected in the physics
interface can be selected.

• All other settings for the Thin Elastic Layer node are described in the
documentation for Thin Elastic Layer in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For more information about the use of springs, see Springs and
Dampers in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.
• For a theoretical background, see Spring Foundation and Thin Elastic
Layer in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it
to a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics
Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Thin Elastic Layer (Edge)

1458 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Edges>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Thin Elastic Layer

Thin Elastic Layer, Interface

Use the thin Elastic Layer, Interface node to apply elastic and damping boundary
conditions on the interior edges of a layered shell.

By adding the Predeformation subnode, you can prescribe that the spring force is zero
at a nonzero spring extension.

INTERFACE SELECTION
Select the interface or interfaces for which this spring condition is to be added.
TABLE 6-56: INTERFACE SELECTIONS; THIN ELASTIC LAYER, INTERFACE

SELECTION APPLY TO SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

INTERFACES

Boundary When added: Interior interfaces. When Selected Interfaces is

selected.
Only interior interfaces can be
selected.

• All other settings for the Thin Elastic Layer, Interface node are described
in the documentation for Thin Elastic Layer in the Solid Mechanics
interface.
• For more information about the use of springs, see Springs and
Dampers in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.
• For a theoretical background, see Spring Foundation and Thin Elastic
Layer in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it
to a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics
Modeling chapter.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1459

 LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Interfaces>Thin Elastic Layer (Boundary)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Interfaces>Thin Elastic Layer, Interface

Predeformation
Use the Predeformation subnode to specify that the elastic forces in Spring Foundation,
Spring Foundation, Interface, Thin Elastic Layer, or Thin Elastic Layer, Interface are
nonzero at zero displacement. Thus, you can model cases where the unstressed state
of the spring is in another configuration than the one described by the geometry.

The value of the predeformation can vary during the simulation, so it should not be
interpreted as an initial value.

SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is only present when Predeformation is used as a subnode to Spring
Foundation or Thin Elastic Layer.

Select the layers for which this predeformation value is to be used. You can only select
a subset of the layers selected in the parent node.

INTERFACE SELECTION
This section is only present when Predeformation is used as a subnode to Spring
Foundation, Interface or Thin Elastic Layer, Interface.

1460 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

Select the interfaces for which this predeformation value is to be used. You can only
select a subset of the interfaces selected in the parent node.

• All other settings for the Predeformation node are described in the
documentation for Predeformation in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For more information about the use of springs, see Springs and
Dampers in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.
• For a theoretical background, see Spring Foundation and Thin Elastic
Layer in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Spring Foundation>Predeformation
Layered Shell>Spring Foundation, Interface>Predeformation
Layered Shell>Shin Elastic Layer>Predeformation
Layered Shell>Thin Elastic Layer, Interface>Predeformation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Spring Foundation, Spring Foundation, Interface, Thin Elastic Layer, or
Thin Elastic Layer, Interface node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Predeformation

Added Mass
The Added Mass node is available for boundaries, edges, and points and can be used to
supply inertia that is not part of the material itself. Such inertia does not need to be
isotropic, in the sense that the inertial effects are not the same in all directions. The
extra inertia is as a volumetric, boundary, or edge contribution to the selected material
layers.

You can also add inertia to the interfaces between the material layers by using Added
Mass, Interface.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1461

 SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the material layers to which this added mass contribution is to be applied.
TABLE 6-57: LAYER SELECTIONS; ADDED MASS

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Boundary, Same as interface selection when the When Use all layers is not
Edge, node is added. selected.
Point Only a subset of the layers
selected in the physics
interface can be selected.

• All other settings for the Added Mass node are described in the
documentation for Added Mass in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can describe added mass densities with a through-thickness
variation by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the
extra dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass (Boundary, Edge)
Layered Shell>Points>Added Mass (Point)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass

Edges>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Added Mass
Points>Layered Shell>Added Mass

Added Mass, Interface

The Added Mass, Interface node is available for boundaries and edges and can be used
to supply inertia that is not part of the material itself. Such inertia does not need to be
isotropic, in the sense that the inertial effects are not the same in all directions. The
inertia is added at the selected interfaces between the material layers.

1462 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

INTERFACE SELECTION
Select the interface or interfaces for which this added mass contribution is to be added.
TABLE 6-58: INTERFACE SELECTIONS; ADDED MASS, INTERFACE

SELECTION APPLY TO SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

INTERFACES

Boundary, When added: Top interface. When Selected Interfaces is

Edge, selected.
Point Any interface can be selected.

• All other settings for the Added Mass, Interface node are described in the
documentation for Added Mass in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can describe added mass densities with a through-thickness
variation by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the
extra dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Interfaces>Added Mass, Interface (Boundary,
Edge)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Interfaces>Added Mass, Interface

Edges>Interfaces>Added Mass, Interface

Adiabatic Heating
The Adiabatic Heating node adds the equations for adiabatic heating in layered shells
caused by abrupt changes in temperature due to fast deformation.

The increase in temperature is then defined by solving the distributed equation

ꞏ
C p T =  ah Q h

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1463

 here,  is the density, Cp is the heat capacity at constant pressure, T is the temperature
field, ah is the coefficient of adiabatic heating, and Qh corresponds to the heat sources
due to mechanical dissipative processes.

Adiabatic heating is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

If the Composite Materials Module is available, adiabatic heating can be applied to

arbitrary layers. The material properties, orientations, and layer thicknesses are defined
using Layered Material node. The offset, and local coordinate system, in which material
orientations and results are interpreted, is defined by Layered Material Link or Layered
Material Stack node.

Without the Composite Materials Module, only single layer shells and membranes can
be modeled. This is still useful, for example for some multiphysics couplings. For single
layer materials, an ordinary Material node can be used, as long you include a Shell
property group in which, for example, the thickness is given.

• For a general description about layered materials, see Layered Materials

in the documentation for the Composite Materials Module.

BOUNDARY SELECTION
It is only possible to select boundaries which are part of the selection of a layered
material defined in Layered Material Link or Layered Material Stack node.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layers in which adiabatic heating is to be modeled.
TABLE 6-59: LAYER SELECTION

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Default when added. When Use all layers is not selected.
Only a subset of the layers selected
in the parent can be selected.

If the same layer is selected in two nodes being active on the same boundary, the
contributions will be exclusive

For a general description of this section, see Layer and Interface

Selections in the documentation for the Composite Materials Module.

1464 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

INITIAL VALUES
Enter the Initial temperature Tini. The default value is 293.15 K.

THERMODYNAMICS
The density  is taken from the material model (Linear Elastic Material or Hyperelastic
Material).

The default Heat capacity at constant pressure Cp uses values From material. For
User defined, enter an expression or value. The default value for the User defined is 0 J/
(kg K).

Enter the Coefficient of adiabatic heating, ah. The default value is 1 (dimensionless),
which means that dissipative processes contribute 100% as heat sources.

Select the Dissipative heat source — Include all dissipative sources or User defined.

The Dissipative heat source list makes it possible to include specific heat sources for the
adiabatic heating. Enter a value or expression for the heat source Qh to include. For
instance, the dissipated energy density due to creep is available under the variable
shell.Wc and due to viscoplasticity under the variable shell.Wvp. Here solid
denotes the name of the physics interface node.

TIME STEPPING
The Backward Euler method is not available with the Layered Shell interface neither
with the Layered Linear Elastic Material nor the Layered Hyperelastic Material in the
Shell and Membrane interfaces.

Domain ODEs
No settings are needed for the Domain ODEs method. However, this method adds
degrees-of-freedom that are solved as part of the general solver sequence. The scaling
of this field can affect the convergence of the overall solution.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>More> Adiabatic Heating

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundary>More>Adiabatic Heating

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1465

 Rigid Connector
The Rigid Connector is a boundary condition for modeling rigid regions and kinematic
constraints such as prescribed rigid rotations. The selected shell edges will move as a
single rigid object, irrespective of whether they are geometrically adjacent or not.

To add a rigid connector to the top or bottom interface of the shell, use Rigid
Connector, Interface.

If the study step is geometrically nonlinear, the rigid connector takes finite rotations
into account. The feature is similar to the rigid connectors in the Solid Mechanics and
Beam interfaces. Rigid connectors from the Shell, Beam, and Solid Mechanics
interfaces can be attached to each other.

You can add functionality to the rigid connector through the following subnodes.

• Thermal Expansion (Rigid Connector) to include thermal expansion.

• Applied Force (Rigid Connector) to apply a force in given point.
• Applied Moment (Rigid Connector) to apply a moment.
• Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid Connector) to add extra mass and moment of
inertia in a given point.
• Spring Foundation (Rigid Connector) to add a translational or rotational spring or
damper in a given point.

SHELL PROPERTIES
As the whole edge moves as a single rigid object, it is not possible to select individual
layers. The selection in this section only acts as a filter for the boundary selection.
TABLE 6-60: LAYER SELECTIONS; RIGID CONNECTOR

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Edge Same as interface selection when the No

node is added.

All other settings for the Rigid Connector node are described in the
documentation for Rigid Connector in the Solid Mechanics interface.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Connections>Rigid Connector

1466 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Edges>Connections>Rigid Connector

Rigid Connector, Interface

The Rigid Connector is a boundary condition for modeling rigid regions and kinematic
constraints such as prescribed rigid rotations. The selected shell faces will move as a
single rigid object, irrespective of whether they are geometrically adjacent or not.

To add a rigid connector to the edge of the shell, use Rigid Connector.

If the study step is geometrically nonlinear, the rigid connector takes finite rotations
into account. The feature is similar to the rigid connectors in the Solid Mechanics and
Beam interfaces. Rigid connectors from the Shell, Beam and Solid Mechanics
interfaces can be attached to each other.

You can add functionality to the rigid connector through the following subnodes.

• Thermal Expansion (Rigid Connector) to include thermal expansion.

• Applied Force (Rigid Connector) to apply a force in given point.
• Applied Moment (Rigid Connector) to apply a moment.
• Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid Connector) to add extra mass and moment of
inertia in a given point.
• Spring Foundation (Rigid Connector) to add a translational or rotational spring or
damper in a given point.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1467

 INTERFACE SELECTION
Select the interface or interfaces for which this spring condition is to be added.
TABLE 6-61: INTERFACE SELECTIONS; RIGID CONNECTOR, INTERFACE

SELECTION APPLY TO SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

INTERFACES

Boundary When added: Exterior interfaces. When Selected Interfaces is

selected.
Only exterior interfaces can
be selected.

• All other settings for the Rigid Connector, Interface node are described
in the documentation for Rigid Connector in the Solid Mechanics
interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints, Interfaces>Rigid Connector, Interface

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Boundaries>Interfaces>Rigid Connector, Interface

Thermal Expansion (Rigid Connector)

Add the Thermal Expansion subnode to prescribe a deformation of the rigid connector
caused by changes in temperature. This makes it possible to reduce stresses caused by
the rigid connector being rigid, while there are thermal deformations in the flexible
body to which it is attached.

SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is only present when Thermal Expansion is used as a subnode to Rigid
Connector.

Select the layers for which these thermal expansion properties are to be used. You can
only select a subset of the layers selected in the parent node.

1468 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

INTERFACE SELECTION
This section is only present when Predeformation is used as a subnode to Rigid
Connector, Interface.

Select the interfaces for which these thermal expansion properties are to be used. You
can only select a subset of the interfaces selected in the parent node

• All other settings for the Thermal Expansion node are described in the
documentation for Thermal Expansion (Rigid Connector) in the Solid
Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Rigid Connector>Thermal Expansion
Layered Shell>Rigid Connector, Interface>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Rigid Connector or Rigid Connector, Interface node selected in the model
tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Attachment
The Attachment node is used to define a set of edges on a flexible layered shell which
can be used to connect it with other components through a joint in the Multibody
Dynamics interface. All the selected edges behave as if they were connected by a
common rigid body.

Attachments can be added to boundaries in a Multibody Dynamics or a Solid

Mechanics interface, to edges in a Shell or Layered Shell interface, or to points in a
Beam interface. This makes it possible to use a joint in the Multibody Dynamics
interface for connecting parts modeled in different physics interfaces.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1469

 SHELL PROPERTIES
As the whole edge moves as a single rigid object, it is not possible to select individual
layers. The selection in this section only acts as a filter for the boundary selection.
TABLE 6-62: LAYER SELECTIONS; ATTACHMENT

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Edge Same as interface selection when the No

node is added.

All other settings for the Attachment node are described in the
documentation for Attachment in the Solid Mechanics interface.

The use of attachments is discussed in the Attachments section in the

Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Connections>Attachment

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

Edges>Connections>Attachment

Thermal Expansion (Attachment)

Add the Thermal Expansion subnode to prescribe a deformation of an Attachment
caused by changes in temperature. This makes it possible to reduce stresses caused by
the attachment being rigid, while there are thermal deformations in the flexible body
to which it is attached.

SHELL PROPERTIES
If the parent node has Use all layers selected, it is possible to select only a subset. If not,
then the layer selection will be the same as in the parent. Since selection of individual

1470 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

layers is not possible in either case, this section only acts as a filter for the boundary
selection.
TABLE 6-63: LAYER SELECTIONS; THERMAL EXPANSION (ATTACHMENT)

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL

LAYERS

Edge Same as parent selection when the node No

is added.

• All other settings for the Thermal Expansion node are described in the
documentation for Thermal Expansion (Attachment) in the Solid
Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Attachment>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Attachment node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Continuity
Add a Continuity node to connect two layered shell boundaries sharing a common edge
and having different layered materials.

The continuity constraint is added on the common edge in the through-thickness

direction.

LAYER SELECTION
Select Source and Destination layered materials from all the Layered Material Link and
Layered Material Stack available in the component. All the edges are selected by default
and the common edges between the two layered materials becomes applicable
automatically. Optionally you can remove some of the edges if you do not want to
enforce the continuity on all the common edges.

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1471

 In the Source, select the Layered Materials based on what you want to use in the
continuity constraints. This option is available only when Layered Material Stack is
chosen.

In the Destination, select the Layered Materials based on what you want to use in the
continuity constraints. In addition to this, an Offset can be specified on the destination
side which decides the actual connection area between the two layered materials.

You can swap the source and destination by clicking Swap Source and Destination ( ).

In order to visualize the connection, click Layer Cross Section Preview ( ).

You can use the Clear All ( ) and Reset to Default ( ) buttons to clear or reset all
the selections as well as the offset values in two cases, respectively.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

CONNECTION SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

Choose a Connection type — Straight or Twisted.

In case the two layered materials have normal orientation in opposite directions, you
may want to switch the Connection type from Straight to Twisted in order to connect
points in through-thickness direction which are geometrically close to each other.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Layered Shell>Continuity

Ribbon
Physics tab with Layered Shell selected:

1472 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL

Edges>Continuity

THE LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1473

1474 | CHAPTER 6: LAYERED SHELL
 7

Membrane

This chapter describes the Membrane (mbrn) interface, which is found under the
Structural Mechanics branch ( ) when adding a physics interface.

In this chapter:

• Theory for the Membrane Interface

• The Membrane Interface

1475
 Theory for the Membrane Interface
The theory for the Membrane interface is described in this section:

• About Membranes
• Theory Background for the Membrane Interface

About Membranes
Membranes can be considered as plane stress elements in 3D with a possibility to
deform both in the in-plane and out-of-plane directions. The difference between a
shell and a membrane is that the membrane does not have any bending stiffness. If the
ratio between the thickness and the dimensions in the other directions becomes very
small, a membrane formulation is numerically better posed than a shell formulation.

The Membrane interface supports the same study types as the Solid Mechanics
interface except it does not include the Linear Buckling study type, but wrinkling can
be modeled instead.

To describe a membrane, provide its thickness and the material properties. All
properties can be variable over the element. All elemental quantities are integrated only
at the midsurface. This is a good approximation since by definition a membrane is thin.

The physics interface is intended to model either prestressed membranes or a thin

cladding on top of a solid.

STIFFNESS IN THE NORMAL DIRECTION

When membrane elements are used separately, not supported by other structural
elements, a prestress is necessary in order to avoid a singularity. The unstressed
membrane has no stiffness in the normal direction. It is the geometrically nonlinear
effects (stress stiffening) which supply the out-of-plane stiffness. A prestress can be
given either through initial stress and strain or through a tensile boundary load.
Prestress is not necessary in cases where inertia effects are included in a dynamic
analysis. A small prestress can, however, still be useful to stabilize the analysis in the

1476 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

initial state. In order to obtain the prestress effect, you must select Include geometric
nonlinearity in the settings for the study step.

For a detailed discussion about dynamic analysis of prestressed structures,

see Prestressed Structures.

When using membranes, also the prestress step must be geometrically

nonlinear.

If you want to explicitly prescribe the stress field for a prestressed analysis
rather than solving for it, you should not use the two study step
procedure. In such a case, prescribe the stress field using an Initial Stress
and Strain, External Stress, or External Strain node. Then add a separate
Eigenfrequency or Frequency Domain study and select Include Geometric
Nonlinearity in the settings for the study step.

MEMBRANES FOR 3D MODELS

The Membrane interface in 3D can be active on internal and external boundaries of a
domain, as well as on boundaries not adjacent to any domain.

The dependent variables are the displacements u, v, and w in the global x, y, and z
directions, and the displacement derivative unn in the direction normal to the
membrane. For anisotropic materials, the tangential displacements derivatives u1n and
u2n are additionally added as dependent variables.

MEMBRANES FOR 2D AXISYMMETRIC MODELS

The Membrane interface for 2D axisymmetric models can be active on internal and
external boundaries of a solid, as well as on edges that not adjacent to a solid.

The dependent variables are the displacements u and w in the global r and z directions,
and the displacement derivative unn in the direction normal to the membrane in the
rz-plane. For anisotropic materials, the tangential displacements derivatives u1n and
u2n are additionally added as dependent variables.

LAYERED AND NONLAYERED MEMBRANES

The Membrane interface includes several material models; Linear Elastic Material,
Layered Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material, Hyperelastic Material, and
External Stress-Strain Relation.

The fundamental difference between the Linear Elastic Material and the Layered Linear
Elastic Material is that in the Linear Elastic Material the material properties are assumed

THEORY FOR THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1477

 to be constant through the thickness. In the Layered Linear Elastic Material model, there
is a numerical integration in the thickness direction, and it is also possible to store
states, such as inelastic strains, at different through-thickness locations.

When the Composite Materials Module is available, the Layered Linear Elastic Material
model can be used to model multilayered membrane. This is the main use of this
material model. It is, however, also used for the Layered Thermal Expansion
multiphysics coupling, even if there is just a single layer.

Since membranes are thin, the actual order of the layers in a multilayered membrane is
not considered for the analysis.

For each layer, you have the option to set the resolution in the thickness direction. In
a layered material, this is the Mesh elements property in the layer definitions. When
working with a single layer material, then it is the Mesh elements property in the Shell
property group. For membrane analysis, you can set this value to ‘1’ since in-layer
variations are not part of the theory.

Theory Background for the Membrane Interface

A 3D membrane is similar to a shell but it has only translational degrees of freedom
and the results are constant in the thickness direction.

The thickness of the membrane is d, which can vary over the element. The
displacements are interpolated by Lagrange or Serendipity shape functions.

A 2D axisymmetric membrane is similar to the 3D membrane and it has a nonzero

circumferential strain in the out-of-plane direction.

LOCAL COORDINATE SYSTEMS

Boundaries
Many quantities for a membrane can best be interpreted in a local coordinate system
aligned to the membrane surface. Material data, initial stresses-strains, and constitutive
laws are always represented in the local coordinate system.

This local membrane surface coordinate system is defined by the boundary coordinate
system (tl, t2, n).

The quantities like stresses and strains are also available as results in the global
coordinate system after a transformation from a local (boundary) system.

1478 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

Local Edge System
Many features, such as an edge load, allow input in an edge local coordinate system.
The orthogonal local edge coordinate system directions xl, yl, and zl are defined so
that:

• The first direction (xl) is along the edge. This direction can be visualized by
selecting the Show edge directions arrows check box in the View settings.
• The third direction (zl) is the same as the membrane normal direction of the
adjacent boundary.
• The second direction (yl) is in the plane of the shell and orthogonal to the edge. It
is formed by the cross product of zl and xl; yl  zl  xl.

The local edge system can be visualized by plotting the components of the local edge
transformation matrix with an Arrow Line plot. The matrix components are defined per
feature. For instance, the variable name for the xx-component is
<interface>.<feature_tag>.TleXX.

When an edge is shared between two or more boundaries, the directions may not
always be unique. It is then possible to use the control Face Defining the Local
Orientations to select from which boundary the normal direction zl should be picked.
The default is Use face with lowest number.

If the geometry selection contains several edges, the only available option is Use face
with lowest number, since the list of adjacent boundaries would then be different for
each edge. For each edge in the selection, the face with the lowest number attached to
that edge is then used for the definition of the normal orientation.

STRAIN-DISPLACEMENT RELATION
The kinematic relations of the membrane element are first expressed along the global
coordinate axes. The strains are then transformed to the element local direction. Since
the membrane is defined only on a boundary, derivatives in all spatial directions are not
directly available. This makes the derivation of the strain tensor somewhat different
from what is used in solid mechanics.

The deformation gradient F is in general defined as the gradient of the current

coordinates with respect to the original coordinates:

x u
F = ------- = I + -------
X X

In the Membrane interface, a tangential deformation gradient is computed as

THEORY FOR THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1479

 F t = I – N  N + tu

Here tu is the displacement gradient computed using the tangential gradient on the
membrane surface, and N is the normal vector to the undeformed membrane. The
tangential deformation gradient Ft then contains information about the stretching in
the membrane plane.

Since the tangential deformation gradient does not contain any information about the
transverse (out-of-plane) stretch n, it must be augmented by the normal deformation
gradient Fn to define the full deformation gradient. It is given by

F n =  n n  N =  1 + u nn n  N

where n is the normal vector to the deformed membrane. For anisotropic materials,
the shear deformation gradient Fs is also needed to define the full deformation
gradient. It is given by

F s =  u 1n t 1 + u 2n t 2   N

where t1 and t2 are the tangent vectors on the deformed membrane surface. The full
deformation gradient F is then computed from the sum of tangential, shear and
normal deformation

F = Ft + Fs + Fn

Note that Fs is only nonzero for anisotropic materials, otherwise Fs = 0.

The right Cauchy–Green tensor C is then defined as

C = FT F

The Green-Lagrange strains are computed using the standard expression

1
E = ---  C – I 
2

The local tangential strains are calculated by transforming this tensor into the local
coordinate system.

The Jacobian J is the ratio between the current volume and the initial volume. In full
3D it is defined as

J = det  F  = det  C 

1480 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

and the area scale factor is computed from

J
J A = -------------------
1 + u nn

In the case of geometrically linear analysis, a linearized version of the strain tensor is
used.

CONSTITUTIVE RELATION AND WEAK CONTRIBUTIONS

The constitutive relations for the membrane on the reference surface are similar to
those used in the Solid Mechanics interface.

The thermal strains and initial stresses-strains (only for the in-plane directions of the
membrane) are added in the constitutive relation in a similar manner as it is done in
Solid Mechanics.

The weak expressions in the Membrane interface are similar to that of linear elastic
continuum mechanics.

See also Analysis of Deformation in the documentation of the Solid

Mechanics interface.

WRINKLING
Due to the zero bending stiffness assumption, the numerical treatment of thin
structures is much simpler with the membrane theory as compared to shell theory.
However, this assumption is disadvantageous in some cases such as wrinkling, which
happens when the membrane is subjected to negative principal stresses.

A thin shell will wrinkle when the compressive stress reaches a critical level defined by
its bending stiffness, which is a local buckling phenomenon. When such thin structures
are modeled within the membrane theory, wrinkles appear at the onset of the
compressive stresses as the bending stiffness is assumed to be zero. Due to zero
bending stiffness such states can be represented by continuously distributed
infinitesimal wrinkles.

When using the traditional membrane theory, which does not incorporates a wrinkling
model, negative principal stresses result in a equilibrium instability. In order to
overcome this instability, the wrinkling model within the framework of the tension
field theory can remove compressive stresses from wrinkled regions resulting in a
correct stress distribution, Ref. 1–3.

THEORY FOR THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1481

 The modified membrane theory, which incorporates a wrinkling model to the
traditional membrane theory, disregards the out-of-plane deformation in wrinkling; so
wrinkles including details like their amplitude and wavelength are determined on the
mean surface of the membrane (Ref. 1–3).

There are two approaches to embed the tension field theory into the framework of
classical membrane theory, but essentially both approaches are equivalent (Ref. 3).
One approach is to replace the strain energy density with a relaxed variant of it, while
the other approach is to modify the deformation gradient (Ref. 1). While the first
approach can only be used for isotropic membranes, the second approach is more
general (Ref. 1), and it is the method implemented in COMSOL Multiphysics.

The undeformed configuration of the membrane is described by the material

coordinates X, Y, and Z. The uniaxial stress occurs in the X direction; Y is the
wrinkling direction and Z is the normal to the membrane plane (Figure 7-1). The
deformed configuration is represented by the x, y and z coordinates. After
deformation, the membrane can be in one of three possible states:

• A taut state, which is achieved when both in-plane principal stresses are positive, and
there is no need to modify the deformation tensor.
• A wrinkled state, which happens when one of the principal stresses is negative. A
modification to the deformation gradient tensor is necessary.
• A slack state, reached when both in-plane principal stresses are negative. In this case,
the stress tensor is set to be zero.

As shown in Figure 7-1 there are three different kinematic descriptions (Ref. 1):

• The tensor F* maps the reference configuration to the true wrinkled configuration.
This mapping is not suitable to describe the strain field in wrinkled membranes.
• The tensor F maps the reference configuration to the mean configuration, where
the current area is smaller than the actual wrinkled area. Hence, this mapping is also
not suitable to describe the strain field in wrinkled membranes.
• The tensor F maps the reference configuration to a fictitious lengthened
configuration, where the current area is equal to the actual wrinkled area. This
mapping is suitable to describe the strain field in wrinkled membranes.

1482 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

 Wrinkled configuration

F* n2

dy
n1

dx

Mean configuration
n2
Reference configuration
F
dY
dy n1

dX dx

Fictive lengthened configuration

n2

F
dy n1

dx

Figure 7-1: Kinematics of wrinkling.

When n1 is the direction of uniaxial extension, and assuming that wrinkling occurs in
the n2 direction, the modified deformation tensor F is written as

F =  I + n 2  n 2 F (7-1)

Here,  is the wrinkling parameter, so  = 0 represents a taut condition. According to

the orthogonality condition in tension field theory, these two vectors satisfy

n1    n2 = 0
(7-2)
n2    n2 = 0

THEORY FOR THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1483

 where  is the Cauchy stress tensor written in terms of the second Piola-Kirchhoff
stress tensor

1
 = --- FS  F F T
J

Assuming that the mean configuration F is known, the only unknowns in

Equation 7-1 and Equation 7-2 are  and n2.

Since the material properties and membrane theory itself are given in the reference
configuration, Equation 7-1 and Equation 7-2 are transformed to the reference
configuration (Ref. 2). The fictive Green-Lagrange strain tensor E is then written
with the help of a vector in the reference configuration which corresponds to the
wrinkling direction n2, so g = n2F,

2

E = ---  F T F – I  = E +   + ------ F T n 2  n 2 F
1
2  2

This can be written as

E = E + m N2  N2

where m and N2 are the wrinkling parameter and wrinkling direction in the reference
configuration. The two unknowns  and n2 in the deformed configuration are
replaced by the two unknowns m and N2 in the reference configuration.

The membrane surface is spanned by a coordinate system having two in-plane

orthogonal unit vectors e1 and e2. Thus, N1 and N2 can be written with the help of
the wrinkling angle m

N 1 = cos   m e 1 + sin   m e 2
N 2 = – sin   m e 1 + cos   m e 2

So the scalar wrinkling angle m is sufficient to define the wrinkling vector N2. The
two nonlinear equations in Equation 7-2 are then solved for the two unknowns m
and m with the Newton-Raphson method. Once the parameters m and m are
determined, the deformation gradient and the second Piola-Kirchhoff stress tensor are
modified to get the correct stress distribution and to define the wrinkled regions.

EXTERNAL LOADS
The contributions to the virtual work from an external load is given by

1484 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

 u test  F

where the force F can be distributed over a boundary, an edge, or it can be

concentrated in a point. In the special case of a follower load, defined by a pressure p,
the force intensity is F = pn, where n is the normal vector to the membrane surface
in the deformed configuration.

For a follower load, the change in midsurface area is taken into account, and
integration of the load is done in the deformed configuration.

STRESS CALCULATIONS
The stresses are computed by applying the constitutive law to the computed strains.

Membranes do not support transverse nor bending forces, and the only section forces
are defined as:

N = ds

Here, s is the local stress tensor which contains in-plane stress components only.

REFERENCES
1. D. Roddeman, J. Drukker, C. Oomens, and J. Janssen, “The Wrinkling of Thin
Membranes: Part 1: Theory,” J. Appl. Mech.: Transactions of the ASME, vol 54,
pp. 884–887, 1987.

2. H. Schoop, L.Taenzer, and J. Hornig, “Wrinkling of Nonlinear Membranes,”

Comp. Mech., vol. 29, pp. 68–74, 2002.

3. A. Patil, “Inflation and Instabilities of Hyperelastic Membranes,” PhD thesis, KTH,

2016.

THEORY FOR THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1485

 The Membrane Interface
The Membrane (mbrn) interface ( ), found under the Structural Mechanics
branch ( ) when adding a physics interface, is mainly used to model prestressed
membranes, but can also be used to model a thin cladding on a solid. Membranes can
be considered as plane stress elements on boundaries in 3D with a possibility to deform
both in the in-plane and out-of-plane directions. There is also a version of the
membrane interface for 2D axisymmetric problems. The membrane interface is then
applicable to lines since that is what represents boundaries.

The difference between a shell and a membrane is that the membrane does not have
any bending stiffness. In most applications, the membrane is used by itself and not as
a cladding. A tensile prestress is then necessary in order to avoid singularity because a
membrane with no stress or compressive stress has no transverse stiffness. To include
the prestress effect, you must enable geometric nonlinearity for the study step.

The Linear Elastic Material is the default material, which adds a linear elastic equation
for the displacements and has a Settings window to define the elastic material
properties. This material model can also be combined with viscoelasticity.

With the Nonlinear Structural Materials Module, you can also model Nonlinear Elastic
and Hyperelastic materials, and add options such as Plasticity, Creep, and
Viscoplasticity.

For a detailed overview of the functionality available in each product, visit

https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/

When this physics interface is added, these default nodes are also added to the Model
Builder: Linear Elastic Material, Free (a condition where edges are free, with no loads or
constraints), and Initial Values. In the case if axial symmetry, an Axial Symmetry node is
also added. From the Physics toolbar, you can then add other nodes that implement,
for example, loads and constraints. You can also right-click Membrane to select physics
features from the context menu.

SETTINGS
The Label is the default physics interface name.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the physics
interface. Refer to such physics interface variables in expressions using the pattern

1486 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

<name>.<variable_name>. In order to distinguish between variables belonging to
different physics interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and
underscores (_) are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first physics interface in the model) is mbrn.

STRUCTURAL TRANSIENT BEHAVIOR

From the Structural transient behavior list, select Include inertial terms (the default) or
Quasistatic. Use Quasistatic to treat the elastic behavior as quasistatic (with no mass
effects; that is, no second-order time derivatives). Selecting this option gives a more
efficient solution for problems where the variation in time is slow when compared to
the natural frequencies of the system.

For problems with creep, and sometimes viscoelasticity, the problem can be considered
as quasistatic. This is also the case when the time dependence exists only in some other
physics, like a transient heat transfer problem causing thermal strains.

DISCRETIZATION
In the Membrane interface you can choose not only the order of the discretization, but
also the type of shape functions: Lagrange or serendipity. For highly distorted
elements, Lagrange shape functions provide better accuracy than serendipity shape
functions of the same order. The serendipity shape functions will however give
significant reductions of the model size for a given mesh containing quadrilateral
elements.

The default is to use Quadratic serendipity shape functions for the Displacement field.

DEPENDENT VARIABLES
The dependent variable (field variable) is for the Displacement field u which has three
components (u, v, and w). The name can be changed but the names of fields and
dependent variables must be unique within a model.

• Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Membrane Interface
• Theory for the Membrane Interface
• Selecting Discretization

Vibrating Membrane: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Verification_Examples/vibrating_membrane

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1487

 Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Membrane Interface
The Membrane Interface has these boundary, edge, point, and pair nodes available
from the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics context menu (Mac or Linux
users), or right-click to access the context menu (all users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

FEATURES AVAILABLE FROM SUBMENUS

Many features for the Membrane interface are added from submenus in the Physics
toolbar groups or context menu (when you right-click the node). The submenu name
is the same in both cases.

• The submenus at the Boundary level are Material Models, Face and Volume Loads, Mass,
Spring, and Damper, and Face Constraints.
• The submenus at the Edge (3D) or Points (2D axisymmetric) level are Mass, Spring,
and Damper, More Constraints, and Pairs.
• For 3D components, there is also a Points submenu.

LINKS TO FEATURE NODE INFORMATION

These nodes (and subnodes) are described in this section (listed in alphabetical order):

• Additional Creep • Layered Linear Elastic Material

• Antisymmetry • Linear Elastic Material
• Creep • Safety
• Damping • Symmetry
• External Stress • Viscoelasticity
• Inelastic Strain Rate • Viscoplasticity
• Initial Stress and Strain • Wrinkling
• Layered Adiabatic Heating

1488 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

These nodes are described for the Solid Mechanics or Shell interfaces:

• Added Mass • Point Load

• Adhesion • Point Load, Free
• Adiabatic Heating • Point Load (on Axis)
• Average Rotation • Predeformation
• Base Excitation • Prescribed Acceleration
1
• Body Load • Prescribed Displacement2
• Contact • Prescribed Velocity
• Damping • Ring Load
• Edge Load3 • Ring Load, Free
• External Stress-Strain Relation • Rotating Frame1
• Face Load3 • Slip Velocity
• Fixed Constraint • Spring Foundation
• Free • Spring-Damper
• Friction • Symmetry Plane
• Gravity • Thermal Expansion (for
• Hygroscopic Swelling Constraints)

• Hyperelastic Material • Thermal Expansion (for Materials)

• Initial Values • Thickness and Offset3

• Linearly Accelerated Frame1 • Thickness Change3

• Nonlinear Elastic Material • Wear

• Phase
1
This is selected from the Face and Volume Loads submenu for this interface.
2 At the boundary level, this is selected from the Face Constraints submenu for this
interface.
3
Described for the Shell interface.

Harmonic Perturbation, Prestressed Analysis, and Small-Signal Analysis

in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1489

 In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual see Table 2-4 for links
to common sections and Table 2-5 to common feature nodes. You can
also search for information: press F1 to open the Help window or Ctrl+F1
to open the Documentation window.

Linear Elastic Material

The Linear Elastic Material node adds the equations for a linear elastic membrane and
an interface for defining the elastic material properties.

By adding the following subnodes to the Linear Elastic Material node you can
incorporate many other effects:

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials)

• Hygroscopic Swelling
• Initial Stress and Strain
• External Stress
• Inelastic Strain Rate
• Damping
• Wrinkling
• Viscoelasticity
• Plasticity
• Creep
• Viscoplasticity
• Activation
• Safety

Note: Some options are only available with certain COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/)

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The built in Boundary System 1 is selected by default. The Coordinate system list
contains any additional boundary coordinate systems that the model includes. The
coordinate system is used for interpreting directions of orthotropic and anisotropic
material data and when stresses or strains are presented in a local system. Many of the
possible subnodes inherit the coordinate system settings.

1490 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

LINEAR ELASTIC MATERIAL
Define the material symmetry and the linear elastic material properties.

Material Symmetry
Select Material symmetry — Isotropic (the default), Orthotropic, or Anisotropic. Select:

• Isotropic for a linear elastic material that has the same properties in all directions.
• Orthotropic for a linear elastic material that has different material properties in
orthogonal directions. It is also possible to define Transversely isotropic material
properties.
• Anisotropic for a linear elastic material that has different material properties in
different directions.

• Material Models
• Linear Elastic Material
• Orthotropic and Anisotropic Materials

Density
The default Density  uses values From material. For User defined enter another value or
expression.

The density is needed for dynamic analysis or when the elastic data is given
in terms of wave speed. It is also used when computing mass forces for
gravitational or rotating frame loads, and when computing mass
properties (Computing Mass Properties).

Specification of Elastic Properties for Isotropic Materials

For an Isotropic material, from the Specify list select a pair of elastic properties for an
isotropic material — Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio, Young’s modulus and shear
modulus, Bulk modulus and shear modulus, Lamé parameters, or Pressure-wave and
shear-wave speeds. For each pair of properties, select from the applicable list to use the
value From material or enter a User defined value or expression.

Each of these pairs define the elastic properties and it is possible to convert
from one set of properties to another (see Table 3-1 in the theory
chapter).

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1491

 The individual property parameters are:

• Young’s modulus (elastic modulus) E.

• Poisson’s ratio .
• Shear modulus G.
• Bulk modulus K.
• Lamé parameter  and Lamé parameter .
• Pressure-wave speed (longitudinal wave speed) cp.
• Shear-wave speed (transverse wave speed) cs. This is the wave speed for a solid
continuum. In plane stress, for example, the actual speed with which a longitudinal
wave travels is lower than the value given.

Specification of Elastic Properties for Orthotropic Materials

When Orthotropic is selected from the Material symmetry list, the material properties
are different in orthogonal directions (principal directions) given by the axes of the
selected coordinate system. The Material data ordering can be specified in either
Standard or Voigt notation. When User defined is selected in 3D, enter three values in
the fields for Young’s modulus E, Poisson’s ratio , and the Shear modulus G. The latter
defines defines the relationship between engineering shear strain and shear stress. It is
applicable only to an orthotropic material and follows the equation

 ij
 ij = --------
G ij

ij is defined differently depending on the application field. It is easy to

transform among definitions, but check which one the material uses.

You can set an orthotropic material to be Transversely isotropic. Then, one principal
direction in the material is different from two others that are equivalent. This special
direction is assumed to be the first axis of the selected coordinate system. Because of
the symmetry, the following relations hold:

E3 = E2

 13 =  12

E2
G 23 = --------------------------
2  1 +  23 

1492 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

 G 12 = G 13

Thus, only five elasticity moduli need to be entered when User defined option is
selected.

Specification of Elastic Properties for Anisotropic Materials

When Anisotropic is selected from the Material symmetry list, the material properties
vary in all directions. They can be specified using either the Elasticity matrix, D or the
Compliance matrix, D-1. Both matrices are symmetric. The Material data ordering can
be specified in either Standard or Voigt notation. When User defined is selected, a 6-by-6
symmetric matrix is displayed.

Mixed Formulation
For a material with a very low compressibility, using only displacements as degrees of
freedom may lead to a numerically ill-posed problem. You can then use a mixed
formulation, which add an extra dependent variable for either the pressure or for the
volumetric strain. For details, see the Mixed Formulation section in the Structural
Mechanics Theory chapter.

From the Use mixed formulation list, select None, Pressure formulation, or Strain
formulation.

GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
If a study step is geometrically nonlinear, the default behavior is to use a large strain
formulation in all boundaries. There are, however, some rare cases when the use of a
small strain formulation for a certain boundary is needed.

In such cases, select the Geometrically linear formulation check box. When selected, a
small strain formulation is always used, independently of the setting in the study step.

• Modeling Geometric Nonlinearity

• Studies and Solvers in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

ENERGY DISSIPATION
The section is available when you also have the Nonlinear Structural Materials Module.
To display the section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

Select the Calculate dissipated energy check box as needed to compute the energy
dissipated by Creep, Plasticity, Viscoplasticity, or Viscoelasticity.

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1493

 DISCRETIZATION
If Pressure formulation is used, select the discretization for the Auxiliary pressure —
Automatic, Discontinuous Lagrange, Continuous, Linear, or Constant. If Strain formulation
is used, select the discretization for the Auxiliary volumetric strain — Automatic,
Discontinuous Lagrange, Continuous, Linear, or Constant.

The Discretization section is available when Pressure formulation or Strain

formulation is selected from the Use mixed formulation list. To display the
section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

QUADRATURE SETTINGS
Select the Reduced integration check box to reduce the integration points for the weak
contribution of the feature. Select a method for Hourglass stabilization — Automatic,
Manual, or None to use in combination with the reduced integration scheme. The
default Automatic stabilization technique is based on the shape function and shape
order of the displacement field.

Control the hourglass stabilization scheme by using the Manual option. Select Shear
stabilization (default) or Volumetric stabilization.

When Shear stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization shear modulus, Gstb. The
value should be in the order of magnitude of the equivalent shear modulus.

When Volumetric stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization bulk modulus, Kstb. The
value should be in the order of magnitude of the equivalent bulk modulus.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Membrane>Material Models>Linear Elastic Material

Ribbon
Physics tab with Membrane selected:

Boundaries>Material Models>Linear Elastic Material

Layered Linear Elastic Material

The Layered Linear Elastic Material node adds the equations for a layered linear elastic
membrane.

1494 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

If the Composite Materials Module analysis is available, this material model can be
applied to arbitrary layers in a multilayered membrane. The material properties,
orientations, and layer thicknesses are defined using Layered Material node. The offset,
and local coordinate system, in which material orientations and results are interpreted,
is defined by Layered Material Link or Layered Material Stack node.

Without the Composite Materials Module, only single layer membranes can be
modeled. This is still useful, for example for some multiphysics couplings. For single
layer materials, an ordinary Material node can be used, as long you include a Shell
property group in which, for example, the thickness is given.

• For a general description about layered materials, see Layered Materials

in the documentation for the Composite Materials Module.
• See also the discussion in Layered and Nonlayered Membranes.

By adding the following subnodes to the Layered Linear Elastic Material node you can
incorporate many other effects:

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials)

• Hygroscopic Swelling
• Initial Stress and Strain
• External Stress
• Inelastic Strain Rate
• Damping
• Viscoelasticity
• Plasticity
• Creep
• Viscoplasticity
• Safety

Some of these material models are only available together with the Nonlinear
Structural Materials Module (see https://www.comsol.com/products/
specifications/).

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1495

 SHELL PROPERTIES
For this node, the Shell Properties section is only used for selecting a material model,
but not individual layers.
TABLE 7-1: LAYER SELECTIONS; LINEAR ELASTIC MATERIAL

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Default when added No

For a general description of this section, see Layer and Interface

Selections in the documentation for the Composite Materials Module.

BOUNDARY SELECTION
The boundary selection in this node is similar to the Linear Elastic Material node. It is
however only possible to select boundaries which are part of the selection of a layered
material defined in Layered Material Link or Layered Material Stack node.

LINEAR ELASTIC MATERIAL

Select Material symmetry — Isotropic, Orthotropic, or Anisotropic and enter the settings
as described for the Linear Elastic Material for the Solid Mechanics interface. If the
layers have different types of anisotropy properties, select the one that is most complex.

Note that:

• For Orthotropic no values for Ez, yz, or xz need to be entered due to the membrane
assumptions. It is also possible to define Transversely isotropic material properties.
• For User defined Anisotropic a 6-by-6 symmetric matrix is displayed. Due to the
membrane assumptions, you only need to enter values for D11, D12, D22, D14, D24,
D55, D66, and D56.
• The material orientation is always interpreted in a laminate coordinate system
aligned with the membrane boundary together with the orientation of each layer
specified on a layered material. The laminate coordinate system is always a Boundary
System.

For a material with a very low compressibility, using only displacements as degrees of
freedom may lead to a numerically ill-posed problem. You can then use a mixed
formulation, which add an extra dependent variable for either the pressure or for the
volumetric strain, see the Mixed Formulation section in the Structural Mechanics
Theory chapter.

1496 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

From the Use mixed formulation list, select None, Pressure formulation, or Strain
formulation.

GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
If a study step is geometrically nonlinear, the default behavior is to use a large strain
formulation in all domains. There are however some cases when you would still want
to use a small strain formulation for a certain domain. In those cases, select the
Geometrically linear formulation check box. When selected, a small strain formulation is
always used, independently of the setting in the study step.

When a geometrically nonlinear formulation is used, the elastic deformations used for
computing the stresses can be obtained in two different ways if inelastic deformations
are present: additive decomposition and multiplicative decomposition. The default is
to use multiplicative decomposition. Select Additive strain decomposition to change to
an assumption of additivity.

ENERGY DISSIPATION
The section is available when you also have the Nonlinear Structural Materials Module.
Then, to display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select
Advanced Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

Select the Calculate dissipated energy check box as needed to compute the energy
dissipated by Creep, Plasticity, Viscoplasticity, or Viscoelasticity.

DISCRETIZATION
If Pressure formulation is used, select the discretization for the Auxiliary pressure —
Automatic, Discontinuous Lagrange, Continuous, Linear, or Constant. If Strain formulation
is used, select the discretization for the Auxiliary volumetric strain — Automatic,
Discontinuous Lagrange, Continuous, Linear, or Constant.

The Discretization section is available when Pressure formulation or Strain

formulation is selected from the Use mixed formulation list. To display the
section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

QUADRATURE SETTINGS
Select the Reduced integration check box to reduce the integration points for the weak
contribution of the feature. Select a method for Hourglass stabilization — Automatic,
Manual, or None to use in combination with the reduced integration scheme. The

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1497

 default Automatic stabilization technique is based on the shape function and shape
order of the displacement field.

Control the hourglass stabilization scheme by using the Manual option. Select Shear
stabilization (default) or Volumetric stabilization.

When Shear stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization shear modulus, Gstb, and the
shear correction factor kstb. The value for Gstb should be in the order of magnitude of
the equivalent shear modulus.

When Volumetric stabilization is selected, enter a stabilization bulk modulus, Kstb. The
value should be in the order of magnitude of the equivalent bulk modulus.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Membrane>Material Models>Layered Linear Elastic Material

Ribbon
Physics tab with Membrane selected:

Boundaries>Material Models>Layered Linear Elastic Material

Viscoelasticity
Use the Viscoelasticity subnode to add viscous stress contributions to an elastic material
model. Viscoelasticity can be added to Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic
Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material and Hyperelastic Material.

If the Composite Materials Module is available, the viscoelasticity model can be applied
to arbitrary layers in a multilayered membrane.

See also the discussion in Layered and Nonlayered Membranes.

SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is present only when the Viscoelasticity node is used under Layered Linear
Elastic Material.

1498 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

Select the layer or layers for which this viscoelastic model is to be used.
TABLE 7-2: LAYER SELECTIONS; VISCOELASTICITY

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection when When Use all layers is not
the node is added. selected.

If the viscoelastic model differs between layers, you will need to add several
Viscoelasticity nodes with different layer selections.

If the same layer is selected in two Viscoelasticity nodes being active on the boundary,
then there will be two viscoelastic contributions.

• All other settings for the Viscoelasticity node are described in the
documentation for Viscoelasticity in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can provide material parameters with a through-thickness variation
by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra
dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Viscoelasticity
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Viscoelasticity
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Viscoelasticity
Membrane>Hyperelastic Material>Viscoelasticity

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic
Material, or Hyperelastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Viscoelasticity

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1499

 Plasticity
Use the Plasticity subnode to define the properties for modeling elastoplastic materials.
This material model can be used together with either a Linear Elastic Material,
Nonlinear Elastic Material, or a Layered Linear Elastic Material.

The Nonlinear Structural Materials Module is required for this feature. For details, see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/.

If the Composite Materials Module is available, the plasticity model can be applied to
arbitrary layers in a multilayered membrane.

See also the discussion in Layered and Nonlayered Membranes.

SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is present only when the Plasticity node is used under Layered Linear
Elastic Material.

Select the layer or layers for which this plasticity model is to be used.
TABLE 7-3: LAYER SELECTIONS; PLASTICITY

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection When Use all layers is not selected.
when the node is added. Only a subset of the layers selected in
the parent can be selected.

If the plasticity model differs between layers, you will need to add several Plasticity
nodes with different layer selections. If the model is the same, and only the material
data values differ, you can use a single Plasticity node where From material is used to
define the values. The data for each layer is then received from global Layered Material
nodes.

If there are two Plasticity nodes where the same layer is selected on the same boundary,
the latter will be overridden on the common selections.

• All other settings for the Plasticity node are described in the
documentation for Plasticity in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

1500 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Plasticity

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, or Nonlinear
Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Plasticity

Set Variables
Use the Set Variables subnode to Plasticity of a Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear
Elastic Material, or Nonlinear Elastic Material node to reset plasticity variables
according to a Setting condition that you define. When the Setting condition is satisfied,
the plasticity variables are reset to the specified values.

SET VARIABLES
Enter the Setting condition. This is a Boolean expression that will determine when the
plastic variables are reset.

From the Equivalent plastic strain list, select Do not set or User defined. The default User
defined value is zero.

From the Plastic strain tensor list, select Do not set or User defined. The default User
defined values are zero for all components of the Plastic strain tensor.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity>Set Variables
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Plasticity>Set Variables
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Plasticity>Set Variables

Ribbon
Physics tab with Plasticity node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Set Variables

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1501

 Creep
Use the Creep subnode to define the creep properties of the material model. Creep can
be added to Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, and Nonlinear
Elastic Material.

The Nonlinear Structural Materials Module is required for this feature. For details, see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/.

If the Composite Materials Module is available, creep models can be applied to

arbitrary layers in a multilayered membrane.

See also the discussion in Layered and Nonlayered Membranes.

SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is present only when the Creep node is used under Layered Linear Elastic
Material.

Select the layer or layers for which this creep model is to be used.
TABLE 7-4: LAYER SELECTIONS; CREEP

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection When Use all layers is not selected.
when the node is added. Only a subset of the layers selected
in the parent can be selected.

Add several Creep nodes with different layer selections when the creep model differs
between layers. If the model is the same, and only the material data differ, you can use

1502 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

a single Creep node where From material is used to define the values. The data for each
layer is then received from global Layered Material nodes.

• All other settings for the Creep node are described in the
documentation for Creep in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can provide material parameters with a through-thickness variation
by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra
dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Creep
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Creep
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Creep

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, or Nonlinear
Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Creep

Additional Creep
Use the Additional Creep subnode to define additional contributions to the creep model
defined by the parent Creep node, such as primary or tertiary creep behavior. A Creep
node can have any number of Additional Creep subnodes with different settings to
model advanced creep mechanisms.

The Nonlinear Structural Materials Module is required for this feature. For details, see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/.

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1503

 If the Composite Materials Module is available, creep models can be applied to
arbitrary layers in a multilayered membrane.

See also the discussion in Layered and Nonlayered Membranes.

SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is present only when the Additional Creep node is used under Layered
Linear Elastic Material.

Select the layer or layers for which this creep model is to be used.
TABLE 7-5: LAYER SELECTIONS; CREEP

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection When Use all layers is not selected.
when the node is added. Only a subset of the layers selected in the
parent can be selected.

When the creep model differs between layers, you will need to add several Additional
Creep nodes with different layer selections. If the model is the same, and only the
material data values differ, you can use a single Additional Creep node where From
material is used to define the values. The data for each layer is then received from global
Layered Material nodes.

If the same layer is selected in two Additional Creep nodes being active on the boundary,
then there will be two creep strain contributions.

• All other settings for the Additional Creep node are described in the
documentation for Additional Creep in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can provide material parameters with a through-thickness variation
by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra
dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

1504 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Creep>Additional Creep
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Creep>Additional Creep
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Creep>Additional Creep

Ribbon
Physics tab with Creep node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Additional Creep

Viscoplasticity
Use the Viscoplasticity subnode to define the viscoplastic properties of the material
model. Viscoplasticity can be added to Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic
Material, and Nonlinear Elastic Material.

The Nonlinear Structural Materials Module is required for this feature. For details, see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/.

If the Composite Materials Module is available, the viscoplastic model can be applied
to arbitrary layers in a multilayered membrane.

See also the discussion in Layered and Nonlayered Membranes.

SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is present only when the Viscoplasticity node is used under Layered Linear
Elastic Material.

Select the layer or layers for which this plasticity model is to be used.
TABLE 7-6: LAYER SELECTIONS; VISCOPLASTICITY

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection When Use all layers is not selected.
when the node is added. Only a subset of the layers selected in
the parent can be selected.

When the viscoplasticity model differs between layers, you will need to add several
Viscoplasticity nodes with different layer selections. If the model is the same, and only
the material data values differ, you can use a single Viscoplasticity node where From

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1505

 material is used to define the values. The data for each layer is then received from global
Layered Material nodes.

If the same layer is selected in two Viscoplasticity nodes being active on the same
boundary, the second definition will override the previous.

• All other settings for the Viscoplasticity node are described in the
documentation for Viscoplasticity in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can provide material parameters with a through-thickness variation
by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra
dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Viscoplasticity
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Viscoplasticity
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Viscoplasticity

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, or Nonlinear
Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Viscoplasticity

Wrinkling
Use the Wrinkling node to define the settings for the Newton-Raphson method that
solves the wrinkling equations. Wrinkling can be added to a Linear Elastic Material or
to a Hyperelastic Material.

Select a Termination criterion for local method — Step size, Residual, or Step size or
residual. Set the Maximum number of local iterations in the Newton-Raphson loop when
solving the local wrinkling equations. The defaults value is 50 local iterations.

• When Step size is chosen as termination criterion, set the Absolute tolerance and the
Relative tolerance to check the convergence of the local wrinkling equations based

1506 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

 on the step size in the Newton-Raphson loop. The final tolerance is computed based
on the current solution of the local variable and the entered values.
• When Residual is chosen as termination criterion, set the Residual tolerance to check
the convergence of the local wrinkling equations based on the residual of each
equation.
• When Step size or residual is chosen, it is sufficient that one of the conditions is
fulfilled. Setting either the Absolute tolerance and Relative tolerance or the Residual
tolerance to zero ignores the corresponding convergence check. An error is returned
if all tolerances are set to zero.

The theory is described under Wrinkling in the Theory Background for

the Membrane Interface section.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Wrinkling
Membrane>Hyperelastic Material>Wrinkling

Ribbon

Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material or Hyperelastic Material node selected in the
model tree:

Attributes>Wrinkling

Thermal Expansion (for Materials)

Use the Thermal Expansion subnode to add an internal thermal strain caused by changes
in temperature.

Thermal expansion can be modeled for Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic
Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material, and Hyperelastic Material. For the Layered Linear
Elastic Material, the thermal expansion can be applied to arbitrary layers in a
multilayered membrane when the Composite Materials Module is available.

See also the discussion in Layered and Nonlayered Membranes.

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1507

 SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is present only when the Thermal Expansion node is used under Layered
Linear Elastic Material.

Select the layer or layers for which this thermal strain contribution is to be added.
TABLE 7-7: LAYER SELECTIONS; THERMAL EXPANSION

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection When Use all layers is not selected.
when the node is added.

If the Input type differs between layers, you will need to add several Thermal Expansion
nodes with different layer selections. If only the material data values differ, you can use
a single Thermal Expansion node with From material. The data for each layer is then
received from global Layered Material nodes.

If the same layer is selected in two Thermal Expansion nodes being active on the same
boundary, the second definition will override the previous.

Thermal strains are proportional to the temperature, while structural

strains are computed from the gradient of the displacement field. It is
good practice to match the discretization order of thermal and structural
strains.

When adding a Thermal Expansion subnode, and the temperature field is

computed by another physics interface (often the Heat Transfer in Shells
interface); use a discretization one order lower for the temperature field
than what is used for the displacement field.

• All other settings for the Thermal Expansion node are described in the
documentation for Thermal Expansion (for Materials) in the Solid
Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can provide parameters for the expansion with a through-thickness
variation by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the
extra dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

1508 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Thermal Expansion
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Thermal Expansion
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Thermal Expansion
Membrane>Hyperelastic Material>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic
Material, or Hyperelastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Hygroscopic Swelling
Use the Hygroscopic Swelling subnode to add an internal thermal strain caused by
changes in temperature.

Hygroscopic swelling can be added to Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic
Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material, and Hyperelastic Material. For the Layered Linear
Elastic Material, swelling can be applied to arbitrary layers in a multilayered membrane
when the Composite Materials Module is available.

See also the discussion in Layered and Nonlayered Membranes.

SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is present only when the Hygroscopic Swelling node is used under Layered
Linear Elastic Material.

Select the layer or layers for which this swelling strain contribution is to be added.
TABLE 7-8: LAYER SELECTIONS; HYGROSCOPIC SWELLING

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection When Use all layers is not selected.
when the node is added.

If the Moisture concentration type differs between layers, you will need to add several
Hygroscopic Swelling nodes with different layer selections. If only the material data

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1509

 values differ, you can use a single Hygroscopic Swelling node with From material. The
data for each layer is then received from global Layered Material nodes.

If the same layer is selected in two Hygroscopic Swelling nodes being active on the same
boundary, the second definition will override the previous.

Hygroscopic strains are proportional to the concentration, while

structural strains are computed from the gradient of the displacement
field. It is good practice to match the discretization order of hygroscopic
and structural strains.

When adding a Hygroscopic Swelling subnode, and the concentration field

is computed by another physics interface; use a discretization one order
lower for the concentration field than what is used for the displacement
field.

• All other settings for the Hygroscopic Swelling node are described in the
documentation for Hygroscopic Swelling in the Solid Mechanics
interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can provide parameters for the expansion with a through-thickness
variation by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the
extra dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling
Membrane>Hyperelastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic
Material, or Hyperelastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Hygroscopic Swelling

1510 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

Initial Stress and Strain
You can add the Initial Stress and Strain subnode to the Linear Elastic Material, in order
to specify the stress or strain state in the structure before applying any constraint or
load. The values given are not initial values in the mathematical sense, but rather a
contribution to the constitutive relation.

Initial stresses and strains can be included with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear
Elastic Material, and Nonlinear Elastic Material. For the Layered Linear Elastic Material,
the contribution can be applied to arbitrary layers in a multilayered membrane when
the Composite Materials Module is available

In many cases Initial Stress and Strain and External Stress are
interchangeable when prescribing stresses, but you can find some more
options in the latter.

SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is present only when the Initial Stress and Strain node is used under
Layered Linear Elastic Material.

Select the layer or layers for which this stress or strain contribution is to be added.
TABLE 7-9: LAYER SELECTIONS; INITIAL STRESS AND STRAIN

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection When Use all layers is not selected.
when the node is added. Only a subset of the layers selected in
the parent can be selected.

If the initial stress or strain differ between layers, you will need to add several Initial
Stress and Strain nodes with different layer selections.

If the same layer is selected in two Initial Stress and Strain nodes being active on the
same boundary, the contributions will be added.

• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can describe stress or strain values with a through-thickness
variation by explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the
extra dimension coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension
Coordinates.

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1511

 COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION
The given initial stresses and strains are interpreted in this system.

For details about how local coordinate systems are used in the Membrane
interface, see Local Coordinate Systems.

INITIAL STRESS AND STRAIN

Specify the initial stress as the Initial local in-plane force N0 and the initial strain as the
Initial local in-plane strain 0 (dimensionless). In addition, you can also provide the
Initial out-of-plane strain n0.

If you know the stress, rather than the force per unit length, type in the stress
multiplied by the membrane thickness mbrn.d. In a geometrically nonlinear analysis,
the stresses should be interpreted as Second Piola-Kirchhoff stresses, and the strains
should be interpreted as Green-Lagrange strains.

• For details about initial stresses and strains, see Inelastic Strain
Contributions and Initial Stresses and Strains.
• For details about the different strain measures, see Deformation
Measures.
• For details about the different stress measures, see Defining Stress.

Prestressed Micromirror: Application Library path MEMS_Module/

Actuators/micromirror

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Initial Stress and Strain
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Initial Stress and Strain
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Initial Stress and Strain

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, or Nonlinear
Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Initial Stress and Strain

1512 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

External Stress
You can add the External Stress subnode in order to specify an additional stress
contribution which is not part of the constitutive relation. The external stress can be
added to the total stress tensor, or act only as an extra load contribution.

External stresses can be added to Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic
Material, Nonlinear Elastic Material, and Hyperelastic Material. For the Layered Linear
Elastic Material, the contribution can be applied to arbitrary layers in a multilayered
membrane when the Composite Materials Module is available.

In many cases External Stress and Initial Stress and Strain are
interchangeable when prescribing stresses. In Initial Stress and Strain, the
given stress is however always added to the stress tensor, whereas the
option to use the stress as only a load contribution exists only in External
Stress.

SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is only present when this node is added under Layered Linear Elastic
Material node. Select the layers in which initial stress and strain needs to be modeled.

TABLE 7-10: LAYER SELECTIONS; EXTERNAL STRESS

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection When Use all layers is not selected.
when the node is added. Only a subset of the layers selected in
the parent can be selected.

If the external stress input type differs between layers, you will need to add several
External Stress nodes with different layer selections.

If the same layer is selected in two External Stress nodes being active on the same
boundary, the contributions will be added.

For a general description of this section, see Layer and Interface

Selections in the documentation for the Composite Materials Module.

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1513

 EXTERNAL STRESS
Select a Stress input — Stress tensor (Material), Stress tensor (Spatial), or In-plane force.

• When Stress tensor (Material) is selected, you enter the external stress in the form of
a Second Piola-Kirchhoff stress tensor. The External stress tensor list will contain all
stress tensors announced by any physics interface, and also the entry User defined.
When User defined is selected, you can enter the data for the External stress tensor
Sext as Isotropic, Diagonal, or Symmetric depending on the properties of the tensor.
The tensor components are interpreted in the selected coordinate system. If a stress
tensor announced by a physics interface is selected, the coordinate system setting is
ignored — the orientation is handled internally. Choose a Contribution type — Add
to stress tensor, Load contribution only, or Residual stress to determine the effect of
the contribution. Stress tensor components which are not in the plane of the
membrane will be ignored.
• When Stress tensor (Spatial) is selected, you enter the external stress in the form of
Cauchy stress tensor. The components are interpreted in the selected coordinate
system. Depending on the properties of the tensor, you can enter the data for the
External stress tensor ext as Isotropic, Diagonal, or Symmetric. Choose a Contribution
type — Add to stress tensor, Load contribution only, or Residual stress to determine
the effect of the contribution. Stress tensor components which are not in the plane
of the membrane will be ignored.
• When In-plane force is selected, you enter the external stress in the form of section
forces. Specify the initial stress as values or expressions for the In-plane force Next,
which has components in the plane of the membrane, along the directions given by
the selected local coordinate system. Choose a Contribution type — Add to stress
tensor, Load contribution only, or Residual stress to determine the effect of the
contribution.

Since all stress tensor representations coincide in a geometrically linear

analysis, Stress tensor (Spatial) is needed only in the case of a geometrically
nonlinear analysis. The stress tensor is entered using a Cauchy stress
tensor representation, and is internally transformed to a Second-Piola
stress tensor.

• For theory, see External Stress.

• For details about the different stress measures, see Defining Stress.

1514 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>External Stress
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>External Stress
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>External Stress
Membrane>Hyperelastic Material>External Stress

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic
Material, or Hyperelastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>External Stress

Inelastic Strain Rate

The Inelastic Strain Rate subnode allows you to provide inelastic strain contributions to
the material models Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear
Elastic Material, or Hyperelastic Material on a variety of formats as in External Strain.
Here, however, the inelastic contribution is given as a rate, and the total inelastic
contribution is computed by integrating this rate in time. For the Layered Linear Elastic
Material, the inelastic contribution can be applied to arbitrary layers in a multilayered
membrane when the Composite Materials Module is available.

SHELL PROPERTIES
See the documentation for the Inelastic Strain Rate node in the Layered Shell chapter.

All other settings for the Inelastic Strain Rate node are described in the
documentation for Inelastic Strain Rate in the Solid Mechanics interface.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Inelastic Strain Rate
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Inelastic Strain Rate
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Inelastic Strain Rate
Membrane>Hyperelastic Material>Inelastic Strain Rate

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1515

 Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic
Material, or Hyperelastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Inelastic Strain Rate

Safety
Use the Safety subnode to set up variables which can be used to check the risk of failure
according to various criteria. It can be used in combination with Linear Elastic
Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, and Nonlinear Elastic Material. Four
different variables describing the failure risk are defined, as described in Table 7-11.

You can add any number of Safety nodes to a single material model. The contents of
this feature do not affect the analysis results as such, so you can add Safety nodes after
having performed an analysis, and just do an Update Solution in order to access to the
new variables for result evaluation.
TABLE 7-11: VARIABLES FOR SAFETY FACTOR EVALUATION

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION CRITERION CRITERION

FULFILLED VIOLATED

Failure index, FI For a linear criterion, this is the ratio FI<1 FI>1
between the computed value and the
given limit.
Damage index, DI A binary value, indicating whether DI=0 DI=1
failure is predicted or not. DI is based
on the value of FI.
Safety factor, SF For a linear criterion, this is 1/FI. SF>1 SF<1
Margin of safety, MoS SF-1 MoS>0 MoS<0

For orthotropic and anisotropic failure criteria, the directions are given by the
coordinate system selection in the parent node.

SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is only present when this node is added under Layered Linear Elastic
Material node.

1516 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

Select the layer or layers for which the safety factor variables are to be defined.
TABLE 7-12: LAYER SELECTIONS; SAFETY

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection When Use all layers is not selected.
when the node is added. Only a subset of the layers selected in
the parent can be selected.

Each Safety subnode defines its own set of variables, so there is no interaction if you
add several such nodes with the same selection.

• All other settings for the Safety node are described in the
documentation for Safety in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can describe parameters for the allowable values with a
through-thickness variation by explicitly or implicitly using expressions
containing the extra dimension coordinate as described in Using the
Extra Dimension Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Variables>Safety
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Variables>Safety
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Variables>Safety

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, or Nonlinear
Elastic Material node selected in the model builder tree:

Attributes>Variables>Safety

Damping
Use the Damping subnode to add several types of damping to the material model.
Damping can be used in Time Dependent, Eigenfrequency, and Frequency Domain
studies; for other study types the settings in the Damping subnode are ignored.

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1517

 SHELL PROPERTIES
This section is only present when this node is added under Layered Linear Elastic
Material node.

Select the layer or layers for which this damping model is to be used.
TABLE 7-13: LAYER SELECTIONS; DAMPING

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Same as parent selection When Use all layers is not selected.
when the node is added. Only a subset of the layers selected
in the parent can be selected.

When the damping model differs between layers, you will need to add several Damping
nodes with different layer selections. If the model is the same, and only the material
data values differ, you can for most models use a single Damping node with From
material. The data for each layer is then received from global Layered Material nodes.

• All other settings for the Damping node are described in the
documentation for Damping in the Solid Mechanics interface.
• For a general description of layer and interface selections, see The Shell
Properties and Interface Selection Sections.
• You can describe damping values with a through-thickness variation by
explicitly or implicitly using expressions containing the extra dimension
coordinate as described in Using the Extra Dimension Coordinates.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Membrane>Linear Elastic Material>Damping
Membrane>Layered Linear Elastic Material>Damping
Membrane>Nonlinear Elastic Material>Damping
Membrane>Hyperelastic Material>Damping

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Layered Linear Elastic Material, Nonlinear Elastic
Material, or Hyperelastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Damping

1518 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

Symmetry

This node is available only in 3D. When the model is axisymmetric, use
the Symmetry Plane node instead.

