A Simple FEM Formulation Applied to Nonlinear Problems of Impact with Thermomechanical Coupling

A simple and effective alternative formulation is presented, called FEM positional, to deal with the dynamic nonlinear systems. The developed numerical is based on the minimum potential energy written in terms of nodal positions instead of displacements. The effects of geometrical, material and thermal nonlinearities are considered.

The thermodynamically consistent formulation is based on the laws of thermodynamics and the Helmholtz free-energy, used to describe the thermoelastic and the thermoplastic behaviors. The coupled thermomechanical model can result in secondary effects that cause redistributions of internal efforts, depending on the history of deformation and material properties. The numerical results of the proposed formulation are compared with examples found in the literature.