Computers and Structures 84 (2006) 1012–1028

www.elsevier.com/locate/compstruc

Structural analysis of prestressed Saint Venant–Kirchhoff

hyperelastic membranes subjected to moderate strains
Antonio J. Gil *

Civil and Computational Engineering Centre, School of Engineering, University of Wales Swansea, Swansea, SA2 8PP, UK

Received 7 January 2005; accepted 1 February 2006

Available online 17 April 2006

Abstract

This paper presents a complete numerical formulation for the nonlinear structural analysis of prestressed membranes with immediate
applications in Civil Engineering. The membranes will be considered to undergo large deformations but moderate strains. Therefore,
Nonlinear Continuum Mechanics principles dealing with large deformations on prestressed bodies will be accounted for. The constitutive
model adopted for the material will be a prestressed Saint Venant–Kirchhoff hyperelastic one. To carry out the computational resolution
of the structural problem, the Finite Element Method (FEM) will be implemented according to a Total Lagrangian Formulation (TLF),
by means of the Direct Core Congruential Formulation (DCCF). Different numerical schemes—first and second-order unconstrained
optimization techniques—will be presented to solve the resulting geometrically nonlinear problem, which involves the minimization
of the total potential energy system functional. These ones will be improved by a parametric line search algorithm according to a poly-
nomial interpolation. Eventually, numerical examples will be introduced to verify the robustness of the aforementioned formulation.
 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Saint Venant–Kirchhoff hyperelastic material; Prestressed membranes; Total Lagrangian formulation; Finite Element Method; Optimization
techniques

1. Introduction prestress whatsoever. Then, two different and successive

The subject of this paper is the geometrically nonlinear
analysis of prestressed membrane structures with arbitrary
geometry undergoing moderate strains. An increasing
application of this structural models is reaching extremely
different knowledge fields, which move from the well-
known Architectural field to the recently discovered Bio-
mechanical field. In all these cases, it is feasible to find
membranes undergoing large deformations and subjected
to a previous state of prestressing. In this paper, we will
focus on those particular ones where strains can be mod-
elled as moderate, despite having large deformations.
First, an initial arbitrary shape for the membrane is
defined by means of any shape finding technique. This ini-
tial membrane structure does not undergo at this stage any
*
Tel.: +44 0 1792 295902; fax: +44 0 1792 295903.
E-mail address: a.j.gil@swansea.ac.uk
loading steps may be distinguished according to their
effects on the stabilization of the prestressed membrane.
The first load step of prestress loading is developed to pro-
vide the necessary in-surface rigidity to the membrane. The
second load step of in-service loading is comprised of a
wide group of loads: snow, wind or live loads among
others.
The theory of hyperelastic membranes, as for example,
propounded by [1,2] or [3] treats the problem from an ana-
lytical viewpoint, arriving after complex algebraic manipu-
lations to final formulae of difficult application. Some
simplicity, although not much, may be accomplished if
the Von Karman compatibility equations are used (see
[4,5]). Regardless of the important implications of this
approach into the theoretical understanding of these struc-
tures, a main disadvantage is that it flows into a nonlinear
partial differential equations of impossible analytical
solution.

0045-7949/$ - see front matter  2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.compstruc.2006.02.009
 A.J. Gil / Computers and Structures 84 (2006) 1012–1028
Because of this lack of numerical results, variational
approaches ought to be taken into consideration as the best
ones to provide feasible solutions from a practical stand-
point. Regarding this approach, some authors have treated
the problem of finite hyperelasticity set on rubber-like
membrane materials by means of the Finite Element
Method (FEM). By following this path, interesting papers
are those due to [6–11], where initially unstressed mem-
branes are analyzed when undergoing large strains. For
these cases, the Updated Lagrangian Formulation (ULF)
is considered to be the most suitable for the derivation of
the tangent stiffness matrix.
The discussion to follow is divided into six parts. Section
2 reviews the classical nonlinear strong form equations for
a general structural problem starting from an initial
unstressed configuration. Section 3 presents in detail the
same formulae but considering a prestressed configuration
as the initial one. In these both sections, concepts such as
Green–Lagrange strain tensor, Piola–Kirchhoff or Cauchy
stress tensors are introduced as basic tensorial tools to
carry out the forthcoming numerical approach. Analo-
gously, Helmholtz’s free energy functional is defined for
later calculations. The consideration of the Saint Venant–
Kirchhoff hyperelastic material as the adopted model will
be of great effect to end up with a linear constitutive rela-
tionship of easy implementation.
Section 4 entails a comprehensive explanation of the
Finite Element semidiscretization of the previously
obtained strong form. After the weak form is derived in a
straightforward manner, the displa cement field is interpo-
lated by means of shape functions based on a Lagrangian
mesh geometry. The resulting formulation will be the so
called Total Lagrangian Formulation (TLF). Afterwards,
the exact linearization of the Total Lagrangian weak form
of the momentum balance is carried out in detail. For the
sake of further computing implementation reasons, the
Direct Core Congruential Formulation (DCCF) is
reviewed as the most appropriate one.
With the objective of giving a complete and robust for-
mulation to analyze the whole structural problem, another
variational approach in terms of the Total Potential Energy
functional (TPE) is introduced in Section 5. Thus, the next
section introduces the different numerical algorithms that
based upon incremental-iterative schemes were used in
the present research. Eventually, based on a linear isopara-
metric three-node triangular finite element, numerical
examples are provided in Sections 7 and 8. These cases will
show adequate performance as the required quadratically
convergence of the Newton–Raphson method is obtained.
The conclusions are presented in the last section.
2. First load step and preliminary results
Let us consider a material body B in an initial unde-
formed configuration B0 with domain X0 frontier oX0,
defined within the 3D-Euclidean space. The material coor-
dinates of a body’s particle at a time t = 0 will be described
1013
Fig. 1. Motion of a body.
according to X = (X1, X2, X3). As a result of the application
of a displacement field, the current or spatial position of
the body’s particle at a time t may be obtained as a func-
tion of its material coordinates as1 xi = xi(XA, t). Therefore,
the body will move to a new configuration Bt with domain
Xt and frontier oXt (see Fig. 1).
For convenience here and in what follows the standard
summation for repeated indices is adopted, as well as the
classical indices convention to express spatial derivatives:
ðÞ;k ¼ oðÞ . The balance of linear momentum at a local level,
oxk
in the absence of inertial effects, may be expressed in Eule-
rian description as follows:
rji;j þ qbi ¼ 0 in Xt ; f i ¼ ti dC ¼ rji nj dC on oXt ð1Þ
The conservation of linear momentum is set up in the cur-
rent configuration Bt of domain Xt, and the traction vector
t may be deduced from the Cauchy stress tensor r and the
unit normal n on the frontier oXt. Analogously, Eq. (1)
may be obtained in Lagrangian description
P Ai;A þ q0 bi ¼ 0 in X0 ; fi0 ¼ t0i dC0 ¼ P Ai nA dC0 on oX0
ð2Þ
In this case, the conservation of linear momentum is for-
mulated at a local level in the initial undeformed configura-
tion B0 of domain X0, and the traction vector is implied
from the nominal stress tensor PAi and the unit normal n
on the frontier oX0. The upper and lower case indices stand
for the initial and current configurations, respectively. This
makes this stress tensor to be considered as a two-point
tensor (see [12]), as a difference of the Eulerian consider-
ation of the Cauchy stress tensor. It should be recalled that
the nominal stress tensor is the transpose of the so called
first Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor (see [13]).
Another stress entity must be introduced for the sake of
convenience: the second Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor SAB,
which can be framed as a Lagrangian stress tensor. The
mathematical relationships among the different enumer-
ated stress tensors, that is, Cauchy, nominal and second
Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensors, are shown right below by
1
Capital (A,B,. . .) as opposed to (i, j,. . .) indices have been used in order
to clearly distinguish the initial configuration B0 from any other.
1014 A.J. Gil / Computers and Structures 84 (2006) 1012–1028

