Numerical studies of a nonlinear heat equation with square root reaction term

Interest in calculating numerical solutions of a highly nonlinear parabolic partial differential equation with fractional power diffusion and dissipative terms motivated our investigation of a heat equation having a square root nonlinear reaction term. The original equation occurs in the study of plasma behavior in fusion physics. We begin by examining the numerical behavior of the ordinary differential equation obtained by dropping the diffusion term. The results from this simpler case are then used to construct nonstandard finite difference schemes for the partial differential equation. A variety of numerical results are obtained and analyzed, along with a comparison to the numerics of both standard and several nonstandard schemes. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Numer Methods Partial Differential Eq, 2009     

Hybrid modeling approach for vehicle frame coupled with nonlinear dampers

The vehicle frame system comprises frame structure and nonlinear dampers. In order to investigate the effects of frame flexibility and nonlinear hysteresis, a hybrid modeling approach for vehicle frame coupled with nonlinear dampers will be proposed. Before that, a complex model for nonlinear damper is developed consisting of knowledge-based model and support vector machine (SVM) model. The frame structure is modeled by FEM where the SVM complex model of damper is embedded in. Thus a hybrid model for vehicle frame system is established and successfully validated via a dummy vehicle riding in different conditions. The results show that the hybrid model can capture the nonlinear dynamic characteristics accurately. The hybrid model can also provide a basis for structural design with the existing of FEM model.     

Numerical solution of a thermomechanical coupled model governing glacier evolution

In this paper the numerical solution of a highly nonlinear model for the thermomechanical behavior of polythermal glaciers is presented. The modeling follows the shallow ice approximation (SIA) for glaciers introduced in Fowler (1997) [13]. The model has been extended to incorporate additional moving boundaries and other nonlinear features. Moreover, a fixed domain formulation is proposed to avoid the computational drawbacks of a time-dependent domain in the numerical simulation with front tracking methods. In this setting, the coupled problem is decomposed into different nonlinear problems which allow one to obtain sequentially the profile evolution, the velocity field, the glacier surface and atmospheric temperatures, basal magnitudes and the temperature distribution inside the ice mass. A fixed point iteration algorithm converges to the solution of the nonlinear coupled problem. Among different numerical methods involved in the solution of the subproblems, characteristic schemes for time discretization, finite elements for spatial discretization, duality methods for the nonlinearities associated to maximal monotone operators and a Newton scheme for the nonlinear viscous term are proposed. Several numerical simulation examples illustrate the performance of the numerical methods and the behavior of the involved physical magnitudes.     

Multi-harmonic measurements and numerical simulations of nonlinear vibrations of a beam with non-ideal boundary conditions

This study presents a direct comparison of measured and predicted nonlinear vibrations of a clamped–clamped steel beam with non-ideal boundary conditions. A multi-harmonic comparison of simulations with measurements is performed in the vicinity of the primary resonance. First of all, a nonlinear analytical model of the beam is developed taking into account non-ideal boundary conditions. Three simulation methods are implemented to investigate the nonlinear behavior of the clamped–clamped beam. The method of multiple scales is used to compute an analytical expression of the frequency response which enables an easy updating of the model. Then, two numerical methods, the Harmonic Balance Method and a time-integration method with shooting algorithm, are employed and compared one with each other. The Harmonic Balance Method enables to simulate the vibrational stationary response of a nonlinear system projected on several harmonics. This study then proposes a method to compare numerical simulations with measurements of all these harmonics. A signal analysis tool is developed to extract the system harmonics’ frequency responses from the temporal signal of a swept sine experiment. An evolutionary updating algorithm (Covariance Matrix Adaptation Evolution Strategy), coupled with highly selective filters is used to identify both fundamental frequency and harmonic amplitudes in the temporal signal, at every moment. This tool enables to extract the harmonic amplitudes of the output signal as well as the input signal. The input of the Harmonic Balance Method can then be either an ideal mono-harmonic signal or a multi-harmonic experimental signal. Finally, the present work focuses on the comparison of experimental and simulated results. From experimental output harmonics and numerical simulations, it is shown that it is possible to distinguish the nonlinearities of the clamped–clamped beam and the effect of the non-ideal input signal.     

