Finite Element Method Water Resources Engineering

Derivation of the Basic 1D Differential Equation

Elasticity

In which:

Where u is the axial defomation in rod due tension or compresssion forces. The above DE
gives:

One-Dimensional Heat Transfer

Consider the thermal equilibrium of an element of a heated one-

dimensional body as shown in Figure. The rate at which heat enters
the left face can be written as:

where k is the thermal conductivity of the material, A is the area of cross section through which
heat flows (measured perpendicular to the direction of heat flow), and ∂T/∂x is the rate of change
of temperature T with respect to the axial direction.
Generally, it can be said that:

where q is the rate of heat generation per unit volume (by the heat source), c is the specific heat,
ρ is the density, and (∂T/∂t) dt = dT is the temperature change of the element in time dt.

Noting that, if the heat source is zero, we get the Fourier equation and if the system is in a steady
state, we obtain tile Poisson equation

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One-Dimensional Fluid Flow

In the case of one-dimensional fluid flow, we have the net mass flow the same at every cross
section; that is,

where ρ is the density, A is the cross-sectional area, and u = dΦ/dx is the flow velocity.

Groundwater (Potential flow)

A potential flow is postulated in one dimension and constant area as:

Darcy law gives that:

The governing equation is gained by the combination of the previous equations. For one
dimensional incompressible flow, du/dx=0, the following equation resulted:

Generally,

Mass transport:

The governing equation is:

Where C is the concentration of the pollutant, u is the velocity, D is the diffusivity and m is the
source term.

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Viscous fluid flow between two parallel plates

Consider the flow of a viscous and incompressible fluid flowing between two parallel plates.
Assume that the flow is fully developed. Because of the symmetry, we can consider only one half
the portion. The governing differential equation for this problem is

Viscid fluid flow through pipes

The governing equation for one dimensional viscous incompressible flow is:

𝜋𝐷4 𝑑𝑃
𝑄=
128µ 𝑑𝑥

Where Q is the discharge and P is the pressure.

Hint:
1- Derive the equation
2- Derive for non-circular pipes
3- What about inviscid flow?

Finite element solution step- by- step

Step (i): Discretization of the structure

The first step in the finite element method is to divide the structure or solution region into
subdivisions or elements. Hence, the structure is to be modeled with suitable finite elements. The
number, type, size, and arrangement of the elements are to be decided.

Step (ii): Selection of a proper interpolation or displacement model

Since the displacement solution of a complex structure under any specified load conditions cannot
be predicted exactly, we assume some suitable solution within an element to approximate the
unknown solution. The assumed solution must be simple from a computational standpoint, but it
should satisfy certain convergence requirements. In general, the solution or the interpolation model
is taken in the form of a polynomial.

Step (iii): Derivation of element stiffness matrices and load vectors

From the assumed displacement model, the stiffness matrix K and the load vector F of element e
are to be derived by using either equilibrium conditions or a suitable variational principle.

Step (iv): Assemblage of element equations to obtain the overall equilibrium equations
Since the structure is composed of several finite elements, the individual element stiffness matrices
and load vectors are to be assembled in a suitable manner

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Step (v): Solution for the unknown nodal displacements

The overall equilibrium equations have to be modified to account for the boundary conditions of
the problem. After the incorporation of the boundary conditions.

Step (vi): Computation of element strains and stresses

Disceritization of the Domain

Basic element shapes

- One dimensional

- Two dimensional

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- Three dimensional

Finite Representation of Infinite Bodies

In some cases, as in the case of analysis of dams, foundations, and semiinfinite bodies, the
boundaries are not clearly defined. In the case of dams (Figure). since the geometry is uniform and
the loading does not change in the length direction, a unit slice of the dam can be considered for
idealization and analogized as a plane strain problem.

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In Figure below the semi-infinite soil has been simulated by considering only a finite portion of
the soil. In some applications, the determination of the size of the finite domain may pose a
problem.

Nodes Numbering

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Interpolation Models
The figure shows the effect of polynomial type on approximation:

While choosing the order of the polynomial in a polynomial-type interpolation function,

the following considerations have to be taken into account:

i- The interpolation polynomial should satisfy, as far as possible, the convergence

requirements stated below
ii- The pattern of variation of the field variable resulting from the polynomial model
should be independent of the local coordinate system.
iii- The number of generalized coordinates should be equal to the number of nodal degrees
of freedom of the element.

Since the finite element method is a numerical technique, we obtain a sequence of approximate
solutions as the element size is reduced successively. This sequence will converge to the exact
solution if the interpolation polynomial satisfies the following convergence requirements

i- The field variable must be continuous within the elements. This requirement is easily
satisfied by choosing continuous functions as interpolation models. Since polynomials
are inherently continuous,
ii- All uniform states of the field variable Φ and its partial derivatives up to the highest
order appearing in the functional I(Φ) must have representation in the interpolation
polynomial when. in the limit, the element size reduces to zero.

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Array of Terms in Complete Polynomials of Various Orders

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