Assumed strain formulation for triangular C⁰ plate elements based on a weak form of the Kirchhoff constraints

Application of a weak form of the Kirchhoff constraints in the formulation of triangular assumed shear strain C⁰ plate element is described. It is shown that, compared to a similar formulation of the quadrilateral elements, formulation of the triangles requires some additional considerations which lead to additional terms in the energy expression. With those terms performance of the assumed shear strain triangular elements is comparable to that of the quadrilateral elements.