2D/3D problems

34
5. 2D EXAMPLE: A rectangular plate with a hole in 2D plane stress

In this example we are going to use Abaqus to analyze a rectangular plate with a hole at its center
in a state of plane stress. The plate is fixed at one end and has a distributed force on the other end
as shown in Figure 5-1.

1cm
5cm
Pressure= 10kN/m2

x
ν=0.3 10 cm
9
E=200  10
Thickness=0.01

Figure 5-1 Plate with a hole.

Due to the symmetry of the plate we will model just one fourth of the plate, see Figure 5-2. Note
how the boundary conditions are applied in this figure. Can you see why these boundary
conditions have been used?

Figure 5-2 Taking advantage of the symmetry, one quarter of the plate is analyzed

35
5.1 Creating a part
Start Abaqus/CAE form programs in the Start menu.
1. Select Create Model Database from the Start Session dialog box that appears. When the
Part module has finished loading, it displays the Part module toolbox in the left side of the
Abaqus/CAE main window. Each module displays its own set of tools in the module toolbox.
2. From the main menu bar, select Part→Create to create a new part. The Create Part dialog
box appears. You use the Create Part dialog box to name the part; to choose its modeling
space, type, and base feature; and to set the approximate size. You can edit and rename a part
after you create it, but you cannot change its modeling space, type, or base feature.
3. Name the part Plate. Choose a two-dimensional planar deformable body and a shell base
feature.
4. In the Approximate size text field, type 20.
5. Click Continue to exit the Create Part dialog box.
6. Use the Create lines connected tool
located in the upper left corner of the
Sketcher toolbox to begin sketching the
geometry of the plate. Create a line with
the following coordinates: (1.0, 0.0), and
(5.0, 0.0), then again use the create line
connected tool to draw a line
form(5.0,0.0) to (5.0,2.0) again from
point (5.0,2.0) to (0.0, 2.0) then from
(0.0, 2.0) to (0.0,1.0) Finally, use the
create arc: center and two points tool
to create an arc with a center (0.0,
Figure 5-3 The plate geometry 0.0) and one point at (1.0, 0.0) and the
other at (0.0, 1.0). You will get the
following geometry, see Figure 5-3.
8. From the prompt area (near the bottom of the main window), click Done to exit the Sketcher.
Note: If you don't see the Done button in the prompt area, continue to click mouse’s right
button in the viewport until it appears.
9. Before you continue, save your model in a model database file.
9.1 From the main menu bar, select File→Save. The Save Model Database As dialog box
appears.
9.2 Type a name for the new model database in the File Name field, and click OK.

You should always save your model database at regular intervals (for example, each time
you switch modules); Abaqus/CAE does not save your model database automatically.

5.2 Creating a material

The Property module is used to create a material and to define its properties. In this problem all
the members of the frame are made of steel and assumed to be linear elastic with Young's

36
modulus of 200 GPa and Poisson's ratio of 0.3. Thus, you will create a single linear elastic
material with these properties. To define a material:
1. In the Module list located under the toolbar, select Property to enter the Property module.
The cursor changes to an hourglass while the Property module loads.
2. From the main menu bar, select Material→Create to create a new material. The Edit
Material dialog box appears.
3. Name the material Steel.
4. From the material editor's menu bar, select Mechanical→Elasticity→Elastic. Abaqus/CAE
displays the Elastic data form.
5. Type a value of 200.0E9 for Young's modulus and a value of 0.3 for Poisson's ratio in the
respective fields. Use [Tab] or move the cursor to a new cell and click to move between cells.
6. Click OK to exit the material editor.
7. Now Save.

