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A dedicated resource for engineers, students, scientists, and researchers about the advancements inherent in the Applied Element Method (AEM) fully nonlinear 3-D dynamic numerical analysis.
The Applied Element Method (AEM) of numerical analysis. AEM, is a new method of analysis combines traits of both the Finite Element Method (FEM) and the Discrete Element Method (DEM).  Simply said, while FEM can be accurate until element separation and DEM can be used while elements are separated, AEM is capable of automatically simulating through separation of elements to collapse and debris prediction.  With more than two decades of continuous research and development AEM has been proven to be the only method that can track structural collapse behavior passing through all stages of loading; elastic, crack initiation and propagation in tension-weak materials, reinforcement yielding, element separation, element collision (contact), and collision with the ground and adjacent structures.

Simulation of the Dynamic Response of Steel Moment Frames following Sudden Column Loss. Experimental Calibration of the Numerical Model and Application

Significant research effort has been devoted in recent years to the evaluation of the capacity of steel frame structures to resist progressive collapse after sudden column loss. Due to the complex load-structure interaction and material behaviour, it can be very difficult to evaluate the ultimate capacity of structural components using current analytical methods. Therefore considerable research effort has been directed to experimental testing and sophisticated numerical simulations. Although sudden column loss is a dynamic process, most experimental studies on fullscale or scaled down specimens were performed under quasi-static loads. This paper presents the results of a study devoted to the evaluation of steel frame response following the loss of a column. Advanced numerical models are calibrated using experimental test results and dynamic increase factors are studied. Several full-scale structures are investigated for a sudden column loss scenario.

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