FE/PML numerical schemes for dynamic soil-structure interaction and seismic wave propagation analysis

Abstract

The numerical solution of wave propagation in unbounded media is of great importance in many engineering applications. An alternative approach to the application of artificial boundaries in the FEM is the Perfectly Matched Layer (PML) technique. The main idea of this technique is that an absorbing layer is applied around the finite region of interest absorbing almost perfectly waves of all incident angles and frequencies propagating from the bounded region. A perfectly matched layer can be obtained by performing a complex-valued coordinate transformation inside the layer which can be expressed either as a change in the material properties or as a stretching of the coordinates. Both approaches are applied to the PML formulation and implemented in a commercial FEM program. All simulation results demonstrate the accuracy of the FE/PML models and the ability of the developed models to deal with complex dynamic soil-structure interaction systems.