Adaptive element-free Galerkin method applied to the limit analysis of plates

The implementation of an h-adaptive element-free Galerkin (EFG) method in the framework of limit analysis is described. The naturally conforming property of meshfree approximations (with no nodal connectivity required) facilitates the implementation of h-adaptivity. Nodes may be moved, discarded or introduced without the need for complex manipulation of the data structures involved. With the use of the Taylor expansion technique, the error in the computed displacement field and its derivatives can be estimated throughout the problem domain with high accuracy. A stabilized conforming nodal integration scheme is extended for use in error estimation and results in an efficient and truly meshfree adaptive method. To demonstrate its effectiveness the procedure is then applied to plates with various boundary conditions.