Stiffness Matrix for Shallow Rectangular Shell Element

The application of the finite element displacement method to a shallow shell is described, and a stiffness matrix for an element of rectangular plan is presented. Convergence studies are carried out for a shallow clamped hyperbolic paraboloid and the results are compared with a finite difference solution using a fine mesh spacing. Agreement to within 4% is obtained for an element size equal to twice the finite difference mesh spacing.