means of the well-known deformation gradient tensor

FiA = xi,A and its determinant or jacobian J:
J rij ¼ xi;A P Aj ¼ xi;A xj;B S AB ð3Þ
where
oxi
xi;A ¼ ð4Þ
oX A
Once the balance of linear momentum equations have
been established in the two descriptions par excellence, this
is, Eulerian and Lagrangian—formulae (1) and (2), respec-
tively, another required equation is the one which gives the Fig. 2. Motion of a prestressed body.
concept for the Green–Lagrange strain tensor EAB and the
right Cauchy–Green strain tensor CAB
state will be considered as incremental (see Fig. 2). It is thus
1 feasible to obtain the spatial coordinates for the time t* of a
EAB ¼ ðC AB  dAB Þ; C AB ¼ xi;A xi;B ð5Þ
2 particle as a function of its material coordinates in the ini-
In the mathematical description of the material behav- tial unstressed configuration B0 according to yi = yi(XA, t*).
iour, the response of the material is characterized by a con- As a consequence, the complete deformation path is
stitutive equation which gives the stress as a function of the built up from the composition of two successive steps:
deformation history of the body. For the structures pre- the first one, from the initial configuration to the primary
sented in this paper, hyperelastic—also known Green elas- state and a second one, which can be traced from the pri-
tic—materials are considered for the following derivation. mary state to a secondary state. By recalling the chain rule,
Furthermore, due to the fact that the rotating component relations among deformation gradient tensors can be dis-
R of the deformation gradient tensor F—according to the played as follows:
polar decomposition theorem F = R Æ U, see [12]—is small oy i oy oxj
¼ i ð9Þ
enough, the Saint Venant–Kirchhoff constitutive model oX A oxj oX A
can be concluded as the most appropriate for our purpose.
Eventually, the formal mathematical formulae for this Formula (9) can be rewritten in index notation as
model may be summarized by using the Helmholtz’s free follows:
energy functional (see [33]) or internal strain energy func- y i;A ¼ y i;j xj;A ð10Þ
tional wint as follows:
Analogously, the relation between jacobians is given as
owint owint J ¼ J 0J

ð11Þ
S AB ¼ ¼2 ð6Þ
oEAB oC AB
where J represents the jacobian at the primary state, J*
S AB ¼ CABCD ECD ð7Þ
stands for the jacobian at the end of the secondary state
and J 0 symbolizes the jacobian as a consequence of the
The equations gathered at (6) and (7) relate the second
incremental deformation. The scope of the next sections
Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor with the Green–Lagrange
will be to set up the equations presented in the former sec-
strain tensor by means of a fourth-order tensor, known
tion for the secondary state by adopting the primary one as
as the material elasticity tensor, which contains all the elas-
the reference configuration—subjected to a previous stress
tic moduli of the material. Therefore, the classical explicit
field.
expression for the strain energy functional per unit of vol-
ume would be
3.1. Green–Lagrange strain tensor
1
wint ¼ CABCD EAB ECD ð8Þ A material particle’s position in the primary and second-
2
ary states may be expressed in terms of the incremental dis-
placement field as follows:
3. Second load step: strong formulation
y i ¼ xi þ ui ) y i;A ¼ xi;A þ ui;A ¼ xi;A þ ui;j xj;A ð12Þ
Let us consider now three possible configurations of the The Green–Lagrange strain tensor for the secondary
material body: in one hand, an initial undeformed state B0 state is
and, in the other hand, a primary state Bt and a secondary
state Bt , for the time instants t and t*, respectively. Among 1
EAB ¼ ðy i;A y i;B  dAB Þ ð13Þ
these two stages, a displacement field u = (u1, u2, u3) may be 2
defined in R3. From now on, quantities which proceed From (12) and (13), the Green–Lagrange strain tensor
from the movement from the primary to the secondary can be rewritten as
 A.J. Gil / Computers and Structures 84 (2006) 1012–1028 1015

