New Solution of Axisymmetric Contact Problem of Elasticity

Abstract

We consider two problems of elasticity, namely, the Boussinesq problem about the action of a lumped force on a half-space and the related problem about the interaction of the half-space with a cylindrical rigid punch with plane base. In the classical statement, these problems have singular solutions. In the Boussinesq problem, the displacement under the action of the force is infinitely large, and in the punch problem, the infinitely large variable is the pressure on the punch boundary. In the present paper, these problems are solved with the use of relations of generalized elasticity derived regarding a medium element of small but finite dimensions rather than a traditional infinitesimal element. The structure parameter of the medium contained in the solutions can be determined experimentally. The obtained generalized solutions of the problems under study are regular.