The Symmetry node adds a boundary condition that represents symmetry in the
geometry and in the loads. A symmetry condition is free in the plane and fixed in the
out-of-plane direction. The symmetry plane is formed by the normal to the membrane
surface and the edge tangent.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Specify the coordinate system to use for specifying a symmetry edge. From the
Coordinate system list select from:

• Local edge system (the default).

• Global coordinate system (the standard global coordinate system).
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system.

For details about the definition of local edge systems, see Local Edge
System.

FACE DEFINING THE LOCAL ORIENTATIONS

This section is only shown if the Local Edge System is chosen in the Coordinate System
Selection. If symmetry is prescribed for an edge which is shared between boundaries,
the edge system can be ambiguous. Select the boundary which should define the edge
system. The default is Use face with lowest number.

NORMAL DIRECTION CONDITION

You can allow a symmetry plane to move along its normal direction. This can be used
to model some situations where you want a plane to remain strictly planar but still relax
the property of it being fixed.

From the list, select No displacement, Free Displacement, Prescribed force, or Prescribed
displacement.

The value No displacement gives a standard symmetry condition.

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1519

 Select Free Displacement to allow the symmetry plane to translate in the normal
direction. The displacement is determined by the criterion that there is no resulting
reaction force in the normal direction.

Select Prescribed force to prescribe the total reaction force acting on the direction
normal to the symmetry plane. Enter the Normal force Fn. The force is defined as
positive when acting along the outward normal of the symmetry plane. Setting the
prescribed force to zero gives the same effect as using Free Displacement.

Select Prescribed displacement to prescribe the displacement in the direction normal to

the symmetry plane. Enter the Normal displacement un0. Setting the prescribed
displacement to zero gives the same effect as using No displacement.

• Using Free Displacement, Prescribed force, or Prescribed displacement is

only meaningful if the geometry selection corresponds to a single
symmetry plane.
• When using Free Displacement or Prescribed force, an extra global
degree of freedom is added for determining the displacement in the
normal direction. This degree of freedom will have a name of the type
<component>.<interface>.<symmetry_tag>.un, for example
comp1.mbrn.sym1.un.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

Symmetry Constraints

1520 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

 You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to
a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Membrane>More Constraints>Symmetry

Ribbon
Physics tab with Membrane selected:

Edges>More Constraints>Symmetry

Antisymmetry

This node is available only in 3D.

The Antisymmetry node adds a boundary condition for an antisymmetry boundary. An

antisymmetry condition is fixed in the plane and free in the out-of-plane direction. The
antisymmetry plane is formed by the normal to the boundary and the edge tangent.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Specify the coordinate system to use for specifying a symmetry edge. From the
Coordinate system list select from:

• Local edge system (the default).

• Global coordinate system (the standard global coordinate system).
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system.

For details about the definition of local edge systems, see Local Edge
System.

FACE DEFINING THE LOCAL ORIENTATIONS

This section is only shown if the Local Edge System is chosen in the Coordinate System
Selection. If symmetry is prescribed for an edge which is shared between boundaries,

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1521

 the edge system can be ambiguous. Select the boundary which should define the edge
system. The default is Use face with lowest number.

ANTISYMMETRY
If another coordinate system than the Local edge system is used, select an Axis to use as
symmetry plane normal. Select 1, 2, or 3 for the first, second, or third axis, respectively.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

Symmetry Constraints

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Membrane>More Constraints>Antisymmetry

Ribbon
Physics tab with Membrane selected:

Edges>More Constraints>Antisymmetry

Layered Adiabatic Heating

The Layered Adiabatic Heating node adds the equations for adiabatic heating in layered
membranes caused by abrupt changes in temperature due to fast deformation.

1522 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

The increase in temperature is then defined by solving the distributed equation

ꞏ
C p T =  ah Q h

here,  is the density, Cp is the heat capacity at constant pressure, T is the temperature
field, ah is the coefficient of adiabatic heating, and Qh corresponds to the heat sources
due to mechanical dissipative processes.

Adiabatic heating is only available with some COMSOL products (see https://
www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

If the Composite Materials Module is available, adiabatic heating can be applied to

arbitrary layers. The material properties, orientations, and layer thicknesses are defined
using Layered Material node. The offset, and local coordinate system, in which material
orientations and results are interpreted, is defined by Layered Material Link or Layered
Material Stack node.

Without the Composite Materials Module, only single layer shells and membranes can
be modeled. This is still useful, for example for some multiphysics couplings. For single
layer materials, an ordinary Material node can be used, as long you include a Shell
property group in which, for example, the thickness is given.

• For a general description about layered materials, see Layered Materials

in the documentation for the Composite Materials Module.

BOUNDARY SELECTION
It is only possible to select boundaries which are part of the selection of a layered
material defined in Layered Material Link or Layered Material Stack node.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the layers in which adiabatic heating is to be modeled.
TABLE 7-14: LAYER SELECTION

SELECTION USE ALL LAYERS SELECTION OF INDIVIDUAL LAYERS

Boundary Default when added. When Use all layers is not selected.
Only a subset of the layers selected
in the parent can be selected.

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1523

 If the same layer is selected in two nodes being active on the same boundary, the
contributions will be exclusive

For a general description of this section, see Layer and Interface

Selections in the documentation for the Composite Materials Module.

INITIAL VALUES
Enter the Initial temperature Tini. The default value is 293.15 K.

THERMODYNAMICS
The density  is taken from the material model (Linear Elastic Material or Hyperelastic
Material).

The default Heat capacity at constant pressure Cp uses values From material. For
User defined, enter an expression or value. The default value for the User defined is 0 J/
(kg K).

Enter the Coefficient of adiabatic heating, ah. The default value is 1 (dimensionless),
which means that dissipative processes contribute 100% as heat sources.

Select the Dissipative heat source — Include all dissipative sources or User defined.

The Dissipative heat source list makes it possible to include specific heat sources for the
adiabatic heating. Enter a value or expression for the heat source Qh to include. For
instance, the dissipated energy density due to creep is available under the variable
shell.Wc and due to viscoplasticity under the variable shell.Wvp. Here solid
denotes the name of the physics interface node.

TIME STEPPING
The Backward Euler method is not available with the Layered Shell interface neither
with the Layered Linear Elastic Material nor the Layered Hyperelastic Material in the
Shell and Membrane interfaces.

Domain ODEs
No settings are needed for the Domain ODEs method. However, this method adds
degrees-of-freedom that are solved as part of the general solver sequence. The scaling
of this field can affect the convergence of the overall solution.

1524 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Membrane>More>Layered Adiabatic Heating

Ribbon
Physics tab with Membrane selected:

Boundary>More>Layered Adiabatic Heating

THE MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1525

1526 | CHAPTER 7: MEMBRANE
 8

Beam

This chapter describes the Beam interface, which you find under the Structural
Mechanics branch ( ) when adding a physics interface.

In this chapter:

• Modeling with Beams

• Theory for the Beam Interface
• The Beam Interface

1527
 Modeling with Beams
The Beam Interface theory is described in this section:

• About Beams • Geometric Variables

• In-Plane Beams • Result Evaluation
• 3D Beam • Modeling Stiffeners
• Orientation of the Cross Section • Nonrigid Joints

About Beams
A beam is a slender structure that can be fully described by its cross-section properties
such as area, moments of inertia, and torsional constant. Beams are the choice for
modeling reinforcements in 3D solids and shell structures, as well as in 2D solids under
the plane stress assumption. Naturally, they can also model latticeworks, both planar
and three-dimensional.

Beams can sustain forces and moments in any direction, both distributed and on
individual nodes. The beam’s ends and interconnections can be free, simply supported,
or clamped. In fact, the simplified boundary conditions are usually responsible for
most of the difference that can be found between a beam solution and a full 3D solid
simulation of the same structure. Point constraints on beams are well-behaved, in
contrast to the solid case, and it is possible to use discrete point masses and mass
moments of inertia.

The Beam interface is based on the principle of virtual work. The resulting equation
can equivalently be viewed as a weak formulation of an underlying PDE. The Beam
interface uses special shape function classes to define stresses and strains in the beams
using either Euler-Bernoulli or Timoshenko theory.

In-Plane Beams
Use the Beam interface in 2D to analyze planar lattice works of uniaxial beams.

1528 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

In-plane beams are defined on edges in 2D. They can be used separately or as stiffeners
to 2D solid elements.

VARIABLES AND SPACE DIMENSIONS

The degrees of freedom (dependent variables) are the global displacements u and v in
the global x and y directions and the rotation  about the global z-axis.

3D Beam
Use the Beam interface in 3D to model three-dimensional frameworks of uniaxial
beams.

MODELING WITH BEAMS | 1529

 3D beams are defined on edges in 3D. They can be used separately or as stiffeners to
2D solid or shell elements.

VARIABLES AND SPACE DIMENSIONS

The degrees of freedom (dependent variables) are the global displacements u, v, w in
the global x, y, z directions and the global rotations x, y, and z about the global x-,
y-, and z-axes.

Figure 8-1: The degrees of freedom in the Beam interface

Orientation of the Cross Section

For 3D beams, the orientation of the cross section in the plane perpendicular to the
beam axis is an important property. The bending stiffness of most cross sections is
highly anisotropic. Only a few cross sections, like circular pipes and square sections,
have the stiffness which is the same in all directions. Even in this case, the section
orientation will still usually be important for a correct evaluation and interpretation of
stresses.

1530 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

Any cross section has a local yz coordinate system, which correspond to the two
principal area moments of inertia, Iyy and Izz. Iyy is defined as the moment of inertia
for bending around the y-axis,

z
2
I yy = dA
A

Whether the local y-axis or z-axis is used as the stiffer direction is not important as
such. For the built-in cross sections (H, T, C, hat) the convention is that Izz > Iyy, so
that the local y-axis is the stiffer direction.

There are two methods by which you can supply the cross-section orientation
information. In either case, it is the orientation of the local y-axis that is described.

REFERENCE POINT
When you use the reference point input method, you give the coordinates of a point
in space. The local y-axis is perpendicular to the beam axis and located in the plane
described by the beam element and the given point.

ORIENTATION VECTOR
When using orientation vector input, you provide an approximate direction of the
y-axis. This given vector is then adjusted in the plane given by the beam and vector, so
that a y-axis perpendicular to the beam is obtained.

Once this direction has been established, it is possible to further rotate it around the
beam axis. This is particularly useful for L-shaped sections, where the angle between a
coordinate system aligned with the flanges and the principal axes often is provided in
design tables.

See the documentation of the Section Orientation node for details about
how the local directions are computed from the given input.

Geometric Variables
The beam formulations are based on the assumption that cross-section data are known.
You can either enter them explicitly or, for a number of standard cross sections, get

MODELING WITH BEAMS | 1531

 them computed internally. In Table 8-1 contains a summary of the important
geometric variables used in the Beam interface.
TABLE 8-1: GEOMETRIC VARIABLES IN BEAM INTERFACE.

PROPERTY VARIABLE NAME DESCRIPTION

A beam.area Cross-section area

Izz beam.Izz Moment of inertia around local z-axis
ez beam.ez Distance to shear center in local z direction
y beam.muy Max shear stress factor in local y direction
y beam.kappay Shear correction factor along local y-axis
rgy beam.rgy Radius of gyration, local y direction
Iyy beam.Iyy Moment of inertia around local y-axis
ey beam.ey Distance to shear center in local y direction
z beam.muz Max shear stress factor in local z direction
z beam.kappaz Shear correction factor along local z-axis
rgz beam.rgz Radius of gyration, local z direction
J beam.J_beam Torsional constant
Wt beam.Wt Torsional section modulus
re beam.re Equivalent radius
beam.yBeam1 Stress evaluation point 1, local coordinates
beam.zBeam1
beam.yBeam2 Stress evaluation point 2, local coordinates
beam.zBeam2
beam.yBeam3 Stress evaluation point 3, local coordinates
beam.zBeam3
beam.yBeam4 Stress evaluation point 4, local coordinates
beam.zBeam4

Result Evaluation
The primary results in the Beam interface are the section forces: axial force, shear
forces, bending moment, and twisting moment. The shear forces and bending
moments are oriented along the principal directions as described in the Section
Orientation node.

The formulation of the beam element is such that the variation of axial force, bending
moments, and twisting moment is linear along the element, whereas the shear forces

1532 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

are constant within each element. This means that the solution is exact with any
discretization as long as there are no distributed transverse loads.

When looking at line plots or line graphs of section forces, it is important consider the
type of averaging that is used between elements. In a frame structure, axial forces and
shear forces are continuous as long as two adjacent beams have the same direction. If
two beams, for example, meet a right angle, the shear force in one of them will be the
axial force in the other. In this case, an averaging of section forces at the common point
clearly would be wrong. Similarly, a twisting moment in one of the beams will be a
bending moment in the next.

In the Quality section of the plot, you can control the level of averaging by changing
the Smoothing method.

For details about the settings in the Quality section, see Entering Quality
Settings for Plot Settings Windows.

The default method is Inside material domains. In the Beam interface, two adjacent
edges are considered as part of the same material domain only if they share both
material and cross-section data. In many cases this gives an optimal level of smoothing
since beams that meet at nonzero angles often have different cross sections.

You may however want to use Inside geometry domains instead as smoothing method.
This means that there will be no smoothing at points where a connection may occur.

Since the stresses are functions of the section forces, the same reasoning applies to
stress plots.

Evaluation of stresses in beam elements required special consideration since the stress
field produced by various section forces have different distributions over the cross
section. All that is known in the beam formulation is the peak value of each stress
contribution. Details about how stresses are combined are given in the section Stress
Evaluation. In general, the different contributions to the total stress are combined in
a conservative manner. If you need to study the stress distribution over the cross
section in detail, this can be done using the Beam Cross Section interface.

SHEAR FORCE AND MOMENT DIAGRAMS

A common representation of beam results is to draw diagrams of shear forces and
bending moments on top of the structure. Such diagrams are generated as predefined
plots, and you can add them from the Add Predefined Plot window. They are available
as the group Section Force Diagrams.

MODELING WITH BEAMS | 1533

 The section force diagrams do not use the standard variables for shear forces and
bending moments. These variables, like beam.Tzl and beam.Myl, are constant and
linear, respectively, within each element, as an effect of the finite element formulation.
Rather, a set of variables that are augmented with information about distributed loads
is used. The names of these variables are beam.Tzl_d and beam.Myl_d, for example.
In essence, a numerical integration of the loads is performed along each element up to
the position where a value is requested. The augmented variables have a much
smoother distribution than the standard section forces.

The effect is that you can display good section force diagrams also with a very coarse
mesh. It should however be noted that the numerical integration of the loads has a
limited resolution. This is not a problem for smooth distributed loads, but if you would
add a discontinuous line load with an expression like
q0*(X>1.52[m])*(X<1.54[m]), the load integration may fail to capture it accurately
if the element length is an order of magnitude larger than the 0.02 m over which the
load is distributed. This is seldom a problem in reality, since such a mesh can be
considered as too coarse, and may not even capture the true resultant of such a load.

The section force diagrams are constructed using Arrow Line plots and you may need
to tune them for your model. Here are some hints on how to work with the section
force diagrams:

• The arrows are drawn in the direction of the action. In 3D, this means that
beam.Tzl_d and beam.Myl_d are drawn in one plane, while beam.Tyl_d and
beam.Mzl_d are drawn in the orthogonal plane.

• The coloring of the arrows is chosen so that red indicates a positive quantity and
blue indicates a negative quantity.
• Maximum and minimum value markers are used in the plots. You may want to set a
background color in the Coloring and Style section of the settings for the Max/Min Line
node.

• The number of arrows is, as a default, set to 500. This may be to dense or too coarse
for a certain structure.

Geometric Nonlinearity
For geometrically nonlinear studies with the Beam interface, a corotational
formulation is used. It takes large displacements and rotations into account, but
assumes small strains. This approach differs from what is used in the other structural
mechanics interfaces.

1534 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

The essence of the formulation is that each element in the mesh has a linear
formulation within its own frame, but this frame can translate and rotate. The change
in angle over a single element is assumed to be small. Thus, the number of elements to
use in the mesh will depend on the expected curvature. This stands in strong contrast
to linear beam analysis, where the only a single element is needed for each physical
beam as long as there are no distributed loads.

A consequence of this formulation is that it is not possible to perform prestressed

analysis with the Beam interface.

Modeling Stiffeners
One common use of beams is as stiffeners in shell structures. Ship hulls and aircraft
fuselages, for example, are often built using this technique. An important property
here is the offset between the shell midsurface and the centerline of the attached beam.
To a large extent, it is the tension of the beam rather than its bending that provides the
high stiffness. In order to model this effect, you can use two different approaches:

• Model the beam centerline and shell midsurface at their correct locations. Make sure
that there are edges in the shell geometry placed as imprints under the stiffeners.
The two sets of edges are then connected using suitable couplings.
• Draw only the “imprint” on the shell, and select these edges in the Beam interface.
Connect the degrees of freedom in the two interfaces with a coupling that
mathematically takes the offset into account.

In both cases, you use the Solid-Beam Connection multiphysics coupling, but with
different settings. From the point of solution accuracy, the methods are equivalent.
The latter method is more convenient, but it has the drawback that the beams will be
visualized as being located in the plane of the shell.

Both types of connections are shown in the example Connecting Shells

and Beams: Application Library path Structural_Mechanics_Module/
Beams_and_Shells/shell_beam_connection

Since the beam elements use special shape functions, a connection to another element
type like a shell will not be conforming. Consider a beam attached to a shell element
having the default discretization order (quadratic). There will then be two beam
elements connected to each edge of a shell element. All displacements and rotations in
the shell element are assumed to have a parabolic distribution. In the beam, however,
the axial displacements are linear, while the transverse displacements are represented

MODELING WITH BEAMS | 1535

 by cubic polynomials. An effect of this is that there will be local aberrations in the
forces transferred between the shell and the beam, even though the solution is correct
in an average sense. Because of this, you may see local stress fluctuations.

Nonrigid Joints
As a default, all beams connected at a point are assumed to be rigidly coupled to each
other. Sometimes, this is not the case in a true structure. One common case is the
addition of hinges in a frame to avoid intrinsic stresses caused by for example thermal
expansion or tolerance deviations.

To model such joints, you use the Beam End Release node. In that node, you can
specify that some degrees of freedom are decoupled at a certain point.

USING EDGE GROUPS

If more than two beams are attached to such a point, the decoupling is however not
unique. Consider a case where four beams meet at right angles, and that there is a
hinge at the common point as shown in Figure 8-2. To model the hinge, the
out-of-plane rotation is selected as a decoupled degree of freedom in the Beam End
Release node.

3 1

Figure 8-2: Original configuration.

There are several ways in which a hinge at the common connection point can be
interpreted. Some examples are shown in Figure 8-3 to Figure 8-5. The default
behavior is that all beams are disconnected in terms of rotation, as displayed in
Figure 8-3.

1536 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

 2

1
3

Figure 8-3: All beams are free to rotate relative to each other.

3 1

Figure 8-4: Beam 1 is free to rotate with respect to the other three beams.

MODELING WITH BEAMS | 1537

 2

3
1

Figure 8-5: Beams 1 and 3 rotate as a common part with respect to beams 2 and 4.

If you want to describe non-default types of connections, you need to add one or more
Edge Group subnodes to the Beam End Release node. If just a single beam is
disconnected, as in Figure 8-4, then you need a single edge group in which you select
the other three beams (2, 3, and 4).

To describe the case in Figure 8-5, you add two edge groups. You then select beams 1
and 3 in the first one, and beams 2 and 4 in the second one.

Generally speaking, a beam assigned to an edge group will not have any degrees of
freedom released with respect to other beams in the same group. A beam cannot
belong to more than one edge group.

Stress Analysis of a Portal Crane: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Beams_and_Shells/portal_crane

FINITE ROTATIONS
In a geometrically nonlinear study, there may be finite rotations. In that case, the axis
orientations along which degrees of freedoms are released will be updated based on the
rotation of the beam itself. For the most common type of connections, this will be the
intended behavior.

There are, however, some cases when the orientations can become ambiguous.
Consider, for example, a 2D case where both the X-translation and the out-of-plane
rotation are decoupled where two beams meet. This situation is shown in Figure 8-6.
Since the rotation is now different in the two beams, so is the definition of a rotated
X direction. Depending on the physical arrangement, the translational sliding motion

1538 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

can follow either of the two connected beams. In the section Edge Defining the Local
Direction in the settings for Beam End Release, you can select the edge that controls the
rotation of the coordinate system under finite rotations.

2 2 2

1
1 1

Figure 8-6: From left to right: Original configuration, deformed with X interpreted from
beam 2, and deformed with X interpreted from beam 1.

MODELING WITH BEAMS | 1539

 Theory for the Beam Interface
The Beam Interface theory is described in this section:

• Shape Functions • Hygroscopic Swelling

• Geometric Nonlinearity • Initial Load and Strain
• Strain-Displacement/Rotation • Implementation
Relation • Theory for Section Stiffness
• Stress-Strain Relation • Stress Evaluation
• Thermal Strain • Common Cross Sections

Beam Cross Section

Shape Functions
The beam element has different shape functions for representing the displacements in
different directions.

• The axial extension is represented by a linear shape function.

• The twist around the beam axis (3D only) is represented by a linear shape function.
• The bending displacement and corresponding rotation are represented by cubic
shape functions, usually called Hermitian shape functions. These will supply exact
solutions to the underlying beam equations as long as distributed loads do not vary
with position.

The shape functions for bending depend on whether Timoshenko theory is employed
or not.

In the beam local system, the displacements, u, and rotations, , are interpolated as

1540 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

  
 u1 
 
 u   1 
  =  N   
    u2 
 
 2 
 

where the subscript refers to the two nodes of the element, and N is a matrix of shape
functions.

N1 0 0 0 0 0 N2 0 0 0 0 0
0 N3 0 0 0 N5 0 N4 0 0 0 N6
0 0 N3 0 –N5 0 0 0 N4 0 –N6 0
N =
0 0 0 M1 0 0 0 0 0 M2 0 0
0 0 M3 0 M5 0 0 0 M4 0 M6 0
0 –M3 0 0 0 M5 0 –M4 0 0 0 M6

The shape functions for the Euler-Bernoulli case are expressed in the local coordinate
, ranging from 0 to 1, as

N1 = 1 –  N2 = 
2 3 2 3 2 3 2 3
N 3 = 1 – 3 + 2 N 4 = 3 – 2 N 5 = L   – 2 +   N6 = L  –  +  
M1 = 1 –  M2 = 
6 2 6 2 2 2
M 3 = – ----   –   M 4 = ----   –   M 5 = 1 – 4 + 3 M 6 = – 2 + 3
L L

where L is the length of the beam element.

For the Timoshenko case, the shape functions are modified, so that they depend on
the degree of shear flexibility. Define

12EI zz 24  1 +  I zz
 2 = ----------------------2 = -------------------------------
-
G y AL  y AL 2
12EI yy 24  1 +  I yy
 3 = ---------------------2- = --------------------------------
-
G z AL  z AL 2

which represent the ratios between bending and shear stiffness in the two principal
directions. The shape functions are then modified so that

THEORY FOR THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1541

  N 3 +  i Nˆ 3  ˆ
i i  N4 + i N4 
N 3 = --------------------------------- N 4 = ---------------------------------
1 + i 1 + i
ˆ
i  N5 + i N5  i  N 6 +  i Nˆ 6 
N 5 = --------------------------------- N 6 = ---------------------------------
1 + i 1 + i
ˆ
i  M5 + i M5  i  M 6 +  i Mˆ 6 
M 5 = ---------------------------------- M 6 = ----------------------------------
1 + i 1 + i

where

Nˆ 3 = 1 –  Nˆ 4 = 
ˆ L 2 ˆ L 2
N 5 = ----   –   N 6 = – ----   –  
2 2
ˆ ˆ
M5 = 1 –  M6 = 

The superscript i indicates that the shape functions for bending are no longer the same
in the two principal directions. The shape functions with i  2 are used for bending in
the local y direction, and the shape functions with i  3 are used for bending in the
local z direction.

Geometric Nonlinearity
You can use the beam interface for modeling problems with large displacements and
rotations, but small strains. A so-called co-rotational formulation is used. The
displacement of each individual beam element is decomposed into a rigid body
translation and rotation, and a local response of the rotated element which is linear.

The assumption that the individual element behaves linearly implies that you must use
a fine mesh if the curvature of the deformed beam is large. The difference in rotation
between the endpoints of the individual element must not be larger than it would be
possible to analyze it using linear theory.

Different coordinate systems are needed for describing the beam configurations. The
initial configuration of the beam can be described by a triad of orthogonal unit vectors
0
r i . The first vector is parallel to the beam, and the second and third vectors point in
the local y and z directions, respectively. The origin of the local system is taken to be
the midpoint of the element. This system translates and rotates with the rigid body
motion of the beam, and the new directions of the axes are called r i .

1542 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

The rotation of the beam is represented by rotation vectors, . The rotation at the
midpoint is approximated as the arithmetic mean of the rotations at the nodes,

1 + 2
 M = ------------------
2

The rigid rotation is then represented by a rotation matrix Rr, corresponding to this
midpoint rotation. It is given by

sin  M 1 – cos  M 2
R r = I + --------------------  M + ----------------------------
- M
M 
2
M

where  M is the skew symmetric representation of the midpoint rotation vector.

0 –  Mz  My
M =  Mz 0 –  Mx
–  My  Mx 0

The axis directions of the co-rotated coordinate system can now be computed as

r1 r2 r3 = Rr r0 r0 r0
1 2 3

The position of a point on the rigidly rotated axis of the element can be obtained as

x R = x M + R r  X 2 – X 1    – ---
1
2

where the local coordinate  ranges from 0 to 1, and Xi denotes original node
coordinates. xM is the midpoint position, computed as the average of the two nodes,

1
x M = ---  X 1 + u 1 + X 2 + u 2 
2

In addition to the rigid body motion described so far, there are the local deformational
displacements with respect to the local rotated beam axes. The deformational
displacement can be computed as the difference between the current position and the
rigid body position

u = X + u – xR = u – uR

THEORY FOR THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1543

 Here, and in the following, an overline denotes a deformational quantity. The
deformational rotation at the nodes is approximated by

2 – 1
 1 = – -----------------
2
2 – 1
 2 = -----------------
2

These local deformations are interpolated by the same shape functions as described in
the previous section:

 
 u1 
   
 u   1 
  = N 
    u2 
   
 2 
 

The total displacement and rotation vectors can be expressed in term of the rigid
motion of the local axes, followed by the deformational motion relative to these axes.

u = uR + u

A deformational rotation matrix R can be defined as

R = I+

where  is the skew-symmetric representation of the deformational rotation vector.

The total rotation vector is computed from a total rotation matrix, R. The total
rotation matrix is first composed from the rigid body rotation and the incremental
rotation.

R = RR r

The total rotation vector can now be extracted from the total rotation matrix. The
magnitude of the rotation vector is first computed as

trace  R  – 1
 = acos  ---------------------------------
 2 

The full rotation vector is then computed as

1544 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

 R 32 – R 23

 = ---------------- R 13 – R 31
2 sin 
R 21 – R 12

To avoid singularity problems when the angle is close to zero, the gamma function is
actually used in the expressions, since

 -  
----------- =   1 + ---   1 – ---
sin     

Strain-Displacement/Rotation Relation
The axial strain depends on the rotation derivative (curvature) and axial displacement
derivative defined by the shape function and the transversal coordinate in the beam.
For the 3D case it becomes

 yl  zl u axi
 = z l ----------- – y l ---------- + -------------
s s s

where s is the local coordinate along the beam axis, and uaxi is the axial displacement.
The coordinates from the beam centerline in the local transversal directions are
denoted zl and yl respectively. In the 2D case, the first term is omitted, and the local
z direction is always directed out of the plane.

The total strain  consists of thermal (th), hygroscopic (hs), initial (i), and elastic
strains(el)

 =  el +  th +  hs +  i

Stress-Strain Relation
The stress-strain relation for the axial deformation in the beam is described by

 = E el +  i

where E is Young’s modulus, and i is the initial stress.

The stress strain relation for the torsional and shear deformation is

 = G

THEORY FOR THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1545

 where  is the shear stress,  is the shear strain and G is the shear modulus. Often the
material data is given in terms of Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio , in which case
G is defined as

E
G = ---------------------
21 + 

Thermal Strain
The temperature is assumed to vary linearly across the beam’s cross section. For the
3D beam it becomes

T = T m + T gz z l + T gy y l

where Tm is the temperature at the beam centerline while Tgz and Tgy are the
temperature gradients in the two local transversal directions. The thermal strain is thus

 th =   T m + T gz z l + T gy y l – T ref 

For the 2D beam, the term depending on zl disappears.

Hygroscopic Swelling
The moisture concentration is assumed to vary linearly across the beam’s cross section.
For the 3D beam it becomes

c mo = c m + c gz z l + c gy y l

where cm is the concentration at the beam centerline while cgz and cgy are the
concentration gradients in the two local transversal directions. The strain from
hygroscopic swelling is then

 hs =  h  c m + c gz z l + c gy y l – c mo,ref 

where h is the coefficient of hygroscopic swelling, and cmo,ref is the strain-free

reference moisture concentration.

For the 2D beam, the term depending on zl disappears.

1546 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

Initial Load and Strain
The initial stress means the stress before any loads, displacements, and initial strains
have been applied.

The initial stress distribution is given as initial forces and moments in the local section
directions.


M iyl =  i z l dA
A


M izl = –  i y l dA
A


N i =  i dA
A


M ixl =   ixz y l –  iyz z l  dA
A

In 2D the x- and y-components of moments disappear.

In a Timoshenko beam, the initial shear forces appear as independent quantities, and
can also be specified.


T iyl =  ixy dA
A


T iyl =  ixz dA
A

The initial strain is the strain before any loads, displacements, and initial stresses have
been applied. The initial axial strain distribution is given as initial curvature and initial
axial strain

 yl  zl u axi
 i = z l  ----------- – y l  ---------- +  -------------
 s  i  s  i  s  i

In 2D the zl dependent term disappears. As initial strain for the torsional degree of
freedom, the derivative of the twist angle,

 xl
 ----------
-
 s  i

is used.

THEORY FOR THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1547

 In a Timoshenko beam it is also possible to set the initial values for the shear strains.

Implementation
The implementation is based on the principle of virtual work, which states that the sum
of virtual work from internal strains and external loads equals zero:


T
W =   –  el  + u F dV  = 0
V

The beam elements are formulated in terms of the stress resultants (normal force,
bending moments and twisting moment).

The normal force is defined as

 
N =  dA =  E el +  i  dA =
A A

  z   zl u axi  yl
- + ------------- – z l  ----------
 zl  u axi
- – y l  ---------
  E
yl
----------
- – y l --------- - + ------------- –
 s
l s s   s i   s  i  s  i
A


  T m + T gz z l + T gy y l – T ref  –  h  c m + c gz z l + c gy y l – c mo,ref  +  i dA =


  u axi  u axi  
  E -------------
 s
– ------------- –   T m – T ref  –  h  c m – c mo,ref  dA +  i dA =
 s  i


A A
u axi u axi
EA  ------------- –  -------------  –   T m – T ref  –  h  c m – c mo,ref  + N i
 s  s  i

Because the local coordinates are defined with their origin at the centroid of the cross
section, any surface integral of an odd power of a local coordinate evaluates to zero.

The beam bending moments are defined as

1548 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

 M yl =  zl dA =  zl  Eel + i  dA =
A A
  z   zl u axi  yl
- + ------------- – z l  ----------
 zl  u axi
- – y l  ---------
 zl  E
yl
----------
- – y l --------- - + ------------- –
 l s s s   s i   s  i  s  i
A

  T m + T gz z l + T gy y l – T ref  –  h  c m + c gz z l + c gy y l – c mo,ref  +  i dA =


2  yl   yl 
 zl  s
- – ----------- – T gz –  h c gz dA +  i z l dA =
 E ----------  s  i


A A
 yl  yl
EI yy ----------- –  ----------- – T gz –  h c gz + M iyl
s  s  i

 
M zl = – y l dA = – y l  E el +  i  dA =
A A
  yl  zl u axi  yl  zl u axi
– y l  E  z l ----------- – y l ---------- + ------------- – z l  ----------- – y l  ---------- +  -------------
  s s s  s s s i
A
 i i


–   T m + T gz z l + T gy y l – T ref  –  h  c m + c gz z l + c gy y l – c mo,ref  +  i dA =

 2  zl  zl 
–  y l  E  – ---------- +  ---------- – T gy –  h c gy  dA  –  i y l dA =
 
 s  s  i 
A
  A
 zl  zl
EI zz ---------- –  ---------- + T gy +  h c gy + M izl
s s i

Myl is present only in 3D, and so is the torsional moment Mxl described below. The
torsional stiffness of the beam is defined using the torsional constant J given by

M
J = -------- l
G

In a similar way as for the bending part a torsional moment is then defined as

 xl  xl
M xl = GJ ----------- –  ----------- + M ixl
s s i

Using the beam moment and normal force the expression for the virtual work becomes
very compact:

THEORY FOR THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1549

  yl  zl u axi  xl
W = –  M yl  ----------- + M zl  ---------- + N  ------------- + M xl  ----------- dx
s s s s
L

For 2D, the first and fourth terms are omitted. For the case of Timoshenko beam,
there is also a shear stress contribution added,


W = –  T yl  yl + T zl  zl  dx
L

where the second term is present only in 3D.

A special feature of some unsymmetrical cross sections is that they twist under a
transversal load that is applied to beam centerline. As an example, this would be the
case for a U-profile under self-weight, loaded in the stiff direction. It is only a load
applied at the shear center which causes a pure deflection without twist. This effect can
be incorporated by supplying the coordinates of the shear center in the local coordinate
system (ey, ez). A given transversal load (fxl, fyl, fzl), which is defined as acting along
the centerline, is then augmented by a twisting moment given by

m xl = f yl e z – f zl e y

Theory for Section Stiffness

The Section Stiffness node in the Beam interface allows modeling of beams with
non-homogeneous cross sections by, instead of geometrical and material properties,
directly entering values for the stiffness matrix S.

For a 3D Euler-Bernoulli beam, the relationship between the section forces and the
deformation of the beam is given by

u axi
------------- –  ni
s
N Ni  xl
M xl ----------- –  sixl
+ S s
M ixl
= (8-1)
M yl M iyl  yl
----------- –  siyl
M zl M izl s
 zl
---------- –  sizl
s

1550 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

including initial normal force Ni; moments Mixl, Miyl, and Mizl; normal strain i; and
curvatures sixl siyl, and sizl. Here, S is a 4-by-4 symmetric matrix. For a
homogeneous prismatic beam with isotropic material properties, it is defined as

EA 0 0 0
0 GJ 0 0
S =
0 0 EI yy 0
0 0 0 EI zz

For a 2D Euler-Bernoulli beam, out-of-plane moments are zero, and Equation 8-1
thus simplifies to

u axi
------------- –  ni
+ S s
N Ni
=
M zl M izl  zl
---------- –  sizl
s

with S now being a 2-by-2 symmetric matrix.

For a 3D Timoshenko beam, the relationship between the section forces and the
deformation of the beam is given by

u axi
------------- –  ni
s
N Ni  yl –  iyl
T yl T iyl  zl –  izl
T zl T izl
=  xl
+ S ---------- (8-2)
M xl - –  sixl
M ixl s
M yl M iyl  yl
- –  siyl
----------
M zl M izl s
 zl
---------- –  sizl
s

with S being a 6-by-6 symmetric matrix. The equation now also includes the initial
shear forces Tiyl and Tizl as well as the initial shear strains iyl and izl.

For a 2D Timoshenko beam, out-of-plane forces and moments are zero, and
Equation 8-2 thus simplifies to

THEORY FOR THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1551

 u axi
------------- –  ni
N Ni s
T yl = T iyl + S  yl –  iyl
M zl M izl  zl
- –  sizl
---------
s

with S now being a 3-by-3 symmetric matrix.

Using the section forces, the virtual work for the beam becomes

u axi
W = –  N  ------------- + T yl  yl + T zl  zl
s
L
 xl  yl  zl
+ M xl   ----------- + M yl   ----------- + M zl   ---------- dx
s s s

where only the relevant terms are kept, depending on the beam formulation and the
space dimension.

Stress Evaluation
Since the basic result quantities for beams are the integrated stresses in terms of section
forces and moment, special considerations are needed for the evaluation of actual
stresses.

The normal stress from axial force is constant over the section, and computed as

N
 n = ----
A

The normal stress from bending is computed in four user-selected points (ylk, zlk) in
the cross section as

M yl z lk M zl y lk
 bk = ------------------ – -----------------
I yy I zz

In 2D, only two points, specified by their local y-coordinates are used.

The total normal stress in these points is then

 k =  bk +  n

The peak normal stress in the section is defined as

1552 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

  max = max   k 

When using the built in common cross sections, a special method is used for the
Circular and Pipe sections. Since there are no extreme positions around a circle, a
maximum bending stress is computed as

2 2
d o M yl + M zl
 b, max = -------------------------------------
2I zz

where do is the outer diameter. This stress then replaces the stress from the stress
evaluation points in maximum stress expressions. This ensures that the correct peak
stress is evaluated irrespective of where it appears along the circumference.

The shear stress from twist in general has a complex distribution over the cross section.
The maximum shear stress due to torsion is defined as

M xl
 t, max = -------------
Wt

where Wt is the torsional section modulus. This result is available only in 3D.

The section shear forces are computed in two different ways depending on the beam
formulation. For Euler-Bernoulli theory, the section forces proportional to the third
derivative of displacement, or equivalently, the second derivative of the rotation.

2
  yl
T zl = EI yy -------------
2
s
2
  zl
T yl = – E I zz ------------
2
-
s

where Tzl is available only in 3D. In the case of Timoshenko theory shear force is
computed directly from the shear strain.

The average shear stresses are computed from the shear forces as

T zl
 sz, ave = --------
A
(8-3)
T yl
 sy, ave = --------
A

THEORY FOR THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1553

 Since the shear stresses are not constant over the cross section, the maximum shear
stresses are also available, using section dependent correction factors:

 sz, max =  z  sz, ave

(8-4)
 sy, max =  y  sy, ave

As the directions and positions of maximum shear stresses from shear and twist are not
known in a general case, upper bounds to the shear-stress components are defined as

 xz, max =  sz, max +  t, max

 xy, max =  sy, max +  t, max

The maximum von Mises equivalent stress for the cross section is then defined as

2 2 2
 mises =  max + 3 xy, max + 3 xz, max

Since the maximum values for the different stress components in general occur at
different positions over the cross section, the equivalent stress thus computed is a
conservative approximation.

Common Cross Sections

The cross-section data for the common cross sections can be computed internally in
COMSOL Multiphysics. In this section, the expressions used are summarized.

Beam Cross Section

1554 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

RECTANGULAR SECTION

Figure 8-7: Geometry of a rectangular cross section. The diagram also displays in
COMSOL Multiphysics when this option is selected.

TABLE 8-2: RECTANGULAR SECTION CONSTANTS.

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

A hy hz

Izz 3
hy hz
------------
12
ez 0
y 1.5
y 5/6
Iyy 3
hz hy
------------
-
12
ey 0
z 1.5
z 5/6
J 2 q=
h y h z q  
2 2
 2n – 1 - 
------------------------------ tanh  ------------------------
192q
----------------- 1 –
3   5
  2n – 1 
5  2q 
min(hy/hz, hz/hy)
 n=1 

THEORY FOR THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1555

 TABLE 8-2: RECTANGULAR SECTION CONSTANTS.

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

Wt J q=
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 2  min(hy/hz, hz/hy)
 8 
hy hz q  1 –
  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2 2   2n – 1  
 n = 1   2n – 1  cosh  ------------------------- 
2q

p1 – h y – h z
 --------
 2  2 
- ---------

p2
h –h
-----y- --------z-
2 2 
p3
h h
-----y- -----z-
 2 2
p4 – h y h z
 --------
 2  2
- ------

re hy + hz
------------------
4

BOX SECTION

Figure 8-8: Geometry of a box shaped cross section. The diagram also displays in COMSOL
Multiphysics when this option is selected.

1556 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

TABLE 8-3: BOX SECTION CONSTANTS.

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

A 2  hy tz + hz ty  –4 ty tz

Izz 3 3 2
t z h y + t y  h z – 2t z  t y  h z – 2t z   h y – t y 
-----------------------------------------------
- + -------------------------------------------------------
6 2
ez 0
y 2 2
 h y h z –  h y – 2t y   h z – 2t z  A
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
16t z I zz

y 2h y t z
---------------
A
Iyy 3 3 2
t y h z + t z  h y – 2t y  t z  h y – 2t y   h z – t z 
------------------------------------------------- + -------------------------------------------------------
6 2
ey 0
z 2 2
 h z h y –  h z – 2t z   h y – 2t y  A
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
16t y I yy

z 2h z t y
--------------
A
J 2 2 Thin-walled
2  hy – ty   hz – tz 
----------------------------------------------------- approximation
hy – ty hz – tz
----------------- + ----------------
tz ty

Wt 2  h y – t y   h z – t z   min  t y t z  Thin-walled
approximation
p1 – h y – h z
 --------
- ---------
 2 2 
p2
h –h
-----y- --------z-
2 2 
p3
h h
-----y- -----z-
 2 2

THEORY FOR THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1557

 TABLE 8-3: BOX SECTION CONSTANTS.

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

p4 – h y h z
 --------
- ------
 2 2
re hy + hz
------------------
4

CIRCULAR SECTION

Figure 8-9: Geometry of a circular cross section. The diagram also displays in COMSOL
Multiphysics when this option is selected.

C
TABLE 8-4: CIRCULAR SECTION CONSTANTS.

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

A 2
d o
----------
4
Izz 4
d
---------o-
64
ez 0
y 4
---
3
y 0.9
Iyy I zz

ey 0
z y

1558 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

TABLE 8-4: CIRCULAR SECTION CONSTANTS.

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

z y
J 4
d
---------o-
32
Wt 3
d
---------o-
16
p1 do 
 –--------
- 0
 2 
p2 d o
 0 –--------
-
 2 
p3
d
-----o- 
 2  0

p4
 0 d
-----o-
 2
re d
-----o-
2

PIPE SECTION

Figure 8-10: Geometry of a pipe cross section. The diagram also displays in COMSOL
Multiphysics when this option is selected.

THEORY FOR THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1559

 TABLE 8-5: PIPE SECTION CONSTANTS.

PROPERTY FORMULA REMARKS

A 2 2
  do – di 
---------------------------
4
Izz 4 4
  do – di 
--------------------------
-
64
ez 0
y 3 3
 d o – d i A
------------------------------------
-
12  d o – d i I zz

y di
1 + ------
do

Iyy I zz

ey 0
z y
z y
J
4 4
  do – di 
--------------------------
-
32
Wt 4 4
  do – di 
---------------------------
16d o

p1 –do 
 --------
 2  0
-

p2 – d o
 0 --------
-
 2 
p3
d
-----o- 0
2 

1560 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

TABLE 8-5: PIPE SECTION CONSTANTS.

PROPERTY FORMULA REMARKS

p4
 0 d
-----o-
 2
re d
-----o-
2

H-PROFILE SECTION

Figure 8-11: Geometry of an H-profile cross section. The diagram also displays in
COMSOL Multiphysics when this option is selected.

TABLE 8-6: H-PROFILE SECTION CONSTANTS.

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

A 2h z t y + t z  h y – 2t y 

Izz 3 3 2
2h z t y + t z  h y – 2t y  ty hz  hy – ty 
------------------------------------------------------
- + -----------------------------------
-
12 2
ez 0
y 2
 4h z t y  h y – t y  + t z  h y – 2t y  A
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8t z I zz

y hy tz
-----------
A
Iyy 3 3
2t y h z + t z  h y – 2t y 
----------------------------------------------------
12

THEORY FOR THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1561

 TABLE 8-6: H-PROFILE SECTION CONSTANTS.

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

ey 0
z 2 2
 h z – t z A
--------------------------
8I yy

z 5h z t y
-------------
-
3A
J 3 3 Thin-walled
2t y h z + t z  h y – 2t y 
---------------------------------------------------- approximation
3
Wt J Thin-walled
-----------------------------
-
max  t y t z  approximation

p1 – h y – h z
 --------
 2  2 
- ---------

p2
h –h
-----y- --------z-
2 2 
p3
h h
-----y- -----z-
 2 2
p4 – h y h z
 --------
 2  2
- ------

re hy + hz
------------------
4

1562 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

U-PROFILE SECTION

Figure 8-12: Geometry of a U-profile cross section. Also displays in COMSOL Multiphysics
when this option is selected.

TABLE 8-7: U-PROFILE SECTION CONSTANTS.

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

A h y t z + 2  h z – t z t y

Izz 3 3 2
t z h y + 2t y  h z – t z  t y  h z – t z   h y – t y 
-----------------------------------------------
- + ----------------------------------------------------
12 2
zCG 2
h y t z  2h z – t z  + 2t y  h z – t z 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
2A
ez 2 2
t z t y  2h z – t z   h y – t y 
h z – ---- + ---------------------------------------------------------- – z CG
2 16I zz

y 2 2
 h y h z –  h y – 2t y   h z – t z  A
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
8t z I zz

y hy tz
-----------
A
Iyy
3 3 2
8t y h z + t z  h y – 2t y  + 3t z  h y – 2t y   2h z – t z 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
12
2
– z CG A

ey 0

THEORY FOR THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1563

 TABLE 8-7: U-PROFILE SECTION CONSTANTS.

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

z 2
z CG A
-----------------
2I yy

z 5h z t y
-------------
-
3A
J 3 3 Thin-walled
2t y h z + t z  h y – 2t y 
---------------------------------------------------- approximation
3
Wt J Thin-walled
-----------------------------
-
max  t y t z  approximation

p1 –hy
 --------
- z 
 2  – CG

p2
h
-----y- – z CG
2 
p3
h
-----y- h – z 
 2 z CG
p4 –hy
 -------- 
 2  z – z CG
- h

re hy + hz
------------------
4

T-PROFILE SECTION

Figure 8-13: Geometry of a T-profile cross section. Also displays in COMSOL Multiphysics
when this option is selected.

1564 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

TABLE 8-8: T-PROFILE SECTION CONSTANTS.

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

A h z t y +  h y – t y t z

yCG 2
t z  h y – t y  + t y h z  2h y – t y 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
2A
Izz 3 3 2
4t z  h y – t y  + h z t y + 3t y h z  2h y – t y  2
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- – y CG A
12
ez 0
y 2
y CG A
------------------
2I zz

y hy tz
-----------
A
Iyy 3 3
ty hz + tz  hy – ty 
--------------------------------------------
-
12
ey ty
h y – ---- – y CG
2
z 2 2
 h z – t z A
--------------------------
8I yy

z 4h z t y
--------------
3A
J 3 3 Thin-walled
ty hz + tz  hy – ty 
--------------------------------------------
- approximation
3
Wt J Thin-walled
---------------------------
-
max  t y t z  approximation

p1 t z
 – y  –-------
 CG 2 
p2 h z
 h – y  –--------
-
 y CG 2 

THEORY FOR THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1565

 TABLE 8-8: T-PROFILE SECTION CONSTANTS.

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

p3
 h –y  h
-----z-
 y CG 2 
p3
 – y  t---z-
 CG 2 
re hy + hz
------------------
4

C-PROFILE SECTION

Figure 8-14: Geometry of a C-profile cross section. Also displays in COMSOL Multiphysics
when this option is selected.

TABLE 8-9: C-PROFILE SECTION CONSTANTS.

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

A h y t z + 2  h z – t z t y + 2  w l – t y t l q

Izz q
3 3 3
t z h y + 2t y  h z – t z  + 2  w l – t y t l
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- +
12
2 2
ty  hz – tz   hy – ty  + tl  wl – ty   hy – ty – wl 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2

zCG 2 2 q
h y t z  2h z – t z  + 2t y  h z – t z  + 2  w l – t y t l
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
2A

1566 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

TABLE 8-9: C-PROFILE SECTION CONSTANTS.

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

ez See below the

table
y q
2
 h y t z + 4  h z – t z t y  h y – t y  +
A
4  w l – t y t l  h y – t y – w l   ----------------
8t z I zz

y  h y – 2t y t z q
-----------------------------
-
A
Iyy
3 3 3
t z h y + 8  h z – t z  t y + 8t l  w l – t y 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- +
12
2
3t z h y  2h z – t z 
- – z CG 2 A
------------------------------------------
12

ey 0
z 2
 t y z CG +  w l – t y t l  2z CG – t l  A
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
2t y I yy

z 5h z t y
--------------
3A
J 3 3 3 Thin-walled
t z h y + 2 t y  h z – t z  + 2t l  w l – t y  approximation
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
3
Wt J Thin-walled
------------------------------------
-
max  t y t z t l  approximation

p1 –hy
 --------
- – z CG
 2 
p2
h
-----y- – z CG
2 
p3
h
-----y- h 
 2  z – z CG

THEORY FOR THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1567

 TABLE 8-9: C-PROFILE SECTION CONSTANTS.

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

p4 –hy
 --------
- h z – z CG
 2 
re hy + hz
------------------
4
The expression for the shear center offset is valid only for the case when the thickness
is constant, that is

ty = tz = tl = t

Then

tz N
e z = h z – ---- + ---- – z CG
2 D

where

2 2 3
N = 2  h z – t   6  h y – t   h z – t  + 6  h y – t   2w l – t  – 2  2w l – t  
3 2 2 3
D = 4   h y – t  + 6  h y – t   h z – t  + 3   h y – t   2w l – t   +  2w l – t   +
2
– 12  h y – t   h z – t 

HAT SECTION

Figure 8-15: Geometry of a Hat cross section. Also displays in COMSOL Multiphysics when
this option is selected.

1568 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

TABLE 8-10: HAT SECTION CONSTANTS.

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

A h c t c + 2  h w – t c t w + 2  w f – t w t f

Izz
3 3 3
t c h c + 2t w  h w – t c  + 2  w f – t w t f
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- +
12
2 2
tw  hw – tc   hc – tw  + tf  wf – tw   hc + wf 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2

zCG 2 2
h c t c  2h w – t c  + 2t w  h w – t c  + 2  w f – t w t f
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
2A
ez See below the
table
y
2
 h c t c + 4  h w – t c t w  h c – t w  +
A
4  w f – t w t f  h c + w f   ---------------
8t c I zz

y  h c – 2t w t c
-------------------------------
A
Iyy
3 3 3
t c h c + 8  h w – t c  t w + 8t f  w f – t w 
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- +
12
2
3t c h c  2h w – t c 
-------------------------------------------- – z CG 2 A
12

ey 0
z 2
 t w z CG +  w f – t w t f  2z CG – t f  A
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
2t w I yy

z 5h w t w
-----------------
3A
J 3 3 3 Thin-walled
t c h c + 2 t w  h w – t c  + 2t f  w f – t w  approximation
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
3

THEORY FOR THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1569

 TABLE 8-10: HAT SECTION CONSTANTS.

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

Wt J Thin-walled
------------------------------------
-
max  t y t z t f  approximation

p1  hc + wf – tw 
 –--------------------------------------  – z CG
 2 

 ----------------------------------
hc + wf – tw 
p2
- – z CG
 2 

p3
h
-----y- h 
 2  z – z CG

p4 –hy
 --------
- h z – z CG
 2 
re hy + hz
------------------
4
The expression for the shear center offset is valid only for the case when the thickness
is constant, that is

tc = tw = tf = t

Then

tz N
e z = h w – ---- + ---- – z CG
2 D

where

2 2 3
N = 2  h w – t   6  h c – t   h w – t  + 6  h c – t   2w f – t  – 2  2w f – t  
3 2 2 3
D = 4   h c – t  + 6  h c – t   h w – t  + 3   h c – t   2w f – t   +  2w f – t   +
2
12  h c – t   h w – t 

1570 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

The Beam Interface
The Beam (beam) interface ( ), found under the Structural Mechanics branch ( )
when adding a physics interface, is used for modeling slender structural elements,
having a significant bending stiffness. The formulation allows geometric nonlinearity,
with large rotations and small strains, and beams can be modeled on 2D boundaries
and 3D edges.

Two-noded straight elements with a Hermitian formulation are used. Two different
assumptions about the physics can be used:

• Euler (or Euler-Bernoulli) theory. This formulation is intended for slender beams,
and do not take shear deformations into account.
• Timoshenko theory. In this formulation that extends the beam theory to ‘thick’
beams, shear deformations are taken into account. In a dynamic analysis, inertial
effects from rotation are also included.

Among the computed results are displacements, rotations, stresses, strains, and section
forces. In addition to giving the beam properties explicitly in terms of area, moment
of inertia, and so on, several predefined common cross-section types are available.
Cross-section data to be used in Cross-Section Data settings can be computed using The
Beam Cross Section Interface.

The Linear Elastic Material node is the only available material model.

When this physics interface is added, these default nodes are also added to the Model
Builder: Linear Elastic Material, Cross-Section Data, Free (a condition where points are
free, with no loads or constraints), and Initial Values. Then, from the Physics toolbar,
add other nodes that implement, for example, loads and constraints. You can also
right-click Beam to select physics features from the context menu.

SETTINGS
The Label is the default physics interface name.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the physics
interface. Refer to such physics interface variables in expressions using the pattern
<name>.<variable_name>. In order to distinguish between variables belonging to
different physics interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and
underscores (_) are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first physics interface in the model) is beam.

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1571

 STRUCTURAL TRANSIENT BEHAVIOR
From the Structural transient behavior list, select Include inertial terms (the default) or
Quasistatic. Use Quasistatic to treat the dynamic behavior as quasi static (with no mass
effects; that is, no second-order time derivatives). Selecting this option gives a more
efficient solution for problems where the variation in time is slow when compared to
the natural frequencies of the system. The default solver for the time stepping is
changed from Generalized alpha to BDF when Quasistatic is selected.

This is often the case when the time dependence exists only in some other physics, like
a transient heat transfer problem causing thermal strains.

SKETCH
In the Sketch section, a conceptual sketch of the degrees of freedom in the Beam
interface is shown.

BEAM FORMULATION
Select Euler-Bernoulli or Timoshenko to use the appropriate beam theory. Timoshenko
theory includes the effects of shear flexibility and rotary inertia, and is appropriate for
beams with cross-section dimensions which are large relative to the length of the beam.

AUTOMATED MODEL SETUP

This section will only be displayed if a mesh on NASTRAN® format, containing RBE2
elements, has been imported in an Import node under Mesh. The purpose is to
automatically create rigid connectors from RBE2 elements in the NASTRAN file.

An RBE2 element represents a rigid connection between a set of mesh nodes. This
means that it can, and often does, connect elements from different physics interfaces.

In the drop-down menu in the section title, you can select Create Rigid Connectors from
RBE2. The effect is that one rigid connector will be created for each RBE2 element in
the imported file. This will happen for all physics interfaces in the Interfaces list.
Supported interfaces are: Solid Mechanics, Shell, Beam, and Multibody Dynamics. If
there are RBE2 elements spanning more than one physics interface, they will be
automatically connected.

The created rigid connectors will have point, edge, and boundary selections as inferred
from the nodes in the RBE2 element and the mesh connectivity. The ‘independent
node’ of the RBE2 element is used as center of rotation for the rigid connector.

The Automated Model Setup section is present in the Solid Mechanics, Shell, and Beam
interfaces. In a model that contains several physics interfaces, you should use the

1572 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

automated model setup from only one of them, and make sure that all the involved
interfaces are selected in the Interfaces list.

ADVANCED SETTINGS
You can chose how to group in the solver nodes the extra ODE variables added by
some features.

Select the Rigid connectors check box to group in the solver node the variables added
by the Rigid Connector feature.

The selection made in the Advanced Settings section can be overridden by the settings
in the Advanced section of the Rigid Connector feature.

DISCRETIZATION
The discretization cannot be changed. The element has different shape functions for
the axial and transversal degrees of freedom. The axial displacement and twist are
represented by linear shape functions, while the bending is represented by a cubic
shape function (“Hermitian element”).

DEPENDENT VARIABLES
The Beam interface has these dependent variables (fields):

• The displacement field u, which has two components (u, v) in 2D and three
components (u, v, and w) in 3D.
• The rotation angle , which has one component in 2D (th) and three components
in 3D (thx, thy, and thz).

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1573

 The names can be changed but the names of fields and dependent variables must be
unique within a model.

The dependent variable names remain same in both a geometrically linear

and a geometrically nonlinear analysis. Under geometric nonlinearity, the
dependent variables are however not defined though shape functions. The
equivalent shape function variables are (beam.uLinx, beam.uLiny,
beam.uLinz) and (beam.thLinx, beam.thLiny, beam.thLinz). In this
case, you will see the latter names under Dependent Variables in the Solver
Configurations tree.

If needed, these shape variables can be used to write any extra

contributions in the Beam interface.

If a physics interface that separates the material and spatial frame (Solid
Mechanics is one such example) is added to the model, the coordinate
indices change from (x, y, z) to (X, Y, Z) in the name of these variables.

• Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Beam Interface
• Theory for the Beam Interface

• Channel Beam: Application Library path Structural_Mechanics_Module/

Verification_Examples/channel_beam
• Instability of a Space Arc Frame: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Verification_Examples/
space_frame_instability

Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Beam Interface
The Beam Interface has these boundary, edge, point, and pair nodes available from the
Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics context menu (Mac or Linux users),
or right-click to access the context menu (all users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

1574 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

FEATURES AVAILABLE FROM SUBMENUS
Many features for the Beam interface are added from submenus in the Physics toolbar
groups or context menu (when you right-click the node). The submenu name is the
same in both cases.

The submenus at the Edge level (3D) or Boundary level (2D) are

• Material Models
• Line and Volume Loads
• Mass, Spring, and Damper
• Line Constraints

The submenus at the Point level are

• Connections
• Mass, Spring, and Damper
• More Constraints
• Pairs

LINKS TO FEATURE NODE INFORMATION

These nodes (and subnodes) are described in this section (listed in alphabetical order):

• Antisymmetry • Point Load

• Attachment • Point Load, Free
• Beam End Release • Point Mass
• Cross-Section Data • Point Mass Damping
• Edge Group • Prescribed Displacement/Rotation
• Edge Load • Prescribed Velocity
• External Stress • Prescribed Acceleration
• Hygroscopic Swelling • Rigid Connector
• Initial Stress and Strain • Section Orientation
• Initial Values • Section Stiffness
• Linear Elastic Material • Symmetry
• No Rotation • Thermal Expansion (for Materials)
• Pinned

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1575

 These nodes are described for the Solid Mechanics interface:

• Added Mass • Gravity

• Base Excitation • Linearly Accelerated Frame1
• Bolt Pretension • Predeformation
• Bolt Selection • Rigid Material
• Center of Rotation Nodes • Rotating Frame1
• Damping • Safety
• Fixed Constraint • Spring Foundation
• Free • Spring-Damper
1 This is selected from the Line and Volume Loads submenu for this interface.

If there are subsequent constraints specified on the same geometrical

entity, the last one takes precedence. The exception is that the “Pinned”
and “No Rotation” boundary conditions do not override each other since
the degrees of freedom that they constrain are mutually exclusive.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual see Table 2-4 for links
to common sections and Table 2-5 to common feature nodes. You can
also search for information: press F1 to open the Help window or Ctrl+F1
to open the Documentation window.

Initial Values
The Initial Values node adds an initial values for the displacement field, the velocity
field, the rotations, and the angular velocity. It serves as initial conditions for a transient
simulation or as an initial guess for a nonlinear analysis. In addition to the default Initial
Values node always present in the interface, you can add more Initial Values nodes if
needed.

INITIAL VALUES
Enter values or expressions for the following based on space dimension:

• Displacement field u
du
• Velocity field
dt

1576 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

• Rotation field 
d
• Angular velocity
dt
Context Menus
Beam>Initial Values
Pipe Mechanics>Initial Values

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam or Pipe Mechanics selected:

Edges>Initial Values (3D)

Boundaries>Initial Values (2D)

Cross-Section Data
In the Cross-Section Data node you specify the geometric properties of the beam’s cross
section. In addition, some stress evaluation properties can be defined.

For 3D models, a default Section Orientation subnode is added, in which you specify
the orientation of the principal axes of the section. You can add any number of Section
Orientation subnodes if the same section appears with different spatial orientations in
the structure.

This is required input data.

• Common Cross Sections

• Beam Cross Section

CROSS-SECTION DEFINITION
The default is User defined. Select Common sections to choose from predefined sections.

For User defined go to Basic Section Properties and Stress Evaluation Properties to
continue defining the cross section.

For Common sections select a Section type — Rectangle, Box, Circular, Pipe, H-profile,
U-profile, T-profile, C-profile, or Hat. Then go to the relevant section below to continue

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1577

 defining the section. Each Section type also has a figure showing the section and its
defining dimensions.

For equations and a figure see:

• Rectangular Section
• Box Section
• Circular Section
• Pipe Section
• H-Profile Section
• U-Profile Section
• T-Profile Section
• C-Profile Section
• Hat Section

Examples of how to work with cross sections: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Verification_Examples/channel_beam and
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Beams_and_Shells/pratt_truss_bridge

Rectangle
Enter values or expressions for the following.

• Width in local y direction hy

• Width in local z direction hz

Box
Enter values or expressions for the following.

• Width in local y direction hy

• Width in local z direction hz
• Wall thickness in local y direction ty
• Wall thickness in local z direction tz

Circular
Enter a value or expression for the Diameter do.

1578 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

Pipe
Enter values or expressions for the following.

• Outer diameter do
• Inner diameter di

H-profile, U-profile, or T-profile

Enter values or expressions for the following.

• Section height hy
• Flange width hz
• Flange thickness ty
• Web thickness tz

C-profile
Enter values or expressions for the following.

• Flange width hy
• Flange thickness tz
• Web height hz
• Web thickness ty
• Lip width wl
• Lip thickness tl

Hat
Enter values or expressions for the following.

• Crown width hv
• Crown thickness tc
• Web height hw
• Web thickness tw
• Flange width wf
• Flange thickness tf

BASIC SECTION PROPERTIES

This section is only available if User defined is selected as the Cross-Section

Definition.

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1579

 The following table lists the basic section properties (some apply in 3D only). Enter
values for these properties in the associated fields. The default values correspond to a
circular cross section with a diameter of 0.1 m:

COMMENT DESCRIPTION PARAMETER SI UNIT

2D and 3D Area of cross section A m2

2D and 3D Moment of inertia about local z-axis Izz m4
2D and 3D, Shear correction factor along local y-axis y 1
Timoshenko
beam
3D only Distance to shear center in local z direction ez m
3D only Moment of inertia about local y-axis Iyy m4
3D only Distance to shear center in local y direction ey m
3D only Torsional constant J m4
3D only, Shear correction factor along local z-axis z 1
Timoshenko
beam

For 3D models, the orientation of the cross section is given in Section

Orientation. If the beam’s cross section is a square or circle (solid or tube),
the area moments of inertia are the same independent of direction, so the
beam is totally symmetric and the orientation of the principal axes of the
cross section is not a problem unless you are interested in looking at
results defined using the local coordinate system. Such results are bending
moments, shear forces, local displacements and rotations.

STRESS EVALUATION PROPERTIES

This section is only available if User defined is selected as the Cross-Section

Definition.

Select the Bending stress evaluation points — From section heights (the default) or From
specified points.

Stress evaluation using only section heights is meaningful only when the cross section
is symmetric.

1580 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

The max shear stress factor determines the ratio between the peak and the average
shear stress over the cross section as described by Equation 8-3 and Equation 8-4.

From Section Heights

For From section heights enter values in each field for the following parameters as
needed for the space dimension:

COMMENT DESCRIPTION PARAMETER SI UNIT

2D and 3D Section height in local y direction hy m

2D and 3D Max shear stress factor in local y direction y 1
3D only Section height in local z direction hz m
3D only Torsional section modulus Wt m3
3D only Max shear stress factor in local z direction z 1

From Specified Points

For From specified points enter values in the Evaluation points in local system table as
needed for the space dimension. Then enter the following parameters in the applicable
fields.

COMMENT DESCRIPTION PARAMETER SI UNIT

2D and 3D Max shear stress factor in local y direction y 1

3D only Torsional section modulus Wt m3
3D only Max shear stress factor in local z direction z 1

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Cross-Section Data

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam selected:

Edges>Beam>Cross-Section Data

Section Orientation
Use the Section Orientation subnode to define the orientation of a beam cross section
using a reference point or an orientation vector. There is always one Section Orientation
subnode for each cross section, and as many Section Orientation subnodes as needed

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1581

 can be added if the same section appears with different spatial orientations in the
structure.

This node is available for 3D components.

ORIENTATION METHOD
Select the Reference point (the default) or Orientation vector. For Reference point enter
a Reference point defining local y direction P.

The coordinate system is defined as follows:

The local x direction is in the edge direction. The positive edge direction can be
checked by vector plotting the local edge tangent direction. The coordinates of the
reference point define the local xy-plane together with the beam axis. The local
coordinate system (exl, eyl, ezl) is formed using the following algorithm:

v zl = e xl   p – m 

v zl
e zl = ----------
v zl

e yl = e zl  e xl

Here, p is the reference point, and m is the midpoint of the beam element. The
definition of the local coordinate system is illustrated in Figure 8-16.

Figure 8-16: Local beam coordinate system defined by a reference point.

1582 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

For the creation of a local coordinate system to be possible, the point cannot coincide
with the edge or the edge extension. If this is attempted, an error message is generated.

The settings for the global coordinates of the point are

[1000,1000,1000]. This is useful only for symmetric cross sections.

Often a number of edges in a plane have the same orientation. It is then easy to select
all edges and specify a point anywhere in the same plane, not coinciding with an edge
or an edge extension.

For Orientation vector enter Orientation vector defining local y direction, V, and
optionally the Rotation of vector around beam axis  . The beam orientation is defined
similarly to what is described above, with the difference that in this case the direction
vector is explicitly defined whereas when an orientation point is used, the direction
vector is obtained as the vector from the beam axis to the specified point. The local
coordinate system (exl, eyl, ezl) is formed using the following algorithm:

v zl = e xl  V

v zl
e zl = ----------
v zl

e yl = e zl  e xl

The Rotation of vector around beam axis has the effect of rotating the given vector
around the beam axis (using the right-hand rule) before it is used to define the local
xy-plane. This simplifies the input for some cross sections, such as L-shaped profiles,
where the principal axes have a direction which is skewed relative to a more natural
modeling position. This can be written as

e yl = e' yl cos  – e' zl sin 

e zl = e' zl cos  + e' yl sin 

Here the directions denoted with a prime are unrotated beam axis orientations
obtained by the procedure described above.

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1583

 LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Cross-Section Data>Section Orientation
Beam>Section Stiffness>Section Orientation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Cross-Section Data or Section Stiffness node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Section Orientation

Linear Elastic Material

The Linear Elastic Material node adds the equations for a linear elastic beam and an
interface for defining the elastic material properties.

