Finite-element model sensitivity in the vibration of partially embedded beams

• Published in: International journal for numerical methods in engineering Vol. 44; no. 4; pp. 517 - 533
• Main Authors: West, Roger P., Pavlović, Milija N.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chichester, UK John Wiley & Sons, Ltd 10-02-1999
• Subjects: finite-elements; vibrations; Winkler foundation
• ISSN: 0029-5981; 1097-0207
• DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1097-0207(19990210)44:4<517::AID-NME515>3.0.CO;2-5

Beams partially embedded in a Winkler foundation can exhibit the phenomenon of modal clustering. In this paper, a conventional finite‐element package is used in the comparison of the natural frequencies of such beams as calculated using a discretized finite‐element model and as computed from a closed‐form exact solution. The sensitivity of finite‐element models of varying degrees of refinement in predicting the incidence of modal clustering is discussed. It is shown that, in crude models, the clustering of modes is predicted accurately but other modes, even the lowest ones, can be unacceptably distorted. In very crude models, the finite‐element analysis may fail altogether in identifying the modal‐clustering phenomenon. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.