Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 31 (1999) 209222

Explicit eight-noded quadrilateral elements

K.E. Barrett*
Coventry Applied Mathematics And Computation, Mathematics Division, Coventry University, Priory Street,
Coventry CV1 5FB, UK
Abstract
Conditions under which it is possible to determine exact integrals for stiness matrix entries for an eight-noded
isoparametric plane strain element are investigated. Considerable use has been made of the algebraic manipulation
language MAPLE in obtaining the results. For the eight-noded quadrilateral the determinant of the Jacobian is
a complete cubic plus a single quartic term. Exact integration of the stiness matrices can be performed when the
determinant of the Jacobian becomes a single linear factor or a product of linear factors. Such decompositions can be
related to the geometry of the element in some cases. If accurate stiness entries are to be found, 3;3 rather than 2;2
Gauss integration rules should be used. 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Explicit; Stiness; Quadrilateral; Element; Isoparametric
1. Introduction
The nite element method has been a standard technique for the numerical analysis of a range of
continuum mechanics problems since the advent of freely available powerful computers in the
mid-1960s. Recent advances in power have placed PCs on the workbench with sophisticated
algebraic manipulating software such as MAPLE and Mathematica as a standard feature. It has
thus become practical to replace some of the numerical approximations in nite element methods
with exact algebraic computations. Previously, numerical methods were used to calculate the
element stiness, mass, and for ow problems, convective matrix integrals. Complications arise
from two main sources, rstly the large number of integrations that need to be performed and
secondly, in methods which use isoparametric elements, the presence of the determinant of the
Jacobian matrix in the denominator of the stiness matrix. Throughout this paper the determinant
of the Jacobian will be referred to simply as the Jacobian. If it is possible to use a hybrid
formulation the Jacobian problem can be avoided as many authors have shown.
* Tel. #440203 838 598; fax: #440203 838585.
0168-874X/99/$ see front matter 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved
PII: S 0 1 6 8 - 8 7 4 X( 9 8 ) 0 0 0 6 7 - 5
Most emphasis has been placed on the four-node isoparametric planar quadrilateral element.
Articles include those by Babu and Pinder [1], Griths [2], Griths and Mustoe [3], Hacker and
Schreyer [4], Okabe [5], Rathod [6], Videla et al. [7] and Ye et al. [8]. For these the Jacobian is
either constant or linear in the natural coordinates so the exact stiness matrices are combinations
of polynomials and logarithms of the element nodal coordinates. Those working on hybrid
elements include Ledvinka [9], Chang et al. [10], Spilker [11] and Tong [12]. Here the integrands
and integrals are polynomials so the integration procedures just have to be ecient. Various
authors have shown that the expressions for the exact values of the integrals have to be evaluated
with care. If this is done they can be computed with greater accuracy and at greater speed than by
using the corresponding traditional Gauss integration procedures.
Little work has been carried out on evaluating the stiness matrices arising from higher-order
isoparametric planar triangular and quadrilateral elements as, for these, the Jacobian occurs as
a quadratic factor or higher-order polynomial in the denominator. This note shows how some of
the integrals arising from an eight-noded quadrilateral element may be computed exactly.
2. Stiness matrices for planar isoparametric elements
It will be supposed that the element has n nodes with coordinates (x
G
, y
G
) i"1
2
n. For the
standard planar elements n"3, 4, 6, 8, 9 corresponding to the 3 and 6 node triangles and the 4,
8 and 9 node quadrilaterals. For isoparametric elements all variables including the coordinates are
written in terms of the shape functions so that
x(s, t)"
L

G
x
G
N
G
(s, t), y(s, t)"
L

G
y
G
N
G
(s, t), (1)
where (s, t) are the natural coordinates on the element with nodes (s
G
, t
G
), i"1
2
n and the shape
functions satisfy
N
G
(s
H
, t
H
)"
GH
, (2)
where
GH
is the Kronecker delta.
The Jacobian of the transformation is
J(s, t)"

*x
*s
(s, t)
*x
*t
(s, t)
*y
*s
(s, t)
*y
*t
(s, t)

