Clinical significance of three dimensional finite element analysis on humerus fracture

Objective: To treat humerus fracture with three dimensional pattern and finite element analysis, providing mechanical basis for treating humerus fracture. Methods: Humerus pattern was established based on the CT images, and calculation was done by ANSYS5. 6 software. Three dimensional ten-node tetrahedron unit was selected and were divided into 2 729 nodes, 49 041 units. Distribution and amount of axial compression of humerus were analyzed when clip angle was 30°, 45°, 90° between fracture face and axial line with fixed X, Y, Z directions. Results: The distribution of stress was greatly different between fracture face and non fracture face. Stress in fracture part was fairly concentrated with incomplete symmetric distribution around the center of fracture face; Greater stress distributed in the regions 10 mm from fracture face, which was 2-3 times that of other stress regions. Conclusion: Required load must be estimated under various conditions as to select the suitable internal fixation implants during the treatment of humerus fracture, which can provide helpful stress environment for fracture healing.

Dynamic mechanism for horizontal deformation in part of North China area——Three-dimensional finite-element calculation and analysis of results from GPS remeasurement

A deformation monitoring network that covers part of North China area and takes the Beijing region as the center was measured for two times with high precision GPS in 1995 and 1996 respectively. The results from remeasurement indicate that present horizontal movement in the monitored area is characterized by relative motion among several main tectonic blocks. Considering the spatial distribution features obtained from geological survey and results on seismic wave and activity in the area, and stratified features of crustal medium in depth, a three dimensional finite element medium model is designed. And under the conditions of taking and not taking the action manner of the background stress field in the studied area into account, the relative motion between tectonic blocks is calculated and modeled. Based on the results from the analysis and calculations the dynamic mechanism for the present horizontal deformation in the area is discussed.

Three dimensional finite element analysis of anatomic distal radius Nitinol memory connector treating distal radius fracture

Objective: To study the memory biomechanical character of anatomic distal radius Nitinol memory connector (DRMC) in treating distal radius fracture. Methods: Establishing three dimensional model and finite element analysis, we calculated the stress in and around the fracture faces when distal radius fracture was fixated with DRMC. Results: Axial holding stress produced by holding part of DRMC on distal radius was 14.66 MPa. The maximum stress of holding part was 40-70 MPa, the minimum stress was 3-7 MPa,and the stress of compression part was 20-40 MPa. Conclusion: The distribution of stress produced by DRMC around the fracture line is reasonable, and axial holding stress can help stabilize fracture during earlier period. The existence of longitudal compression and memory effect can transfer fixated disused section into developed section and enhance fracture healing.

Parametric study on single shot peening by dimensional analysis method incorporated with finite element method

Shot peening is a widely used surface treatment method by generating compressive residual stress near the surface of metallic materials to increase fatigue life and re- sistance to corrosion fatigue, cracking, etc. Compressive re- sidual stress and dent profile are important factors to eval- uate the effectiveness of shot peening process. In this pa- per, the influence of dimensionless parameters on maximum compressive residual stress and maximum depth of the dent were investigated. Firstly, dimensionless relations of pro- cessing parameters that affect the maximum compressive residual stress and the maximum depth of the dent were de- duced by dimensional analysis method. Secondly, the in- fluence of each dimensionless parameter on dimensionless variables was investigated by the finite element method. Fur- thermore, related empirical formulas were given for each di- mensionless parameter based on the simulation results. Fi- nally, comparison was made and good agreement was found between the simulation results and the empirical formula, which shows that a useful approach is provided in this pa- per for analyzing the influence of each individual parameter.

Numerical Investigation of Thermal Behavior of CNC Machine Tool and Its Effects on Dimensional Accuracy of Machined Parts

The dimensional accuracy of machined parts is strongly influenced by the thermal behavior of machine tools (MT). Minimizing this influence represents a key objective for any modern manufacturing industry. Thermally induced positioning error compensation remains the most effective and practical method in this context. However, the efficiency of the compensation process depends on the quality of the model used to predict the thermal errors. The model should consistently reflect the relationships between temperature distribution in the MT structure and thermally induced positioning errors. A judicious choice of the number and location of temperature sensitive points to represent heat distribution is a key factor for robust thermal error modeling. Therefore, in this paper, the temperature sensitive points are selected following a structured thermomechanical analysis carried out to evaluate the effects of various temperature gradients on MT structure deformation intensity. The MT thermal behavior is first modeled using finite element method and validated by various experimentally measured temperature fields using temperature sensors and thermal imaging. MT Thermal behavior validation shows a maximum error of less than 10% when comparing the numerical estimations with the experimental results even under changing operation conditions. The numerical model is used through several series of simulations carried out using varied working condition to explore possible relationships between temperature distribution and thermal deformation characteristics to select the most appropriate temperature sensitive points that will be considered for building an empirical prediction model for thermal errors as function of MT thermal state. Validation tests achieved using an artificial neural network based simplified model confirmed the efficiency of the proposed temperature sensitive points allowing the prediction of the thermally induced errors with an accuracy greater than 90%.

