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
General-Purpose Coupled-Field | Degrees of Freedom |
Coupled-Physics | ||||||||||||||||
PLANE222 -- Lower-order quadrilateral |
UX, UY, TEMP, VOLT, CONC |
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PLANE223 -- Higher-order quadrilateral |
UX, UY, TEMP, VOLT, AZ, CONC |
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SOLID225 --Lower-order hexahedral |
UX, UY, UZ, TEMP, VOLT, CONC |
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SOLID226 -- Higher-order hexahedral |
UX, UY, UZ, TEMP, VOLT, AZ, CONC |
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SOLID227 -- Higher-order tetrahedral | ||||||||||||||||||
LINK228 -- Lower-order (or higher order) line | UX, UY, UZ, TEMP, VOLT |
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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 | ||||||||||||||||
CPT212 --Lower-order quadrilateral |
UX, UY, PRES,TEMP, GFV1, GFV2, GFV3 |
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CPT213 -- Higher-order quadrilateral | ||||||||||||||||||
CPT215 -- Lower-order hexahedral |
UX, UY, UZ, PRES, TEMP, GFV1, GFV2, GFV3 | |||||||||||||||||
CPT216 -- Higher-order hexahedral | ||||||||||||||||||
CPT217 -- Higher-order tetrahedral | ||||||||||||||||||
Thermal-Electric |
Degrees of Freedom |
Coupled-Physics | ||||||||||||||||
LINK68 -- Lower-order line |
TEMP, VOLT |
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SHELL157 -- Lower-order shell | ||||||||||||||||||
Electromagnetic |
Degrees of Freedom |
Coupled-Physics | ||||||||||||||||
PLANE233 -- Higher-order quadrilateral |
AZ, VOLT, EMF |
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SOLID236 -- Edge-based mixed-order hexahedral | ||||||||||||||||||
SOLID237 -- Edge-based mixed-order tetrahedral | ||||||||||||||||||
Fluid |
Degrees of Freedom |
Coupled-Physics | ||||||||||||||||
UX, UY, PRES |
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FLUID30 -- Lower-order hexahedral |
UX, UY, UZ, PRES | |||||||||||||||||
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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CONTA172 -- 2D surface-to-surface contact |
UX, UY, TEMP, VOLT |
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CONTA174 -- 3D surface-to-surface contact |
UX, UY, UZ, TEMP, VOLT | |||||||||||||||||
CONTA175 -- 2D / 3D 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.