By adding the following subnodes to the Linear Elastic Material node you can
incorporate many other effects:

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials)

• Hygroscopic Swelling
• Initial Stress and Strain
• External Stress
• Safety
• Damping

LINEAR ELASTIC MATERIAL

Define the linear elastic material properties.

Specification of Elastic Properties for Isotropic Materials

From the Specify list, select a pair of elastic properties for an isotropic material. Select:

• Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio to specify Young’s modulus (elastic modulus) E
and Poisson’s ratio . Poisson’s ratio is used for computing the torsional stiffness,
and is thus important only for 3D beams.
• Young’s modulus and shear modulus to specify Young’s modulus (elastic modulus) E
and the shear modulus G. The shear modulus is used for computing the torsional
stiffness, and is thus important only for 3D beams.
• Bulk modulus and shear modulus to specify the bulk modulus K and the shear
modulus G.

1584 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

• Lamé parameters to specify the Lamé parameters  and .
• Pressure-wave and shear-wave speeds to specify the pressure-wave speed
(longitudinal wave speed) cp and the shear-wave speed (transverse wave speed) cs.

This is the wave speed for a solid continuum. In a truss or beam element,
the actual speed with which a longitudinal wave travels is lower than the
value given. When using this type of input the density must also be given.

For each pair of properties, select from the applicable list to use the value From material
or enter a User defined value or expression.

Each of these pairs define the elastic properties, and it is possible to convert from one
set of properties to another.

Density
Define the Density  of the material. Select From material to take the value from the
material or User defined to enter a value for the density.

The density is needed for dynamic analysis or when the elastic data is given
in terms of wave speed. It is also used when computing mass forces for
gravitational or rotating frame loads, and when computing mass
properties (Computing Mass Properties).

Thermally Loaded Beam: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Verification_Examples/thermally_loaded_beam

GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
If a study step is geometrically nonlinear, the default behavior is to use a large rotation
formulation for all edges. Select the Geometrically linear formulation check box to
always use a small rotation formulation for the edges that have this material assigned,
irrespective of the setting in the study step.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Material Models>Linear Elastic Material

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1585

 Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam selected:

Edges>Material Models>Linear Elastic Material (3D)

Boundaries>Material Models>Linear Elastic Material (2D)

Thermal Expansion (for Materials)

Use the Thermal Expansion subnode to add an internal thermal strain caused by changes
in temperature. The thermal strain depends on the coefficient of thermal expansion
(CTE) , the temperature T, and the strain-free reference temperature Tref as

 th =   T – T ref 

It is possible to model bending due to a temperature gradient in the transverse

directions of the beam. The temperature is then assumed to vary linearly through the
thickness.

MODEL INPUTS
The Volume reference temperature Tref is the temperature at which there are no thermal
strains. As a default, the value is obtained from a Common model input. You can also
select User defined to enter a value or expression for the temperature locally.

From the Temperature T list, select an existing temperature variable from a heat transfer
interface. For User defined enter a value or expression for the temperature (the default
is 293.15 K). This is the centerline temperature of the beam, controlling the axial part
of the thermal expansion.

See also

• Using Common Model Input

• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.
• Temperature-Dependent Material Data

THERMAL EXPANSION PROPERTIES

Specify the thermal properties that define the thermal strain.

1586 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

From the Coefficient of thermal expansion, , list, select From material to use the
coefficient of thermal expansion from the material, or User defined to enter a value or
expression for .

THERMAL BENDING
Enter the Temperature gradient in local y direction Tgy (in 2D and 3D) and in the
Temperature gradient in local z direction Tgz (in 3D), which affects the thermal
bending. If beam cross-section dimensions have been defined at Bending stress
evaluation points — From section heights, these could be used in an expression
containing the temperature difference.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Linear Elastic Material>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Hygroscopic Swelling
Hygroscopic swelling is an internal strain caused by changes in moisture content. This
strain can be written as

 hs =  h  c mo – c mo,ref 

where h is the coefficient of hygroscopic swelling, cmo is the moisture concentration,

and cmo,ref is the strain-free reference concentration. It is possible to model bending
due to a concentration gradient in the transverse directions of the beam. The
concentration is then assumed to vary linearly through the thickness.

MODEL INPUTS
From the Concentration c list, select an existing concentration variable from another
physics interface, if any concentration variables exist. For User defined enter a value or
expression for the concentration. This is the centerline concentration of the beam,
controlling the axial part of the hygroscopic swelling.

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1587

 The unit for the input depends on the setting of Concentration type in the Hygroscopic
Swelling Properties section. Only concentration variables having the chosen physical
dimension are available in the Concentration list.

HYGROSCOPIC SWELLING PROPERTIES

In the Concentration type list, select Molar concentration (the default) or Mass
concentration, depending on the units used for the concentration.

Enter a Strain reference concentration cref. This is the concentration at which there are
no strains due to hygroscopic swelling.

If Molar concentration is selected as Concentration type, also enter the Molar mass of the
fluid, Mm. The default value is 0.018 kg/mol, which is the molar mass of water.

The default Coefficient of hygroscopic swelling h uses values From material. For
User defined select Isotropic (the default), Diagonal, or Symmetric to enter one or more
components for a general coefficient of hygroscopic swelling tensor h. The default
value for the User defined case is 1.5e-4 m3/kg.

HYGROSCOPIC BENDING
Enter the Concentration gradient in local y direction cgy (in 2D and 3D) and in the
Concentration gradient in local z direction cgz (in 3D), which affects the hygroscopic
bending. If beam cross-section dimensions have been defined at Bending stress
evaluation points — From section heights, these could be used in an expression
containing the concentration difference.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Linear Elastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Hygroscopic Swelling

Initial Stress and Strain

You can add the Initial Stress and Strain to a Linear Elastic Material, Section Stiffness, or
Fluid and Pipe Properties node, in order to specify the stress or strain state in the

1588 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

structure before applying any constraint or load. The values given are not initial values
in the mathematical sense, but rather a contribution to the constitutive relation.

In many cases Initial Stress and Strain and External Stress are
interchangeable when prescribing stresses, but you can find some more
options in the latter.

INITIAL STRESS
Specify the initial stress as the:

• Initial axial force Ni.

• Initial bending moment Miz and for 3D models, Miy.
• For 3D models: Initial torsional moment Mix.
• For Timoshenko beam: Initial shear force Tiy and for 3D models, Tiz.

INITIAL STRAIN
Specify the initial strain as the:

• Initial axial strain eni.

• Initial curvature siz and for 3D models, and siy.
• For 3D models: Initial twist six.
• For Timoshenko beam: Initial shear strain siy and for 3D models, siz.

For details about initial stresses and strains, see Inelastic Strain
Contributions and Initial Stresses and Strains.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Linear Elastic Material>Initial Stress and Strain
Beam>Section Stiffness>Initial Stress and Strain
Pipe Mechanics>Fluid and Pipe Properties>Initial Stress and Strain

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Section Stiffness, or Fluid and Pipe Properties
node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Initial Stress and Strain

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1589

 External Stress
You can add the External Stress subnode to a Linear Elastic Material, Section Stiffness, or
Fluid and Pipe Properties node, in order to specify an additional stress contribution
which is not part of the constitutive relation. The external stress can be added to the
total stress tensor, or act only as an extra load contribution.

In many cases External Stress and Initial Stress and Strain are
interchangeable when prescribing stresses. In Initial Stress and Strain, the
given stress is however always added to the stress tensor.

EXTERNAL STRESS
Specify the external stress as section forces:

• External axial force Next.

• External bending moment Mz,ext and for 3D models, My,ext.
• For 3D models: External torsional moment Mx,ext.
• For Timoshenko beam: External shear force Ty,ext and for 3D models, Tz,ext.

For each quantity, you can select User defined, in which case you enter values or
expressions explicitly. The lists will also contain any section forces announced from a
physics interface.

Selecting section forces announced by the same physics interface as where

the External Stress node is added, will result in an error (‘Circular
variable dependency detected’). This operation would imply that
the computed force depends on itself.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Linear Elastic Material>External Stress
Beam>Section Stiffness>External Stress
Pipe Mechanics>Fluid and Pipe Properties>External Stress

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material, Section Stiffness, or Fluid and Pipe Properties
node selected in the model tree:

1590 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

Attributes>External Stress

Section Stiffness
The Section Stiffness material model provides a way of directly entering the stiffness of
a beam cross-section without direct knowledge of the geometry or materials used. It
provides a method for entering data for complex geometries and cross-sections made
of multiple materials. This is done by specifying the equivalent stiffness of the
cross-section, as well as several other cross-sectional properties such as mass and mass
moments of inertia.

Since only the stiffness is known, but not the cross-section geometry, it is not possible
to deduce any sectional stresses. You can, however, provide an expression for stress
computation based on the computed section forces.

For 3D models, a default Section Orientation subnode is added, in which you specify
the orientation of the principal axes of the section. You can add any number of Section
Orientation subnodes if the same section appears with different spatial orientations in
the structure.

By adding the following subnodes to the Section Stiffness node you can incorporate
other effects:

• Initial Stress and Strain

• External Stress
• Damping

SECTION PROPERTIES
Specify the components of the Stiffness matrix, S. The matrix is always assumed to be
symmetric, but the number of components required vary depending on the beam
formulation and the space dimension:

• For a 3D Euler-Bernoulli beam, enter the 4-by-4 matrix. The columns, in order,
correspond to the axial force N, torsional moment Mxl, and bending moments Myl
and Mzl. The rows, in order, correspond to the axial strain n, axial twist xl, and
bending curvatures yl and zl.
• For a 2D Euler-Bernoulli beam, enter the 2-by-2 matrix. The columns, in order,
correspond to the axial force N and bending moments Mzl. The rows, in order,
correspond to the axial strain n, and curvature zl.

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1591

 • For a 3D Timoshenko beam, enter the 6-by-6 matrix. The columns, in order,
correspond to the axial force N, shear forces Tyl and Tzl, torsional moment Mxl, and
bending moments Myl and Mzl. The rows, in order, correspond to the axial strain
n, shear strains yl and zl, axial twist xl, and bending curvatures yl and zl.
• For a 2D Timoshenko beam, enter the 3-by-3 matrix. The columns, in order,
correspond to the axial force N, shear force Tyl, and bending moment Mzl. The
rows, in order, correspond to the axial strain n, shear strain yl, and bending
curvature zl.

In 3D, enter also the Distance to shear in local z direction, ez, and the Distance to shear
center in local y direction, ey. These two inputs can be used to specify a distance
between the center of mass and the shear center of the cross-section. If the inputs are
non-zero, an applied edge load will also create a twisting moment on the cross-section.

Specify the Mass per unit length, mL, and the Mass moment of inertia per unit length,
Im, of the beam in order to define the inertial forces. In 2D, only the Mass moment of
inertia per unit length, zz-component, Im,zz, is needed.

In addition, specify the First moment of mass per unit length, local y-component, m1y,
and the First moment of mass per unit length, local z-component, m1z, if the modeled
point does not coincide with the center of mass; otherwise keep these inputs equal to
zero.

The inertia inputs are needed only for dynamic analysis. They are also used
when computing mass forces for gravitational or rotating frame loads, and
when computing mass properties (Computing Mass Properties).

GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
If a study step is geometrically nonlinear, the default behavior is to use a large rotation
formulation for all edges. Select the Geometrically linear formulation check box to
always use a small rotation formulation for the edges that have this material assigned,
irrespective of the setting in the study step.

STRESS EVALUATION PROPERTIES

If you want a certain stress value to be computed, you can enter a linear relation
between section forces and stress here.

Enter the Evaluation factors in local system. In 3D, there are four evaluation points
available in the cross-section. The second column in the table corresponds to the
coefficient for the axial force N, the third to the bending moment around the local

1592 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

y-axis Myl, and the fourth to the bending moment around the local z-axis Mzl. In 2D,
there are two evaluation points available in the cross-section. Only the coefficients for
the normal force and the bending moment around the local z-axis Mzl are required.

In addition, in 3D enter a Twisting moment factor, ST, a Shear force factor, local y
direction, SSy, and a Shear force factor, local z direction, SSz. In 2D, only the Shear force
factor, local y direction is needed.

By default, the table and the additional stress evaluation factors are populated with
coefficients that correspond to a fictitious rectangular cross-section made of a single
homogeneous material. The evaluation points then correspond to the four corners of
the cross-section.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Material Models>Section Stiffness

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam selected:

Edges>Material Models>Section Stiffness (3D)

Boundaries>Material Models>Section Stiffness (2D)

Prescribed Displacement/Rotation
The Prescribed Displacement/Rotation node adds an edge (3D), boundary (2D), or
point (2D and 3D) condition where the displacements and rotations are prescribed in
one or more directions. It is also possible set maximum and minimum limits for the
displacements, so that for example a one-sided support can be modeled.

• If a prescribed displacement is not activated in any direction, this is the

same as a Free constraint.
• If zero displacements and rotations are prescribed, this is the same as a
Fixed Constraint.
• If only zero displacements are prescribed, this is the same as a Pinned
constraint.
• If only zero rotations are prescribed, this is the same as a No rotation
constraint.

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1593

 COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION
Specify the coordinate system to use for specifying the prescribed displacement/
rotation. See the section Coordinate System Selection for Edge Load.

PRESCRIBED DISPLACEMENT
For the displacement in each direction, select a setting from the list — Free, Prescribed,
or Limited. Select:

• Free (the default) to leave the displacement component unconstrained

• Prescribed to constrain the displacement component to a given value. Enter a scalar
value for the component of the prescribed displacement u0.
• Limited to set a maximum and a minimum limit for the displacement component.
Enter a scalar value for the component of the maximum displacement u0,max and
the minimum displacement u0,min. By default, they are set to Inf and -Inf, which
corresponds to no active constraint.

If any displacement component is set to Limited, an additional section Limited

displacement is visible. Select the Method used to implement the weak inequality
constraint — Penalty or Augmented Lagrangian. For both methods, enter a Penalty
factor kp.

By default, the Penalty method is suggested, which in principle enforces the maximum
and minimum limits for the displacement by adding nonlinear springs with a stiffness
equal to kp when the limits are exceeded. This method is usually robust, but the
accuracy is directly dependent on the chosen penalty factor.

The Augmented Lagrangian method adds extra degrees of freedom to improve the
accuracy of the constraint. Here, the penalty factor is a numerical parameter, and has
less impact on the accuracy of the constraint compared to when using the penalty
method. The implementation of the augmented Lagrangian method puts no

1594 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

restrictions on the solver sequence, but for good convergence, proper scaling of the
extra degrees of freedom can be important.

The default value for the Penalty factor kp depends on what type of entity
the Prescribed Displacement/Rotation node is added to.

• For points, the default expression is

100*beam.Eequ*beam.area*beam.re^2/beam.<tag>.charLen^3

• For edges, the default expression is

100*beam.Eequ*beam.area*beam.re^2/beam.<tag>.charLen^4

In these expressions, beam is the tag of the Beam interface and <tag> is
the tag of the Prescribed Displacement/Rotation node. The expressions are
given as an estimation to the bending stiffness of the beam, where
beam.Eequ is the equivalent Young’s modulus, beam.re is the equivalent
radius of gyration, and beam.area is the cross-section area. The variable
beam.<tag>.charLen is by default equal to the length of the mesh
element. To improve the estimate of the penalty factor, replace
beam.<tag>.charLen with the free length of the beam. The penalty
factor can also be tuned by changing the multiplier at the beginning of
each expression.

For details about maximum and minimum limits for the displacements,
see Limited Displacement.

PRESCRIBED ROTATION

For 2D models, to define a prescribed rotation select the Prescribed in out

of plane direction check box and enter a value or expression for 0z.

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1595

 For 3D models, select a prescribed rotation from the list — Free or
Rotation. Select:

• Free (the default) to leave the rotations unconstrained.

• Rotation to activate a prescribed rotation. Enter values or expressions
for the prescribed rotation vector . When the study is geometrically
linear, you directly prescribe the individual components of the rotation
vector. Under For geometric linearity, select one or several of the Free
rotation around x direction, Free rotation around y direction, and Free
rotation around z direction check boxes to remove the constraint for the
corresponding rotation component. If unchecked, the rotations are
constrained to either the input value or to the default zero rotation.
The status of the check boxes has no effect when geometric
nonlinearity is activated under the study settings. This is because the
constraints put on different rotation components are not independent
of each other in the case of finite rotations. Here,  should be
interpreted as a rotation vector in the given coordinate system. The
norm of the vector is the angle of rotation, and the orientation of the
axis of rotation is given by the vector components.

In a geometrically nonlinear analysis in 3D, you should prescribe all three

components of the rotation vector. Prescribing only one or two
components may not give unique results, since finite rotations are not
commutative.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

1596 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

 • You can add a Harmonic Perturbation subnode for specifying a
harmonic variation of the values of the prescribed displacements in a
frequency domain analysis of perturbation type.
• You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it
to a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics
Modeling chapter.
• You can assign the value of the prescribed displacement to a load
group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Line Constraints>Prescribed Displacement
Beam>Prescribed Displacement (Point)
Pipe Mechanics>Line Constraints>Prescribed Displacement
Pipe Mechanics>Prescribed Displacement (Point)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam or Pipe Mechanics selected:

Edges>Line Constraints>Prescribed Displacement (3D)

Boundaries>Line Constraints>Prescribed Displacement (2D)
Points>Beam>Prescribed Displacement

Prescribed Velocity
The Prescribed Velocity node adds an edge (3D), boundary (2D), or point (2D and
3D) that prescribes the translational or rotational velocity in one or more directions.
The prescribed velocity condition is applicable for Time Dependent and Frequency
Domain studies. With this condition it is possible to prescribe a velocity in one
direction, leaving the beam free in the other directions.

The Prescribed Velocity node is a constraint, and overrides any other constraint on the
same selection.

For details about prescribed velocities and accelerations, see Prescribed

Displacements, Velocities, and Accelerations.

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1597

 COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Coordinate systems with directions that change with time should not be
used.

Specify the coordinate system to use for specifying the prescribed translational/
rotational velocity. See the section Coordinate System Selection for Edge Load.
Depending on the selected coordinate system, the velocity components change
accordingly.

PRESCRIBED VELOCITY
Select one or all of the Prescribed in x direction, Prescribed in y direction, and for 3D
models, Prescribed in z direction check boxes. Then enter a value or expression for vx,
vy, and for 3D models, vz.

PRESCRIBED ANGULAR VELOCITY

For 2D models, to define a prescribed angular velocity select the

Prescribed in out of plane direction check box and enter a value or
expression for 0zt.

For 3D models, to define a prescribed angular velocity for each space

direction (x, y, and z), select one or all of the Prescribed around x direction,
Prescribed around y direction, and Prescribed around z direction check
boxes and enter a value or expression for in each 0xt, 0yt, or 0z
t field.

• You can add a Harmonic Perturbation subnode for specifying a

harmonic variation of the values of the prescribed velocity in a
frequency domain analysis of perturbation type.
• Prescribed Velocity cannot be used as a weak constraint.

Location in User Interface

Context Menus
Beam>Line Constraints>Prescribed Velocity
Beam>More Constraints>Prescribed Velocity (Point)

1598 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

Pipe Mechanics>Line Constraints>Prescribed Velocity
Pipe Mechanics>More Constraints>Prescribed Velocity (Point)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam or Pipe Mechanics selected:

Edges>Line Constraints>Prescribed Velocity (3D)

Boundaries>Line Constraints>Prescribed Velocity (2D)
Points>More Constraints>Prescribed Velocity

Prescribed Acceleration
The Prescribed Acceleration node adds a boundary or domain condition where the
acceleration is prescribed in one or more directions. The prescribed acceleration
condition is applicable for Time Dependent and Frequency Domain studies. With this
boundary condition it is possible to prescribe an acceleration in one direction, leaving
the beam free in the other directions.

The Prescribed Acceleration node is a constraint, and overrides any other constraint on
the same selection.

For details about prescribed velocities and accelerations, see Prescribed

Displacements, Velocities, and Accelerations.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Coordinate systems with directions that change with time should not be
used.

Specify the coordinate system to use for specifying the prescribed translational/
rotational acceleration. See the section Coordinate System Selection for Edge Load.
Depending on the selected coordinate system, the acceleration components change
accordingly.

PRESCRIBED ACCELERATION
Select one or all of the Prescribed in x direction, Prescribed in y direction, and for 3D
models, Prescribed in z direction check boxes. Then enter a value or expression for ax,
ay, and for 3D models, az.

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1599

 PRESCRIBED ANGULAR ACCELERATION

For 2D models, to define a prescribed angular acceleration select the

Prescribed in out of plane direction check box and enter a value or
expression for 20zt2.

For 3D models, to define a prescribed angular acceleration for each space

direction (x, y, and z), select one or all of the Prescribed around x direction,
Prescribed around y direction, and Prescribed around z direction check
boxes and enter a value or expression for in each 20xt2, 20yt2, or
2 t2 field.
0z

• You can add a Harmonic Perturbation subnode for specifying a

harmonic variation of the values of the prescribed acceleration in a
frequency domain analysis of perturbation type.
• Prescribed Velocity cannot be used as a weak constraint.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Line Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration
Beam>More Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration (Point)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam selected:

Edges>Line Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration

Points>More Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration

Context Menus
Beam>Line Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration
Beam>More Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration (Point)
Pipe Mechanics>Line Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration
Pipe Mechanics>More Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration (Point)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam or Pipe Mechanics selected:

Edges>Line Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration (3D)

1600 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

Boundaries>Line Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration (2D)
Points>More Constraints>Prescribed Acceleration

Pinned
The Pinned node adds an edge (3D), boundary (2D), or point (2D and 3D) condition
that makes all nodes on the selected objects to have zero displacements; that is, all
translations are fixed while still allowing rotations.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Line Constraints>Pinned (Line)
Beam>Pinned (Point)
Pipe Mechanics>Line Constraints>Pinned (Line)
Pipe Mechanics>Pinned (Point)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam or Pipe Mechanics selected:

Edges>Line Constraints>Pinned (3D)

Boundaries>Line Constraints>Pinned (2D)
Points>Beam>Pinned

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1601

 Thermal Expansion (for Constraints)
Add the Thermal Expansion subnode to a constraint (Fixed or Prescribed Displacement)
to prescribe a deformation of the constraint caused by changes in temperature of the
surroundings. This makes it possible to reduce stresses caused by the boundary
conditions.

The thermal strain depends on the coefficient of thermal expansion , the temperature
T, and the strain-free reference temperature Tref as

 th =   T – T ref 

THERMAL EXPANSION PROPERTIES

Specify the thermal properties that define the thermal strain. This is a description of
the thermal expansion of surroundings idealized by the constraints.

Select Inherit from edge to take the thermal expansion data from the edge being
constrained. This should only be used when:

• The temperature and the thermal expansion coefficient do not have a spatial
variation.
• The virtual surrounding material has the same thermal expansion as the edge itself.

When Inherit from edge is not selected, enter:

• A value or expression for Temperature T, specifying the temperature distribution of

the surrounding material. Any spatial variation must be an explicit function of the
material frame coordinates. It is not possible to use a computed temperature
distribution.
• The Coefficient of thermal expansion . As a default, values From material are used.
This requires that a material has been assigned to the points where the constraint is
active.
For User defined enter the coefficient of thermal expansion .
• A value or expression for the Volume reference temperature Tref which is the
temperature at which there are no thermal displacements at the constraints.

Enter the coordinates of the Reference point, the point where the displacement and
rotation are zero. The choice of reference point only affects the rigid body motion. If

1602 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

there are several different constraints with a Thermal Expansion subnode, the same
reference point should usually be selected in all of them.

• Constraints and Thermal Expansion in the Structural Mechanics

Modeling chapter.
• Thermal Expansion of Constraints in the Structural Mechanics Theory
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Fixed>Thermal Expansion
Beam>Prescribed Displacement>Thermal Expansion
Pipe Mechanics>Fixed>Thermal Expansion
Pipe Mechanics>Prescribed Displacement>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Fixed or Prescribed Displacement node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

No Rotation
The No Rotation node adds an edge (3D), boundary (2D), or point (2D and 3D)
condition that prevents all rotation at the selected objects while still allowing
translational motion.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1603

 You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to
a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Line Constraints>No Rotation (Line)
Beam>More Constraints>No Rotation (Point)
Pipe Mechanics>Line Constraints>No Rotation (Line)
Pipe Mechanics>More Constraints>No Rotation (Point)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam or Pipe Mechanics selected:

Edges>Line Constraints>No Rotation (3D)

Boundaries>Line Constraints>No Rotation (2D)
Points>More Constraints>No Rotation

Symmetry
The Symmetry node adds an edge (3D), boundary (2D), or point (2D and 3D)
condition that defines asymmetry edge, boundary, or point.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Specify the coordinate system to use for specifying the orientation of the symmetry
plane. See the section Coordinate System Selection for Edge Load.

SYMMETRY
Select an Axis to use as symmetry plane normal to specify the direction of the normal to
the symmetry plane in the selected coordinate system.

• For 2D models, select 1 or 2 for the first or second axis, respectively.

• For 3D models, select 1, 2, or 3 for the first, second, or third axis, respectively.

NORMAL DIRECTION CONDITION

You can allow a symmetry plane to move along its normal direction. This can be used
to model some situations where you want a plane to remain strictly planar but still relax
the property of it being fixed.

1604 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

From the list, select No displacement, Free Displacement, Prescribed force, or Prescribed
displacement.

The value No displacement gives a standard symmetry condition.

Select Free Displacement to allow the symmetry plane to translate in the normal
direction. The displacement is determined by the criterion that there is no resulting
reaction force in the normal direction.

Select Prescribed force to prescribe the total reaction force acting on the direction
normal to the symmetry plane. Enter the Normal force Fn. The force is defined as
positive when acting along the outward normal of the symmetry plane. Setting the
prescribed force to zero gives the same effect as using Free Displacement.

Select Prescribed displacement to prescribe the displacement in the direction normal to

the symmetry plane. Enter the Normal displacement un0. Setting the prescribed
displacement to zero gives the same effect as using No displacement.

• Using Free Displacement, Prescribed force, or Prescribed displacement is

only meaningful if the geometry selection corresponds to a single
symmetry plane.
• When using Free Displacement or Prescribed force, an extra global
degree of freedom is added for determining the displacement in the
normal direction. This degree of freedom will have a name of the type
<component>.<interface>.<symmetry_tag>.un, for example
comp1.beam.sym1.un.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1605

 Symmetry Constraints

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Line Constraints>Symmetry
Beam>More Constraints>Symmetry (Point)
Pipe Mechanics>Line Constraints>Symmetry
Pipe Mechanics>More Constraints>Symmetry (Point)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam or Pipe Mechanics selected:

Edges>Line Constraints>Symmetry (3D)

Edges>Line Constraints>Symmetry (2D)
Points>More Constraints>Symmetry

Antisymmetry
The Antisymmetry node adds an edge (3D), boundary (2D), or point (2D and 3D)
condition that defines an antisymmetry edge, boundary, or point.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Specify the coordinate system to use for specifying the antisymmetry. See the section
Coordinate System Selection for Edge Load.

ANTISYMMETRY
Select an Axis to use as anti-symmetry plane normal to specify the direction of the
normal to the symmetry plane in the selected coordinate system.

• For 2D models, select 1 or 2 for the first or second axis, respectively.

• For 3D models, select 1, 2, or 3 for the first, second, or third axis, respectively.

1606 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

Symmetry Constraints

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Line Constraints>Antisymmetry
Beam>More Constraints>Antisymmetry (Point)
Pipe Mechanics>Line Constraints>Antisymmetry
Pipe Mechanics>More Constraints>Antisymmetry (Point)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam or Pipe Mechanics selected:

Edges>Line Constraints>Antisymmetry (3D)

Boundaries>Line Constraints>Antisymmetry (2D)
Points>More Constraints>Antisymmetry

Edge Load
Add an Edge Load as a force or moment distributed along an edge.

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1607

 COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION
Specify the coordinate system to use for specifying the load. From the Coordinate
system list select from the following based on space dimension:

For 2D models (boundaries):

• Global coordinate system (the default)

• Boundary System (a predefined normal-tangential coordinate system)
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system

For 3D models (edges):

• Global coordinate system (the default; the standard global coordinate

system).
• Local edge system. This is the coordinate system defined by the beam
cross-section orientation as defined in the Section Orientation subnode
under Cross Section Data. The local edge coordinate systems directions
are available as variables for plotting using an Arrow Line plot, for
example: Under Beam>Beam Local System in the plot settings lists of
predefined expressions, select Base vector (beamsys) x,
Base vector (beamsys) y, or Base vector (beamsys) z.
• Any additional user-defined coordinate system.

1608 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

FORCE
Select a Load type — Force per unit length (the default), Force per unit volume, or Total
force. Enter values or expressions for the components.

TABLE 8-11:

LOAD TYPE VARIABLE SI UNIT GEOMETRIC SPACE DIMENSION

ENTITY LEVEL (COMPONENTS)

Force per unit length FL Nm edges 3D (x, y, z)

boundaries 2D (x, y)
3
Force per unit volume FV N/m edges 3D (x, y, z)
boundaries 2D (x, y)
Total force Ftot N edges 3D (x, y, z)
boundaries 2D (x, y)

• When Force per unit volume is selected, the given load is multiplied by
the cross-section area. This option is useful for modeling body loads
like gravity or centrifugal loads.
• After selecting a Load type, the Load list normally only contains User
defined. When combining the Beam interface with another physics
interface, it is also possible to choose a predefined load from this list.

MOMENT
Enter values or expressions for the components of the moment edge load ML (3D) or
Mlz (2D).

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1609

 • You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Line and Volume Loads>Edge Load
Pipe Mechanics>Line and Volume Loads>Edge Load
Beam Rotor>Edge Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam or Pipe Mechanics selected:

Edges>Line and Volume Loads>Edge Load (3D)

Boundaries>Line and Volume Loads>Edge Load (2D)

Physics tab with Beam Rotor selected:

Edges>Edge Load

Point Load
Add a Point Load to points for concentrated forces or moments at points. The loads are
defined in the given coordinate system.

POINT LOAD
Enter values or expressions for the components (x, y, z for 3D models and x, y for 2D
models) of the point load FP.

The FP list normally only contains User defined. When combining the
Beam interface with another physics interface, it is also possible to choose
a predefined load from this list.

1610 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

POINT MOMENT
Enter values or expressions for the components (x, y, z for 3D models and z for 2D
models) of the point moment MP (3D) or Mlz (2D).

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Point Load
Pipe Mechanics>Point Load
Beam Rotor> Point Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam, Pipe Mechanics, or Beam Rotor selected:

Points>Beam>Point Load

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1611

 Point Load, Free
Add a Point Load, Free node to describe concentrated loads with locations specified by
coordinates. Such loads do not have to be placed in a geometrical point or in a mesh
node. This is particularly useful for the following cases:

• Moving loads
• Several point loads, in which case it may be impractical to create points at all load
locations

• For each free point load, there will be a search for the mesh element
that is closest to the given location. For the load to be active, the
location must be within a certain small distance from at least one
element. The actual load location is taken as the point on the element
that is closest to the given location. If no element is found, the load is
silently ignored.
You can check the number of loads that were ignored through the
variable <phys>.<load_tag>.num_ignored, for example
beam.plf1.num_ignored.
• The local stress field in the element where a point load acts will not be
reliable.

LOCATION AND FORCE

For each row in the table, enter the data for one load. If material frame input is used,
then the location is specified in terms of the material coordinates (X, Y, Z). If spatial
frame input is used, then the spatial coordinates (x, y, z) are used. Then, enter the force
and moment values, Fxl, Fyl, Fzl, Mxl, Myl, and Mzl. The force and moment vectors are
interpreted in the coordinate system selected in the Coordinate System Selection section.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

1612 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency

domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

Pratt Truss Bridge: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Beams_and_Shells/pratt_truss_bridge

Context Menus
Beam>Point Load, Free
Pipe Mechanics>Point Load, Free

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam selected:

Global>Beam>Point Load, Free

Physics tab with Pipe Mechanics selected:

Global>Pipe Mechanics>Point Load, Free

Point Mass
Use the Point Mass node to model a discrete mass or mass moment of inertia which is
concentrated at a point.

The Point Mass Damping subnode can be added to specify a mass-proportional

damping.

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1613

 COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION
With the Coordinate system list, select the coordinate system in which the mass
moment of inertia tensor is defined.

POINT MASS
Enter a Point mass m.

Enter a value or values for the Mass moment of inertia. For 2D models, enter one value
for Jz. For 3D models, enter a single value for an isotropic moment of inertia tensor,
or select Diagonal or Symmetric to enter a full moment of inertia tensor.

FRAME ACCELERATION FORCES

Select the Exclude contribution check box to switch off the loads generated by this node
when the frame is accelerated when using a Gravity, Rotating Frame, Linearly
Accelerated Frame, or Base Excitation feature. The setting will also determine whether
the node will contribute when computing mass properties.

For more information, see Computing Mass Properties.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Point Mass
Pipe Mechanics>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Point Mass

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam or Pipe Mechanics, selected:

Points>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Point Mass

Point Mass Damping

Use the Point Mass Damping subnode to add damping to a Point Mass parent node.

POINT MASS DAMPING

Enter a Mass damping parameter dM. This is the mass proportional term of a Rayleigh
damping.

1614 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Point Mass>Point Mass Damping
Pipe Mechanics>Point Mass>Point Mass Damping

Ribbon
Physics tab with Point Mass node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Point Mass Damping

Rigid Connector
The Rigid Connector is a boundary condition for modeling rigid regions and kinematic
constraints such as prescribed rigid rotations. The selected points will move as a single
rigid object.

You can add the Rigid Connector node at the edge (2D: boundary) and point levels.

• When added at the edge level you can connect edges and points as long as at least
one edge is selected. Selecting points is optional.
• When added at the point level, you can connect a set of points to each other.

If the study step is geometrically nonlinear, the rigid connector takes finite rotations
into account.

Rigid connectors are available in the Solid Mechanics, Multibody Dynamics, Shell,
Beam, and Pipe Mechanics interfaces. Rigid connectors from different interfaces can
be attached to each other.

You can add functionality to the rigid connector through the following subnodes:

• Applied Force (Rigid Connector) to apply a force in given point.

• Applied Moment (Rigid Connector) to apply a moment.
• Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid Connector) to add extra mass and moment of
inertia in a given point.
• Spring Foundation (Rigid Connector) to add a translational or rotational spring or
damper in a given point.

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1615

 When physics symbols are shown, a rigid connector is represented by a symbol at the
center of rotation, together with a set of lines connecting the center of rotation with
the centers of gravity of the selected entities.

• When the rigid connector is added at the edge level, such symbols are
shown only for the selected edges, but not for auxiliary selections of
points.
• Because of the way physics symbols are evaluated, as a lightweight
operation when moving between physics nodes in the model builder
tree, it is sometimes not possible to determine the center of rotation.
In particular, if an offset is supplied, it will not be taken into account.

EDGE SELECTION
This section is present when the Rigid Connector node has been added at
the edge level. Select one or more edges to be part of the rigid region.

BOUNDARY SELECTION
This section is present when the Rigid Connector node has been added at
the boundary level. Select one or more edges to be part of the rigid
region.

POINT SELECTION
This section is always present.

• When the Rigid Connector is added at the point level, select a number of points that
form the rigid region.
• When the Rigid Connector is added at the edge (2D: boundary) level, this section is
initially collapsed. Here, you can add optional points to the rigid region. The points
cannot be adjacent to the selected boundaries or edges.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The Global coordinate system is selected by default. The Coordinate system list contains
all applicable coordinate systems in the model. Prescribed displacements or rotations
are specified along the axes of this coordinate system. It is also used for defining the

1616 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

axis directions of the moment of inertia tensor of the Mass and Moment of Inertia
subnode.

In order to be applicable, a coordinate system must have axis directions

that are independent of the location in space.

CENTER OF ROTATION
The center of rotation serves two purposes.

• If you prescribe the displacement of the rigid connector, this is the place where it is
fixed.
• Results are interpreted with respect to the center of rotation.

Select a Center of rotation — Automatic, Centroid of selected entities, or User defined.

• For Automatic the center of rotation is at the geometrical center of the selected
points. The constraints are applied at the center of rotation.
• For Centroid of selected entities a subnode for selection of the points is added to the
Model Builder.
• For User defined, in the Global coordinates of center of rotation XC table enter
coordinates based on space dimension.

• Once Centroid of selected entities is chosen, a default Center of

Rotation: Point subnode is added.
• The center of rotation is located at the centroid of the selected points,
which do not need to be related to the objects to which the rigid
connector is attached. The points do not even have to belong to the
physics interface. As a special case, you can select a single point, and
thus locate the center of rotation at a certain point.

Select the Offset check box to add an optional offset vector to the definition of the
center of rotation. Enter values for the offset vector Xoffset.

The center of rotation used is the sum of the vector obtained from any of the input
methods and the offset vector.

X C = X C,input + X offset

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1617

 PRESCRIBED DISPLACEMENT AT CENTER OF ROTATION
To define a prescribed displacement at the center of rotation for each space direction,
select one or several of the available check boxes then enter values or expressions for
the prescribed displacements. The direction coordinate names can vary depending on
the selected coordinate system.

• Prescribed in x direction u0x

• Prescribed in y direction u0y
• For 3D components: Prescribed in z direction u0z

PRESCRIBED ROTATION
Specify the rotation at the center of rotation. Select from the By list: Free (the default),
Constrained rotation, or Prescribed rotation.

For 2D components, the Constrained rotation and Prescribed rotation is

always about the z-axis, so no component selection is necessary.

Constrained Rotation (3D Components)

For Constrained rotation select one or more of the available check boxes to enforce zero
rotation about the corresponding axis in the selected coordinate system:

• Constrain rotation about x-axis

• Constrain rotation about y-axis
• Constrain rotation about z-axis

1618 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

Prescribed Rotation
• For Prescribed rotation enter an Angle of rotation  0 . For 3D components also enter
an Axis of rotation  for the x, y, and z coordinates.

• You can add a Harmonic Perturbation subnode for specifying a

harmonic variation of the values of the prescribed displacements and
rotations in a frequency domain analysis of perturbation type.
• You can activate and deactivate the rigid connector by assigning it to a
constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics
Modeling chapter.
• You can assign the value of the prescribed displacement and rotation to
a load group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

• Rigid Connector
• Harmonic Perturbation
• Load Cases

RELEASED DEGREES OF FREEDOM

In some cases it can be useful to not constrain the displacement in a certain direction.
To do so, select a local Coordinate system for specifying the directions in which the
degree of freedom will be released. The Coordinate system list contains only applicable
coordinate systems in the model.

Select one or more of the available check boxes to release the displacement in the
corresponding axis in the selected coordinate system:

• Release displacement in x1 direction

• Release displacement in x2 direction
• For 3D components: Release displacement in x3 direction
• For 3D components: Release rotation around x1 direction
• For 3D components: Release rotation around x2 direction
• Release rotation around x3 direction

Note that the Rigid Connector solves for global displacement degrees of freedom
(DOFs) and global rotational DOFs – unless they are explicitly prescribed. Since

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1619

 releasing certain displacement field components reduces the number of equations used
to solve for the global DOFs, it may become necessary to constrain some global
displacement or rotation components to achieve static determinacy.

The section Released Degrees of Freedom is only shown if the check box Use weak
constraints for rigid-flexible connection in the section Constrain Settings is not enabled.

REACTION FORCE SETTINGS

Select Evaluate reaction forces to compute the reaction force caused by a prescribed
motion. The default is to not compute the reaction force. When selected, the
prescribed motion is implemented as a weak constraint.

Select Apply reaction only on rigid body variables to use a unidirectional constraint for
enforcing a prescribed motion. The default is that bidirectional constraints are used.
This setting is useful in a situation where a bidirectional constraint would give an
unwanted coupling in the equations. This would happen if the prescribed value of the
motion is a variable solved for in other equations.

FORMULATION
Some contributions from a rigid connector will, under geometric nonlinearity, result
in a nonsymmetric local stiffness matrix. If all other aspects of the model are such that
the global stiffness matrix would be symmetric, then such a nonsymmetric
contribution may have a heavy impact on the total solution time and memory usage.
In such cases, it is often more efficient to use an approximative local stiffness matrix
that is symmetric.

Select Use symmetric formulation for geometric nonlinearity to force all matrix
contributions from the rigid connector and its subnodes to be symmetric.

Using an approximative stiffness matrix will in general require more

iterations. However, since the computational cost per iteration will be cut
at least by a factor of two if a symmetric matrix can be used, it is usually
more efficient to ignore a weak nonsymmetry.

In particular, if the rotation of the rigid connector per time step or

parameter increment is small, there will in general be no increase in the
number of iterations at all if this option is used.

When the global stiffness matrix is nonsymmetric for other reasons, then
there is nothing to be gained from symmetrizing the contribution from
the rigid connector.

1620 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
On the boundaries where the rigid connector is coupled to a flexible material, all nodes
on such a boundary are constrained to move as a rigid body. As a default these
constraints are implemented as pointwise constraints. If you want to use a weak
constraint formulation, select Use weak constraints for rigid-flexible connection.

This formulation cannot be combined with the Flexible formulation of the rigid
connector, which in itself is a special form of weak constraint.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
On the points where the rigid connector is coupled to a flexible material, all nodes are
constrained to move as a rigid body. As a default, these constraints are implemented as
pointwise constraints. If you want to use a weak constraint formulation, select Use weak
constraints for rigid-flexible connection.

ADVANCED
It is possible to couple rigid connectors to each other. In the Connect to list, you can
select any rigid connector defined in the Solid Mechanics, Multibody Dynamics, or
Shell interfaces as being rigidly connected to the current one.

Select Group dependent variables in solver — From physics interface (default), Yes, or No,
to choose how to group in the solver sequence the dependent variables added by the
Rigid Connector feature.

When coupling rigid connectors to each other, you must be careful not to
add conflicting settings. Typically, you should only assign constraints to
one of the connectors, and it is recommended to use a common center of
rotation. It is, however, possible to deviate from these recommendations
and create other meaningful combinations.

Rigid Connector

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Line Constraints>Rigid Connector (3D: Edge, 2D: Boundary)
Beam>Connections>Rigid Connector (Point)
Pipe Mechanics>Line Constraints>Rigid Connector (3D: Edge, 2D: Boundary)

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1621

 Pipe Mechanics>Connections>Rigid Connector (Point)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam or Pipe Mechanics selected:

Boundaries>Line Constraints>Rigid Connector (2D)

Edges>Line Constraints>Rigid Connector (3D)
Points>Connections>Rigid Connector

Attachment
The Attachment node is used to define a point or a set of points on a flexible beam
which can be used to connect it with other components through a joint in the
Multibody Dynamics interface. All the selected points behave as if they were connected
by a common rigid body.

Attachments can be added to boundaries in a Multibody Dynamics or a Solid

Mechanics interface, to edges in a Shell or Layered Shell interface, or to points in a
Beam interface. This makes it possible to use a joint in the Multibody Dynamics
interface for connecting parts modeled in different physics interfaces.

The use of attachments is discussed in the Attachments section in the

Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Connections>Attachment

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam selected:

Points>Connections>Attachment

Beam End Release

In cases where a joint between two or more beams is not perfectly rigid, you can add
a Beam End Release node to specify the decoupled degrees of freedom.

If three or more beams meet at the same point, you may need to add an Edge Group
subnode in order to specify how the beams are connected to each other. The default is

1622 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

that all beams meeting at a point are independent from each other in the selected
degrees of freedom.

EDGE DEFINING THE LOCAL ORIENTATION

In the case of a geometrically nonlinear analysis, the orientation of the axes along
which one or more degrees of freedom are decoupled may change due to finite
rotations.

For cases when rotational degrees of freedom are decoupled, the rotation will however
not be the same in all beams attached to a joint. Often this is not an issue since the
interesting orientation is still unique, but you have a possibility to explicitly select the
edge from which the axis rotations are inferred. The default option is Point Evaluation.
In this case, the rotation is averaged between all participating edges.

To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

RELEASE SETTINGS
Select the degrees of freedom which are to be decoupled at the selected point. The
directions are interpreted along the axes of the selected coordinate system. In a
geometrically nonlinear analysis, the coordinate system only gives the orientation in
the original configuration. The actual orientation in which the degrees of freedom are
decoupled rotates with the beam.

Adding loads or constraints to a degree of freedom that has been

disconnected using Beam End Release may give unintuitive results.
Essentially, the degree of freedom value at the point is defined as the
average of the values in the disconnected beams. A prescribed
displacement will thus act as a constraint equation, prescribing a weighted
sum of the displacements or rotations in the connected beams, but not
their individual values.

Nonrigid Joints

Stress Analysis of a Portal Crane: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Beams_and_Shells/portal_crane

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1623

 LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Beam End Release

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam selected:

Points>Beam End Release

Edge Group
Add one or more Edge Group subnodes to a Beam End Release node when you need
to specify how beams are connected at a joint. All beams which are selected in an edge
group will be fully connected at the joint. Each group of edges will be free to move
relative to any other edge group in the degrees of freedom selected in the parent Beam
End Release node.

A certain edge can only be part of one edge group. A selection in a later edge group
will override a selection of the same edge in a previous group.

Nonrigid Joints

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Beam End Release>Edge Group

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam End Release selected:

Attributes>Edge Group

Phase
You can add a Phase subnode to nodes which define a load in order to prescribe the
phase angle in a frequency domain analysis.

1624 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

For modeling the frequency response, the physics interface splits the harmonic load
into two parameters:

• The amplitude, F, which is specified in the node for the load.

• The phase (  ), which is specified in the Phase subnode.

Together these define a harmonic load, for which the amplitude and phase shift can
vary with the excitation frequency, f:

F freq = F  f   cos  2ft +  

PHASE
Add the phase load Fph for harmonic loads. Enter the phase for each component of
the load in the corresponding fields.

MOMENT LOAD PHASE

Add the phase for the moment load Mph for harmonic loads. Enter the phase for each
component of the moment load in the corresponding fields.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Edge Load>Phase
Beam>Point Load>Phase
Pipe Mechanics>Edge Load>Phase
Pipe Mechanics>Point Load>Phase

Ribbon
Physics tab with Edge Load or Point Load selected:

Attributes>Phase

Harmonic Perturbation
Use the Harmonic Perturbation subnode to specify the harmonic part of nonzero
prescribed displacements or rotations. This node is used if the study step is frequency
response of a perturbation type.

THE BEAM INTERFACE | 1625

 The settings are the same as in the parent Prescribed Displacement/Rotation,
Prescribed Velocity, or Prescribed Displacement/Rotation node. Only degrees of
freedom selected as prescribed in the parent node can be assigned a value.

See Harmonic Perturbation in the Structural Mechanics Modeling

chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation>Harmonic Perturbation
Beam>Prescribed Velocity>Harmonic Perturbation
Beam>Prescribed Acceleration>Harmonic Perturbation
Pipe Mechanics>Prescribed Displacement/Rotation>Harmonic Perturbation
Pipe Mechanics>Prescribed Velocity>Harmonic Perturbation
Pipe Mechanics>Prescribed Acceleration>Harmonic Perturbation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Prescribed Displacement/Rotation, Prescribed Velocity, or Prescribed
Acceleration node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Harmonic Perturbation

1626 | CHAPTER 8: BEAM

 9

Beam Cross Section

This chapter describes the Beam Cross Section interface, which you find under the
Structural Mechanics branch ( ) when adding a physics interface.

In this chapter:

• Using the Beam Cross Section Interface

• Theory for the Beam Cross Section Interface
• The Beam Cross Section Interface

1627
 Using the Beam Cross Section
Interface
In this section:

• About Beams and Cross-Section Data

• Using the Beam Cross Section Interface

About Beams and Cross-Section Data

A beam is a slender structure that can be fully described by cross-section properties like
area and moments of inertia. In COMSOL Multiphysics, there are two physics
interfaces for analyzing beam structures, one in 2D and one in 3D. There are also two
similar Pipe Mechanics interfaces, targeted at piping systems.

APPROACHES FOR OBTAINING THE CROSS-SECTION DATA

The values for the cross-section properties can be found in different ways. By:

• looking up tabulated values,

• inserting dimensions into handbook formulas,
• using the built-in common sections in The Beam Interface, and
• using The Beam Cross Section Interface.

For the common built-in cross sections available with the Beam interface
(Rectangular, Box, Circular, Pipe, H-section, U-section, and T-section),
using the Common sections option in the Cross-Section Data settings
provides you with the most efficient input alternative. See Common
Cross Sections for details.

For nonstandard cross sections with nontrivial shapes, using the Beam Cross Section
interface is the only realistic alternative. This physics interface also provides you with
more accurate data than the other methods, since it does not rely on common
engineering approximations.

The cross-section data obtained from the different approaches can, in general, differ
somewhat. Two common sources for this difference is that the influence of fillets in the

1628 | CHAPTER 9: BEAM CROSS SECTION

geometry can be excluded, and that approximations such as assuming thin walled
sections can be used.

STRESS COMPUTATION
Since a beam interface is only aware of the cross-section properties and not of the true
stress distribution over the cross section, the stresses computed there can only be
approximate. The approximations used by COMSOL are conservative in the sense that
all stress contributions are assumed to interact in the worst possible way.

In the Beam Cross Section interface, the true stress distribution can be computed
given a set of section forces. This can be important in cases where the stresses obtained
in the Beam interface or the Pipe Mechanics interface exceed allowed values. Also,
from a pedagogical point of view, it is an advantage to be able to display the full stress
distribution.

With the Beam Cross Section interface in 2D, you can plot the stress distribution in a
certain cross section. In 3D, the beam and its results can be plotted using a solid
representation.

Using the Beam Cross Section Interface

When the document refers to ‘beams’ in the following, the information is

applicable to both the Beam and Pipe Mechanics interfaces.

The Beam Cross Section interface can be used in three different ways:

• In a separate model, to compute beam cross section data that is manually transferred
as input to another model where a beam analysis is performed. Possibly, the cross
section data is also used outside COMSOL Multiphysics.
• In the same model as beam interface, but with the Beam Cross Section interface
placed in a separate component. Data can then be transferred between the two
interfaces by entering variable names in input fields.
• In the same component as the beam interface. In this case, multiphysics couplings
can be used to transfer data between the interfaces.

USING THE BEAM CROSS SECTION INTERFACE | 1629

 When using the Beam Cross Section interface and the beam interface in the same
model, there are a number of things to pay attention to:

• Usually the determination of the cross-section data is computationally more

expensive than the actual analysis of the beam structure. Thus, it is best to use either
separate studies or separate study steps for the two tasks.
• If two separate studies or study steps are used, then the Values of variables not solved
for must be set in the second study step, where only the beam problem is solved.
Under Dependent Variables, you can also uncheck the Store in output check box for
the beam cross section degrees of freedom in order to save space.
• You can transfer data between the two physics interfaces using the Beam Cross
Section-Beam Coupling and Beam-Beam Cross Section Coupling multiphysics
couplings if the interfaces belong to the same component.
• If you are using two different components, you must use a fully scoped variable
name (like comp2.bcs3.A for the area) when referencing the beam cross-section
properties in the input fields of the beam interface.
• If a beam interface is added either after or at the same time as a Beam Cross Section
interface, the only study type shown when adding a physics interface is Stationary.
In this case, under Custom Studies, select Preset Studies for Some Physics Interfaces to
find the other study types available for the beam analysis.

Values of Dependent Variables and Physics and Variables Selection in the

COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

For the Beam Cross Section interface in 2D, the cross sections are analyzed in the
xy-plane. However, the beam interface uses a notation where the local x-axis is along
the beam, and the cross section is described in a local yz-plane.

For the Beam Cross Section interface in 3D, the boundaries that represent cross
sections can have arbitrary orientation. It is not related to the orientation of an actual
beam.

In order to avoid confusion, the cross-section properties are described in the local x1-
and x2-coordinates (see Figure 9-1). When data is transferred to a beam interface, you
must keep track of the coordinates that correspond to the local y and z directions.

Channel Beam: Application Library path Structural_Mechanics_Module/

Verification_Examples/channel_beam

1630 | CHAPTER 9: BEAM CROSS SECTION

The 3D version of the interface is based on the layered material technology. The reason
is that the extra dimension inherent in layered materials is used to extrude the cross
section when the interface is used to create a fully 3D representation of the stress state.
Thus, there are significant conceptual differences between the 2D and 3D versions of
this physics interface.

COMPUTING THE CROSS-SECTION DATA

You can compute the properties for several different cross sections in the same Beam
Cross Section interface.

In a 2D component, the geometry of the cross sections is drawn in the xy-plane. In a

3D component, you can create one or more arbitrary work planes, in which the cross
sections are drawn.

You need to attach material data to the cross section. The procedure is different in 2D
and 3D.

The material properties can be assigned to the domain in a Material node,

and then the option From material is used in the Homogeneous Cross Section
node. Alternatively, you can also select User defined, and enter expressions
for the material data manually.

Material data cannot be set locally in the Homogeneous Cross Section node.
Usually, you would add a Single Layer Material node under Materials in the
component to provide the material data. You can, however, also use a
global Layered Material, which is then referenced from a Layered Material
Link in the component. A boundary is not eligible for selection in the
physics interface until a layered material has been assigned.

A layered material has, in addition the material data, three more inputs.
The only one that may need to be changed is the Thickness, lth. It is not
used as long as you are only computing cross-section properties, but if you
are mapping results back from a beam interface, it should match the
length of the beam.

If the section is not simply connected, add one Hole node for each internal hole. In
that node, select all boundaries around the hole.

The default mesh density is tuned for thin-walled sections. For solid sections, an
unnecessarily large model is obtained when using the default mesh.

USING THE BEAM CROSS SECTION INTERFACE | 1631

 The computed cross-section data is stored in the variables listed in Table 9-1:
TABLE 9-1: VARIABLES CONTAINING CROSS-SECTION DATA

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION INPUT TO BEAM INTERFACE LINK TO THEORY

SECTION

bcs.A Area Area (A) Area

bcs.CGx Center of gravity, x Implicit, since it affects the
coordinate positioning of the beam
Center of
centerline.
Gravity
bcs.CGx Center of gravity, y As above
coordinate
bcs.x1 First coordinate in Implicit, since it can be
principal axes system used for determining stress
Local
evaluation locations
Coordinates
bcs.x2 Second coordinate in As above
principal axes system
bcs.I1 Largest principal moment Moment of inertia around
of inertia local y/z-axis (Izz/Iyy)
bcs.I2 Smallest principal As above
moment of inertia
bcs.Ixx Moment of inertia around -
Moments of
x-axis
Inertia
bcs.Iyy Moment of inertia around -
y-axis
bcs.Ixy Deviatoric moment of -
inertia in xy system
bcs.rg Radius of gyration -
bcs.alpha Angle from x-axis to first Rotation of vector around Directions of
principal axis beam axis () Principal Axes

1632 | CHAPTER 9: BEAM CROSS SECTION

TABLE 9-1: VARIABLES CONTAINING CROSS-SECTION DATA

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION INPUT TO BEAM INTERFACE LINK TO THEORY

SECTION

bcs.mu1 Max shear stress factor, Max shear stress factor in

x1 direction local y/z direction (y/z)
bcs.mu2 Max shear stress factor, As above
x2 direction
bcs.kappa1 Shear correction factor, -
x1 direction Bending Shear
bcs.kappa2 Shear correction factor, - Stresses
x2 direction
bcs.ei1 Shear center location, Distance to shear center in
first local coordinate local y/z direction.
bcs.ei2 Shear center location, As above
second local coordinate
bcs.J Torsional constant Torsional constant (J)
bcs.Wt Torsional section Torsional section modulus Torsion
modulus (Wt)
bcs.Cw Warping constant -
bcs.Kw Warping section modulus -
Warping
bcs.sw Nonuniform torsion -
parameter

COMPUTING DETAILED STRESSES

If you have a set of section forces (axial force, shear forces, bending moments, and
twisting moments), it is possible to display the stresses it causes. To do this, enter the
values in the Section Forces section. You can also add your own acceptance criteria by
adding one or more Safety nodes.

The stresses are available in the variables listed in Table 9-2.

After changing data in this section, you do not need to compute the study
for this physics interface again once is has been solved. It is sufficient to
do an Update Solution to get the stress plots updated.

Studies and Solvers in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

USING THE BEAM CROSS SECTION INTERFACE | 1633

 TABLE 9-2: VARIABLES CONTAINING STRESS DISTRIBUTIONS

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION AND LINK TO THEORY

SECTION

bcs.sN Stress from axial force Axial Stress

bcs.sM1 Bending stress from moment around x1 axis
Bending Axial Stresses
bcs.sM2 Bending stress from moment around x2 axis
bcs.tT1x Shear stress from force in x1 direction,
x-component
bcs.tT1y Shear stress from force in x1 direction,
y-component
bcs.resT1 Shear stress from force in x1 direction,
resultant Bending Shear
bcs.tT2x Shear stress from force in x2 direction, Stresses
x-component
bcs.tT2y Shear stress from force in x2 direction,
y-component
bcs.resT2 Shear stress from force in x2 direction,
resultant
bcs.tMtx Shear stress from twisting moment,
x-component
bcs.tMty Shear stress from twisting moment, Torsional Shear
y-component Stresses
bcs.resMt Shear stress from twisting moment,
resultant
bcs.mises von Mises equivalent stress Equivalent Stress
bcs.spN Principal stresses; N=1,2,3
bcs.INs N:th invariant of stress tensor; N=1,2,3
bcs.IINs N:th invariant of stress tensor deviator;
N=2,3
bcs.thetaL Lode angle for stress tensor

COMPUTING WARPING DISPLACEMENT

You can also compute the axial warping displacement by entering the axial twist of the
beam in the Twist section. The theory is described under Warping. The axial
displacement is stored in the variable bcs.u.

1634 | CHAPTER 9: BEAM CROSS SECTION

Theory for the Beam Cross Section
Interface
In this section the theory for the Beam Cross Section interface is described:

• Cross-Section Properties
• Computation of Stresses

Cross-Section Properties
The following cross-section properties computed by the Beam Cross Section interface
are described in this section:

• Area • Local Coordinates

• Center of Gravity • Bending Shear Stresses
• Moments of Inertia • Torsion
• Directions of Principal Axes • Warping

AREA
The area is computed as

A =  dA
A

CENTER OF GRAVITY
The center of gravity is computed as

1

x CG = ---- x dA
A
A

1

y CG = ---- y dA
A
A

MOMENTS OF INERTIA
The moments of inertia in the XY coordinate system are

THEORY FOR THE BEAM CROSS SECTION INTERFACE | 1635

   y – yCG 
2
I xx = dA
A

  x – xCG 
2
I yy = dA
A

I xy =   x – xCG   y – yCG  dA
A

Since the input data required by the Beam interface is the principal moments of inertia,
these must also be computed. Using the radius of the Mohr’s circle:

I xx – I yy 2
 ---------------------
R = - + I 2xy
 2 

the principal moments of inertia can be expressed as

I xx + I yy
I 1 = ---------------------- + R
2

I xx + I yy
I 2 = ---------------------- – R
2

As an auxiliary variable, the radius of gyration is computed, using the expression

I1 + I2
rg = ----------------
A

DIRECTIONS OF PRINCIPAL AXES

The angle needed to rotate the x-axis to the axis of the largest principal moment of
inertia (x1) is denoted . From the definition of Mohr’s circle, the angle is

– 2I xy
 = --- atan  ----------------------
1
2  I xx – I yy

When implemented using the atan2 function, the angle can be correctly evaluated for
all rotations, and returns in the interval .

1636 | CHAPTER 9: BEAM CROSS SECTION

Figure 9-1: Local coordinate system and rotation angle.

LOCAL COORDINATES
The local coordinate system, having its origin in the center of gravity, and orientation
given by the principal moments of inertia is given by:

x 1 =  x – x CG  cos  +  y – y CG  sin 
x 2 =  y – y CG  cos  –  x – x CG  sin 

BENDING SHEAR STRESSES

The shear stresses caused by bending cannot be given a simple closed form solution,
but must be solved using two independent partial differential equations, one for the
force in each direction. The complete derivation is given at the end of this section. First
some quantities computed from the shear stresses are defined.
1
The following notation is used:  2z . This is a shear stress in the x2 direction (acting
on the plane with z as normal) caused by a unit shear force acting in the x1 direction.

THEORY FOR THE BEAM CROSS SECTION INTERFACE | 1637

 Max Shear Stress Factor
The max shear stress factor is the ratio between the maximum shear stress in the cross
section and the average shear stress. For a shear force in the x1 direction, the definition
is

1
max    1
 1 = -------------------------- = max     A
1
----
A

where

1 1 2 1 2

 =   1z  +   2z 

is the resulting shear stress from a unit load in the x1 direction. Similarly:

2
 2 = max   A

Shear Correction Factor

The shear correction factor is also computed. The shear correction factor is a
multiplier which makes the strain energy from the average shear stress and shear strain
in the cross section equal to the true shear energy in the cross section. The shear
correction factor can be introduced through the concept shear area. The shear area is
the reduced area which should replace the true area when computing the shear
deformation of a beam. In terms of the shear correction factor it can be written as

1
As = 1 A

where 1 is the shear correction factor for a shear force in the x1 direction. Thus, for a
shear flexible beam, the constitutive relation for the average shear is

 T T
 = -------- = ------------ = -----------
G GA GA s

To compute the shear correction factor, the true strain energy based on the actual
stress and strain distribution is set equal to the strain energy from the average shear
stress, when acting over the shear area. The full energy expression is

1 1 1 1 1


---   1z  1z +  2z  2z  dA
2
A

The strain energy based on the averaged shear stress and shear strain is

1638 | CHAPTER 9: BEAM CROSS SECTION

 1 1 1 T 1 1  ------ T 1 2
---  1z  1z A = 1
--- ------1  1z A = -------------- A
2 2A 2 1 G A  

giving

2
1 1 2 1 2 T1
2G 
--------    1z  +   2z   dA = ------------------
2G 1 A
-
A

Since T1 is a unit shear force, the shear correction factor can be computed as

 1 2  –1
 
 1 =  A    dA

A

Similarly:

 2 2  –1
 
 2 =  A    dA

A

Shear Center Distance

The shear center (or, equivalently, the center of rotation) is the point around which
the shear stresses from bending has no torque. In COMSOL it is represented as the
distance from the center of gravity of the cross section in the principal axes coordinate
system. The torque can be computed as


0 =  –  1z  e 2 – x 2  +  2z  e 1 – x 1   dA =
A

  1z x2 + –2z x1  dA + e1  2z dA – e2  1z dA

A A A

Since there are two separate solutions for the shear stresses, it is possible to split the
determination of the two shear center coordinates into

2 2

e 1 = –   1z x 2 + –  2z x 1  dA
A
1 1

e 2 =   1z x 2 + –  2z x 1  dA
A

Here the fact that the shear force resultant has a unit value has been used.

THEORY FOR THE BEAM CROSS SECTION INTERFACE | 1639

 Derivation of the Equations for Computing the Shear Stresses
Basic beam theory assumptions give the following stress components:

1 = 0
2 = 0
M1 x2 M2 x1 (9-1)
 z = -------------- – --------------
I1 I2
 12 = 0

The shear forces are related to the bending moments through

M 2
T 1 = – -----------
z
M 1
T 2 = -----------
z

The static equilibrium equations are

 1 1 +  12 2 +  1z,z = 0
 12 1 +  2 2 +  2z,z = 0
 1z,1 +  2z,2 +  z,z = 0

Insertion of the known stresses into the equilibrium equations gives

 1z,z = 0
 2z,z = 0
T2 x2 T1 x1
 1z,1 +  2z,2 + ------------- + ------------- = 0
I1 I2

The two first equations simply state that the shear stresses are independent of z,
whereas the third equation is the one on which to focus the interest. Assume that the
shear stresses can be derived from a scalar stress potential, , through:

2
T 1 x 2
 1z =  ,1 + ---------------------------
2  1 +  I 2
2
T 2 x 1
 2z =  ,2 + ---------------------------
2  1 +  I 1

1640 | CHAPTER 9: BEAM CROSS SECTION

Insertion of this assumption into the third equilibrium equation gives the Poisson type
equation

T2 x2 T1 x1
 = –  ------------- + ------------- (9-2)
 I1 I2 

In addition to equilibrium, also compatibility must be fulfilled. The Beltrami–Michell

form of compatibility equations includes the assumption of an isotropic linear elastic
material, and then states that

1  trace    
 ij + ------------ ------------------------------ = 0
1 +  x i x j

Given the stress state from Equation 9-1, the only two nontrivial equations are

1 T1
 1z + ------------ ------ = 0
1 +  I2
1 T2
 2z + ------------ ------ = 0
1 +  I1

Inserting the assumed stress components gives

T 1 1 T1 T1
 ,1 + ----------------------- + ------------ ------ =  ,1 + ------ = 0
 1 +  I 2 1 +  I 2 I2
T 2 1 T2 T2
 ,2 + ----------------------- + ------------ ------ =  ,2 + ------ = 0
 1 +  I 1 1 +  I 1 I1

Integration of the first equation with respect to x1 and the second equation with
respect to x2 gives

T1 x1
 + ------------- + f 2  x 2  = 0
I2
T2 x2
 + ------------- + f 1  x 1  = 0
I1

Combining these two equations results in

T2 x2 T1 x1
 = –  ------------- + -------------
 I1 I2 

THEORY FOR THE BEAM CROSS SECTION INTERFACE | 1641

 This is the same equation as Equation 9-2. It is thus possible to fulfill equilibrium,
compatibility, and the constitutive relation with a single equation of Poisson type.

On all free boundaries, the stress must be zero, giving the condition

 1z n 1 +  2z n 2 = 0

Using the assumed shear stresses, this can be converted into the Neumann condition

2 2
 T 1 x 2 T 2 x 1 
  n = –  --------------------------- n 1 + --------------------------- n 2
 2  1 +  I 2 2  1 +  I 1 

It must also be determined that the resultant of the shear stresses actually match the
applied shear forces, that is

 1z dA = T1
A

 2z dA = T2
A

The proofs for the two components are analogous, so it is shown only for the x1
direction:

2
 T 1 x 2  T 1 I 1
  1z dA =    ,1 + --------------------------- dA =
 2  1 +  I 2  ,1 dA + --------------------------
2  1 +  I 2
-
A A A

To compute the integral of the x1-derivative of , a term containing the differential

equation itself is added. This is a zero contribution, but it makes further simplifications
possible.

1642 | CHAPTER 9: BEAM CROSS SECTION

 T2 x2 T1 x1
 ,1 dA =   ,1 + x1   + ------------
I1
- + -------------  dA =
I2  
A A
 
  ,1 + x1   dA + T1 =    x1  x1 ,1  +  x2  x1 ,2  dA + T1 =
A A

   x1 ,1 n1 +  x1 ,2 n2  ds + T1 =  x1    n ds + T1 =

2 2
  T 1 x 2 T 2 x 1 
 x 1  –  --------------------------- n 1 + --------------------------- n 2  ds + T 1 =
  2  1 +  I 2 2  1 +  I 1 

2
 T 1 x 2  – T1 I1
  – --------------------------- dA + T 1 = --------------------------- + T 1
 2  1 +  I 2 2  1 +  I 2
A

In the transformations above these facts are used:

• The area integral of x1, x1, or x1x2 are zero since the coordinate system is positioned
at the center of gravity and is oriented along the principal axes.
2
• The area integral of x 2 is I1.
• The divergence theorem is used for transformation between area and surface
integrals.
• The Neumann condition on the boundary is inserted into the integral along the
boundary.

