The economical solution of elastic problem for a range of Poisson's ratio

In this paper an economical method for calculating the stress and displacement fields in an elastic body for a range of Poission's ratios is given. The solution is expanded as a power series in Poission's ratio, the coefficients of the series being determined successively. The range of convergence of the solution is examined, and it is shown that the power series converges for values of Poission's ratio in the range zero to a half, provided a suitable point of expansion is chosen. Particular features of the method are firstly that only one effective inversion of the stiffness matrix, for Poission's ratio zero, is required to obtain the solution for all Poission's ratio and secondly that no special formulation for an incompressible material is required.