Numerical modeling of steel deck slabs with position based finite element method and immersion techniques

Resumo

Steel deck slabs are an efficient construction system thanks to the deck's double role of molding the concrete in the builiding phase and resisting to flexural loads within its lifespan. Due to the high costs and semiempirical nature of experimental programs, it is important to formulate a numerical model that broadly and accurately describes the behavior of these structures. This article proposes a numerical model employing a finite element method based on positions, which naturally allows for geometrical nonlinear analysis of structures. A prismatic element is developed to represent the concrete matrix, and active face immersed elements are included to represent the steel deck. Additional immersed bar elements are also featured as reinforcement bars. The results are expected to conform with previous numerical and experimental results from literature and to allow for the proposal of new benchmarks taking advantage of the capabilities of the employed theory.