Modulated Fourier Expansions of Highly Oscillatory Differential Equations

Modulated Fourier expansions are developed as a tool for gaining insight into the long-time behavior of Hamiltonian systems with highly oscillatory solutions. Particle systems of Fermi–Pasta–Ulam type with light and heavy masses are considered as an example. It is shown that the harmonic energy of the highly oscillatory part is nearly conserved over times that are exponentially long in the high frequency. Unlike previous approaches to such problems, the technique used here does not employ nonlinear coordinate transforms and can therefore be extended to the analysis of numerical discretizations.     

Nonlinear dynamics and stability analysis of piezo-visco medium nanoshell resonator with electrostatic and harmonic actuation

In this paper, nonlinear dynamics, vibration and stability analysis of piezo-visco medium nanoshell resonator (PVM-NSR) based on functionally graded (FG) cylindrical nanoshell integrated with two piezoelectric layers subjected to visco-pasternak medium, electrostatic and harmonic excitations is investigated. Nonclassical method of the electro-elastic Gurtin–Murdoch surface/interface theory with von-Karman–Donnell's shell model as well as Hamilton's principle, the assumed mode method combined with Lagrange–Euler's are considered. Complex averaging method combined with arc-length continuation is used to achieve a numerical solution for the steady state vibrations of the system. The stability analysis of the steady state response is performed. The parametric studies such as the effects of different boundary conditions, different geometric ratios, structural parameters, electrostatic and harmonic excitation on the nonlinear frequency response and stability analysis are studied. The results indicate that near the natural frequency of the nanoshell, it will lead to resonance and will have large motion amplitude and near the resonant frequency, the nanoshell shows a softening type of nonlinear behavior, and the nanoshell bandwidth increases due to nonlinear factors. In this range, nanoshell has three different ranges of motion, of which two are stable and the other unstable, and so the jump phenomenon and saddle-node bifurcation are visible in the behavior of the system. Also piezoelectric voltage influences on static deformation and resonant frequency but has no significant effect on nonlinear behavior and bandwidth and also system very sensitive to the damping coefficient and due to decrease of nano shell stiffness, natural frequency decreases. And also, increasing or decreasing of some parameters lead to increasing or decreasing the resonance amplitude, resonant frequency, the system's instability, nonlinear behavior and bandwidth.     

Predicting the elastoplastic response of fiber-reinforced metal matrix composites

This paper aims to investigate the effect of microstructure parameters (such as the cross-sectional shape of fibers and fiber volume fraction) on the stress–strain behavior of unidirectional composites subjected to off-axis loadings. A micromechanical model with a periodic microstructure is used to analyze a representative volume element. The fiber is linearly elastic, but the matrix is nonlinear. The Bodner–Partom model is used to characterize the nonlinear response of the fiber-reinforced composites. The analytical results obtained show that the flow stress of composites with square fibers is higher than with circular or elliptic ones. The difference in the elastoplastic response, which is affected by the fiber shape, can be disregarded if the fiber volume fraction is smaller than 0.15. Furthermore, the effect of fiber shape on the stress–strain behavior of the composite can be ignored if the off-axis loading angle is smaller than 30°.     

Hopf bifurcation in an hexagonal governor system with a spring

The complex dynamical behaviors of the hexagonal governor system with a spring are studied in this paper. We go deeper investigating the stability of the equilibrium points in the hexagonal governor system with a spring. These systems have a rich variety of nonlinear behaviors, which are investigated here by numerically integrating the Lagrangian equations of motion. A tiny change in parameters can lead to an enormous difference in the long-term behavior of the system. Hyperchaotic behavior is also observed in cases where two of the Lyapunov exponents are positive, one is zero, and one is negative. The routes to chaos are analyzed using Poincaré maps, which are found to be more complicated than those of nonlinear rotational machines. Periodic and chaotic motions can be clearly distinguished by all of the analytical tools applied here, namely Poincaré sections, bifurcation diagrams, Lyapunov exponents, and Lyapunov dimensions. By studying numerical simulations, it is possible to provide reliable theory and effective numerical method for other systems.     

