BOUNDARY ELEMENT ANALYSIS FOR CONTACT PROBLEMS WITH FRICTION

A boundary element method associated with the transformation matrix derived from the geometric kinematic conditions of contact components is developed for the study of the contact behavior of elastic contact problems with friction. Owing to the fact that contact problems are inherently nonlinear and irreversible, an incremental approach is considered. Using the method developed, the degrees of freedom can be largely reduced, especially for the problem with complicated geometry. The mismatching of contact nodes is allowable and the contact traction is determined directly without tedious iterative procedures. Several examples are analyzed to demonstrate the high efficiency and applicability of the present technique. The computed results are found to agree well with other analytical, numerical or experimental solutions. The influence of friction on contact behavior is also presented.