This proves that the assumed stress field also produces the correct resultants.

When internal holes are present, it is necessary ensure compatibility in the sense that
the displacement is single valued when going around the hole:

 du1 =  du2 =  duz = 0

The displacements can be derived from the strains, which are given by the stress state

THEORY FOR THE BEAM CROSS SECTION INTERFACE | 1643

 u 1
 1 = --------- = –  z
x 1
u 2
 2 = --------- = –  z
x 2
u z M 1 x 2 M 2 x 1
 z = --------- = -------------- – --------------
z EI 1 EI 2
u 1 u 2
 12 = --------- + --------- = 0
x 2 x 1
2
u 1 u z 1  T 1 x 2 
 1z = --------- + --------- = ----   ,1 + ---------------------------
z x 1 G  2  1 +  I 2
2
u 2 u z 1  T 2 x 1 
 2z = --------- + --------- = ----   ,2 + ---------------------------
z x 2 G  2  1 +  I 1

Integration of the direct strains gives

2
M 1 x 1 x 2 M 2 x 1
u 1 = – ------------------------ + ------------------ + g 1  x 2 z 
EI 1 2EI 2
2
M 1 x 2 M 2 x 1 x 2
u 2 = – ------------------ + ------------------------ + g 2  x 1 z 
2EI 1 EI 2

Since the only part of the displacement that is relevant for the bending shear stresses is
independent of the z-coordinate, the functions g1 and g2 can be considered as
independent of z:

u 1
 - dx + --------- dx  = u 1
 du1 =   --------
x 1 1 x 2 2

  M 1 x 2 M 2 x 1 M 1 x 1 g 1
- – ------------------  dx 1 +  – ------------------ + --------- dx 2 =
   – -----------------
EI 1 EI 2    EI 1 x 2 

 M 1 x 1 x 2  M 1 x 1 x 2
  -----------------------
EI 1    EI1 
- dA –  ------------------------ dA = 0
A A

In the last transformation Green’s theorem is used. The uniqueness of the

u2 displacement can be shown in the same way.

1644 | CHAPTER 9: BEAM CROSS SECTION

The uniqueness of the out-of-plane component of the displacement is shown in
Equation 9-3:

u z u z u 1
 - dx + --------- dx  =    – --------- dx +   – --------- dx  = u 2
 duz =   --------
x 1 1 x 2 2     1z z  1  2z z  2

2 2
1 T 1 x 2   T 1 x 1 x 2 T 2 x 1 
  ----   ,1 + --------------------------- –  ---------------------- + ----------------  dx 1 +
G
  2  1 +  I 2  EI 1 2EI 2  

2 2
1 T 2 x 1   T 1 x 2 T 2 x 1 x 2  (9-3)
  ----   ,2 + --------------------------- –  ---------------- + ----------------------  dx 2 =
G 2  1 +  I 1  2EI 1 EI 2  

T 1 x 2 T 1 x 1
–  ----   ,12 + ----------------------- – ---------------- dA +
1
G   1 +  I 2 EI 1 
A
T 2 x 1 T 2 x 2
  ---G-  ,21 + ----------------------
- – ---------------- dA = 0
1
1 +  I 1 EI 2 
A

In the last step of Equation 9-3, all integrals are zero since the coordinate system is
located at the center of gravity of the section. This proves that all displacement
components are unique.

When solving the problem, the shear stresses caused by a unit force in each of the two
principal directions must be separated, so two separate problems are solved. For the
force in the x1 direction it is formulated as

1 x1
 = – -----
I2

with

2
1 – x2
  n = --------------------------- n 1
2  1 +  I 2

on all boundaries. The stresses are computed as

2
1 1 x 2
 1z =  ,1 + ---------------------------
2  1 +  I 2
1 1
 2z =  ,2

THEORY FOR THE BEAM CROSS SECTION INTERFACE | 1645

 The corresponding problem for the x2 direction is

2 x2
 = – -----
I1

2
2 – x1
  n = --------------------------- n 1
2  1 +  I 1

2 2
 1z =  ,1
2
2 2 x 1
 2z =  ,2 + ---------------------------
2  1 +  I 1

TORSION
The torsional properties cannot in general be computed using a closed form
expression. Determining the torsional rigidity requires the solution of a PDE over the
cross section. There are two ways to do this: Using a warping function or using the
Prandtl stress function. The Prandtl stress function approach is used in COMSOL
since it gives easier boundary conditions.

The general torsion theory includes the shear modulus and angle of twist, but these
properties are not needed to determine the torsional rigidity, so both parameters are
treated as having the value 1. In that case the equation to be solved can be simplified to

 = – 2

where  is the stress function. For a singly connected region the boundary condition
is  = 0 along the whole boundary. Having solved this problem, the torsional rigidity
can be computed as

J = 2  dA 
A

The shear stresses are defined as


 xz = ------
y

 yz = – ------
x

The torsional modulus can be determined as

1646 | CHAPTER 9: BEAM CROSS SECTION

 J
W t = --------------------------
max   

In the case that there are internal holes in the section the situation is slightly more
complex. The  = 0 condition is now applicable only to the external boundary,
whereas each boundary of an internal hole i needs a Dirichlet boundary condition:

 = Hi

where Hi is a constant to be determined. The constant value of the stress function

fulfills the stress-free boundary conditions. There is also a compatible condition that
must be fulfilled: the displacements must be single valued when going around each
hole along its boundary i. This is trivially fulfilled for the in-plane displacements, but
the out-of-plane displacement, w, generates the necessary equations to determine Hi:

------ w   –  -----
u-   v
dx +   yz –  ------   dy
w-
0=
 dw =  x
dx + ------- dy =
y 

 xz  z     z  
i i i

 ------ + y dx +  – -----
-   -----
- 
+ y t x –  ------ + x t y ds
=


 y   x 
– x dy =


 y   x 
i i

Here, it has been used so that the strains are equal to the stresses since the shear
modulus is set to 1. The kinematic assumption that the in-plane displacements can be
written as

u = – yz
v = xz

is employed. This assumption implies that the origin of the coordinate system is at the
center of rotation. This is true only for doubly symmetric sections, but adding a
constant offset to the x and y coordinates does not contribute to the integral.

The gradient of  depends linearly on the yet unknown variables Hi, the values of
which can be solved by adding one equation,

 -----
-   -----
-  ds = 0


 y + y t x –  x + x t y
i

for each hole.

The expression for the torsional rigidity must in this case be augmented to

THEORY FOR THE BEAM CROSS SECTION INTERFACE | 1647

 
J = 2  dA + 2  Hi Ai
A i

where Ai is the area of hole i.

WARPING
The warping properties of the cross section are not used by the Beam interface in
COMSOL Multiphysics, since an assumption of pure St. Venant torsion is used. The
data can still be useful to do manual estimates.

The warping function x, y describes the out-of-plane deformation related to

torsion. It fulfills Laplace’s equation   0.

The boundary conditions giving stress-free boundaries:

  n =  x – e x t x +  y – e y t y

The offset by the shear center coordinates (ex, ey) is introduced because the torsion
theory assumes that the coordinate system has its origin in the center of rotation
(which is the same as the shear center).

The level of the warping function must also be fixed by adding a Dirichlet condition
in a point. The actual value is however difficult to set. Instead it is easier to solve for a
shifted warping function

 s (x,y) =  (x,y) + C

The shifted warping function can be set to zero in an arbitrary point. The true warping
function is then computed as

1

 (x,y) =  s (x,y) – ----  s (x,y) dA
A
A

This criterion expresses that the average of the warping function must be zero since the
axial stresses induced by torsion should not have a resultant.

The warping displacement, u, for a beam with unrestrained warping can be computed
by providing the twist of the beam,  xl as input:

u (x,y) =  xl  (x,y)

The warping constant, which is used in analysis of nonuniform torsion, is defined as

1648 | CHAPTER 9: BEAM CROSS SECTION

   (x,y)
2
Cw = dA
A

The axial stress caused by nonuniform torsion is

B  (x,y)
 w (x,y) = ---------------------
Cw

where B is the bimoment. The maximum axial stress is

B max   (x,y)  B
 w, max = ------------------------------------------- = --------
Cw Kw

The warping modulus is then defined as

max   (x,y) 
K w = ------------------------------------
Cw

Given the warping constant, it is possible to compute a nondimensional number that

can be used to characterize the influence of nonuniform torsion in a beam with a
certain length L. This number is

2 2
 EC w 2  1 +   C w
------------------- = -----------------------------------
-
2 2
GJL JL

Since the length is independent of the cross section, the sensitivity number is defined as

2
2  1 +   C w
s w = ------------------------------------
J

It has the physical dimension length squared.

Computation of Stresses
The stresses are computed using the following expressions:

• Axial Stress • Torsional Shear Stresses

• Bending Axial Stresses • Equivalent Stress
• Bending Shear Stresses

THEORY FOR THE BEAM CROSS SECTION INTERFACE | 1649

 AXIAL STRESS
The axial stress is computed as

N
 N = ----
A

where N is the axial force.

BENDING AXIAL STRESSES

The bending stresses are computed as

M1 x2
 M1 = --------------
I1
M2 x1
 M2 = – --------------
I2

Where M1 is the moment around the first principal axis and M2 is the moment around
the second principal axis.

BENDING SHEAR STRESSES

The components of the shear stresses caused by a shear force T1 along the x1-axis are

1 1
 T1x =   1z cos  –  2z sin    T 1
1 1
 T1y =   2z cos  +  1z sin    T 1

The components of the shear stresses caused by a shear force T2 along the x2-axis are

2 2
 T2x =   1z cos  –  2z sin    T 2
2 2
 T2y =   2z cos  +  1z sin    T 2

In both cases, the resultants are also computed as

2 2 2 2
 T1 =  T1x +  T1y and  T2 =  T2x +  T2y

TORSIONAL SHEAR STRESSES

The components of the shear stress caused by St. Venant torsion are

1650 | CHAPTER 9: BEAM CROSS SECTION

 M t  ,y
 Mtx = ---------------
J
M t  ,x
 Mty = – --------------
J

where Mt is the twisting moment. The resultant is computed as

2 2
 Mt =  Mtx +  Mty

EQUIVALENT STRESS
The von Mises equivalent stress is computed from the stress components defined above
using the expression

2 2 2
 vM =   N +  M1 +  M2  + 3   T1x +  T2x +  Mtx  + 3   T1y +  T2y +  Mty 

THEORY FOR THE BEAM CROSS SECTION INTERFACE | 1651

 The Beam Cross Section Interface
The Beam Cross Section (bcs) interface ( ), found under the Structural Mechanics
branch ( ) when adding a physics interface, is used for computing cross-section
properties for beams. It can be also used for a detailed evaluation of stresses in a beam
when the section forces to which the beam is subjected are known. It is mainly used in
conjunction with The Beam Interface.

As input, you give a 2D sketch of the cross section. The computed results are: area,
moments of inertia, center of gravity, principal axis directions, torsional rigidity, shear
center location, shear correction factors, warping constant, and stress distributions for
different load types.

• Using the Beam Cross Section Interface

• Theory for the Beam Cross Section Interface
• Studies and Solvers in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual

SETTINGS
The Label is the default physics interface name.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the physics
interface. Refer to such physics interface variables in expressions using the pattern
<name>.<variable_name>. In order to distinguish between variables belonging to
different physics interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and
underscores (_) are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first physics interface in the model) is bcs.

DOMAIN SELECTION

For 2D components, select the domains that represent beam cross

sections to be analyzed. The default setting is to include All domains in the
model to define the cross section. To select specific domains, select Manual
from the Selection list.

1652 | CHAPTER 9: BEAM CROSS SECTION

BOUNDARY SELECTION

For 3D components, select the boundaries that represent beam cross

sections to be analyzed. The default setting is to include All domains in the
model to define the cross section. To select specific domains, select Manual
from the Selection list. Only boundaries that have an assigned a layered
material can be selected.

BEAM PROPERTIES

For 3D components, this interface is based on the layered technology.

The check box Use all layers is selected by default, and for all normal use,
it does not have to be changed. The material selection is then implicit in
the boundary selection.

DISCRETIZATION
Select the Element order — Linear, Quadratic (the default), Cubic, Quartic, or Quintic.

Homogeneous Cross Section

Add one Homogeneous Cross Section node for every cross section to be analyzed. One
Homogeneous Cross Section node is automatically added when the physics interface is
created.

MATERIAL PROPERTIES

Enter the material properties, Young's modulus, E and Poisson's ratio, .

The default is to take the values From material. You can also select User
defined, and enter expressions for the material data manually.

Currently only the value for  is used, and it only influences the detailed
distribution of shear stresses caused by a transversal load.

Even though it is possible to override material data from this section,

there would seldom be a reason to do it. The material data is part of the
definition of the layered material.

THE BEAM CROSS SECTION INTERFACE | 1653

 BEAM PROPERTIES

This section is only present in 3D, since in 3D the physics interface

formally uses the layered technology. There is no need to make changes
here.

SECTION FORCES
If you want to perform a detailed computation of the stress state in a beam cross
section, enter the section forces.

Enter values or expressions for the following:

• Axial force N (SI unit: N).

• Bending moment around 1-axis M1.
• Shear force along 2-axis T2.
• Bending moment around 2-axis M2.
• Shear force along 1-axis T1.
• Twisting moment Mt.

• After changing data in this section, you do not need to compute the
study for this physics interface again once is has been solved. It is
sufficient to do an Update Solution to get the stress plots updated.
• If this interface is referenced in a Beam-Beam Cross Section Coupling,
the inputs in this section are not accessible, since the cross section
forces are transferred from a Beam interface or Pipe Mechanics
interface.

1654 | CHAPTER 9: BEAM CROSS SECTION

TWIST
Enter a value or expression for the Axial twist,  xl . The twist is used in the computation
of the axial warping displacement.

• After changing data in this section, you do not need to compute the
study for this physics interface again once is has been solved. It is
sufficient to do an Update Solution to get the stress plots updated.
• If this interface is referenced in a Beam-Beam Cross Section Coupling,
the inputs in this section are not accessible, since the cross section
forces are transferred from a Beam interface or Pipe Mechanics
interface.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam Cross Section>Homogeneous Cross Section

Ribbon
Physics tab with Beam Cross Section interface selected

Boundaries>Homogeneous Cross Section (3D)

Domains>Homogeneous Cross Section (2D)

Hole
Use the Hole subnode to define internal holes for a beam cross section. One Hole
feature must be added for each internal hole in the parent Homogeneous Cross
Section.

BEAM PROPERTIES
If you use the Beam Cross Section interface coupled to a Pipe Mechanics interface, the
two interfaces have to agree on the type of cross section. Since circular pipes are very
common in piping systems, they are to some extent treated as a special case in the Pipe
Mechanics interface.

THE BEAM CROSS SECTION INTERFACE | 1655

 Select the Pipe shape — Circular or Noncircular. This setting is ignored for all cases,
except in a coupled analysis with the Pipe Mechanics interface.

The settings for layers only present in 3D, since in 3D the physics interface
formally uses the layered technology. There is no need to make changes
here.

FLUID LOADS
The fluid loads are used for computing the stress from internal pressure. These inputs
have a purpose analogous to the entries in the Section Forces and Twist sections in the
Homogeneous Cross Section node.

Enter the Internal pressure, pi, and the External pressure, po.

• After changing data in this section, you do not need to compute the
study for this physics interface again once is has been solved. It is
sufficient to do an Update Solution to get the stress plots updated.
• If this interface is referenced in a Beam-Beam Cross Section Coupling,
the inputs in this section are not accessible, since the cross section
forces are transferred from a Pipe Mechanics interface.

BOUNDARY SELECTION
You should select all boundaries around a certain hole from the Selection list (Manual).
The All boundaries option is not relevant.

• Using the Beam Cross Section Interface

• Theory for the Beam Cross Section Interface

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam Cross Section>Homogeneous Cross Section>Hole

Ribbon
Physics tab with Homogeneous Cross Section selected

Attributes>Hole

1656 | CHAPTER 9: BEAM CROSS SECTION

Safety
Use the Safety node to set up variables that can be used to check the risk of failure
according to various criteria. Four different variables describing the failure risk will be
defined as described in Table 9-3. You can add any number of Safety nodes.
TABLE 9-3: VARIABLES FOR SAFETY FACTOR EVALUATION

VARIABLE DESCRIPTION CRITERION CRITERION

FULFILLED VIOLATED

Failure index, FI For a linear criterion, this is the FI<1 FI>1

ratio between the computed value
and the given limit.
Damage index, DI A binary value, indicating whether DI=0 DI=1
failure is predicted or not. DI is
based on the value of FI.
Safety factor, SF For a linear criterion, this is 1/FI. SF>1 SF<1
Margin of safety, MoS SF-1 MoS>0 MoS<0

BEAM PROPERTIES

This section is only present in 3D, since in 3D the physics interface

formally uses the layered technology. There is no need to make changes
here.

FAILURE MODEL
Select a Failure Criterion — von Mises Isotropic, Tresca Isotropic, Rankine Isotropic,
Bresler-Pister, Willam-Warnke, or Ottosen.

• When Failure Criterion is von Mises Isotropic, enter Tensile strength ts.
• When Failure Criterion is Tresca Isotropic, enter Tensile strength ts.
• When Failure Criterion is Rankine Isotropic, enter Tensile strength ts and Compressive
strength cs.
• When Failure Criterion is Bresler-Pister Isotropic, enter Tensile strength ts,
Compressive strength cs, and Biaxial compressive strength bc.
• When Failure Criterion is Willam-Warnke Isotropic, enter Tensile strength ts,
Compressive strength cs, and Biaxial compressive strength bc.

THE BEAM CROSS SECTION INTERFACE | 1657

 • When Failure Criterion is Ottosen Isotropic, enter the Compressive strength cs,
Ottosen parameters a and b, the Size factor k1, and the Shape factor k2.
• When Failure Criterion is User defined, you enter two expressions describing the
Failure criterion g(S), used in the failure index, and the Safety factor sf(S). As an
example, if you would like to replicate the von Mises Isotropic criterion with tensile
strength 350 MPa, you could enter g(S) as solid.mises/350[MPa]-1 and sf(S) as
350[MPa]/(solid.mises+eps).

For all input fields, the default is to take the value From material. Change to User
defined to enter other values or expressions.

For a detailed description of the various criteria, see Safety Factor

Evaluation in the Structural Mechanics Theory chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Beam Cross Section>Homogeneous Cross Section>Safety

Ribbon
Physics tab with Physics tab with Homogeneous Cross Section selected

Attributes>Safety

1658 | CHAPTER 9: BEAM CROSS SECTION

 10

Truss

This chapter describes the Truss interface, which is found under the Structural
Mechanics branch ( ) when adding a physics interface.

In this chapter:

• Modeling with Truss Elements

• Theory for the Truss Interface
• The Truss Interface

1659
 Modeling with Truss Elements
Truss elements are elements that can only sustain axial forces. They have displacements
as degrees of freedom. Truss elements are sometimes referred to as bars or spars. They
live on boundaries in 2D and edges in 3D. Typical uses of truss elements are:

• Trusses
• Cables and wires, given that they are in tension only
• Reinforcement bars
• Two-point springs and dashpots. A special material model called Spring-Damper
Material is available for this purpose.
• Thin ‘strain gauges’ attached to for example solid elements

The Truss interface supports the same study types as the Solid Mechanics interface.

Dependent Variables
The degrees of freedom (dependent variables) are the global displacements u, v, and
w (3D only) in the global x, y, and z directions, respectively.

MODELING WIRES AND CABLES

You can use the Truss interface for modeling wires and cables, possibly sagging under
gravity or other external loads. However, the Wire interface is specifically designed for
this purpose, and should be the primary choice.

Below are some suggestions for how to model such structures efficiently using the
Truss interface:

• It is generally recommended that you use first order shape functions when modeling
wire-like structures. This is the default in the Truss interface.
• If the cable is to be allowed to sag, you must not use the Straight Edge Constraint
for those edges. When using first order shape functions, this constraint is disabled
as default, so this is an issue only if you use higher order shape functions.
• Most cable problems are geometrically nonlinear. A wire which is not in tension is
not numerically stable. Physically, it wrinkles in an unpredictable manner. In order
to start the analysis, you either have to add an initial stress or some weak springs.
• If there are no line or volume loads, the wire is straight, as long as it is in tension.
In this case, only one element is needed for the whole wire, since you can handle the
zero-stiffness in compression in the material data. Enter the modulus of elasticity so

1660 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

 that it depends on the axial stress, and has very small value in compression. Such an
expression could for example be E0*(1-0.9999*(truss.en<0)).
• In some problems, there are large deformations, but low tensile stresses. This would
for example be the case if you model a wire hanging free under self-weight (‘the
catenary problem’). Such problems are numerically ill-conditioned, but can still be
solved as long as you use linear shape functions for the truss elements, and use tight
tolerances for the nonlinear solver.

MODELING WITH TRUSS ELEMENTS | 1661

 Theory for the Truss Interface
Theory Background for the Truss Interface
Trusses are modeled using Lagrange shape function. The Lagrange shape function
makes it possible to specify both normal strains and Green-Lagrange strains to handle
small strains as well as large deformations.

STRAIN-DISPLACEMENT RELATION
The axial strain n is calculated by expressing the global strains in tangential derivatives
and projecting the global strains on the edge.

t
 n = t  gT t

where t is the edge tangent vector and gT is defined as

 xT  xyT  xzT
 gT =  xyT  yT  yzT
 xzT  yzT  zT

The strains can be expressed as either engineering strains for small displacements or
Green-Lagrange strains for large displacements. The Green-Lagrange strain tensor
used for large displacements is defined as

1  u i u j u k u k 
 ijT = ---  + +  
2   xj  xi  xi  xj 
T T T T

The engineering strain tensor used for small displacements is defined as

1  u i u j 
 ijT = ---  +  (10-1)
2   xj  xi 
T T

The axial strain written out becomes

1662 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

  n = t x   xT t x +  xyT t y +  xzT t z  +
t y   xyT t x +  yT t y +  yzT t z  +
t z   xzT t x +  yzT t y +  zT t z 

In the Truss interface, the coordinates are usually denoted with lowercase
letters (x, y, z). If a Solid Mechanics or Membrane interface is present in
the same model, then it becomes necessary to make a difference between
the material frame and the spatial frame (Material and Spatial
Coordinates). In this case the coordinates in the Truss interface change
to (X, Y, Z).

STRESS-STRAIN RELATION
The constitutive relation for a truss is uniaxial. The axial stress, n, is computed as

 n =  ex + E n, el =  ex + E   n –  inel 

 inel =  0 +  th +  hs +  pl

 ex =  0 +  ext

where

• E is the modulus of elasticity

• n is the total axial strain
• n,el is the elastic axial strain
• inel is the sum of all inelastic strain contributions:
- Initial strain, 0
- Thermal strain, th
- Hygroscopic strain, hs
- Plastic strain, pl
• ex is the sum of all extra stress contributions:
- Initial stress 0
- External stress ext

In a geometrically nonlinear analysis, this equation should be interpreted as a relation

between Second Piola-Kirchhoff stresses and Green-Lagrange strains.

THEORY FOR THE TRUSS INTERFACE | 1663

 For output, the First Piola-Kirchhoff stress Pn is computed from the Second
Piola-Kirchhoff stress using

P n = S n  s'

where s’ is the ratio between current and initial length. The axial force in the element
is then computed as

N = Pn  A0

where A0 is the undeformed cross-section area. The engineering (Cauchy) stress is

defined by

A0
 n = P n -------
A

where A is the deformed area of the element. For a geometrically linear analysis, the
change in area is ignored, so that A = A0.

For a geometrically nonlinear analysis, the area change is computed based on an

assumption about a linear elastic material with Poisson’s ratio . The area change is

A0 –1
------- =  1 – 2 n 
A

This is the only occasion where the Truss interface makes use of the value of .

In a geometrically linear analysis all the stress representations have the same value.

IMPLEMENTATION
Using the principle of virtual work results in the following weak formulation

  u FPi
t t
W = d  –  n  n + u F V  dV +
V i

where the summation stands for summation over all points in the geometry. Replacing
the integration over the cross section with the cross-sectional area (A) and the volume
forces with line forces, the equation becomes

  – ntest n A + utest FL  dL +  utest FPi

t t
W =
L i

1664 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

In the case of geometric nonlinearity, the stress and strain should be interpreted as
Second Piola-Kirchhoff stress and Green-Lagrange strains

THEORY FOR STRAIGHT EDGE CONSTRAINT

The optional constraint to enforce the nodes to lie on the straight line between the
endpoints of the edge are formulated as follows:

Starting with the large displacement case, let xd1 and xd2 be the deformed position of
the two endpoints of the edge

x di = u i + x i (10-2)

where ui is the displacement, and xi is the coordinate (undeformed position) at

endpoint i. The equation for the straight line through the endpoints is

x + u = x d1 + ta (10-3)

where t is a parameter along the line, and a is the direction vector for the line. a is
calculated from the deformed position of the endpoints as

a = x d2 – x d1

The constraints for the edge are derived by substituting the parameter t from one of
the scalar equations in Equation 10-3 into the remaining ones. In 2D the constraint
equations become

 x + u – x d1 a y –  y + v – y d1 a x = 0

In 3D the two constraints equations become

 x + u – x d1 a z –  z + w – z d1 a x = 0
 y + v – y d1 a z –  z + w – z d1 a y = 0

To avoid problems when the edge is directed in one of the coordinate axes directions,
a third constraint is added. This constraint is a linear combination of the two earlier
constraints:

 y + v – y d1 a x –  x + u – x d1 a y = 0

This constraint is nonlinear, since a depends on the displacement.

A linear constraint is needed in the case of a geometrically linear problem to become

independent of the solver. The linear relation for the displacement is

THEORY FOR THE TRUSS INTERFACE | 1665

 u 1  x n2 – x n  + u 2  x n – x n1 
u = ------------------------------------------------------------------------ + u ax  x 2 – x 1  (10-4)
 x n2 – x n1 

where uax is the axial displacement along the edge, and xn is a linear parameter along
the edge

x  x2 – x1  + y  y2 – y1  + z  z2 – z1 
x n = --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2 2 2
 x2 – x1  +  y2 – y1  +  z2 – z1 

Eliminating uax from Equation 10-4 results in the following linear constraint in 2D

u 1  x n2 – x n  + u 2  x n – x n1 
------------------------------------------------------------------------ – u  y 2 – y 1  –
 x n2 – x n1 
v 1  x n2 – x n  + v 2  x n – x n1 
---------------------------------------------------------------------- – v  x 2 – x 1  = 0
 x n2 – x n1 

and the following three linear constraints in 3D:

u 1  x n2 – x n  + u 2  x n – x n1 
------------------------------------------------------------------------ – u  z 2 – z 1  –
 x n2 – x n1 
w 1  x n2 – x n  + w 2  p – x n1 
----------------------------------------------------------------------- – w  x 2 – x 1  = 0
 x n2 – x n1 
v 1  x n2 – x n  + v 2  x n – x n1 
---------------------------------------------------------------------- – v  z 2 – z 1  –
 x n2 – x n1 
(10-5)
w 1  x n2 – x n  + w 2  x n – x n1 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- – w  y 2 – y 1  = 0
 x n2 – x n1 
v 1  x n2 – x n  + v 2  x n – x n1 
---------------------------------------------------------------------- – v  x 2 – x 1  –
 x n2 – x n1 
u 1  x n2 – x n  + u 2  x n – x n1 
------------------------------------------------------------------------ – u  y 2 – y 1  = 0
 x n2 – x n1 

THEORY FOR SPRING-DAMPER MATERIAL

Introduction
You can use a Spring-Damper Material to connect two points by an elastic spring, a
viscous damper, or both. Such springs can be used in any structural mechanics physics
interface, by adding a Truss interface. You can then set the degree of freedom names
in the two interfaces to the same name, in order to share the same displacement fields.

1666 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

The two points can move relative to each other in an arbitrary way as long as they do
not coincide. The spring and damping forces act along the line between the current
positions of the two connection points.

Figure 10-1: Conceptual sketch of the Spring-Damper Material.

Connection Points and Spring Length

The current position of the two endpoints, x1 and x2 can be written as

x1 = X1 + u 1
x2 = X2 + u 2

where X1 and X1 are the original positions of the two points, and u1 and u2 are their
respective displacements. The initial spring length, l0, is

l0 = X2 – X1 =  X2 – X1    X2 – X1 

The current spring length, l, is

l = x2 – x1

In the case of a geometrically linear analysis, the current spring length is linearized to

 x2 – x1    X2 – X1 
l = -----------------------------------------------------
l0

In addition to the initial geometrical distance between the two points you can specify
an initial spring extension l0, so that the free length of the spring is

l f = l 0 – l 0

You can also specify the free length of the spring explicitly.

THEORY FOR THE TRUSS INTERFACE | 1667

 The spring extension l is computed as the difference between the current spring
length and the free length,

l = l – l f

Deactivation
You can specify that the Spring-Damper Material should be deactivated under certain
conditions. It can for example be active only in tension, or break at a certain
elongation. In terms of implementation, this means that many expressions are
multiplied by an activation indicator, iac. The activation indicator has the value 1
when the component is active, and 0 when deactivated.

Spring and Damping Forces

The spring force is proportional to the spring constant k:

F s = kl

If k depends on the extension, so that the spring is nonlinear, it should be interpreted

as a secant stiffness, that is

F s = k  l   l

You can also specify the spring force as function of extension explicitly as

F s = F s  l 

To create the expression for the function, use the built-in variable for the spring
extension. It has the form <physicsTag>.<SpringNodeTag>.dl, for example
truss.spd1.dl.

In a dynamic analysis, the viscous damping force is computed as

F d = c d  l 
dt

where c is the viscous damping coefficient. In frequency domain, it is also possible to

specify a loss factor , and the total damping force will then be

F d = icl + iF s

The magnitude of the total force is

F = Fs + Fd

1668 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

The total forces in the global coordinate system, acting on the connection points are

 x2 – x1 
F 2 = – F 1 = – F -----------------------
l

In a geometrically linear case, the orientation of the force is kept fixed, so that

 X2 – X1 
F 2 = – F 1 = – F -------------------------
l

The contribution to the virtual work is

F 2   u 2 – u 1 

Spring and Damping Energies

In stationary and time-dependent analysis, the elastic energy in the spring is computed
as

l


W s = i ac F s d l 
0

In a time-dependent analysis, the energy dissipated in the damper, Wd, is computed

using an extra degree of freedom. The following equation is added:

dW d l 
-----------d- = i ac F --------------
dt d dt

In a frequency domain analysis, the elastic energy in the spring and the energy
dissipated in the damper are computed as

1
W s = --- i ac Re  lindev  F s   conj  lindev  l   
4
1
W d = --- i ac Re  lindev  F d   conj  lindev  l   
4

These energy quantities represent the cycle average, and only the perturbation terms
are included.

LOCAL BUCKLING
In a truss model, each individual mesh element is assumed to be straight. A linear
buckling analysis gives the buckling load for entire truss structure, but it cannot detect
local buckling of individual members.

THEORY FOR THE TRUSS INTERFACE | 1669

 The buckling load for each member can however be directly computed from material
and geometrical properties, and variables for this are available.

The critical load of an individual bar can be expressed as

2
 EI min
F c = ----------------------
2
- (10-6)
 KL 

Here, E is Young’s modulus, Imin is the area moment of inertia in the weakest
orientation of the cross section, and L is the length of the bar. K is called the effective
length factor, and can be used to compensate for non-ideal end conditions. The value
1 corresponds to the Euler 2 buckling case, in which both ends are pinned.

The failure index is computed as the ratio between the compressive axial force N and
the critical load:

–N
f i = -------- (10-7)
Fc

A failure index exceeding 1 means that the buckling load is exceeded. A set of variables
providing different measures of the utilization is listed in Table 10-1.
TABLE 10-1: VARIABLES FOR LOCAL BUCKLING

DEFINITION DESCRIPTION

truss.lbFc Equation 10-6 Local buckling

critical force
truss.lbf_i Equation 10-7 Local buckling
failure index
truss.lbs_f 1/truss.lbf_i Local buckling
safety factor
truss.lbm_s truss.lbs_f - 1 Local buckling
margin of safety
truss.lbd_i if(truss.lbf_i>1, 1, Local buckling
0) damage index

1670 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

The Truss Interface
The Truss (truss) interface ( ), found under the Structural Mechanics branch ( )
when adding a physics interface, is used for modeling slender elements that can only
sustain axial forces. It can be used for analyzing truss works where the edges are
straight, or to model sagging cables like the deformation of a wire exposed to gravity.
It is available in 3D and 2D. Geometric nonlinearity can be taken into account.

The Truss interface can also be used for modeling springs and dashpots.

The default material model is Linear Elastic Material. With the Nonlinear Structural
Materials Module, you can also model Plasticity and Shape Memory Alloys.

For a detailed overview of the functionality available in each product, visit

https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/

When this physics interface is added, these default nodes are also added to the Model
Builder: Linear Elastic Material, Cross-Section Data, Free (a condition where points are
free, with no loads or constraints), Straight Edge Constraint (to ensure that the points
lie on a straight line between the endpoints of the edge or boundary), and Initial Values.
Then, from the Physics toolbar, you can add other nodes that implement, for example,
loads and constraints. You can also right-click Truss to select physics features from the
context menu.

SETTINGS
The Label is the default physics interface name.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the physics
interface. Refer to such physics interface variables in expressions using the pattern
<name>.<variable_name>. In order to distinguish between variables belonging to
different physics interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and
underscores (_) are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first physics interface in the model) is truss.

STRUCTURAL TRANSIENT BEHAVIOR

From the Structural transient behavior list, select Include inertial terms (the default) or
Quasistatic. Use Quasistatic to treat the dynamic behavior as quasi static (with no mass
effects; that is, no second-order time derivatives). Selecting this option gives a more

THE TRUSS INTERFACE | 1671

 efficient solution for problems where the variation in time is slow when compared to
the natural frequencies of the system. The default solver for the time stepping is
changed from Generalized alpha to BDF when Quasistatic is selected.

DISCRETIZATION
The default is to use linear shape functions. If the truss elements share an edge with
another structural mechanics interface, you may want to use quadratic shape functions
instead, in order to get displacement compatibility.

DEPENDENT VARIABLES
The dependent variable (field variable) is for the Displacement field u which has two
components (u, v) in 2D and three components (u, v, and w) in 3D. The name can be
changed but the names of fields and dependent variables must be unique within a
model.

• Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Truss Interface
• Edge Load
• Theory for the Truss Interface

• Vibrating String: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Verification_Examples/vibrating_string
• In-Plane and Space Truss: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Verification_Examples/
inplane_and_space_truss

Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Truss Interface
The Truss Interface has these boundary, edge, point, and pair nodes are available from
the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics context menu (Mac or Linux
users), or right-click to access the context menu (all users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

1672 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

FEATURES AVAILABLE FROM SUBMENUS
Many features for the Truss interface are added from submenus in the Physics toolbar
groups or context menu (when you right-click the node). The submenu name is the
same in both cases. The submenus at the Edge level (3D) or Boundary level (2D) are

• Material Models
• Line and Volume Loads
• Mass, Spring, and Damper
• Line Constraints

The submenus at the Point level are

• Mass, Spring, and Damper

• More Constraints
• Pairs

LINKS TO FEATURE NODE INFORMATION

These nodes (and subnodes) are described in this section (listed in alphabetical order):

• Antisymmetry • Point Mass Damping

• Cross-Section Data • Set Variables
• Edge Load • Spring-Damper Material
• External Stress • Straight Edge Constraint
• Hygroscopic Swelling • Symmetry
• Initial Stress and Strain • Thermal Expansion (for
• Linear Elastic Material Constraints)

• Pinned • Thermal Expansion (for Linear

Elastic Material)
• Point Mass

THE TRUSS INTERFACE | 1673

 These nodes are described for the Solid Mechanics or Beam interface:

• Activation • Plasticity
• Added Mass • Point Load
• Average Rotation • Point Load, Free
• Base Excitation • Predeformation
• Damping • Prescribed Acceleration
• Free • Prescribed Displacement
• Gravity • Prescribed Velocity
• Harmonic Perturbation • Rotating Frame1
• Initial Values • Shape Memory Alloy
1
• Linearly Accelerated Frame • Spring Foundation
• Phase • Spring-Damper
1 This is selected from the Line and Volume Loads submenu for this interface.

If there are subsequent constraints on the same geometrical entity, the last
one takes precedence.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual see Table 2-4 for links
to common sections and Table 2-5 to common feature nodes. You can
also search for information: press F1 to open the Help window or Ctrl+F1
to open the Documentation window.

Cross-Section Data
Use the Cross-Section Data node to describe the section for the truss elements on the
selected edges.

CROSS-SECTION DEFINITION
The default is User defined. Select Common sections to choose from predefined sections.

For User defined go to Basic Section Properties to continue defining the cross section.

For Common sections select a Section type — Rectangle, Box, Circular, Pipe, H-profile,
U-profile, T-profile, C-profile, or Hat. Then go to the relevant section below to continue

1674 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

defining the section. Each Section type also has a figure showing the section and its
defining dimensions.

For equations and a figure see:

• Rectangular Section
• Box Section
• Circular Section
• Pipe Section
• H-Profile Section
• U-Profile Section
• T-Profile Section
• C-Profile Section
• Hat Section

Rectangle
Enter values or expressions for the following.

• Width in local y direction hy

• Width in local z direction hz

Box
Enter values or expressions for the following.

• Width in local y direction hy

• Width in local z direction hz
• Wall thickness in local y direction ty
• Wall thickness in local z direction tz

Circular
Enter a value or expression for the Diameter do.

Pipe
Enter values or expressions for the following.

• Outer diameter do
• Inner diameter di

THE TRUSS INTERFACE | 1675

 H-profile, U-profile, or T-profile
Enter values or expressions for the following.

• Section height hy
• Flange width hz
• Flange thickness ty
• Web thickness tz

C-profile
Enter values or expressions for the following.

• Flange width hy
• Flange thickness tz
• Web height hz
• Web thickness ty
• Lip width wl
• Lip thickness tl

Hat
Enter values or expressions for the following.

• Crown width hv
• Crown thickness tc
• Web height hw
• Web thickness tw
• Flange width wf
• Flange thickness tf

BASIC SECTION PROPERTIES

This section is only visible for a user-defined cross section.

Enter the cross-section Area A.

LOCAL BUCKLING
Optionally, you can also provide data that makes it possible to assess the risk of local
buckling of the individual bars in the structure.

Enter the Smallest principal moment of inertia, Imin. This is the area moment of inertia
in the weakest direction of the cross section. This input is only required for a

1676 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

user-defined cross section. For one of the predefined cross sections, the moment of
inertia is computed from the geometrical properties.

Enter the Effective length factor, K. This is a multiplier to the physical length of the
bars, intended for compensating for end conditions. The default value, 1, corresponds
to a pure Euler 2 buckling case.

See also Local Buckling.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Truss>Cross-Section Data

Ribbon
Physics tab with Truss selected:

Edges>Truss>Cross-Section Data

Straight Edge Constraint

The Straight Edge Constraint controls the addition of an additional constraint, forcing
the edge to be straight. The default is to add this constraint to all edges unless linear
shape functions have been chosen in the Discretization section of the interface. Using
this additional constraint removes the need to use a mesh with only one element per
edge. Internal nodes will make the model singular because the truss element only has
stiffness in the axial direction in a geometrically linear problem. The same problem is
present also when using higher-order shape functions, even if there is only one element
along an edge since there are internal nodes.

In the case of geometric nonlinearity, there is a stiffness in the transverse directions as

long as the axial force is tensile.

The additional constraints increase the solution time, especially for large 3D and
transient problems. The default mesh, when using Physics-controlled mesh in the Mesh
node, is to use one element per edge only, so that the extra constraints are not needed
unless the shape functions are of higher order.

THE TRUSS INTERFACE | 1677

 CONSTRAINT ACTIVATION
Select the Disable for linear discretization order check box to suppress the addition of
the straight edge constraints when linear shape functions are used. This is the default
state.

The Straight Edge Constraint is not applicable to edges that are embedded in a solid
domain through the Embedded Reinforcement multiphysics coupling.

See also Theory for Straight Edge Constraint and Modeling Wires and
Cables.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Truss>Line Constraints>Straight Edge Constraint

Ribbon
Physics tab with Truss selected:

Edges>Line Constraints>Straight Edge Constraint

Linear Elastic Material

The Linear Elastic Material node adds the equations for a linear elastic truss element,
and an interface for defining the elastic material properties.

By adding the following subnodes to the Linear Elastic Material node you can
incorporate many other effects:

• Thermal Expansion (for Linear Elastic Material)

• Hygroscopic Swelling
• Initial Stress and Strain
• External Stress
• Damping
• Plasticity
• Activation
• Safety

1678 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

LINEAR ELASTIC MATERIAL
Define the linear elastic material properties. These settings are the same as described
under Linear Elastic Material for the beam interface.

GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
In this section there is always one check box. Either Geometrically linear formulation or
Include geometric nonlinearity is shown.

If a study step is geometrically nonlinear, the default behavior is to use a large strain
formulation for all boundaries or edges. There are however some cases when you
would still want to use a small strain formulation in a part of the structure. In those
cases, select the Geometrically linear formulation check box. When selected, a small
strain formulation is always used, independently of the setting in the study step. The
default value is that the check box is cleared, except when opening a model created in
a version prior to 4.3.

ENERGY DISSIPATION
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

Select the Calculate dissipated energy check box as needed to compute the energy
dissipated by Plasticity.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Truss>Material Models>Linear Elastic Material

Ribbon
Physics tab with Truss selected:

Edges>Material Models>Linear Elastic Material

Set Variables
Use the Set Variables subnode to Plasticity of a Linear Elastic Material to reset plasticity
variables according to a Setting condition that you define. When the Setting condition is
satisfied, the plasticity variables are reset to the specified values.

THE TRUSS INTERFACE | 1679

 SET VARIABLES
Enter the Setting condition. This is a Boolean expression that will determine when the
plastic variables are reset.

From the Equivalent plastic strain list, select Do not set or User defined. The default User
defined value is zero. Depending on the type of plasticity model, set additional
plasticity variables.

From the Plastic axial strain list, select Do not set or User defined. The default User
defined values is zero.

If Armstrong-Frederick or Chaboche is selected from the Kinematic Hardening Model

list, specify the values for the Back strain. From the Back strain list, select Do not set or
User defined. The default User defined values is zero.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Truss>Material Models>Plasticity>Set Variables

Ribbon
Physics tab with Plasticity node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Set Variables

Thermal Expansion (for Linear Elastic Material)

Use the Thermal Expansion subnode to add an internal thermal strain caused by changes
in temperature.

MODEL INPUTS
The Volume reference temperature Tref is the temperature at which there are no thermal
strains. As a default, the value is obtained from a Common model input. You can also
select User defined to enter a value or expression for the temperature locally.

1680 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

From the Temperature T list, select an existing temperature variable from another
physics interface, if any such temperature variables exist, or select User defined to enter
a value or expression for the temperature.

See also

• Using Common Model Input

• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.
• Temperature-Dependent Material Data

THERMAL EXPANSION PROPERTIES

Select an Input type to specify how the thermal strain is defined. The default is Secant
coefficient of thermal expansion, in which case the thermal strain is given by

 th =   T – T ref 

where is the secant coefficient of thermal expansion, which can be temperature

dependent. As a default, the Common model input. You can also select User defined to
enter a value or expression.

When Input type is Tangent coefficient of thermal expansion, the thermal strain is given
by

 T 
 th = exp 
 T ref
 t    d – 1


where t is the tangential coefficient of thermal expansion.

When Input type is Thermal strain, enter the thermal strain dL as function of
temperature explicitly.

In all three cases, the default is to take values From material. Select User defined to enter
an expression for the coefficient of thermal expansion or thermal strain.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Truss>Linear Elastic Material>Thermal Expansion

THE TRUSS INTERFACE | 1681

 Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Thermal Expansion (for Shape Memory Alloy)

Use the Thermal Expansion subnode to add an internal thermal strain caused by changes
in temperature.

MODEL INPUTS
The Volume reference temperature Tref is the temperature at which there are no thermal
strains. As a default, the value is obtained from a Common model input. You can also
select User defined to enter a value or expression for the temperature locally.

The current Temperature T of the alloy is defined in the parent Shape Memory Alloy
node.

See also

• Using Common Model Input

• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

THERMAL EXPANSION PROPERTIES

Select an Input type to specify how the thermal strain is defined. The default is Secant
coefficient of thermal expansion, in which case the thermal strain is given by

 th =   T – T ref 

here,  AA  MM is the volume average secant coefficient of thermal expansion,
and A and M are the austenite and martensite volume fractions. The default Secant
coefficient of thermal expansion for Austenite A and Secant coefficient of thermal
expansion for Martensite M use values From material.

When Input type is Tangent coefficient of thermal expansion, the thermal strain is given
by

 T 
 th = exp 
 T ref
 t    d – 1


1682 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

where t  AtA  MtM is the volume average tangential coefficient of thermal
expansion. The default Tangent coefficient of thermal expansion for Austenite tA and
Tangent coefficient of thermal expansion for Martensite tM use values From material.

When Input type is Thermal strain, enter the Thermal strain for Austenite dLA and the
Thermal strain for Martensite dLM as function of temperature explicitly. Then the temal
strain of the alloy is computed from dL  AdLA  MdLM.

In all three cases, the default is to take values From material. Select User defined to enter
a value or expression for the coefficient of thermal expansion or thermal strain.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Truss>Shape Memory Alloy>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Shape Memory Alloy node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Hygroscopic Swelling
Hygroscopic swelling is an internal strain caused by changes in moisture content. This
strain can be written as

 hs =  h  c mo – c mo,ref 

where h is the coefficient of hygroscopic swelling, cmo is the moisture concentration,

and cmo,ref is the strain-free reference concentration. The temperature is assumed to
be constant over the cross section of the truss element.

The settings for the Truss interface are the same as described for the Beam
interface (excluding the hygroscopic bending options). See Hygroscopic
Swelling in the documentation for the Beam interface.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Truss>Linear Elastic Material>Hygroscopic Swelling

THE TRUSS INTERFACE | 1683

 Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Hygroscopic Swelling

Initial Stress and Strain

You can add the Initial Stress and Strain subnode to the Linear Elastic Material, in order
to specify the stress or strain state in the structure before applying any constraint or
load. The values given are not initial values in the mathematical sense, but rather a
contribution to the constitutive relation

In many cases Initial Stress and Strain and External Stress are
interchangeable when prescribing stresses, but you can find some more
options in the latter.

INITIAL STRESS AND STRAIN

Enter an Initial axial strain eni and Initial axial stress ni.

For details about initial stresses and strains, see Inelastic Strain
Contributions and Initial Stresses and Strains.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Truss>Linear Elastic Material>Initial Stress and Strain

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Initial Stress and Strain

External Stress
You can add the External Stress subnode to the Linear Elastic Material, in order to
specify an additional stress contribution which is not part of the constitutive relation.

1684 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

The external stress can be added to the total stress tensor, or act only as an extra load
contribution.

In many cases External Stress and Initial Stress and Strain are
interchangeable when prescribing stresses. In Initial Stress and Strain, the
given stress is however always added to the stress tensor.

EXTERNAL STRESS
Select a Stress input — Stress tensor or Axial stress.

• When Stress tensor is selected, you enter the external stress in the form of Second
Piola-Kirchhoff stress tensors. In the External stress tensor list, stress tensors
announced by any physics interface will be shown, and also the entry User defined.
When User defined is selected, you can enter the data for the External stress tensor
Sext as Isotropic, Diagonal, or Symmetric depending on the properties of the tensor.
The tensor components are interpreted in the global coordinate system, and are
projected onto the tangential direction of the truss element. If a stress tensor
announced by a physics interface is selected, the coordinate system setting is ignored
— the orientation is handled internally. Choose a Contribution type — Add to stress
tensor, Load contribution only, or Residual stress to determine the effect of the
contribution.
• When Axial stress is selected, you enter a value or an expression for the Axial stress
Sn,ext. Choose a Contribution type — Add to stress tensor, Load contribution only, or
Residual stress or to determine the effect of the contribution.

Selecting a stress tensor announced by the same physics interface as where

the External Stress node is added, will result in an error (‘Circular
variable dependency detected’). This operation would imply that
the computed stress depends on itself.

For theory, see External Stress.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Truss>Linear Elastic Material>External Stress

THE TRUSS INTERFACE | 1685

 Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>External Stress

Spring-Damper Material
Use a Spring-Damper Material to model — between two points — an elastic spring, a
viscous damper, or both. By adding a Truss interface with this material model, you can
add springs and dashpots to any other structural mechanics physics interface.

SPRING-DAMPER
Select a Spring type — Spring constant or Force as function of extension.

• For Spring constant enter a value for the spring constant k.

• For Force as function of extension enter an expression for the spring force Fs. The
expression must be a function of the extension of the spring. The built-in variable
for the spring extension has the form <physicsName>.<SpringNodeTag>.dl, for
example truss.spd1.dl. The default expression is (1[N/m])*truss.spd1.dl,
which corresponds to a linear spring with the stiffness 1 N/m.

To add viscous damping in a dynamic analysis, enter a value or expression for the
Damping coefficient c.

To add loss factor damping, enter a value for the Loss factor damping .

FREE LENGTH
The free length is the distance between the connection points when there is no force
in the spring. Select an option from the list — Specify initial extension or Specify free
length.

• For Specify initial extension enter a value for l0. The free length is computed as
lf  l0  l0, where l0 is the initial distance between the connection points.
• For Specify free length enter a value for lf.

ACTIVATION CONDITIONS
Select a Spring action — Bidirectional, Tension only, or Compression only.

Select the Deactivation check box to enter a Deactivation expression idac. The expression
is treated as a Boolean expression, so that when it is evaluated to a nonzero value, the
spring or damper is deactivated.

1686 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

Select the Permanently deactivate check box if the spring is supposed to be removed
permanently from the simulation once the deactivation condition is fulfilled for the
first time.

As an example, if the spring should break at a certain extension, you can write an
expression like truss.spd1.dl>0.12[m], and select the Permanently deactivate check
box. If the check box is not selected, the spring would become active again when its
connection points come close enough to each other.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Truss>Material Models>Spring-Damper Material

Ribbon
Physics tab with Truss selected:

Edges>Material Models>Spring-Damper Material

Prescribed Displacement
The Prescribed Displacement node adds an edge (3D), boundary (2D), or point (2D
and 3D) condition where the displacements are prescribed in one or more directions.
It is also possible set maximum and minimum limits for the displacements, so that for
example a one-sided support can be modeled.

• If a prescribed displacement is not activated in any direction, this is the

same as a Free constraint.
• If only zero displacements are prescribed, this is the same as a Pinned
constraint.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Specify the coordinate system to use for specifying the prescribed displacement.

PRESCRIBED DISPLACEMENT
Select a Notation — Standard or General.

THE TRUSS INTERFACE | 1687

 Standard Notation
For the displacement in each direction, select a setting from the list — Free, Prescribed,
or Limited. Select:

• Free (the default) to leave the displacement component unconstrained

• Prescribed to constrain the displacement component to a given value. Enter a scalar
value for the component of the prescribed displacement u0.
• Limited to set a maximum and a minimum limit for the displacement component.
Enter a scalar value for the component of the maximum displacement u0,max and
the minimum displacement u0,min. By default, they are set to Inf and -Inf, which
corresponds to no active constraint.

If any displacement component is set to Limited, an additional section Limited

displacement is visible. Select the Method used to implement the weak inequality
constraint — Penalty or Augmented Lagrangian. For both methods, enter a Penalty
factor kp.

By default, the Penalty method is suggested, which in principle enforces the maximum
and minimum limits for the displacement by adding nonlinear springs with a stiffness
equal to kp when the limits are exceeded. This method is usually robust, but the
accuracy is directly dependent on the chosen penalty factor.

The Augmented Lagrangian method adds extra degrees of freedom to improve the
accuracy of the constraint. Here, the penalty factor is a numerical parameter, and has
less impact on the accuracy of the constraint compared to when using the penalty
method. The implementation of the augmented Lagrangian method puts no

1688 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

restrictions on the solver sequence, but for good convergence, proper scaling of the
extra degrees of freedom can be important.

The default value for the Penalty factor kp depends on what type of entity
the Prescribed Displacement node is added to. In the Truss interface:

• For points, the default expression is 100*truss.Eequ*truss.area/

truss.<tag>.charLen

• For edges, the default expression is 100*truss.Eequ*truss.area/

truss.<tag>.charLen^2

In these expressions, truss is the tag of the Truss interface and <tag> is
the tag of the Prescribed Displacement node. The variable
truss.<tag>.charLen is by default equal to the length of the mesh
element.

Similarly, for the Wire interface:

• For points, the default expression is 100*wire.k_A/

wire.<tag>.charLen
• For edges, the default expression is 100*wire.k_A/
wire.<tag>.charLen^2

For details about setting maximum and minimum limits for the
displacements, see Limited Displacement

General Notation
In 3D, 2D, or 2D axisymmetry, click the General notation to specify the displacements
using a general notation that includes any linear combination of displacement
components. For example, for 2D components, use the relationship

H u = R
v

For H matrix H select Isotropic, Diagonal, Symmetric, or Full and then enter values as
needed in the field or matrix. Enter values or expressions for the R vector R.

For example, to achieve the condition u = v, use the settings

THE TRUSS INTERFACE | 1689

 H = 1 –1  R = 0 ,
0 0 0

which force the domain to move only diagonally in the xy-plane.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

• You can add a Harmonic Perturbation subnode for specifying a

harmonic variation of the values of the prescribed displacements in a
frequency domain analysis of perturbation type.
• You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it
to a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics
Modeling chapter.
• You can assign the value of the prescribed displacement to a load
group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Truss>Line Constraints>Prescribed Displacement
Truss>Prescribed Displacement (Point)
Wire>Line Constraints>Prescribed Displacement
Wire>Prescribed Displacement (Point)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Truss or Wire selected:

Edges>Line Constraints>Prescribed Displacement (3D)

Boundaries>Line Constraints>Prescribed Displacement (2D)
Points>Truss>Prescribed Displacement

1690 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

Pinned
The Pinned node adds an edge (3D), boundary (2D), or point (2D and 3D) condition
that makes the edge, boundary, or point fixed; that is, the displacements are zero in all
directions.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Truss>Line Constraints>Pinned (Line)
Truss>Pinned (Point)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Truss selected:

Edges>Line Constraints>Pinned
Points>Truss>Pinned

Thermal Expansion (for Constraints)

Add the Thermal Expansion subnode to a constraint (Pinned or Prescribed Displacement)
to prescribe a deformation of the constraint caused by changes in temperature of the
surroundings. This makes it possible to reduce stresses caused by the boundary
conditions.

THE TRUSS INTERFACE | 1691

 The thermal strain depends on the coefficient of thermal expansion , the temperature
T, and the strain-free reference temperature Tref as

 th =   T – T ref 

THERMAL EXPANSION PROPERTIES

Specify the thermal properties that define the thermal strain. This is a description of
the thermal expansion of surroundings idealized by the constraints.

Select Inherit from edge to take the thermal expansion data from the domain being
constrained. This should only be used when:

• The temperature and the thermal expansion coefficient do not have a spatial
variation.
• The virtual surrounding material has the same thermal expansion as the edge itself.

When Inherit from domain is not selected, enter:

• A value or expression for Temperature T, specifying the temperature distribution of

the surrounding material. Any spatial variation must be an explicit function of the
material frame coordinates. It is not possible to use a computed temperature
distribution.
• The Coefficient of thermal expansion . As a default, values From material are used.
This requires that a material has been assigned to the points where the constraint is
active.
For User defined enter the coefficient of thermal expansion .
• A value or expression for the Volume reference temperature Tref which is the
temperature at which there are no thermal displacements at the constraints.

Enter the coordinates of the Reference point, the point where the displacement is zero.
The choice of reference point only affects the rigid body motion. If there are several
different constraints with a Thermal Expansion subnode, the same reference point
should usually be selected in all of them.

• Constraints and Thermal Expansion in the Structural Mechanics

Modeling chapter.
• Thermal Expansion of Constraints in the Structural Mechanics Theory
chapter.

1692 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Truss>Pinned>Thermal Expansion
Truss>Prescribed Displacement>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Pinned or Prescribed Displacement node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Symmetry
The Symmetry node adds an edge (3D), boundary (2D), or point (2D and 3D)
condition that defines a symmetry edge, boundary, or point.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The Global coordinate system is selected by default. The Coordinate system list contains
any additional coordinate systems that the model includes. The coordinate system is
used in conjunction with the Axis to use as normal direction setting.

SYMMETRY
Select an Axis to use as normal direction. This specifies the direction of the normal to
the symmetry plane. Select 1, 2, or 3 for the first, second, or third axis in the selected
coordinate system.

NORMAL DIRECTION CONDITION

You can allow a symmetry plane to move along its normal direction. This can be used
to model some situations where you want a plane to remain strictly planar but still relax
the property of it being fixed.

From the list, select No displacement, Free Displacement, Prescribed force, or Prescribed
displacement.

The value No displacement gives a standard symmetry condition.

Select Free Displacement to allow the symmetry plane to translate in the normal
direction. The displacement is determined by the criterion that there is no resulting
reaction force in the normal direction.

Select Prescribed force to prescribe the total reaction force acting on the direction
normal to the symmetry plane. Enter the Normal force Fn. The force is defined as

THE TRUSS INTERFACE | 1693

 positive when acting along the outward normal of the symmetry plane. Setting the
prescribed force to zero gives the same effect as using Free Displacement.

Select Prescribed displacement to prescribe the displacement in the direction normal to

the symmetry plane. Enter the Normal displacement un0. Setting the prescribed
displacement to zero gives the same effect as using No displacement.

• Using Free Displacement, Prescribed force, or Prescribed displacement is

only meaningful if the geometry selection corresponds to a single
symmetry plane.
• When using Free Displacement or Prescribed force, an extra global
degree of freedom is added for determining the displacement in the
normal direction. This degree of freedom will have a name of the type
<component>.<interface>.<symmetry_tag>.un, for example
comp1.truss.sym1.un.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

Symmetry Constraints

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

1694 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Truss>Line Constraints>Symmetry (Line)
Truss>More Constraints>Symmetry (Point)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Truss selected:

Edges>Line Constraints>Symmetry
Points>More Constraints>Symmetry

Antisymmetry
The Antisymmetry node adds an edge (3D), boundary (2D), or point (2D and 3D)
condition that defines an antisymmetry edge, boundary, or point.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The Global coordinate system is selected by default. The Coordinate system list contains
any additional coordinate systems that the model includes. The coordinate system is
used in conjunction with the Axis to use as normal direction setting.

ANTISYMMETRY
Select an Axis to use as normal direction. This specifies the direction of the normal to
the antisymmetry plane.

• For 2D models, select 1 or 2 for the first or second axis, respectively.

• For 3D models, select 1, 2, or 3 for the first, second, or third axis, respectively.

When

THE TRUSS INTERFACE | 1695

 CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

Symmetry Constraints

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Truss>Line Constraints>Antisymmetry (Line)
Truss>More Constraints>Antisymmetry (Point)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Truss selected:

Edges>Line Constraints>Antisymmetry
Points>More Constraints>Antisymmetry

Edge Load
Add an Edge Load as a force distributed along an edge (3D models) or boundary (2D
models).

1696 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

FORCE
Select a Load type — Force per unit length, Force per unit volume, or Total force. Enter
values or expressions for the components.
TABLE 10-2:

LOAD TYPE VARIABLE SI UNIT GEOMETRIC SPACE DIMENSION

ENTITY LEVEL (COMPONENTS)

Force per unit length FL Nm edges 3D (x, y, z)

boundaries 2D (x, y)
3
Force per unit volume FV N/m edges 3D (x, y, z)
boundaries 2D (x, y)
Total force Ftot N edges 3D (x, y, z)
boundaries 2D (x, y)

• When Force per unit volume is selected, the given load is multiplied by
the cross-section area. This option is useful for modeling body loads
like gravity or centrifugal loads.
• After selecting a Load type, the Load list normally only contains User
defined. When combining the Truss interface with another physics
interface, it is also possible to choose a predefined load from this list.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

THE TRUSS INTERFACE | 1697

 • You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Truss>Line and Volume Loads>Edge Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Truss selected:

Edges>Line and Volume Loads>Edge Load

Point Mass
Use the Point Mass node to add a discrete mass that is concentrated at a point.

The Point Mass Damping subnode can be added to specify a mass-proportional

damping.

POINT MASS
Enter a Point mass m.

FRAME ACCELERATION FORCES

Select the Exclude contribution check box to switch off the loads generated by this node
when the frame is accelerated when using a Gravity, Rotating Frame, Linearly
Accelerated Frame, or Base Excitation feature. The setting will also determine whether
the node will contribute when computing mass properties.

For more information, see Computing Mass Properties.

1698 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Truss>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Point Mass
Wire>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Point Mass

Ribbon
Physics tab with Truss or Wire selected:

Points>Mass, Spring, and Damper>Point Mass

Point Mass Damping

Use the Point Mass Damping subnode to add damping to a Point Mass parent node.

POINT MASS DAMPING

Enter a Mass damping parameter dM. This is the mass proportional term of a Rayleigh
damping.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Truss>Point Mass>Point Mass Damping
Wire>Point Mass>Point Mass Damping

Ribbon
Physics tab with Point Mass node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Point Mass Damping

THE TRUSS INTERFACE | 1699

1700 | CHAPTER 10: TRUSS
 11

Wire

This chapter describes the Wire interface, which is found under the Structural
Mechanics branch ( ) when adding a physics interface.

In this chapter:

• Modeling Wires and Cables

• Theory for the Wire Interface
• The Wire Interface

1701
 Modeling Wires and Cables
Wires are thin one-dimensional structures with no bending stiffness. Ideal wires can
only sustain tensile axial forces. Typically, wires act in a prestressed state. It is however
also possible to model for example wires that are sagging under self-weight.

The wire elements have displacements as degrees of freedom and live on boundaries in
2D and edges in 3D. Typical uses of the wire elements are:

• Prestressed cables.
• Drive belts.
• Cables that hang free, subjected to for example gravity.

The Wire interface supports the same study types as the Solid Mechanics interface.

Dependent Variables
The degrees of freedom (dependent variables) are the global displacements u, v, and
w (3D only) in the global x, y, and z directions, respectively.

MODELING WIRES AND CABLES

You use the Wire interface for modeling wires and cables, possibly sagging under
gravity or other external loads. Below are some suggestions for how to model such
structures efficiently:

• Most cable problems are geometrically nonlinear. The Wire interface will force any
study to be geometrically nonlinear. A wire which is not in tension is not numerically
stable. Physically, it wrinkles in an unpredictable manner. In order to start the
analysis, you either have to add an initial stress or some weak springs.
• If there are no line or volume loads, the wire is straight. In this case, only one
element is needed for the whole wire, since the force is constant.
• In some problems, there are large deformations, but low tensile stresses. This would
for example be the case if you model a wire hanging free under self-weight (‘the
catenary problem’). Such problems are numerically ill-conditioned. They can be
solved, but you may have to use tight tolerances for the nonlinear solver and allow
many iterations.

1702 | CHAPTER 11: WIRE

Theory for the Wire Interface
Theory Background for the Wire Interface
The displacements in the Wire interface are represented by Lagrange shape functions.

STRAIN-DISPLACEMENT RELATION
The axial strain n is calculated by expressing the global strains in tangential derivatives
and projecting the global strains on the edge.

t
 n = t  gT t

where t is the edge tangent vector and gT is defined as

 xT  xyT  xzT
 gT =  xyT  yT  yzT
 xzT  yzT  zT

The strains is expressed as Green-Lagrange strains, allowing large displacements and

rotations.

1  u i u j u k u k 
 ijT = ---  + +  
2   xj  xi  xi  xj 
T T T T

The axial strain written out becomes

 n = t x   xT t x +  xyT t y +  xzT t z  +
t y   xyT t x +  yT t y +  yzT t z  +
t z   xzT t x +  yzT t y +  zT t z 

STRESS-STRAIN RELATION
The constitutive relation for a wire is uniaxial. Since wires in most cases do not have a
homogeneous cross section, it is not meaningful to compute a stress. Rather, a force
vs. strain relation is used. The axial force in tension, N, is computed as

N = N ex + k A  n, el = N ex + k A   n –  inel 

 inel =  0 +  th +  hs

THEORY FOR THE WIRE INTERFACE | 1703

  ex =  0 +  ext

where

• kA is the axial stiffness of the wire

• n is the total axial strain
• n,el is the elastic axial strain
• inel is the sum of all inelastic strain contributions, such as:
- Initial strain, 0
- Thermal strain, th
- Hygroscopic strain, hs
• Nex is the sum of all extra axial force contributions such as:
- Initial axial force Ni
- External axial force Next

In a geometrically nonlinear analysis, the strains are interpreted as Green-Lagrange

strains. It should be noted that while Green-Lagrange strains are formally not additive,
it assumed that even if displacements and rotations are large, the axial strains are small.

The ideal wire will not be able to sustain compressive forces. In practice, it may wrinkle
in an unpredictable manner when tension is lost. In order to maintain numerical
stability, a small stiffness is instead used when in compression. The following
expression is used for the force in this case:

N = k A  n, el –  n, c +   1 – ---
1
 n, el   n, c
 

 -------------
n, el- 

N = k A e

– 1  n, c   n, el  0
 
 

where  is a stiffness reduction factor, and

 n, c
 = ----------
ln 

The reduced compressive stiffness is constant, kA, below a certain compressive strain
n,c. Between the two domains of constant stiffness, there is a transition region in
which the stiffness drops exponentially, so that the strain-force relation always has a
continuous derivative.

1704 | CHAPTER 11: WIRE

IMPLEMENTATION
Using the principle of virtual work results in the following weak formulation

  u FPi
t t
W = d  –  n  n + u F V  dV +
V i

where the summation stands for summation over all points in the geometry. Here,
stresses are not directly accessible. The volume integration must be replaced by a line
integration.

  – ntest N + utest FL  dL +  utest FPi

t t
W =
L i

THEORY FOR THE WIRE INTERFACE | 1705

 The Wire Interface
The Wire (wire) interface ( ), found under the Structural Mechanics branch ( )
when adding a physics interface, is used for modeling cables or wires that can only
sustain tensile axial forces. Geometric nonlinearity is always active for this interface,
since the transverse stiffness of a wire is caused by its prestress.

The default material model is Elastic Wire.

For a detailed overview of the functionality available in each product, visit

https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/

When this physics interface is added, these default nodes are also added to the Model
Builder: Elastic Wire, Free (a condition where points are free, with no loads or
constraints), and Initial Values. Then, from the Physics toolbar, you can add other nodes
that implement, for example, loads and constraints. You can also right-click Wire to
select physics features from the context menu.

SETTINGS
The Label is the default physics interface name.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the physics
interface. Refer to such physics interface variables in expressions using the pattern
<name>.<variable_name>. In order to distinguish between variables belonging to
different physics interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and
underscores (_) are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first physics interface in the model) is wire.