1 1 rji;j þ q bi ¼ 0 in Xt ; fi ¼ ti dC ¼ rji nj dC on oXt ð22Þ
EAB ¼ ðxi;A xi;B  dAB Þ þ ð2xi;A xj;B eij þ ui;A ui;B Þ ð14Þ
2 2
P Ai;A þ q0 bi ¼ 0 in X0 ; fi ¼ t0 
i dC0 ¼ P Ai nA dC0 on oX0 ð23Þ
where
1 P 0ji;j þ qbi ¼ 0 in Xt ; fi ¼ ~ti dC ¼ P 0ji nj dC on oXt ð24Þ
eij ¼ ðui;j þ uj;i Þ ð15Þ
2 where
The difference between the Green–Lagrange strain ten- orji
sor for the primary and secondary states can be obtained as rji;j ¼ ð25Þ
oy j
1
EAB  EAB ¼ xi;A xj;B eij þ ui;A ui;B ¼ xi;A xj;B E0ij ð16Þ oP Ai
2 P Ai;A ¼ ð26Þ
oX A
where
oP 0ji
1 P 0ji;j ¼ ð27Þ
E0ij ¼ eij þ uk;i uk;j ð17Þ oxj
2
where the incremental Green–Lagrange strain tensor E0ij The formula (24) along with the boundary and continuity
has been introduced for the sake of convenience and it rep- conditions, synthesizes the strong formulation of the struc-
resents a relative measure of the strain at the secondary tural problem according to a Lagrangian description with
state by taking the primary one as an adequate reference. respect to a reference stressed configuration. This equation
It should be remarked that this later one is not an un- will be used throughout the remainder of this paper.
stressed state.
3.4. Constitutive law
3.2. Nominal and second Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensors
By accounting for the Saint Venant–Kirchhoff constitu-
As it was introduced formerly, the Eulerian Cauchy tive model adopted for the material behaviour, the expres-
stress tensor may be transformed to a Lagrangian and a sion (6) can be reformulated by means of a Taylor series
two-point stress tensor by considering an initial and a cur- expansion truncated after the first-order as follows:
rent stressed configurations. This two new tensorial entities owint owint o2 wint
were referred to as the second Piola–Kirchhoff and nomi- S AB ¼ ¼ þ ðE  ECD Þ ð28Þ
oEAB oEAB oEAB oECD CD
nal stress tensors respectively. By considering as initial con-
figurations the initial undeformed configuration and the The accuracy of this Taylor series depends directly on
primary state configuration, the following formulae can the smallness of the step ECD  ECD . For tension membrane
be obtained respectively: structures in Civil Engineering applications, as it was afore-
mentioned, this is a valid assumption. Thus, from (16) and
J  rij ¼ y i;A P Aj ¼ y i;A y j;B S AB ð18Þ (28), the following expression can be written down:
J 0 rij ¼ y i;k P 0kj ¼ y i;k y j;l S 0kl ð19Þ S AB ¼ S AB þ CABCD xi;C xj;D E0ij ð29Þ
By considering relation (11), Eqs. (18) and (19) can be By recalling (21) and (29)
modified to obtain
S 0ij ¼ J 1 xi;A xj;B S AB þ J 1 xi;A xj;B CABCD xk;C xl;D E0kl ð30Þ
P 0ij ¼ J xi;A xk;B y j;k S AB
1
ð20Þ
The fourth-order tensor of elastic moduli can be referred
S 0ij ¼ J 1 xi;A xj;B S AB ð21Þ to the prestressed configuration as follows:

The expressions gathered at (20) and (21) summarize the
existing relationship between the nominal stress tensor P 0ij
and the second Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor S 0ij expressed
in the prestressed configuration Bt, with respect to the sec-
ond Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor S AB represented at the
initial undeformed state B0.
3.3. Linear momentum balance law
The conservation of linear momentum of the material
body in the secondary state may be depicted with respect
to three possible descriptions: B0, Bt and Bt , according
to a Lagrangian formulation for the first two ones or an
Eulerian formulation for the later one. Thus
Cijkl ¼ J 1 xi;A xj;B CABCD xk;C xl;D ð31Þ
Eventually, Eq. (30) may be reformulated to give the
final expression
S 0ij ¼ rij þ Cijkl E0kl ð32Þ
This final formula is set up to show the constitutive law for
a prestressed Saint Venant–Kirchhoff hyperelastic material.
The second Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor is expressed in
terms of an easy linear relationship which depends on three
tensorial entities: Cauchy stress tensor in the primary state,
fourth-order tensor of elastic moduli and the incremental
Green–Lagrange strain tensor of the secondary state re-
ferred to the primary one.
1016 A.J. Gil / Computers and Structures 84 (2006) 1012–1028

3.5. Internal strain energy balance x ¼ Xpret þ u xi ¼ X pret

i þ ui ð41Þ
According to this new nomenclature, the strong formula-
Another important feature which needs to be obtained is
tion of the problem in a Lagrangian description with respect
the incremental strain energy accumulated into the struc-
to the prestressed configuration is summarized in Fig. 3.
ture along the deformation path from the primary to the
Tensor P 0ji has been replaced with Pji, tensor S 0ij with Sij
secondary states. By performing again a Taylor series
and tensor E0ij with Eij. Thus, the weak form may be devel-
expansion truncated after the second-order, the internal
oped in a Total Lagrangian format (TLF) by means of the
strain energy functional per unit of undeformed volume
so called Principle of Virtual Work. Neglecting inertia
may be developed as
forces, this gives:
wint ¼ wint þ X þ ! ð33Þ
dW int ðdui ; ui Þ ¼ dW ext ðdui ; ui Þ ð42Þ
where
Both terms of the above equation can be expanded as
owint  Z Z
X¼ ðE  EAB Þ ð34Þ
oEAB AB dW int ¼ dF ij P ji dV ¼ dEij S ij dV ð43Þ
pret pret
ZX Z X
1 o2 wint
!¼ ðE  EAB ÞðECD  ECD Þ ð35Þ dW ext ¼ dui bi dV þ duiti dC ð44Þ
2 oEAB oECD AB Xpret Cpret

The terms X and ! can be expanded as where the work conjugacy property of the tensors S and P
with E and FT, respectively, has been employed for the
X¼ S AB xi;A xj;B E0ij ¼ J rij E0ij ð36Þ
equalities at (43); b is the body force vector and t are the
1 1 surface tractions.
! ¼ CABCD xi;A xj;B E0ij xk;C xl;D E0kl ¼ J Cijkl E0ij E0kl ð37Þ
2 2
4.2. Semidiscretization of the weak form
By substituting (36) and (37) back into (33), the incre-
mental internal energy per unit volume is obtained as
  The weak form equations obtained formerly may be
1 combined with a finite element discretization of the dis-
wint  wint ¼ J rij Eij þ Cijkl Eij Ekl ¼ Jw0int
 0 0 0
ð38Þ
2 placement field in terms of the nodal values and shape
functions NI as
where w0int represents the incremental energy per unit vol-
ume measured in the prestressed configuration. By inte- ui ¼ uIi N I ; i ¼ 1; 2; 3; I ¼ 1 . . . N nodes ð45Þ
grating over the initial undeformed volume X0 and by
applying the mass conservation principle from this volume
X0 to the prestressed one Xt, the total incremental energy is
given as
Z Z
DW int ¼ ðwint  wint Þ dX0 ¼ Jw0int dX0
X0 X0
Z
¼ w0int dV ð39Þ
Xt