5.3 Defining and assigning section properties

The section properties of a model is defined by creating sections in the Property module. After the
section is created, one of the following two methods to assign the section to the part in the current
viewport can be used:
 You can simply select the region from the part and assign the section to the selected
region, or
 You can use the Set toolset to create a homogeneous set containing the region and assign
the section to the set.
To define a plate section:
1. From the main menu bar, select Section→Create. The Create Section dialog box appears.
2. In the Create Section dialog box:
2.1 Name the section PlateSection.
2.2 In the Category list, select Solid.
2.3 In the Type list, select Homogeneous.
2.4 Click Continue. The Edit Section dialog box appears.
3. In the Edit Section dialog box:
3.1 Accept the default selection of Steel for the Material associated with the section. If you
had defined other materials, you could click the arrow next to the Material text box to see
a list of available materials and to select the material of your choice.
3.2 In the Plane stress/strain thickness field, enter a value of 0.01.
3.3 Click OK.
You use the Assign menu in the Property module to assign the section PlateSection to the
plate. To assign the section to the plate:
1. From the main menu bar, select Assign→Section. Abaqus/CAE displays prompts in the
prompt area to guide you through the procedure.
2. Select the entire part as the region to which the section will be applied.
2.1 Click and hold left button of the mouse at the upper left-hand corner of the viewport.
2.2 Drag the mouse to create a box around the plate.
2.3 Release left mouse button. Abaqus/CAE highlights the entire plate.

37
3. Click right mouse button in the viewport or click Done in the prompt area to accept the
selected geometry. The Assign Section dialog box appears containing a list of existing
sections.
4. Accept the default selection of PlateSection, and click OK.

5.4 Defining the assembly

In the Module list located under the toolbar, click Assembly to enter the Assembly module. The
cursor changes to an hourglass while the Assembly module loads.
1. From the main menu bar, select Instance→Create. The Create Instance dialog box appears.
2. In the dialog box, Instance Type chose Independent (mesh on instance).
3. In the dialog box, select Plate and click OK.

5.5 Configuring your analysis

Now that the assembly has been created, you can move to the Step module to configure your
analysis. In this simulation we are interested in the static response of the plate to a 10 kN/m2
pressure applied at the end of the plate, with the left-hand end fully constrained. This is a single
event, so only a single analysis step is needed for the simulation. Thus, the analysis will consist of
two steps:
 An initial step, in which you will apply boundary conditions that constrain the end of the
plate.
 An analysis step, in which you will apply a distributed load at the other end of the plate.
Abaqus/CAE generates the initial step automatically, but you must use the Step module to create
the analysis step yourself. The Step module also allows you to request output for any steps in the
analysis.
1. In the Module list located under the toolbar, click Step to enter the Step module.
2. From the main menu bar, select Step→Create to create a step. The Create Step dialog box
appears with a list of all the general procedures and a default step name of Step-1.
3. Change the step name to Apply pressure.
4. Select general as the Procedure type.
5. From the list of available, select Static, General and click Continue.
6. The Basic tab is selected by default. In the Description field, type 10 kN/m2
distributed load.
7. Click the Other tab to see its contents; you can accept the default values provided for the step.
8. Click OK to create the step and to exit the Edit Step dialog box.

5.6 Applying boundary conditions and loads to the model

Prescribed conditions, such as loads and boundary conditions, are step dependent, which means
that you must specify the step or steps in which they become active. Now that you have defined
the steps in the analysis, you can use the Load module to define prescribed conditions.
In this model the left end of the plate is constrained completely and, thus, cannot move in any
direction, but due to the symmetry about the x and y axis’s we will model one fourth of the plate,
with the boundary conditions shown as in Figure 5-2. To apply boundary conditions to the plate:

