High-performance domainwise parallel direct solver for large-scale structural analysis

Large-scale structural analysis using a finite element method requires a high-performance and efficient parallel algorithm that is scalable in terms of both performance and storage. Most of the research for large-scale parallel structural analysis has focused on iterative solution methods because they are much easier to parallelize. In contrast, direct solution methods have generally been considered in adequate for large-scale finite element computations because of many difficulties and disadvantages for carrying out large-scale problems. However, direct solution methods are still generally preferred due to their ease of use and the numerical robustness that guarantees the solution to be obtained within an estimated time without failure. Therefore, for the general application of large-scale structural analysis to a wide range of problems, an efficient parallel direct solution method that has scalability comparable to that of iterative methods is proposed. A new parallel direct solver for large-scale finite element analysis, the domainwise multifrontal solver, is proposed by realizing domainwise parallelism for a direct solver. By the use of the proposed solver with our own structural analysis code, good scalability can be shown as a direct method and can solve the largest problem ever known to be solved by direct solvers.