A new numerical method for rotating systems in engineering analysis and design

Abstract

Moving Element Method (MEM), a new method that incorporates moving co-ordinates into the well-known Finite Element Method (FEM), is a powerful tool in solving dynamics problems of moving loads. It has been shown earlier to be an elegant method for one-dimensional train-track problems and subsequently developed for in-plane dynamic problems of rotating disks. The method is herein further advanced into more important out-of-plane dynamic problems of rotating disks in this thesis. The study involves mainly numerical study to examine the efficiency and accuracy of the results. Dynamic response including displacements, stresses and strains are studied numerically. Two types of moving load problems, namely, stationary disk subjected to rotating transverse load (SD-RTL) and rotating disk subjected to stationary transverse load (RD-STL) are compared. The effects of various parameters are investigated in the study. They are effects of membrane stresses, damping, aerodynamic, modulus and Poisson ratios. The advantages of the MEM as a creative numerical tool in solving rotational dynamics problems are demonstrated.