STRUCTURAL TRANSIENT BEHAVIOR

From the Structural transient behavior list, select Include inertial terms (the default) or
Quasistatic. Use Quasistatic to treat the dynamic behavior as quasi static (with no mass
effects; that is, no second-order time derivatives). Selecting this option gives a more
efficient solution for problems where the variation in time is slow when compared to
the natural frequencies of the system. The default solver for the time stepping is
changed from Generalized alpha to BDF when Quasistatic is selected.

1706 | CHAPTER 11: WIRE

DISCRETIZATION
The only available discretization is linear shape functions.

DEPENDENT VARIABLES
The dependent variable (field variable) is for the Displacement field u which has two
components (u, v) in 2D and three components (u, v, and w) in 3D. The name can be
changed but the names of fields and dependent variables must be unique within a
model.

• Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Wire Interface
• Edge Load
• Theory for the Wire Interface

Vibrating String: Application Library path Structural_Mechanics_Module/

Verification_Examples/vibrating_string

Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Wire Interface
The Wire Interface has these boundary, edge, point, and pair nodes are available from
the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics context menu (Mac or Linux
users), or right-click to access the context menu (all users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

FEATURES AVAILABLE FROM SUBMENUS

Many features for the Wire interface are added from submenus in the Physics toolbar
groups or context menu (when you right-click the node). The submenu name is the
same in both cases. The submenus at the Edge level (3D) or Boundary level (2D) are:

• Line and Volume Loads

• Mass, Spring, and Damper
• Line Constraints

THE WIRE INTERFACE | 1707

 The submenus at the Point level are

• Mass, Spring, and Damper

• More Constraints
• Pairs

LINKS TO FEATURE NODE INFORMATION

These nodes (and subnodes) are described in this section (listed in alphabetical order):

• Antisymmetry • Pinned
• Edge Load • Symmetry
• Elastic Wire • Thermal Expansion (for
• Hygroscopic Swelling Constraints)

• Initial Stress and Strain • Thermal Expansion (for Elastic

Wire)

These nodes are described for the Solid Mechanics, Truss, Wire, or Beam interface:

• Activation • Point Load

• Added Mass • Point Load, Free
• Average Rotation • Point Mass
• Base Excitation • Point Mass Damping
• Damping • Predeformation
• Free • Prescribed Acceleration
• Gravity • Prescribed Displacement
• Harmonic Perturbation • Prescribed Velocity
• Initial Values • Rotating Frame1
• Linearly Accelerated Frame1 • Spring Foundation
• Phase • Spring-Damper
1
This is selected from the Line and Volume Loads submenu for this interface.

If there are subsequent constraints on the same geometrical entity, the last
one takes precedence.

1708 | CHAPTER 11: WIRE

 In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual see Table 2-4 for links
to common sections and Table 2-5 to common feature nodes. You can
also search for information: press F1 to open the Help window or Ctrl+F1
to open the Documentation window.

Elastic Wire
The Elastic Wire node adds the equations for a linear elastic wire element, and an
interface for defining the elastic material properties.

By adding the following subnodes to the Elastic Wire node you can incorporate many
other effects:

• Thermal Expansion (for Elastic Wire)

• Hygroscopic Swelling
• Initial Stress and Strain
• Damping
• Activation

WIRE PROPERTIES
Enter the Axial Stiffness, kA, and Mass per unit length, L.

ADVANCED
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In this section, you can tune how the stiffness is reduced under compression.

Enter the Compressive stiffness reduction factor, . The asymptotic stiffness under
significant compressive strains is kA.

Enter the Transition region strain limit, c. The stiffness is reduced from the full stiffness
at zero strain, to the value kA at the negative strain c. An exponential decay function
is used.

For details, see also Stress-Strain Relation

THE WIRE INTERFACE | 1709

 BASIC SECTION PROPERTIES
Enter the Cross section area, A. The cross section area as such is not essential to the
analysis. It is only used during result presentation. Note that wires sometimes have
non-homogeneous cross sections, so the definition of a cross section area may not be
obvious.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Wire>Elastic Wire

Ribbon
Physics tab with Wire selected:

Edges>Elastic Wire

Thermal Expansion (for Elastic Wire)

Use the Thermal Expansion subnode to add an internal thermal strain caused by changes
in temperature.

MODEL INPUTS
The Volume reference temperature Tref is the temperature at which there are no thermal
strains. As a default, the value is obtained from a Common model input. You can also
select User defined to enter a value or expression for the temperature locally.

From the Temperature T list, select an existing temperature variable from another
physics interface, if any such temperature variables exist, or select User defined to enter
a value or expression for the temperature.

See also

• Using Common Model Input

• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.
• Temperature-Dependent Material Data

THERMAL EXPANSION PROPERTIES

Select an Input type to specify how the thermal strain is defined. The default is Secant
coefficient of thermal expansion, in which case the thermal strain is given by

1710 | CHAPTER 11: WIRE

  th =   T – T ref 

where is the secant coefficient of thermal expansion, which can be temperature

dependent. As a default, the Common model input. You can also select User defined to
enter a value or expression.

When Input type is Tangent coefficient of thermal expansion, the thermal strain is given
by

 T 
 th = exp 
 T ref
 t    d – 1


where t is the tangential coefficient of thermal expansion.

When Input type is Thermal strain, enter the thermal strain dL as function of
temperature explicitly.

In all three cases, the default is to take values From material. Select User defined to enter
an expression for the coefficient of thermal expansion or thermal strain.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Wire>Linear Elastic Material>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Hygroscopic Swelling
Hygroscopic swelling is an internal strain caused by changes in moisture content. This
strain can be written as

 hs =  h  c mo – c mo,ref 

THE WIRE INTERFACE | 1711

 where h is the coefficient of hygroscopic swelling, cmo is the moisture concentration,
and cmo,ref is the strain-free reference concentration. The temperature is assumed to
be constant over the cross section of the wire element.

The settings for the Wire interface are the same as described for the Beam
interface (excluding the hygroscopic bending options). See Hygroscopic
Swelling in the documentation for the Beam interface.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Wire>Elastic Wire>Hygroscopic Swelling

Ribbon
Physics tab with Elastic Wire node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Hygroscopic Swelling

Initial Stress and Strain

You can add the Initial Stress and Strain subnode to the Elastic Wire, in order to specify
the force or strain state in the structure before applying any constraint or load. The
values given are not initial values in the mathematical sense, but rather a contribution
to the constitutive relation

INITIAL STRESS AND STRAIN

Enter an Initial axial strain en0 and Initial axial force Ni.

For details about initial stresses and strains, see Stress-Strain Relation.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Wire>Elastic Wire>Initial Stress and Strain

Ribbon
Physics tab with Linear Elastic Material node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Initial Stress and Strain

1712 | CHAPTER 11: WIRE

Pinned
The Pinned node adds an edge (3D), boundary (2D), or point (2D and 3D) condition
that makes the edge, boundary, or point fixed; that is, the displacements are zero in all
directions.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Wire>Line Constraints>Pinned (Line)
Wire>Pinned (Point)

Ribbon
Physics tab with Wire selected:

Edges>Line Constraints>Pinned
Points>Wire>Pinned

Thermal Expansion (for Constraints)

Add the Thermal Expansion subnode to a constraint (Pinned or Prescribed Displacement)
to prescribe a deformation of the constraint caused by changes in temperature of the
surroundings. This makes it possible to reduce stresses caused by the boundary
conditions.

THE WIRE INTERFACE | 1713

 The thermal strain depends on the coefficient of thermal expansion , the temperature
T, and the strain-free reference temperature Tref as

 th =   T – T ref 

THERMAL EXPANSION PROPERTIES

Specify the thermal properties that define the thermal strain. This is a description of
the thermal expansion of surroundings idealized by the constraints.

Select Inherit from edge to take the thermal expansion data from the domain being
constrained. This should only be used when:

• The temperature and the thermal expansion coefficient do not have a spatial
variation.
• The virtual surrounding material has the same thermal expansion as the edge itself.

When Inherit from domain is not selected, enter:

• A value or expression for Temperature T, specifying the temperature distribution of

the surrounding material. Any spatial variation must be an explicit function of the
material frame coordinates. It is not possible to use a computed temperature
distribution.
• The Coefficient of thermal expansion . As a default, values From material are used.
This requires that a material has been assigned to the points where the constraint is
active.
For User defined enter the coefficient of thermal expansion .
• A value or expression for the Volume reference temperature Tref which is the
temperature at which there are no thermal displacements at the constraints.

Enter the coordinates of the Reference point, the point where the displacement is zero.
The choice of reference point only affects the rigid body motion. If there are several
different constraints with a Thermal Expansion subnode, the same reference point
should usually be selected in all of them.

• Constraints and Thermal Expansion in the Structural Mechanics

Modeling chapter.
• Thermal Expansion of Constraints in the Structural Mechanics Theory
chapter.

1714 | CHAPTER 11: WIRE

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Wire>Pinned>Thermal Expansion
Wire>Prescribed Displacement>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Pinned or Prescribed Displacement node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Symmetry
The Symmetry node adds a point condition that defines a symmetry point.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The Global coordinate system is selected by default. The Coordinate system list contains
any additional coordinate systems that the model includes. The coordinate system is
used in conjunction with the Axis to use as normal direction setting.

SYMMETRY
Select an Axis to use as normal direction. This specifies the direction of the normal to
the symmetry plane. Select 1, 2, or 3 for the first, second, or third axis in the selected
coordinate system.

NORMAL DIRECTION CONDITION

You can allow a symmetry plane to move along its normal direction. This can be used
to model some situations where you want a plane to remain strictly planar but still relax
the property of it being fixed.

From the list, select No displacement, Free Displacement, Prescribed force, or Prescribed
displacement.

The value No displacement gives a standard symmetry condition.

Select Free Displacement to allow the symmetry plane to translate in the normal
direction. The displacement is determined by the criterion that there is no resulting
reaction force in the normal direction.

Select Prescribed force to prescribe the total reaction force acting on the direction
normal to the symmetry plane. Enter the Normal force Fn. The force is defined as

THE WIRE INTERFACE | 1715

 positive when acting along the outward normal of the symmetry plane. Setting the
prescribed force to zero gives the same effect as using Free Displacement.

Select Prescribed displacement to prescribe the displacement in the direction normal to

the symmetry plane. Enter the Normal displacement un0. Setting the prescribed
displacement to zero gives the same effect as using No displacement.

• Using Free Displacement, Prescribed force, or Prescribed displacement is

only meaningful if the geometry selection corresponds to a single
symmetry plane.
• When using Free Displacement or Prescribed force, an extra global
degree of freedom is added for determining the displacement in the
normal direction. This degree of freedom will have a name of the type
<component>.<interface>.<symmetry_tag>.un, for example
comp1.wire.sym1.un.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

Symmetry Constraints

You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to

a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

1716 | CHAPTER 11: WIRE

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Wire>More Constraints>Symmetry

Ribbon
Physics tab with Wire selected:

Points>More Constraints>Symmetry

Antisymmetry
The Antisymmetry node adds a point condition that defines an antisymmetry point.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The Global coordinate system is selected by default. The Coordinate system list contains
any additional coordinate systems that the model includes. The coordinate system is
used in conjunction with the Axis to use as normal direction setting.

ANTISYMMETRY
Select an Axis to use as normal direction. This specifies the direction of the normal to
the antisymmetry plane.

• For 2D models, select 1 or 2 for the first or second axis, respectively.

• For 3D models, select 1, 2, or 3 for the first, second, or third axis, respectively.

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

Symmetry Constraints

THE WIRE INTERFACE | 1717

 You can activate and deactivate this boundary condition by assigning it to
a constraint group. See Load Cases in the Structural Mechanics Modeling
chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Wire>More Constraints>Antisymmetry

Ribbon
Physics tab with Wire selected:

Points>More Constraints>Antisymmetry

Edge Load
Add an Edge Load as a force distributed along an edge (3D models) or boundary (2D
models).

FORCE
Select a Load type — Force per unit length, or Total force. Enter values or expressions
for the components.
TABLE 11-1:

LOAD TYPE VARIABLE SI UNIT GEOMETRIC SPACE DIMENSION

ENTITY LEVEL (COMPONENTS)

Force per unit length FL Nm edges 3D (x, y, z)

boundaries 2D (x, y)
Total force Ftot N edges 3D (x, y, z)
boundaries 2D (x, y)

After selecting a Load type, the Load list normally only contains
User defined. When combining the Wire interface with another physics
interface, it is also possible to choose a predefined load from this list.

LINEAR BUCKLING
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

1718 | CHAPTER 11: WIRE

If you are performing a linear buckling analysis with a combination of live and dead
loads, select the Treat as dead load check box to indicate that the load contributions
from this node are constant. The default is that a load is proportional to the load factor.

For more information about live and dead loads, see Buckling Analysis.

• You can add the Phase subnode to specify the phase of this load in a
frequency domain analysis.
• You can specify this load to be a Harmonic Perturbation in a frequency
domain analysis.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Wire>Line and Volume Loads>Edge Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Wire selected:

Edges>Line and Volume Loads>Edge Load

THE WIRE INTERFACE | 1719

1720 | CHAPTER 11: WIRE
 12

Pipe Mechanics

This chapter describes the Pipe Mechanics interface, which you find under the
Structural Mechanics branch ( ) when adding a physics interface.

In this chapter:

• Theory for the Pipe Mechanics Interface

• The Pipe Mechanics Interface

1721
 Theory for the Pipe Mechanics
Interface
The Pipe Mechanics Interface theory is described in this section:

• About Pipes • Stress Evaluation

• Effects of Internal Pressure • Connection Between Pipes and
• Effects of Thermal Expansion Structures
• Cross Sections

About Pipes
The Pipe Mechanics interface is intended for modeling slender pipes with arbitrary
cross sections. It is based on beam theory, and the similarities with the Beam interface
are large. The most important features that make the Pipe Mechanics interface
different from the Beam interface are:

• In a pipe, the hoop stress caused by the internal pressure gives a significant
contribution to the stress state.
• The hoop stress will cause a contraction of the pipe in the axial direction due to
Poisson’s ratio effects.
• The mass of the enclosed fluid must be taken into account when computing gravity
loads and dynamic properties. This effect is active only in the transverse direction of
the pipe, but not in the axial direction.
• When working with thermal expansion, the temperature is assumed to have one
value at the inside of the pipe and another value at the outside. There is thus no
global bending temperature gradient causing a net moment over the cross section.
Rather, there is local thermal stress gradient through the pipe wall.

1722 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

Most of the theory of the Pipe Mechanics interface is shared with the Beam Interface.

In the documentation for the Beam interface:

• Shape Functions
• Geometric Nonlinearity
• Strain-Displacement/Rotation Relation
• Stress-Strain Relation
• Initial Load and Strain
• Geometric Variables

Only the parts of the theory which is specific to pipes will be covered here. Since the
by far most common cross section is a circular pipe, this geometry is on several
occasions given a special treatment.

Effects of Internal Pressure

HOOP STRESS
When an internal pressure is present in a pipe, it must be balanced by a net force in the
circumferential direction. For a circular pipe, this stress component is often called hoop
stress. For a thin-walled circular pipe, it is given by the well-known expression

pR
 h = --------
t

where p is the pressure, R is the radius of the pipe, and t is the wall thickness.

The pressure p here is the gauge pressure, assumed to be positive. If the

pressure in the pipe is given as an absolute pressure, then the external
pressure (usually 1 atm) must also be supplied. It is assumed that the
external pressure is small relative to the internal pressure, so that the stress
distribution through the pipe wall is given only by the gauge pressure
p = pinternal - pexternal.

In particular, the Pipe Flow interface operates with absolute pressures, so

when running a combined analysis, it is important to include also the
external pressure.

THEORY FOR THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1723

 For stress evaluation in a general cross section, the average (or membrane) hoop stress
can be written as

 h m =  m p

where m is a dimensionless factor multiplying the pressure.

The average hoop stress is available in the variable pipem.shm.

For a general thick-walled circular pipe, the average hoop stress is given by

R di
 m = ---- = -----------------
t do – di

where the inner and outer diameters have been introduced.

For a thick circular pipe, the hoop stress may however have a significant variation
through the thickness (Figure 12-1).

Figure 12-1: Hoop stress distribution in a thick-walled pipe.

The peak circumferential stress is

di 2
1 +  ------
 d o
 h max = p -----------------------2-
di
1 –  ------
do

The difference between the peak circumferential stress and the mean circumferential
stress is

1724 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

 p
 h b = ---------------- =  b p
di
1 + ------
do

Here, b is a cross section dependent factor, which is used to compute the peak stress
due to internal pressure.

The bending part of the hoop stress is available in the variable

pipem.shb.

For noncircular pipe sections, the nonuniform stress distribution is more prominent.
For such sections, the bending stress in the pipe wall can be much larger than the mean
stress which balances the internal pressure. This is indicated in Figure 12-2.

Figure 12-2: Bending stress caused by internal pressure in rectangular pipe section.

For a rectangular pipe section, the bending stress can be estimated using beam theory.
If the cross section is considered as a rectangular frame with constant thickness t, then
the moment (per unit length) at the corner will be

3 3
p Ly + Lz
M = ------  --------------------
12 L y + L z

Here, the length in the horizontal direction is Ly and the length in the vertical
direction is Lz.

The nominal bending stress at the corner is thus

THEORY FOR THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1725

 3 3
6M- p Ly + Lz
 h b = --------
2
= -------2-  --------------------
t 2t L y + L z

The bending part of the hoop stress is available in the variable

pipem.shb.

For normal values of wall thickness to section width ratios and corner fillet radii, this
will give a good approximation.

The average stress, which is given by the force balance, is

max  L y L z 
 h m = p -------------------------------
t

The average hoop stress is available in the variable pipem.shm.

Thus,

max  L y L z 
 m = -------------------------------
t
3 3
1 Ly + Lz
 b = -------2-  --------------------
2t L y + L z

For rectangular pipe sections, the bending stress is thus always larger than the
membrane stress.

POISSON’S RATIO EFFECT

Due to the stresses and corresponding strains in the circumferential direction, there
will be a coupling to axial deformation through Poisson’s ratio. The bending stresses
within the pipe wall are self-equilibrating, and does not have a net effect. For a
cylindrical pipe, it can actually be shown the radial and hoop stresses together cause a
homogeneous axial strain throughout the wall. Thus, no local axial stresses are
introduced. For a general cross section, the local axial stress caused by is assumed to be

1726 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

  n b =  h b

The axial stress contribution from the bending part of the hoop stress is
available in the variable pipem.shbn.

The average hoop stress will however always cause an axial strain. Since the diameter
of the pipe increases under an internal pressure, the pipe must, if the ends are free,
contract. Equivalently, if the ends of the pipe are kept fixed, a tensile axial force is
introduced. It can be shown that for any pipe cross section, this force is

N = 2pA f

where Af is the cross-section area of the fluid. Note that the force is independent of the
geometry of the wall itself.

The corresponding axial strain in the case of free axial deformation is

– 2 pA f
 ap = --------------------
EA

This term is added as an initial strain to the constitutive relation.

Fluid Flow Forces

In addition to the pressure expanding the pipe, there can be loads caused by
momentum transfer. These loads are of several types:

• Drag forces due to friction between the fluid and the pipe wall
• Centrifugal forces due to redirection of the flow in pipe bends
• Pressure forces in pipe bends
• Point forces caused by for example pressure drops in valves and changes in pipe cross
section

DRAG FORCE
The drag force, Fd, always acts along the tangent of the pipe in the direction of the
flow, t. Its contribution to the edge load per unit length is

1
F d = --- f  f A f u f u f t
2 D

THEORY FOR THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1727

 where the subscript 'f' stands for fluid properties. The Darcy friction factor fD is a
dimensionless coefficient that is specified on the Fluid Properties feature under Pipe
Flow interface. For most friction models, it is effectively proportional to 1/Re, where
Re =  f u f d h   f is the local Reynolds number in the flow. Thus, the resulting
magnitude of the drag force becomes proportional to the velocity.

In the Pipe Flow interface, Fd is computed and is made available for the Pipe
Mechanics interface.

CENTRIFUGAL FORCE
The centrifugal force contribution to the edge load per unit length is

2
Fc = –f Af uf kn

where the curvature vector is computed as a derivative of the edge tangent with respect
to the length parameter

t
k n = -----
s

This vector is perpendicular to the tangent, and it points toward the local center of
curvature. The centrifugal force acts in the direction opposite to the vector.

In the Pipe Flow interface, Fc is computed and is made available for the Pipe
Mechanics interface.

PRESSURE FORCE
In curved pipes, the pressure force contribution to the edge load per unit length is

F p = –  p f – p o A f k n

where po is the exterior pressure on the outside of the pipe.

In the Pipe Flow interface, Fp is computed and is made available for the Pipe
Mechanics interface.

JUNCTION POINT FORCES

Point loads are related to the momentum change due to the flow alteration at junction
points. For each junction, the force can be computed as a jump in the quantity
2
 p f – p o +  f u f A f t . Thus, the resulting point load can be written as

1728 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

  sn   pf – po + f uf Af t n
2
F jp =
n

where the summation is performed over all pipe-ends at the junction point, and sn
stands for either plus or minus sign depending on the flow direction.

One needs to use the functionality available on the Fluid-Pipe Interaction

coupling node to apply the junction forces.

Effects of Thermal Expansion

Temperature changes in the pipe has several effects. A homogeneous change in
temperature will cause the pipe to extend or shrink in the axial direction. When there
is a temperature gradient through the pipe wall, the mean temperature will control this
deformation in an average sense. There will however also be local strain and stress
states caused by the temperature variation. These stresses can be significant.

For analysis of cases with thermal expansion, it is assumed that the inside of the pipe
has a temperature Ti, which is constant along the perimeter. As a first approximation,
this would be the temperature of the fluid. In reality, there is a temperature jump given
by the heat transfer coefficient. Similarly, it is assumed that the outside of the pipe has
a temperature To, which is constant along the perimeter. Note that if there is insulation
around the pipe, To represents the temperature of the pipe wall inside the insulation.

The variation of the temperature through the wall is treated slightly differently for
circular cross section and in the general case. In the circular pipe, the temperature has
a distribution which can be determined from analytically.

GENERAL CROSS SECTION

For a general cross section, it is assumed that the temperature varies linearly through
the pipe wall, and that the average temperature is

Ti + To
T m = ------------------
2

If the coefficient of thermal expansion is temperature dependent, it is assumed that its

variation through the pipe wall is linear.

Define

THEORY FOR THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1729

 i =   Ti 
o =   To 
 =  o –  i
T = T o – T i

The average axial thermal strain is then

1 1
 th =  i  T i – T ref  + ---    T i – T ref  +  i T  + --- T
2 3

CIRCULAR PIPE
For a circular pipe, the heat transfer problem can be solved analytically. The radial
temperature distribution is given by

r
ln ----
ri
T  r  = T i + T -----------
ro
ln -----
ri

As long as the wall thickness is small, the temperature distribution through the
thickness is close to linear.

If the coefficient of thermal expansion is temperature dependent, the exact axial strain
has to be computed using an integral through the thickness of the material. In order
to avoid performing such integration in runtime, a linear variation of the coefficient of
thermal expansion with the radial coordinate is assumed,

  r – r i 
  r  =  i + --------------------------
ro – ri

The averaged axial thermal strain is then

ro
2
 th 
= ----------------
2
ro – ri
2
  r   T  r  – T ref r dr
ri

Evaluation of the integral gives

1730 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

 ro
 th =  i  T i – T ref  + ---   T i – T ref   1 + --------------- +
1
3  r o + r i
 2 
 ro 1 
 i T  ----------------
2 2
– ----------------------- +
 ro – ri r o 
 2 log  ----- 
 ri 

 2 2 2 
 r o  2r o – 3r i  4r o – 5r i – 5r o r i 
T  -----------------------------------------------
- – ------------------------------------------------
 3  ro – ri 2  ro + ri  ro 
18  r o – r i  log  ----- 
2 2
 ri

BENDING THERMAL STRESS

The temperature gradient through the pipe wall causes a local bending stress state,
both in the axial direction and in the hoop direction. This contribution to the stress is
taken into account only for the circular pipe section.

The peak value of the bending stress is calculated as

2
  i +  o T ro 1
 t,nb =  t,hb = ------------------------------- ---------------- – -----------------------
2  1 –   r2 – r2 ro
o i 2 log  -----
ri

Stress Evaluation
Since the basic result quantities for beams are the integrated stresses in terms of section
forces and moment, special considerations are needed for the evaluation of actual
stresses. When combining various stress contributions, a conservative approach is taken
in every step.

AXIAL STRESS
The axial stress in the pipe has the following contributions:

• Axial force
• Bending moment
• Local bending stress caused by internal pressure
• Local bending stress caused by temperature gradient through the wall.

THEORY FOR THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1731

 Normal Force
The normal stress from axial force is constant over the section, and computed as

N
 n = ----
A

Bending Moments
The normal stress from bending is computed in four user-selected points (ylk, zlk) in
the cross section as

M ly z lk M lz y lk
 bk = ----------------- – -----------------
I yy I zz

In 2D, only two points, specified by their local y-coordinates are used.

Internal Pressure
The effects of internal pressure are described in detail in Effects of Internal Pressure
above. The axial bending stress component n,b is always positive due to the
assumption that the gauge pressure is positive. In reality, it represents a bending stress,
so the true sign differs between the inside and the outside of the pipe.

Thermal Expansion
The effects of thermal expansion are described in detail in Effects of Thermal
Expansion above. The axial bending stress component t,b is always positive due its
definition. In reality, it represents a bending stress, so the true sign differs between the
inside and the outside of the pipe.

Total Axial Stress

The total axial stress in evaluation point k is defined as

 k =  bk +  n +   n,b +  t,nb sign   bk +  n 

If the true distributions of n,b and t,b have opposite signs, this will be conservative.

The peak normal stress in the section is defined as

 n, max = max   k 

A special method is used for the Pipe cross section. Since there are no extreme
positions around a circle, a maximum bending stress is computed as

2 2
d o M ly + M lz
 b, max = ------------------------------------
2I zz

1732 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

where do is the outer diameter. This value replaces the stress from the stress evaluation
points (bk) in maximum stress expressions, thus ensuring that the correct peak stress
is evaluated irrespective of where it appears along the circumference.

The following variables are used for the axial stress:

• Stress caused by axial force, n: pipem.sn

• Stress caused by bending moments, bk(evaluation points 1-4):
pipem.sb1, …, pipem.sb4

• Axial stress from gauge pressure, n,b: pipem.shb

• Axial stress from temperature gradient, t,b: pipem.shb
• Total axial stress in evaluation points, k: pipem.s1, …, pipem.sb4
• Maximum axial stress, max: pipem.smax

HOOP STRESS
The hoop stress acts in a direction which is orthogonal to the axial stress. Hoop stresses
can be caused by the internal pressure and by a temperature gradient through the
thickness.

Internal Pressure
The hoop stress caused by the pressure is

 h  p =  h m +  h  b = p   m +  b 

where m and b are defined in Effects of Internal Pressure. The bending part is defined
as positive. In reality, it represents a bending stress, so the true sign differs between the
inside and the outside of the pipe. Under the assumption of a positive gauge pressure,
the positive sum will however exist on either the inner or the outer boundary.

Thermal Expansion
The temperature gradient stress is caused by difference in thermal strain between the
inside and the outside. The details are discussed in Effects of Thermal Expansion.

The total hoop stress is computed as

 h.max =  h p +  t,hb

THEORY FOR THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1733

 SHEAR STRESS
The shear stress from twist in general has a complex distribution over the cross section.
The maximum shear stress due to torsion is defined as

M lx
 t, max = -------------
Wt

where Wt is the torsional section modulus. This result is available only in 3D.

The section shear forces are computed in two different ways depending on the beam
formulation. For Euler-Bernoulli theory, the section forces proportional to the third
derivative of displacement, or equivalently, the second derivative of the rotation.

2
  ly
T lz = EI yy ------------
2
-
s
2
  lz
T ly = – E I zz ------------
2
-
s

where Tlz is available only in 3D. In the case of Timoshenko theory shear force is
computed directly from the shear strain.

The average shear stresses are computed from the shear forces as

T lz
 sz, ave = --------
A
(12-1)
T ly
 sy, ave = --------
A

Since the shear stresses are not constant over the cross section, the maximum shear
stresses are also available, using section dependent correction factors:

 sz, max =  z  sz, ave

(12-2)
 sy, max =  y  sy, ave

As the directions and positions of maximum shear stresses from shear and twist are not
known in a general case, upper bounds to the shear stress components are defined as

 xz, max =  sz, max +  t, max

 xy, max =  sy, max +  t, max

1734 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

EQUIVALENT STRESS
The maximum von Mises equivalent stress for the cross section is then defined as

2 2 2 2
 mises =  n max +  h max + 3 xy, max + 3 xz, max

Since the maximum values for the different stress components in general occur at
different positions in the cross section, the equivalent stress thus computed is a
conservative approximation.

The Tresca equivalent stress is computed from the principal stresses. Determining the
principal stresses is however a nontrivial operation. The first assumption is that the
through-thickness direction is a principal orientation with zero principal stress. This is
consistent with ignoring the radial stress in the von Mises stress expression.

For the remaining axial-hoop plane a Mohr’s circle argument is used. The two
non-zero principal stresses in that plane are computed for evaluation point k as

k 1 2 2 2
 1 2 = ---   k +  h,max    k –  h,max  + 4   xy, max +  xz, max  
2

The principal stresses are ordered in descending order, and the Tresca stress is obtained
as the highest value in any of the evaluation points.

k k
 tresca = max   1 –  3 

The following variables are used for the equivalent and principal stresses:

• von Mises equivalent stress, mises: pipem.mises

• Tresca equivalent stress, tresca: pipem.tresca
• First principal stress, 1k (evaluation points 1-4): pipem.sp1_1, …,
pipem.sp1_4

• First principal stress, 2k (evaluation points 1-4): pipem.sp2_1, …,

pipem.sp2_4

• First principal stress, 3k (evaluation points 1-4): pipem.sp3_1, …,

pipem.sp3_4

THEORY FOR THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1735

 Connection Between Pipes and Structures
This section describes the theory and assumption behind the Structure-Pipe
Connection multiphysics coupling. The coupling is an extension of the transition type
couplings in Solid-Beam Connection and Shell-Beam Connection to also account for
radial deformation of the pipe caused by the fluid pressure and the temperature
distribution over the cross section. For a more general background to the coupling of
beam type elements to solids and shells, see Connection Between Shells and Solids and
Connection Between Shells and Beams in the Shell documentation.

When connecting a pipe to a solid domain it is assumed that the pipe cross section is
circular, and that no warping occurs. The connection thus, on the intersecting
boundaries of the solid domain, adds the following constraint equation

u s = u p +  p  r –  s   xl,s dy l e yl –  s   xl,s dz l e zl – u radial

  (12-3)

where us is the displacement of the solid, s is Poisson’s ratio of the solid, up is the
displacement of the pipe, p is the rotation of the pipe, r the distance from the center
of the pipe, and eyl and ezl are the base vectors of the local yl-axis and zl-axis. The first
four terms in Equation 12-3 are identical to the transition type coupling in the
Solid-Beam Connection, while the last one is added to account for the fluid pressure
and the temperature difference in the pipe. The radial displacement uradial included
in Equation 12-3 is computed from the radial deformation ur of the pipe as

T  ur dy ur dz 
u radial = T   0 ------------ ------------ 
 R R 

where T is a matrix the describes the transformation from the local coordinates of the
pipe to global coordinates. Above, dy and dz are the distances, in local coordinates,
and R is the radial distance from the center of the pipe. The radial displacement is given
by

log  ------
R
R  R i

u r = ------  S  –  s  S R + S Z   + R p T in – T ref +  T out – T in  --------------------- (12-4)
Es Ro
log  -------
Ri

where Es is Young’s modulus of the solid, p is its coefficient of thermal expansion, Ri

and Ro are its inner and outer radii, and Tref is its volume reference temperature. The

1736 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

stresses in the pipe due to the temperature difference between the inside and outside
temperatures Tin and Tout, and the fluid pressure p on the inside surface of the pipe
are given by the following analytical expressions

Ri 2
log  ------
Ri 2
p  -------
R
 R o  Ro
2
Es 1 –  ------ Ri
R
SR = ------------------------2  1 – ------2- +  T out – T in  p ----------------------- ------------------------2 – ---------------------
Ri  R  2  1 – s  Ri Ro
1 –  ------- 1 –  ------- log  -------
Ro  Ro   Ri 

Ri 2 2  R 
p  ------- 1 R -----
-i
 log  ------ 
 R o  Ro
2
Es +  R Ri
S  = ------------------------2  1 + ------2- +  T out – T in  p ----------------------- ------------------------2 –  1 + ---------------------
Ri  R  2  1 – s  Ri Ro
1 –  ------- 1 –  -------  log  ------- 
Ro  R o   Ri  

 R 
 2 log  ------ 
Es  R i
=  T out – T in  p ----------------------- ------------------------2 –  1 + ------------------------
2
SZ
2  1 – s  Ri  Ro 
1 –  -------  log  ------- 
Ro  Ri 

When the structure comes from a Shell interface, additional constraints are added for
the rotational degrees of freedom as is done for the Shell-Beam connection, so that

p  t1 + a  t2 = 0
p  t2 – a  t1 = 0

where a is the shell normal displacement, and t1 and t1 are the shell tangents. Also,
the expression for the radial deformation ur in Equation 12-4 is simplified, and it is for
a shell connection given by

R
u r = ------  S  –  s  S R + S Z   + R  T in – T ref 
Es

Moreover, the expressions for stresses in the pipe simplifies to the thin pressure vessel
approximation, so that

SR = 0

THEORY FOR THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1737

 pR i Es 2 1
S  = s p --------- + s T  T out – T in  ----------------------- ------------------------2 – ---------------------
d 2  1 – s  R Ro
1 –  ------- log  -------
i
 R o  Ri 

Es 2 1
S Z = s T  T out – T in  ----------------------- ------------------------2 – ---------------------
2  1 – s  R Ro
1 –  ------- log  -------
i
 R o  Ri 

Here sp and sT are scaling factors, which are necessary to avoid abrupt changes in
uradial.

Cross Sections

CIRCULAR SECTION

Figure 12-3: Geometry of a circular cross section. The diagram also displays in COMSOL
Multiphysics when this option is selected.

TABLE 12-1: CIRCULAR SECTION CONSTANTS

PROPERTY FORMULA REMARKS

A 2 2
  do – di 
--------------------------
-
4
Izz 4 4
  do – di 
--------------------------
-
64

1738 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

TABLE 12-1: CIRCULAR SECTION CONSTANTS

PROPERTY FORMULA REMARKS

ez 0
y 3 3
 d o – d i A
------------------------------------
-
12  d o – d i I zz

y di
1 + ------
do

Iyy Izz
ey 0
z y
z y
J
4 4
  do – di 
---------------------------
32
Wt 4 4
  do – di 
---------------------------
16d o

p1 do 
 –--------
- 0
 2 
p2 d o
 0 –--------
-
 2 
p3
d
-----o- 
 2  0

p4
 0 d
-----o-
 2
re d
-----o-
2

THEORY FOR THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1739

 SQUARE SECTION

Figure 12-4: Geometry of a square shaped cross section. The diagram also displays in
COMSOL Multiphysics when this option is selected.

TABLE 12-2: SQUARE SECTION CONSTANTS

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

A 2
4  hi t + t 

Izz 3 3 2
th i + t  h i + 2t  t  h i + 2t   h i + t 
- + ----------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------
6 2
ez 0
y 3 3
  h i + 2t  – h i A
--------------------------------------------
16tI zz

y 2  h i + 2t t z
------------------------------
-
A
Iyy Izz
ey 0
z y
z y
J 4 Thin-walled
2t  h i + t 
--------------------------- approximation
hi + t

Wt 2 Thin-walled
2t  h i + t 
approximation

1740 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

TABLE 12-2: SQUARE SECTION CONSTANTS

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

p1  h i + 2t  –  h i + 2t 
 –------------------------
- -------------------------
 2 2 

 ---------------------
h i + 2t  –  h i + 2t 
p2
- -------------------------
 2 2 

 ---------------------
h i + 2t   h i + 2t 
p3
- ----------------------
 2 2 

p4  h i + 2t   h i + 2t 
 –------------------------
- ----------------------
 2 2 

re h
-----i
2

RECTANGULAR SECTION

Figure 12-5: Geometry of a rectangular cross section. The diagram also displays in
COMSOL Multiphysics when this option is selected.

TABLE 12-3: RECTANGULAR SECTION CONSTANTS

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

A 2  h i t z + w i t y  + 4t y t z

Izz 3 3 2
t z h i + t y  w i + 2t z  t y  w i + 2t z   h i + t y 
------------------------------------------------- + -------------------------------------------------------
6 2
ez 0

THEORY FOR THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1741

 TABLE 12-3: RECTANGULAR SECTION CONSTANTS

PROPERTY EXPRESSION REMARKS

y 2 2
  h i + 2t y   w i + 2t z  – h i w i A
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
16t z I zz

y 2  h i + 2t y t z
---------------------------------
A
Iyy 3 3 2
t y w i + t z  h i + 2t y  t z  h i + 2t y   w i + t z 
------------------------------------------------- + -------------------------------------------------------
6 2
ey 0
z 2 2
  w i + 2t z   h i + 2t y  – w i h i A
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
16t y I yy

z 2  w i + 2t z t y
---------------------------------
-
A
J 2 2 Thin-walled
2  hi + ty   wi + tz 
----------------------------------------------------- approximation
hi + ty wi + tz
---------------- + -----------------
tz ty

Wt 2  h i + t y   w i + t z   min  t y t z  Thin-walled
approximation
p1
 –h i + 2t y w i + 2t z
- – ---------------------
-------------------
 2 2 
p2
h i + 2t y w i + 2t z
 2 –
-------------------
- ---------------------
2 
p3
h i + 2t y w i + 2t z
 2 
-------------------
- ---------------------
2 
p4
 –h i + 2t y w i + 2t z
- ---------------------
-------------------
 2 2 
re h i + 2t y + w i + 2t z
----------------------------------------------
-
4

1742 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

The Pipe Mechanics Interface
The Pipe mechanics (pipem) interface ( ), found under the Structural Mechanics
branch ( ) when adding a physics interface, is used for analysis of stresses and
deformation in pipes. It can be modeled on 2D boundaries and 3D edges.

Two-noded straight elements with a Hermitian formulation are used. Two different
assumptions about the physics can be used:

• Euler (or Euler-Bernoulli) theory. This formulation is intended for slender pipes,
and do not take shear deformations into account.
• Timoshenko theory. In this formulation that extends the beam theory to ‘thick’
beams, shear deformations are taken into account. In a dynamic analysis, inertial
effects from rotation are also included.

The formulation in this physics interface is valid only for straight pipes. In
pipe bends, the ovalization of the cross section will cause a reduction in
stiffness and increase in stresses. These effects are not accounted for.

Among the computed results are displacements, rotations, stresses, strains, and section
forces. In addition to giving the pipe properties explicitly in terms of area, moment of
inertia, and so on, predefined common cross-section types are available. Cross section
data to be used in Pipe Cross Section settings can be computed using The Beam Cross
Section Interface.

The material in the pipe is assumed to be linear elastic.

When this physics interface is added, these default nodes are also added to the Model
Builder: Fluid and Pipe Materials, Pipe Cross Section, Fluid Load, Free (a condition
where points are free, with no loads or constraints), and Initial Values. Then, from the
Physics toolbar, add other nodes that implement, for example, loads and constraints.
You can also right-click Pipe Mechanics to select physics features from the context
menu.

SETTINGS
The Label is the default physics interface name.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the physics
interface. Refer to such physics interface variables in expressions using the pattern

THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1743

 <name>.<variable_name>. In order to distinguish between variables belonging to
different physics interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and
underscores (_) are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first physics interface in the model) is pipem.

BEAM FORMULATION
Select Euler-Bernoulli or Timoshenko to use the appropriate beam theory. Timoshenko
theory, which is the default, includes the effects of shear flexibility and rotary inertia.
Euler-Bernoulli theory is appropriate for pipes with cross section dimensions which are
small relative to the length of the pipe, whereas Timoshenko theory can be used both
for thick and slender pipes.

STRUCTURAL TRANSIENT BEHAVIOR

From the Structural transient behavior list, select Include inertial terms (the default) or
Quasistatic. Use Quasistatic to treat the dynamic behavior as quasi static (with no mass
effects; that is, no second-order time derivatives). Selecting this option gives a more
efficient solution for problems where the variation in time is slow when compared to
the natural frequencies of the system. The default solver for the time stepping is
changed from Generalized alpha to BDF when Quasistatic is selected.

This is often the case when the time dependence exists only in some other physics, like
a transient heat transfer problem causing thermal strains.

ADVANCED SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box. Normally these settings do not
need to be changed.

You can chose how to group in the solver nodes the extra ODE variables added by
some features.

Select the Rigid connectors check box to group in the solver node the variables added
by the Rigid Connector feature.

The selection made in the Advanced Settings section can be overridden by the settings
in the Advanced section of the Rigid Connector feature.

DISCRETIZATION
The discretization cannot be changed. The element has different shape functions for
the axial and transversal degrees of freedom. The axial displacement and twist are

1744 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

represented by linear shape functions, while the bending is represented by a cubic
shape function (“Hermitian element”).

DEPENDENT VARIABLES
The Pipe Mechanics interface has these dependent variables (fields):

• The displacement field u, which has two components (u, v) in 2D and three
components (u, v, and w) in 3D.
• The rotation angle , which has one component in 2D (th) and three components
in 3D (thx, thy, and thz).

The names can be changed but the names of fields and dependent variables must be
unique within a model.

The dependent variable names remain same in both a geometrically linear

and a geometrically nonlinear analysis. Under geometric nonlinearity, the
dependent variables are however not defined though shape functions. The
equivalent shape function variables are (pipem.uLinx, pipem.uLiny,
pipem.uLinz) and (pipem.thLinx, pipem.thLiny, pipem.thLinz). In
this case, you will see the latter names under Dependent Variables in the
Solver Configurations tree.

If needed, these shape variables can be used to write any extra

contributions in the Pipe Mechanics interface.

If a physics interface that separates the material and spatial frame (Solid
Mechanics is one such example) is added to the model, the coordinate
indices change from (x, y, z) to (X, Y, Z) in the names of these variables.

• Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Pipe Mechanics
Interface
• Theory for the Pipe Mechanics Interface

• Coupled Analysis of Flow and Stress in a Pipe: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Pipe_Mechanics/pipe_flow_stress

THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1745

 Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Pipe Mechanics
Interface
The Pipe Mechanics Interface has these boundary, edge, point, and pair nodes
available from the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics context menu (Mac
or Linux users), or right-click to access the context menu (all users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

FEATURES AVAILABLE FROM SUBMENUS

Many features for the Pipe Mechanics interface are added from submenus in the
Physics toolbar groups or context menu (when you right-click the node). The
submenu name is the same in both cases.

The submenus at the Edge level (3D) or Boundary level (2D) are

• Material Models
• Line and Volume Loads
• Mass, Spring, and Damper
• Line Constraints

The submenus at the Point level are

• Connections
• Mass, Spring, and Damper
• More Constraints
• Pairs

LINKS TO FEATURE NODE INFORMATION

These nodes (and subnodes) are described in this section (listed in alphabetical order):

• Bend • Pipe Cross Section

• Fluid and Pipe Materials • Rigid Material
• Fluid Load • Section Orientation
• Gravity • Thermal Expansion (for Materials)

1746 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

These nodes are described for the Beam interface:

• Antisymmetry • Point Mass

• Edge Load • Point Mass Damping
• External Stress • Prescribed Acceleration
• Initial Stress and Strain • Prescribed Displacement/Rotation
• Initial Values • Prescribed Velocity
• No Rotation • Rigid Connector
• Pinned • Symmetry
• Point Load • Thermal Expansion (for Constraints)
• Point Load, Free

These nodes are described for the Solid Mechanics interface:

• Added Mass • Predeformation

• Center of Rotation Nodes • Safety
• Damping • Spring Foundation
• Fixed Constraint • Spring-Damper
• Free

If there are subsequent constraints specified on the same geometrical

entity, the last one takes precedence. The exception is that the “Pinned”
and “No Rotation” boundary conditions do not override each other since
the degrees of freedom that they constrain are mutually exclusive.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual see Table 2-4 for links
to common sections and Table 2-5 to common feature nodes. You can
also search for information: press F1 to open the Help window or Ctrl+F1
to open the Documentation window.

THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1747

 Pipe Cross Section
In the Pipe Cross Section node, you specify the geometric properties of the pipe’s cross
section. In addition, some stress evaluation properties can be defined.

For 3D models, a default Section Orientation subnode is added, in which you specify
the orientation of the principal axes of the section. You can add any number of Section
Orientation subnodes if the same section appears with different spatial orientations in
the structure.

This is required input data.

• Cross Sections
• Beam Cross Section

PIPE SHAPE
The default is Not Set. Select Circular, Square, Rectangular, or User defined. Then go to
the relevant section below to continue defining the section

For User defined go to Wall Cross Section Properties and Stress Evaluation Properties
to continue defining the cross section.

For equations and a figure see:

• Circular Section
• Square Section
• Rectangular Section

Circular
Enter values or expressions for the following.

• Outer diameter do
• Inner diameter di

Piping standards may require stresses to be evaluated using a reduced thickness to

account for possible corrosion or erosion effects on the pipe’s wall. The thickness
changes can occur on both the inner and the outer side of the wall. In the section

1748 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

Thickness reduction for stress evaluation enter values or expressions for the thickness
reduction on the inner or outer sides:

• Thickness reduction, outside to

• Thickness reduction, inside ti

For both sides the default value is 0[%]*pipem.t_nom, where the variable
pipem.t_nom is the nominal wall thickness given by do and di. The reduced inner and
outer diameters are then defined as

d i s = d i + 2t i

d o s = d o – 2t o

Note that the reduced wall thickness only has an effect on the stress evaluation. That
is, the flexibility of the piping system is still computed using nominal thicknesses.
Internally, COMSOL Multiphysics creates separate variables for stiffness properties
such as the cross-section area or the 2nd moment of inertia. All stress measures that
can be evaluated in postprocessing are computed using the reduced wall diameters.

Square
Enter values or expressions for the following.

• Inner width hi
• Wall thickness t

Rectangular
Enter values or expressions for the following.

• Width in local y direction hi

• Width in local z direction wi
• Wall thickness in local y direction ty
• Wall thickness in local z direction tz

WALL CROSS SECTION PROPERTIES

This section is only available if User defined is selected as the Cross-Section

Definition.

THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1749

 The following table lists the basic section properties (some apply in 3D only). Enter
values for these properties in the associated fields. The default values correspond to a
circular cross section with a diameter of 0.1 m:

COMMENT DESCRIPTION PARAMETER SI UNIT

2D and 3D Area of cross section A m2

2D and 3D Moment of inertia about local z-axis Izz m4
2D and 3D, Shear correction factor along local y-axis y 1
Timoshenko
beam
3D only Distance to shear center in local z direction ez m
3D only Moment of inertia about local y-axis Iyy m4
3D only Distance to shear center in local y direction ey m
3D only Torsional constant J m4
3D only, Shear correction factor along local z-axis z 1
Timoshenko
beam

For 3D models, the orientation of the cross section is given in Section

Orientation. If the beam’s cross section is a square or circle (solid or tube),
the area moments of inertia are the same independent of direction, so the
beam is totally symmetric and the orientation of the principal axes of the
cross section is not a problem unless you are interested in looking at
results defined using the local coordinate system. Such results are bending
moments, shear forces, local displacements and rotations.

FLUID CROSS SECTION PROPERTIES

Enter the Fluid cross section area, Af. This is the same as the internal cross section of
the pipe.

STRESS EVALUATION PROPERTIES

This section is only available if User defined is selected as the Cross-Section

Definition.

Select the Bending stress evaluation points — From section heights (the default) or From
specified points.

1750 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

Stress evaluation using only section heights is meaningful only when the cross section
is symmetric.

The max shear stress factor determines the ratio between the peak and the average
shear stress over the cross section as described by Equation 12-1 and Equation 12-2.

From Section Heights

For From section heights enter values in each field for the following parameters as
needed for the space dimension:

COMMENT DESCRIPTION PARAMETER SI UNIT

2D and 3D Section height in local y direction hy m

2D and 3D Max shear stress factor in local y direction y 1
3D only Section height in local z direction hz m
3D only Torsional section modulus Wt m3
3D only Max shear stress factor in local z direction z 1
2D and 3D Pressure membrane stress factor m 1
2D and 3D Pressure bending stress factor b 1

From Specified Points

For From specified points enter values in the Evaluation points in local system table as
needed for the space dimension. Then enter the following parameters in the applicable
fields.

COMMENT DESCRIPTION PARAMETER SI UNIT

2D and 3D Max shear stress factor in local y direction y 1

3D only Torsional section modulus Wt m3
3D only Max shear stress factor in local z direction z 1
2D and 3D Pressure membrane stress factor m 1
2D and 3D Pressure bending stress factor b 1

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Pipe Mechanics>Pipe Cross Section

Ribbon
Physics tab with Pipe Mechanics selected:

Edges>Pipe Mechanics>Pipe Cross Section

THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1751

 Section Orientation
Use the Section Orientation subnode to define the orientation of a pipe cross section
using a reference point or an orientation vector. There is always one Section Orientation
subnode for each cross section, and as many Section Orientation subnodes as needed
can be added if the same section appears with different spatial orientations in the
structure.

The most common pipe sections are symmetric. In this case, the only effect of the
section orientation specification is to simplify the interpretation of section forces. This
means that you in many cases can keep the default settings in this node.

This node is available for 3D components.

ORIENTATION METHOD
Select the Reference point (the default) or Orientation vector. For Reference point, enter
a Reference point defining local y direction P.

The coordinate system is defined as follows:

The local x direction is in the edge direction. The positive edge direction can be
checked by vector plotting the local edge tangent direction. The coordinates of the
reference point define the local xy-plane together with the beam axis. The local
coordinate system (exl, eyl, ezl) is formed using the following algorithm:

v zl = e xl   p – m 

v zl
e zl = ----------
v zl

e yl = e zl  e xl

1752 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

Here, p is the reference point, and m is the midpoint of the pipe element. The
definition of the local coordinate system is illustrated in Figure 12-6.

Figure 12-6: Local beam coordinate system defined by a reference point.

For the creation of a local coordinate system to be possible, the point cannot coincide
with the edge or the edge extension. If this is attempted, an error message is generated.

The settings for the global coordinates of the point are

[1000,1000,1000]. This is useful only for symmetric cross sections.

Often a number of edges in a plane have the same orientation. It is then easy to select
all edges and specify a point anywhere in the same plane, not coinciding with an edge
or an edge extension.

For Orientation vector enter Orientation vector defining local y direction, V, and
optionally the Rotation of vector around beam axis  . The beam orientation is defined
similarly to what is described above, with the difference that in this case the direction
vector is explicitly defined whereas when an orientation point is used, the direction
vector is obtained as the vector from the beam axis to the specified point. The local
coordinate system (exl, eyl, ezl) is formed using the following algorithm:

v zl = e xl  V

v zl
e zl = ----------
v zl

e yl = e zl  e xl

THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1753

 The Rotation of vector around beam axis has the effect of rotating the given vector
around the beam axis (using the right-hand rule) before it is used to define the local
xy-plane. This simplifies the input for some cross sections, such as L-shaped profiles,
where the principal axes have a direction which is skewed relative to a more natural
modeling position. This can be written as

e yl = e' yl cos  – e' zl sin 

e zl = e' zl cos  + e' yl sin 

Here the directions denoted with a prime are unrotated beam axis orientations
obtained by the procedure described above.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Pipe Mechanics>Pipe Cross Section>Section Orientation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Pipe Cross Section node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Section Orientation

Bend
Use the Bend subnode to account for a local stiffness reduction and a local stress
increase in a bent pipe. Curved pipe segments with a circular cross section tend to
ovalize when loaded in bending. This three-dimensional effect cannot be resolved with
classical beam theory, but it may have a significant effect on flexibility and stress results.
It is therefore common practice to reduce the pipe stiffness in a bend with so-called
flexibility factors. Similarly, to account for the stress increase due to shape changes of
the cross section so-called stress intensification factors (SIFs) are applied. Both
flexibility factors and SIFs often depend on geometric properties of the pipe such as
the bend radius, mean wall radius, and the wall thickness. Sometimes also the internal
pressure is accounted for, which tends to counteract the ovalization.

The Bend feature assumes that the bend is modeled with a circular arc. The local
y direction of the bend points in the direction of the curvature vector; that is, bending
about the y-axis is defined as out-of-plane bending, and bending about the z-axis is

1754 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

defined as in-plane bending. Since Bend defines its own coordinate system, it overrides
the Section Orientation node.

Figure 12-7: Local beam coordinate system for a bend.

In the Bend feature enter one or more of the following correction factors:

• Flexibility factor, in-plane bending ki

• Flexibility factor, out-of-plane bending ko
• Flexibility factor, torsion kt
• Flexibility factor, axial load ka
• Stress intensification factor, in-plane bending ii
• Stress intensification factor, out-of-plane bending io
• Stress intensification factor, torsion it
• Stress intensification factor, axial load ia

All flexibility factors and SIFs are by default equal to 1, that is, they have no effect on
the calculation of displacements or stresses. All factors must by definition be greater or
equal to 1. The truncation at the lower limit is automatically taken care of.

The flexibility factors do not directly reduce the stiffness properties, such as the
moment of inertia Iyy and Izz, as this would affect the stress evaluation as well. Instead,
the stiffness reduction is effectively performed when assembling the global stiffness
matrix, where the element matrices of bent sections use reduced stiffness properties.

THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1755

 Since the application of SIFs often differs between different standards, SIFs are applied
only to a set of special stress quantities available for postprocessing. They are:

Maximum in-plane bending stress: pipem.sbi_SIF.

.
Maximum out-of-plane bending stress: pipem.sbo_SIF.

Axial stress at centerline: pipem.sa_SIF.

Maximum torsional shear stress: pipem.ttmax_SIF.

Other stress quantities must be modified manually if needed.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Pipe Mechanics>Pipe Cross Section>Bend

Ribbon
Physics tab with Pipe Cross Section node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Bend

Fluid and Pipe Materials

The Fluid and Pipe Materials node is the main node in the Pipe Mechanics interface.
This is where you enter the material data for both the pipe itself and the fluid contained
in the pipe.

It is common that the material data for the fluid and the pipe material are in located in
different Material nodes. Only one material can however be assigned to a certain edge.
For this reason, the assignment of material data can be made not only using the
material assigned to the edge, but by accessing any Material node present in the
component.

By adding the following subnodes to the Fluid and Pipe Materials node you can
incorporate many other effects:

• Thermal Expansion (for Materials)

• Initial Stress and Strain
• External Stress

1756 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

• Safety
• Damping

FLUID PROPERTIES
For the structural analysis point of view, the only required property of the fluid is its
mass density.

For input of the Density, f, select either From material or User defined. When using
From material, also select the material to use in the Fluid material list. This list contains
all materials present in the component, as well as the default choice Edge material.
When Edge material is selected, the material currently assigned to the edge (2D:
boundary) is used.

For User defined, enter a value or expression.

PIPE PROPERTIES
In this section, you define the linear elastic material properties.

If the option From material used for any of the material properties below, you must
select a material from the Pipe material list. This list contains all materials present in the
component, as well as the default choice Edge material. When Edge material is selected,
the material currently assigned to the edge (2D: boundary) is used.

Specification of Elastic Properties for Isotropic Materials

From the Specify list, select a pair of elastic properties for an isotropic material. Select:

• Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio to specify Young’s modulus (elastic modulus) E
and Poisson’s ratio .
• Young’s modulus and shear modulus to specify Young’s modulus (elastic modulus) E
and the shear modulus G.
• Bulk modulus and shear modulus to specify the bulk modulus K and the shear
modulus G.
• Lamé parameters to specify the Lamé parameters  and .
• Pressure-wave and shear-wave speeds to specify the pressure-wave speed
(longitudinal wave speed) cp and the shear-wave speed (transverse wave speed) cs.

This is the wave speed for a solid continuum. In a pipe element, the actual
speed with which a longitudinal wave travels is lower than the value given.
When using this type of input the density must also be given.

THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1757

 For each pair of properties, select from the applicable list to use the value From material
or enter a User defined value or expression.

Each of these pairs define the elastic properties, and it is possible to convert from one
set of properties to another.

Density
Define the Density  of the material. Select From material to take the value from the
material or User defined to enter a value for the density.

The density is needed for dynamic analysis or when the elastic data is given
in terms of wave speed. It is also used when computing mass forces for
gravitational or rotating frame loads, and when computing mass
properties (Computing Mass Properties).

GEOMETRIC NONLINEARITY
If a study step is geometrically nonlinear, the default behavior is to use a large rotation
formulation for all edges. Select the Geometrically linear formulation check box to
always use a small rotation formulation for the edges that have this material assigned,
irrespective of the setting in the study step.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Pipe Mechanics>Material Models>Fluid and Pipe Materials

Ribbon
Physics tab with Pipe Mechanics selected:

Edges>Material Models>Fluid and Pipe Materials (3D)

Boundaries>Material Models>Fluid and Pipe Materials (2D)

Rigid Material
Add the Rigid Material node and select one or more edges (2D: boundaries) to make
them a rigid body. Rigid Material is a material model, with only two material properties:
the mass densities of the pipe and the fluid.

It is common that the material data for the fluid and the pipe material are in located in
different Material nodes. Only one material can however be assigned to a certain edge.
For this reason, the assignment of material data can be made not only using the

1758 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

material assigned to the edge, but by accessing any Material node present in the
component.

By default, an Initial Values node is added (see Initial Values (Rigid Material)).

You can add functionality to the rigid domain through the following subnodes:

• Fixed Constraint (Rigid Material) to fully constrain the rigid domain.

• Prescribed Displacement/Rotation to prescribe the displacement of individual
degrees of freedom.
• Applied Force (Rigid Material) to apply a force in given point.
• Applied Moment (Rigid Material) to apply a moment.
• Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid Material) to add extra mass and moment of
inertia in a given point.
• Spring Foundation (Rigid Material) to add a translational or rotational spring or
damper in a given point.

FLUID PROPERTIES
In this section, you enter the density of the fluid.

For input of the Density, f, select either From material or User defined. When using
From material, also select the material to use in the Fluid material list. This list contains
all materials present in the component, as well as the default choice Edge material.
When Edge material is selected, the material currently assigned to the edge (2D:
boundary) is used.

For User defined, enter a value or expression.

PIPE PROPERTIES
In this section, you enter the density of the pipe material.

For input of the Density, , select either From material or User defined. When using From
material, also select the material to use in the Fluid material list. This list contains all
materials present in the component, as well as the default choice Edge material. When
Edge material is selected, the material currently assigned to the edge (2D: boundary)
is used.

THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1759

 For User defined, enter a value or expression.

All other settings for the Rigid Material node are described in the
documentation for Rigid Material in the Solid Mechanics interface.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Pipe Mechanics>Material Models>Rigid Material

Ribbon
Physics tab with Pipe Mechanics selected:

Edges>Material Models>Rigid Material (3D)

Boundaries>Material Models>Rigid Material (2D)

Thermal Expansion (for Materials)

Use the Thermal Expansion subnode to add an internal thermal strain caused by changes
in temperature. The thermal strain depends on the coefficient of thermal expansion
(CTE) , the temperature T, and the strain-free reference temperature Tref as

 th =   T – T ref 

The average increase in temperature will cause a global extension of the pipe, whereas
a difference between the internal and internal temperature will cause local bending
stresses.

The effects of a thermal gradient through the pipe wall is only taken into
account for the Circular Section.

MODEL INPUTS
The Volume reference temperature Tref is the temperature at which there are no thermal
strains. As a default, the value is obtained from a Common model input. You can also
select User defined to enter a value or expression for the temperature locally.

The Temperature, T, input is not used. All temperature information is taken from the
inputs in the Thermal Expansion Properties section. This field will, for formal reasons,

1760 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

be visible in the GUI indicating when the selected material has a temperature
dependent coefficient of thermal expansion.

THERMAL EXPANSION PROPERTIES

Specify the thermal properties that define the thermal strain.

From the Coefficient of thermal expansion  list, select From material to use the
coefficient of thermal expansion from a material, or User defined to enter a value or
expression for . When From material is used, then you need to specify which material
to use by selecting a Pipe material. This list contains all materials present in the
component, as well as the default choice Edge material. When Edge material is selected,
the material currently assigned to the edge (2D: boundary) is used.

Enter the Inside temperature, Tin, and Outside temperature, Tout.

If the temperature is computed in the Heat Transfer in Pipes interface,

there are two fundamentally different cases:

• The temperature gradient in the thickness direction is ignored. In this

case you can use the temperature of the fluid as both inner and outer
temperature, assuming that the temperature of the pipe is the same as
that of the fluid. You can then select the temperature degree of
freedom from the drop-down menus, typically Temperature (htp).
• The temperature difference in the thickness direction is computed,
using Wall Heat Transfer in the Heat Transfer in Pipes interface. In this
case, use the User defined option, and enter the variables defined in the
Wall Layer node the for the inner and outer temperatures. These
variables typically have names like htp.wht1.wall1.Tin and
htp.wht1.wall1.Tout.

See also

• Using Common Model Input

• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1761

 LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Pipe Mechanics>Fluid and Pipe Materials>Thermal Expansion

Ribbon
Physics tab with Fluid and Pipe Materials node selected in the model tree:

Attributes>Thermal Expansion

Gravity
When you add a Gravity node, gravity forces are applied to features in the physics
interface with a density, mass, or mass distribution.

The fluid in the pipe is included in the direction transverse to the pipe, but not in the
axial direction. To include the gravity load in the axial direction caused by mass of the
fluid, you will typically have to add extra point loads at discontinuities like pipe bends.

The gravity acts in a fixed spatial direction. The load intensity is ggeg where g as a
default is the acceleration of gravity (a predefined physical constant).

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Select a coordinate system in which the gravity field vector is represented. Only systems
with space-independent axis directions are consistent with the assumptions of this
feature. The Global coordinate system is selected by default.

GRAVITY
Enter the components for Gravity g. The default value is g_const, which is the
gravitational acceleration constant at mean sea level having the value 9.80665 m/s2.

For 2D components, the default is that the gravity acts in the negative y direction. For
3D components, the default is that the gravity acts in the negative z direction.

Only features that have a geometrical selection contribute to the mass

forces. The Mass and Moment of Inertia nodes are global features and will
not get any contribution from Gravity. You may need to add extra force
contributions if such nodes are present.

1762 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

 Frame Acceleration Forces

In versions earlier than 6.1, the Gravity node was a feature with domain
selection. In a model created in an earlier version, the old Gravity node
remains unchanged. For such a model, it is recommended to use the
newer functionality. There are different options:

• In most cases, switching to the new version of Gravity is appropriate.

• If the current Gravity node has a selection, which is not the entire
model, or if it contains expressions that depends on the spatial
coordinates, you can replace it by a Linearly Accelerated Frame node.
• If the current Gravity node is used to represent an acceleration imposed
by the foundation, consider replacing it by a Base Excitation node.

• You can add a Harmonic Perturbation subnode for specifying a

harmonic variation of the values of the prescribed displacements and
rotations in a frequency domain analysis of perturbation type.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Pipe Mechanics>Gravity

Ribbon
Physics tab with Pipe Mechanics selected:

Global>Gravity

Base Excitation
The Base Excitation node is used to represent an acceleration that is applied at all
constraints. The main use case is for modal based analyses, in which case it is not
possible to directly prescribe non-zero displacements at constrained degrees of
freedom. It is however possible to use Base Excitation in any type of dynamic analysis.

THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1763

 The fluid in the pipe is included in the direction transverse to the pipe, but not in the
axial direction. To include the inertial load in the axial direction caused by mass of the
fluid, you will typically have to add extra point loads at discontinuities like pipe bends.

When a structure is subjected to a base excitation, displacements, velocities, and

accelerations are measured relative to a space fixed coordinate system.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

Select a coordinate system in which the base acceleration vector is represented. Only
systems with space-independent axis directions are consistent with the assumptions of
the base excitation.

BASE EXCITATION
Enter the Base acceleration, ab.

A degree of freedom should either be constrained or free in the direction

where the base excitation acts. Having a constraint acting in a local
direction that is not either aligned or orthogonal to the excitation may
produce unexpected results.

Only features that have a geometrical selection contribute to the mass

forces. The Mass and Moment of Inertia nodes are global features and will
not get any contribution from Base Excitation. You may need to add extra
force contributions if such nodes are present.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Pipe Mechanics>Base Excitation

Ribbon
Physics tab with Pipe Mechanics selected:

Global>Base Excitation

Linearly Accelerated Frame

When you add a Linearly Accelerated Frame node, inertial forces are applied to all
selected features in the physics interface with a density, mass, or mass distribution. You

1764 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

select objects having the highest geometrical dimension of the interface, and all objects
with a lower dimensionality that belong to the selection are automatically included.

The fluid in the pipe is included in the direction transverse to the pipe, but not in the
axial direction. To include the inertial load in the axial direction caused by mass of the
fluid, you will typically have to add extra point loads at discontinuities like pipe bends.

COORDINATE SYSTEM SELECTION

The Global coordinate system is selected by default. The Coordinate system list contains
any additional coordinate systems that the model includes. It can be used when
prescribing the direction of the frame acceleration.

LINEARLY ACCELERATED FRAME

Enter the components of the linear Frame acceleration, af. The force is computed as
f  af and acts in a fixed spatial direction.

TIME-DEPENDENT STUDY
For a time-dependent study, you can compute the absolute velocity and absolute
displacement postprocessing variables by checking the corresponding check boxes.

Frame Acceleration Forces

Only features that have a geometrical selection contribute to the mass

forces. The Mass and Moment of Inertia nodes are global features and will
not get any contribution from Linearly Accelerated Frame. You may need
to add extra force contributions if such nodes are present.

• You can add a Harmonic Perturbation subnode for specifying a

harmonic variation of the values of the prescribed acceleration.
• You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the
Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Pipe Mechanics>Line and Volume Loads>Linearly Accelerated Frame

THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1765

 Ribbon
Physics tab with Pipe Mechanics selected:

Edges>Line and Volume Loads>Linearly Accelerated Frame

Fluid Load
Add a Fluid Load node to describe loads from the fluid on the pipe. Three types of loads
can be entered: Internal pressure, drag force from the fluid, and centrifugal forces in
pipe bends.

When computing the effect of the pressure loads, only the internal gauge pressure is
important, as discussed in Effects of Internal Pressure. You can thus use two
approaches:

• Enter the gauge pressure as internal pressure, and set the external pressure to zero.
This is a common approach when the Pipe Mechanics interface is used standalone.
• Enter absolute pressures for both the internal and external pressures. When
combining with the Pipe Flow interface this is the common case, since the pressure
in that interface is often interpreted as being absolute.