, (3)
with determinant
det J(s, t)"
L

G
L

H
(x
G
y
H
!x
H
y
G
)
*N
G
*s
(s, t)
*N
H
*t
(s, t). (4)
210 K.E. Barrett / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 31 (1999) 209222
The inverse of the Jacobian is
J(s, t)"

*s
*x
(s, t)
*s
*y
(s, t)
*t
*x
(s, t)
*t
*y
(s, t)

"
1
det J(s, t)

*y
*t
(s, t) !
*x
*t
(s, t)
!
*y
*s
(s, t)
*x
*s
(s, t)

. (5)
The element energy for a linear elastic material with Youngs modulus E and Poissons ratio
under plane strain conditions is

"

E
(1!2)(1#)
[
V

VW
]

1! 0
1! 0
0 0
`
(1!2)

VW

dx dy, (6)
where
[
V

W

VW
],
are the strain components. If the nodal displacements in the x and y directions are u and v then

VW

"

*u
*x
*v
*y
*u
*y
#
*v
*x

(7)
and the element energy is

"

E
(1!2)(1#)
(1!)

*u
*x
`
#

*v
*y
`

#2
*u
*x
*v
*y
#
1
2
(1!2)

*u
*y
#
*v
*x
`

dx dy. (8)
For the case where the nodal displacements are given by
u(s, t)"
L

G
u
G
N
G
(s, t), v(s, t)"
L

G
v
G
N
G
(s, t), (9)
the element energy is

"
L

G
L

H

A
GH

(1!)u
G
u
H
#
1!2
2
v
G
v
H

#B
GH
[2u
G
v
H
#(1!2)v
G
u
H
]
#C
GH

(1!)v
G
v
H
#
1!2
2
u
G
u
H

, (10)
K.E. Barrett / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 31 (1999) 209222 211
where
A
GH
"

*N
G
*x
*N
H
*x
dx dy, B
GH
"

*N
G
*x
*N
H
*y
dx dy, C
GH
"

*N
G
*y
*N
H
*y
dx dy. (11)
In terms of the natural coordinates these integrals are
A
GH
"

1
det J(s, t)
*N
G
*s
*y
*t
!
*N
G
*t
*y
*s
*N
H
*s
*y
*t
!
*N
H
*t
*y
*s
ds dt, (12)
B
GH
"

1
det J(s, t)
*N
G
*s
*y
*t
!
*N
G
*t
*y
*s
*N
H
*t
*x
*s
!
*N
H
*s
*x
*t
ds dt, (13)
C
GH
"

1
det J(s, t)
*N
G
*t
*x
*s
!
*N
G
*s
*x
*t
*N
H
*t
*x
*s
!
*N
H
*s
*x
*t
ds dt, (14)
For the case of the eight-noded quadrilaterals, where the shape functions are trilinear in the natural
coordinates, a typical integral is
I"

Q
P
`
(s, t)
det J(s, t)
ds dt, (15)
where P
`
is a polynomial of total degree eight in s and t. Such integrals can be integrated exactly in
terms of polynomials, logarithms and dilogarithms for the cases where the Jacobian can be
expressed as a single linear expression in s and t or where it is a product of two or more such linear
expressions.
3. Jacobian as product of linear factors
The standard eight-noded quadrilateral in the computational (s, t) plane has vertices and
midsides given by (!1,!1), (0,!1), (1,!1), (1, 0), (1, 1), (0, 1), (!1, 1) and (!1, 0). If this is
mapped onto a generally placed eight-noded quadrilateral in the x, y plane with nodes
(x
G
, y
G
), i"1,
2
,8 the Jacobian of the mapping involves 16 parameters and is typically a complete
cubic in s and t plus an s`t` term, i.e.,
det J(s, t)"
`