Therefore, the internal strain energy functional per unit

of volume of the primary state takes the final form
1
w0int ¼ rij E0ij þ Cijkl E0ij E0kl ð40Þ
2

4. Finite element semidiscretization

4.1. From the strong to the weak formulation

The aforementioned primary and secondary states can

be understood as an initial prestressed state Bpret and a
final in service loading state B due to the consideration of
live and dead load. Henceforth, the coordinates of any par-
ticle will be renamed as Xpret for the initial prestressed state
and x for the final in service loading state. These ones are
related by means of the incremental displacement field u
as follows: Fig. 3. Strong formulation for a Lagrangian description.
 A.J. Gil / Computers and Structures 84 (2006) 1012–1028 1017

This enables the nodal equivalent internal and external tion of the global vector of external forces is given through
vector forces, fint and fext, respectively, to be obtained in the following derivation:
a straightforward manner for a given node I in tensor nota- Z Z
tion as f Iext ¼ tN I dC ¼ p nN I dC ð54Þ
C C
Z Z
I oN I oN I where p is the pressure scalar acting on the considered
finti ¼ P ji pret dV ¼ F ik S kj pret dV ð46Þ
Xpret oX j Xpret oX j material body. By applying the Nanson rule for the unit
Z Z normal n—see for instance [12] or [14] for details, it can
I
fext ¼ b i N I
dV þ ti N I dC ð47Þ be deduced:
i
Xpret Cpret Z
Or in a more compact matrix notation as f Iext ¼ p J FT npret N I dC ð55Þ
Cpret
Z Z
I
f int ¼ T I
P rN dV ¼ FSrN I dV ð48Þ Particularizing for an isoparametric three-node linear
Xpret Xpret finite element, both in matrix and in tensor notation
Z Z
f Iext ¼ bN I dV þ tN I dC ð49Þ pCpret ox ox
Xpret Cpret
f Iext ¼  pret
3 onpret
1 on 2
ð56Þ
Assembling these forces for all the nodes of the Lagrangian I pCpret oxl oxm
fext ¼ ilm pret pret
mesh gives the global equilibrium equations i
3 on1 on2
f int ¼ f ext ) f res ¼ f int  f ext ¼ 0 ð50Þ
where npret
1 and npret2 are the local plane coordinates, ilm is
where fint is the global vector of internal forces, fext is the the so called alternating third-order tensor and · stands
global vector of external forces and fres is the global vector for the classical cross product between 3-D vectors.
of residual forces. This last vector represents clearly the out Analogously as above, this vector can be linearized
of balance forces as a result of the strong nonlinearity con- along the direction of the displacement vector u, hence this
tained into the structural problem. results in
 
pIJ pCpret ilm oN J oN J
K ij ¼ F m2 dlj pret þ F l1 dmj pret ð57Þ
4.3. Linearization of the global equilibrium equations 3 on1 on2

The set of equations depicted at (50) presents a geomet-

rically nonlinear feature, so an iterative solution scheme 5. Direct Core Congruential Formulation
will be required. Among all the available methods, the sec-
ond-order Newton–Raphson one accomplishes the best From the computational viewpoint, a very elegant pro-
convergence properties. The total tangent stiffness matrix cedure termed Direct Core Congruential Formulation
required by the later one is formed by linearizing the global (DCCF) may be applied to perform the implementation
equilibrium equations (50) in the direction of the incremen- stage of the formulation developed above. This methodol-
tal displacement u. ogy, hardly used in the existing literature, presents as pio-
By carrying out the linearization of the global vector of neer studies the ones due to [15,16]. The main ideas
internal forces, it turns out to be behind this formulation can be discovered in the notable
I I IJ IJ
paper due to [17]. A more recent paper about the topic is
geo
df Iint ¼ df mat
int þ df int ¼ ðK
mat
þ Kgeo ÞduJ ð51Þ [18].
matIJ geoIJ The scope of the DCCF is to establish the set of global
where K and K stand for the elemental material or
equilibrium equations whose unknowns are the compo-
constitutive stiffness matrix and the elemental geometrical
nents of the displacement gradient tensor G which is given
or initial stress stiffness matrix, respectively. Each one of
as
these matrices can be expanded and represented in tensor
notation as follows: oui
Z Gij ¼ ð58Þ
IJ oN I oN J oX pret
j
K mat
ij ¼ F ik C F
nklm jl dV ð52Þ
Xpret oX n oX m The aim is to establish a set of core equations as indepen-
Z dent as possible with respect to subsequent finite element
IJ oN I oN J
K geo
ij ¼ d ij S mk dV ð53Þ discretization criteria. According to [17,18], the term core
Xpret oX m oX k
emphasizes this issue. These core equations are basically
By assuming that the body forces b and external surface the set of equations to be satisfied (equilibrium, compatibil-
tractions t not associated to pressure forces remain con- ity and constitutive law), expressed in a continuum manner
stant and by taking into account that the pressure compo- (at a particle level). Complete independence is obtained if
nent is dependent upon the geometry due to changing the relationship between the displacement gradient tensor
orientation and surface area of the structure, the lineariza- and the nodal displacements of a finite element model is
1018 A.J. Gil / Computers and Structures 84 (2006) 1012–1028
linear. In this paper, this linear relationship will always be
the case as the finite elements used for all the numerical
examples will be isoparametric and linear. At the same
time, this approach helps to distinguish the different
sources of nonlinearity that arise in the analysis of pre-
stressed structures.
Afterwards, every single component of the displacement
gradient tensor may be easily expressed in terms of the
nodal displacements of the Lagrangian mesh (according
to a prescribed finite element model). Naturally, it is at this
stage that properties concerning geometry and discretiza-
tion are brought to light. The consideration of only trans-
lational degrees of freedom for the nodes of the Lagrangian
mesh makes the DCCF particularly simple and easy to
implement. This methodology, as stated in [17,18], is not
restricted to isoparametric linear finite elements, however
it makes it simpler. In this paper, as the main objective is
to show the performance of the technique rather than its
computational implementation, isoparametric linear finite
elements will be preferred. Fig. 4 shows a summary of this
formulation.
By employing a classical vectorization of the displace-
ment gradient tensor (see for instance [12,14]) into a col-
umn vector g and by expressing this one in terms of the
nodal displacements, it turns out to be
g ¼ Bu
where B is the matrix of the gradient of the shape functions
and u is the column vector that gathers the nodal displace-
ments for the N nodes of a single finite element
 