Three dimensional finite element analysis of acetabulum loaded by static stress and its biomechanical significance

Objective:To explore the mechanical behavior of acetabulum loaded by static stress and provide the mechanical basis for clinical analysis and judgement on acetabular mechanical distribution and effect of static stress.Methods:By means of computer simulation, acetabular three dimensional model was input into three dimensional finite element analysis software ANSYS7.0. The acetabular mechanical behavior was calculated and the main stress value, stress distribution and acetabular unit displacement in the direction of main stress were analyzed when anterior wall of acetabulum and acetabular crest were loaded by 1 000 N static stress. Results:When acetabular anterior wall loaded by X direction and Z direction composition force, the stress passed along 4 directions: (1)from acetabular anterior wall to pubic symphysis along superior branch of pubis firstly, (2)from acetabular anterior wall to cacroiliac joint along pelvic ring,(3)in the acetabulum,(4)from the suffered point to ischium. When acetabular crest loaded by X direction and Y direction composition force, the stress transmitted to 4 directions: (1)from acetabular crest to ilium firstly, (2)from suffered point to cacroiliac joint along pelvic ring,(3) in the acetabulum ,(4)along the pubic branch,but no stress transmitted to the ischium branch.Conclusion:Analyzing the stress distribution of acetabulum and units displacement when static stress loaded can provide internal fixation point for acetabular fracture treatment and help understand the stress distribution of acetabulum.

Earth Pressure of the Trapdoor Problem Using Three-Dimensional Discrete Element Method

Load transformation from the yielding part of the soil to the adjacent part is known as the soil arching effect,which plays an important role in the design of various geotechnical infrastructures.Terzaghi’s trapdoor test was an importantmilestone in the development of theories on soil arching.The research on earth pressure of the trapdoor problem is presented in this paper using the three-dimensional(3D)discrete element method(DEM).Five 3D trapdoor models with different heights are established by 3DDEMsoftware PFC 3D.The variation of earth pressure on the trapdoor with the downward movement of the trapdoor,the distribution of vertical earth pressure along the horizontal direction,the distribution of vertical earth pressure along the vertical direction,the distribution of lateral earth pressure coefficient along the depth direction,the magnitude and direction of contact force chain are studied,respectively.Related research results show that the earth pressure on the trapdoor decreases rapidly after the downward movement of the trapdoor,and then reaches the minimum earth pressure.After that,the earth’s pressure will rise slightly,and whether this phenomenon occurs depends on the depth ratio.For the bottom soil,due to the stress transfer caused by the soil arching effect,the ratio of earth pressure in the loose area decreases,while the ratio of earth pressure in the stable area increases.With the trapdoor moving down,the vertical earth pressure along the depth in the stable zone is basically consistent with the initial state,which shows an approximate linear distribution.After the trapdoor moves down,the distribution of earth pressure along with the depth in the loose area changes,which is far less than the theoretical value of vertical earth pressure of its self-weight.Because of the compression of the soil on both sides,the lateral earth pressure coefficient of most areas on the central axis of the loose zone is close to the passive earth pressure coefficient Kp.The existence of a‘soil arch’can be observed intuitively from the distribution diagram of the contact force chain in the loose zone.

Three-dimensional Finite Element Modeling of a Maxillary Premolar Tooth Based on the Micro-CT Scanning: A Detailed Description

This study describes the details of how to construct a three-dimensional （3D） finite element model of a maxillary first premolar tooth based on micro-CT data acquisition technique, MIMICS soft- ware and ANSYS software. The tooth was scanned by micro-CT, in which 1295 slices were obtained and then 648 slices were selected for modeling. The 3D surface mesh models of enamel and dentin were created by MIMICS （STL file）. The solid mesh model was constructed by ANSYS. After the material properties and boundary conditions were set, a loading analysis was performed to demonstrate the ap- plicableness of the resulting model. The first and third principal stresses were then evaluated. The re- suits showed that the number of nodes and elements of the finite element model were 56 618 and 311801, respectively. The geometric form of the model was highly consistent with that of the true tooth, and the deviation between them was ~）.28%. The loading analysis revealed the typical stress patterns in the contour map. The maximum compressive stress existed in the contact points and the maximum tensile stress existed in the deep fissure between the two cusps. It is concluded that by using the micro-CT and highly integrated software, construction of the 3D finite element model with high quality will not be difficult for clinical researchers.

