A boundary integral formulation for frictionless contact problems involving steady heat conduction

摘要

A boundary integral formulation for two dimensional thermoelastic contact problems without friction is presented. The local thermal resistance at the contact zone is modelled as a given decreasing function of the contact pressure. The stationary heat conduction equations and the elastic equations, which are coupled through the thermal resistance, are solved independently in the scope of an iterative process. The elastic problem involving thermal loading is solved and convergence is reached when the obtained contact pressure leads to a thermal resistance in agreement wih the one assumed in the thermal problem, which was formerly solved. The present formulation also accounts for the possibility of separation in the initial contact zone when the heat flows towards the body of greatest distorsivity. The paper includes three examples illustrating the possibilities of the method.