uT ¼ u11 u12 u13 . . . uN1 uN2 uN3 ð60Þ
Analogously, the 2 · 2 submatrix of in plane components
of the Green–Lagrange strain tensor E may be vectorized
into a column vector e by following the kinematic Voigt
rule (see [12]) as
T
e ¼ ð E11 E22 2E12 Þ
Every component of the new vector e may be expressed in
terms of the vector g as
1 by means of a Newton–Raphson scheme may flow into a
ei ¼ hTi g þ gT Hi g
2
where hi and Hi are a vector of order ng and a symmetric
matrix of order ng · ng, where ng represents the dimension
of the vector g. Both of them are constituted of numerical
values comprising (1, 0). Eventually, the in-plane compo-
nents of the second Piola–Kirchhoff stress tensor may be
transformed into a vector by means of the kinetic Voigt
rule as
Fig. 4. DCCF scheme.
sT ¼ ð S 11 S 22 S 12 Þ ð63Þ
By substituting Eqs. (62) and (63) back into (43) the vector
of global internal forces may be rewritten in an easier way
as
Z
f int ¼ BT /int dV /int ¼ si hi þ si Hi g ð64Þ
V pret
where summation is implied for repeated indices according
to Einstein’s notation. By proceeding in the same manner,
the contributions to the total tangent stiffness matrix Kmat
and Kgeo may be obtained as
Z Z
mat
K ¼ T mat
B M B dV K ¼ geo
BT Mgeo B dV ð65Þ
V pret V pret
Mmat ¼ ðhi þ Hi gÞC ij ðhTj þ gT Hj Þ Mgeo ¼ si Hi ð66Þ
where the fourth-order tensor of elastic moduli has been
transformed into a 3 · 3 matrix by applying the Voigt rule
vectorization procedure to Eq. (82) to come out with:
s ¼ rpret þ Ce ð67Þ
As it can be observed, the second of the equations in (64)
and equations in (66) represent the so called core equa-
tions. On the other hand, the first of the equations in
(64) and equations in (65) represent the transformation
from the core space to the physical space (see Fig. 4).
ð59Þ
Eqs. (64)–(67) constitute the fundamentals of a Finite Ele-
ment code program. This core formulation provides a very
flexible framework to model any nonlinear structural prob-
lem under a Total Lagrangian Formulation. As a conse-
quence, the numerical examples presented later on in this
paper, have been performed under this numerical basis.
6. Energy principles
The mathematical formulation of the structural problem
ð61Þ has been collected in the formula (50), which summarizes
the global equilibrium of the membrane by means of a sys-
tem of nonlinear equations imposed on the nodes of the
Lagrangian mesh. The solution of this system of equations
ð62Þ badly convergence algorithm. The Newton–Raphson algo-
rithm satisfies local convergence. However, it lacks global
convergence. This means that for a sufficiently close initial
approximation to the final solution, the algorithm con-
verges. Otherwise, namely for highly nonlinear problems,
the algorithm might not converge appropriately. Reference
[29] explains in detail this issue. For the sake of this reason
and given the implicit characteristics of the structural mem-
brane to be analyzed, an alternative approach based upon
Energy principles may be taken into consideration—see
[19] for a further explanation of this technique.
Let us consider once again the material body B in an ini-
tial prestressed configuration Bpret-primary state, which
after the application of a displacement field, it maps into
a configuration B-secondary state. Therefore, it is feasible
to obtain the incremental relationship among the initial
 A.J. Gil / Computers and Structures 84 (2006) 1012–1028 1019

and final coordinates (see Eq. (41)). The consideration of
the loading process undertaken over the material body B,
from the configuration Bpret to the one B, enables the def-
inition of three classical mathematical functionals known
as
• External potential energy functional
Z Z B Z Z B solution: the total potential energy functional (zero-order
ext pret ti dui dC
P ¼ q bi dui dX 
Xpret Bpret Cpret Bpret
• Internal potential energy functional
Z Z B
U¼ S ij dEij dX
Xpret Bpret
• Total potential energy functional
P ¼ U þ Pext
The former functionals gather the external, internal and
total potential energy accumulated in the structural mem-
brane along the loading path. The process is considered
to be adiabatic and kinematically slow, so the generation
of thermal and kinematic energies can be neglected.
The system of global equilibrium nonlinear equations
represented in the Eq. (50) was obtained through the semi-
discretization procedure starting from the weak form of the
structural problem or, equivalently, by means of the well-
known Principle of Virtual Work (PVW). From a mathe-
matical perspective, this means that both internal and
external nodal forces are derived from potential function-
als, known as U and Pext, respectively. This mathemati-
cal property makes the mechanical system to be named
as conservative. This principle is nothing more than the
variational formulation of the total potential energy, also
known as the Minimum Potential Energy Principle.
dP ¼ dU þ dPext ¼ dW int  dW ext ¼ 0 () dW int ¼ dW ext
Eq. (71) represents the minimization of the total potential
energy functional with respect to the displacement field.
This formula may be understood as a classical uncon-
strained optimization problem for an objective function
which results to be the total potential energy P. As a con-
sequence, any appropriate technique may be used to carry
out this mathematical optimization.
This alternative approach of understanding the struc-
tural problem by means of minimization techniques can
be found in some References, for instance, [20–25]. Fig. 5
summarizes the different steps to reach the equilibrium
methods), its gradient or unbalanced force vector (first-
order methods), or even its hessian or total tangent stiffness
ð68Þ matrix (second-order methods). A comprehensive explana-
tion of these procedures is developed in [26,27].
7. Numerical techniques
ð69Þ
So far we have considered the derivation and calculation
of the equilibrium equations of a particular finite element
ð70Þ system. In this section, a brief description of the numerical
methods employed to solve the resulting geometrically non-
linear problem is presented. Any of the developed numerical
algorithms may be understood as an incremental-iterative
technique, whereby the spatial description of the membrane
at the increment n and at the iteration k + 1 is obtained
starting from the known configuration at the same step n
and at the former iteration k. An admissible direction rep-
resented by dkn along with a step coefficient akn included with
the purpose of increasing the convergence of the eventual
algorithm, are related as follows:
xkþ1 ¼ xkn þ akn dkn ð72Þ
n
Different incremental-iterative schemes are presented right
below for three different families of numerical methods:
steepest descent method, conjugate gradient method and
Newton–Raphson method. The first two of the former ones
are first-order methods, whilst the last one can be classified
as a second-order one. This classification is established
according to the ideas shown in the previous section.
ð71Þ • Steepest descent method
of ðxkn Þ
d kni ðxkn Þ ¼  ð73Þ
oxkni
• Newton–Raphson method
!1
k k o2 f ðxkn Þ of ðxkn Þ
d ni ðxn Þ ¼  ð74Þ
oxkni oxknj oxknj

