Boundary integral equation evaluation of compression moduli of bonded rubber blocks

Abstract

The boundary integral equation (BIE) method for two-dimensional, linear, elastic stress analysis is applied to two plane strain problems involving either incompressible or nearly incompressible materials. One of these is a test problem with a known analytical solution, which facilitates checking of the accuracy of the numerical results. The other is the determination of compression moduli of bonded rubber blocks, for which some finite element (FE) solutions have been published previously. Comparison of the BIE and FE results suggests that the latter are increasingly inaccurate as the material behaviour approaches incompressibility. Unlike displacement-based FE methods, the BIE method is not subject to singularity problems when applied to incompressible materials.