A new lock-free, material finite element for flexure of moderately thick rectangular composite plates

Details of development of a new lock-free, rectangular, material finite element are presented in this paper. The element is named material finite element by the authors as its shape functions, derived from moment-shear equilibrium equations, involve material properties and plate thickness besides the usual element coordinates. Based on the first-order theory of Mindlin, the element with 5 degrees of freedom (dof) at each of the four nodes and the 3 x 3 Gaussian integration scheme is found to perform consistently well for any plate configuration irrespective of its side to thickness ratio. The usual numerical manipulations of selective integration for analysis of thin plates are not necessary if these elements are employed. Numerical results presented, for various composite plate configurations considered, are found to be in good agreement with those available in the literature, confirming the performance of the element. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.