38
1. In the Module list located under the toolbar, click Load to enter the Load module.
2. From the main menu bar, select BC→Create. The Create Boundary Condition dialog box
appears.
3. In the Create Boundary Condition dialog box:
3.1 Name the boundary condition FixedY.
3.2 From the list of steps, select Initial as the step in which the boundary condition will be
activated. All the mechanical boundary conditions specified in the Initial step must have
zero magnitudes. This condition is enforced automatically by Abaqus/CAE.
3.3 In the Category list, accept Mechanical as the default category selection.
3.4 In the Types for Selected Step list, select Displacement/Rotation, and click Continue.
Abaqus/CAE displays prompts in the prompt area to guide you through the procedure. For
example, you are asked to select the region to which the boundary condition will be applied.
To apply a prescribed condition to a region, you can either select the region directly in the
viewport or apply the condition to an existing set (a set is a named region of a model). Sets are
a convenient tool that can be used to manage large complicated models. In this simple model
you will not make use of sets.
4. In the viewport, select the edge at the bottom of the plate as the region to which the boundary
condition will be applied.
5. Click mouse’s right button in the viewport or click Done in the prompt area to indicate that
you have finished selecting regions. The Edit Boundary Condition dialog box appears.
When you are defining a boundary condition in the initial step, all available degrees of
freedom are unconstrained by default.
6. In the dialog box:
6.1 Toggle on U2 since all translational degrees of freedom need to be constrained.
6.2 Click OK to create the boundary condition and to close the dialog box.
Abaqus/CAE displays arrowheads at the vertex to indicate the constrained degrees of
freedom.
7. Repeat steps 2-6 but this time chose the left edge of the plate and in the dialog box toggle on
the U1 degree of freedom.
Now that you have constrained the plate, you can apply a load to the other end of the plate. In this
simulation a distributed force of 10 kN/m2 is applied in the negative 2-direction to the right end of
the plate; the load is applied during the static, general step you created in the Step module. To
apply a distributed force to the plate:
1. From the main menu bar, select Load→Manager. The Load Manager appears.
2. At the bottom of the Load Manager, click Create. The Create Load dialog box appears.
3. In the Create Load dialog box:
3.1 Name the load Pressure.
3.2 From the list of steps, select Apply pressure as the step in which the load will be applied.
3.3 In the Category list, accept Mechanical as the default category selection.
3.4 In the Types for Selected Step list, select Pressure.
3.5 Click Continue.
Abaqus/CAE displays prompts in the prompt area to guide you through the procedure. You
are asked to select a region to which the load will be applied. As with boundary conditions,
the region to which the load will be applied can be selected either directly in the viewport or
from a list of existing sets. As before, you will select the region directly in the viewport.
4. In the viewport, select the right edge of the plate as the region where the load will be applied.

39
5. Click mouse’s right button in the viewport or click Done in the prompt area to indicate that
you have finished selecting regions. The Edit Load dialog box appears.
6. In the dialog box:
6.1 Enter a magnitude of -10000.
6.2 Click OK to create the load and to close the dialog box.
7. Examine the Load Manager and note that the new load is Created (activated) in the analysis
step Apply pressure.
8. Click Dismiss to close the Load Manager. You will then get a shape similar to Figure 5-4.

Figure 5-4 The plate with the boundary conditions and

the applied force.

5.7 Meshing

You use the Mesh module to generate the finite element mesh. You can choose the meshing
technique that Abaqus/CAE will use to create the mesh, the element shape, and the element
type. The default meshing technique assigned to the model is indicated by the color of the model
that is displayed when you enter the Mesh module; if Abaqus/CAE displays the model in orange,
it cannot be meshed without assistance from you.
In this section you will assign a particular Abaqus element type to the model. Although you will
assign the element type now, you could also wait until after the mesh has been created. Plane
stress elements will be used to model the plate. To assign an Abaqus element type:
1. In the Module list located under the toolbar, click Mesh to enter the Mesh module.
2. Above the viewer click on Part, which should unclick assemply.
3. From the main menu bar, select Mesh→Element Type.
4. In the viewport, select the entire frame as the region to be assigned an element type. In the
prompt area, click Done when you are finished. The Element Type dialog box appears.
5. In the dialog box, select the following:
 Standard as the Element Library selection (the default).
 Linear as the Geometric Order (the default).
 Plane stress as the Family of elements.
 Unclick the reduced integration box (make sure you NEVER use “reduced
integration”).
6. In the lower portion of the dialog box, examine the element shape options. A brief description
of the default element selection is available at the bottom of each tabbed page.
7. Click OK to assign the element type and to close the dialog box.
8. In the prompt area, click Done to end the procedure.