G"
`G

H"
c
G`GH
sGt`GH#c
``
s`t`, (16)
where the c
GH
are quadratic expressions in the x and y coordinates of the nodes. The Jacobian can
also be expressed in terms of perturbations of the nodes from their standard positions. The
perturbation of node i fromits standard position will be denoted by (p
G
, q
G
). When the perturbations
are zero, det J(s, t)"1. It will be supposed that a preliminary ane transformation has been made
for a generally placed eight-noded quadrilateral so that three of the corner nodes are at the
standard positions (!1,!1), (1,!1) and (!1, 1), reducing the number of parameters to 10. The
212 K.E. Barrett / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 31 (1999) 209222
Fig. 1. Standard and curvilinear 8-noded quadrilaterals.
Jacobian for such a transformation is a constant so does not aect the diculty of computing an
entry in the stiness matrix. This case is illustrated in Fig. 1. In this section geometrical constraints
will be established for the cases where the Jacobian can be expressed as a product of up to four
linear factors.
3.1. Linear Jacobian
The Jacobian reduces to a single linear factor when the quadratic, cubic and quartic terms are
zero. First the transformation
p
`
"p
"
!
`
p
`
#a
`
, q
`
"q
"
!
`
q
`
#b
`
, p
`
"p
"
!
`
p
`
#a
`
, q
`
"q
"
!
`
q
`
#b
`
(17)
is introduced. The quartic and cubic terms are zero and the quadratic terms can be zero when
a
`
"b
`
"a
`
"b
`
"0, (18)
(cf. [13]). For this case
p
`
#p
"
"p
"
#p
`
, q
`
#q
"
"q
"
#q
`
, (19)
i.e. the movement of the midpoints of the line joining nodes 2 and 4 and the line joining nodes 6 and
8 have to be the same. The extra conditions for the quadratic terms to be zero are
p
"
q
"
!p
"
q
"
"0, p
`
q
"
!p
"
q
`
"0, p
"
q
`
!p
`
q
"
"0. (20)
There are four cases
1. p
"
"p
`
"p
"
"0 midside nodes can move in vertical direction.
2. p
"
"q
"
"p
`
"q
`
"0 two or more points are xed.
3. p
"
"q
"
"0, p
`
O0, q
"
"(q
`
/p
`
)p
"
one point and one ratio xed.
4. p
"
O0, q
`
"(q
"
/p
"
)p
`
, q
"
"(q
"
/p
"
)p
"
two ratios xed.
K.E. Barrett / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 31 (1999) 209222 213
Geometrically, the perturbations of the nodes are parallel to each other. The Jacobian is
det J(s, t)"(1#
"
p
`
#
"
q
`
)#(p
`
#
"
q
`
!2p
"
)s#(
"
p
`
#q
`
!2q
"
)t. (21)
The perturbations have to be constrained so that the Jacobian remains positive as s and t each vary
between plus and minus one.
3.2. Quadratic is a product of two linear factors
The Jacobian reduces to a quadratic and is not linear when
1. a
`
"b
`
"a
`
"b
`
"0 and not all of p
"
q
`
!p
`
q
"
, p
`
q
"
!p
"
q
`
, p
"
q
"
!p
"
q
"
are zero.
2. b
`
O0, a
`
"(a
`
/b
`
)b
`
, p
`
"(a
`
/b
`
)q
`
, p
"
"(a
`
/b
`
)q
"
, p
"
"(a
`
/b
`
)q
"
and not all of a
`
, b
`
,
a
`
b
`
#b`
`
are zero.
3. b
`
"0, a
`
O0, q
"
"q
`
"q
"
"0.
4. b
`
"0, a
`
"0, b
`
O0, p
"
"(a
`
/b
`
)q
"
, p
`
"(a
`
/b
`
)q
`
, p
"
"(a
`
/b
`
)q
"
.
5. b
`
"0, a
`
"0, b
`
"0, a
`
O0, q
"
"q
`
"q
"
"0.
The Jacobian can also be written as the quadratic form
det J(s, t)"
1
2
[s t 1]A

