Dynamic solid mechanics using finite volume methods

A procedure for evaluating the dynamic structural response of elastic solid domains is presented. A prerequisite for the analysis of dynamic fluid–structure interaction is the use of a consistent set of finite volume (FV) methods on a single unstructured mesh. This paper describes a three-dimensional (3D) FV, vertex-based method for dynamic solid mechanics. A novel Newmark predictor–corrector implicit scheme was developed to provide time accurate solutions and the scheme was evaluated on a 3D cantilever problem. By employing a small amount of viscous damping, very accurate predictions of the fundamental natural frequency were obtained with respect to both the amplitude and period of oscillation. This scheme has been implemented into the multi-physics modelling software framework, PHYSICA, for later application to full dynamic fluid structure interaction.

The 2001 World Trade Centre evacuation

The WTC evacuation of 11 September 2001 provides an unrepeatable opportunity to probe into and understand the very nature of evacuation dynamics and with this improved understanding, contribute to the design of safer, more evacuation efficient, yet highly functional, high rise buildings. Following 9/11 the Fire Safety Engineering Group (FSEG) of the University of Greenwich embarked on a study of survivor experiences from the WTC Twin Towers evacuation. The experiences were collected from published accounts appearing in the print and electronic mass media and are stored in a relational data base specifically developed for this purpose. Using these accounts and other available sources of information FSEG also undertook a series of numerical simulations of the WTC North Tower. This paper represents an overview of the results from both studies.