Shell Elements for Cooling Tower Analysis

Abstract

Intending to achieve optimum finite element modeling of column supported cooling towers for seismic response studies according to the distributions of dominating bending and membrane stresses and intending to model the vulnerable shell‐column region using discrete column elements and quadrilateral shell elements, a set of elements is adopted, modified or extended. The set includes: (1) A 16 d.o.f. column element; (2) a 48 d.o.f. doubly curved quadrilateral general shell element; (3) a 42 d.o.f. doubly curved general‐membrane transition element; (4) a 21 d.o.f. and 39 d.o.f. doubly curved triangular membrane filler elements; and (5) a 28 d.o.f. doubly curved quadrilateral membrane element. Examples are given to evaluate a single type, combined types, and the whole set of elements with results in good agreement with alternative solutions. These elements may be used for accurate and efficient free vibration analysis of column supported cooling towers. The modeling may be used in seismic response analysis of cooling towers for obtaining detail stress distribution in the vulnerable shell‐column region. This model may be extended to include material nonlinearity in the shell‐column region for the seismic response studies.