s
t
1
, (22)
where the matrix A involves quantities which are quadratic in the nodal coordinates. The quadratic
Jacobian reduces to a product of one or two linear factors, in this case two, if and only if the matrix
A of the quadratic form has a zero determinant (cf. [14], [15], p. 82.). In terms of the ps and qs the
determinant is a polynomial of total degree 6 with any given p
G
or q
G
occurring to no more than
degree 3. Any one variable may be solved in terms of the others, the resulting solution being
generally extremely complex. Some simple cases are
1. p
"
"p
`
"p
`
"q
`
"0, p
`
"p
"
, q
`
"q
"
.
2. q
`
"q
`
"q
"
"0, a
`
"a
`
"0, q
"
"q
`
.
3. a
`
"b
`
"0, p
"
"(a
`
/b
`
)q
"
, p
`
"(a
`
/b
`
)q
`
, p
"
"(a
`
/b
`
)q
"
, q
`
q
`
"!2b
`
.
3.3. Three linear factors
If the Jacobian is a product of three linear factors there can be no term in s`t`. The coecient is
c
``
"`
`
[( p
"
!p
`
) (q
`
#2q
`
!2q
"
)#(p
"
!p
`
) (2q
"
!2q
`
!q
`
)
#p
`
(!q
`
!q
"
#q
"
#q
`
)]"0. (23)
The Jacobian reduces to a complete cubic containing 10 types of terms involving the ten
perturbation parameters. A product of three linear factors contains seven parameters so there will
214 K.E. Barrett / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 31 (1999) 209222
be three additional constraints on the perturbations. If the cubic Jacobian
Jc(s, t)"c
""
#c
"
s#c
"
t#c
`"
s`#c

st#c
"`
t`#c
`"
s`#c
`
s`t#c
`
st`#c
"`
t`, (24)
factorises as
Jc(s, t)"(1#u
"
s#u
"
t) (w
""
#w
"
s#w
"
t#w
`"
s`#w

st#w
"`
t`), (25)
then matching coecients term by term, the lowest-order terms rst, gives
w
""
"c
""
, w
"
"c
"
!u
"
c
""
, w
"
"c
"
!u
"
c
""
,
w
`"
"c
`"
!u
"
c
"
#u`
"
c
""
, w
"`
"c
"`
!u
"
c
"
#u`
"
c
""
,
w

"c

!u
"
c
"
!u
"
c
"
#2u
"
u
"
c
""
. (26)
The remaining coecients satisfy
c
`"
"u
"
(c
`"
!u
"
c
"
#u`
"
c
""
),
c
`
"u
"
c
`"
#u
"
c

!2u
"
u
"
c
"
!u`
"
c
"
#3u`
"
u
"
c
""
,
c
`
"u
"
c
"`
#u
"
c

!2u
"
u
"
c
"
!u`
"
c
"
#3u`
"
u
"
c
""
,
c
"`
"u
"
(c
"`
!u
"
c
"
#u`
"
c
""
). (27)
The rst and last of these are cubic equations for u
"
and u
"
and the middle two are constraints on
the remaining coecients. The remaining constraint is that
Jq(s, t)"
Jc(s, t)
1#u
"
s#u
"
t
(28)
should break down into two linear factors. The condition for this was given earlier.
Cases where the Jacobian is a product of three linear factors in s only include
1. a
`
"a
`
"b
`
"p
"
"p
`
"0, q
`
"2q
"
.
2. a
`
"b
`
"0, a
`
"(p
`
/q
`
)b
`
, q
"
"(2b
`
#p
"
q
`
)/p
`
, p
`
"8q
"
!4q
`
, p
"
"(p
`
#4q
`
)p
`
/8q
`
.
3.4. Four linear factors
As the Jacobian is a complete cubic plus a term in s`t` it could reduce, in special cases, to
a product of four or fewer linear factors. If the Jacobian has four linear factors it can be written as
det J(s,t)"(1#a

s#b

t)(1#a
`
s#b
`
t)(1#a
`
s#b
`
t)(1#a
"
s#b
"
t), (29)
K.E. Barrett / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 31 (1999) 209222 215
where a
G
and b
G
involve quadratics in the perturbations of the nodes from their standard positions.
As the general Jacobian has no term in s" or t"
a

a
`
a
`
a
"
"b

b
`
b
`
b
"
"0. (30)
Without loss of generality, there are either only three linear factors or a
"
"b
`
"0. In the case, with
four factors, the Jacobian is
det J(s, t)"(1#a

s#b

t)(1#a
`
s)(1#a
`
s#b
`
t)(1#b
"
t). (31)
As, for the general problem, the coecients of s`t and st` are also zero
a

a
`
a
`
b
"
"b

a
`
b
`
b
"
"0. (32)
Without loss of generality, there are three linear factors or a
`
"b

