Copyright 2012 Altair Engineering, Inc. Proprietary and Confidential. All rights reserved.

When to use 3-D elements

3-D elements should be used when all dimensions are comparable.

x~y~z

Element shape Tetra, Penta, hex, pyramid

Additional data from user Nothing
Element type Solid
Practical applications : Gear box, engine block, crankshaft, etc.
Copyright 2012 Altair Engineering, Inc. Proprietary and Confidential. All rights reserved.

3-D Element types

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DOFs for solid elements

2-D thin shell and 1-D beam element supports 6 dofs, but all solid elements have only 3 translational
dofs (no rotational dof ) i.e. a 10 noded tetra element has total of 10 x 3 = 30 dofs

Why does a solid element have only 3 translational and no rotational dofs (Physical
interpretation)?

Consider a piece of paper (2-D geometry) or long steel scale (1-D geometry). It could be easily bent and
twisted (rotational dof ). But now consider a solid object like a duster or a paper weight. It could not be
subjected to very high bending or torsion stiffness. Hence, solid elements have been formulated with 3
translational dofs and no rotational dofs.
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Quality check for Tetra elements.

Tetra Collapse:
Ideal Value = 1.0 (Acceptable > 0.1)
Tetra collapse = h * 1.24 / A
(Defined as the distance of a node from the opposite face
divided by the area of the face multiplied by 1.24)

Volumetric Skew :
Create a sphere passing through the corner nodes of the tetra,
fit an ideal (equilateral) tetra in it. Find the volume of the ideal
and actual tetra elements.
Ideal value = 0 (Acceptable < 0.7)

Volumetric Skew = (Videal - Vactual)

Videal
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Quality check for Tetra elements.

Stretch:
Ideal value = 1.0 (Acceptable > 0.2)
Stretch = R * 24 / Lmax
R = Radius of largest possible sphere inside given tetra element.

Distortion :
Ideal value = 1.0 (Acceptable > 0.5)
Distortion = | J | * VolmLCS / VolmGCS
LCS Local Coordinate System
GCS Global Coordinate System
Jacobian:
Ideal value = 1.0 (Acceptable > 0.5)
In simple terms, the Jacobian is a scale factor arising because of the transformation of the
coordinate system. Elements are transformed from global coordinates to local coordinates to reduce the
solution time.
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Brick Mesh Quality Checks

Warp angle:
Ideal value = 0 (Acceptable <300)
Warp angle is calculated on faces (quadrilateral) of a hex element. It is the angle between the planes
that form by splitting the quad element.

Jacobian:
Ideal value = 1.0 (Acceptable > 0.5)
In simple language, the Jacobian is a scale factor arising because of the transformation of the
coordinate
system. Elements are transformed from global to local coordinates to reduce the solution time.

Distortion:
Ideal value = 1.0 (Acceptable > 0.5)
Distortion = |J | * VolmLCS / VolmGCS
LCS Local Coordinate System
GCS Global Coordinate System
Copyright 2012 Altair Engineering, Inc. Proprietary and Confidential. All rights reserved.

Brick Mesh Quality Checks

Stretch:
Ideal value = 1.0 (Acceptable > 0.20)
Stretch = min. edge length * 3 / max. diagonal length

Aspect ratio:
Ideal value =1.0 (Acceptable < 5)
Aspect ratio = max. edge length / minimum edge length.

Skew:
Ideal value = 00 (Acceptable < 450)
Skew is checked on all the faces of a hex element (quadrilateral). For the skew definition, please refer
to the shell element checks.

Quad face included angles: 450 < < 1350

Tria face (wedge / Penta elements) included angles: 200 < < 1200
% of Pentas: Acceptable < 5 %