40
 Figure 5-5 The meshed plate with.

We can now create the mesh. Basic meshing is a two-stage operation: first you seed the edges of
the part instance, and then you mesh the part instance. You select the number of seeds based on
the desired element size or on the number of elements that you want along an edge, and
Abaqus/CAE places the nodes of the mesh at the seeds whenever possible. To seed and mesh the
model:
1. From the main menu bar, select Seed→Instance to seed the part instance. Note: You can gain
more control of the resulting mesh by seeding each edge of the part instance individually, but
it is not necessary for this example. The prompt area displays the default element size that
Abaqus/CAE will use to seed the part instance. This default element size is based on the size
of the part instance. A relatively large seed value will be used so that only one element will be
created per region.
2. In the prompt area, specify an element size of 1.0, and press Enter. (or Approximate
global size in Abaqus/CAE v6.7-1 or later version)
3. Accept the seeding.
4. From the main menu bar, select Mesh→Instance to mesh the part instance.
5. From the buttons in the prompt area, click Yes to confirm that you want to mesh the part
instance. You will get a meshed geometry as shown in Figure 5-5.

You can delete the mesh by going back to mesh in the main menu bar→delete instance mesh
then repeat the seed and mesh steps again with another seed or with other elements. NOTE: A
very coarse mesh has been shown here for illustration. You will need a much finer mesh for
accurate results.

5.8 Remeshing and changing element types

41
You may skip this section unless you want to remesh your model. Remember that the mesh is
independent of the geometry. You can keep the geometry (as well as load and boundary
condition) data intact and remesh the model:
1. Go back to mesh module.
2. From the main menu bar go to Mesh→Delete instance mesh.
3. From the buttons in the prompt area, click Yes to confirm that you want to mesh the part
instance.
You can choose either to define a finer mesh by decreasing the seed or change the element type to
give more accurate results.
3.1 To define a finer mesh, go to seed from the main menu bar, select Seed→Instance to seed
the part instance.
3.2 In the prompt area, specify an element size of 0.1, and press Enter.
3.3 Accept the seeding.
3.4 From the main menu bar, select Mesh→Instance to mesh the part instance.
3.5 From the buttons in the prompt area, click Yes to confirm that you want to mesh the part
instance. You will get a finer mesh as shown in the Figure 5-6.

Or you can chose to change the element

type as follow.

1. From the Mesh module go again to

Mesh in the main menu bar→Delete
instance mesh.
2. From the Mesh→Controls, you will
get the Mesh Controls dialog box. You
can choose between different types of
meshing elements, for example choose
the Tri and accept the Default features.
Then go back to Element type in the
Mesh in the main menu bar, and
Figure 5-6 The plate with a fine mesh choose in the Geometric order a
Quadratic instead of the linear, you
will get 6 node triangular elements
(with linear you will have 3-node
triangular elements). You will get a
mesh of 6-nodes triangular elements,
see Figure 5-7.

Abaqus/CAE offers a variety of meshing

techniques to mesh models of different
topologies. The different meshing
techniques provide varying levels of
automation and user control. The
following three types of mesh generation
techniques are available:

Figure 5-7 Plate mesh with 6-node triangular elements

42
Structured meshing applies preestablished mesh patterns to particular model topologies.
Complex models, however, must generally be partitioned into simpler regions to use this
technique.

Swept meshing extrudes an internally generated mesh along a sweep path or revolves it around
an axis of revolution. Like structured meshing, swept meshing is limited to models with specific
topologies and geometries.

Free meshing is the most flexible meshing technique. It uses no preestablished mesh patterns and
can be applied to almost any model shape.

