Numerical symulation of the paddlefish rostrum

Abstract

The main purpose of the rostrum of a Paddlefish is to provide hydrodynamic stability during feeding process in addition to detect the food using receptors that are randomly distributed in the rostrum. The rostrum is formed in the exterior by the tissue that is covering the cartilage that surrounds the bones forming interlocking star shaped bones. The objective of this work is to evaluate the mechanical behavior of four finite element models varying the type of formulation as follows: linear-reduced integration, linear-full integration, quadratic-reduced integration, and quadratic-full integration. In addition the load transfer mechanisms of the rostrum bone structure were observed. The base material used in the study was steel with elastic-plastic behavior as a homogeneous material before applying materials properties that represents the behavior of bones, cartilages and tissues. From the study is found that quadratic formulation resulted in lower structural stiffness as seen by higher displacements and stresses than using linearly formulated elements.

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