Analysis of coupled structural-acoustic problems based on the smoothed finite element method (S-FEM)

The smoothed finite element method (S-FEM) developed recently shows great efficiency in solving solid mechanics and acoustics problems. In this paper, coupled structural-acoustic problems are studied using the S-FEM method. Three-node triangular elements and four-node tetrahedral elements are used to discretize the two-dimensional and three-dimensional domains, respectively. The gradient field of the problem is smoothed using gradient smoothing operations over the edge-based and face-based smoothing domains in two-dimensional plate and three-dimensional fluid, respectively. Because the gradient smoothing technique can provide a proper softening effect to the “overly-stiff” FEM model, significant improvements are achieved on the accuracy of solution for the coupled systems. Typical numerical examples have been conducted to verify the effectiveness of the S-FEM for coupled structural-acoustic problems.