Probabilistic Analysis of Structures Composed of Path Dependent Materials

Harren, Stephen V.; ,

Probabilistic Analysis of Structures Composed of Path Dependent Materials

by Stephen V. Harren, Southwest Research Inst, United States,

Document Type: Proceeding Paper

Part of: Structural Safety and Reliability

Abstract:

A procedure is outlined for calculating the time-evolving CDF's (cumulative probability distribution functions) of structural response variables for cases in which the structure's deformation is history dependent. A structure exhibits history dependent response when it is subject to extreme loadings that cause plasticity, damage, etc., to its constituent materials. The solution procedure presented preserves the history dependence of the structure so that the response variable CDF's obtained are meaningful. Additionally, the procedure is based on the FPI (fast probability integration) method of Wu, which is capable of providing accurate probability estimates in the tails of the CDF's. Finally, the procedure is demonstrated by means of some simple example problems.

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