Comparative analysis of Rectangular Plate by Finite element method and Finite Difference Method

Analysis of rectangular plates is common when designing the foundation of civil, traffic, and irrigation works. The current research presents the results of the analysis of rectangular plates using the finite difference method and Finite Element Method. The results of the research verify the accuracy of the FEM and are in agreement with findings in the literature. The plate is analyzed considering it to be completely solid. The ordinary finite difference method is used to solve the governing differential equation of the plate deflection. The proposed method can be easily programmed to readily apply on a plate problem. The work covers the determination of displacement components at different points of the plate and checking the result by software (STAAD.Pro) analysis. Keywords: rectangular plate, FEM, Finite Difference Method