Geometrically nonlinear elastic analysis of space trusses

A general framework for the nonlinear geometric analysis of elastic space trusses is presented. Both total Lagrangian and finite incremental formulations are derived from the three key ingredients of statics, kinematics and constitutive law. Particular features of the general methodology include the preservation of static-kinematic duality through the concept of fictitious forces and deformations, and an exact description for arbitrarily large displacements, albeit small strain, that can be specialized to any order of geometrical nonlinearity. As for the numerical algorithm, we consider specifically the finite incremental case and suggest the use of a conventional, simple and flexible arc-length based method. Numerical examples are presented to illustrate and validate the accuracy of the approach.