"0 with the Jacobian becoming

det J(s, t)"(1#a

s)(1#a
`
s)(1#b
`
t)(1#b
"
t). (33)
Note that this expression has no terms which are cubic in s or t. If the Jacobian is a product of four
linear functions
G
of s and t the integrand in I can be written as a polynomial in s and t plus
a constant multiple of
(1#as)(1#bt)
(1#a

s)(1#a
`
s)(1#b
`
t)(1#b
"
t)
. (34)
It is easy to show, in terms of the coecients in the Jacobian, that the conditions for reduction to
a product of four linear factors are
c
"
c
"
!c

c
""
"0,
c
"
c
"`
!c
`
c
""
"0, c
"
c
`"
!c
`
c
""
"0,
c
`"
"0, c
"`
"0,
c
`"
c
"`
!c
``
c
""
"0.
(35)
The last four of these conditions are quartic in the node perturbations and are dicult to solve in
general. In a recent paper, Yuan et al. [16] have shown how to represent a general isoparametric
quadrilateral in terms of 12 parameters, 10 of which correspond to areas. With the use of this
notation the previous equations become, respectively, linear and quadratic in these areas and in
some cases may be solved. The various known areas are next expressed as quadratics in the nodal
perturbations and again Eq. (35) can sometimes be solved.
4. Exact evaluation of stiness integrals
A typical contribution to the stiness matrix involves an integral of the form
I"

Q
P
`
(s, t)
det J(s, t)
ds dt, (36)
216 K.E. Barrett / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 31 (1999) 209222
where P
`
is a polynomial of degree 8 in two variables and det J(s, t) is a complete polynomial plus
an s`t` term. For the cases where the Jacobian is a product of four or fewer linear factors this
integral can be evaluated as a polynomial part plus either
1.
I
"
"

Q
e

#f

s
g

#h

s#j

s`
ds

R
e
`
#f
`
t
g
`
#h
`
t#j
`
t`
dt, (37)
when the Jacobian has four linear factors, or
2.
I
`
"

R
ds dt
(1#a

s#b

t)(1#a
`
s#b
`
t)(1#a
`
s#b
`
t)
, (38)
when the Jacobian has three or fewer linear factors.
All the integrals I
"
are standard, results being given in terms of trigonometric, hyperbolic or
logarithmic functions. The integrals I
`
can be written as a cyclic sum of terms of the form
J"

Q
b

ln(a

s!b

#1)
(a

b
`
s!a
`
b

s!b

#b
`
)(a
`
b

s!a

b
`
s!b
`
#b

)
ds"

Q
ln(1#es)
(1#fs)(1#gs)
ds
. (39)
For the case of general e, f and g the integral takes the value
I"

Q
ln(1#es)
(1#fs)(1#gs)
ds"
1
f!g
ln(1!e)ln

(1!g)(e!f )
(1!f )(e!g)
#ln(1#e)ln

(1#f )(e!g)
(e!f )(1#g)
#dilog

(1!g)e
e!g
!dilog

(1!f )e
e!f
#dilog

(1#f )e
e!f
!dilog

(1#g)e
e!g
. (40)
Simpler results arise when any two or more of e, f and g are equal or any one or more are zero.
5. Numerical examples
5.1. Linear Jacobian
For the case where the node movements are vertical with
p
`
"0, p
"
"0, p
`
"0, p
"
"0, p
`
"0, q
`
"0, q
`
"2q
"
, q
"
"q
"
, q
`
"0, (41)
K.E. Barrett / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 31 (1999) 209222 217
Fig. 2. Exact, 2;2 and 3;3 gauss rules for linear Jacobian.
the Jacobian is a linear expression in q
"
, viz.,
J(s, t)"1#
`
q
"
#
`
q
"
s. (42)
The element is distorted to a trapezium with all midside nodes being centrally placed. An exact
evaluation of a typical entry in the stiness matrix gives
A

