Technical Blog

 To activate a dynamic load in Plaxis 2D, follow these steps: 1. **Create a Load Detail**: Create a load detail as a text file and apply it to your model. This is mentioned in the dynamic part of the PLAXIS manual. 2. **Expand Load Menu**: Expand your load menu and add a dynamic multiplier. Ensure that the calculation type for your phases is set to dynamic. 3. **Define Dynamic Load**: Define the dynamic load by specifying the load multiplier, amplitude, frequency, and other parameters. This can be done in the stage construction, where you can add a harmonic analysis load or a table load. 4. **Assign Boundaries**: Assign the appropriate boundaries for the dynamic analysis, ensuring that the minimum and maximum boundaries are correctly set in the x and y directions. 5. **Set Dynamic Time Interval**: Set the dynamic time interval, which determines the time step for the dynamic calculation. This can be adjusted in the calculation settings. By following these steps, you can effectively ...

 To evaluate mesh quality in PLAXIS 2D, follow these steps: 1. Mesh Generation:    - In the Mesh Mode, you can generate a 2D mesh and inspect the generated Finite Element mesh.    - The mesh generation process involves setting a global coarseness, which defines the average element size based on the model dimensions.    - You can also locally refine the mesh by setting a local coarseness factor, which allows for better approximation of structural forces. 2. Mesh Inspection:    - Once the mesh is generated, you can inspect it in the View Mesh option.    - The output program will display the generated mesh, showing the finite elements as triangles.    - You can evaluate the quality of the mesh by checking the shape of the elements. A good quality mesh should not have spiky or flat triangles, which can affect the accuracy of the calculation. 3. Mesh Quality Assessment:    - PLAXIS 2D allows you to assess the mesh qua...

The error "Stiffness matrix is nearly singular and cannot be solved" with error code 20 in PLAXIS 3D typically indicates that the stiffness matrix is close to being singular, which means it is nearly non-invertible. This can occur due to several reasons, including: 1. Incorrect Boundary Conditions (BCs): One common cause is the incorrect specification of boundary conditions. This can include surface-to-surface contact that is not correctly defined. 2. Over-Activated Form-Finding: In RF-FORM-FINDING calculations, activating form-finding for too many elements can lead to this error. It is essential to check which elements have form-finding activated and deactivate unnecessary ones. 3. Modeling Issues: The error can also be caused by modeling issues, such as incorrect geometry or meshing. To resolve this error, you should: 1. Check Boundary Conditions: Verify that all boundary conditions are correctly specified, ensuring that surface-to-surface contact is properly defined. 2. Op...