This paper on "Formulating Benchmarks for Nonlinear Analysis" was presented at the NAFEMS World Congress on The Evolution of Product Simulation From Established Methods to Virtual Testing & Prototyping - 24-28 April 2001, The Grand Hotel, Lake Como, Italy.

Summary

This paper discusses the formulation of benchmarks for nonlinear finite element analysis. We review the desirable attributes that such benchmarks should possess. As a particular example, we consider the development of benchmarks for nonlinear analysis of two-dimensional frames. Accurate results are presented for three commonly-used benchmarks, and their suitability as benchmarks is discussed.