Since pressure loads are almost invariably part of a piping analysis, one
Fluid Load node with all edges selected is included as default when the
physics interface is created. It is however not mandatory to use it, and it
will not give any contributions to the solution unless you have entered
data in it. You can add any number of Fluid Load nodes.

FLUID LOADS
Enter the Internal pressure, pi. The list contains any pressure variables announced by
other physics interfaces, as well as the option User defined. For User defined, enter a
value or an expression for the internal pressure.

Select a method for entering the External pressure, po, — User defined or Common model
input.

For User defined, enter a value or an expression for the external pressure.

Select a method for entering the Drag force per unit length, Fd. The choice User defined
is always available, in which case you enter a value or expression in the text field. A
positive load acts in the same direction as the positive direction of the edge to which

1766 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS

the load is applied. To visualize edge orientations, select Show edge direction arrows in
the appropriate View node.

The Drag force per unit length list can also contain drag force variables announced by
the Pipe Flow interface.

Select a method for entering the Centrifugal force per unit length, Fc. The choice User
defined is always available, in which case you enter values or expressions in the text
fields. In the User defined case, the input is similar to using an Edge Load.

The Centrifugal force per unit length list can also contain drag force variables announced
by the Pipe Flow interface.

See also

• Effects of Internal Pressure and Fluid Flow Forces in the Theory for
the Pipe Mechanics Interface section
• Using Common Model Input
• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

You can assign this load to a load group. See Load Cases in the Structural
Mechanics Modeling chapter.

LOCATION IN USER INTERFACE

Context Menus
Pipe Mechanics>Line and Volume Loads>Edge Load

Ribbon
Physics tab with Pipe Mechanics selected:

Edges>Line and Volume Loads>Fluid Load (3D)

Boundaries>Line and Volume Loads>Fluid Load (2D)

THE PIPE MECHANICS INTERFACE | 1767

1768 | CHAPTER 12: PIPE MECHANICS
 13

Multiphysics Interfaces and Couplings

The Structural Mechanics Module contains predefined multiphysics interfaces to

facilitate easy setup of models with the most commonly occurring couplings. When
adding a multiphysics interface, two or more physics interfaces are added to the
model, together with one or more multiphysics couplings.

Given that your model already contains two interfaces that support a certain
multiphysics coupling, you can also add this coupling separately. Some multiphysics
couplings can only be added this way, and are not part of a multiphysics interface.

In this chapter:

• The Thermal Stress, Solid Interface

• The Thermal Stress, Shell Interface
• The Thermal Stress, Layered Shell Interface
• The Thermal Stress, Membrane Interface
• The Joule Heating and Thermal Expansion Interface
• Hygroscopic Swelling Coupling

| 1769
 • Overview of Fluid-Structure Interaction Interfaces
- The Fluid-Solid Interaction Interface
- The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Fixed Geometry Interface
- The Fluid-Shell Interaction Interface
- The Fluid-Shell Interaction, Fixed Geometry Interface
- The Fluid-Membrane Interaction Interface
- The Fluid-Membrane Interaction, Fixed Geometry Interface
- The Fluid-Pipe Interaction, Fixed Geometry Interface
- The Solid Thin-Film Damping Interface
- The Shell Thin-Film Damping Interface
- The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Viscoelastic Flow Interface
- The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Viscoelastic Flow, Fixed Geometry Interface
- The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Conjugate Heat Transfer Interface
- The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Two-Phase Flow, Phase Field Interface
- The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Two-Phase Flow, Phase Field, Fixed Geometry
Interface
• Overview of Electromagnetics-Structure Interaction Interfaces
- The Piezoelectricity Interface, Solid
- The Piezoelectricity, Layered Shell Interface
- The Piezoelectricity and Pyroelectricity Interface
- The Electrostriction Interface
- The Ferroelectroelasticity Interface
- The Magnetomechanics Interface
- The Magnetomechanics, No Currents Interface
- The Piezomagnetism Interface
- The Nonlinear Magnetostriction Interface
- Hygroscopic Swelling Coupling

1770 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

• Multiphysics Couplings
- Thermal Expansion
- Layered Thermal Expansion
- Hygroscopic Swelling
- Piezoelectric Effect
- Layered Piezoelectric Effect
- Electrostriction
- Magnetomechanical Forces
- Magnetic Forces
- Piezomagnetic Effect
- Nonlinear Magnetostriction
- Lorentz Coupling
- Fluid-Structure Interaction
- Fluid-Structure Interaction, Pair
- Fluid-Structure Interaction, Fixed Geometry
- Fluid-Pipe Interaction
- Structure Thin-Film Flow Interaction
- Shell Thin-Film Flow Interaction
• Couplings Between Structural Mechanics Interfaces
- Solid-Thin Structure Connection
- Solid-Beam Connection
- Shell-Beam Connection
- Layered Shell-Structure Transition
- Layered Shell-Structure Cladding
- Layered Shell-Shell Connection
- Structure-Pipe Connection
- Embedded Reinforcement
- Beam Cross Section-Beam Coupling
- Beam-Beam Cross Section Coupling

| 1771
 T he T he r m a l S t ress, Sol i d In t erfac e
The Thermal Stress, Solid( ) interface combines a Solid Mechanics interface with a
Heat Transfer in Solids interface. The coupling occurs on the domain level, where the
temperature from the Heat Transfer interface acts as a thermal load for the Solid
Mechanics interface, causing thermal expansion.

When a predefined Thermal Stress, Solid interface is added from the Structural Mechanics
branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or Add Physics windows, Solid Mechanics and Heat
Transfer in Solids interfaces are added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added, which automatically includes the

multiphysics coupling feature Thermal Expansion.

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Solid Mechanics interface is described in The Solid Mechanics Interface.
• The Heat Transfer in Solids interface is described in The Heat Transfer in Solids
Interface.

In previous versions of COMSOL Multiphysics, a specific physics

interface called Thermal Stress was added to the Model Builder. Now, a
predefined multiphysics coupling approach is used, improving the
flexibility and design options for your modeling. For specific details, see
The Multiphysics Branch and Multiphysics Modeling Workflow in the
COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

For information about the constitutive equations including thermal

expansion in the section dealing with the theory background, see
Structural Mechanics Theory.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings (for example,
Thermal Stress, Solid), specific settings are included with the physics interfaces and the
coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

1772 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

For example, if single Solid Mechanics and Heat Transfer in Solids interfaces are
added, an empty Multiphysics node appears in the model tree. You can choose from the
available coupling features, but the settings in the constituent interfaces are not
modified.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

TABLE 13-1: MODIFIED SETTINGS FOR A THERMAL STRESS, SOLID INTERFACE

PHYSICS INTERFACE OR MODIFIED SETTINGS

COUPLING FEATURE

Solid Mechanics For the Solid Mechanics interface, under Structural

Transient Behavior the Structural transient behavior is
set to Quasi static.
Thermal Expansion The Domain Selection is the same as that of the
participating physics interfaces.
The corresponding Solid Mechanics and Heat Transfer in
Solids interfaces are preselected in the Coupled
Interfaces section.

PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

Coupling Features
The Thermal Expansion is used to couple the interfaces.

• Fuel Cell Bipolar Plate: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Thermal-Structure_Interaction/bipolar_plate
• Thermal Expansion in a MEMS Device: Application Library path
MEMS_Module/Sensors/thermal_expansion

THE THERMAL STRESS, SOLID INTERFACE | 1773

 T he T he r m a l St ress, Sh el l In t erface
The Thermal Stress, Shell ( ) interface combines a Shell interface with a Heat
Transfer in Shells interface. The coupling occurs on boundaries, where the
temperature from the Heat Transfer interface acts as a thermal load for the Shell
interface, causing thermal expansion.

When a predefined Thermal Stress, Shell interface is added from the Structural Mechanics
branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or Add Physics windows, Shell and Heat Transfer in
Shells interfaces are added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added which automatically includes the

multiphysics coupling feature Layered Thermal Expansion.

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Shell interface is described in The Shell and Plate Interfaces.
• The Heat Transfer in Shells interface is described in The Heat Transfer in Shells
Interface.

For information about the constitutive equations including thermal

expansion in the section dealing with the theory background, see Theory
for the Shell and Plate Interfaces.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings, for example Thermal
Stress, Shell, specific settings are included with the physics interfaces and the coupling
features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

For example, if single Shell and Heat Transfer in Shells interfaces are added, an empty
Multiphysics node appears in the model tree. You can choose from the available
coupling features, but the settings in the constituent interfaces are not modified.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

1774 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

TABLE 13-2: MODIFIED SETTINGS FOR A THERMAL STRESS, SHELL INTERFACE

PHYSICS INTERFACE OR MODIFIED SETTINGS

COUPLING FEATURE

Shell For the Shell interface, under Structural Transient

Behavior the Structural transient behavior is set to
Quasi static.
Heat Transfer in Shells For the Heat Transfer in Shell interface, under
Discretization, the shape function order for the
temperature is set to Linear.
Layered Thermal The Boundary Selection is the same as that of the
Expansion participating physics interfaces.
The corresponding Shell and Heat Transfer in Shells
interfaces are preselected in the Coupled Interfaces
section.

COUPLING FEATURES
The Layered Thermal Expansion is used to couple the interfaces.

THE THERMAL STRESS, SHELL INTERFACE | 1775

 The Thermal Stress, Layered Shell
Interface
The Thermal Stress, Layered Shell ( ) interface combines a Layered Shell interface
with a Heat Transfer in Shells interface. The coupling occurs on boundaries, where the
temperature from the Heat Transfer interface acts as a thermal load for the Layered
Shell interface, causing thermal expansion.

When a predefined Thermal Stress, Layered Shell interface is added from the Structural
Mechanics branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or Add Physics windows, Layered Shell and
Heat Transfer in Shells interfaces are added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added which automatically includes the

multiphysics coupling node Layered Thermal Expansion

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Layered Shell interface is described in The Layered Shell Interface.
• The Heat Transfer in Shells interface is described in The Heat Transfer in Shells
Interface.

For information about the constitutive equations including thermal

expansion in the section dealing with the theory background, see Theory
for the Layered Shell Interface.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings, for example Thermal
Stress, Layered Shell, specific settings are included with the physics interfaces and the
coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

For example, if single Layered Shell and Heat Transfer in Shells interfaces are added,
an empty Multiphysics node appears in the model tree. You can choose from the

1776 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

available coupling features, but the settings in the constituent interfaces are not
modified.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

TABLE 13-3: MODIFIED SETTINGS FOR A THERMAL STRESS, LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE

PHYSICS INTERFACE OR MODIFIED SETTINGS

COUPLING FEATURE

Layered Shell For the Layered Shell interface, under Structural

Transient Behavior the Structural transient behavior is
set to Quasi static.
Heat Transfer in Shells For the Heat Transfer in Shell interface, under
Discretization, the shape function order for the
temperature is set to Linear.
Layered Thermal The Boundary Selection is the same as that of the
Expansion participating physics interfaces.
The corresponding Layered Shell and Heat Transfer in
Shells interfaces are preselected in the Coupled
Interfaces section.

COUPLING FEATURES
The Layered Thermal Expansion is used to couple the interfaces.

THE THERMAL STRESS, LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1777

 The Thermal Stress, Membrane
Interface
The Thermal Stress, Membrane ( ) interface combines a Membrane interface with a
Heat Transfer in Shells interface. The coupling occurs on boundaries, where the
temperature from the Heat Transfer interface acts as a thermal load for the Membrane
interface, causing thermal expansion.

When a predefined Thermal Stress, Membrane interface is added from the Structural
Mechanics branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or Add Physics windows, Membrane and
Heat Transfer in Shells interfaces are added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added which automatically includes the

multiphysics coupling node Layered Thermal Expansion.

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Membrane interface is described in The Membrane Interface.
• The Heat Transfer in Shells interface is described in The Heat Transfer in Shells
Interface.

For information about the constitutive equations including thermal

expansion in the section dealing with the theory background, see Theory
for the Membrane Interface.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings (for example,
Thermal Stress, Membrane), specific settings are included with the physics interfaces and
the coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

1778 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

For example, if single Membrane and Heat Transfer in Shells interfaces are added, an
empty Multiphysics node appears in the model tree. You can choose from the available
coupling features, but the settings in the constituent interfaces are not modified.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

TABLE 13-4: MODIFIED SETTINGS FOR A THERMAL STRESS, MEMBRANE INTERFACE

PHYSICS INTERFACE OR MODIFIED SETTINGS

COUPLING FEATURE

Membrane For the Membrane interface, under Structural Transient

Behavior the Structural transient behavior is set to
Quasi static.
Heat Transfer in Shells For the Heat Transfer in Shell interface, under
Discretization, the shape function order for the
temperature is set to Linear.
Layered Thermal The Boundary Selection is the same as that of the
Expansion participating physics interfaces.
The corresponding Membrane and Heat Transfer in
Shells interfaces are preselected in the Coupled
Interfaces section.

COUPLING FEATURES
The Layered Thermal Expansion is used to couple the interfaces.

THE THERMAL STRESS, MEMBRANE INTERFACE | 1779

 The Joule Heating and Thermal
Expansion Interface
The Joule Heating and Thermal Expansion interface ( ) combines thermal, electric,
and structural multiphysics effects. The predefined interaction adds the
electromagnetic losses from the electric current as a heat source. In addition, the
temperature from the Heat Transfer in Solids interface acts as a thermal load for the
Solid Mechanics interface, causing thermal expansion.

You can use this multiphysics coupling for coupled thermal, electrical, and structural
analysis of, for example, the movement of some actuator, where an electric current
causes a temperature increase, which in turn leads to a displacement through thermal
expansion.

When a predefined Joule Heating and Thermal Expansion interface is added from the
Structural Mechanics branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or Add Physics windows, Solid
Mechanics, Electric Currents, and Heat Transfer in Solids interfaces are added to the
Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added, which automatically includes the

multiphysics coupling nodes Thermal Expansion and Electromagnetic Heating.

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Electric Currents interface is described in The Electric Currents Interface.
• The Solid Mechanics interface is described in The Solid Mechanics Interface.
• The Heat Transfer in Solids interface is described in The Heat Transfer in Solids
Interface.

In previous versions of COMSOL Multiphysics, a specific physics

interface called Joule Heating and Thermal Expansion was added to the
Model Builder. Now, a predefined multiphysics coupling approach is
used, improving the flexibility and design options for your modeling. For
specific details, see The Multiphysics Branch and Multiphysics Modeling
Workflow in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

1780 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES
When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings, for example Joule
Heating and Thermal Expansion, specific settings are included with the physics interfaces
and the coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

For example, if single Solid Mechanics, Electric Currents, and Heat Transfer in Solids
interfaces are added, COMSOL Multiphysics adds an empty Multiphysics node. You
can then choose from the available coupling features, Thermal Expansion, and
Electromagnetic Heating, but the modified settings are not included.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

TABLE 13-5: MODIFIED SETTINGS FOR A JOULE HEATING AND THERMAL EXPANSION INTERFACE

PHYSICS INTERFACE OR MODIFIED SETTINGS

COUPLING FEATURE

Solid Mechanics For the Solid Mechanics interface, under Structural

Transient Behavior, the Structural transient behavior is set
to Quasi static.
Electric Currents No changes.
Heat Transfer in Solids No changes.
Thermal Expansion The Domain Selection is the same as that of the
participating physics interfaces.
The corresponding Solid Mechanics and Heat Transfer in
Solids interfaces are preselected in the Thermal Expansion
section.
Electromagnetic Heating The Domain Selection is the same as that of the
participating physics interfaces.
The corresponding Electric Currents and Heat Transfer in
Solids interfaces are preselected in the Electromagnetic
Heating section.

THE JOULE HEATING AND THERMAL EXPANSION INTERFACE | 1781

 PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

Use the online help in COMSOL Multiphysics to locate and search all the
documentation. All these links also work directly in COMSOL
Multiphysics when using the Help.

Coupling Features
• Thermal Expansion coupling feature node is described for The Thermal Stress, Solid
Interface.
• The Electromagnetic Heating multiphysics coupling nodes is described for The
Joule Heating Interface in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

Physics Interface Features

Physics nodes are available from the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics
context menu (macOS or Linux users), or right-click to access the context menu (all
users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

• The available physics features for The Solid Mechanics Interfaceare listed in the
section Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for Solid Mechanics.
• The available physics features for The Heat Transfer in Solids Interface are listed in
the section Feature Nodes for the Heat Transfer in Solids Interface.
• The available physics features for The Electric Currents Interface are listed in the
section Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Electric Currents
Interface in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

If you have an add-on module, such as the Heat Transfer Module or AC/
DC Module, there are additional specialized physics nodes available and
described in the individual module documentation.

1782 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

Overview of Fluid-Structure
Inte r a c t i o n In t erfaces
The Model Wizard and the Add Physics window contain a number of multiphysics
interfaces for modeling fluid-structure interaction (FSI), all available under the
Fluid-Structure Interaction branch ( ). The multiphysics interfaces for FSI are
described in the subsequent sections:

• The Fluid-Solid Interaction Interface: For fluid-structure interaction between a

fluid and a solid.
• The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Fixed Geometry Interface: For fluid-structure
interaction between a fluid and a solid where the displacements of the solid are
assumed to be small enough for the geometry of the fluid domain to be considered
as fixed during the interaction.
• The Fluid-Shell Interaction Interface: For fluid-structure interaction between a fluid
and a shell structure.
• The Fluid-Shell Interaction, Fixed Geometry Interface: For fluid-structure
interaction between a fluid and a shell structure where the displacements of the shell
are assumed to be small enough for the geometry of the fluid domain to be
considered as fixed during the interaction.
• The Fluid-Membrane Interaction Interface: For fluid-structure interaction between
a fluid and a membrane structure.
• The Fluid-Membrane Interaction, Fixed Geometry Interface: For fluid-structure
interaction between a fluid and a membrane structure where the displacements of
the membrane are assumed to be small enough for the geometry of the fluid domain
to be considered as fixed during the interaction.
• The Fluid-Pipe Interaction, Fixed Geometry Interface: This multiphysics interface
provides a connection between the Pipe Flow interface and the Pipe Mechanics
interface. The coupling is unidirectional, so that various types of loads from the fluid
loads can be transferred to structural analysis.
• The Solid Thin-Film Damping Interface: For fluid-structure interaction between a
thin-film fluid and a solid under isothermal conditions.
• The Shell Thin-Film Damping Interface: For fluid-structure interaction between a
thin-film fluid and a shell under isothermal conditions.

OVERVIEW OF FLUID-STRUCTURE INTERACTION INTERFACES | 1783

 • The Fluid-Multibody Interaction Interface: For fluid-structure interaction between
a fluid and mechanical parts. See Multiphysics Couplings in the Multibody
Dynamics Module User’s Guide.
• The Fluid-Multibody Interaction, Assembly Interface: For fluid-structure
interaction between a fluid and mechanical parts. An ALE formulation is used for
incorporating the geometrical changes of the fluid domain. See Multiphysics
Couplings in the Multibody Dynamics Module User’s Guide.
• The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Conjugate Heat Transfer Interface: For fluid-structure
interaction between a fluid and a solid under nonisothermal conditions.
• The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Two-Phase Flow, Phase Field Interface: For
fluid-structure interaction between two immiscible fluids and a deformable solid. An
ALE formulation is used for incorporating the geometrical changes of the fluid
domain. The interface between the two fluids is tracked by the phase field method.
• The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Two-Phase Flow, Phase Field, Fixed Geometry
Interface: For fluid-structure interaction between two immiscible fluids and a solid
where the displacements of the solid are assumed to be small enough to be
considered as fixed during the interaction. The interface between the two fluids is
tracked by the phase field method.

1784 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

T he Flui d- S o li d In t erac t i on In t erface
Using the Fluid-Solid Interaction ( ) interface, you can model phenomena where a
fluid and a deformable solid affect each other. The interface includes a predefined
condition for the interaction at the fluid-solid boundaries. Arbitrary
Lagrangian-Eulerian Formulation (ALE) is used for incorporating the geometrical
changes of the fluid domain.

Using a stationary or a time-dependent study, the Fluid-Solid Interaction interface

models bidirectional coupling between solids and fluids. There are, however, special
study steps available in order to model one-way fluid-structure interaction.

You add a predefined Fluid-Solid Interaction interface from the Fluid-Structure

Interaction ( ) group in either the Structural Mechanics branch ( ) or the Fluid Flow
branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or Add Physics windows. Laminar Flow and Solid
Mechanics interfaces are then added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added, which automatically includes the

multiphysics coupling feature Fluid-Structure Interaction.

At the same time, a Moving Mesh node with a Deforming Domain subnode is created
under Definitions. For more information, see Deforming Fluid Domains.

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Deforming Domain feature is described in the Moving Mesh Features.
• The Laminar Flow interface is described in The Single-Phase Flow, Laminar Flow
Interface. When the CFD Module is available, turbulent flow is supported through
the inclusion of a number of turbulence models
• The Solid Mechanics interface is described in The Solid Mechanics Interface.

In 2D, plane stress or plane strain assumptions can be selected in the Solid
Mechanics interface. Only the plane strain (default) should be used
together with the FSI coupling.

THE FLUID-SOLID INTERACTION INTERFACE | 1785

 In previous versions of COMSOL Multiphysics (up to version 5.3), a
specific physics interface called Fluid-Structure Interaction was added to
the Model Builder. Now, a predefined multiphysics coupling approach is
used, improving the flexibility and design options for your modeling. For
specific details, see The Multiphysics Branch and Multiphysics Modeling
Workflow in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings, all specific settings
are included with the physics interfaces and the coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

For example, if single Laminar Flow and Solid Mechanics interfaces are added,
COMSOL Multiphysics adds an empty Multiphysics node. You can choose from the
available coupling features, but the modified settings are not included.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

Use the online help in COMSOL Multiphysics to locate and search all the
documentation. All these links also work directly in COMSOL
Multiphysics when using the Help system.

Coupling Features
The Fluid-Structure Interaction coupling feature is used to couple the interfaces.

1786 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

Physics Interface Features
Physics nodes are available from the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics
context menu (macOS or Linux users), or right-click to access the context menu (all
users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

• The available physics features for The Single-Phase Flow, Laminar Flow Interface
are listed in the section Domain, Boundary, Pair, and Point Nodes for Single-Phase
Flow in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.
• The available physics features for The Solid Mechanics Interface are listed in the
Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for Solid Mechanics section.

THE FLUID-SOLID INTERACTION INTERFACE | 1787

 The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Fixed
Geometry Interface
The Fluid-Solid Interaction, Fixed Geometry ( ) interface can be used to model
phenomena where a fluid and a deformable solid structure affect each other. Both the
fluid loading on the structure and the structural velocity transmission to the fluid can
be taken into account. The interface models situations where the displacements of the
solid are assumed to be small enough for the geometry of the fluid domain to be
considered as fixed during the interaction.

You add a predefined Fluid-Solid Interaction, Fixed Geometry interface from the
Fluid-Structure Interaction ( ) group in either the Structural Mechanics branch ( )
or the Fluid Flow branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or Add Physics windows. Laminar
Flow and Solid Mechanics interfaces are then added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added, which automatically includes the

multiphysics coupling feature Fluid-Structure Interaction.

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Laminar Flow interface is described in The Single-Phase Flow, Laminar Flow
Interface. When the CFD Module is available, turbulent flow is supported through
the inclusion of a number of turbulence models.
• The Solid Mechanics interface is described in The Solid Mechanics Interface.

You can add a Stationary, One-Way FSI or Time Dependent, One-Way FSI
studies. See Stationary and Time Dependent One-Way Studies for
Fluid-Structure Interaction in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference
Manual for more information.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings, all specific settings
are included with the physics interfaces and the coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

1788 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

For example, if single Laminar Flow and Solid Mechanics interfaces are added,
COMSOL Multiphysics adds an empty Multiphysics node. You can choose from the
available coupling features, but the modified settings are not included.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

Use the online help in COMSOL Multiphysics to locate and search all the
documentation. All these links also work directly in COMSOL
Multiphysics when using the Help system.

Coupling Features
The Fluid-Structure Interaction coupling feature is used to couple the interfaces.

Physics Interface Features

Physics nodes are available from the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics
context menu (macOS or Linux users), or right-click to access the context menu (all
users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

• The available physics features for The Single-Phase Flow, Laminar Flow Interface
are listed in the section Domain, Boundary, Pair, and Point Nodes for Single-Phase
Flow in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.
• The available physics features for The Solid Mechanics Interface are listed in the
Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for Solid Mechanics section.

THE FLUID-SOLID INTERACTION, FIXED GEOMETRY INTERFACE | 1789

 T he Flui d- S hel l In t eract i on In t erfac e
Using the Fluid-Shell Interaction ( ) interface, you can model phenomena where a
fluid and a deformable shell affect each other. The interface includes a predefined
condition for the interaction at the fluid-solid boundaries. Arbitrary
Lagrangian-Eulerian Formulation (ALE) is used for incorporating the geometrical
changes of the fluid domain.

Using a stationary or a time-dependent study, the Fluid-Shell Interaction interface

models bidirectional coupling between solids and fluids. There are, however, special
study steps available in order to model one-way fluid-structure interaction.

You add a predefined Fluid-Shell Interaction interface from the Fluid-Structure

Interaction ( ) group in either the Structural Mechanics branch ( ) or the Fluid Flow
branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or Add Physics windows. Laminar Flow and Shell
interfaces are then added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added, which automatically includes the

multiphysics coupling feature Fluid-Structure Interaction.

At the same time, a Moving Mesh node with a Deforming Domain subnode is created
under Definitions. For more information, see Deforming Fluid Domains.

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Laminar Flow interface is described in The Single-Phase Flow, Laminar Flow
Interface. When the CFD Module is available, turbulent flow is supported through
the inclusion of a number of turbulence models.
• The Shell interface is described in The Shell and Plate Interfaces.
• The Deforming Domain feature is described in the Moving Mesh Features.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings, all specific settings
are included with the physics interfaces and the coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

1790 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

For example, if single Laminar Flow and Shell interfaces are added, COMSOL
Multiphysics adds an empty Multiphysics node. You can choose from the available
coupling features, but the modified settings are not included.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

Use the online help in COMSOL Multiphysics to locate and search all the
documentation. All these links also work directly in COMSOL
Multiphysics when using the Help system.

Coupling Features
The Fluid-Structure Interaction coupling feature is used to couple the interfaces.

Physics Interface Features

Physics nodes are available from the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics
context menu (macOS or Linux users), or right-click to access the context menu (all
users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

• The available physics features for The Single-Phase Flow, Laminar Flow Interface
are listed in the section Domain, Boundary, Pair, and Point Nodes for Single-Phase
Flow in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.
• The available physics features for The Shell and Plate Interfaces are listed in the
Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Shell and Plate Interfaces
section.

THE FLUID-SHELL INTERACTION INTERFACE | 1791

 The Fluid-Shell Interaction, Fixed
Geometry Interface
The Fluid-Shell Interaction, Fixed Geometry ( ) interface can be used to model
phenomena where a fluid and a deformable shell structure affect each other. Both the
fluid loading on the structure and the structural velocity transmission to the fluid can
be taken into account. The interface models situations where the displacements of the
shell are assumed to be small enough for the geometry of the fluid domain to be
considered as fixed during the interaction.

You add a predefined Fluid-Shell Interaction, Fixed Geometry interface from the
Fluid-Structure Interaction ( ) group in either the Structural Mechanics branch ( )
or the Fluid Flow branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or Add Physics windows. Laminar
Flow and Shell interfaces are then added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added, which automatically includes the

multiphysics coupling feature Fluid-Structure Interaction.

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Laminar Flow interface is described in The Single-Phase Flow, Laminar Flow
Interface. When the CFD Module is available, turbulent flow is supported through
the inclusion of a number of turbulence models.
• The Shell interface is described in The Shell and Plate Interfaces.

You can add a Stationary, One-Way FSI or Time Dependent, One-Way FSI
studies. See Stationary and Time Dependent One-Way Studies for
Fluid-Structure Interaction in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference
Manual for more information.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings, all specific settings
are included with the physics interfaces and the coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

1792 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

For example, if single Laminar Flow and Shell interfaces are added, COMSOL
Multiphysics adds an empty Multiphysics node. You can choose from the available
coupling features, but the modified settings are not included.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

Use the online help in COMSOL Multiphysics to locate and search all the
documentation. All these links also work directly in COMSOL
Multiphysics when using the Help system.

Coupling Features
The Fluid-Structure Interaction coupling feature is used to couple the interfaces.

Physics Interface Features

Physics nodes are available from the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics
context menu (macOS or Linux users), or right-click to access the context menu (all
users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

• The available physics features for The Single-Phase Flow, Laminar Flow Interface
are listed in the section Domain, Boundary, Pair, and Point Nodes for Single-Phase
Flow in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.
• The available physics features for The Shell and Plate Interfaces are listed in the
Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Shell and Plate Interfaces
section.

THE FLUID-SHELL INTERACTION, FIXED GEOMETRY INTERFACE | 1793

 The Fluid-Membrane Interaction
Interface
Using the Fluid-Membrane Interaction ( ) interface, you can model phenomena
where a fluid and a deformable membrane affect each other. The interface includes a
predefined condition for the interaction at the fluid-solid boundaries. Arbitrary
Lagrangian-Eulerian Formulation (ALE) is used for incorporating the geometrical
changes of the fluid domain.

Using a stationary or a time-dependent study, the Fluid-Membrane Interaction interface

models bidirectional coupling between solids and fluids. There are, however, special
study steps available in order to model one-way fluid-structure interaction.

You add a predefined Fluid-Membrane Interaction interface from the Fluid-Structure

Interaction ( ) group in either the Structural Mechanics branch ( ) or the Fluid Flow
branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or Add Physics windows. Laminar Flow and Membrane
interfaces are then added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added, which automatically includes the

multiphysics coupling feature Fluid-Structure Interaction.

At the same time, a Moving Mesh node with a Deforming Domain subnode is created
under Definitions. For more information, see Deforming Fluid Domains.

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Laminar Flow interface is described in The Single-Phase Flow, Laminar Flow
Interface. When the CFD Module is available, turbulent flow is supported through
the inclusion of a number of turbulence models.
• The Membrane interface is described in The Membrane Interface.
• The Deforming Domain feature is described in the Moving Mesh Features.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings, all specific settings
are included with the physics interfaces and the coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

1794 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

For example, if single Laminar Flow and Membrane interfaces are added, COMSOL
Multiphysics adds an empty Multiphysics node. You can choose from the available
coupling features, but the modified settings are not included.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

Use the online help in COMSOL Multiphysics to locate and search all the
documentation. All these links also work directly in COMSOL
Multiphysics when using the Help system.

Coupling Features
The Fluid-Structure Interaction coupling feature is used to couple the interfaces.

Physics Interface Features

Physics nodes are available from the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics
context menu (macOS or Linux users), or right-click to access the context menu (all
users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

• The available physics features for The Single-Phase Flow, Laminar Flow Interface
are listed in the section Domain, Boundary, Pair, and Point Nodes for Single-Phase
Flow in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.
• The available physics features for The Membrane Interface are listed in the
Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Membrane Interface section.

THE FLUID-MEMBRANE INTERACTION INTERFACE | 1795

 The Fluid-Membrane Interaction,
Fixed Geometry Interface
The Fluid-Membrane Interaction, Fixed Geometry ( ) interface can be used to model
phenomena where a fluid and a deformable membrane structure affect each other.
Both the fluid loading on the structure and the structural velocity transmission to the
fluid can be taken into account. The interface models situations where the
displacements of the membrane are assumed to be small enough for the geometry of
the fluid domain to be considered as fixed during the interaction.

You add a predefined Fluid-Membrane Interaction, Fixed Geometry interface from the
Fluid-Structure Interaction ( ) group in either the Structural Mechanics branch ( )
or the Fluid Flow branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or Add Physics windows. Laminar
Flow and Membrane interfaces are then added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added, which automatically includes the

multiphysics coupling feature Fluid-Structure Interaction.

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Laminar Flow interface is described in The Single-Phase Flow, Laminar Flow
Interface. When the CFD Module is available, turbulent flow is supported through
the inclusion of a number of turbulence models.
• The Membrane interface is described in The Membrane Interface.

You can add a Stationary, One-Way FSI or Time Dependent, One-Way FSI
studies. See Stationary and Time Dependent One-Way Studies for
Fluid-Structure Interaction in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference
Manual for more information.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings, all specific settings
are included with the physics interfaces and the coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

1796 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

For example, if single Laminar Flow and Membrane interfaces are added, COMSOL
Multiphysics adds an empty Multiphysics node. You can choose from the available
coupling features, but the modified settings are not included.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

Use the online help in COMSOL Multiphysics to locate and search all the
documentation. All these links also work directly in COMSOL
Multiphysics when using the Help system.

Coupling Features
The Fluid-Structure Interaction, Fixed Geometry coupling feature is used to couple
the interfaces.

Physics Interface Features

Physics nodes are available from the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics
context menu (macOS or Linux users), or right-click to access the context menu (all
users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

• The available physics features for The Single-Phase Flow, Laminar Flow Interface
are listed in the section Domain, Boundary, Pair, and Point Nodes for Single-Phase
Flow in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.
• The available physics features for The Membrane Interface are listed in the
Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Membrane Interface section.

THE FLUID-MEMBRANE INTERACTION, FIXED GEOMETRY INTERFACE | 1797

 The Fluid-Pipe Interaction, Fixed
Geometry Interface
The Fluid-Pipe Interaction, Fixed Geometry ( ) interface can be used to model
problems where the forces from the fluid in a piping system act as structural loads. The
structural deformations do not affect the flow.

You add a predefined Fluid-Pipe Interaction, Fixed Geometry interface from the
Fluid-Structure Interaction ( ) group in either the Structural Mechanics branch ( )
or the Fluid Flow branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or Add Physics windows. Pipe Flow
and Pipe Mechanics interfaces are then added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added, which automatically includes the

multiphysics coupling node Fluid-Pipe Interaction.

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Pipe Flow interface is described in The Pipe Flow Interface in the Pipe Flow
Module User’s Guide.
• The Pipe Mechanics interface is described in The Pipe Mechanics Interface.

1798 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

The Solid Thin-Film Damping
Interface
The Solid Thin-Film Damping ( ) interface can be used to model phenomena where a
thin-film fluid and a deformable solid affect each other. The fluid can be either a liquid
or a gas, with the possibility to include cavitation in liquids.

Use the Solid Thin-Film Damping interface to apply boundary loads to the surface of a
resonator that result from squeeze-film or slide-film damping. Examples of common
situations in which these types of damping are appropriate are parallel-plate capacitive
and comb-drive actuators for squeeze-film and slide-film damping, respectively.

You add a predefined Solid Thin-Film Damping interface from the Fluid-Structure
Interaction ( ) group in the Structural Mechanics branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or
Add Physics windows. Solid Mechanics and Thin-Film Flow interfaces are then added to
the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added, which automatically includes the

multiphysics coupling feature Structure Thin-Film Flow Interaction.

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Solid Mechanics interface is described in The Solid Mechanics Interface
• The Thin-Film Flow interface is described in The Thin-Film Flow Interfaces.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings, all specific settings
are included with the physics interfaces and the coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

For example, if Thin-Film Flow and Solid Mechanics interfaces are added, COMSOL
Multiphysics adds an empty Multiphysics node. You can choose from the available
coupling features, but the modified settings are not included.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

THE SOLID THIN-FILM DAMPING INTERFACE | 1799

 PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

Use the online help in COMSOL Multiphysics to locate and search all the
documentation. All these links also work directly in COMSOL
Multiphysics when using the Help system.

Coupling Features
The Structure Thin-Film Flow Interaction coupling feature is used to couple the
interfaces.

Physics Interface Features

Physics nodes are available from the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics
context menu (macOS or Linux users), or right-click to access the context menu (all
users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

• The available physics features for The Solid Mechanics Interface are listed in the
Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for Solid Mechanics section.
• The available physics features for The Thin-Film Flow Interfaces are listed in the
Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Thin-Film Flow Interfaces
section in the CFD Module User’s Guide.

See Theory for the Thin-Film Flow Interfaces in the CFD Module User’s
Guide.

1800 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

The Shell Thin-Film Damping
Interface
The Shell Thin-Film Damping ( ) interface can be used to model phenomena where a
thin-film fluid and a shell affect each other. The fluid can be either a liquid or a gas,
with the possibility to include cavitation in liquids.

Using a frequency domain or a time-dependent study, the interface can model

fluid-induced damping in shells.

You add a predefined Shell Thin-Film Damping interface from the Fluid-Structure
Interaction ( ) group in the Structural Mechanics branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or
Add Physics windows. Shell and Thin-Film Flow interfaces are then added to the Model
Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added, which automatically includes the

multiphysics coupling feature Shell Thin-Film Flow Interaction.

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Shell interface is described in The Shell and Plate Interfaces.
• The Thin-Film Flow interface is described in The Thin-Film Flow Interfaces.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings, all specific settings
are included with the physics interfaces and the coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

For example, if Thin-Film Flow and Shell interfaces are added, COMSOL
Multiphysics adds an empty Multiphysics node. You can choose from the available
coupling features, but the modified settings are not included.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

THE SHELL THIN-FILM DAMPING INTERFACE | 1801

 PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

Use the online help in COMSOL Multiphysics to locate and search all the
documentation. All these links also work directly in COMSOL
Multiphysics when using the Help system.

Coupling Features
The Shell Thin-Film Flow Interaction coupling feature is used to couple the interfaces.

Physics Interface Features

Physics nodes are available from the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics
context menu (macOS or Linux users), or right-click to access the context menu (all
users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

• The available physics features for The Shell and Plate Interfaces are listed in the
Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Shell and Plate Interfaces
section.
• The available physics features for The Thin-Film Flow Interfaces are listed in the
Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for the Thin-Film Flow Interfaces
section in the CFD Module User’s Guide.

See Theory for the Thin-Film Flow Interfaces in the CFD Module User’s
Guide.

1802 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

The Fluid-Solid Interaction,
Viscoelastic Flow Interface
Using the Fluid-Solid Interaction, Viscoelastic Flow( ) interface, you can model
phenomena where a deformable solid and a fluid exhibiting a combination of viscous
and elastic behavior affect each other. The interface includes a predefined condition for
the interaction at the fluid-solid boundaries. Arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian
Formulation (ALE) is used for incorporating the geometrical changes of the fluid
domain.

Using a time-dependent study, the Fluid-Solid Interaction, Viscoelastic Flow interface

models bidirectional coupling between solids and the fluids. There are, however,
special study steps available in order to model one-way fluid-structure interaction.

You add a predefined Fluid-Solid Interaction, Viscoelastic Flow interface from the
Fluid-Structure Interaction ( ) group in either the Structural Mechanics branch ( )
or the Fluid Flow branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or Add Physics windows. Viscoelastic
Flow and Solid Mechanics interfaces are then added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added to the Model Builder, which automatically
includes the multiphysics coupling feature Fluid-Structure Interaction.

At the same time, a Moving Mesh node with a Deforming Domain subnode is created
under Definitions. For more information, see Deforming Fluid Domains.

The Viscoelastic Flow interface solves the continuity equation for conservation of mass
and the Navier-Stokes equations for the conservation of momentum with an additional
elastic stress term. To calculate the extra stress tensor, a number of constitutive
relations are available.

The solid domain has all functionality available in the Solid Mechanics interface,
including contact conditions and also nonlinear materials if the Nonlinear Structural
Materials Module or Geomechanics Module is available.

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Solid Mechanics interface is described in The Solid Mechanics Interface.
• The Viscoelastic Flow interface is described in The Viscoelastic Flow Interface.
• The Deforming Domain feature is described in the Moving Mesh Features.

THE FLUID-SOLID INTERACTION, VISCOELASTIC FLOW INTERFACE | 1803

 SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES
When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings, all specific settings
are included with the physics interfaces and the coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

For example, if single Laminar Flow and Solid Mechanics interfaces are added,
COMSOL Multiphysics adds an empty Multiphysics node. You can choose from the
available coupling features, but the modified settings are not included.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

Use the online help in COMSOL Multiphysics to locate and search all the
documentation. All these links also work directly in COMSOL
Multiphysics when using the Help system.

Coupling Features
The Fluid-Structure Interaction feature is used to couple the interfaces.

Physics Interface Features

Physics nodes are available from the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics
context menu (macOS or Linux users), or right-click to access the context menu (all
users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

1804 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

The Fluid-Solid Interaction,
Viscoelastic Flow, Fixed Geometry
Interface
Using the Fluid-Solid Interaction, Viscoelastic Flow, Fixed Geometry ( ) interface, you
can model phenomena where a deformable solid and a fluid exhibiting a combination
of viscous and elastic behavior affect each other. Both the fluid loading on the structure
and the structural velocity transmission to the fluid can be taken into account. The
interface models situations where the displacements of the solid are assumed to be
small enough for the geometry of the fluid domain to be considered as fixed during
the interaction.

You add a predefined Fluid-Solid Interaction, Viscoelastic Flow, Fixed Geometry interface
from the Fluid-Structure Interaction ( ) group in either the Structural Mechanics
branch ( ) or the Fluid Flow branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or Add Physics
windows. Viscoelastic Flow and Solid Mechanics interfaces are then added to the Model
Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added to the Model Builder, which automatically
includes the multiphysics coupling feature Fluid-Structure Interaction.

The Viscoelastic Flow interface solves the continuity equation for conservation of mass
and the Navier-Stokes equations for the conservation of momentum with an additional
elastic stress term. To calculate the extra stress tensor, a number of constitutive
relations are available.

The solid domain has all functionality available in the Solid Mechanics interface,
including contact conditions and also nonlinear materials if the Nonlinear Structural
Materials Module or Geomechanics Module is available.

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Solid Mechanics interface is described in The Solid Mechanics Interface.
• The Viscoelastic Flow interface is described in The Viscoelastic Flow Interface.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings, all specific settings
are included with the physics interfaces and the coupling features.

THE FLUID-SOLID INTERACTION, VISCOELASTIC FLOW, FIXED GEOMETRY INTERFACE | 1805

 However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

For example, if single Laminar Flow and Solid Mechanics interfaces are added,
COMSOL Multiphysics adds an empty Multiphysics node. You can choose from the
available coupling features, but the modified settings are not included.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

Use the online help in COMSOL Multiphysics to locate and search all the
documentation. All these links also work directly in COMSOL
Multiphysics when using the Help system.

Coupling Features
The Fluid-Structure Interaction feature is used to couple the interfaces.

Physics Interface Features

Physics nodes are available from the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics
context menu (macOS or Linux users), or right-click to access the context menu (all
users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

1806 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

The Fluid-Solid Interaction,
Conjugate Heat Transfer Interface
Using the Fluid-Solid Interaction, Conjugate Heat Transfer( ) interface, you can model
phenomena where a fluid and a deformable solid affect each other at the same time as
heat is transferred through and between the domains. The interface includes a
predefined condition for the interaction at the fluid-solid boundaries. Arbitrary
Lagrangian-Eulerian Formulation (ALE) is used for incorporating the geometrical
changes of the fluid domain.

Using a stationary or a time-dependent study, the Fluid-Solid Interaction, Conjugate Heat

Transfer interface models bidirectional coupling between solids and fluids. You can,
however, by modifying the solver sequences also model various types of
one-directional couplings.

You add this interface from the Conjugate Heat Transfer ( ) subgroup within the
Fluid-Structure Interaction ( ) group in either the Structural Mechanics branch ( )
or the Fluid Flow branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or Add Physics windows. Three
physics interfaces are then added to the Model Builder: Laminar Flow, Heat Transfer
in Solids and Fluids, and Solid Mechanics.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added, which automatically includes the

multiphysics coupling nodes Fluid-Structure Interaction, Nonisothermal Flow, and
Thermal Expansion.

At the same time, a Moving Mesh node with a Deforming Domain subnode is created
under Definitions. For more information, see Deforming Fluid Domains.

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Laminar Flow interface is described in The Single-Phase Flow, Laminar Flow
Interface. When the CFD Module is available, turbulent flow is supported through
the inclusion of a number of turbulence models.
• The Solid Mechanics interface is described in The Solid Mechanics Interface.

In 2D, plane stress or plane strain assumptions can be selected in the Solid
Mechanics interface. Only the plane strain (default) should be used
together with an FSI coupling.

THE FLUID-SOLID INTERACTION, CONJUGATE HEAT TRANSFER INTERFACE | 1807

 • The Heat Transfer in Solids and Fluids interface is described in The Heat Transfer
in Solids and Fluids Interface. A Solid feature is active by default in all domains, and
a Fluid feature is added without a domain selection. All functionality for including
other domain types is also available.
• The Deforming Domain feature is described in the Moving Mesh Features.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings, all specific settings
are included with the physics interfaces and the coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

For example, if single Laminar Flow and Solid Mechanics interfaces are added,
COMSOL Multiphysics adds an empty Multiphysics node. You can choose from the
available coupling features, but the modified settings are not included.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

Use the online help in COMSOL Multiphysics to locate and search all the
documentation. All these links also work directly in COMSOL
Multiphysics when using the Help system.

Coupling Features
The Fluid-Structure Interaction, Nonisothermal Flow, and Thermal Expansion
coupling features are used to couple the interfaces.

1808 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

Physics Interface Features
Physics nodes are available from the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics
context menu (macOS or Linux users), or right-click to access the context menu (all
users).

In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what

operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

• The available physics features for The Single-Phase Flow, Laminar Flow Interface
are listed in the section Domain, Boundary, Pair, and Point Nodes for Single-Phase
Flow in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.
• The available physics features for The Solid Mechanics Interface are listed in the
Domain, Boundary, Edge, Point, and Pair Nodes for Solid Mechanics section.
• The available physics features for The Heat Transfer in Solids and Fluids Interface
are listed in the Domain Features, Boundary Features, and Edge and Point Features,
sections.

THE FLUID-SOLID INTERACTION, CONJUGATE HEAT TRANSFER INTERFACE | 1809

 The Fluid-Solid Interaction,
Two-Phase Flow, Phase Field
Interface
Using the Fluid-Solid Interaction, Two-Phase Flow, Phase Field ( ) interface, you can
model phenomena where two immiscible fluids and a deformable solid affect each
other. The interface includes a predefined condition for the interaction at the
fluid-solid boundaries. Arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian Formulation (ALE) is used for
incorporating the geometrical changes of the fluid domain. The interface between the
two fluids is tracked by solving two additional transport equations, one for the phase
field variable and one for the mixing energy density.

Using a time-dependent study, the Fluid-Solid Interaction, Two-Phase Flow, Phase Field
interface models bidirectional coupling between solids and the fluids. There are,
however, special study steps available in order to model one-way fluid-structure
interaction. Simulations using the interface are always time-dependent since the
position of the interface between the two fluids is almost always dependent of its
history.

You add a predefined Fluid-Solid Interaction, Two-Phase Flow, Phase Field interface from
the Fluid-Structure Interaction ( ) group in either the Structural Mechanics branch
( ) or the Fluid Flow branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or Add Physics windows.
Laminar Flow, Solid Mechanics and Phase Field interfaces are then added to the Model
Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added to the Model Builder, which automatically
includes the multiphysics coupling features Fluid-Structure Interaction and Two-Phase
Flow, Phase Field.

At the same time, a Moving Mesh node with a Deforming Domain subnode is created
under Definitions. For more information, see Deforming Fluid Domains.

The flow regime can be laminar or turbulent (if the CFD Module is available). The
solid domain has all functionality available in the Solid Mechanics interface, including
contact conditions and also nonlinear materials if the Nonlinear Structural Materials
Module or Geomechanics Module is available.

1810 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces
• The Solid Mechanics interface is described in The Solid Mechanics Interface.
• The Two-Phase Flow interface is described in The Two-Phase Flow, Level Set and
Phase Field Interfaces.
• The Deforming Domain feature is described in the Moving Mesh Features.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings, all specific settings
are included with the physics interfaces and the coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

For example, if single Laminar Flow and Solid Mechanics interfaces are added,
COMSOL Multiphysics adds an empty Multiphysics node. You can choose from the
available coupling features, but the modified settings are not included.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

Use the online help in COMSOL Multiphysics to locate and search all the
documentation. All these links also work directly in COMSOL
Multiphysics when using the Help system.

Coupling Features
The Two-Phase Flow, Phase Field Coupling Feature and the Fluid-Structure
Interaction feature are used to couple the interfaces.

Physics Interface Features

Physics nodes are available from the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics
context menu (macOS or Linux users), or right-click to access the context menu (all
users).

THE FLUID-SOLID INTERACTION, TWO-PHASE FLOW, PHASE FIELD INTERFACE | 1811

 In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what
operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

1812 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

 T he Flui d- S o lid In t eract i on ,
Two-Phase Flow, Phase Field, Fixed
Geometry Interface
Using the Fluid-Solid Interaction, Two-Phase Flow, Phase Field, Fixed Geometry ( )
interface, you can model phenomena where two immiscible fluids and a deformable
solid affect each other. The interface includes a predefined condition for the
interaction at the fluid-solid boundaries. The interface between the two fluids is
tracked by solving two additional transport equations, one for the phase field variable
and one for the mixing energy density.

Using a time-dependent study, the Fluid-Solid Interaction, Two-Phase Flow, Phase Field,
Fixed Geometry interface models bidirectional coupling between solids and the fluids.
There are, however, special study steps available in order to model one-way
fluid-structure interaction. Simulations using the interface are always time-dependent
since the position of the interface between the two fluids is almost always dependent
of its history.

You add a predefined Fluid-Solid Interaction, Two-Phase Flow, Phase Field, Fixed
Geometry interface from the Fluid-Structure Interaction ( ) group in either the
Structural Mechanics branch ( ) or the Fluid Flow branch ( ) of the Model Wizard
or Add Physics windows. Laminar Flow, Solid Mechanics and Phase Field interfaces are
then added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added to the Model Builder, which automatically
includes the multiphysics coupling features Fluid-Structure Interaction and Two-Phase
Flow, Phase Field.

The flow regime can be laminar or turbulent (if the CFD Module is available). The
solid domain has all functionality available in the Solid Mechanics interface, including
contact conditions and also nonlinear materials if the Nonlinear Structural Materials
Module or Geomechanics Module is available.

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Solid Mechanics interface is described in The Solid Mechanics Interface.

THE FLUID-SOLID INTERACTION, TWO-PHASE FLOW, PHASE FIELD, FIXED GEOMETRY INTERFACE | 1813
 • The Two-Phase Flow interface is described in The Two-Phase Flow, Level Set and
Phase Field Interfaces.

You can add a Stationary, One-Way FSI or Time Dependent, One-Way FSI
studies. See Stationary and Time Dependent One-Way Studies for
Fluid-Structure Interaction in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference
Manual for more information.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings, all specific settings
are included with the physics interfaces and the coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

For example, if single Laminar Flow and Solid Mechanics interfaces are added,
COMSOL Multiphysics adds an empty Multiphysics node. You can choose from the
available coupling features, but the modified settings are not included.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

Use the online help in COMSOL Multiphysics to locate and search all the
documentation. All these links also work directly in COMSOL
Multiphysics when using the Help system.

Coupling Features
The Two-Phase Flow, Phase Field Coupling Feature and the Fluid-Structure
Interaction feature are used to couple the interfaces.

Physics Interface Features

Physics nodes are available from the Physics ribbon toolbar (Windows users), Physics
context menu (macOS or Linux users), or right-click to access the context menu (all
users).

1814 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

 In general, to add a node, go to the Physics toolbar, no matter what
operating system you are using. Subnodes are available by clicking the
parent node and selecting it from the Attributes menu.

THE FLUID-SOLID INTERACTION, TWO-PHASE FLOW, PHASE FIELD, FIXED GEOMETRY INTERFACE | 1815
 Overview of
Electromagnetics-Structure
Interaction Interfaces
The Model Wizard and the Add Physics window contain a number of multiphysics
interfaces for modeling of structure interaction with magnetic and electric fields, all
available under the Electromagnetics-Structure Interaction ( ) branch within the
Structural Mechanics branch ( ). The multiphysics interfaces are listed here and also
described in more details in the subsequent sections.

• Electromechanics ( ) branch
- The Electromechanics Interface ( )
- The Electromechanics, Boundary Elements Interface ( )
• Piezoelectricity ( ) branch
- The Piezoelectricity Interface, Solid ( )
- The Piezoelectricity, Layered Shell Interface ( )
• The Electrostriction Interface ( )
• The Ferroelectroelasticity Interface ( )
• Magnetostriction ( ) branch
- The Piezomagnetism Interface ( )
- The Nonlinear Magnetostriction Interface ( )
• Magnetomechanics ( ) branch
- The Magnetomechanics Interface ( )
- The Magnetomechanics, No Currents Interface ( )
• Piezoresistivity ( ) branch
- The Piezoresistivity, Domain Currents Interface ( )
- The Piezoresistivity, Boundary Currents Interface ( )
- The Piezoresistivity, Shell Interface ( )

1816 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

The Piezoelectricity Interface, Solid
The Piezoelectricity interface ( ) combines Solid Mechanics and Electrostatics
together with the constitutive relationships required to model piezoelectric
phenomena. Both the direct and inverse piezoelectric effects can be modeled, and the
piezoelectric coupling can be formulated using either the strain-charge or stress-charge
forms.

When a predefined Piezoelectricity interface is added from the Structural Mechanics

branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or from Add Physics windows, Solid Mechanics and
Electrostatics interfaces are added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added, which automatically includes the

multiphysics coupling feature Piezoelectric Effect.

The participating Solid Mechanics interface includes the default Piezoelectric Material
feature with its selection set to all domains. The Electrostatics interface has a default
Charge Conservation, Piezoelectric feature with similar settings.

Such features can be also added manually to their corresponding interfaces similar to
any other material model therein.

The Piezoelectric Effect multiphysics coupling node can be active only on the
selection, where both features Piezoelectric Material and Charge Conservation,
Piezoelectric are active.

You input both the mechanical and electrical material data under the Piezoelectric
Material node. The data can be presented in either stress-charge or strain-charge form.

When it is used without an active Piezoelectric Effect coupling feature, the

Piezoelectric Material node works similarly to a Linear Elastic Material feature with the
material data input limited to anisotropic form using Voigt notations. All the electric
material data has no effect.

You use the Charge Conservation, Piezoelectric feature under Electrostatics to select
those domains, where the material is supposed to experience piezoelectric coupling.
When used without a counterpart under the Solid Mechanics interface (or without the
coupling feature), the Charge Conservation, Piezoelectric node acts as an ordinary
Charge Conservation feature with its material data input limited to the electric
permittivity only.

THE PIEZOELECTRICITY INTERFACE, SOLID | 1817

 All solid mechanics and electrostatics functionality for modeling is also accessible to
include surrounding elastic solids or air domains. For example, add any solid
mechanics material for other solid domain, a dielectric model for air (via Charge
Conservation feature), or a combination. Note that in order to model a nonsolid
dielectric domain, you need to remove such domain from the domain selection for the
entire Solid Mechanics interface. This is because all material models under that
interface represent solid materials (with the Linear Elastic Material node being always
present and active in all those domains, where it is not explicitly overridden by any
other material model).

In 2D and 2D axial symmetry, adding a Piezoelectricity interface also adds predefined

base-vector coordinate systems for the material’s (in the plane 2D case) XY-, YZ-, ZX-,
YX-, XZ-, and XY-planes. These additional coordinate systems are useful for
simplifying the material orientation for the piezoelectric material.

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Solid Mechanics interface is described in The Solid Mechanics Interface.
• The Electrostatics interface is described in The Electrostatics Interface in the AC/
DC Module User’s Guide.

In previous versions of COMSOL Multiphysics, a specific physics

interface called Piezoelectric Devices was added to the Model Builder. Now,
a predefined multiphysics coupling approach is used, improving the
flexibility and design options for your modeling. For specific details, see
The Multiphysics Branch and Multiphysics Modeling Workflow in the
COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings, for example
Piezoelectricity, specific settings are included with the physics interfaces and the
coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

1818 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

For example, if both Solid Mechanics and Electrostatics interfaces are added, COMSOL
Multiphysics adds an empty Multiphysics node. You can choose the available coupling
feature Piezoelectric Effect but the modified settings are not included.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

Use the online help in COMSOL Multiphysics to locate and search all the
documentation. All these links also work directly in COMSOL
Multiphysics when using the Help system.

Coupling Feature
The Piezoelectric Effect coupling node is used to couple the interfaces.

Additional Features
Additional nodes and subnodes available with this multiphysics interface are described
with the interfaces where they are available. Coupling Loss, Dielectric Loss, Mechanical
Damping, and Conduction Loss (Time-Harmonic) subnodes are available for Piezoelectric
Material under the Solid Mechanics interface. The Charge Conservation, Piezoelectric
feature is described for the Electrostatics interface.

• Piezoelectricity
• Modeling Piezoelectric Problems

Piezoelectric Shear-Actuated Beam: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Piezoelectric_Effects/shear_bender

Surface Acoustic Wave Gas Sensor: Application Library path

MEMS_Module/Sensors/saw_gas_sensor

THE PIEZOELECTRICITY INTERFACE, SOLID | 1819

 Coupling Piezoelectricity with Acoustics
Using piezoelectric materials for an acoustic application is common, such as in sonars,
microphones, sensors, and so forth. This is why coupling piezoelectricity with acoustic
domains is of particular interest for these applications.

The multiphysics couplings between Solid Mechanics and the acoustics

interfaces require the Acoustics Module.

Compared to a single piezoelectric model, you need to add a pressure acoustics physics
interface, for example, Pressure Acoustics, Frequency Domain or Pressure Acoustics,
Transient (depending on which study type you want to use) plus an Acoustic-Structure
Boundary coupling under the Multiphysics node. You can also directly create the nodes
that are needed for coupling by adding an Acoustic-Piezoelectric Interaction interface
from the Model Wizard or Add Physics windows. If solid and acoustic domains are
correctly defined, then the right coupling boundaries are automatically selected. Then
specify domains of application for each physics.

• Select solid domains and Piezoelectric Material domains in Solid Mechanics.

• Select electrostatic domains and Charge Conservation, Piezoelectric domains in
Electrostatics.
• Select acoustic domains in a Pressure Acoustics node.
• Under the Multiphysics branch, confirm that selections for Piezoelectric Effect and
Acoustic-Structure Boundary are the right ones. If several Pressure Acoustics, Solid
Mechanics, or Electrostatics interfaces are present, select the right ones that need to
be coupled in the multiphysics interfaces.
• Continue the modeling process by entering the settings for each physics interface
and feature and define materials.

1820 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

The Piezoelectricity, Layered Shell
Interface
The Piezoelectricity, Layered Shell interface ( ) combines structural layered shells and
electric currents in shells together with the constitutive relationships required to model
the direct and inverse piezoelectric effects. The piezoelectric coupling can be
formulated using either the strain-charge or stress-charge forms.

When a predefined Piezoelectricity, Layered Shell interface is added from the Structural
Mechanics branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or from Add Physics windows, Layered Shell
and Electric Currents in Layered Shells interfaces are added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added, which automatically includes the

multiphysics coupling feature Layered Piezoelectric Effect.

The Layered Shell interface includes a Piezoelectric Material feature. The Electric
Currents in Layered Shells interface includes a Piezoelectric Layer feature with similar
settings. Such features can be also added manually to their corresponding interfaces
similar to any other material model therein.

The Layered Piezoelectric Effect multiphysics coupling node can be active only on the
selection, where both features Piezoelectric Material and Piezoelectric Layer are active.

You input both the mechanical and electrical material data under the Piezoelectric
Material node. The data can be presented in either stress-charge or strain-charge form.

When it is used without an active Layered Piezoelectric Effect coupling feature, the
Piezoelectric Material node works similarly to a Linear Elastic Material feature with the
material data input limited to anisotropic form using Voigt notations. All the electric
material data has no effect.

You use the Piezoelectric Layer feature under Electric Currents in Shells to select those
domains, where the material is supposed to experience piezoelectric coupling. When
used without a counterpart under the Layered Shell interface (or without the coupling
feature), the Piezoelectric Layer node acts as an ordinary Dielectric Layer feature with
its material data input limited to the electric permittivity only.

All structural and electrostatics functionality for modeling is also accessible to include
surrounding elastic solids or air domains. For example, add any s material model for
other solid domain, a dielectric model for air, or a combination. Note that in order to

THE PIEZOELECTRICITY, LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1821

 model a nonsolid dielectric domain, you need to remove such domain from the
domain selection for the entire Layered Shell interface. This is because all material
models under that interface represent solid materials (with the Linear Elastic Material
node being always present and active in all those domains, where it is not explicitly
overridden by any other material model).

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Layered Shell interface is described in The Layered Shell Interface.
• The Electric Currents in Layered Shells interface is described in The Electric
Currents, Layered Shell Interface in the AC/DC Module User’s Guide.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined couplings, for example
Piezoelectricity, Layered Shell, specific settings are included with the physics interfaces
and the coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

For example, if both Layered Shell and Electric Currents in Layered Shells interfaces are
added, COMSOL Multiphysics adds an empty Multiphysics node. You can add the
available coupling feature Layered Piezoelectric Effect but the modified settings are not
included.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

Use the online help in COMSOL Multiphysics to locate and search all the
documentation. All these links also work directly in COMSOL
Multiphysics when using the Help system.

Coupling Feature
The Layered Piezoelectric Effect coupling node is used to couple the interfaces.

1822 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

Additional Features
Additional nodes and subnodes available with this multiphysics interface are described
with the interfaces where they are available. Coupling Loss, Dielectric Loss, and
Mechanical Damping subnodes are available for Piezoelectric Material under the Layered
Shell interface. The Piezoelectric Layer feature is described for the Electric Currents in
Layered Shells interface.

• Piezoelectricity
• Modeling Piezoelectric Problems

THE PIEZOELECTRICITY, LAYERED SHELL INTERFACE | 1823

 T he E le c t r o s t ri c t i on In t erfac e
The Electrostriction interface ( ) combines Solid Mechanics and Electrostatics
together with the constitutive relationships required to model electrostriction in
electrostatically actuated structures in regimes when the electric polarization can be
assumed to vary linear with the applied electric field. Both the direct and inverse
electrostrictive effects can be modeled.

The Electrostriction interface is available for 3D, planar 2D, and axisymmetric 2D
geometries.

When this multiphysics interface is added using the Model Wizard, a Solid Mechanics
interface and an Electrostatics interface are added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics Couplings node is added, which automatically includes the
multiphysics coupling feature Electrostriction.

The full functionality of the Solid Mechanics and Electrostatics interfaces is accessible
under the corresponding interfaces at the domain, boundary line, or point level in the
geometry. The participating Electrostatics interface by default adds the Charge
Conservation node with its selection set to all domains, and the material type set to
Solid. This node serves to represent solid dielectric material domains. Any number of
Charge Conservation nodes can be also added manually to the interface and configured
to represent either solid or nonsolid (for example, air or free space) materials.

1824 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

The Ferroelectroelasticity Interface
The Ferroelectroelasticity interface ( ) combines Solid Mechanics and Electrostatics
together with the constitutive relationships required to model nonlinear
electromechanical interaction in ferroelectric and piezoelectric materials. Electric
polarization in such materials depends nonlinearly on the applied electric field
including possible hysteresis and saturation effects. In addition, the polarization and
mechanical deformations in such materials can be strongly coupled due to the
electrostriction effect.

The Ferroelectroelasticity interface is available for 3D, planar 2D, and axisymmetric 2D
geometries.

When this multiphysics interface is added using the Model Wizard, a Solid Mechanics
interface and an Electrostatics interface are added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics Couplings node is added, which automatically includes the
multiphysics coupling feature Electrostriction.

The full functionality of the Solid Mechanics and Electrostatics interfaces is accessible
under the corresponding interfaces at the domain, boundary line, or point level in the
geometry. The participating Electrostatics interface includes the default Charge
Conservation, Ferroelectric feature with its selection set to all domains. Such features can
be also added manually to any Electrostatics interface in the model.

• Ferroelectroelasticity
• Ferroelectricity

Hysteresis in Piezoelectric Ceramics: Application Library path

MEMS_Module/Piezoelectric_Devices/piezoelectric_hysteresis

THE FERROELECTROELASTICITY INTERFACE | 1825

 The Magnetomechanics Interface
The Magnetomechanics ( ) interface combines Solid Mechanics and Magnetic Fields
interfaces together with a moving mesh functionality. The interface can be used for
modeling deformation of magnetically actuated structures, which includes interaction
of magnetic fields with magnetic materials and current carrying elements such as coils
and wires.

The Magnetomechanics interface is available for 3D, planar 2D, and axisymmetric 2D
geometries. It is found under the Electromagnetics-Structure Interaction ( ) branch
within the Structural Mechanics ( ) branch. When this multiphysics interface is added
using the Model Wizard, a Solid Mechanics interface and a Magnetic Fields interface are
added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics Couplings node is added, which automatically includes the
multiphysics coupling feature Magnetomechanical Forces.

The full functionality of the Solid Mechanics and Magnetic Fields interfaces is
accessible under the respective interface at the domain, boundary, edge, or point level
in the geometry. The participating Magnetic Fields interface by default adds the
Ampère’s Law node with its selection set to all domains, and the Material type set to
Solid. This node serves to represent solid magnetic material domains. Any number of
Ampère’s Law nodes can also be added manually to the interface and configured to
represent either solid or nonsolid (for example, air or free space) materials.

MOVING MESH
When a Magnetomechanics multiphysics interface is added using the Model Wizard, a
Deforming Domain node and a Symmetry node are added automatically in Model Builder
under the Definitions node. These nodes serve to represent domains and boundaries
where the mesh can deform. By default, both nodes have empty selections. Under the
Deforming Domain, you can select domain that represent nonsolid magnetic materials
such as air, fluid, and free space. However, this is only needed if the boundaries of such
domains experience significant changes due to the deformation or rotation of the
adjacent solid domains. Otherwise, the moving mesh computations could just
introduce unnecessary overhead and nonlinearity in the model (see Deformed Mesh
Fundamentals). Domains selected in the Solid Mechanics interface are not applicable.

1826 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

Under the Deforming Domain, you can also choose the Mesh smoothing type which is by
default set to Hyperelastic. More information of the smoothing type can be found in
the Deforming Domain chapter in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

By default, the mesh is fixed at all external boundaries of the geometry. Use the
Symmetry node to select the external boundaries, where the mesh can slide along the
boundary. You can also add other types of boundary conditions for the mesh motion,
for details see Moving Mesh Features in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference
Manual.

THE MAGNETOMECHANICS INTERFACE | 1827

 The Magnetomechanics, No Currents
Interface
The Magnetomechanics, No Currents ( ) interface combines Solid Mechanics and
Magnetic Fields, No Currents interfaces with a moving mesh functionality to model
the deformation of magnetostatically actuated structures. The interface is suitable in
cases when induction and conduction effects such as eddy currents are negligible
within the structure.

The Magnetomechanics, No Currents interface is available for 3D, planar 2D, and
axisymmetric 2D geometries. The interface is found under the
Electromagnetics-Structure Interaction ( ) branch within the Structural Mechanics
( ) branch. When this multiphysics interface is added using the Model Wizard, a Solid
Mechanics interface and a Magnetic Fields, No Currents interface are added to the Model
Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics Couplings node is added, which automatically includes the
multiphysics coupling feature Magnetic Forces.