"
1
90q`
"
(!17q"
"
!6q`
"
!180q`
"
!120q
"
#6(3q`
"
#20)(q
"
#1)`ln(1#q
"
)). (43)
Use of the 2;2 Gauss rule gives
A

Kg
`
(q
"
)"
1
9
2q`
"
#6q`
"
#27q
"
#30
(q`
"
#6q
"
#6)
. (44)
Use of the 3;3 Gauss rule gives
A

Kg
`
(q
"
)"
1
90
49q"
"
#282q`
"
#824q`
"
#1560q
"
#1040
(q
"
#2)(q`
"
#10q
"
#10)
. (45)
The values of g
`
, g
`
and A

are given in the table for q

"
"0,!1 and 1. The 2;2 point Gauss rule
is in error by 2% when the element is not distorted and by 20% when the element is distorted to
a trapezium with one vertical side twice its previous length with a central position for the midside
node. The 3;3 Gauss rule and the exact result are virtually identical over the whole range as Fig. 2
shows.
218 K.E. Barrett / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 31 (1999) 209222
5.2. Quadratic Jacobian
A set of nodal perturbations which give a quadratic Jacobian are
p
`
"
"
, p
"
"0, p
`
"0, p
"
"
"
, p
`
"0,
q
`
"!q
"
, q
`
"2q
"
, q
"
"0, q
`
"0, (46)
where the Jacobian is
J(s, t)"(1!
`
s)(1#
`
q
"
#
`
q
"
s). (47)
The standard element is transformed into one where the right-hand vertical edge is changed in
length with the midside node still being centrally placed. The top and bottomedges become curved
and the left-hand edge remains unchanged. The exact, 2;2 and 3;3 Gauss rules give for A

(q
"
)"
1
15(3q
"
#2)q"
"
(!2457q"
"
!3918q`
"
!7220q"
"
!8840q`
"
!6240q`
"
!1920q
"
#(1726q`
"
#734q
"
#124)q"
"
ln(3)
#2(q
"
#1)`(113q"
"
#700q`
"
#1580q`
"
#1680q
"
#960)ln(1#q
"
)), (48)
A

(q
"
)Kg
`
(q
"
)"
2
99
124q`
"
#390q`
"
#357q
"
#144
q`
"
#6q
"
#6
, (49)
A

(q
"
)Kg
`
(q
"
)"
1
765
4537q"
"
#21748q`
"
#35824q`
"
#26160q
"
#8240
(q
"
#2)(q`
"
#10q
"
#10)
. (50)
The exact and 3;3 Gauss rule give close agreement as before as the values in the table and a graph
of the behaviour on q
"
from !1 to 1 show.
5.3. Cubic Jacobian
A set of nodal perturbations which give a tri-linear Jacobian are
p
`
"
"
, p
"
"0, p
`
"0, p
"
"
"
, p
`
"0, q
`
"0, q
`
"2q
"
, q
"
"0,
q
`
"0. (51)
The Jacobian is the cubic
J(s, t)"(1!
`
s)(1#
`
q
"
s#
`
q
"
s`). (52)
For this case the midside nodes on the top and bottomedges are moved the same amount of
"
to
the right, the bottom edge remaining straight and the top edge becoming curved. The top
right-hand corner is moved vertically a distance 2q
"
and the midside node on the right stays at the
K.E. Barrett / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 31 (1999) 209222 219
centre point of its edge. The exact values of A

and 2;2 and 3;3 Gauss point approximations

are
A

"!
1
30(3q
"
#1)q
"
(!11q`
"
#83q
"
#40)ln(q
"
#1)
!
1
30(3q
"
#1)
(2(q
"
!8)(12q`
"
!q
"
#5)arctanh

