Hybrid asynchronous SEM/FEM co-simulation for seismic nonlinear analysis of concrete gravity dams

The aim of this work is to take full advantage of Spectral Element (SE) and Finite Element (FE) codes by setting up a SEM/FEM co-simulation strategy for soil structure interaction problems, involving a SE code to generate and propagate elastic waves in the soil, while a FE code enables the detailed representation of the studied structure. The spatial coupling is managed by the standard coupling mortar approach, whereas the time integration is dealt with an hybrid (explicit/implicit) asynchronous (different time steps) time integrator. The SEM/FEM co-simulation strategy is set up for linear or nonlinear transient dynamics. A seismic analysis of a concrete dam is considered in order to demonstrate the versatility of the co-simulation approach, assuming a linear rheology or a nonlinear damaging behaviour of the concrete. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.