The full functionality of the Solid Mechanics and Magnetic Fields, No Currents
interfaces is accessible under the respective interfaces at the domain, boundary, edge,
or point level in the geometry. The participating Magnetic Fields, No Currents interface
by default adds the Magnetic Flux Conservation node with its selection set to all domains,
and the Material type set to Solid. This node serves to represent solid magnetic material
domains. Any number of Magnetic Flux Conservation nodes can also be added manually
to the interface and configured to represent either solid or nonsolid (for example, air
or free space) materials.

MOVING MESH
When a Magnetomechanics, No Currents multiphysics interface is added using the Model
Wizard, a Deforming Domain node and a Symmetry node are added automatically in
Model Builder under the Definitions node. These nodes serve to represent domains and
boundaries, where the mesh can deform. By default, both nodes have empty selections.
Under the Deforming Domain, you can select domain that represent nonsolid magnetic
materials such as air, fluid, and free space. However, this is only needed if the
boundaries of such domains experience significant changes due to the deformation or
rotation of the adjacent solid domains. Otherwise, the moving mesh computations

1828 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

could just introduce unnecessary overhead and nonlinearity in the model (see
Deformed Mesh Fundamentals). Domains selected in the Solid Mechanics interface
are not applicable.

Under the Deforming Domain, you can also choose the Mesh smoothing type which is by
default set to Hyperelastic. More information of the smoothing type can be found in
the Deforming Domain chapter in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

By default, the mesh is fixed at all external boundaries of the geometry. Use the
Symmetry node to select the external boundaries, where the mesh can slide along the
boundary. You can also add other types of boundary conditions for the mesh motion,
for details see Moving Mesh Features in the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference
Manual.

THE MAGNETOMECHANICS, NO CURRENTS INTERFACE | 1829

 The Piezomagnetism Interface
The Piezomagnetism interface ( ) combines Solid Mechanics and Magnetic Fields
together with the constitutive relationships required to model linear magnetostrictive
materials and devices. Both the direct and inverse piezomagnetic effects can be
modeled.

When a predefined Piezomagnetism interface is added from the Structural Mechanics

branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or from Add Physics windows, Solid Mechanics and
Magnetic Fields interfaces are added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added, which automatically includes the

multiphysics coupling feature Piezomagnetic Effect.

The participating Solid Mechanics interface includes the default Piezomagnetic Material
feature with its selection set to all domains. The Magnetic Fields interface gets a default
Ampère’s Law, Piezomagnetic feature with similar settings.

Such features can be also added manually to their corresponding interfaces similar to
any other material models therein.

The Piezomagnetic Effect multiphysics coupling node can be active only on the
selection where the features Piezomagnetic Material and Ampère’s Law,
Piezomagnetic are both active.

Input the mechanical and magnetic material data under the Piezomagnetic Material,
and the electrical properties under Ampère’s Law, Piezomagnetic.

When used without an active Piezomagnetic Effect coupling feature, the

Piezomagnetic Material node works similarly to a Linear Elastic Material feature with
some limitations on the format for the elastic material data input. The magnetic
material data and coupling data will have no effect.

Use the Ampère’s Law, Piezomagnetic feature under Magnetic Fields to select the
domains where the material is supposed to experience linear magnetostrictive
coupling. When used without a counterpart under the Solid Mechanics interface
(and/or without the coupling feature) Ampère’s Law, Piezomagnetic node acts as an
ordinary Ampère’s Law feature with its material data input limited to the electric
properties only. The magnetic permittivity of free space will be assumed.

All solid mechanics and magnetics functionalities for modeling are also accessible to
include surrounding elastic solids or air domains. For example, add any solid

1830 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

mechanics material for other solid domain, a nonsolid model for air (via Ampère’s Law
feature), or a combination. Note that in order to model a nonsolid magnetic material,
you need to remove such domain from the domain selection for the entire Solid
Mechanics interface. This is because all material models under that interface represent
solid materials (with the Linear Elastic Material node being always present and active
in all those domains, where it is not explicitly overridden by any other material model).

In 2D and 2D axial symmetry, adding a Piezomagnetism interface also adds predefined

base-vector coordinate systems for the material’s (in the plane 2D case) XY-, YZ-, ZX-,
YX-, XZ-, and XY-planes. These additional coordinate systems are useful for
simplifying the material orientation for nonisotropic materials.

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Solid Mechanics interface is described in The Solid Mechanics Interface.
• The Magnetic Fields interface is described in The Magnetic Fields Interface.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined multiphysics interface, for
example Piezomagnetism, specific settings are included with the physics interfaces and
the coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

For example, if both Solid Mechanics and Magnetic Fields interfaces are added,
COMSOL Multiphysics adds an empty Multiphysics node. You can choose the available
coupling feature Piezomagnetic Effect but the modified settings are not included.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

Use the online help in COMSOL Multiphysics to locate and search all the
documentation. All these links also work directly in COMSOL
Multiphysics when using the Help system.

THE PIEZOMAGNETISM INTERFACE | 1831

 Coupling Feature
The Piezomagnetic Effect coupling node is used to couple the interfaces.

Additional Features
Additional nodes and subnodes available with this multiphysics interface are described
with the interfaces where they are available. Mechanical Damping and Thermal Expansion
subnodes are available for Piezomagnetic Material under the Solid Mechanics interface.
The Ampère’s Law, Piezomagnetic feature is described for the Magnetic Fields interface.

• Magnetostriction and Piezomagnetism

• Ampère’s Law, Piezomagnetic
• Modeling Magnetostrictive Materials

1832 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

The Nonlinear Magnetostriction
Interface
The Nonlinear Magnetostriction interface ( ) combines Solid Mechanics and
Magnetic Fields together with the constitutive relationships required to model
magnetostrictive materials and devices. Both the direct and inverse magnetostriction
effects can be modeled.

When a predefined Magnetostriction interface is added from the Structural Mechanics

branch ( ) of the Model Wizard or from Add Physics windows, Solid Mechanics and
Magnetic Fields interfaces are added to the Model Builder.

In addition, the Multiphysics node is added, which automatically includes the

multiphysics coupling feature Magnetostriction.

The participating Solid Mechanics interface will use the default Linear Elastic Material
feature with its selection set to all domains. The Magnetic Fields interface gets a default
Ampère’s Law, Nonlinear Magnetostrictive feature with similar settings.

Such features can be also added manually to their corresponding interfaces similar to
any other material models therein.

Input the mechanical material data in the corresponding node under Solid Mechanics,
the magnetic and electrical properties under Ampère’s Law, Nonlinear
Magnetostrictive, and the coupling data in the Nonlinear Magnetostriction
multiphysics coupling node.

Use the Ampère’s Law, Nonlinear Magnetostrictive feature under Magnetic Fields to
select the domains where the material is supposed to experience magnetostrictive
coupling. When used without a counterpart under the Solid Mechanics interface
(and/or without the coupling feature) Ampère’s Law, Nonlinear Magnetostrictive
node acts as an ordinary Ampère’s Law feature set to use Analytic Magnetization
Curve. The coupling data will have no effect.

All solid mechanics and magnetics functionalities for modeling are also accessible to
include surrounding elastic solids or air domains. For example, add any solid
mechanics material for other solid domain, a nonsolid model for air (via Ampère’s Law
feature), or a combination. Note that in order to model a nonsolid magnetic material,
you need to remove such domain from the domain selection for the entire Solid
Mechanics interface. This is because all material models under that interface represent

THE NONLINEAR MAGNETOSTRICTION INTERFACE | 1833

 solid materials (with the Linear Elastic Material node being always present and active
in all those domains, where it is not explicitly overridden by any other material model).

On the Constituent Physics Interfaces

• The Solid Mechanics interface is described in The Solid Mechanics Interface.
• The Magnetic Fields interface is described in The Magnetic Fields Interface.

SETTINGS FOR PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

When physics interfaces are added using the predefined multiphysics interfaces such as
Nonlinear Magnetostriction, specific settings are included with the physics interfaces and
the coupling features.

However, if physics interfaces are added one at a time, followed by the coupling
features, these modified settings are not automatically included.

For example, if both Solid Mechanics and Magnetic Fields interfaces are added,
COMSOL Multiphysics adds an empty Multiphysics node. You can choose the available
coupling feature Nonlinear Magnetostriction but the modified settings are not included.

Coupling features are available from the context menu (right-click the
Multiphysics node) or from the Physics toolbar, Multiphysics Couplings
menu.

PHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLING FEATURES

Use the online help in COMSOL Multiphysics to locate and search all the
documentation. All these links also work directly in COMSOL
Multiphysics when using the Help system.

Coupling Feature
The Nonlinear Magnetostriction coupling node is used to couple the interfaces.

Additional Features
Additional nodes and subnodes available with this multiphysics interface are described
with the interfaces where they are available. Mechanical Damping and Thermal Expansion
subnodes are available for Nonlinear Magnetostrictive Material under the Solid
Mechanics interface. The Ampère’s Law, Nonlinear Magnetostrictive feature is described
for the Magnetic Fields interface.

1834 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

• Magnetostriction and Piezomagnetism
• Ampère’s Law, Nonlinear Magnetostrictive
• Modeling Magnetostrictive Materials

Nonlinear Magnetostrictive Transducer: Application Library path

Structural_Mechanics_Module/Magnetomechanics/
nonlinear_magnetostriction

THE NONLINEAR MAGNETOSTRICTION INTERFACE | 1835

 Hygroscopic Swelling Coupling
The Hygroscopic Swelling multiphysics coupling node is used for moisture
concentration coupling between the Solid Mechanics interface and either the
Transport of Diluted Species or Transport of Diluted Species in Porous Media
interfaces. It is described in Hygroscopic Swelling.

1836 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

Multiphysics Couplings
Thermal Expansion
The Thermal Expansion coupling is similar to the Thermal Expansion (for Materials)
node ( ) that can be added under, for example, the Linear Elastic Material or
Hyperelastic Material for the Solid Mechanics interface. The purpose is the same, and if
both nodes are used for the same selection, the settings in the coupling node takes
precedence.

SETTINGS
The Label is the multiphysics coupling feature name. The default Label (for the first
multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is Thermal Expansion 1.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the coupling node.
Refer to such variables in expressions using the pattern <name>.<variable_name>. In
order to distinguish between variables belonging to different coupling nodes or physics
interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and underscores (_)
are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is te1.

DOMAIN SELECTION
When nodes are added from the context menu, you can select Manual (the default)
from the Selection list to choose specific domains to define the coefficient of thermal
expansion and the different temperatures that cause thermal stress, or select All domains
as needed.

When Thermal Expansion is added, the selection is the same as for the participating
physics interfaces. Only domains that are active in the physics interfaces selected in the
Coupled Interfaces section can be chosen.

COUPLED INTERFACES
This section defines the physics involved in the multiphysics coupling. The Heat
transfer and Solid mechanics lists include all applicable physics interfaces.

MULTIPHYSICS COUPLINGS | 1837

 The default values depend on how the coupling node is created.

• If it is added from the Physics ribbon (Windows users), Physics contextual toolbar
(macOS and Linux users), or context menu (all users), then the first physics interface
of each type in the component is selected as the default.
• If it is added automatically when a multiphysics interface is selected in the Model
Wizard or Add Physics window, then the two participating physics interfaces are
selected.

You can also select None from either list to uncouple the Thermal Expansion node from
a physics interface. If the physics interface is removed from the Model Builder, for
example Heat Transfer in Solids is deleted, then the Heat transfer list defaults to None as
there is nothing to couple to.

The computed thermal strains are automatically made consistent with the
structural strain. Hence, any discretization order can be used in the Heat
Transfer in Solids interface.

If a physics interface is deleted and then added to the model again, then
in order to reestablish the coupling, you need to choose the physics
interface again from the Heat transfer or Solid mechanics lists. This is
applicable to all multiphysics coupling nodes that would normally default
to the once present interface. See Multiphysics Modeling Workflow in the
COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual.

MODEL INPUT
The Volume reference temperature Tref is the temperature at which there are no thermal
strains. As a default, the value is obtained from a Common model input. You can also
select User defined to enter a value or expression for the temperature locally.

See also

• Using Common Model Input

• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

1838 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

THERMAL EXPANSION PROPERTIES
Select an Input type to select how the thermal strain is specified. The default is Secant
coefficient of thermal expansion, in which case the thermal strain is given by

 th =   T – T ref 

where is the secant coefficient of thermal expansion.  can be temperature

dependent.

When Input type is Tangent coefficient of thermal expansion, the thermal strain is given
by

 T 
 th = exp 
 T ref
 t    d – 1


where t is the tangential coefficient of thermal expansion.

When Input type is Thermal strain, enter the thermal strain dL as function of
temperature explicitly.

In all three cases, the default is to take values From material. When entering data as
User defined, select Isotropic, Diagonal or Symmetric to enter one or more components
for a general coefficient of the thermal expansion tensor or the thermal strain tensor.
When a nonisotropic input is used, the axis orientations are given by the coordinate
system selection in the parent node.

HEAT SOURCES
Select Thermoelastic damping to include the reverse coupling where the changes in
stress act as a heat source in the heat transfer analysis. Thermoelastic damping is only
used when Structural Transient Behavior is set to Include inertial terms.

Select Mechanical Losses to make any energy dissipation computed in the structural
interface act as a heat source in the heat transfer interfaces. Examples of such
contributions are work done by plastic deformation, and viscous damping.

You need to select Calculate dissipated energy in the Energy Dissipation

section of the settings for the material model in Solid Mechanics to add
the variables for energy dissipation. To display this section, click the Show
More Options button ( ) and select Advanced Physics Options in the Show
More Options dialog box.

MULTIPHYSICS COUPLINGS | 1839

 • Temperature-Dependent Material Data
• Thermoelastic Damping
• Entropy and Thermoelasticity

Layered Thermal Expansion

Use the Layered Thermal Expansion multiphysics coupling ( ) to add an internal
thermal strain caused by changes in temperature and account for the corresponding
mechanical losses in the heat balance in layered materials represented by boundaries.

The Layered Thermal Expansion node is only available with some COMSOL products
(see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

SETTINGS
The Label is the multiphysics coupling feature name. The default Label (for the first
multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is Layered Thermal Expansion 1.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the coupling node.
Refer to such variables in expressions using the pattern <name>.<variable_name>. In
order to distinguish between variables belonging to different coupling nodes or physics
interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and underscores (_)
are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is tel1.

BOUNDARY SELECTION
When nodes are added from the context menu, you can select Manual (the default)
from the Selection list to choose specific boundaries to define the coefficient of thermal
expansion and the different temperatures that cause thermal stress, or select All
boundaries as needed.

Only boundaries that are active in the physics interfaces selected in the Coupled
Interfaces section can be selected.

COUPLED INTERFACES
This section defines the physics involved in the multiphysics coupling. The Heat
transfer and Structure lists include all applicable physics interfaces. The first physics
interface of each type in the component is selected as the default.

1840 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

You can also select None from either list to uncouple the Layered Thermal Expansion
node from a physics interface. If the physics interface is removed from the Model
Builder, for example Heat Transfer in Shells is deleted, then the Heat transfer list defaults
to None as there is nothing to couple to.

Thermal strains are proportional to the temperature, while structural

strains are computed from the gradient of the displacement field. It is a
good practice to match the discretization order of thermal and structural
strains.

When manually adding a Layered Thermal Expansion multiphysics

coupling, use a discretization one order lower for the temperature field
than what is used for the displacement field.

This is automatically taken care of when you use The Thermal Stress,
Shell Interface, The Thermal Stress, Layered Shell Interface, or The
Thermal Stress, Membrane Interface.

SHELL PROPERTIES
Select the applicable layers (the default setting is Use all layers) defining the required
material properties for the node.

If no layered materials have been included yet, there is a shorthand available for
creating a Single Layer Material, a Layered Material Link, or a Layered Material Stack (the
plus symbol next to the Layer list).

When a layered material stack or link is selected from the Layer list, clear the check
boxes corresponding to layers where the node should not be applied in the Selection
table.

You can visualize the selected layered materials and layers in each layered material by
clicking the Layer cross section preview and Layer 3D preview buttons.

See The Shell Properties and Interface Selection Sections.

MULTIPHYSICS COUPLINGS | 1841

 The desired selection for the node may correspond to boundaries with
different layered materials. The All layered materials option allows to
gather these materials to make the desired selection applicable for the
node on the union of the boundaries where the layered materials are
defined.

See Layered Material, Layered Material Link, Layered Material Stack,

Layered Material Link (Subnode), and Single Layer Materials in the
COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual for details on the definition
of layered materials.

See Thermal Expansion for a description of the corresponding

multiphysics coupling in domains.

MODEL INPUT
The Volume reference temperature Tref is the temperature at which there are no thermal
strains. As a default, the value is obtained from a Common model input. You can also
select User defined to enter a value or expression for the temperature locally.

See also

• Using Common Model Input

• Default Model Inputs and Model Input in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

THERMAL EXPANSION PROPERTIES

Select an Input type to select how the thermal strain is specified. The default is Secant
coefficient of thermal expansion, in which case the thermal strain is given by

 th =   T – T ref 

where is the secant coefficient of thermal expansion.  can be temperature

dependent.

When Input type is Tangent coefficient of thermal expansion, the thermal strain is given
by

1842 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

  T 
 th = exp 
 T ref
 t    d – 1


where t is the tangential coefficient of thermal expansion.

When Input type is Thermal strain, enter the thermal strain dL as function of
temperature explicitly.

In all three cases, the default is to take values From material. When entering data as
User defined, select Isotropic, Diagonal or Symmetric to enter one or more components
for a general coefficient of the thermal expansion tensor or the thermal strain tensor.
When a nonisotropic input is used, the axis orientations are given by the coordinate
system selection in the parent node.

HEAT SOURCES
Select Thermoelastic damping to include the reverse coupling where the changes in
stress act as a heat source in the heat transfer analysis. Thermoelastic damping is only
used when Structural Transient Behavior is set to Include inertial terms.

Select Mechanical losses to make any energy dissipation computed in the structural
interface act as a heat source in the heat transfer interfaces. Examples of such
contributions are work done by plastic deformation, and viscous damping.

You need to select Calculate dissipated energy in the Energy Dissipation

section of the settings for the material model in Solid Mechanics to add
the variables for energy dissipation. To display this section, click the Show
More Options button ( ) and select Advanced Physics Options in the Show
More Options dialog box.

• Temperature-Dependent Material Data

• Thermoelastic Damping
• Entropy and Thermoelasticity

Hygroscopic Swelling
The Hygroscopic Swelling multiphysics coupling node ( ) is for moisture
concentration coupling between the Solid Mechanics interface and either the

MULTIPHYSICS COUPLINGS | 1843

 Transport of Diluted Species or Transport of Diluted Species in Porous Media
interfaces.

Hygroscopic swelling is an internal strain caused by changes in moisture content. This

strain can be written as

 hs =  h  c mo – c mo,ref 

where h is the coefficient of hygroscopic swelling, cmo is the moisture concentration,

and cmo,ref is the strain-free reference concentration.

SETTINGS
The Label is the multiphysics coupling feature name. The default Label (for the first
multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is Hygroscopic Swelling 1.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the coupling node.
Refer to such variables in expressions using the pattern <name>.<variable_name>. In
order to distinguish between variables belonging to different coupling nodes or physics
interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and underscores (_)
are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is hs1.

DOMAIN SELECTION
The domain selection is empty by default. Only domains that have either Transport
Properties, Porous Media Transport Properties, or Partially Saturated Porous Media
selected in the Transport of Diluted Species interface; and either Linear Elastic Material,
Nonlinear Elastic Material, or Hyperelastic Material selected in the Solid Mechanics
interface are available.

COUPLED INTERFACES
This section defines the physics involved in the Hygroscopic Swelling multiphysics
coupling. The Moisture concentration and Structure lists include all applicable physics
interfaces.

1844 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

You can select None from either list to uncouple the coupling node from a physics
interface. If the physics interface is removed from the Model Builder (for example, Solid
Mechanics is deleted), then the list defaults to None as there is nothing to couple to.

If a physics interface is deleted and then added to the model again, then
in order to reestablish the coupling, you need to choose the physics
interface again from the lists. This is applicable to all multiphysics
coupling nodes that would normally default to the once present interface.
See Multiphysics Modeling Workflow in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

HYGROSCOPIC SWELLING PROPERTIES

Enter a Strain reference concentration cmo,ref . This is the concentration at which there
are no strains due to hygroscopic swelling.

Enter the Molar mass of the fluid, Mm. The default value is 0.018 kg/mol, which is the
molar mass of water.

The default Coefficient of hygroscopic swelling h uses values From material. For
User defined select Isotropic (the default), Diagonal, or Symmetric from the list to enter
one or more components for a general coefficient of hygroscopic swelling tensor
h.The default value for the User defined case is 1.5e-4 m3/kg. When an anisotropic
coefficient of hygroscopic swelling is used, the axis orientations are given by the
coordinate system selection in the structural mechanics material node to which it
contributes.

The Include moisture as added mass check box is selected by default. When selected,
the mass of the fluid is included in a dynamic analysis, and when using mass
proportional loads. It will also contribute when computing mass properties.

Piezoelectric Effect
The Piezoelectric Effect multiphysics coupling node ( ) passes the appropriate
relative permittivity from the Piezoelectric Material node in the Solid Mechanics interface
(where it is specified together with the other material properties of the piezoelectric)
to the Charge Conservation, Piezoelectric node in the Electrostatics interface. The
Charge Conservation, Piezoelectric node implements the domain level electrostatics
equations and does not require any user settings when it is coupled with the
multiphysics coupling node.

MULTIPHYSICS COUPLINGS | 1845

 SETTINGS
The Label is the multiphysics coupling feature name. The default Label (for the first
multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is Piezoelectric Effect 1.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the coupling node.
Refer to such variables in expressions using the pattern <name>.<variable_name>. In
order to distinguish between variables belonging to different coupling nodes or physics
interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and underscores (_)
are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is pze1.

DOMAIN SELECTION
The domain selection is locked so that all applicable domains are selected. Only
domains that have both Charge Conservation, Piezoelectric selected in the Electrostatics
interface and Piezoelectric Material selected in the Solid Mechanics interface are selected.

COUPLED INTERFACES
This section defines the physics involved in the Piezoelectric Effect multiphysics
coupling. The Solid mechanics and Electrostatics lists include all applicable physics
interfaces.

The default values depend on how the Piezoelectric Effect node is created.

• If it is added from the Physics ribbon (Windows users), Physics contextual toolbar
(macOS and Linux users), or context menu (all users), then the first physics interface
of each type in the component is selected as the default.
• If it is added automatically when a Piezoelectricity interface is selected in the Model
Wizard or Add Physics window, then the participating Solid Mechanics and
Electrostatics interfaces are selected.

You can also select None from either list to uncouple the Piezoelectric Effect node from
a physics interface. If the physics interface is removed from the Model Builder, for

1846 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

example Solid Mechanics is deleted, then the list defaults to None as there is nothing to
couple to.

If a physics interface is deleted and then added to the model again, then
in order to reestablish the coupling, you need to choose the physics
interface again from the lists. This is applicable to all multiphysics
coupling nodes that would normally default to the once present interface.
See Multiphysics Modeling Workflow in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

Layered Piezoelectric Effect

The Layered Piezoelectric Effect multiphysics node ( ) passes the appropriate relative
permittivity from the Piezoelectric Material node in the Layered Shell interface (where it
is specified together with the other material properties of the piezoelectric) to the
Piezoelectric Layer node in the Electric Currents in Layered Shells interface. The
Piezoelectric Layer node implements the equations for the charge balance in shells, and
it does not require any user settings when the interface is coupled through the
multiphysics coupling node.

SETTINGS
The Label is the multiphysics coupling feature name. The default Label (for the first
multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is Layered Piezoelectric Effect 1.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the coupling node.
Refer to such variables in expressions using the pattern <name>.<variable_name>. In
order to distinguish between variables belonging to different coupling nodes or physics
interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and underscores (_)
are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is pzel1.

BOUNDARY SELECTION
The boundary selection is locked so that all applicable boundaries are selected. Only
boundaries that have both Piezoelectric Layer selected in the Electric Currents in Layered
Shells interface and Piezoelectric Material selected in the Layered Shell interface are
selected.

MULTIPHYSICS COUPLINGS | 1847

 COUPLED INTERFACES
This section defines the physics involved in the Layered Piezoelectric Effect
multiphysics coupling. The Layered shell and Electric Currents in Layered Shells lists
include all applicable physics interfaces.

The default values depend on how the Layered Piezoelectric Effect node is created.

• If it is added from the Physics ribbon (Windows users), Physics contextual toolbar
(macOS and Linux users), or context menu (all users), then the first physics interface
of each type in the component is selected as the default.
• If it is added automatically when a Piezoelectricity, Layered Shell interface is selected
in the Model Wizard or Add Physics window, then the participating Layered Shell and
Electric Currents in Layered Shells interfaces are selected.

You can also select None from either list to uncouple the Layered Piezoelectric Effect
node from a physics interface. If the physics interface is removed from the Model
Builder, for example Layered Shell is deleted, then the list defaults to None as there is
nothing to couple to.

If a physics interface is deleted and then added to the model again, then
in order to reestablish the coupling, you need to choose the physics
interface again from the lists. This is applicable to all multiphysics
coupling nodes that would normally default to the once present interface.
See Multiphysics Modeling Workflow in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

Electrostriction
The Electrostriction multiphysics node ( ) passes the electric polarization
contribution to strain from Electrostatics interface to Solid Mechanics interface. In
contrast to linear piezoelectricity, the electrostrictive strain is quadratic in polarization.

It also passes the mechanical stress contribution to polarization from Solid Mechanics
interface to Electrostatics interface, which is called the inverse electrostrictive effect.

SETTINGS
The Label is the multiphysics coupling feature name. The default Label (for the first
multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is Electrostriction 1.

1848 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the coupling node.
Refer to such variables in expressions using the pattern <name>.<variable_name>. In
order to distinguish between variables belonging to different coupling nodes or physics
interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and underscores (_)
are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is efe1.

COUPLED INTERFACES
This section defines the physics involved in the Electrostriction multiphysics coupling.
The Solid mechanics and Electrostatics lists include all applicable physics interfaces.

The default values depend on how the Electrostriction node is created.

• If it is added from the Physics ribbon (Windows users), Physics contextual toolbar
(macOS and Linux users), or context menu (all users), then the first physics interface
of each type in the component is selected as the default.
• If it is added automatically when either Electrostriction or Ferroelectroelasticity
multiphysics interface has been selected in the Model Wizard or Add Physics window,
then the participating Solid Mechanics and Electrostatics interfaces are selected.

You can also select None from either list to uncouple the Electrostriction node from a
physics interface. If the physics interface is removed from the Model Builder, for
example Solid Mechanics is deleted, then the list defaults to None as there is nothing to
couple to.

If a physics interface is deleted and then added to the model again, then
in order to reestablish the coupling, you need to choose the physics
interface again from the lists. This is applicable to all multiphysics
coupling nodes that would normally default to the once present interface.
See Multiphysics Modeling Workflow in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

DOMAIN SELECTION
The domain selection is set by default to all domains, so that all applicable domains are
selected automatically. Such domains represent an intersection of the applicable
domains under the corresponding Electrostatics and Solid Mechanics interfaces selected
in the coupling feature.

MULTIPHYSICS COUPLINGS | 1849

 In Electrostatics interface, the following two domains are applicable:

• Charge Conservation, if its material type input is set to Solid. Use this domain feature
for solid dielectric materials, for which a linear dependency can be assumed for the
electric polarization with respect to the applied electric field.
• Charge Conservation, Ferroelectric. Use this domain feature for solid ferroelectric or
nonlinear piezoelectric materials.

In the Solid Mechanics interface, the following domain material feature are applicable:

• Linear Elastic Material

• Nonlinear Elastic Material (with the Nonlinear Structural Materials Module)
• Hyperelastic Material (with the Nonlinear Structural Materials Module).

For nonsolid dielectric domains, remove them from the Solid Mechanics
interface selection but keep them selected in the Electrostatics interface
selection.

COUPLING TYPE
From the list, choose one of these coupling types:

• Polarization contribution to strain (the default) also known as direct electrostrictive

effect, include only the deformation of the material caused by its polarization in
response to the applied electric field.
• Stress contribution to polarization, also known as inverse electrostrictive effect, to
include only the change in the material polarization as a result of applied mechanical
stress or strain.
• Fully coupled to include both the direct and inverse electrostrictive effects.

ELECTROSTRICTION
From the list, choose one of these forms for the electrostrictive strain tensor:

• Quadratic (default)
• Quadratic, deviatoric. Use this form if the solid deformation due to the
electrostrictive effect is volume-preserving.
• User defined. Any valid expression can be entered for the electrostrictive strain tensor
components. It is recommended to use coupling feature scoped variables for the
polarization components, for example: efe1.PX.

1850 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

When the Electrostrictive strain tensor is set to Quadratic, one of the following options
can be selected from the Material symmetry drop down menu:

• Isotropic (default)
• Cubic crystal
• Anisotropic

For Anisotropic choice, component of a 6x6 symmetric electrostrictive coupling matrix

can be entered using either Voigt (default) or Standard option for the Material data
ordering.

For Cubic crystal choice, only three independent components of the electrostrictive
coupling matrix need to be entered.

For Isotropic choice, you can enter two independent components of the electrostrictive
coupling matrix using either Q-matrix (default) or M-matrix notations. Alternatively,
you can enter values for the Electrostrictive constant a1 and Electrostrictive constant a2
(SI units: F/m) using the definitions according to either Ref. 1 or Ref. 2.

You can neglect the terms quadratic in the reversible polarization components in the
expression for the electrostrictive strain by checking the check box Small reversible
polarization. This functionality is applicable only when this coupling node is used as a
part of either Ferroelectroelasticity or Electrostriction multiphysics interface, and the
corresponding Electrostatics interface is configured for hysteresis modeling.

When the Electrostrictive strain tensor is set to Quadratic, deviatoric, the material is
assumed to be isotropic, and you can enter the saturation electrostriction and
polarization.

If this coupling node is used as a part of Ferroelectroelasticity

multiphysics interface, the Charge conservation, Ferroelectric feature under
the corresponding Electrostatics interface also contains an input for the
saturation polarization. That input will then become inaccessible (grayed
out), and the value entered at this coupling node will be used in all
computations.

REFERENCES
1. J.A. Stratton, Electromagnetic Theory, Cambridge, MA, 1941.

2. L.D. Landau and E.M. Lifshitz, Electrodynamics of Continuous Media, Pergamon

Press, pp. 69–73, 1960.

MULTIPHYSICS COUPLINGS | 1851

 Magnetomechanical Forces
Use Magnetomechanical Forces ( ) coupling to model interaction between
deformable solids and magnetic fields, particularly in case when the deformations of
the structure can significantly affect the magnetic field distribution.

The presence of such multiphysics node in the model will enforce the
Include geometric nonlinearity option on all applicable study nodes.

SETTINGS
The Label is the default multiphysics coupling feature name.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the coupling node.
Refer to such variables in expressions using the pattern <name>.<variable_name>. In
order to distinguish between variables belonging to different coupling nodes or physics
interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and underscores (_)
are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is eme1.

DOMAIN SELECTION
The domain selection includes by default all applicable domains. Such domains
represent an intersection of the applicable domains under the corresponding Magnetic
Fields and Solid Mechanics interfaces selected in the coupling feature.

In Magnetic Fields interface, the following domain features are applicable:

• Ampère’s Law, if its material type input is set to Solid. Use this domain feature for
solid magnetic materials.
• Ampère’s Law, Nonlinear Magnetostrictive
• Coil, if its material type input is set to Solid. You can use this feature to represent
current carrying solid domains such as coils and wires.
In Solid Mechanics interface, the following domain material feature are applicable:

• Linear Elastic Material

• Nonlinear Magnetostrictive Material

1852 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

• Nonlinear Elastic Material (with the Nonlinear Structural Materials Module)
• Hyperelastic Material (with the Nonlinear Structural Materials Module).

• For nonsolid magnetic domains, remove them from the Solid Mechanics
interface selection but keep them selected in the Magnetic Fields
interface selection.
• Ampère’s Law, Nonlinear Magnetostrictive is a part of The Nonlinear
Magnetostriction Interface. The corresponding multiphysics coupling
feature, Nonlinear Magnetostriction, can be combined with
Magnetomechanical Forces.

See also

• Magnetomechanics

COUPLED INTERFACES
This section defines the physics interfaces involved in this Magnetomechanical Forces
coupling. The Solid mechanics and Magnetic Fields lists include all applicable physics
interfaces.

The default values depend on how the node is created.

• If it is added from the Physics ribbon (Windows users), Physics contextual toolbar
(Mac and Linux users), or context menu (all users), then the first physics interface
of each type in the component is selected as the default.
• If it is added automatically when the physics interface is chosen in the Model Wizard
or Add Physics window, then the two participating physics interfaces are selected.

You can also select None from either list to uncouple the coupling from a physics
interface. If the physics interface is removed from the Model Builder, for example Solid

MULTIPHYSICS COUPLINGS | 1853

 Mechanics is deleted, then the Solid mechanics list defaults to None as there is nothing
to couple to.

If a physics interface is deleted and then added to the model again, then
in order to reestablish the coupling, you need to choose the physics
interface again from the lists. This is applicable to all multiphysics
coupling nodes that would normally default to the once present physics
interface. See Multiphysics Modeling Workflow in the COMSOL
Multiphysics Reference Manual.

Magnetic Forces
Use Magnetic Forces ( ) coupling to model interaction between deformable solids
and magnetic fields without induction current effects, particularly in case when the
deformations of the structure can significantly affect the magnetic field distribution.

The presence of such multiphysics node in the model will enforce the
Include geometric nonlinearity option on all applicable study nodes.

SETTINGS
The Label is the default multiphysics coupling feature name.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the coupling node.
Refer to such variables in expressions using the pattern <name>.<variable_name>. In
order to distinguish between variables belonging to different coupling nodes or physics
interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and underscores (_)
are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is eme1.

DOMAIN SELECTION
The domain selection includes by default all applicable domains. Such domains
represent an intersection of the applicable domains under the corresponding Magnetic
Fields, No Currents and Solid Mechanics interfaces selected in the coupling feature.

In Magnetic Fields, No Currents interface, the following domains are applicable:

• Magnetic Flux Conservation, if its material type input is set to Solid. Use this domain
feature for solid magnetic materials.

1854 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

In Solid Mechanics interface, the following domain material feature are applicable:

• Linear Elastic Material

• Nonlinear Elastic Material (with the Nonlinear Structural Materials Module)
• Hyperelastic Material (with the Nonlinear Structural Materials Module).

For nonsolid magnetic domains, remove them from the Solid Mechanics
interface selection but keep them selected in the Magnetic Fields, No
Currents interface selection.

ELECTROMAGNETIC STRESS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

Here, you can select the Electromagnetic Stress Tensor to be used in the coupling. The
following options are available:

• Minkowsky (default)
• Einstein-Laub
• Chu

For more details, see

• Magnetomechanics

COUPLED INTERFACES
This section defines the physics interfaces involved in this Magnetomechanical Forces
coupling. The Solid mechanics and Magnetic Fields, No Currents lists include all
applicable physics interfaces.

The default values depend on how the node is created.

• If it is added from the Physics ribbon (Windows users), Physics contextual toolbar
(Mac and Linux users), or context menu (all users), then the first physics interface
of each type in the component is selected as the default.
• If it is added automatically when the physics interface is chosen in the Model Wizard
or Add Physics window, then the two participating physics interfaces are selected.

You can also select None from either list to uncouple the coupling from a physics
interface. If the physics interface is removed from the Model Builder, for example Solid

MULTIPHYSICS COUPLINGS | 1855

 Mechanics is deleted, then the Solid mechanics list defaults to None as there is nothing
to couple to.

If a physics interface is deleted and then added to the model again, then
in order to reestablish the coupling, you need to choose the physics
interface again from the lists. This is applicable to all multiphysics
coupling nodes that would normally default to the once present physics
interface. See Multiphysics Modeling Workflow in the COMSOL
Multiphysics Reference Manual.

Piezomagnetic Effect
The Piezomagnetic Effect multiphysics node ( ) passes the appropriate magnetization
contribution from the Piezomagnetic Material node in the Solid Mechanics interface
(where it is defined together with the magnetoelastic properties of the material) to the
Ampère’s Law, Piezomagnetic node in the Magnetic Fields interface. It also passes the
mechanics stress contribution due to the applied magnetic field back to the
Piezomagnetic Material node.

Instead of Magnetic Fields interface, you can also use Rotating Machinery,
Magnetic interface.

SETTINGS
The Label is the multiphysics coupling feature name. The default Label (for the first
multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is Piezomagnetic Effect 1.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the coupling node.
Refer to such variables in expressions using the pattern <name>.<variable_name>. In
order to distinguish between variables belonging to different coupling nodes or physics
interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and underscores (_)
are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is pzm1.

COUPLED INTERFACES
This section defines the physics involved in the Piezomagnetic Effect multiphysics
coupling. The Solid mechanics and Magnetic fields lists include all applicable physics
interfaces.

1856 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

The default values depend on how the Piezomagnetic Effect node is created.

• If it is added from the Physics ribbon (Windows users), Physics contextual toolbar
(macOS and Linux users), or context menu (all users), then the first physics interface
of each type in the component is selected as the default.
• If it is added automatically when The Piezomagnetism Interface is selected in the
Model Wizard or Add Physics window, then the participating Solid Mechanics and
Magnetic Fields interfaces are selected.

You can also select None from either list to uncouple the Piezomagnetic Effect node
from a physics interface. If the physics interface is removed from the Model Builder, for
example Solid Mechanics is deleted, then the list defaults to None as there is nothing to
couple to.

If a physics interface is deleted and then added to the model again, then
in order to reestablish the coupling, you need to choose the physics
interface again from the lists. This is applicable to all multiphysics
coupling nodes that would normally default to the once present interface.
See Multiphysics Modeling Workflow in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

DOMAIN SELECTION
The domain selection includes by default all applicable domains. Such domains
represent an intersection of the applicable domains under the corresponding Magnetic
Fields and Solid Mechanics interfaces selected in the coupling feature.

In Magnetic Fields interface, the following domain feature is applicable:

• Ampère’s Law, Piezomagnetic

In Solid Mechanics interface, the following domain feature is applicable:

• Piezomagnetic Material.

For nonsolid magnetic domains, remove them from the Solid Mechanics
interface selection but keep them selected in the Magnetic Fields interface
selection.

MULTIPHYSICS COUPLINGS | 1857

 COUPLING TYPE
From the list, choose one of these coupling types:

• Fully coupled (the default) to include both the direct and inverse piezomagnetic
effects.
• Joule effect, also known as direct piezomagnetic effect, to include only the
deformation of the material caused by its magnetization in response to the applied
magnetic field.
Villari effect, also known as inverse piezomagnetic effect, to include only the change in
the material magnetization as a result of applied mechanical stress or strain.

Nonlinear Magnetostriction
The Nonlinear Magnetostriction multiphysics node ( ) passes the appropriate
magnetization contribution from the Linear Elastic Material node in the Solid Mechanics
interface to the Ampère’s Law, Nonlinear Magnetostrictive node in the Magnetic Fields
interface. It also passes the inelastic strain contribution due to the applied magnetic
field back to the Linear Elastic Material node. The strains are quadratic in terms of the
material magnetization.

Instead of Magnetic Fields interface, you can also use Rotating Machinery,
Magnetic interface.

SETTINGS
The Label is the multiphysics coupling feature name. The default Label (for the first
multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is Nonlinear Magnetostriction 1.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the coupling node.
Refer to such variables in expressions using the pattern <name>.<variable_name>. In
order to distinguish between variables belonging to different coupling nodes or physics
interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and underscores (_)
are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is pzm1.

COUPLED INTERFACES
This section defines the physics involved in the Nonlinear Magnetostriction
multiphysics coupling. The Solid mechanics and Magnetic fields lists include all
applicable physics interfaces.

1858 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

The default values depend on how the Nonlinear Magnetostriction node is created.

• If it is added from the Physics ribbon (Windows users), Physics contextual toolbar
(macOS and Linux users), or context menu (all users), then the first physics interface
of each type in the component is selected as the default.
• If it is added automatically when The Nonlinear Magnetostriction Interface is
selected in the Model Wizard or Add Physics window, then the participating Solid
Mechanics and Magnetic Fields interfaces are selected.

You can also select None from either list to uncouple the Nonlinear Magnetostriction
node from a physics interface. If the physics interface is removed from the Model
Builder, for example Solid Mechanics is deleted, then the list defaults to None as there is
nothing to couple to.

If a physics interface is deleted and then added to the model again, then
in order to reestablish the coupling, you need to choose the physics
interface again from the lists. This is applicable to all multiphysics
coupling nodes that would normally default to the once present interface.
See Multiphysics Modeling Workflow in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

DOMAIN SELECTION
The domain selection includes by default all applicable domains. Such domains
represent an intersection of the applicable domains under the corresponding Magnetic
Fields and Solid Mechanics interfaces selected in the coupling feature.

In Magnetic Fields interface, the following domain feature is applicable:

• Ampère’s Law, Nonlinear Magnetostrictive

In Solid Mechanics interface, the following domain material feature are applicable:

• Linear Elastic Material

• Hyperelastic Material (with the Nonlinear Structural Materials Module).

For nonsolid magnetic domains, remove them from the Solid Mechanics
interface selection but keep them selected in the Magnetic Fields interface
selection.

MULTIPHYSICS COUPLINGS | 1859

 COUPLING TYPE
From the list, choose one of these coupling types:

• Fully coupled (the default) to include both the direct and inverse magnetostrictive
effects.
• Joule effect, also known as direct magnetostrictive effect, to include only the
deformation of the material caused by its magnetization in response to the applied
magnetic field.
Villari effect, also known as inverse magnetostrictive effect, to include only the change
in the material magnetization as a result of applied mechanical stress or strain.

MAGNETOSTRICTION
From the Magnetostriction model drop down menu, choose one of the following
options:

• Isotropic (default)
• Cubic crystal

For Isotropic choice, you can enter one dimensionless value of the Saturation
magnetostriction, s.

For Cubic crystal choice, you can enter two dimensionless values of the Magnetostriction
constants, 100 and 111 corresponding to different crystallographic planes.

In both cases, the default is to take the values From material. Also enter the magnitude
of the Saturation magnetization, Ms.

When this coupling node is used as a part of The Nonlinear

Magnetostriction Interface multiphysics interface, the Ampère’s Law,
Nonlinear Magnetostrictive feature under the corresponding Magnetic Fields
interface also contains an input for the saturation magnetization. That
input will then become inaccessible (grayed out), and the value entered at
this coupling node will be used in all computations.

ADVANCED SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Option in the Show More Options dialog box.

You can select how the structural contribution due to the magnetostriction is
accounted for. Two options are the Inelastic contribution to: Stress (default) or Strain.

1860 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

This setting is effective only when the coupling type is set to either Joule effect or fully
coupled. In the case of the contribution to stress, you can select which deviatoric stress
will contribute to the effective field. The options are: Include elastic stress (default) or
Include total stress.

The second option was the default behavior for the magnetostriction in
COMSOL versions prior to 6.1.

Magnetostriction

The Magnetostriction coupling feature is obsolete and cannot be added in

version 6.1 and later. It may be present in models created by earlier
versions of the software.

You are advised to update your model to use one of the new multiphysics
coupling features instead, either Nonlinear Magnetostriction or
Piezomagnetic Effect (for modeling linear magnetostrictive effects).

Lorentz Coupling
The Lorentz Coupling ( ) is a multiphysics coupling feature between the Magnetic
Fields interface and the Solid Mechanics interface. It passes the Lorentz force F  J  B
from the Magnetic Fields interface to the Solid Mechanics interface and, passes the
induced electric field E  v  B from the Solid Mechanics interface to the Magnetic Fields
interface. The Lorentz force effect on a moving structure is similar to that of the
Rayleigh alpha-damping, where the damping coefficient is proportional to the
background magnetic field and the material electric conductivity.

The Lorentz force and induced electric field can also be added separately from the
interfaces, for instance, by using the Body Load feature from the Solid Mechanics
interface and the Velocity (Lorentz term) feature (in 2D and 2D axisymmetric) from the
Magnetic Fields interface. Once the Lorentz Coupling feature is applied, those interface
features with the same purpose should not be used to avoid double counting. When
modeling electroacoustic transducers, like loudspeakers, the coupling is typically added
in the voice coil domain.

The Lorentz Coupling feature is available in 2D, 2D axisymmetric, and 3D geometries

and is allowed for both time-dependent and frequency-domain studies (including

MULTIPHYSICS COUPLINGS | 1861

 frequency domain perturbation and eigenfrequency studies). The coupling feature
handles frames as well as the correct formulation for transient and frequency domain
problems. When the displacement of the vibrating or moving part of the model cannot
be neglected (when topology changes are important), the Moving Mesh feature (added
from the Definitions) is usually used together with the Lorentz Coupling feature. In this
case, the Material Type of the moving part in the Magnetic Fields interface has to set to
Solid. In the Moving Mesh setting, the Prescribed Mesh Displacement is usually set as the
dependent variables of the Solid Mechanics interface.

• When the Lorentz Coupling feature is applied to a domain with magnetic

materials such as a magnetizable armature, the Lorentz force is no
longer the only force contribution. In this case, the force contribution
from the magnetic polarization might need to be considered. This can
be done by adding a Force Calculation feature from the Magnetic Fields
interface and adding a Body Load feature from the Solid Mechanics
interface. Note that the Force Calculation feature includes the force
contribution not only from magnetic polarization but also from the
Lorentz force, that is, the total electromagnetic force. Therefore, when
the coupling between the Magnetic Fields interface and Solid Mechanics
interface is implemented with the Force Calculation feature and Body
Load feature, the Lorentz Coupling feature should not be used at the
same domain.
• The Magnetomechanics multiphysics interface ( ) can be used for
modeling deformation of magnetically actuated structures, which
includes interaction of magnetic fields with magnetic materials and
current carrying elements such as coils and wires.

SETTINGS
The Label is the multiphysics coupling feature name. The default Label (for the first
multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is Lorentz Coupling 1.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the coupling node.
Refer to such variables in expressions using the pattern <name>.<variable_name>. In
order to distinguish between variables belonging to different coupling nodes or physics
interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and underscores (_)
are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is ltzc1.

1862 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

COUPLED INTERFACES
This section defines the physics involved in the multiphysics coupling. The Magnetic
fields and Solid mechanics lists include all applicable physics interfaces.

When the Lorentz Coupling node is added from the Physics ribbon (Windows users),
Physics contextual toolbar (macOS and Linux users), or context menu (all users), then
the first physics interface of each type in the component is selected as the default.

You can also select None from either list to uncouple the Lorentz Coupling node from
a physics interface. If the physics interface is removed from the Model Builder, for
example Solid Mechanics is deleted, then the list defaults to None as there is nothing to
couple to.

If a physics interface is deleted and then added to the model again, then
in order to reestablish the coupling, you need to choose the physics
interface again from the lists. This is applicable to all multiphysics
coupling nodes that would normally default to the once present interface.
See Multiphysics Modeling Workflow in the COMSOL Multiphysics
Reference Manual.

There are several library examples that demonstrate its usage:

Loudspeaker Driver — Frequency-Domain Analysis: Application

Library path Acoustics_Module/Electroacoustic_Transducers/
loudspeaker_driver

Loudspeaker Driver — Transient Analysis: Application Library path

Acoustics_Module/Electroacoustic_Transducers/loudspeaker_driver_transient

Magnetic Damping of Vibrating Conducting Solids: Application

Library path ACDC_Module/Electromagnetics_and_Mechanics/
magnetic_damping

Fluid-Structure Interaction
The Fluid-Structure Interaction ( ) multiphysics node provides a coupling on a
boundary between a fluid domain and a solid material. The solid material can be
modeled either in a neighboring domain, or on the boundary itself. In the former case,
the Solid Mechanics or Multibody Dynamics interface is used; in the latter one of the
Layered Shell, Shell or Membrane interfaces is used.

MULTIPHYSICS COUPLINGS | 1863

 The effect of the coupling depends on whether a Deforming Domain is active in the fluid
domain or not. For cases when the structural deformations are so small that the change
in the geometry of the fluid can be ignored, you do not have to use a deforming
domain. This is called a fixed geometry. Domains with a fixed geometry have fewer
degrees of freedom and are less nonlinear and are thus computationally less expensive

If Deforming Domain is active in any domain, the Include geometric

nonlinearity option is automatically selected in all applicable study nodes.

SETTINGS
The Label is the multiphysics coupling feature name. The default Label (for the first
multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is Fluid-Structure Interaction 1.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the coupling node.
Refer to such variables in expressions using the pattern <name>.<variable_name>. In
order to distinguish between variables belonging to different coupling nodes or physics
interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and underscores (_)
are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is fsi1.

BOUNDARY SELECTION
By default, the selection is set to All boundaries. However, only boundaries between
fluid and solid domains are applicable. This is deduced automatically using the
selections made on the coupled physics interfaces.

COUPLED INTERFACES
This section defines the physics interfaces involved in the Fluid-Structure Interaction
coupling. The Fluid and Structure lists include all applicable physics interfaces.

The default values depend on how the node is created.

• If it is added from the Physics ribbon (Windows users), Physics contextual toolbar
(macOS and Linux users), or context menu (all users), then the first physics interface
of each type in the component is selected as the default.
• If it is added automatically when the physics interface is chosen in the Model Wizard
or Add Physics window, then the two participating physics interfaces are selected.

You can also select None from either list to uncouple the Fluid-Structure Interaction
node from a physics interface. If the physics interface is removed from the Model

1864 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

Builder, for example Solid Mechanics is deleted, then the Structure list defaults to None
as there is nothing to couple to.

If a physics interface is deleted and then added to the model again, then
in order to re-establish the coupling, you need to choose the physics
interface again from the lists. This is applicable to all multiphysics
coupling nodes that would normally default to the once present physics
interface. See Multiphysics Modeling Workflow in the COMSOL
Multiphysics Reference Manual.

FIXED GEOMETRY
In the case when the coupling is of the fixed geometry type, you can select which
aspect of the interaction you want to model. From the Fixed geometry coupling type list,
select Fully coupled, Fluid loading on structure, or Velocity transmission to fluid.

In the case Fluid loading on structure, pressure and viscous forces in the fluid affect the
structure, but the structure does not affect the fluid flow.

In the case Velocity transmission to fluid, the structural velocity acts as boundary
condition for the fluid, but the fluid does not affect the structure.

For Fully coupled, both effects are taken into account.

When a boundary is adjacent to an active deforming domain, the settings is this section
are ignored.

See also:

• Fluid-Structure Interaction in the Structural Mechanics Modeling

chapter
• Fluid-Structure Interaction

Fluid-Structure Interaction, Pair

The Fluid-Structure Interaction, Pair ( ) multiphysics node provides a coupling
between a pair of boundaries, where one is the boundary of a fluid domain and the
other is part of solid structure. The solid material can be modeled either in a
neighboring domain or on the boundary itself. In the former case, the Solid Mechanics

MULTIPHYSICS COUPLINGS | 1865

 or Multibody Dynamics interface is used; in the latter, one of the Shell or Membrane
interfaces is used.

You need to use this type of coupling if the geometry sequence is set up to form an
assembly. In the more common case of a union when the boundary is shared, use the
Fluid-Structure Interaction multiphysics coupling.

The effect of the coupling depends on whether a Deforming Domain is active in the fluid
domain or not. For cases when the structural deformations are so small that the change
in the geometry of the fluid can be ignored, you do not have to use a deforming
domain. This is called a fixed geometry. Domains with a fixed geometry have fewer
degrees of freedom and are less nonlinear and are thus computationally less expensive

If Deforming Domain is active in any domain, the Include geometric

nonlinearity option is automatically selected in all applicable study nodes.

SETTINGS
The Label is the multiphysics coupling feature name. The default Label (for the first
multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is Fluid-Structure Interaction,
Pair 1.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the coupling node.
Refer to such variables in expressions using the pattern <name>.<variable_name>. In
order to distinguish between variables belonging to different coupling nodes or physics
interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and underscores (_)
are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is fsip1.

BOUNDARY SELECTION
The boundary selection cannot be edited manually. The contents are obtained from
the Pair Selection.

COUPLED INTERFACES
This section defines the physics interfaces involved in the Fluid-Structure Interaction
coupling. The Fluid and Structure lists include all applicable physics interfaces.

1866 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

The default values depend on how the node is created.

• If it is added from the Physics ribbon (Windows users), Physics contextual toolbar
(macOS and Linux users), or context menu (all users), then the first physics interface
of each type in the component is selected as the default.
• If it is added automatically when the physics interface is chosen in the Model Wizard
or Add Physics window, then the two participating physics interfaces are selected.

You can also select None from either list to uncouple the Fluid-Structure Interaction, Pair
node from a physics interface. If the physics interface is removed from the Model
Builder, for example Solid Mechanics is deleted, then the Structure list defaults to None
as there is nothing to couple to.

If a physics interface is deleted and then added to the model again, then
in order to re-establish the coupling, you need to choose the physics
interface again from the lists. This is applicable to all multiphysics
coupling nodes that would normally default to the once present physics
interface. See Multiphysics Modeling Workflow in the COMSOL
Multiphysics Reference Manual.

PAIR SELECTION
Select pairs for which this coupling is to be used. The pairs must be defined under
Definitions in the component.

FIXED GEOMETRY
In the case when the coupling is of the fixed geometry type, you can select which
aspect of the interaction you want to model. From the Fixed geometry coupling type list,
select Fully coupled, Fluid loading on structure, or Velocity transmission to fluid.

In the case Fluid loading on structure, pressure and viscous forces in the fluid affect the
structure, but the structure does not affect the fluid flow.

In the case Velocity transmission to fluid, the structural velocity acts as boundary
condition for the fluid, but the fluid does not affect the structure.

For Fully coupled, both effects are taken into account.

When a boundary is adjacent to an active deforming domain, the settings is this section
are ignored.

MULTIPHYSICS COUPLINGS | 1867

 Fluid-Structure Interaction, Fixed Geometry
The Fluid-Structure Interaction, Fixed Geometry multiphysics node could be added in
versions earlier than 5.4. It has been superseded by an augmented version of the
Fluid-Structure Interaction multiphysics coupling. The node will still be present and
functional in models originally created in previous versions. It is, however,
recommended that you update to the new way of modeling fixed geometry problems,
as the Fluid-Structure Interaction, Fixed Geometry node may not be supported in the
future.

Fluid-Pipe Interaction
The Fluid-Pipe Interaction ( ) multiphysics node provides a way to transfer fluid loads
from the Pipe Flow interface to the Pipe Mechanics interface.

SETTINGS
The Label is the multiphysics coupling feature name. The default Label (for the first
multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is Fluid-Pipe Interaction 1.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the coupling node.
Refer to such variables in expressions using the pattern <name>.<variable_name>. In
order to distinguish between variables belonging to different coupling nodes or physics
interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and underscores (_)
are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is fpipe1.

EDGE SELECTION
By default, the selection is set to All edges. However, only edges that belong to both
the Pipe Flow and Pipe Mechanics interfaces are applicable. This is deduced
automatically using the selections made on the coupled physics interfaces.

COUPLED INTERFACES
This section defines the physics interfaces involved in the coupling. The Fluid and
Structure lists include all applicable physics interfaces.

1868 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

The default values depend on how the node is created.

• If it is added from the Physics ribbon (Windows users), Physics contextual toolbar
(macOS and Linux users), or context menu (all users), then the first physics interface
of each type in the component is selected as the default.
• If it is added automatically when the physics interface is chosen in the Model Wizard
or Add Physics window, then the two participating physics interfaces are selected.

You can also select None from either list to uncouple the Fluid-Pipe Interaction node
from a physics interface. If the physics interface is removed from the Model Builder, for
example Pipe Mechanics is deleted, then the Structure list defaults to None as there is
nothing to couple to.

If a physics interface is deleted and then added to the model again, then
in order to re-establish the coupling, you need to choose the physics
interface again from the lists. This is applicable to all multiphysics
coupling nodes that would normally default to the once present physics
interface. See Multiphysics Modeling Workflow in the COMSOL
Multiphysics Reference Manual.

FLUID LOAD
In this section, you specify the load contributions that are transferred from the Pipe
Flow interface to the Pipe Mechanics interface.

Select the Drag Force check box to include the forces from viscous drag along the pipe.

Select the Centrifugal Force check box to include centrifugal forces from the fluid in
curved pipes.

Select the Pipe flow pressure check box to include effects of the internal pressure in the
pipe. When Pipe flow pressure is selected, you can also enter an external pressure. Select
a method for entering the External pressure, po, — User defined or Common model input.

For User defined, enter a value or an expression for the external pressure.

MULTIPHYSICS COUPLINGS | 1869

 Select the Junction forces check box to include local forces occurring at various
connections and components in the piping system.

The check boxes in this section interact with any Fluid Load node on the
same selection. When a check box is selected, the corresponding entry in
the Fluid Load node is made unavailable.

See also:

• Effects of Internal Pressure and Fluid Flow Forces in the Theory for
the Pipe Mechanics Interface section.
• Fluid Load in the The Pipe Mechanics Interface section.

Structure Thin-Film Flow Interaction

The Structure Thin-Film Flow Interaction ( ) multiphysics node provides a coupling
on a boundary between a thin fluid film and a solid material.

The Structure Thin-Film Flow Interaction node is only available with some COMSOL
products (see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

SETTINGS
The Label is the multiphysics coupling feature name. The default Label (for the first
multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is Structure Thin-Film Flow
Interaction 1.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the coupling node.
Refer to such variables in expressions using the pattern <name>.<variable_name>. In
order to distinguish between variables belonging to different coupling nodes or physics
interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and underscores (_)
are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is stfi1.

BOUNDARY SELECTION
By default, the selection is set to All boundaries. However, only boundaries between
fluid and solid domains are applicable. This is deduced automatically using the
selections made on the coupled physics interfaces.

1870 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

COUPLED INTERFACES
This section defines the physics interfaces involved in the Structure Thin-Film Flow
Interaction coupling. The Structure and the Thin film lists include all applicable physics
interfaces.

The default values depend on how the node is created.

• If it is added from the Physics ribbon (Windows users), Physics contextual toolbar
(macOS and Linux users), or context menu (all users), then the first physics interface
of each type in the component is selected as the default.
• If it is added automatically when the physics interface is chosen in the Model Wizard
or Add Physics window, then the two participating physics interfaces are selected.

You can also select None from either list to uncouple the Structure Thin-Film Flow
Interaction node from a physics interface. If the physics interface is removed from the
Model Builder, for example Solid Mechanics is deleted, then the Structure list defaults to
None as there is nothing to couple to.

If a physics interface is deleted and then added to the model again, then
in order to re-establish the coupling, you need to choose the physics
interface again from the lists. This is applicable to all multiphysics
coupling nodes that would normally default to the once present physics
interface. See Multiphysics Modeling Workflow in the COMSOL
Multiphysics Reference Manual.

Shell Thin-Film Flow Interaction

The Shell Thin-Film Flow Interaction ( ) multiphysics node provides a coupling on a
boundary between a thin fluid film and a shell.

The Shell Thin-Film Flow Interaction node is only available with some COMSOL
products (see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

SETTINGS
The Label is the multiphysics coupling feature name. The default Label (for the first
multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is Shell Thin-Film Flow Interaction
1.

The Name is used primarily as a scope prefix for variables defined by the coupling node.
Refer to such variables in expressions using the pattern <name>.<variable_name>. In

MULTIPHYSICS COUPLINGS | 1871

 order to distinguish between variables belonging to different coupling nodes or physics
interfaces, the name string must be unique. Only letters, numbers, and underscores (_)
are permitted in the Name field. The first character must be a letter.

The default Name (for the first multiphysics coupling feature in the model) is shtfi1.

BOUNDARY SELECTION
By default, the selection is set to All boundaries. However, only boundaries between
fluid and solid domains are applicable. This is deduced automatically using the
selections made on the coupled physics interfaces.

COUPLED INTERFACES
This section defines the physics interfaces involved in the Structure Thin-Film Flow
Interaction coupling. The Structure and the Thin film lists include all applicable physics
interfaces.

The default values depend on how the node is created.

• If it is added from the Physics ribbon (Windows users), Physics contextual toolbar
(macOS and Linux users), or context menu (all users), then the first physics interface
of each type in the component is selected as the default.
• If it is added automatically when the physics interface is chosen in the Model Wizard
or Add Physics window, then the two participating physics interfaces are selected.

You can also select None from either list to uncouple the Shell Thin-Film Flow Interaction
node from a physics interface. If the physics interface is removed from the Model
Builder, for example Shell is deleted, then the Structure list defaults to None as there is
nothing to couple to.

If a physics interface is deleted and then added to the model again, then
in order to re-establish the coupling, you need to choose the physics
interface again from the lists. This is applicable to all multiphysics
coupling nodes that would normally default to the once present physics
interface. See Multiphysics Modeling Workflow in the COMSOL
Multiphysics Reference Manual.

FILM LOCATION
In this section, you specify the load contributions that are transferred from the
Thin-Film Flow interface to the Shell interface.

1872 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

Select Top to include the load from the fluid on the top side of the shell.

Select Bottom to include the load from the fluid on the bottom side of the shell.

MULTIPHYSICS COUPLINGS | 1873

 Couplings Between Structural
Mechanics Interfaces
Some of the structural mechanics interfaces are formulated using different types of
degrees of freedom. This needs to be considered in models where such interfaces
interact. You can set up common transitions using the following predefined
multiphysics couplings:

• Solid-Thin Structure Connection

• Solid-Beam Connection
• Shell-Beam Connection
• Layered Shell-Structure Transition
• Layered Shell-Structure Cladding
• Structure-Pipe Connection
• Embedded Reinforcement
• Beam Cross Section-Beam Coupling
• Beam-Beam Cross Section Coupling

Solid-Thin Structure Connection

Add the Solid-Thin Structure Connection multiphysics node ( ) to create transitions
between domains modeled using the Solid Mechanics or Multibody Dynamics
interfaces and boundaries modeled using the Shell or Membrane interfaces.

The Solid-Thin Structure Connection node is only available with some COMSOL
products (see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

COUPLED INTERFACES
Select Solid mechanics — Solid Mechanics or Multibody Dynamics.

Select Thin structure — Shell or Membrane.

CONNECTION SETTINGS
When Membrane is selected from the Thin structure list, the Connection type is set to
Shared boundaries. See settings in Shared Boundaries.

1874 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

When Shell is selected from the Thin structure list, select the Connection type — Solid
boundaries to shell edges, Shared boundaries, or Parallel boundaries.

For the first two options, there is an automatic search for possible adjacent geometrical
objects. If you want to modify the selections, select the Manual control of selections
check box. If you clear it, the selections will be replaced by the automatic ones.

Solid Boundaries to Shell Edges

If the automatic selection is not sufficient, select the Manual control of selections check
box. Then, select the connected solid boundaries in the Boundary Selection, Solid
section and the corresponding shell edges in the Edge Selection, Shell section.

Select Connected area defined by — Shell thickness, Selected solid boundaries, or Distance
from shell midsurface. This parameter determines how much of the selected solid
boundaries that are connected to the shell. The default is that a distance from the shell
edge having the size of the half the shell thickness in both perpendicular directions is
connected.

• Using Selected solid boundaries connects the selected boundaries in their entirety to
the shell.
• If you select Distance from shell midsurface, enter a Distance d. This value is used
instead of the half the shell thickness for defining the connection distance.
Select a Method — Rigid or Flexible.

• The Rigid version of the coupling only adds constraints to the boundary of the solid,
which in general causes local disturbances of the stress field, since the thickness
cannot change.
• When using the Flexible coupling, three extra degrees of freedom are added along
the shell edge. This allows for a more accurate description of the transition, but the
model can in some cases become unconstrained if the mesh on the solid is very
coarse.
When either of the Shell thickness or Distance from shell midsurface options are used,
the connected area is slightly extended by the distance . Select how to determine this
Connection tolerance — Automatic or User defined. For Automatic, the tolerance  is set
to 0.5% of the shell thickness, which allows for small inaccuracies on for example a
curved geometry. By selecting User defined, you can modify the value of 

Shared Boundaries
If the automatic selection is not sufficient, select the Manual control of selections check
box. Then, select the connected boundaries in the Boundary Selection section.

COUPLINGS BETWEEN STRUCTURAL MECHANICS INTERFACES | 1875

 The connected area is slightly extended by a distance . Select how to determine this
Connection tolerance — Automatic or User defined. For Automatic, the tolerance  is set
to 0.5% of the shell thickness, which allows for small inaccuracies on for example a
curved geometry. By selecting User defined, you can modify the value of 

Parallel Boundaries
Select the connected solid boundaries in the Boundary Selection, Solid section and the
corresponding shell boundaries in the Boundary Selection, Shell section.

Select Distance evaluation — Shell properties, Solid-shell geometrical distance, or User

defined. This parameter controls how the coupling determines the connection distance,
used when expressing the coupling between translation and rotation.

• When Shell properties is selected, the distance is based on the shell thickness and
offset, so that a distance equal to half the shell thickness is used.
• If you select Solid-shell geometrical distance, the connection distance is computed
from the geometrical distance between the selected boundaries.
• For User defined, enter a Distance d, which defines the connection distance.
The connected area is slightly extended by a distance . Select how to determine this
Connection tolerance — Automatic or User defined. For Automatic, the tolerance  is set
to 0.5% of the shell thickness, which allows for small inaccuracies on for example a
curved geometry. By selecting User defined, you can modify the value of 

• For more information about coupling different element types, see

Coupling Techniques.
• For details about the formulation of this coupling, see Connection
Between Shells and Solids

ADVANCED
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

When Shared boundaries or Parallel Boundaries is selected from the Connection type
list, select where to place the Constraints on — Thin structure boundaries or Solid
boundaries.

By default the constraints are placed on the thin structure (Shell or Membrane) side of
the connection, but it is also possible to enforce the constraints on the solid side.

1876 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

CONSTRAINT SETTINGS
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Options in the Show More Options dialog box.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Constraint Reaction Terms

• Weak Constraints
• Constraint Settings

These types of couplings will commonly generate many constraints,

possibly even conflicting with other constraints coming from ordinary
boundary conditions. For methods of resolving potential problems, see

• Elemental and Nodal Constraints

• Suppressing Constraints on Lower Dimensions

When there are many interconnected constraints, it may also be useful to

change Null-Space Function to Orthonormal or Explicit — Orthonormal,
but doing so may increase the memory consumption significantly.

An example of couplings between shells and solids is shown in

Connecting Shells and Solids: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Beams_and_Shells/shell_solid_connection

Solid-Beam Connection
Add the Solid-Beam Connection multiphysics coupling node ( ) to create transitions
between domains modeled using the Solid Mechanics or Multibody Dynamics
interfaces and edges modeled using the Beam interface.

The 2D and 3D versions of the Solid-Beam Connection are fundamentally different, and
are treated separately below.

