Boundary element analysis of two-dimensional elastoplastic contact problems

In this paper a boundary element method for two-dimensional elastoplastic stress analysis of frictional contact problems is presented. The bodies in contact are treated as separate regions. The contact conditions are used to join the different system of equations for different regions of contacted bodies and, hence, an overall system of equation is obtained. An incremental and iterative procedure can be used to find the contact load, or the contact extent and the proper contact conditions. To include the plastic deformation in the analysis, the initial strain algorithm is employed. Elastic-perfectly plastic or work-hardening material behaviour can be assumed. For the numerical analysis, an isoparametric three-noded line elements are used to represent the boundary and eight-noded quadrilateral or six-noded triangular elements are used for the interior of the domain. The displacement rates and traction rates are assumed to vary quadratically and the shape functions for the interior strain rates are also of quadratic type. As an example, the behaviour of an elastic and elastoplastic body with a smooth, circular inclusion under the increasing load is presented.