Extrapolated fields in the formulation of the assumed strain elements Part II: Three-dimensional problems Original Research Article

Assumed strain eight-node hexahedral elements with significantly extended range of applicability are presented. These elements are formulated using only standard translational displacements at each of their eight nodes and provide accurate solutions for a variety of benchmark problems such as spacial beams, plates, shells as well as general three-dimensional elasticity problems. The elements with such characteristics are particularly useful to model problems of complex geometry, where different regions of the domain might impose entirely different modeling requirements.