Approximate inertial manifolds of Burgers equation approached by nonlinear Galerkin’s procedure and its application

The approximate inertial manifolds (AIMs) of Burgers equation is approached by nonlinear Galerkin methods, and it can be used to capture and study the shock wave numerically in a reduced system with low dimension. Following inertial manifolds, the asymptotic behavior of Burgers equation, an infinite dimensional dissipative dynamic systems, will evolve to a compact set known as a global attractor, which is finite-dimensional, and the nonlinear phenomena are included and captured in such global attractor. In the application, nonlinear Galerkin methods is introduced to approach such inertial manifolds. By this method, the solution of the original system is projected onto the complete space spanned by the eigenfunctions or the modes of the linear operator of Burgers equation, and nonlinear Galerkin method splits the infinite-dimensional phase space into two complementary subspaces: a finite-dimensional one and its infinite-dimensional complement. Then, the post-processed Galerkin’s procedure is used to approximate the solution of the reduced system, with the introduction of the interaction between lower and higher modes. Additionally, some numerical examples are presented to make a comparison between the traditional Galerkin method and nonlinear Galerkin method, in particular, some sharp jumping phenomena, which are related to the shock wave, have been captured by the numerical method presented. As the conclusion, it can be drawn that it is possible to completely describe the dynamics on the attractor of a nonlinear partial differential equation (PDE) with a finite-dimensional dynamical system, and the study can provide a numerical method for the analysis of the nonlinear continuous dynamic systems and complicated nonlinear phenomena in finite-dimensional dynamic system, whose nonlinear dynamics has been developed completely compared with infinite-dimensional dynamic system.     

The dynamics of Bowley's model with bounded rationality

A nonlinear dynamical system which describe the time evolution of n-competitors in a Cournot game (Bowley's model) with bounded rationality is analyzed. The existence and stability of the equilibria of this system is studied. The stability conditions of the steady states for two and three players are explicitly computed. Complex behavior such as cycles and chaotic behavior are observed by numerical simulation. Delayed Bowley's with bounded rationality in monopoly is studied. We show that firms using bounded rationality with delay has a higher chance of reaching Nash equilibrium.     

A nonlinear truck model and its treatment as a multibody system

A planar vertical truck model with nonlinear suspension and its multibody system formulation are presented. The equations of motion of the model form a system of differential-algebraic equations (DAEs). All equations are given explicitly, including a complete set of parameter values, consistent initial values, and a sample road excitation. Thus the truck model allows various investigations of the specific DAE effects and represents a test problem for algorithms in control theory, mechanics of multibody systems, and numerical analysis. Several numerical tests show the properties of the model.     

An experimentally validated rod model for soft continuum robots

Soft robots are bio-inspired, highly deformable robots with the ability to interact with workpieces in a manner that complements their hard robot counterparts. To develop practical applications and reproducible designs of soft robots, new models are necessary to describe their kinematics and dynamics. In the present work, we describe experimental and numerical investigations of a popular pneumatically-actuated soft continuum arm. These works enable us to derive constitutive relations and develop a rod model for large deformations of the arm that faithfully describes its bending behavior. We show how the resulting non-classical constitutive relation can be defined either through experiments or through quasi-static finite element simulations. With the help of this relation, the resulting rod model can be used to study the dynamics of the soft robot arm in a fast and tractable manner. (© 2016 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Nonlinear and bilinear models for chemical reactor control

The dynamic behavior of a continuously stirred tank reactor (CSTR) with an exothermic reversible reaction is studied. The balance equations of the reaction lead to a set of highly nonlinear differential equations. For system analysis and control synthesis the dynamic equation are rewritten as state space model. From this nonlinear model a bilinear model is derived. Then, two optimization problems are solved: The time optimal problem for the nonlinear model and the quadratic problem for the bilinear model. In case of the finite time bilinear-quadratic problem a modified Riccati approximation algorithm for a stabilizing feedback controller is presented.     

Simulation of Vortex-Induced Oscillations within a Shear Thinning Liquid

The present work discusses the impact of nonlinear shear thinning in a viscous fluid flow on the vibration behavior of an elastic bar. In the process numerical simulations have been performed concerning a well-known FSI benchmark geometry. In contrast to past investigations a non-Newtonian liquid of the Carreau-Yasuda type is used as fluid component. In order to accomplish the coupling between the liquid and the solid domain, an approach using quasi-Newton iterations is applied. In a parameter study material and geometrical parameters are changed. The solutions show distinct deviations compared to results obtained with a Newtonian liquid. These differences emphasize the nonlinearity of the shear thinning material model. (© 2015 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Characterisation of filled rubber with a pronounced non-linear viscoelasticity