Discrete Element Modeling of Asphalt Concrete Cracking Using a User-def ined Three-dimensional Micromechanical Approach

We established a user-defined micromechanical model using discrete element method （DEM） to investigate the cracking behavior of asphalt concrete （AC）. Using the ＂Fish＂ language provided in the particle flow code in 3-Demensions （PFC3D）, the air voids and mastics in asphalt concrete were realistically built as two distinct phases. With the irregular shape of individual aggregate particles modeled using a clump of spheres of different sizes, the three-dimensional （3D） discrete element model was able to account for aggregate gradation and fraction. Laboratory uniaxial complex modulus test and indirect tensile strength test were performed to obtain input material parameters for the numerical simulation. A set of the indirect tensile test were simulated to study the cracking behavior of AC at two levels of temperature, i e, -10 ℃ and 15 ℃. The predicted results of the numerical simulation were compared with laboratory experimental measurements. Results show that the 3D DEM model is able to predict accurately the fracture pattern of different asphalt mixtures. Based on the DEM model, the effects of air void content and aggregate volumetric fraction on the cracking behavior of asphalt concrete were evaluated.

Validation and application of three-dimensional discontinuous deformation analysis with tetrahedron finite element meshed block

In the last decade, three dimensional discontin- uous deformation analyses （3D DDA） has attracted more and more attention of researchers and geotechnical engineers worldwide. The original DDA formulation utilizes a linear displacement function to describe the block movement and deformation, which would cause block expansion under rigid body rotation and thus limit its capability to model block de- formation. In this paper, 3D DDA is coupled with tetrahe- dron finite elements to tackle these two problems. Tetrahe- dron is the simplest in the 3D domain and makes it easy to implement automatic discretization, even for complex topol- ogy shape. Furthermore, element faces will remain planar and element edges will remain straight after deformation for tetrahedron finite elements and polyhedral contact detection schemes can be used directly. The matrices of equilibrium equations for this coupled method are given in detail and an effective contact searching algorithm is suggested. Valida- tion is conducted by comparing the results of the proposed coupled method with that of physical model tests using one of the most common failure modes, i.e., wedge failure. Most of the failure modes predicted by the coupled method agree with the physical model results except for 4 cases out of the total 65 cases. Finally, a complex rockslide example demon- strates the robustness and versatility of the coupled method.

Predicting the Dynamic Behavior of Asphalt Concrete Using Three-dimensional Discrete Element Method

A user-defined three-dimensional （3D） discrete element model was presented to predict the dynamic modulus and phase angle of asphalt concrete （AC）. The 3D discrete element method （DEM） model of AC was constructed employing a user-defined computer program developed using the ＂Fish＂ language in PFC3D. Important microstructural features of AC were modeled, including aggregate gradation, air voids and mastic. The irregular shape of aggregate particle was modeled using a clump of spheres. The developed model was validated through comparing with experimental measurements and then used to simulate the cyclic uniaxial compression test, based on which the dynamic modulus and phase angle were calculated from the output stress- strain relationship. The effects of air void content, aggregate stiffness and volumetric fraction on AC modulus were further investigated. The experimental results show that the 3D DEM model is able to accurately predict both dynamic modulus and phase angle of AC across a range of temperature and loading frequencies. The user- defined 3D model also demonstrated significant improvement over the general existing two-dimensional models.

LOCKING-FREE DEGENERATED ISOPARAMETRIC SHELL ELEMENT

An 8-noded locking-free degenerated isoparametric shell element is presented. A revised interpolation for shear strain terms was constructed in natural co-ordinate system such that all necessary modes (translation, rotation and constant curvature) are preserved, which can be used to eliminate shear locking. A revised interpolation for membrane strains was produced in the local Cartesian co-ordinate system to overcome membrane locking behavior. The new 8-noded element has the proper rank, with the requisite number of zero eigenvalues each associated with a rigid mode. The element does not exhibit membrane or shear locking for large span-thickness ratio. The element does not form element mechanisms or extra spurious zero energy modes. Therefore, it can be used for both thin and thick shells.

Finite Element Analysis to Two-Dimensional Nonlinear Sloshing Problems

A two-dimensional nonlinear sloshing problem is analyzed by means of the fully nonlinear theory and time domain second order theory of water waves. Liquid sloshing in a rectangular container Subjected to a horizontal excitation is simulated by the finite element method. Comparisons between the two theories are made based on their numerical results. It is found that good agreement is obtained for the case of small amplitude oscillation and obvious differences occur for large amplitude excitation. Even though, the second order solution can still exhibit typical nonlinear features of nonlinear wave and can be used instead of the fully nonlinear theory.

