Application of the generalized perturbation-based stochastic boundary element method to the elastostatics

This paper is entirely devoted to the demonstration of a solution for some boundary value problems of isotropic linear elastostatics with random parameters using the boundary element method. The stochastic perturbation technique in its general nth-order Taylor series expansion version is used to express all the random parameters and the state functions of the problem. These expansions inserted in the classical deterministic equilibrium statement return up to the nth-order (both PDEs and matrix) equations. Contrary to the previous implementations of the stochastic perturbation technique, any order partial derivatives with respect to the random input are derived from the deterministic structural response function (SRF) at a given point. This function is approximated using polynomials by the leasts-quares method from the multiple solution of the initial deterministic problem solved for the expectations of random structural parameters. First two probabilistic moments have been computed symbolically here using the computational MAPLE environment, also as the polynomial expressions including perturbation parameter epsilon. It should be mentioned that such a generalized perturbation approach makes it possible to analyze all types of random variables (not only Gaussian) and to compute even higher probabilistic moments with a priori given accuracy. The entire methodology can be implemented after minor modifications to analyze nonlinear phenomena for both statics and dynamics of even heterogeneous domains. (C) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.