Boundary element software in engineering

Abstract

The boundary element method starts to be a powerful tool for the analysis of continua. The main attraction of the method is that only the boundary/ surface of the domain needs to be discretised, thus the process of modelling is not so tedious as by the finite element method. The dimensionality of the problem analysed is reduced by one. Although the developments of the boundary element technique are still in early stages, the application of the method seems to acquire more and more users for its versatility and economy when compared with finite elements. The paper presented reviews applications of the boundary element method to the solution of a wide variety of problems in engineering. A review of boundary element software is given. Both categories of programs, general purpose and special purpose, are represented. Program capabilities include field problems, linear and nonlinear stress analysis, thermoelastic problems, etc. Programs where coupled finite element and boundary element techniques are implemented are also represented in the review. A comprehensive bibliography at the end of the paper includes program documentation, program applications and papers dealing with the boundary element method from the theoretical point of view.