• Conjugate gradient method

of ðx0n Þ
d 0ni ðx0n Þ ¼  ð75Þ
ox0ni
of ðxkn Þ
d kni ðxkn Þ ¼  þ bk1 k1
n d ni ð76Þ
oxkni
T T
gkn  gkn ðgkn  gk1
n Þ  gn
k
bk1
nFR ¼ T bk1
nPR ¼ T ð77Þ
Fig. 5. Variational formulation of the structural problem.
gk1
n  gk1
n gk1
n  gk1
n
1020 A.J. Gil / Computers and Structures 84 (2006) 1012–1028

The coefficient bk1n that appears into the conjugate gra- the sake of convenience. In [5,14,28], different appropriate
dient method derivation, may be formulated according to techniques are presented.
the Fletcher–Reeves approach—bk1 nFR —or the Polak–Ribi- Although the quadratically mathematical convergence
ere one—bk1
nPR (see [29]). of the Newton–Raphson method is much higher than the
The parameter ak is obtained by a line search technique one gathered in the remainder of the above presented pro-
that allows to raise enormously the convergence of the final cedures, however the former one does not satisfy the global
algorithm. Its implementation according to a backtracing convergence theorem for nonlinear numerical descent
strategy within the interval (0, 1) must be introduced for schemes (see [29] for further details). This important reason

10 11 12 13 14

100 100 2 4 5 7

1 3 6 8

15 1 2 3 23
50 50
10 12 13 15
OY axis (in)

9 11 14 16

OY axis (in)
16
0 4 5 6 24 0

17 19 22 24

18 20 21 23
–50 –50
17 7 8 9 25

25 28 30 32

–100 –100 26 27 29 31

18 19 20 21 22
–100 –50 0 50 100 –100 –50 0 50 100
OX axis (in) OX axis (in)

Fig. 6. Numerical example 1: Discretization.

4
x 10 2
2 10

0
10
1

–2
Infinite Norm on Residual Forces

10
0
Total Potential Energy

–4
10

–1
–6
10

–2
–8
10

–3 –10
10

–12
–4 10
1 2 3 4 5 6 1 2 3 4 5 6
Iterations Iterations

Fig. 7. Numerical example 1: Convergence curves.

 A.J. Gil / Computers and Structures 84 (2006) 1012–1028 1021

has to be taken into consideration specially when treating Table 1

with highly nonlinear structural problems. The implemen- Numerical example 1: Displacements (in.)
tation of these algorithms altogether allows flexibility at Node Levy and Spillers Present work
the time of choosing the right method to approach the u v w u v w
equilibrium solution. 1 0.015 0.015 1.431 0.014 0.014 1.423
2 0.000 0.017 2.605 0.000 0.017 2.600
8. Numerical example 1 5 0.000 0.000 6.642 0.000 0.000 6.626

This example is considered in [30]. It is a squared plane

membrane initially prestressed. The edges of the mentioned
membrane are completely fixed. The side length is 240 in.
and the thickness is measured as 0.004167 in. Mechanical
properties for the material have the following values:
30,000 Ksi for the Young modulus and 0.3 for the Poisson
ratio. The prestressing effect is considered to be 80 Ksi iso-
tropically distributed. These magnitudes can be converted
to standard SI units by accounting for: 1 in. = 2.54 cm,
1 Ksi = 6897 KPa and 1 Kip = 4448.4 N.
The in-service load is composed of a point transverse
load applied right in the middle of the membrane’s domain.
The load which takes a value of 10 Kip is considered down-
wards. According to Fig. 6, the Lagrangian mesh is com-
prised of 32 isoparametric three-node linear elements and
25 nodes.
To accomplish the final solution, the employed method
was the Newton–Raphson one according to one load incre-
ment. Two convergence curves are gathered in Fig. 7. The

Fig. 8. Numerical example 4: Displacements OX and OZ. Fig. 9. Numerical example 4: Cauchy stresses rI and rII.
1022 A.J. Gil / Computers and Structures 84 (2006) 1012–1028
Table 2
Numerical example 1: Cauchy stresses (psi)
Element Levy and Spillers
rxx ryy
1 97377.6 85212.4
3 83510.2 96859.1
11 144691.0 97830.7
first one shows the evolution of the total potential energy
along the iterations path, whilst the second one represents
the infinite norm on residual forces vector with respect to
the number of iterations as well. The later one shows per-
fectly the required quadratic convergence of the Newton–
Raphson algorithm.
Fig. 8 shows the displacements field along the cartesian
axis OX and OZ, respectively. Both representations reveal
in a clear manner the axisymmetry of the considered mem-
brane. Table 1 details the displacement values for three dif-
ferent nodes of the mesh. The accuracy of the numerical
example can be observed by checking the results with the
ones obtained in [30].
Analogously, principal Cauchy stresses rI and rII can be
viewed in Fig. 9. Table 2 presents the numerical values for
three different elements of the membrane as well as its com-
parison with the ones of [30]. Perfect agreement can be
deduced.
9. Numerical example 2
This example represents a more realistic prestressed
membrane. It is shade pavilion composed of a fabric textile
Fig. 10. E2: Initial configuration, isometric view.
Present work
rxy rxx ryy rxy
2801.5 97300.1 85163.9 2796.7
8657.1 83501.5 96830.3 8630.7
15615.6 144470.8 97849.2 15582.4
reinforced by means of cables in the interior and in the
perimeter of the prestressed membrane. The necessary
anchorage has been achieved by means of pinned masts.
An isometric view of the structure is displayed in Fig. 10
and a plan view is shown in Fig. 11. As it can be observed,
the membrane presents symmetry with respect to the OY
axis, so hereafter only half of the model is to be studied
with suitable boundary conditions.
Three sorts of finite elements will be considered for the
following numerical simulation. The fabric textile will be
modelled by an isoparametric three-noded finite element
according to the formulation described in previous sec-
tions. The cables will be represented by an isoparametric
two-noded finite element according to the same formula-
tion described in previous sections. Further details of this
implementation can be found in References [37,39].
Finally, the pinned masts will be represented by a classical
isoparametric finite element. To prevent compression stres-
ses being generated in any of the membrane or cable ele-
ments, the wrinkling algorithm proposed in [38] was
implemented.
To define an initial arbitrary shape, the Force Density
Method was used (see [32]). For simplicity, this technique
 A.J. Gil / Computers and Structures 84 (2006) 1012–1028 1023

