An efficient feti based solver for elasto-plastic problems of mechanics

This paper illustrates how to implement effectively solvers for elasto-plastic problems. We consider the time step problems formulated by nonlinear variational equations in terms of displacements. To treat nonlinearity and nonsmoothnes we use semismooth Newton method. In each Newton iteration we have to solve linear system of algebraic equations and for the numerical solution of the linear systems we use TFETI algorithm. In our benchmark we compute von Misses plasticity with isotropic hardening and use return mapping concept

A TFETI Domain Decomposition Solver for Elastoplastic Problems

We propose an algorithm for the efficient parallel implementation of elastoplastic problems with hardening based on the so-called TFETI (Total Finite Element Tearing and Interconnecting) domain decomposition method. We consider an associated elastoplastic model with the von Mises plastic criterion and the linear isotropic hardening law. Such a model is discretized by the implicit Euler method in time and the consequent one time step elastoplastic problem by the finite element method in space. The latter results in a system of nonlinear equations with a strongly semismooth and strongly monotone operator. The semismooth Newton method is applied to solve this nonlinear system. Corresponding linearized problems arising in the Newton iterations are solved in parallel by the above mentioned TFETI domain decomposition method. The proposed TFETI based algorithm was implemented in Matlab parallel environment and its performance was illustrated on a 3D elastoplastic benchmark. Numerical results for different time discretizations and mesh levels are presented and discussed and a local quadratic convergence of the semismooth Newton method is observed

Robust isogeometric preconditioners for the Stokes system based on the Fast Diagonalization method

In this paper we propose a new class of preconditioners for the isogeometric discretization of the Stokes system. Their application involves the solution of a Sylvester-like equation, which can be done efficiently thanks to the Fast Diagonalization method. These preconditioners are robust with respect to both the spline degree and mesh size. By incorporating information on the geometry parametrization and equation coefficients, we maintain efficiency on non-trivial computational domains and for variable kinematic viscosity. In our numerical tests we compare to a standard approach, showing that the overall iterative solver based on our preconditioners is significantly faster.Comment: 31 pages, 4 figure

On a computational approach to multiple contacts / impacts of elastic bodies

summary:The analysis of dynamic contacts/impacts of several deformable bodies belongs to both theoretically and computationally complicated problems, because of the presence of unpleasant nonlinearities and of the need of effective contact detection. This paper sketches how such difficulties can be overcome, at least for a model problem with several elastic bodies, using i) the explicit time-discretization scheme and ii) the finite element technique adopted to contact evaluations together with iii) the distributed computing platform. These considerations are supported by the references to useful generalizations, motivated by significant engineering applications. Illustrative examples demonstrate this approach on structures assembled from a finite number of shells

Analysis of a two-level Schwarz method with coarse spaces based on local Dirichlet--to--Neumann maps

International audienceCoarse grid correction is a key ingredient in order to have scalable domain decomposition methods. For smooth problems, the theory and practice of such two-level methods is well established, but this is not the case for problems with complicated variation and high contrasts in the coefficients. Stable coarse spaces for high contrast problems are also important purely for approximation purposes, when it is not desirable to resolve all the fine scale variations in the problem. In a previous study, two of the authors introduced a coarse space adapted to highly heterogeneous coefficients using the low frequency modes of the subdomain DtN maps. In this work, we present a rigorous analysis of a two-level overlapping additive Schwarz method (ASM) with this coarse space, which provides an automatic criterion for the number of modes that need to be added per subdomain to obtain a convergence rate of the order of the constant coefficient case. Our method is suitable for parallel implementation and its efficiency is demonstrated by numerical examples on some challenging problems with high heterogeneities for automatic partitionings

An interior-point algorithm for the minimization arising from 3D contact problems with friction

The paper deals with a variant of the interior-point method for the minimization of strictly quadratic objective function subject to simple bounds and separable quadratic inequality constraints. Such minimizations arise from the finite element approximation of contact problems of linear elasticity with friction in three space dimensions. The main goal of the paper is the convergence analysis of the algorithm and its implementation. The optimal preconditioners for solving ill-conditioned inner linear systems are proposed. Numerical experiments illustrate the computational efficiency for large-scale problems.Web of Science2861217119

