Error-controlled adaptive finite elements in solid mechanics

Engineers rely on finite element methods to approximate solutions to partial differential equations, and modern computers can handle the millions of unknowns these methods generate. That capacity has pushed researchers toward methods that estimate their own numerical error and then refine the approximation accordingly. This book surveys that developing area of automatic error estimation and adaptive refinement.

The volume draws together the work of eight researchers who took part in a six-year national research project funded by the German Science Foundation. Each chapter stands on its own and combines theory, algorithms and software implementation, with worked problems included throughout.

A central strength is a set of carefully developed benchmark problems in two and three dimensions. Written in a reference-book format, the text is aimed at readers working on numerical simulation and computational solid mechanics.