Fig. 11. E2: Initial configuration, plan view.

was preferred over some other available techniques, Initial shape

247
namely, dynamic relaxation (see [34]) or updated reference
4 246
strategy (see [35]). For both internal and perimeter cables, 234
245233
the considered force density factor was ten times higher 244232 221
than the one for the interior domain. The kinematic bound- 3 243 231 220
242 230 219
ary conditions for nodes along the membrane’s perimeter 241 229
240 228
218
217 206207
208
239 227 216 205
are displayed in Table 3. Fig. 12 shows a plan view of 2 235
222
236
223 224
238 226
237 225 215
213 214 202 203
204
193194
195
209 210 211 212 201 191 192
the initial configuration, where the node numbering of 196 197 198 199 200
187 188 189 190 180181182
183 184 185 186 178 179
the selected Lagrangian mesh can be observed. Fig. 13 174 175 176 177
170 171 172 173 167168169
164 165 166
shows the isometric view of the structure after form finding 1 157 158 159 160 161 162 163
152 153 154 155 156
145 146 147 148 149 150 151
OY axis (m)

144
analysis has taken place, where cable and membrane ele- 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143
ments can be easily distinguished. 0 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130
105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117
As a result of this shape finding analysis, an initial shape 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100
101 102 103 104
is achieved under a controllable prestress loading. More- –1 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86
87 88 89
66 67 68 69 90 91
over, this control is set in terms of the relative values for 53 54 55 56
70 71 72
57 58
73 74
75 76
40 59 60 77 78
the force density coefficient among the different compo- 27
41
28
42 43
29 30 44 45 61 62
–2 14
1
15 16 17 31 32 46 47 63 64
nents of the membrane. In other words, this shape is not 2 3 4 18
5 19 33
34
48
49
65
6 20 35 50
51
dependent on the absolute values of the prestress but on 7 21
8 22
36
37
52
–3 9 23
its relative ones, so this permits the reduction of the abso- 38
10 24 39
lute prestress as much as desired. Therefore, an initial 11 25
26
shape with a negligible prestress loading is obtained. –4 12

13
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
OX axis (m)
Table 3
Fig. 12. E2: Initial configuration, plan view.
E2: boundary conditions (m)
Node x y z
13 6.0 4.5 12.0 9.1. First load step: Prestressing
130 6.0 0.0 0.0
247 6.0 4.5 12.0 Once the initial equilibrium shape is obtained, an appro-
OY axis 0.0 – – priate and realistic prestressing loading is applied to the
1024 A.J. Gil / Computers and Structures 84 (2006) 1012–1028

Initial shape 250

10

12 8

10 6
251
247
8 4
248
OZ axis (m)

6 2

OY axis (m)
4 0 130

2 –2

249
0 –4
13
4
252
2 –6
OY 0
ax 6
is 4
(m –2 –8
) m)
–4
2
x is (
0 O Xa
–10
Fig. 13. E2: Initial configuration, isometric view. 253
0 2 4 6 8 10
OX axis (m)

Fig. 14. E1: Reinforced cables and masts configuration.

structure. Firstly, masts are added to the structural model.
This fact allows the tensioned membrane, the reinforcing
cables and the masts to behave in an interactive manner Table 4
E2: spatial coordinates (m)
rather than analyzing the compressive members separate
from the membrane-cable assemblage. This methodology Node x y z
is strongly encouraged in [36]. 248 5.000 3.500 0.0000
Fig. 14 represents all the masts and reinforced cables 249 5.000 3.500 0.0000
250 7.042 10.41 0.0000
added to the analysis at this stage. Spatial coordinates 251 11.91 5.542 0.0000
for the masts’ extreme nodes are displayed in Table 4, see 252 11.91 5.542 0.0000
also Fig. 14. 253 7.042 10.41 0.0000
The reinforcing cables are taken with EA = 1.2e4 kN, 130 5.0 0.0 5.0
where E stands for the Young’s modulus and A symbolizes
the cross sectional area. The masts pinned at their respec-
tive foundations are considered to have EA = 2.0e5 kN. Table 5
The textile fabric is assumed to behave isotropically with E2: boundary conditions (cm)
Et = 5.0e2 kN/m and m = 0.3, where in this case t denotes Node u v w
the membrane thickness.
250 5.0 5.0 5.0
The prestress process is carried out by means of an 251 5.0 5.0 5.0
imposed displacement on nodes plotted in Fig. 14. Table 252 5.0 5.0 5.0
5 summarizes the applied displacements u, v and w along 253 5.0 5.0 5.0
the corresponding space directions OX, OY and OZ, 130 5.0 0.0 5.0
respectively. 248 0.0 0.0 0.0
249 0.0 0.0 0.0
OY axis 0.0 – –
9.2. Second load step: In-service loading

Once the structure is prestressed and stabilized, an in-
service snow loading was considered. The snow load
applied on the structural membrane will consist of
1.0 kN/m2 distributed across a central region of the mem-
brane which extends up to 6.0 m2. This whole surface is
accounted for according to its projection on a plan view.
Figs. 15–17 show the displacements contour diagrams for
the different loading conditions.
Again, the interior and perimeter cables act as stabiliz-
ing members for the overall performance of the membrane
 A.J. Gil / Computers and Structures 84 (2006) 1012–1028 1025

Fig. 15. E2: OX displacements. (a) Prestress load and (b) snow load.

Fig. 16. E2: OY displacements. (a) Prestress load and (b) snow load.

and therefore, they reduce the displacements that result This fact agrees with the moderate strain requirement to
from the different applied loads. From the strain point of justify the application of the Saint Venant–Kirchhoff
view, a maximum value less than 1.0e  2 was achieved. hyperelastic model.
1026 A.J. Gil / Computers and Structures 84 (2006) 1012–1028

Fig. 17. E2: OZ displacements. (a) Prestress load and (b) snow load.

Fig. 18. E2: Cauchy stress rI. (a) Prestress load and (b) snow load.