3
q
"
(

1
(
#2(q
"
!8)(12q`
"
!q
"
#5)arctanh

q
"
(

1
(
!(2346q`
"
#954q
"
#124)ln(3)
#2502q`
"
#954q
"
#40), "q`
"
!8q
"
, (53)
A

Kg
`
(q
"
)"
2
33
3q`
"
!22q`
"
!15q
"
!144
q`
"
!6q
"
!18
, (54)
A

Kg
`
(q
"
)"
1
765
136q"
"
!1343q`
"
!4534q`
"
!14560q
"
!20600
3q`
"
!30q
"
!50
. (55)
Values for q
"
"0, !1 and 1 are shown in Table 1. Fig. 3 shows again the inaccuracy of the 2;2
rule and the good agreement between the exact value and the 3;3 rule.
5.4. Quartic Jacobian
Examples where the Jacobian reduces to a quartic form can be constructed by the previously
described algorithm. The particular case where the nodal perturbations are
p
`
"!
2q
`
1#2q
`
, p
"
"2p
`
, p
`
"4p
`
, p
"
"p
`
, p
`
"0,
q
`
"
4q`
`
#3
1#2q
`
, q
"
"
6!3q
`
#2q`
`
1#2q
`
, q
`
"4q
`
, q
"
"q
`
, (56)
leads to the Jacobian
J(s, t)"
(1#3s#3s`)(1!4t`q`
`
)
1#2q
`
. (57)
This corresponds to a valid element provided
!
`
(q
`
(
`
. (58)
Stiness matrices involve the integral
I(q
`
)"

R
R

Q
1#2q
`
(1#3s#3s`)(1!4t`q`
`
)
ds dt
"
(3
9q
`
(arctan(3(3)#) (1#2q
`
)ln

1#2q
`
1!2q
`

. (59)
220 K.E. Barrett / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 31 (1999) 209222
Table 1
Exact and approximate values for stiness entries
Jacobian q
"
2;2 rule 3;3 rule Exact
Linear 0 0.555556 0.577778 0.577778
!1 0.777778 0.788889 0.788889
1 0.555556 0.662257 0.662414
Quadratic 0 0.484848 0.538562 0.540931
!1 1.070707 0.905882 0.863246
1 1.577312 2.002469 2.035897
Cubic 0 0.484848 0.538562 0.540931
!1 0.848485 0.699346 0.685898
1 0.469038 0.694355 0.713507
q
`
Quartic 0 8.000000 4.327869 5.606922

`
15.652174 8.670310 11.279902
!
`
3.130435 1.734062 2.255998
Fig. 3. Exact, 2;2 and 3;3 gauss rules for cubic Jacobian.
The two and three point Gauss rules give
I(q
`
)Kg
`
(q
`
)"24
1#2q
`
(3!4q`
`
)
, (60)
I(q
`
)Kg
`
(q
`
)"
88
61
(15!16q`
`
)(1#2q
`
)
(5!12q`
`
)
. (61)
Values at q
`
"0,
`
and !
`
are given in Table 1. The poor agreement may be noted.
K.E. Barrett / Finite Elements in Analysis and Design 31 (1999) 209222 221
6. Conclusions
The algebraic manipulation language MAPLE has been used to investigate the explicit calcu-
lation of contributions to stiness matrices for an isoparametric eight-noded quadrilateral element.
For such elements the Jacobian is a complete cubic plus a single quartic term in the computational
coordinates and it is not always possible to give explicit expressions for the stiness matrix entries.
It has been shown that is possible to nd, in principle, the stiness matrices when the Jacobian is
either a linear expression in the computational coordinates or a product of up to four such linear
expressions. In the latter case the integrals are sometimes given in terms of dilogarithms as well as
polynomials and logarithms. Simple algebraic constraints have been presented for the case where
the Jacobian becomes degenerate. In some cases these conditions have been related to simple
geometric properties of the element. In some typical cases it has been shown that 3;3 Gauss
integration gives accurate estimates of the exact stiness matrix entries and that 2;2 Gauss
integration can give errors exceeding 20% for quite moderate element distortions.
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