3D automated adaptive refinement of all-hexahedral element meshes

3D Automated adaptive refinement algorithm of all-hexahedral element meshes is one of main research domains in numerical simulation of engineering problems. Generation of finite element mesh for three-dimensional problems is associated not only with their geometric topological features but also with their mechanics properties. In order to describe the original geometric model more exactly and to improve the accuracy and efficiency of finite analysis, the mesh should be refined at the area where large curvature and stress concentration or high stress gradient exist. A simple and effective adaptive algorithm for conformal, local refinement of all-hexahedral meshes was developed in this paper through inserting a new set of templates into the prescribed field. A surface element layer method was also proposed for the automatic generation of the initial hexahedral meshes. It is a modified grid-based method. Moreover, the corresponding data structure and the procedures for the algorithm realization were also given. The effectiveness and robusticity of the algorithm were demonstrated by using several typical examples.