5.9 Creating an analysis job

In the Module list located under the toolbar, click Job to enter the Job module.
1. From the main menu bar, select Job→Manager. The Job Manager appears. When you are
finished defining your job, the Job Manager will display a list of your jobs, the model
associated with each job, the type of analysis, and the status of the job.
2. In the Job Manager, click Create. The Create Job dialog box appears with a list of the
models in the model database.
3. Name the job Plate, and click Continue. The Edit Job dialog box appears.
4. In the Description field, type two-dimensional plane stress problem or
similar.
5. In the Submission tabbed page, select Data check as the Job Type. Click OK to accept all
other default job settings in the job editor and to close the dialog box. (Note: in Abaqus/CAE
v6.7-1 or later version you may not find the Data check option under Submission tabbed
page. You may set the Job Type to Full analysis to combine the data check and analysis
phases of the simulation.)

5.10 Checking the model

Having generated the model for this simulation, you are ready to run the analysis. Unfortunately,
it is possible to have errors in the model because of incorrect or missing data. You should perform
a data check analysis first before running the simulation. To run a data check analysis:
1. Make sure that the Job Type is set to Data check. From the buttons on the right edge of the
Job Manager, click Submit to submit your job for analysis. After you submit your job, the
information in the Status column updates to indicate the job's status. The Status column for
the overhead hoist problem shows one of the following:
 None while the analysis input file is being generated.
 Submitted while the job is being submitted for analysis.
 Running while Abaqus analyzes the model.
 Completed when the analysis is complete, and the output has been written to the output
database.
 Aborted if Abaqus/CAE finds a problem with the input file or the analysis and aborts the
analysis. In addition, Abaqus/CAE reports the problem in the message area.
2. From the buttons on the right edge of the Job Manager, click Monitor to open the job
monitor dialog box once the job is submitted. The top half of the dialog box displays the

43
 information available in the status (*.sta) file that Abaqus creates for the analysis. This file
contains a brief summary of the progress of an analysis and is described in “Output,” Section
4.1.1 of the Abaqus Analysis User's Manual. The bottom half of the dialog box displays the
following information:
 Log tab to display the start and end times for the analysis that appear in the log (*.log)
file.
 Errors and Warnings tabs to display the first ten errors or the first ten warnings that
appear in the data (*.dat) and message (*.msg) files. If a particular region of the model
is causing the error or warning, a node or element set will be created automatically that
contains that region. The name of the node or element set appears with the error or
warning message, and you can view the set using display groups in the Visualization
module. It will not be possible to perform the analysis until the causes of any error
messages are corrected. In addition, you should always investigate the reason for any
warning messages to determine whether corrective action is needed or whether such
messages can be ignored safely. If more than ten errors or warnings are encountered,
information regarding the additional errors and warnings can be obtained from the printed
output files themselves.
 Output tab to display a record of each output data entry as it is written to the output
database.

5.11 Running the analysis

Make any necessary corrections to your model. When the data check analysis completes with no
error messages, run the analysis itself. To do this, edit the job definition and set the Job Type to
Continue analysis; then, click Submit in the Job Manager to submit your job for analysis.
You should always perform a data check analysis before running a simulation to ensure that the
model has been defined correctly and to check that there is enough disk space and memory
available to complete the analysis. However, it is possible to combine the data check and analysis
phases of the simulation by setting the Job Type to Full analysis.
If a simulation is expected to take a substantial amount of time, it may be convenient to run it in a
batch queue by selecting Queue as the Run Mode.

5.12 Postprocessing with Abaqus/CAE

When the job completes successfully, you are ready to view the results of the analysis with the
Visualization module. From the buttons on the right edge of the Job Manager, click Results.
Abaqus/CAE loads the Visualization module, opens the output database created by the job, and
displays a fast plot of the model. A fast plot is a basic representation of the undeformed model
shape and is an indication that you have opened the desired file. Alternatively, you can click
Visualization in the Module list located under the toolbar, select File→Open, select Plate.odb
from the list of available output database files, and click OK.