Three-dimensional analysis of elastic stress distribution of indented ceramic surface by finite element method

The three-dimensional stress distributions in the area surrounding indentation pattern for three different materials, Al2O3, Si3N4 and SiC were analyzed by finite element method(FEM). Those theoretical results were also compared with the experimental ones by Rockwell hardness test. The effect of loading stress on the plastic deformation in specimens, surface was investigated on the assumption of shear strain energy theory by Huber-Mises when the materials were indented. The distributions of nomal stress, shear stress, and Mises stress were analysed with variations of loading conditions. It is clear that the analytical results for the stress distributions, the crack length and its density of probability are in good agreement with the experimental results.

Stream Surface Strip Element Method and Simulation of Three-Dimensional Deformation of Continuous Hot Rolled Strip

A new method,the stream surface strip element method,for simulating the three-dimensional deformation of plate and strip rolling process was proposed.The rolling deformation zone was divided into a number of stream surface(curved surface)strip elements along metal flow traces,and the stream surface strip elements were mapped into the corresponding plane strip elements for analysis and computation.The longitudinal distributions of the lateral displacement and the altitudinal displacement of metal were respectively constructed to be a quartic curve and a quadratic curve,of which the lateral distributions were expressed as the third-power spline function,and the altitudinal distributions were fitted in the quadratic curve.From the flow theory of plastic mechanics,the mathematical models of the three-dimensional deformations and stresses of the deformation zone were constructed.Compared with the streamline strip element method proposed by the first author of this paper,the stream surface strip element method takes into account the uneven distributions of stresses and deformations along altitudinal direction,and realizes the precise three-dimensional analysis and computation.The simulation example of continuous hot rolled strip indicates that the method and the model accord with facts and provide a new reliable engineering-computation method for the three-dimensional mechanics simulation of plate and strip rolling process.

A simplified two-dimensional boundary element method with arbitrary uniform mean flow

To reduce computational costs, an improved form of the frequency domain boundary element method（BEM） is proposed for two-dimensional radiation and propagation acoustic problems in a subsonic uniform flow with arbitrary orientation. The boundary integral equation（BIE） representation solves the two-dimensional convected Helmholtz equation（CHE） and its fundamental solution, which must satisfy a new Sommerfeld radiation condition（SRC） in the physical space. In order to facilitate conventional formulations, the variables of the advanced form are expressed only in terms of the acoustic pressure as well as its normal and tangential derivatives, and their multiplication operators are based on the convected Green＇s kernel and its modified derivative. The proposed approach significantly reduces the CPU times of classical computational codes for modeling acoustic domains with arbitrary mean flow. It is validated by a comparison with the analytical solutions for the sound radiation problems of monopole,dipole and quadrupole sources in the presence of a subsonic uniform flow with arbitrary orientation.

Alternating Direction Finite Volume Element Methods for Three-Dimensional Parabolic Equations

This paper presents alternating direction finite volume element methods for three-dimensional parabolic partial differential equations and gives four computational schemes, one is analogous to Douglas finite difference scheme with second-order splitting error, the other two schemes have third-order splitting error, and the last one is an extended LOD scheme. The L2 norm and H1 semi-norm error estimates are obtained for the first scheme and second one, respectively. Finally, two numerical examples are provided to illustrate the efficiency and accuracy of the methods.

Three-dimensional discrete element numerical simulation of Paleogene salt structures in the western Kuqa foreland thrust belt

Taking the Paleogene salt strata in the west of Kuqa foreland thrust belt as study object, the deformation features of salt structure in the compression direction and perpendicular to the compression direction were examined to find out the control factors and formation mechanisms of the salt structures. By using the three-dimensional discrete element numerical simulation method, the formation mechanisms of typical salt structures of western Kuqa foreland thrust belt in Keshen and Dabei work areas were comprehensively analyzed. The simulation results show that the salt deformation in Keshen and Dabei work areas is of forward spread type, with deformation concentrated in the piedmont zone;the salt deformation is affected by the early uplift near the compression end, pre-existing basement faults, synsedimentary process and the initial salt depocenter;in the direction perpendicular to the compression direction, salt rocks near the compression end have strong lateral mobility with the velocity component moving towards the middle part, and the closer to the middle, the larger the velocity will be, so that salt rocks will aggregate towards the middle and deform intensely, forming complex folds and separation of salt structures from salt source, and local outcrop with thrust faults. Compared with 2 D simulation, 3 D simulation can analyze salt structures in the principal stress direction and direction perpendicular to the principal stress, give us a full view of the formation mechanisms of salt structures, and guide the exploration of oil and gas reservoirs related to salt structures.

General calculation formulas and recurrence relations of radial matrix elements for relativistic n-dimensional hydrogen atom of spin S=0

In this paper, the general calculation formulas of radial matrix elements for relativistic n-dimensional hydrogen atom of spin S=0 are obtained, and the recurrence relation of different power order radial matrix elements are also derived.