Figs. 18 and 19 display the contour diagrams for the can be noticed, at the prestress stage the whole membrane
principal Cauchy stresses rI and rII, respectively. As it is under pure tension.
 A.J. Gil / Computers and Structures 84 (2006) 1012–1028
Fig. 19. E2: Cauchy stress rII. (a) Prestress load and (b) snow load.
10. Concluding remarks
This paper has presented a complete numerical frame-
work for the analysis of prestressed Saint Venant–Kirch-
hoff hyperelastic membranes. The structural problem has
been split into two successive loading steps, in such a
way that a prestressed configuration is adopted to be as
the initial one. With respect to the former one, a Total
Lagrangian weak form is detailed. Afterwards, a finite ele-
ment linearization technique is employed over the equiva-
lent internal nodal forces to derive the total tangent
stiffness matrix. A straightforward computational imple-
mentation is allowed by means of the Direct Core Congru-
ential Formulation.
An alternative general approach in terms of the total
potential energy principle, brings then into light a set of dif-
ferent numerical algorithms based upon unconstrained
optimization techniques. Eventually, the robustness of the
whole formulation has been demonstrated by some numer-
ical examples.
Acknowledgement
Special gratitude is addressed towards Professor J.
Bonet, Head of the Civil and Computational Engineering
Centre at Swansea University, UK, for many helpful com-
ments and discussions.
1027
References
[1] Green AE, Zerna W. Theoretical elasticity. 2nd ed. Oxford Univer-
sity Press; 1968.
[2] Leonard JW. Tension structures. New York: McGraw-Hill; 1988.
[3] Otto F. Tensile structures. Cambridge: MIT Press; 1967.
[4] Timoshenko S, Woinowsky-Krieger S. Theory of plates and
shells. New York: McGraw-Hill; 1959.
[5] Crisfield MA. Non-linear finite element analysis of solids and
structures. Essentials, vol. 1. John Wiley and Sons; 1991.
[6] Oden JT, Sato T. Finite strains and displacements of elastic
membranes by the finite element method. Int J Solids Struct 1967;3:
471–88.
[7] Grutmann F, Taylor RL. Theory and finite element formulation of
rubberlike membrane shells using principal stretches. Int J Numer
Methods Eng 1992;35:1111–26.
[8] Souza EA, Peric D, Owen DRJ. Finite elasticity in spatial description
linearization aspects with 3-d membrane applications. Int J Numer
Methods in Eng 1995;38:3365–81.
[9] Wu B, Du X, Tan H. A three-dimensional finite element analysis of
membranes. Comput Struct 1996;59(4):601–5.
[10] Taylor RL. Finite element analysis of membrane structures. CIMNE
2001;203:1–34.
[11] Bonet J, Wood RD, Mahaney J, Heywood P. Finite element analysis
of air supported membrane structures. Comput Methods Appl Mech
Eng 2000;190:579–95.
[12] Belytschko T, Liu WK, Moran B. Nonlinear finite elements for
continua and structures. John Wiley and Sons; 2000.
[13] Malvern LE. Introduction to the mechanics of a continuous
medium. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall; 1969.
[14] Bonet J, Wood RD. Nonlinear continuum mechanics for finite
element analysis. Cambridge University Press; 1997.
[15] Mallett RH, Marcal PV. Finite element analysis of nonlinear
structures. J Struct Div 1968;94(ST9):2081–105.
1028 A.J. Gil / Computers and Structures 84 (2006) 1012–1028
[16] Rajasekaran S, Murray DW. Incremental finite elements matrices.
J Struct Div 1973;99(ST12):2423–38.
[17] Crivelli LA, Felippa CA. A three-dimensional non-linear Timo-
shenko beam based on the core-congruential formulation. Int J
Numer Methods Eng 1993;36:3647–73.
[18] Felippa CA, Crivelli LA, Haugen B. A survey of the core-congru-
ential formulation for geometrically nonlinear TL finite elements.
Arch Comput Methods Eng 1994;1:1–48.
[19] Oden JT, Ripperger EA. Mechanics of elastic structures. McGraw-
Hill; 1981.
[20] Oden JT. Numerical formulation of nonlinear elasticity problems.
J Struct Div 1967;93(ST3):235–55.
[21] Bergan PG. Solution algorithms for nonlinear structural problems.
Comput Struct 1980;12:497–509.
[22] Monforton GR, El Hakim NM. Analysis of truss cable structures.
Comput Struct 1980;11:327–35.
[23] Hildebrandt S, Tromba A. Matemática y formas óptimas. 1st ed.
Biblioteca Scientific American; 1990.
[24] Leu LJ, Yang YB. Effects of rigid body and stretching on nonlinear
analysis of trusses. J Struct Eng 1990;116(10):2582–98.
[25] Gosling PD. A discrete energy formulation for the definition of
optimal tension structures. Struct Optim 1998;16:76–80.
[26] Samartı́n A. Numerical methods in nonlinear analysis of shell
structures. Bull IASS 1993;34(112):81–102.
[27] Haftka RT, Gürdal Z. Elements of structural optimization. Kluwer
Academic Publishers; 1992.
[28] Dennis Jr JE, Schnabel RB. Numerical methods for unconstrained
optimization and nonlinear equations. Classics in applied mathemat-
ics, vol. 16. Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics; 1996.
[29] Luenberger DG. Linear and nonlinear programming. 2nd ed. USA:
Addison-Wesley Publishing Company; 1989.
[30] Levy R, Spillers W. Analysis of geometrically nonlinear structures.
Chapman and Hall; 1995.
[32] Linkwitz K. About form finding of double-curved structures. Eng
Struct 1999;21:709–18.
[33] Holzapfel GA. Nonlinear solid mechanics: a continuum approach for
engineering. John Wiley and Sons; 2000.
[34] Brew JS, Brotton DM. Non-linear structural analysis by dynamic
relaxation. Int J Numer Methods in Eng 1971;3:463–83.
[35] Bletzinger K-U, Ramm E. Structural optimization and form finding
of light weight structures. Comput Struct 2001;79:2053–62.
[36] Li J-J, Chan S-L. An integrated analysis of membrane structures with
flexible supporting frames. Finite Elem Anal Des 2004;40:529–40.
[37] Gil AJ. A comparison of prestressed membranes finite element
analysis with membrane and cable elements. In: Oñate E, Kröplin B,
editors. Textile composites and inflatable structures. CIMNE; 2003.
[38] Gil AJ, Bonet J. Wrinkling analysis of prestressed hyperelastic Saint
Venant–Kirchhoff membranes. In: Motro R, editor. Shell and spatial
structures: from models to realization. IASS; 2004.
[39] Gil AJ. F.E.M. for prestressed Saint Venant–Kirchhoff hyperelastic
membranes. In: Oñate E, Kroplin B, editors. Membrane structures.
Springer/Kluwer; 2005.