Structural Mechanics Blog Posts
Applying and Interpreting Saint-Venant’s Principle
Saint-Venant’s principle is found in most structural engineering textbooks, but what is its exact meaning? We go over its history, definition, and relevance to mechanical analyses.
Model Deforming Objects with the Arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian Method
The combined efforts of Leonhard Euler and Joseph-Louis Lagrange inspired the arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian (ALE) method, which we can use to model deforming objects.
Analyzing the Mechanical Behavior of Cells for Biological Applications
Finite element modeling can be used to analyze the mechanical behavior of biological cells. Guest blogger Björn Fallqvist of Lightness by Design sheds light on this bioengineering topic.
How to Model Fluid-Structure Interaction in a Water Balloon
They’re not just for playing games in the backyard: Water balloons are also an example of fluid–structure interaction in a nonlinear elastic material. Learn how to model this effect…
Analyzing Magnetic Flowmeters for Blood Flow Measurement
Biomedical researchers used multiphysics modeling in order to understand how blood vessel movement influences the sensitivity of their flow meter designs. Get the full story here.
Keynote Video: Modeling the Multiphysics Behavior of Nuclear Fuel
A laboratory engineer discusses using multiphysics simulation to understand the complex and challenging behavior of nuclear fuel. Watch his presentation and get a quick summary here.
How to Implement Elastoplasticity in a Model Using External Materials
Sometimes the mechanical behavior of a material is not readily expressed in terms of a built-in model. In these cases, you can use external materials. Learn how with an elastoplasticity example.
What Is the Physics Behind a Counterweight Trebuchet?
A counterweight trebuchet, a siege weapon commonly seen in movies set in the Middle Ages and fantasy worlds, also happen to be an interesting multibody dynamics problem.