44
 Figure 5-8 Deformed model shape

You can suppress the display of and customize the title block, state block, and view orientation
triad by selecting Viewport→Viewport Annotation Options from the main menu bar (for
example, many of the figures in this manual do not include the title block).
From the main menu bar, select Plot→Undeformed Shape; or use the tool in the toolbox to
displays the undeformed model shape. From the main menu bar, select Plot→Deformed Shape;
or use the tool in the toolbox to displays the deformed model shape. You should see
something like on Figure 5-8.

5.12.1 Generating solution contours

To generate a contour of the stress S11, follow the following steps:

1. From Results in main menu bar select “Field output”.

2. In the Primary Variable tabbed page of the Field Output dialog box, choose “at
integration points” for “List only variables with results”. Choose Variable name as “S”
which corresponds to “stress components at integration points” and choose S11 for
Component.
3. Click Apply to plot the corresponding stress contour (Figure 5-9). Note that stresses and
strains are computed most accurately at the integration points and the displacements are
computed at the nodal points.

45
 Figure 5-9 contour plot of the 11 component of the stress in the plate

5.12.2. Generating report of Field Outputs

Abaqus/CAE allows you to write data to a text file (*.rpt) in a tabular format. This feature is a
convenient alternative to writing tabular output to the data (*.dat) file. Output generated this
way has many uses; for example, it can be used in written reports. In this problem you will
generate a report containing the element stress S11 and the element strain energies. To generate
field data reports:
1. From the main menu bar, select Report→Field Output.
2. If you want to write the values of S11 into a report, then click on ”Report” in the main menu
bar and then on “Field output”. In the Report Field Output dialog box, choose the Variable
tab check S11 within S:Stress components. In the Setup tabbed page, name the report
Plate.rpt. You can place this file in your own directory by choosing it using the Select
button. In the Data region at the bottom of the page, toggle off Column totals (the column
total is useful when you want to compute, e.g., the total strain energy of the entire model).
3. Click Apply. The stress values S11 are appended to the report file.

To find the strain energy for the whole model or to get some output variables in a plot or a file
1. From the main menu bar, select Report→Field Output.
2. Choose Whole Element in Position and toggle to ELSE: Strain energy magnitude in the
element. Abaqus will append the results in a file, the default name of the file is
abaqus.rpt and it saves it a Temp or TempABA directory on the C:\ drive (you can
change this directory to place the .rpt file in the directory of your choice by going to the
“Setup” tab and selecting the proper File name. The format of the file will give you the strain
energy at each element and at the end it will give the maximum, the minimum, and the total
strain energy for the model. As follow:

46
 841 114.742E-09
842 115.511E-09
843 115.452E-09
844 114.443E-09
845 112.401E-09
846 116.476E-09
847 122.453E-09
848 129.503E-09
849 136.715E-09
850 142.906E-09
851 146.849E-09
852 147.655E-09
853 123.686E-09
854 132.233E-09
855 148.315E-09
856 165.867E-09
857 182.23E-09
858 194.789E-09
859 203.389E-09

Minimum 1.32744E-09
At Element 23

Maximum 307.096E-09
At Element 1

Total 32.9939E-06

NOTES:

1. For Abaqus to be able to generate the “Whole element” energy data during analysis, you
must include “Energy” in your Field output manager as part of Step (the other output
variables that you may want to activate are Stresses, Strains,
Displacement/Velocity/Acceleration, Forces/Reactions). The go back to job and submit
the job again. Note: After any change in the model, mesh, BC’s, or anything else you
have to resubmit the job for analysis. After you resubmitted the job again, when it is
finished go to Visualization module.

2. To see the element numbers choose Options→Common and then, in the Common Plot
Options toggle “Show element labels” on the Labels tab and click Apply.

47