Singularity enrichment for complete sliding contact using the partition of unity finite element method

In this paper, the numerical modelling of complete sliding contact and its associated singularity is carried out using the partition of unity finite element method. Sliding interfaces in engineering components lead to crack nucleation and growth in the vicinity of the contact zone. To accurately capture the singular stress field at the contact corner, we use the partition of unity framework to enrich the standard displacement‐based finite element approximation by additional (enriched) functions. These enriched functions are derived from the analytical expression of the asymptotic displacement field in the vicinity of the contact corner. To characterize the intensity of the singularity, a domain integral formulation is adopted to compute the generalized stress intensity factor (GSIF). Numerical results on benchmark problems are presented to demonstrate the improved accuracy and benefits of this technique. We conduct an investigation on issues pertaining to the extent of enrichment, accurate numerical integration of weak‐form integrals and the rate of convergence in energy. The use of partition of unity enrichment leads to accurate estimations of the GSIFs on relatively coarse meshes, which is particularly beneficial for modelling non‐linear sliding contacts. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.