A study of continuous elastic beams on discrete non-linear elastic supports

Abstract

This study discusses an iterative approach to the problem of a continuous beam on discrete non-linear elastic supports and its application. The literature studied revealed that practically no work has been done on engineering approaches to this problem. The basic equations are developed from flexural theory and are solved by iteration utilizing Newton' s linear approximation method. The solutions obtained were checked by energy methods. Numerical results are presented for a marine fendering system, a typical example of a beam on non-linear elastic supports. For various loading conditions, a comparison is made between an approximate linear solution and the solution obtained using the non-linear approach developed in this study.