Axial symmetric elasticity analysis in non‐homogeneous bodies under gravitational load by triple‐reciprocity boundary element method

In general, internal cells are required to solve elasticity problems by involving a gravitational load in non‐homogeneous bodies with variable mass density when using a conventional boundary element method (BEM). Then, the effect of mesh reduction is not achieved and one of the main merits of the BEM, which is the simplicity of data preparation, is lost. In this study, it is shown that the domain cells can be avoided by using the triple‐reciprocity BEM formulation, where the density of domain integral is expressed in terms of other fields that are represented by boundary densities and/or source densities at isolated interior points. Utilizing the rotational symmetry, the triple‐reciprocity BEM formulation is developed for axially symmetric elasticity problems in non‐homogeneous bodies under gravitational force. A new computer program was developed and applied to solve several test problems. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.