THE USE OF FINITES ELEMENT METHOD (FEM) IN THE STUDY OF THE GEOSYNTHETICS MATERIALS.
The study of stress-strian relation by FEM models is very important to improve and understand dispersives strenghts behaviors in non-woven samples.
This article shows a good filosophy that using the methodology of Finite Element Method to measure the behavior of the
geotextile materials under large and little deformations.
Although FEM have been used initially in structurals applications, as the linear structurals analysis, free and forced vibrations, the non-linear analysis envolving large deformations, plasticity and structural instability. The discretization technics of continuous systems that have obtained success in the ambit of the structural analysis can be applied to the other areas of civil
engineering. There are more areas that FEM is applied such as mathematical and physics systems. In the geothecnical science, FEM is applied in many areas as flows law’s, dams behaviors and others.
Thus, FEM is a important and approximate method that calcule continuous systems where a body is divided in a finit number of parts (elements) connected to many discrets points, called of nodes. Your application of geothecnical areas, specificated in the geossynthetics, is so briefly, used principally to measure the geotextile behaviors on the strength functions.
The complete paper will be send to the Geotechnical Engineering Jounal in 2008.
Marcelo Ferreira dos Santos is a Doctor Science in Geotecnical Engineering at Viçosa Federal Universitty (Vicosa City, Minas Gerais State, Brazil).