COUPLED INTERFACES
Select Solid mechanics — Solid Mechanics or Multibody Dynamics.

Select the Beam interface to couple.

COUPLINGS BETWEEN STRUCTURAL MECHANICS INTERFACES | 1877

 CONNECTION SETTINGS 2D
Select the Connection type — Solid boundaries to beam points, Solid and beam shared
boundaries, Solid and beam parallel boundaries, or Solid edges to beam points.

In first two cases, there is an automatic search for possible adjacent geometrical objects.
If you want to modify the selections, select the Manual control of selections check box.
If you clear it again, the selections will be replaced by the automatic ones.

Solid Boundaries to Beam Points

For a manual selection, select the connected solid boundaries in the Boundary Selection,
Solid section and the corresponding beam points in the Point Selection, Beam section.

Select Connected area defined by — Section height, Selected boundaries, or Distance from
beam axis. This parameter determines how much of the selected solid boundaries that
are actually connected to the beam. The default is that a distance from the beam point
having the size of the half the beam section height in each direction is connected.
Using Selected boundaries connects the entire selected boundaries to the beam. If you
select Distance from beam axis, enter a Distance d. This is used instead of the section
height for defining the connection distance.

Select a Method — Rigid or Flexible. The Rigid version of the coupling only adds
constraints to the boundary of the solid, which in general causes local disturbances of
the stress field, since the thickness cannot change. When using the Flexible coupling,
three extra degrees of freedom are added to each beam point. This allows for a more
accurate description of the transition, but the model can in some cases become
unconstrained if the mesh on the solid is very coarse.

When the connected area is determined by either the Section height or Distance from
beam axis options, the connected area is slightly extended by a distance . Select how
to determine this Connection tolerance — Automatic or User defined. For Automatic, the
tolerance  is set to 0.5% of the beam height, which allows for small inaccuracies on
for example a curved geometry. By selecting User defined, you can modify the value
of 

Solid and Beam Shared Boundaries

If the automatic selection is not sufficient, select the Manual control of selections check
box. Then, select the connected boundaries in the Boundary Selection section.

The connected area is slightly extended by the distance . Select how to determine this
Connection tolerance — Automatic or User defined. The Automatic option sets the value
of the tolerance  to 0.5% of section height of the beam. By selecting the User defined
option, you can modify the value of the tolerance 

1878 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

Solid and Beam Parallel Boundaries
Select the connected solid boundaries in the Boundary Selection, Solid section and the
corresponding beam edges in the Boundary Selection, Beam section.

Select Distance evaluation — Section height, Geometrical distance, or User defined. This
parameter determines how the coupling treats the determination of the connection
distance, used when expressing the coupling between translation and rotation. The
default is that a distance equal to half the section height is used. If you select
Geometrical distance, the connection distance is computed from the geometrical
distance between the solid boundary and the beam boundary. For User defined enter a
Distance d. This defines the connection distance.

The connected area is slightly extended by a distance . Select how to determine this
Connection tolerance — Automatic or User defined. For Automatic, the tolerance  is set
to 0.5% of the beam height, which allows for small inaccuracies on, for example, a
curved geometry. By selecting User defined, you can modify the value of 

CONNECTION SETTINGS 3D
Select the Connection type — Solid boundaries to beam points, general, Solid boundaries
to beam points, transition, Solid boundaries to beam edges, or Solid edges to beam points.
For the connections to beam points, there is an automatic search for possible adjacent
geometrical objects. If you want to modify the selections, select the Manual control of
selections check box. If you clear it again, the selections will be replaced by the
automatic ones.

Solid Boundaries to Beam Points, General

Select this when the end of a beam is to be “welded” to part of the face of a solid
domain.

If the automatic selection is not sufficient, select the Manual control of selections check
box. Then, select the connected solid boundaries in the Boundary Selection, Solid
section and select the corresponding beam points in the Point Selection, Beam section.

Select a Connected region — Selected boundaries, Distance (automatic),

Distance (manual), or Connection criterion.

• Using Selected boundaries makes all selected boundaries to be rigidly connected to

the point on the beam.
• For Distance (automatic), all parts on the solid boundary, which are within the
default distance from the beam point, are connected. This distance is determined by

COUPLINGS BETWEEN STRUCTURAL MECHANICS INTERFACES | 1879

 the cross section properties of the beam. It is contained in the variable beam.re as
described in the documentation for The Beam Interface.
• For Distance (manual) enter a Connection radius rc. All parts on the solid boundary,
which are within the given distance from the beam point, are connected.
• For Connection criterion enter a Boolean expression in the text field. The beam is
connected to the selected solid boundaries, wherever the expression has a nonzero
value. The default value is 1, which is equivalent to using the Selected boundaries
option.

Solid Boundaries to Beam Points, Transition

Use this option if you want to model a transition from a beam modeled by solid
elements to the same beam modeled using beam elements. It is assumed that the solid
part is truncated by a set of boundaries which are perpendicular to the beam axes. No
settings other than the selections are needed in this case.

If the automatic selection is not sufficient, select the Manual control of selections check
box. Then, select the connected solid boundaries in the Boundary Selection, Solid
section and select the corresponding beam points in the Point Selection, Beam section.

The coupling can introduce a set of extra degrees of freedom on the solid boundary
for computing the warping displacement over the cross section. Select Include warping
— Automatic, Yes, or No, to control this behavior. If Automatic is selected, warping will
be included, unless the beam cross section is one of the predefined sections Circular or
Pipe. To explicitly control the behavior, select Yes or No.

The warping degrees of freedom should preferably be solved for only once, and
separately. If they are solved at the same time as the general problem, you can expect
that the solution time increases by a factor of two. For more details, see Beam Point to
Solid (3D) in the Structural Mechanics Modeling chapter.

Solid Boundaries to Beam Edges

Use this option when you want to model a beam that is parallel to the solid boundary
and is “welded” to it.

Select a Connected region — Selected boundaries, Beam width, or Connection criterion.

• Using Selected boundaries makes all selected boundaries to be rigidly connected to

the point on the beam. This is mainly useful if the boundary has approximately the
same shape as the physical size of the beam, such as a rectangle with the same width
as a beam flange.

1880 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

• For Beam width, enter a Width w. All parts on the solid boundary, which are within
the given distance from the projection of the beam axis on the solid, are connected.
For cases when the beam is asymmetric, that is when the connection distance from
the beam axis is not the same in both directions, enter also an Offset d. The positive
orientation of the offset is n  t , where n is the outward normal of the solid, and t
is the positive orientation of the beam edge.
• For Connection criterion enter a Boolean expression in the text field. The beam is
connected to the selected solid boundary, wherever the expression has a nonzero
value. The default value is 1, which is equivalent to using the Selected boundaries
option.

Solid edges to beam points

Select this when the end of a beam is to be “welded” to an edge of a solid domain. One
important use case is when modeling bolts using beams, and this coupling acts as an
abstract bolt head.

Select the connected solid edges in the Edge Selection, Solid section and select the
corresponding beam points in the Point Selection, Beam section.

Select a Connected region — Selected edges, Distance (automatic), Distance (manual), or

Connection criterion.

• Using Selected edges makes all selected edges to be rigidly connected to the point
on the beam.
• For Distance (automatic), all parts on the solid edges, which are within the default
distance from the beam point, are connected. The distance is determined by the
cross section properties of the beam. It is contained in the variable beam.re as
described in the documentation for The Beam Interface.
• For Distance (manual) enter a Connection radius rc. All parts on the solid edges, which
are within the given distance from the beam point, are connected.
• For Connection criterion enter a Boolean expression in the text field. The beam is
connected to the selected solid edges, wherever the expression has a nonzero value.
The default value is 1, which is equivalent to using the Selected edges option.

• For more information about coupling different element types, see

Coupling Techniques.
• For details about the formulation of this coupling, see Connection
Between Shells and Solids

COUPLINGS BETWEEN STRUCTURAL MECHANICS INTERFACES | 1881

 These types of couplings will commonly generate many constraints,
possibly even conflicting with other constraints coming from ordinary
boundary conditions. For methods of resolving potential problems, see

• Elemental and Nodal Constraints

• Suppressing Constraints on Lower Dimensions

When there are many interconnected constraints, it may also be useful to

change Null-Space Function to Orthonormal or Explicit — Orthonormal,
but doing so may increase the memory consumption significantly.

Shell-Beam Connection
Add the Shell-Beam Connection multiphysics node ( ) to create transitions between
boundaries or edges modeled using the Shell interface and edges or points modeled
using the Beam interface.

The Shell-Beam Connection node is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).

CONNECTION SETTINGS
Select the Connection type — Shell edges to beam points, Shared edges, Parallel edges, or
Shell boundaries to beam points.

For all options except Parallel edges, there is an automatic search for possible adjacent
geometrical objects. If you want to modify the selections, select the
Manual control of selections check box. If you clear it again, the selections will be
replaced by the automatic ones.

Shell Edges to Beam Points

If the automatic selection is not sufficient, select the Manual control of selections check
box. Then, select the connected shell edges in the Edge Selection, Shell section and the
corresponding beam points in the Point Selection, Beam section.

Select a Connected region — Selected edges, Distance (automatic), Distance (manual), or

Connection criterion.

• Using Selected edges makes all selected edges rigidly connected to the point on the
beam.
• For Distance (automatic), all parts on the shell edge, which are within the default
distance from the beam point, are connected. This distance is determined by the

1882 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

 cross section properties of the beam. It is contained in the variable beam.re as
described in the documentation for The Beam Interface.
• For Distance (manual) enter a Connection radius rc. All parts on the shell edge, which
are within the given distance from the beam point, are connected.
• For Connection criterion enter a Boolean expression in the text field. The beam is
connected to the selected shell edge wherever the expression has a nonzero value.
The default value is 1, which is equivalent to using the Selected edges option.

Shared Edges
If the automatic selection is not sufficient, select the Manual control of selections check
box. Then, select the connected edges in the Edge Selection section.

Select an Offset definition — Along shell normal or Offset vector.

• For Along shell normal enter an Offset .

• For Offset vector enter values for d0 in the table. The offset is the vector from the
reference surface of the shell to the actual position of the beam.

Parallel Edges
Enter a value for the Parallelism tolerance . The default is 1 degree. The two edges
are connected only where they are parallel within the specified tolerance.

Shell Boundaries to Beam Points

If the automatic selection is not sufficient, select the Manual control of selections check
box. Then, select the connected shell boundaries in the Boundary Selection, Shell
section and the corresponding beam points in the Point Selection, Beam section.

Select an option from the Connected region list — Selected boundaries,

Distance (automatic), Distance (manual), or Connection criterion.

• Using Selected boundaries makes all selected boundaries rigidly connected to the
point on the beam.
• For Distance (automatic), all parts on the shell boundary, which are within a default
distance from the beam point, are connected. This distance is determined by the
cross section properties of the beam. It is contained in the variable beam.re as
described in the documentation for The Beam Interface.
• For Distance (manual) enter a Connection radius rc. All parts on the shell edge, which
are within the given distance from the beam point, are connected.
• For Connection criterion enter a Boolean expression in the text field. The beam is
connected to the selected shell boundary wherever the expression has a nonzero

COUPLINGS BETWEEN STRUCTURAL MECHANICS INTERFACES | 1883

 value. The default value is 1, which is equivalent to using the Selected boundaries
option.

• For more information about coupling different element types, see

Coupling Techniques.
• For details about the formulation of this coupling, see Connection
Between Shells and Beams

These types of couplings will commonly generate many constraints,

possibly even conflicting with other constraints coming from ordinary
boundary conditions. For methods of resolving potential problems, see

• Elemental and Nodal Constraints

• Suppressing Constraints on Lower Dimensions

When there are many interconnected constraints, it may also be useful to

change Null-Space Function to Orthonormal or Explicit — Orthonormal,
but doing so may increase the memory consumption significantly.

Examples of all types of couplings between shells and beams are shown in
Connecting Shells and Beams: Application Library path
Structural_Mechanics_Module/Beams_and_Shells/shell_beam_connection

Layered Shell-Structure Transition

Add the Layered Shell-Structure Transition multiphysics node ( ) to create transitions
between boundaries modeled using the Layered Shell and domains or boundaries
modeled using the Solid Mechanics or Shell interfaces.

The Layered Shell-Structure Transition node is only available with some COMSOL
products (see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/)

COUPLED INTERFACES
Select the Layered Shell interface to couple.

Select the Structure — Solid Mechanics or Shell.

1884 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

SHELL PROPERTIES
Clear the Use all layers check box to apply the Layered Shell-Structure Transition
coupling on some layers only. Select a Layer from the list (the coupling is then
applicable only on the boundaries where this latter material is defined). Under the
Selection table clear the check boxes corresponding to layers where the coupling should
not be applied.

CONNECTION SETTINGS
There is an automatic search for possible adjacent geometrical objects. If you want to
modify the selections, select the Manual control of selections check box. Then, select the
connected solid boundaries in the Boundary Selection, Solid section and the
corresponding shell edges in the Edge Selection section.

The connected area is slightly extended by a distance . Select how to determine this
Connection tolerance — Automatic or User defined. For Automatic, the tolerance  is set
to 0.5% of the shell thickness, which allows for small inaccuracies on, for example, a
curved geometry. By selecting User defined, you can modify the value of 

Layered Shell-Structure Cladding

Add the Layered Shell-Structure Cladding multiphysics node ( ) to create claddings
between boundaries modeled using the Layered Shell and domains or boundaries
modeled using the Solid Mechanics, Membrane, or Shell interfaces.

The Layered Shell-Structure Cladding node is only available with some COMSOL
products (see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/)

COUPLED INTERFACES
Select the Layered Shell interface to couple.

Select the Structure — Solid Mechanics, Shell, or Membrane.

CONNECTION SETTINGS
Select the Connection type — Shared boundaries or Parallel boundaries.

Shared boundaries
There is an automatic search for possible adjacent geometrical objects. If you want to
modify the selections, select the Manual control of selections check box. Select the
boundaries where the cladding is applied in the Boundary Selection section. If you clear
it, the selections will be replaced by the automatic ones.

COUPLINGS BETWEEN STRUCTURAL MECHANICS INTERFACES | 1885

 Select the Layered shell boundary — Top or Bottom to apply the cladding.

The connected area is slightly extended by a distance . Select how to determine this
Connection tolerance — Automatic or User defined. For Automatic, the tolerance  is set
to 0.5% of the shell thickness, which allows for small inaccuracies on for example a
curved geometry. By selecting User defined, you can modify the value of 

Parallel Boundaries
Select the connected solid boundaries in the Boundary Selection, Layered Shell section
and the corresponding structural boundaries in the Boundary Selection, Structure
section.

Select the Layered shell boundary — Top or Bottom to apply the cladding.

In case of a shell structure, select the Shell boundary — Top or Bottom to apply the
cladding.

The connected area is slightly extended by a distance . Select how to determine this
Connection tolerance — Automatic or User defined. For Automatic, the tolerance  is set
to 0.5% of the shell thickness, which allows for small inaccuracies on, for example, a
curved geometry. By selecting User defined, you can modify the value of 

Layered Shell-Shell Connection

Add the Layered Shell-Shell Connection multiphysics node ( ) to create models where
a combination of the Layered Shell interface and the Shell interface are used for
different layers in the same layup. Thus, both interfaces are active on the same
boundary. This type of modeling (multiple model method) is efficient in components,
where some layers are thin, while other layers are significantly thicker.

The Layered Shell-Shell Connection node is only available with some COMSOL
products (see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/)

COUPLED INTERFACES
Select the Layered Shell interface and Shell interfaces to couple.

INTERFACE SELECTION
Select Apply to — Interior Interfaces or Selected Interfaces.

For Interior Interfaces, any interface shared between the two type of element
formulations will be bonded.

1886 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

For Selected Interfaces, you have the possibility to select the interfaces to be bonded.
In this case, select the applicable interfaces from the Layer list.

Analysis of a Composite Blade Using a Multiple Model Method:

Application Library path Composite_Materials_Module/Tutorials/
composite_blade_multiple_model_method

Structure-Pipe Connection
Add the Structure-Pipe Connection multiphysics coupling node ( ) to create
transitions between edges modeled using the Pipe Mechanics interface and domains or
boundaries modeled using the Solid Mechanics or Shell interfaces in 3D.

The multiphysics coupling is intended for situations where the cross-sectional

properties match on both sides of the connection. It can be considered as an extension
to the transition type couplings in Solid-Beam Connection and Shell-Beam
Connection that also accounts for radial deformation of the pipe caused by the fluid
pressure and the temperature difference over the cross section.

COUPLED INTERFACES
Select Structure — Solid Mechanics or Shell.

Select the Pipe Mechanics interface to couple.

• The connection assumes that the pipe cross section is circular. If

another cross section is used, it is converted to an equivalent circular
cross section
• For user defined pipe cross sections, the effects of fluid pressure and
temperature are not considered
• Warping is not considered

For more information about coupling different element types, see

Coupling Techniques.

COUPLINGS BETWEEN STRUCTURAL MECHANICS INTERFACES | 1887

 These types of couplings will commonly generate many constraints,
possibly even conflicting with other constraints coming from ordinary
boundary conditions. For methods of resolving potential problems, see

• Elemental and Nodal Constraints

• Suppressing Constraints on Lower Dimensions

When there are many interconnected constraints, it may also be useful to

change Null-Space Function to Orthonormal or Explicit — Orthonormal,
but doing so may increase the memory consumption significantly.

Embedded Reinforcement
Add an Embedded Reinforcement multiphysics node ( ) to create a coupling where
elements from the Truss, Beam, or Membrane interface are embedded in solid
elements. The meshes used in the coupled interfaces do not have to coincide; the
displacements inside the solid elements at the locations where the nodes of the
lower-dimension element are located are automatically identified.

See Embedded Elements in the Structural Mechanics Theory Chapter.

The Embedded Reinforcement node is only available with some COMSOL products (see
https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/)

COUPLED INTERFACES
Select the Solid interface to couple.

Select the Embedded structure to couple — Truss, Beam, or Membrane.

When coupling the Beam interface to a Solid Mechanics interface, only

the displacement degrees of freedom of the beam are constrained.

1888 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

CONNECTION SETTINGS
Select the Connection type — Rigid, Spring constant per unit length, or Spring constant
per unit surface area. The available types of spring connections depend on the selected
Embedded Structure interface.

When the Embedded structure is a Beam interface, select whether to

Suppress rotation around beam axis or not. The default is to suppress axial
rotation, to avoid rigid body rotation around the beam axis.

Rigid Connection
The Rigid connection type couples the selected interfaces using pointwise constraints
applied to the selection of the embedded structure. The constraints are only active for
the parts of the selection that lies within the solid.

Spring connection
All spring connection types couple the selected interfaces by inserting springs between
the Embedded structure and the Solid. The properties of the spring connection are
determined by user defined spring constants.

When the Embedded structure is a Truss interface, enter the Axial spring
constant ka, and the Transverse spring constant kt. The default unit and
expression for the spring constants depend on the Connection type:

• For Spring constant per unit length, the default expression for both ka
and kt is 1e3*<tag>.Eequ*<tag>.area/h^2.
• For Spring constant per unit surface area, the default expression for both
ka and kt is 1e3*<tag>.Eequ*<tag>.perimeter/h^2.

The variable <tag>.Eequ is a placeholder for the equivalent stiffness of

the Truss interface, and <tag>.area and <tag>.perimeter for the
cross-sectional area and perimeter, respectively. The multiplier 1e3 can be
modified to tune the stiffness of the connection. Both connection types
internally use the same formulation, and the spring constant per unit area
is converted to a spring constant per unit length.

COUPLINGS BETWEEN STRUCTURAL MECHANICS INTERFACES | 1889

 When the Embedded structure is a Beam interface and Spring constant per
unit length is selected, enter the Axial spring constant ka, and two
Transverse spring constants in the local coordinate system of the beam, kyl
and kzl. The default expression for the spring constants is
1e3*<tag>.Eequ*<tag>.area/h^2.

The variable <tag>.Eequ is a placeholder for the equivalent stiffness of

the Beam interface, and <tag>.area for the cross-sectional area. The
multiplier 1e3 can be modified to tune the stiffness of the connection.

When the Embedded structure is a Membrane interface and Spring

constant per unit surface area is selected, enter the three components of
the stiffness vector in the boundary system coordinates, kt1, kt2, and kn.
The default expression for each component is
1e5*<tag>.Eequ*<tag>.d/h^2.

The variable <tag>.Eequ is a placeholder for the equivalent stiffness of

the Membrane interface, and <tag>.d for the thickness. The multiplier
1e5 can be modified to tune the stiffness of the connection.

Bond Slip Model

When a spring connection type is selected, it is also possible to also include a Bond slip
model. By default, a No bond slip model is added. If Friction is selected, it is also possible
to model sliding between the Solid and the Embedded Structure.

By selecting Friction, the bond slip behavior of the interface is defined by using a
plasticity model. Enter a value for the Cohesion c0 to define the initial resistance to
sliding. You can also specify a Hardening model — None, Linear, or User defined.

• For Linear, enter the Hardening coefficient kp. This option defines a linear hardening
function kpupe, where upe is the accumulated slip. The current sliding resistance is
then c = c0 + kpupe.
• For User defined, enter an expression for the Hardening function ch. The default
expression is 0[unit]*<tag>.upe. The unit depends on the Embedded structure

1890 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

 interface, and the variable <tag>.upe is the accumulated slip. The current sliding
resistance is then c = c0 + ch

The bond slip friction model formally describes the so-called Tresca
friction, that is, the sliding resistance does not depend on the normal
force acting on the interface between the Solid and the Embedded
Structure. However, a Coulomb type friction model can by implemented
by adding a dependence with respect to a “normal force” in the expression
for the Cohesion c0. The difficulty lies in estimating the normal force

ADVANCED
To display this section, click the Show More Options button ( ) and select Advanced
Physics Option in the Show More Options dialog box.

Enter a scalar positive value in the Extrapolation tolerance; the default is 0.3. This
tolerance is used by an internal general extrusion operator that maps expressions from
the Solid (source) to the Embedded Structure (destination). If a point of the embedded
structure is within a distance of the extrapolation tolerance times the mesh element
size, the point is considered to be within the solid. Otherwise, the mapping fails.

Select the Calculate dissipated energy check box as needed to compute the energy
dissipated when including a Bond slip model in the connection.

• For more information about coupling different element types, see

Coupling Techniques.
• For details about how work with embedded structures, see Modeling
Embedded Structures and Reinforcements.
• For details about the formulation of this coupling, see Embedded
Elements.

Beam Cross Section-Beam Coupling

Use the Beam Cross Section-Beam Coupling to transfer the cross section data from a
Beam Cross Section interface to either a Beam Interface or a Pipe Mechanics interface.
You need to use one such Beam Cross Section-Beam Coupling node for each type of cross
section.

COUPLINGS BETWEEN STRUCTURAL MECHANICS INTERFACES | 1891

 The Beam Cross Section-Beam Coupling node is only available with some COMSOL
products (see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/)

BOUNDARY SELECTION
Select the boundaries that represent the current cross section in the Beam Cross
Section interface. This means that the selection should be identical to the selection in
a corresponding Homogeneous Cross Section node.

EDGE SELECTION, BEAM

Select the edges of the beams that have the intended cross section.

COUPLED INTERFACES
Select the Beam Cross Section interface to couple.

Select the Beam interface to couple. This can be either a Beam interface or a Pipe
Mechanics Interface.

Beam-Beam Cross Section Coupling

Use the Beam-Beam Cross Section Coupling to transfer the results from a Beam Interface
or a Pipe Mechanics interface to a Beam Cross Section interface for visualization. You
can add more than one Beam Cross Section-Beam Coupling node, but they should have
different selections of cross sections in the Beam Cross Section interface.

The location, the orientation of the cross section, and the direction of its extrusion
along the beam axis are independent of how the actual beam is located.

This multiphysics coupling is only available in 3D.

The Beam-Beam Cross Section Coupling node is only available with some COMSOL
products (see https://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/)

BOUNDARY SELECTION
Select the boundaries that represent the current cross section in the Beam Cross
Section interface. This means that the selection should be identical to the selection in
a corresponding Homogeneous Cross Section node.

1892 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS

EDGE SELECTION, BEAM
Select the edges of the beams, for which the stress plots are to be made. Normally,
these beams should have the same cross section as in the selected boundaries. It is
however only the section forces that are transferred to the Beam Cross Section
interface. It is thus possible to view the stress distribution for any cross section, with a
given set of section forces.

The selected edges must form a straight line. In the Beam Cross Section, the thickness
property of the layered material must be set equal to the total length of the selected
edges, in order for the results to be mapped.

BEAM ORIGIN
Select the point on the beam edge that should be treated as start point when mapping
the results to the Beam Cross Section interface.

COUPLED INTERFACES
Select the Beam Cross Section interface to couple.

Select the Beam interface to couple. This can be either a Beam interface or a Pipe
Mechanics Interface.

BEAM PROPERTIES
This section is related to the fact that the Beam Cross Section interface uses the layered
technology. You will typically not need to change the settings.

ADVANCED
Enter an Extrapolation tolerance. This is the tolerance used in the extrusion coupling
operator that maps between the physical beam and the axial coordinate in the Beam
Cross Section interface.

COUPLINGS BETWEEN STRUCTURAL MECHANICS INTERFACES | 1893

1894 | CHAPTER 13: MULTIPHYSICS INTERFACES AND COUPLINGS
 14

Glossary

This Glossary of Terms contains finite element modeling terms in a structural

mechanics context. For mathematical terms, and geometry and CAD terms specific
to the COMSOL Multiphysics® software and documentation, see the glossary in
the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual. For references to more
information about a term, see the index.

1895
 Glossary of Terms
anisotropy Variation of material properties with direction. Both global and local
user-defined coordinate systems can be used to define anisotropic material properties.

arbitrary Lagrangian–Eulerian (ALE) method A technique to formulate equations in a

mixed kinematic description. An ALE referential coordinate system is typically a mix
between the material (Lagrangian) and spatial (Eulerian) coordinate systems.

augmented Lagrangian method A method for solving contact problems.

Augmentation components are introduced for the contact pressure and the
components of the friction traction vector. Additional iteration levels are added where
the displacement, contact pressure and traction variables are solved separately. The
algorithm repeats this procedure until it fulfills a convergence criterion.

axial symmetry Symmetry in both load and geometry, solves for the radial (r) and
axial (z) displacement.

bar A line element that only has translational degrees of freedom, capable of
sustaining axial forces, with no bending moments, torsional moments, or shear forces.
Can be used on lines in 2D and 3D. Also called spar or truss element. In COMSOL
Multiphysics the term truss element is used.

beam A line element having both translational and rotational degrees of freedom.
Capable of sustaining axial forces, bending moments, torsional moments, and shear
forces. Can be used on lines in 2D and 3D.

body forces Forces distributed through the volume of a body.

buckling The sudden collapse or reduction in stiffness of a structure under a critical

combination of applied loads.

cable A tension-only truss member used to model large deformation including sag.

Cauchy stress The most fundamental stress measure defined as force/deformed area
in fixed directions not following the body.

compliance matrix The inverse of the elasticity matrix. See elasticity matrix.

1896 | CHAPTER 14: GLOSSARY

constitutive equations The equations formulating the stress-strain relationship of a
material.

constraint Constrains the displacement or rotations to zero or a specified value.

contact model The mathematical method to model bodies that come into contact
with each other.

contact pair A pair that consists of some source boundaries and destination
boundaries and is used for contact modeling.

coordinate system Global Cartesian, local geometrical, application specific, and

user-defined coordinate systems. Loads, constraints, material properties, and variables
are defined in a specific coordinate system.

damping Dissipation of energy in a vibrating structure. A common assumption is

viscous damping where the damping is proportional to the velocity. See also Rayleigh
damping.

deformation gradient Tensor containing the complete information about the local
straining and rotation of the material. It is a positive definite second rank tensor.

destination boundary One side of a contact pair; the destination boundary is

prohibited to penetrate the source boundary.

double dogleg solver The default nonlinear solver for mechanical contact. This solver
is also useful for highly nonlinear simulations such as large plastic deformation or
hyperelastic materials.

eigenfrequency study Solving for the damped or undamped natural frequencies and
vibration modes of a structure.

elasticity matrix The matrix D relating strain to stresses:

 = D

equilibrium equation The equation expressing the equilibrium formulated in the stress
components.

Eulerian Model described and solved in a coordinate system that is fixed (spatial
frame). See also Lagrangian and arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian method.

GLOSSARY OF TERMS | 1897

 first Piola–Kirchhoff stress A stress measure used when geometric nonlinearities arise.
All forces in COMSOL Multiphysics in case of geometric nonlinearity are of this type.

flexibility matrix The inverse of the elasticity matrix. See elasticity matrix.

free vibration The undamped vibration of a structure after it is displaced from the
equilibrium position and released. See also eigenfrequency analysis.

frequency response A harmonic analysis solving for the steady-state response from a
harmonic excitation. Typically a frequency sweep is performed, solving for many
excitation frequencies at one time.

geometric nonlinearity In solid mechanics, the deformation state characterized by

finite (or large displacements) but small to moderate strains. Not all material models
are suitable for large strain analysis, even though the displacement and rotation can be
large.

Green–Lagrange strain Nonlinear strain measure used in large-deformation analysis.

In a small strain, large rotation analysis, the Green–Lagrange strain corresponds to
the engineering strain, with the strain values interpreted in the original directions. The
Green–Lagrange strain is a natural choice when formulating a problem in the
undeformed state. The conjugate stress is the second Piola–Kirchhoff stress.

initial strain The strain in a stress-free structure before it is loaded.

initial stress The stress in a nondeformed structure before it is loaded.

isotropic material A material where the material properties are independent of

direction.

Lagrangian Model described and solved in a coordinate system that moves with the
material. See also Eulerian and arbitrary Lagrangian–Eulerian method.

large deformation The deformations are so large so the nonlinear effect of the change
in geometry or stress stiffening need to be accounted for. See also geometric
nonlinearity.

linear buckling analysis Solves for the linear buckling load using the eigenvalue solver.

linear viscoelasticity See viscoelastic material.

1898 | CHAPTER 14: GLOSSARY

load multiplier A load used in linearized buckling analysis for estimating the critical
load at which a structure becomes unstable.

mass damping parameter Rayleigh damping parameter, the coefficient in front of the
mass matrix.

mass participation factors A measure of the sensitivity of a certain eigenmode to a

uniform acceleration.

mixed formulation A formulation used for nearly incompressible materials, where the
mean stress have been added as a dependent variable to avoid numerical problems.

nonlinear geometry See large deformations.

orthotropic material An orthotropic material has at least two orthogonal planes of

symmetry, where material properties are independent of direction within each plane.
Such materials require nine elastic constants in the constitutive equations.

parametric study A study that finds the solution dependence due to the variation of a
specific parameter.

pinned A constraint condition where the displacement degrees of freedom are fixed
but the rotational degrees of freedom are free, typically used for frames modeled using
beam and truss elements.

plane strain An assumption on the strain field where all out-of-plane strain
components are assumed to be zero.

plane stress An assumption on the stress field, all out-of-plane stress components are
assumed to be zero.

plate Thin plane structure loaded in the normal direction.

principle of virtual work States that the variation in internal strain energy is equal to
the work done by external forces.

principal stresses/strains Normal stresses/strains with no shear components that act

on the principal planes. The magnitude of the principal stresses/strains are
independent of the coordinate system used.

GLOSSARY OF TERMS | 1899

 rate of strain tensor The rate at which the strain tensor changes with respect to time
in time-dependent studies.

quasistatic transient study The loads vary slow enough for the inertia terms to be
negligible. A transient thermal study coupled with a structural analysis can often be
treated as quasi static.

Rayleigh damping A viscous damping model where the damping is proportional to the
mass and stiffness through the mass and stiffness damping parameters.

rotational degrees of freedom Degrees of freedom associated with a rotation around

an axis. Beams, rigid connectors, rigid domains, and shells have rotational degrees of
freedom.

second Piola–Kirchhoff stress Conjugate stress to Green–Lagrange strain used in

large deformation analysis. The orientations of the stress components follow the
material directions.

shell elements A thin element where both bending and membrane effects are
included.

source boundary One side of a contact pair; the destination boundary is prohibited
to penetrate the source boundary.

spar see bar.

spin tensor The skew-symmetric part of the velocity gradient tensor.

stationary study A study where the loads and constraints are constant in time. Also
called static.

strain Relative change in length, a fundamental concept in structural mechanics.

stress Internal forces in the material, normal stresses are defined as forces/area normal
to a plane, and shear stresses are defined as forces/area in the plane. A fundamental
concept in structural mechanics.

stress stiffening The geometrically nonlinear effect which supplies the out-of-plane
stiffness for membranes, for example.

1900 | CHAPTER 14: GLOSSARY

stiffness damping parameter Rayleigh damping parameter, the coefficient in front of
the stiffness matrix.

strain energy The energy stored by a structure as it deforms under load. Also called
elastic energy.

time dependent study A time-dependent or transient study shows how the solution
varies over time, taking into account mass, mass moment of inertia, and damping.

Tresca stress An equivalent stress measure that is equal to the maximum shear stress.

truss See bar.

viscoelastic material Viscoelastic materials have a time-dependent response, even if

the loading is constant. Many polymers and biological tissues exhibit such a behavior.
Linear viscoelasticity is a commonly used approximation where the stress depends
linearly on the strain and its time derivatives.

GLOSSARY OF TERMS | 1901

1902 | CHAPTER 14: GLOSSARY
I n d e x
A about layered shell 1366 acpr interface 1863
absolute values 556 axisymmetric twist and bending 84
absolute-tolerance parameters 353 beam cross sections 1630
abstract rigid domain 639 beam end release 1623
acoustic-structure interaction, frequency beams 1574
domain interface 252 beam-solid connection 99
activation 246 Cam-Clay material 862
activation (node) 963 circumferential mode extension 831,
layered shell interface 1417 1182, 1243
added mass (node) 1080 connecting shells and beams 1535
layered shell interface 1461 cross section data 1578
shell and plate interfaces 1333 damping 975
added mass, interface (node) 1462 decohesion 228
added mass, theory 730 eigenfrequency analysis 60, 1198
adding external stress 951
connections 94 generation of time history from fre-
additive strain decomposition (check quency domain results 56, 67
box) 850, 857, 864, 881, 1497 geometric nonlinearity 202
adhesion (node) 1141 harmonic perturbation 72
adiabatic heating (node) 1086 initial stress and strain 948, 1512
alpha coefficient 930 large plastic strains 906
Anand viscoplasticity 587 layered shells 1385
angle of internal friction 523, 531, 930 layered shell-shell coupling 1887
angular acceleration and velocity 635 linear buckling study 78, 323
anisotropic materials load cases 104, 106
defining 431 membrane interface 1487
elastic properties 849, 1493 MEMS materials database 137
antisymmetry (node) modal mass 59
beam interface 1606 model superposition 69
layered shell interface 1442 Mooney-Rivlin, two parameters 876
membrane 1521 multiple model method 1887
shell and plate interfaces 1312 Ogden 876
solid mechanics 1023 one-way FSI 269
truss interface 1695, 1717 piezoelectric devices 1819, 1825, 1835
Application Libraries window 46 piezoelectric materials database 137
application library examples pipe mechanics 1745

INDEX| 1903
 plasticity models 906 layered shell interface 1469
portal crane 1538 shell and plate interfaces 1360
pressure acoustics, frequency domain shells 1622
1863 solid mechanics 1113
prestressed bolts 78, 298 theory 640
response spectrum analysis 79–80, 234, attachments
335, 343 theory 122
rigid connector 298, 1103, 1152, 1156 augmented Lagrangian method 34, 211,
self-contact 234 751
sharing edges 1877, 1884 average rotation (node) 1185
shell-beam connection 99 axial stress 1650
shells 1246 axial symmetry
soil plasticity 932 constraints and 116
solid mechanics 838 initial stress and strain 415
solid-shell connection 99 axisymmetric models
spring foundation 250 solid mechanics 84
thermal bending of beam 1585 azimuthal mode number 403
thermal expansion 942 azimuthal wave number 735
thermal expansion at constraints 263
B back stress 543, 589
thermal stress 1773
base excitation (node) 1030, 1763
transient contact 231
beam
trusses 1672, 1707
coupling to a solid 96
viscoelastic material 898
beam cross section interface 1652
viscoplastic material 917
theory 1635
applied force (node) 993, 1106
beam cross section-beam coupling
theory 641
(node) 1891
applied moment (node) 995, 1108
beam end release (node) 1622
theory 641
beam interface 1571
applying
theory 1528, 1540
loads 102
beam-beam cross section coupling
moments 108
(node) 1892
arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian (ALE)
beams
method 197
cross-section data 1577
area scale factor, layered shell 1371
initial loads and strains 1547
area, beam cross sections 1635
initial stresses and strains 1588
Arruda-Boyce material 499
linear elastic material 1584
associated flow rule 547
loads applied 1613
attachment (node)
prescribed acceleration 1599

1904 | I N D E X
 prescribed displacement/rotation truss interface 1672, 1707
1593, 1687 boundary pair (node) 1092
prescribed velocity 1597 boundary to boundary (node) 1344
section orientation 1581 box sections, beams 1577, 1674
strain-displacement/rotation 1545 Bresler-Pister criterion 552
stress evaluation 1552 buckling 32
thermal expansion 1586 built-in couplings 94
thermal strain 1546 bulk modulus
Beltrami-Michell 1641 elastic moduli 427, 848, 1065
bending shear stress 1650
C calcite 556
bending shear stresses 1637
calculating stress and strain 1210
bending stress 1650
Cam-clay model 558
biaxial compression 553
canonical systems 382
biaxial data 555
carbonate rocks 556
biaxial tension 933
Cauchy stress 409
bimoment 1649
Cauchy stress tensor 195
Blatz-Ko material 502
Cayley-Hamilton theorem 393, 412
body load (node)
cell periodicity 1092
layered shell interface 1444
cell periodicity (node)
shell and plate interfaces 1313
solid mechanics 1088
solid mechanics 1026
center of gravity, beam cross sections
bolt pretension (node) 1150
1635
bolt pre-tension, theory 290
center of mass
bolt selection (node) 1153
boundary (node) 999
bolt thread contact (node) 1156
edge (node) 999
bolted joints 290
point (node) 999
boundary conditions
rigid domains 634
contact pairs 219
center of rotation 1639
shell and plate interfaces 1208
attachments 124
boundary load (node) 1036
boundary (node) 1104
for thin layer 1059
edge (node) 1104
layered shell interface 1449
point (node) 1104
boundary nodes
rigid domains 637
beam interface 1574, 1746
ceramics 553
layered shell 1386
change cross section (node)
membrane interface 1488
solid mechanics 844
shell and plate interfaces 1247
change thickness (node)
solid mechanics 838
solid mechanics 844

INDEX| 1905
 charge conservation, piezoelectric continuity (node)
(node) 883 layered shell interface 1471
circle, Mohr 523 continuity, layered shell 1376
circular sections, beams 1577, 1674 converse piezoelectric effect 151
circumferential mode number 403 coordinate system, beam cross sections
Coble creep 578 1637
coefficient of thermal expansion coordinate systems
beams 1587 constraints and 114
shells and plates 1271 loads and 102
cohesion 523, 930 local edge system 1301
cohesionless soils 530 solid mechanics theory 382
cohesive zone model 225 coordinate systems, membranes 1478
cohesive-frictional materials 553 Coulomb friction 1135
common sections, beam interface 1577 coupling
common sections, truss interface 1674 beam to a shell 97
common settings 43 beam to a solid 96
complementarity 547 membrane to a solid 95
complex mechanical energy flux 811 shell to a solid 95
complex modulus 188 coupling loss (node) 978
compressive meridians 412, 524, 554 layered shell interface 1426
concrete 552, 554 coupling operator 99
concrete (node) 933 crack (node) 1158
conduction loss (time-harmonic) (node) crack closure (node) 1160
981 Craig-Bampton method 270
connection creep (node) 909
beam edge to shell edge 1222 layered shell interface 1404
beam perpendicular to solid 1221 membrane interface 1502
beam point to shell boundary 1223 shell and plate interfaces 1265
beam point to shell edge 1224 creep dissipation rate density 593
connections creep strain rate 574
beams, shells 1222 critical load factor 77, 319
beams, shells, solids 1215 cross section data (node) 1674
shell perpendicular to solid 1216 cross-section data (node) 1577
consistency parameter 546 crystal cleavage 556
constitutive relation, membranes 1481 crystal cut standards 154
constraints 113 crystals
contact (node) 1122 elastic properties 850
contact formulation 230 curvature 1547

1906 | I N D E X
 cyclic symmetry, theory 734 dielectric loss (node) 979
cylindrical coordinate systems 84 layered shell interface 1427
dielectric loss factor 167
D damage (node) 958
diffusional creep 578
damped eigenfrequency study 187
dilatational contributions 486
damping
direct piezoelectric effect 151, 600
equation of motion, and 182
discretization, layered shell 1372
loss factors 186
dislocation creep 578
losses and 181
dispersion curves 63
point mass 1614, 1699
displacement field, defining 191
solid mechanics 972
displacement gradients 385
viscoelastic materials, and 478
displacement variables
damping (node)
element types and 93
layered shell interface 1423
dissipated energy 810
membrane interface 1517
dissipated energy density 550, 593
shell and plate interfaces 1287
dissipated energy density rate 458
solid mechanics 970
dissipation, piezoelectric materials 606
damping models 186
distortional contributions 486
decohesion (node) 1143
disturbance factor 558
defining
documentation 44
anisotropic materials 431
dolomite 556
constraints 113
domain nodes
isotropic materials 426
solid mechanics 838
multiphysics models 251
double dogleg nonlinear solver 236
orthotropic materials 429
Drucker-Prager criterion 525
thermoelastic materials 435
ductile materials 520
deformation gradient 385
Dulong-Petit law 435
deformation resistance 588
dynamic cyclic symmetry 734
saturation coefficient 588
dynamic frictional coefficients 763
sensitivity 588
dynamic substructure 270
delamination (node) 1419
destination filter (node) 1121 E edge group (node) 1624
destination point edge load (node)
boundary (node) 1080 beam interface 1607
edge (node) 1080 layered shell interface 1451
point (node) 1080 shell and plate interfaces 1317
destination point (node) 1079 solid mechanics 1040
destinations and sources 216 truss interface 1696, 1718
deviatoric stress 518 edge nodes

INDEX| 1907
 beam interface 1574, 1746 equivalent plastic strain rate 517
membrane interface 1488 equivalent single layer shell theory 1226
solid mechanics 838 equivalent viscous damping 187
truss interface 1672, 1707 evanescent modes 62
edge to boundary (node) 1345 excitation frequency 187
edge to edge (node) 1348 explicit damping 188
effective stress 1651 external loads, shell and plate interfaces
effective stress tensor 557 1209
eigenfrequency study 57 external strain (node) 952
solid mechanics 679 layered shell interface 1414
eigenvalue solvers 57 external stress (node) 948, 1590, 1684
eight-chain model 500 layered shell interface 1412
elastic deformation tensor 395 membrane interface 1513
elastic energy 808 shell and plate interfaces 1279
elastic Green-Lagrange strain tensor 397 external stress-strain relation (node) 982
elastic material properties 848–850,
F face load (node) 1162
1491–1493
layered shell interface 1446
elastic moduli 426
shell and plate interfaces 1315
elastic predeformation (node) 1170
face loadt (node)
elastic right Cauchy–Green tensor 397
for thin layer 1057
elastic strain energy 508
failure surfaces 516
elastic wire (node) 1709
ferroelectroelasticity multiphysics inter-
elasticity matrix 426
face 1825
elastoplastic materials 516
fiber (node) 937
electromechanics interface
Filter 248
theory 610
first order shear deformation laminate
electrostriction (node) 1848
theory 1228
electrostriction multiphysics interface
first Piola-Kirchhoff stress 409
1824
fixed constraint (node) 989, 1011
element types 93
for thin layer 1055
elliptic cap 527
layered shell interface 1437
elplastic 547–548
shell and plate interfaces 1291
emailing COMSOL 46
fixed constraint, interface (node) 1438
embedded reinforcement (node) 1888
fixed constraint, theory 640
energy dissipation 810
fixed joint (node) 1120
energy function 483
Floquet periodicity, theory 734
energy quantities 808
flow rule 546
equation of motion, damping and 182
fluid and pipe materials (node) 1756

1908 | I N D E X
 fluid load (node) 1766 Generalized Kelvin–Voigt viscoelastic
fluid pore pressure 530 model 460
fluid-membrane interaction, fixed geom- generalized Maxwell model 453
etry 1796 Gent material 500
fluid-pipe interaction 1868 geological strength index (GSI) 557
fluid-pipe interaction, fixed geometry geometric nonlinearity 198
1798 membranes 1476
fluid-shell interaction 1790 micromechanics, and 190
fluid-solid interaction 1785, 1794, 1807 piezoelectric devices 203
fluid-structure interaction 1788, 1863, geometrically linear formulation (check
1868 box) 850, 857, 864, 881, 886, 889, 983,
fluid-structure interaction interface 1398, 1493, 1497, 1585, 1592, 1758
theory 740 glass transition temperature 476
fluid-structure interaction, fixed geome- global
try 1792 coordinate systems 382
fluid-structure interaction, pair 1865 GMRES iterative solvers 352
fold lines 1206 gradient displacements 385
foldline connection, layered shell 1375 gravity (node) 1028
fold-line limit angle 1244, 1382 pipe mechanics interface 1762
follower loads 1485 Green’s theorem 1644
free (node) 1002 Green-Lagrange strain 191
layered shell interface 1429 Green-Lagrange tensor 388
free-free modes 59
H Haigh–Westergaard coordinates 413
frequency domain study
hardening models
solid mechanics 675
theory 538
frequency domain, prestressed study 202
harmonic loads 675
frequency response study
harmonic perturbation 70
loss factor damping 187
harmonic perturbation (node)
friction (node) 1134
shell and plate interfaces 1363
friction forces 1137
truss interface 1174, 1625
friction models 1135
hear center 1639
friction, angle 523, 531, 930
hear correction factor 1638
frictionless materials 524, 526
heat dissipation 188
G Gao material 503 Hencky plastic strain 549
Garofalo law 577 Hencky strain 390
Gauss points 547–548 Hermitian matrices 351
general extrusion operator 99 hexagonal prism 519
generalized Hoek-Brown criterion 557 Hill orthotropic plasticity 521

INDEX| 1909
 Hill’s effective stress 523 beam interface 1588
Hoek-Brown criterion 556 layered shell interface 1411
hole (node) 1655 membrane interface 1511
homogeneous cross section (node) 1653 shell and plate interfaces 1276
H-profile sections, beams 1577, 1674 solid mechanics 947
hydrostatic axis 413 truss interface 1684, 1712
hydrostatic pressure 410, 523 initial values (node)
hydrostatic stress 531 beam interface 1576
hygroscopic swelling 109 layered shell interface 1390
hygroscopic swelling (node) 943 rigid domains 988
layered shell interface 1409 shell and plate interfaces 1249
membrane interface 1509 solid mechanics 843
hygroscopic swelling (node), multiphys- initial yield stress 538–539
ics 1843 integration in a laminate 1228
hyperbolic sinus 577 intercalation strain (node) 946
hyperelastic material 809 internet resources 44
hyperelastic material (node) 866 invariants 483
layered shell interface 1393 inverse piezoelectric effect 600
hyperelastic materials 492 Ising spin model 630
nearly incompressible 490 isochoric
theory 483 contributions 486
hysteretic loss 160 process 386
strain energy density 490
I I.R.E. standard, for material orientation
isochoric strain energy 508
152
isochoric-elastic
ideal plasticity 538
deformation 486
IEEE standard, for material orientation
Green-Lagrange strain tensor 487
152
right Cauchy-Green tensor 486
imperfection sensitivity 322
isotropic hardening 539
implementation
isotropic materials
beams 1548
defining 426
trusses 1664, 1705
elastic properties 848, 1491
inelastic deformation tensor 396
isotropic plasticity 516
inertial effects, contact modeling 230
isotropic rocks 557
inertial forces 635
iterative solvers 351
initial loads and strains, beams 1547
initial stress and strain 607 J j-integral (node) 1163
theory 414 joints, bolted 290
initial stress and strain (node) 947 Joule heating and thermal expansion in-

1910 | I N D E X
 terface 252, 1780 beam interface 1584
layered shell interface 1391
K k coefficient 931
membrane interface 1490
Kelvin–Voigt viscoelastic model 464
shell and plate interfaces 1253, 1259
kinematic constraints 122
truss interface 1678
kinematic hardening 542
linear elastic materials 132
kinematics, rigid domain 633
linear viscoelasticity 451
kinetic energy 810
linearized buckling analysis 77, 319
knowledge base, COMSOL 47
linearly accelearted frame (node)
Kuhn-Tucker conditions 547
layered shell interface 1448
L Lade-Duncan criterion 530
linearly accelerated frame (node) 1034,
Lagrange elements 90
1764
Lagrange shape functions, trusses and
linper operator 70
1662
load cases 104
Lagrangian formulations 384
load multiplier 319
Lamé parameters 427, 848
loads
lamina constitutive law 1229
applied to beams 1613
laminate constitutive law 1232
pressure 108
large deformation modeling 384
singular 106
large deformations 33
total 110
piezoelectric materials 203
local coordinate systems 383
large plastic strain 546
local edge system 1301
large strain plasticity 485
local system results (node) 1183
layered linear elastic material (node)
location
membrane interface 1494
boundary (node) 995
shell and plate interfaces 1255
edge (node) 995
layered shell interface 1381
point (node) 995
theory 1366
locking 489
layered shell-shell connection (node)
Lode angle 412
1886
Hoek-Brown criterion 556
layered shell-structure cladding (node)
Mohr-Coulomb criterion 524
1885
Tresca criterion 519
left Cauchy-Green tensor 389
Willam-Warnke criterion 553
Lie derivative 547
logarithmic decrement 182
limestone 556
logarithmic plastic strain 549
limiting chain extensibility 500
long-term shear modulus 453
line load (node) 1452
loss factor damping
linear buckling study 32, 202
solid mechanics and 186
linear elastic material (node) 845

INDEX| 1911
 solid mechanics theory 186 membrane
springs, and 250 coupling to a solid 95
loss modulus 188, 478 membrane interface 1486
losses and damping 181 theory 1476
low-reflecting boundary (node) 1093 meridians, tensile and compressive 412,
low-reflecting boundary, theory 733 524, 554
metal plasticity 517
M macroscopic shear modulus 499
metals 520, 525
magnetic forces 1854
Mindlin plate theory 1216
magnetically actuated structures 1826
Mindlin-Reissner type shell 1195
magnetomechanical forces 1852
MITC shell formulation 1195, 1205
magnetomechanics interface 1826
mixed formulations 134, 438
magnetomechanics, no currents inter-
mobilized planes 530
face 1828
mode analysis study 62
magnetostatically actuated structures
modeling, large deformations 384
1828
modified Cam-clay model 558
magnetostriction 614
modified Mohr-Coulomb criterion 532
marble 556
modified tensors 487
mass and moment of inertia (node) 997,
Mohr’s circle 1636
1110
Mohr-Coulomb criterion 523
theory 639
moments 635
mass density 386
beams 1580, 1750
mass matrix scaling 74
shells and plates 1209
mass moment of inertia 1613
solid mechanics and 108
material coordinates 381
moments of inertia 1528, 1628
material frame 191
moments of inertia, beam cross sections
material models 129
1635
materials
Mooney-Rivlin material
nearly incompressible 133, 437
five parameters 494
piezoelectric 600
nine parameters 495
viscoelastic 451
two parameters 493
materials, hyperelastic 483
moving mesh interface, piezoelectric de-
Matsuoka-Nakai criterion 530
vices and 205
max scaling 74
MPH-files 46
max shear stress factor 1638
mu coefficient 931
Maxwell stress tensor 610
mullins effect (node) 898
mechanical damping (node) 976
layered shell interface 1400
layered shell interface 1425
multiaxial stress states 552
mechanical energy flux 811

1912 | I N D E X
 multibody dynamics interface 1113 applied force 993
multiphysics applied moment 995
electrostriction 1824, 1848 no rotation (node)
ferroelectroelasticity 1825 beam interface 1603
hygroscopic swelling 1843 shell and plate interfaces 1304
nonlinear magnetostriction 1833, 1858 nodes, common settings 43
piezoelectric effect 1845 nominal stress 419
piezoelectricity 1817 nonassociated flow rule 547
piezomagnetic effect 1856 nonlinear elastic material 809
piezomagnetism 1830 nonlinear elastic material (node) 853
multiphysics coupling nonlinear magnetostriction (node), mult-
fluid-membrane interaction, fixed ge- iphysics 1858
ometry 1796 nonlinear magnetostriction multiphysics
fluid-pipe interaction 1868 interface 1833
fluid-pipe interaction, fixed geometry Norton equation 577
1798
O octahedral plane 413
fluid-shell interaction 1790
Ogden material 496
fluid-solid interaction 1785, 1794, 1807
one-way model formulations 741
fluid-structure interaction 1788, 1863,
orientation, piezoelectric material 152
1868
orthotropic materials
fluid-structure interaction, fixed ge-
defining 429
ometry 1792
elastic properties 849, 1492
fluid-structure interaction, pair 1865
Ottosen criterion 554
Joule heating and thermal expansion
over-consolidation pressure 563
1780
overpressure 1723
thermal expansion (node) 1837
P pair nodes
thermal stress 1772
beam interface 1574, 1746
multiphysics modeling 251
membrane interface 1488
MUMPS direct solvers 351
solid mechanics 838
Murnaghan material 504
truss interface 1672, 1707
N Navarro-Herring creep 578
parametric analysis 32
Navier-Stokes equations 740
PARDISO direct solvers 351
nearly incompressible hyperelastic mate-
penalty factors
rials 490
contact node, and 1127
nearly incompressible materials 133, 415,
contact pairs and 220
437
penalty method 751
Neo-Hookean material 492
perfectly elastoplastic materials 538
Neumann boundary conditions
perfectly plastic hardening 538

INDEX| 1913
 periodic boundary conditions 1083, 1088 stress evaluation 1731
periodic condition (node) plane stress and strain 82, 830, 832–833
shell and plate interfaces 1337 planes, symmetry and constraints 117
solid mechanics 1083 plastic deformation gradient 398
periodic conditions, theory 734 plastic element 547–548
phase (node) 1172 plastic flow rule 549
beam interface 1624 plastic Green-Lagrange strain 398
layered shell interface 1454 plastic multiplier 546
shell and plate interfaces 1362 plastic potential 546
solid mechanics 1172 plasticity (node) 899
physics interfaces layered shell interface 1401
connecting to DOF 93 membrane interface 1500
physics interfaces, common settings 43 shell and plate interfaces 1263
piezoelectric coupling 1817 plasticity models 900
piezoelectric crystal cut 152 plate interface 1242
piezoelectric effect (node) 1845 theory 1201
piezoelectric losses 160 plates
piezoelectric material (node) 883 external loads 1209
layered shell 1395 initial stresses and strains 1276
piezoelectricity multiphysics interface linear elastic material 1253
1817 MITC shell formulation 1205
piezomagnetic coupling 888 prescribed acceleration 1300
piezomagnetic coupling matrices 616 prescribed displacement/rotation 1293
piezomagnetic effect (node), multiphys- prescribed velocity 1298
ics 1856 stress and strain calculations 1210
piezomagnetic material 887 symmetry and antisymmetry 1208
piezomagnetic material (node) 887 point load (node) 1041
piezomagnetism multiphysics interface beam interface 1610
1830 layered shell interface 1453
pinned (node) shell and plate interfaces 1320
beam interface 1601 point load on axis (node) 1050
shell and plate interfaces 1303 point load, free (node) 1045
truss interface 1691, 1713 beam and pipe mechanics interfaces
pipe cross section (node) 1748 1612
pipe mechanics interface 1743 shell and plate interfaces 1322
theory 1722 point loads example 106
pipe sections, beams 1577, 1674 point mass (node)
pipes beam interface 1613

1914 | I N D E X
 shell and plate interfaces 1335 theory 640
truss interface 1698 prescribed velocity (node) 1006
point mass damping (node) beam interface 1597
beam interface 1614 layered shell interface 1432
shell and plate interfaces 1336 shell and plate interfaces 1298
truss interface 1699 solid mechanics 1006
point nodes prescribed velocity, interface (node)
beam interface 1574, 1746 1433
membrane interface 1488 pressure loads 108
solid mechanics 838 pressure-wave speeds 427, 848
truss interface 1672, 1707 prestressed analysis, eigenfrequency
Poisson type equation 1641 study 202
Poisson’s ratio 133, 427, 438, 848, 1065 primary creep 575
polynomial hyperelastic material 494 principal stresses 411, 413
port (node) 1166 principal stretches 483
power law 577 principle of virtual work 673
Prager’s hardening rule 543 Prony series 453
Prandtl stress function 1646 propagating modes 62
predeformation (node) 1072
Q quaternion constraint 633
layered shell interface 1460
quaternion representation, of rigid con-
shell and plate interfaces 1333
nector 745
prescribed acceleration (node) 1009
R radius of gyration 1636
beam interface 1599
random vibration analysis 32
layered shell interface 1434
rate independent plasticity 546
shell and plate interfaces 1300
rate of strain tensor 394, 548
prescribed acceleration, interface (node)
Rayleigh damping 184
1436
rectangle sections, beams 1577, 1674
prescribed displacement (node)
reduced component (node) 1119
for thin layer 1053
reduced flexible components (node)
layered shell interface 1430
1117
solid mechanics 1003
reference coordinates 381
prescribed displacement, interface
renaming
(node) 1431
displacement DOF 94
prescribed displacement, theory 640
representative volume element 287, 742
prescribed displacement/rotation (node)
resonant frequency 184
990
response spectrum analysis 32, 336
beam interface 1593, 1687
results evaluation in a laminate 1239
shell and plate interfaces 1293
results evaluation, for shells 1213

INDEX| 1915
 results evaluation, layered shells 1379 roller, interface (node) 1441
reverse crack front (node) 1165 rollert (node)
right Cauchy-Green deformation tensor for thin layer 1056
388, 483 rotated coordinate system 155
right polar decomposition 387 rotating frame (node) 1031
right stretch tensor 387 layered shell interface 1447
rigid body 632 rotation matrix 633
rigid connection type, shells 1217 rotation, rigid body 633
rigid connector 744 rotational degrees of freedom 1529
rigid connector (node) 1093, 1615 rotational joints, beams 122
layered shell interface 1466
S safety (node) 654, 964, 1657
shell and plate interfaces 1351
layered shell interface 1422
rigid connector theory 640
membrane interface 1516
rigid connector, interface (node) 1467
shell and plate interfaces 1286
rigid connectors
Saint-Venant torsion 1650
kinematic constraints and 122
saturated cohesive soils 520
moments and 108
scaling of eigenvectors 57
rigid domain (node)
second Piola-Kirchhoff stress 195, 383,
layered shell interface 1428
409
theory 632
secondary creep 575
rigid domains
section forces (node) 1178
angular acceleration 635
section orientation (node) 1581
angular velocity 635
pipe mechanics interface 1752, 1755
dynamics 635
section stiffness (node)
rigid material (node) 984
shell and plate interfaces 1289
pipe mechanics interface 1758
selecting
rigid motion suppression (node) 1024
solvers 350
layered shell interface 1443
serendipity elements 90
ring load (node) 1047
shape factors 555
shell and plate interface 1325
shape memory alloy 595
ring load, free (node) 1048
shear area 1638
shell and plate interfaces 1327
shear correction factor computation
rock mass 558
1237
rock types 556
shear modulus expression 427, 848, 1065
rocks 556
shear stresses 411, 523
rocks (node) 935
shear-wave speeds 427, 848
roller (node) 1016
shell
layered shell interface 1440
coupling to a beam 97

1916 | I N D E X
 coupling to a solid 95 1882
shell interface 1242 solver methods
theory 1201 augmented Lagrangian 751
shells penalty method 751
external loads 1209 solver parameters 350
initial stresses and strains 1276 solver settings 350
linear elastic material 1253 SOR line solvers 352
MITC shell formulation 1205 source filter (node) 1121
prescribed acceleration 1300 source point
prescribed displacement/rotation 1293 boundary (node) 1079
prescribed velocity 1298 edge (node) 1079
stress and strain calculations 1210 point (node) 1079
symmetry and antisymmetry 1208 source point (node) 1079
shift function 892 sources and destinations 216
sign conventions 410 spatial coordinates 381
simply supported (node) 1306 spatial stress tensor 195
singular loads 106 spatially mobilized planes (STP) 530
size factors 555 spin tensor 394
skew-symmetric part 393 spring constant 249
slip velocity (node) 1138 spring foundation 999
slit boundary 290, 292 spring foundation (node) 999, 1062, 1111
SLS model 465 layered shell interface 1455
small plastic strain 545 shell and plate interfaces 1329
soil deformation theory 563 spring foundation, interface (node) 1456
soil plasticity (node) 929 spring foundation, solid mechanics 249
solid spring foundation, theory 721
coupling to a beam 96 spring-damper (node) 1073
coupling to a membrane 95 spring-damper material (node) 1686
coupling to a shell 95 St Venant torsion 1648
solid mechanics St Venant-Kirchhoff material 493
damping 972 St. Venant’s principle 106
edge loads 1040 standard linear solid model 465
initial stresses and strains 947 standard settings 43
prescribed acceleration 1009 static frictional coefficients 763
prescribed velocity 1006 stationary solvers 350
solid mechanics interface 828 steady-state creep 575
theory 379 steady-state stiffness 453
solid-shell connection (node) 1874, 1877, storage modulus 188, 478

INDEX| 1917
 Storakers material 498 solid mechanics 1018
stored energy 809 truss interface 1693, 1715
straight edge constraint (node) 1677 symmetry constraints 116
straight edges 1665 symmetry plane (node) 1310
strain energy density 508, 809 solid mechanics 1021
strain-displacement, trusses 1662, 1703
T tangent modulus 539
strain-displacement/rotation 1545
tangential strains 1480
strains, membranes 1478
technical support, COMSOL 46
stress
temperature loads 109
Cachy 409
tensile meridian 412
first Piola-Kirchhoff 409
tensile meridians 524, 526, 531, 554
second Piola-Kirchhoff 409
tension cut-off 532
stress and strain, piezoelectric devices
tertiary creep 575
176, 600, 615
theory
stress components, beam cross sections
beam cross sections 1635
1640
beam interface 1528, 1540
stress evaluation, beams 1552
electromechanics 610
stress evaluation, pipes 1731
fluid-structure interaction 740
stress linearization (node) 1175
layered shell interface 1366
stress stiffening 1476
membrane interface 1476
stresses, membranes 1478
pipe mechanics interface 1722
stress-strain relation
shell and plate interfaces 1201
beams 1545
solid mechanics interface 379
trusses 1663, 1703
theory background of laminated shell
structure-pipe connection (node) 1887
1224
study steps, geometric nonlinearity and
thermal expansion
198
loads and 109
study types
thermal expansion (for constraints)
eigenfrequency 679
(node)
frequency domain, solid mechanics 675
layered shell interface 1439
parametric 32
shell and plate interfaces 1296
surface traction and reaction forces 127
thermal expansion (multiphysics cou-
symmetric matrices 350
pling) 1837
symmetry (node)
thermal expansion (node) 940
beam interface 1604
beam interface 1586
layered shell interface 1442
layered shell interface 1408
membrane interface 1519
membrane interface 1507
shell and plate interfaces 1307
pipe mechanics interface 1760

1918 | I N D E X
 shell and plate interface 1269 TRS material 475
solid mechanics 940, 1013, 1602, 1691, true strain 390
1713 true stress tensor 195
thermal expansion, hyperelastic materi- truss interface 1671
als and 484 trusses
thermal strain harmonic perturbation 1174, 1625
beams 1546 initial stresses and strains 1684, 1712
thermal stress interface 1772 linear elastic material 1678
modeling 251 straight edge 1665
thermal-electric-structural interaction strain-displacement 1662, 1703
252 two-point tensor 386
thermoelastic materials, defining 435
U undrained shear strength 519
thermorheologically simple viscoelastic
uniaxial compression 552, 555–556, 662
materials 475
uniaxial tension 518, 933
thickness and offset (node)
units, loads and 102
shell and plate interfaces 1250
u-profile sections, beams 1577, 1674
thickness change (node) 1252
user defined material 506
thin elastic layer (node) 1068
using
layered shell interface 1458
coordinate systems 382
thin elastic layer, interface (node) 1459
predefined variables 125
thin elastic layer, solid mechanics 249
spatial and material coordinates 381
thin elastic layer, theory 722
weak constraints 126
thin layer (node) 1052
uspring variable 249
three-parameter model 465
V Varga material 498
torsion, beam cross sections 1646
variables
torsional constants and moments 1549
cross section data, beams 1632
torsional shear stress 1650
deformation gradient tensor 387
total Lagrangian formulation 33
density 386
total loads 110
elastic Green-Lagrange tensor 397
t-profile sections, beams 1577, 1674
elastic right Cauchy-Green tensor 397
tractions 195
elastic, inelastic, and total volume ratio
transient creep 575
397
translation, rigid body 633
equivalent plastic strain 517, 542
Tresca effective stress variable 519
Green-Lagrange tensor 389
Tresca stress 518
invariants 507
Tresca yield criterion 518
isochoric elastic Green-Lagrange
triaxial conditions 553
strain tensor 488
triaxial data 555
isochoric-elastic Cauchy-Green defor-

INDEX| 1919
 mation tensor 487 volumetric plastic strain rate 517
isochoric-elastic right Cauchy-Green volumetric plastic strain variable 559, 563
deformation tensor 487 volumetric strain energy 508
material and spatial coordinates 382 volumetric strain energy density 490
predefined 125 von Mises criterion 517–518
principal elastic stretches 507 von Mises effective stress 1651
right Cauchy-Green deformation ten- von Mises stress 518
sor 389
W warping function 1646
right stretch tensor 387
warping, beam cross sections 1648
rotation tensor 387
wave speeds 849, 1492, 1585
stresses, beams 1633
wave speeds (node) 1187
thermal stretch and thermal volume
waveguide 62
ratio 485
weak constraints, using 126
Tresca effective stress 519
wear (node) 1146
volumetric plastic strain 517, 559, 563
websites, COMSOL 47
vdamper variable 250
Weertman creep 578
Vicat softening temperature 477
Willam-Warnke criterion 553
Villari effect 615
wire interface 1706
viscoelastic materials
WLF shift functions 476, 892
definition 132
Wrinkling (node) 1506
frequency domain analysis and damp-
Y yield function 517
ing 478
yield functions 523
temperature effects 475
yield stress levels 901
theory 451
yield surface 547
viscoelasticity (node) 891
yield surfaces 515, 525
layered shell interface 1399
Young’s modulus expression 427, 848,
membrane interface 1498
1065
shell and plate interfaces 1262
viscoplasticity (node) 915, 923 Z Zener model 465
layered shell interface 1407
membrane interface 1505
shell and plate interfaces 1268
viscous damping 188, 250
Voigt form 153
Voigt notation 428
volume reference density 256
volume-preserving contributions 486
volumetric contributions 486

1920 | I N D E X