Narrow Results

Interface is an important element for the interaction problem of soil masses and object. This paper proposes an interface layer method to treat the interface of saturated soil medium and rigid object (solid). In the domain, the radial point interpolation method (radial PIM) with compact support is applied. An interface layer is proposed to treat the compression, opening and shear friction of the interface. This method has following advantages over traditional interface element (Goodman, 1968). First, the node distribution on both sides of interface is not required to be the same. Such a scheme is special helpful to the meshless methods for both side domains. Second, water flow in the interface can be considered if the interface is open. Third, the accuracy for interface interpolation is adjustable according to the node distribution. Numerical examples are studied to demonstrate the capability of the current interface layer method.