Objective Local mesh modification is one of the important approaches for solving the saturated unconfined seepage model when the fixed mesh method is used. When the finite element method is employed as the calculation tool, the complexity of the mesh modification process, resulting from the restricted shapes of the elements, hinders the development of local mesh modification methods. Therefore, the virtual element method, which is adaptable to arbitrarily shaped polygonal elements, is introduced to solve the two-dimensional saturated unconfined seepage model using the local mesh modification method. Methods First, the basic mathematical equation of the saturated unconfined seepage model was described. Then, the change in water head within an arbitrary polygonal element was expressed using the first-order virtual element, leading to the establishment of the first-order virtual element formulation for seepage analysis. The trial function space V1(Ωe) governed the water head in each element, with the water heads at the vertices defined as the degrees of freedom of the element. The element conductivity matrix and flow vector were derived using the Galerkin method, and the procedure for computing the element conductivity matrix was deduced based on the principles of the virtual element method. The mathematical relationship between the first-order virtual element and classical finite element methods was elucidated. Next, the versatility of element shapes within the virtual element method was utilized to redesign the mesh modification rules of the local mesh modification method, developing a comprehensive solution flow for the saturated unconfined seepage model. The mesh was modified by removing elements located above the free surface while retaining those below it. In cases where an element was intersected by the free surface, it was first removed, and the portion below the free surface was treated as a new element. Update algorithms for the global conductivity matrix and the global flow vector were established to reduce computational costs. Finally, three numerical examples, homogeneous rectangular earth dams, homogeneous trapezoidal earth dams, and heterogeneous rectangular earth dams, were employed to evaluate the calculation accuracy and efficiency of the proposed method. The performance of the proposed method was also compared to other methods based on the finite element method and the numerical manifold method. Results and Discussions The numerical accuracy of the proposed method was evaluated using the analytical solution of the rectangular homogeneous earth dam model as a benchmark. The maximum error identified along the free surface, which occurred at the exudation point on the right side of the earth dam, was a relative error of 0.45%. This result indicated that the proposed method exhibited good numerical accuracy. The method was applied to solve the trapezoidal homogeneous earth dam model and the inhomogeneous rectangular earth dam model. Due to the absence of analytical solutions for these two models, the results were compared to those obtained using Seep software, the local mesh modification method based on the finite element method, and the improved numerical manifold method, which is widely recognized for its high computational accuracy. For the trapezoidal homogeneous earth dam model, Seep software produced the lowest free surface position, while the local mesh modification method based on the finite element method produced the highest. The proposed method yielded a free surface position comparable to that obtained using the improved numerical manifold method, although the exudation point on the right side of the dam was slightly higher. For the inhomogeneous rectangular earth dam model, all methods except the local mesh modification method based on the finite element method exhibited a rapid decline in free surface levels as they approached the sudden change line of the permeability coefficient, followed by slight fluctuations after crossing this line. When ranking the free surfaces of the inhomogeneous rectangular earth dam model obtained using the four methods, the results closely matched those of the trapezoidal homogeneous earth dam model. Under conditions of comparable numerical accuracy, the proposed method employed the virtual element method, which is highly compatible with the finite element method, avoiding the introduction of complex mathematical concepts such as numerical manifolds. Under the same computer configuration, the running times of the proposed method for solving the trapezoidal homogeneous earth dam and the inhomogeneous rectangular earth dam were 14.4 and 8.1 seconds, respectively. In comparison, the running times of the local mesh modification method based on the finite element method were 13.6 and 7.2 seconds, respectively. Therefore, the computational efficiency of the proposed method was slightly lower than that of the local mesh modification method based on the finite element approach. This difference was attributed to the mesh modification strategy of the proposed method, which directly cut the fixed mesh using the free surface, reducing computational time. However, the encryption and intervention of free surface nodes during the iterative process were relatively time-consuming. The encryption of free surface nodes improved calculation accuracy and produced a smoother free surface profile. Therefore, the slight reduction in computational efficiency of the proposed method was considered acceptable. Conclusions The results demonstrate the validity and accuracy of the proposed method for solving saturated unconfined seepage. The method overcomes the limitations associated with the restricted element shapes in the local mesh modification approach within the finite element method, establishing the local mesh modification method as a reliable tool for analyzing saturated unconfined seepage. In addition, this advancement expands the application domains of the virtual element method.
根据矢量点乘的几何意义,当 x 位于顶点I处时,存在ΠφI =1/3+1/3+1/3=1;当 x 位于顶点J处时,存在ΠφI =1/3-2/3+1/3=0;当 x 位于顶点K处时,存在ΠφI =1/3+1/3-2/3=0;因此,ΠφI 具备Dirac‒Delta性质。类似地,可进行ΠφJ 和ΠφK 的性质证明。
为减少计算成本,本研究将固定网格的单元、节点信息及整体渗透矩阵 K 和整体流量向量 F 等全部存储。每次迭代计算确定新自由面之后,均用新自由面对固定网格进行切割执行网格局部修改,以便在计算新渗流区域网格的整体渗透矩阵和整体流量向量时,继承固定网格的诸多信息。
在新的渗流区域网格切割形成之后,考虑网格库中节点数量多于固定网格,根据网格库中节点总数将 K 和 F 分别扩充为 K ′和 F ′。接着,按照操作类型逐个单元计算分析,对 K ′和 F ′进行更新:操作类型号1的原生单元无须对 K ′和 F ′进行任何修改;操作类型号0的删除单元,计算其单元渗透矩阵和单元流量向量并从 K ′和 F ′中剔除;操作类型号2的新生单元,计算其单元渗透矩阵和单元流量向量并添加至 K ′和 F ′中。所有单元执行完毕则新渗流区域网格的整体渗透矩阵和整体流量向量计算完成。更新完毕之后,检查 K ′和 F ′中删除节点所对应的行列信息,正确情况下其应均为0,将删除节点对应的行列从 K ′和 F ′中删除。
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