A symbolic Fourier synthesis of a one-point integrated quadrilateral plate element (Q801726)

A symbolic Fourier analysis is performed on both one-point and four-point spatially integrated four-noded \(C^ 0\) plate elements. The analysis show that the effects of different integration rules is characterized by a single Fourier component called the directional averaging operator. In addition, the conditions for avoiding locking and spurious mechanisms are explicitly identified in a general plate operator expressed in Fourier form. Encouraged by these results, a \(C^ 0\) plate element is synthesized employing only one-point integrated attributes. The stiffness matrix of the new element consists of two parts: the usual one-point integrated part, and the rank compensating part that is identified as the difference between the synthesized and one-point integrated plate operators.