Beam Finite Elements with Arbitrary Shape Functions
Erasmo CARRERA, Daniele SCANO
Abstract. This paper presents advanced one-dimensional finite elements for the analysis of composite laminated beams. A key novelty of the proposed approach lies in the ability to independently select shape functions for each of the three displacement variables, using different Lagrange-based functions. The formulation is developed within the framework of the Carrera Unified Formulation, which decomposes the three-dimensional displacement field into in-plane and cross-sectional components. Lagrange expansions are adopted to characterize the cross-section, although other polynomial choices are also possible. The method is validated against literature results for a bending problem. The findings demonstrate that it is possible to tune the computational cost while achieving results identical to those obtained with classical approaches.
Keywords
Beam Models, Composite Structures, Refined Kinematic, Lagrange Polynomials, Carrera Unified Formulation
Published online 11/8/2026, 4 pages
Copyright © 2026 by the author(s)
Published under license by Materials Research Forum LLC., Millersville PA, USA
Citation: Erasmo CARRERA, Daniele SCANO, Beam Finite Elements with Arbitrary Shape Functions, Materials Research Proceedings, Vol. 73, pp 307-310, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21741/9781644904459-60
The article was published as article 60 of the book Mechanics of Advanced Materials and Structures
Content from this work may be used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license. Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI.
References
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