Primarily intended for senior undergraduate and postgraduate students of civil, mechanical and aerospace/aeronautical engineering, this text emphasises the importance of reliability in engineering computations and understanding the process of computer aided engineering. Written with a view to promote the correct use of finite element technology and to present a detailed study of a set of essential computational tools for the practice of structural dynamics, this book is a ready-reckoner for an in-depth discussion of finite element theory and estimation and control of errors in computations. It is specifically aimed at the audience with interest in vibrations and stress analysis. Several worked out examples and exercise problems have been included to describe the various aspects of finite element theory and modelling. The exercise on error analysis will be extremely helpful in grasping the essence of posteriori error analysis and mesh refinement. KEY FEATURES • Thorough discussion of numerical algorithms for reliable and efficient computation. • Ready-to-use finite element system and other scientific applications. • Tips for improving the quality of finite element solutions. • Companion DVD containing ready to use finite element applications. AUDIENCE: Senior Undergraduate and Postgraduate students of Civil, Mechanical and Aerospace/Aeronautical engineering

The increasing necessity to solve complex problems in Structural Dynamics and Earthquake Engineering requires the development of new ideas, innovative methods and numerical tools for providing accurate numerical solutions in affordable computing times. This book presents the latest scientific developments in Computational Dynamics, Stochastic Dynam

Nowadays, numerical computation has become one of the most vigorous tools for scientists, researchers and professional engineers, following the enormous progress made during the last decades in computing technology, in terms of both computer hardware and software development. Although this has led to tremendous achievements in computer-based structural engineering, the increasing necessity of solving complex problems in engineering requires the development of new ideas and innovative methods for providing accurate numerical solutions in affordable computing times. This collection aims at providing a forum for the presentation and discussion of state-of-the-art innovative developments, concepts, methodologies and approaches in scientific computation applied to structural engineering. It involves a wide coverage of timely issues on computational structural engineering with a broad range of both research and advanced practical applications. This Research Topic encompasses, but is not restricted to, the following scientific areas: modeling in structural engineering; finite element methods; boundary element methods; static and dynamic analysis of structures; structural stability; structural mechanics; meshless methods; smart structures and systems; fire engineering; blast engineering; structural reliability; structural health monitoring and control; optimization; and composite materials, with application to engineering structures.

The papers in this volume deal with the demonstration of the possibilities offered by computational technology as to finding better solutions to problems in different fields of structural dynamics, with a special emphasis on earthquake structural dynamics.

Following the great progress made in computing technology, both in computer and programming technology, computation has become one of the most powerful tools for researchers and practicing engineers. It has led to tremendous achievements in computer-based structural engineering and there is evidence that current devel- ments will even accelerate in the near future. To acknowledge this trend, Tongji University, Vienna University of Technology, and Chinese Academy of Engine- ing, co-organized the International Symposium on Computational Structural En- neering 2009 in Shanghai (CSE’09). CSE’09 aimed at providing a forum for presentation and discussion of sta- of-the-art development in scientific computing applied to engineering sciences. Emphasis was given to basic methodologies, scientific development and engine- ing applications. Therefore, it became a central academic activity of the Inter- tional Association for Computational Mechanics (IACM), the European Com- nity on Computational Methods in Applied Sciences (ECCOMAS), The Chinese Society of Theoretical and Applied Mechanic, the China Civil Engineering So- ety, and the Architectural Society of China. A total of 10 invited papers, and around 140 contributed papers were p- sented in the proceedings of the symposium. Contributors of papers came from 20 countries around the world and covered a wide spectrum related to the compu- tional structural engineering.

Computational techniques for the analysis and design of structural dynamic systems using numerical methods have been the focus of an enormous amount of research for several decades. In general, the numerical methods utilized to solve these problems include two phases: (a) spatial discretization by either the finite element method (FEM) or the finite difference method (FDM), and (b) solution of systems of time dependent second-order ordinary differential equations. In addition, the significantly powerful advances in computer systems capabilities have put on the desks of structural systems designers enormous computing power either by means of increasingly effective computer workstations or else through PCs (personal computers), whose increasing power has succeeded in marginalizing the computational power differences between PCs and workstations in many cases. This volume is a comprehensive treatment of the issues involved in computational techniques in structural dynamic systems.

Computational structural mechanics (CSM) and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) have emerged in the last two decades as new disciplines combining structural mechanics and fluid dynamics with approximation theory, numerical analysis and computer science. Their use has transformed much of theoretical mechanics and abstract science into practical and essential tools for a multitude of technological developments which affect many facets of our life. This collection of over 40 papers provides an authoritative documentation of major advances in both CSM and CFD, helping to identify future directions of development in these rapidly changing fields. Key areas covered are fluid structure interaction and aeroelasticity, CFD technology and reacting flows, micromechanics, stability and eigenproblems, probabilistic methods and chaotic dynamics, perturbation and spectral methods, element technology (finite volume, finite elements and boundary elements), adaptive methods, parallel processing machines and applications, and visualization, mesh generation and artificial intelligence interfaces.

Graph theory gained initial prominence in science and engineering through its strong links with matrix algebra and computer science. Moreover, the structure of the mathematics is well suited to that of engineering problems in analysis and design. The methods of analysis in this book employ matrix algebra, graph theory and meta-heuristic algorithms, which are ideally suited for modern computational mechanics. Efficient methods are presented that lead to highly sparse and banded structural matrices. The main features of the book include: application of graph theory for efficient analysis; extension of the force method to finite element analysis; application of meta-heuristic algorithms to ordering and decomposition (sparse matrix technology); efficient use of symmetry and regularity in the force method; and simultaneous analysis and design of structures.

This book covers structural dynamics from a theoretical and algorithmic approach. It covers systems with both single and multiple degrees-of-freedom. Numerous case studies are given to provide the reader with a deeper insight into the practicalities of the area, and the solutions to these case studies are given in terms of real-time and frequency in both geometric and modal spaces. Emphasis is also given to the subject of seismic loading. The text is based on many lectures on the subject of structural dynamics given at numerous institutions and thus will be an accessible and practical aid to students of the subject. Key features: Examines the effects of loads, impacts, and seismic forces on the materials used in the construction of buildings, bridges, tunnels, and more Structural dynamics is a critical aspect of the design of all engineered/designed structures and objects - allowing for accurate prediction of their ability to withstand service loading, and for knowledge of failure-causeing or critical loads