A parallel algorithm for deformable contact problems

In the field of nonlinear computational solid mechanics, contact problems deal with the deformation of separate bodies which interact when they come in touch. Usually, these problems are formulated as constrained minimization problems which may be solved using optimization techniques such as penalty method, Lagrange multipliers, Augmented Lagrangian method, etc. This classical approach is based on node connectivities between the contacting bodies. These connectivities are created through the construction of contact elements introduced for the discretization of the contact interface, which incorporate the contact constraints in the global weak form. These methods are well known and widely used in the resolution of contact problems in engineering and science. As parallel computing platforms are nowadays widely available, solving large engineering problems on high performance computers is a real possibility for any engineer or researcher. Due to the memory and compute power that contact problems require and consume, they are good candidates for parallel computation. Industrial and scientific realistic contact problems involve different physical domains and a large number of degrees of freedom, so algorithms designed to run efficiently in high performance computers are needed. Nevertheless, the parallelization of the numerical solution methods that arises from the classical optimization techniques and discretization approaches presents some drawbacks which must be considered. Mainly, for general contact cases where sliding occurs, the introduction of contact elements requires the update of the mesh graph in a fixed number of time steps. From the point of view of the domain decomposition method for parallel resolution of numerical problems this is a major drawback due to its computational expensiveness, since dynamic repartitioning must be done to redistribute the updated mesh graph to the different processors. On the other hand, some of the optimization techniques modify dynamically the number of degrees of freedom in the problem, by introducing Lagrange multipliers as unknowns. In this work we introduce a Dirichlet-Neumann type parallel algorithm for the numerical solution of nonlinear frictional contact problems, putting a strong focus on its computational implementation. Among its main characteristics it can be highlighted that there is no need to update the mesh graph during the simulation, as no contact elements are used. Also, no additional degrees of freedom are introduced into the system, since no Lagrange multipliers are required. In this algorithm the bodies in contact are treated separately, in a segregated way. The coupling between the contacting bodies is performed through boundary conditions transfer at the contact zone. From a computational point of view, this feature allows to use a multi-code approach. Furthermore, the algorithm can be interpreted as a black-box method as it solves each body separately even with different computational codes. In addition, the contact algorithm proposed in this thesis can also be formulated as a general fixed-point solver for the solution of interface problems. This generalization gives us the theoretical basis to extrapolate and implement numerical techniques that were already developed and widely tested in the field of fluid-structure interaction (FSI) problems, especially those related to convergence ensurance and acceleration. We describe the parallel implementation of the proposed algorithm and analyze its parallel behaviour and performance in both validation and realistic test cases executed in HPC machines using several processors.En el ámbito de la mecánica de contacto computacional, los problemas de contacto tratan con la deformación que sufren cuerpos separados cuando interactúan entre ellos. Comunmente, estos problemas son formulados como problemas de minimización con restricciones, que pueden ser resueltos utilizando técnicas de optimización como la penalización, los multiplicadores de Lagrange, el Lagrangiano Aumentado, etc. Este enfoque clásico está basado en la conectividad de nodos entre los cuerpos, que se realiza a través de la construcción de los elementos de contacto que surgen de la discretización de la interfaz. Estos elementos incorporan las restricciones de contacto en forma débil. Debido al consumo de memoria y a los requerimientos de potencia de cálculo que los problemas de contacto requieren, resultan ser muy buenos candidatos para su paralelización computacional. Sin embargo, tanto la paralelización de los métodos numéricos que surgen de las técnicas clásicas de optimización como los distintos enfoques para su discretización, presentan algunas desventajas que deben ser consideradas. Por un lado, el principal problema aparece ya que en los casos más generales de la mecánica de contacto ocurre un deslizamiento entre cuerpos. Por este motivo, la introducción de los elementos de contacto vuelve necesaria una actualización del grafo de la malla cada cierto número de pasos de tiempo. Desde el punto de vista del método de descomposición de dominios utilizado en la resolución paralela de problemas numéricos, esto es una gran desventaja debidoa su coste computacional. En estos casos, un reparticionamiento dinámico debe ser realizado para redistribuir el grafo actualizado de la malla entre los diferentes procesadores. Por otro lado, algunas técnicas de optimización modifican dinámicamente el número de grados de libertad del problema al introducir multiplicadores de Lagrange como incógnitas. En este trabajo presentamos un algoritmo paralelo del tipo Dirichlet-Neumann para la resolución numérica de problemas de contacto no lineales con fricción, poniendo un especial énfasis en su implementación computacional. Entre sus principales características se puede destacar que no hay necesidad de actualizar el grafo de la malla durante la simulación, ya que en este algoritmo no se utilizan elementos de contacto. Adicionalmente, ningún grado de libertad extra es introducido al sistema, ya que los multiplicadores de Lagrange no son requeridos. En este algoritmo los cuerpos en contacto son tratados de forma separada, de una manera segregada. El acople entre estos cuerpos es realizado a través del intercambio de condiciones de contorno en la interfaz de contacto. Desde un punto de vista computacional, esta característica permite el uso de un enfoque multi-código. Además, este algoritmo puede ser interpretado como un método del tipo black-box ya que permite resolver cada cuerpo por separado, aún utilizando distintos códigos computacionales. Adicionalmente, el algoritmo de contacto propuesto en esta tesis puede ser formulado como un esquema de resolución de punto fijo, empleado de forma general en la solución de problemas de interfaz. Esta generalización permite extrapolar técnicas numéricas ya utilizadas en los problemas de interacción fluido-estructura e implementarlas en la mecánica de contacto, en especial aquellas relacionadas con el aseguramiento y aceleración de la convergencia. En este trabajo describimos la implementación paralela del algoritmo propuesto y analizamos su comportamiento y performance paralela tanto en casos de validación como reales, ejecutados en computadores de alta performance utilizando varios procesadores.Postprint (published version

Adaptive Coarse Spaces for the Overlapping Schwarz Method and Multiscale Elliptic Problems

In science and engineering, many problems exhibit multiscale properties, making the development of efficient algorithms to compute accurate solutions often challenging. We consider finite element discretizations of linear, second-order, elliptic partial differential equations with highly heterogeneous coefficient functions. The condition numbers of the associated linear systems of equations strongly depend on the mesh resolution and the heterogeneity of the coefficient function. To obtain scalable solvers, we employ the conjugate gradient method and additive overlapping Schwarz domain decomposition preconditioners with suitable coarse spaces. To ensure that the convergence is independent of large variations in the coefficient function, we construct adaptive coarse spaces: The domain decomposition interface is partitioned into small components, on which we solve local generalized eigenvalue problems to incorporate adaptivity into the coarse spaces. A tolerance is specified a priori to select the most effective eigenfunctions, which are subsequently extended energy-minimally to the subdomains to construct coarse functions. To obtain small coarse problems, we present several techniques that affect the generalized eigenvalue problems: the incorporation of an energy-minimizing extension, the construction of specific interface partitions, and the enforcement of additional Dirichlet boundary conditions in the energy-minimizing extensions. Additionally, we present approaches to reduce the computational cost and facilitate a parallel implementation. For all adaptive coarse spaces, we prove condition number bounds that only depend on a user-prescribed tolerance and on a constant that is independent of the typical mesh parameters and of the coefficient function. We provide supporting numerical results for diffusion and linear elasticity problems