This contribution presents the characterisation of an incompressible carbon black-filled elastomer as one characteristical example for highly filled rubber. It shows a strongly pronounced non-linear viscoelastic behaviour and the most important characteristic is the extremely long relaxation time which has to be taken into account. The material model is developed with respect to uniaxial tension data. The basis in the development of a phenomenological model is given by the basic elasticity. For this evaluation the long term relaxation behaviour results in a complex experimental procedure. Therefore, special attention has to be paid according to an optimised experimental process in order to get the necessary reference data in an adequate and reproduceable way [1]. With this model basis further investigations are taken into account concerning the time-dependent viscoelasticity. Therefore, cyclic deformations from zero up to a maximum of deformation are considered for different strain rates. Furthermore, the relaxation behaviour is investigated for multiple strain levels. The phenomena which are observed in the experimental results yield in a purely viscoelastic model, based on a rheological analogous model consisting of an equilibrium spring and several Maxwell-elements which contain nonlinear relations for the relaxation times of the dashpot elements [1,2]. The material model's numerical realisation is accomplished in two ways. Because of its numerical simplicity especially according to the parameter identification the model is restricted only to the simple case of uniaxial tension. A second, alternative implementation is executed providing the benefit that more complex deformation conditions can also be taken into account. Therefore, the general, three-dimensional finite model is implemented in an open-source Finite Element library [3]. (© 2015 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

The geometrically nonlinear dynamic responses of simply supported beams under moving loads

This paper presents a method for determining the nonlinear dynamic responses of structures under moving loads. The load is considered as a four degrees-of-freedom system with linear suspensions and tires flexibility, and the structure is modeled as an Euler–Bernoulli beam with simply supported at both ends. The nonlinear dynamic interaction of the load–structure system is discussed, and Kelvin−Voigt material model is employed for the beam. The nonlinear partial differential equations of the dynamic interaction are derived by using the von Kármán nonlinear theory and D'Alembert's principle. Based on the Galerkin method, the partial differential equations of the system are transformed into nonlinear ordinary equations, which can be solved by using the Newmark method and Newton−Raphson iteration method. To validate the approach proposed in this paper, the comparison are performed using a moving mass and a moving oscillator as the excitation sources, and the investigations demonstrate good reliability.     

A numerical method for a nonlinear structured population model with an indefinite growth rate coupled with the environment

A numerical method is developed for a general structured population model coupled with the environment dynamics over a bounded domain where the individual growth rate changes sign. Sign changes notably exhibit nonlocal dependence on the population density and environmental factors (e.g., resource availability and other habitat variables). This leads to a highly nonlinear PDE describing the time‐evolution of the population density coupled with a nonlinear‐nonlocal system of ODEs describing the environmental time‐dynamics. Stability of the finite‐difference numerical scheme and its convergence to the unique weak solution are proved. Numerical experiments are provided to demonstrate the performance of the finite difference scheme and to illustrate a range of biologically relevant potential applications.     

Fractional-step <Emphasis Type="Italic">θ</Emphasis>-method for solving singularly perturbed problem in ecology

We consider a predator-prey model arising in ecology that describes a slow-fast dynamical system. The dynamics of the model is expressed by a system of nonlinear differential equations having different time scales. Designing numerical methods for solving problems exhibiting multiple time scales within a system, such as those considered in this paper, has always been a challenging task. To solve such complicated systems, we therefore use an efficient time-stepping algorithm based on fractional-step methods. To develop our algorithm, we first decouple the original system into fast and slow sub-systems, and then apply suitable sub-algorithms based on a class of θ-methods, to discretize each sub-system independently using different time-steps. Then the algorithm for the full problem is obtained by utilizing a higher-order product method by merging the sub-algorithms at each time-step. The nonlinear system resulting from the use of implicit schemes is solved by two different nonlinear solvers, namely, the Jacobian-free Newton-Krylov method and the well-known Anderson’s acceleration technique. The fractional-step θ-methods give us flexibility to use a variety of methods for each sub-system and they are able to preserve qualitative properties of the solution. We analyze these methods for stability and convergence. Several numerical results indicating the efficiency of the proposed method are presented. We also provide numerical results that confirm our theoretical investigations.