Coupled-field elements are available for combining various types of physics. A coupled-field element has all necessary degrees of freedom necessary for solving a coupled-field problem. When a coupled-field element is used, the multiple physics are solved simultaneously (in a single analysis with a single mesh and model).
The program handles coupling between the physics by calculating the necessary element matrices or element load vectors.
Coupled-field elements are recommended for strongly coupled physics such as piezoelectric, thermo-electric, and highly nonlinear coupled-field analyses that include material and geometric nonlinearities, temperature-dependent material properties, and multiphysics contact.
The following additional topics are available:
For more information, see the Coupled-Field Analysis Guide.
The following types of coupled-field elements are available:
General purpose coupled-field elements
Coupled pore-pressure-thermal mechanical elements
Thermal-electric link and shell elements
Magneto-structural element
Electromagnetic elements
Fluid elements
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General-Purpose Coupled-Field | Degrees of Freedom |
Coupled-Physics | ||||||||||||||||
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PLANE222 -- Lower-order quadrilateral |
UX, UY, TEMP |
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PLANE223 -- Higher-order quadrilateral |
UX, UY, TEMP, VOLT, AZ, CONC |
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SOLID226 -- Higher-order hexahedral |
UX, UY, UZ, TEMP, VOLT, CONC | |||||||||||||||||
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SOLID227 -- Higher-order tetrahedral | ||||||||||||||||||
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SOLID5 -- Lower-order hexahedral |
UX, UY, UZ, TEMP, VOLT, MAG |
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PLANE13 -- Lower-order quadrilateral |
UX, UY, TEMP, VOLT, AZ |
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SOLID98 -- Higher-order tetrahedral |
UX, UY, UZ, TEMP, VOLT, MAG |
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Coupled Pore-Pressure-Thermal Mechanical |
Degrees of Freedom |
Coupled-Physics | ||||||||||||||||
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CPT212 --Lower-order quadrilateral |
UX, UY, PRES,TEMP |
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CPT213 -- Higher-order quadrilateral | ||||||||||||||||||
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CPT215 -- Lower-order hexahedral |
UX, UY, UZ, PRES, TEMP | |||||||||||||||||
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CPT216 -- Higher-order hexahedral | ||||||||||||||||||
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CPT217 -- Higher-order tetrahedral | ||||||||||||||||||
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Thermal-Electric |
Degrees of Freedom |
Coupled-Physics | ||||||||||||||||
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LINK68 -- Lower-order line |
TEMP, VOLT |
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SHELL157 -- Lower-order shell | ||||||||||||||||||
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Electromagnetic |
Degrees of Freedom |
Coupled-Physics | ||||||||||||||||
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PLANE233 -- Higher-order quadrilateral |
AZ, VOLT, EMF |
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SOLID236 -- Edge-based mixed-order hexahedral | ||||||||||||||||||
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SOLID237 -- Edge-based mixed-order tetrahedral | ||||||||||||||||||
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Fluid |
Degrees of Freedom |
Coupled-Physics | ||||||||||||||||
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UX, UY, PRES |
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FLUID30 -- Lower-order hexahedral |
UX, UY, UZ, PRES | |||||||||||||||||
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PRES, TEMP |
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FLUID136 -- Low-order and high-order quadrilateral |
UX, UY, UZ, PRES |
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UX, UY, UZ, PRES |
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TRANS126 -- Electromechanical transducer |
UX (UY, UZ), VOLT |
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ROM144 -- Reduced-order electrostatic-structural |
EMF, VOLT, UX | |||||||||||||||||
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CONTA171 -- 2-D lower-order surface-to-surface contact |
UX, UY, TEMP, VOLT |
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CONTA172 -- 2-D higher-order surface-to-surface contact | ||||||||||||||||||
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CONTA173 -- 3-D lower-order surface-to-surface contact |
UX, UY, UZ, TEMP, VOLT | |||||||||||||||||
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CONTA174 -- 3-D higher-order surface-to-surface contact | ||||||||||||||||||
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CONTA175 -- 2-D / 3-D node-to-surface contact |
UX, UY, (UZ), TEMP, VOLT | |||||||||||||||||
Use the following table to select coupled-field elements:
See Elements for Acoustic Analysis for more information
See Elements for Thermal Analysis for more information
For related information, see Selecting Elements for Your Analysis.