A virtual element method for 3D contact problems with non-conforming meshes

Abstract

The Virtual Element Method is ideal for problems with non-conforming meshes since nodes can be inserted at the virtual element boundary to obtain a conforming mesh structure, without changing the ansatz of the element. The contact conditions can be employed on different enforcing strategies. This feature can be explored also for three-dimensional contact problems. In this work, we introduce a new framework, including a remeshing strategy, which leads to conforming meshes. Various numerical examples in 3D will be shown, including standard cases like the contact patch test and Hertzian contact.