A Parallel Algorithm for Contact in a Finite Element Hydrocode
- Univ. of California, Davis, CA (United States)
A parallel algorithm is developed for contact/impact of multiple three dimensional bodies undergoing large deformation. As time progresses the relative positions of contact between the multiple bodies changes as collision and sliding occurs. The parallel algorithm is capable of tracking these changes and enforcing an impenetrability constraint and momentum transfer across the surfaces in contact. Portions of the various surfaces of the bodies are assigned to the processors of a distributed-memory parallel machine in an arbitrary fashion, known as the primary decomposition. A secondary, dynamic decomposition is utilized to bring opposing sections of the contacting surfaces together on the same processors, so that opposing forces may be balanced and the resultant deformation of the bodies calculated. The secondary decomposition is accomplished and updated using only local communication with a limited subset of neighbor processors. Each processor represents both a domain of the primary decomposition and a domain of the secondary, or contact, decomposition. Thus each processor has four sets of neighbor processors: (a) those processors which represent regions adjacent to it in the primary decomposition, (b) those processors which represent regions adjacent to it in the contact decomposition, (c) those processors which send it the data from which it constructs its contact domain, and (d) those processors to which it sends its primary domain data, from which they construct their contact domains. The latter three of these neighbor sets change dynamically as the simulation progresses. By constraining all communication to these sets of neighbors, all global communication, with its attendant nonscalable performance, is avoided. A set of tests are provided to measure the degree of scalability achieved by this algorithm on up to 1024 processors. Issues related to the operating system of the test platform which lead to some degradation of the results are analyzed. This algorithm has been implemented as the contact capability of the ALE3D multiphysics code, and is currently in production use.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDoE
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-48
- OSTI ID:
- 15005375
- Report Number(s):
- UCRL-LR-154063; TRN: US200322%%398
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: TH: Thesis (Ph.D.); Submitted to the Univ. of California, Davis, CA (US); PBD: 1 Jun 2003
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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