Improved Stability of a Node-to-node Algorithm in the Explicit Method.

Improved stability of the node-to-node (NTN) algorithm gained by modification of the algorithm with regard to the explicit method is presented in this paper in order to enable fast and precise analysis of models containing NTN contacts in structural dynamics using Finite Element Method. The key issue is to fulfil contact conditions and prevent solution instability. The instability can be observed if the time step exceeds the critical time step, which is directly derived from the element stiffness and tends towards zero as connected nodes get closer to each other [1]. This is the main problem of NTN contacts in the explicit method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]