High-order mortar-based contact element using NURBS for the mapping of contact curved surfaces

In this paper, we present a high-order mortar-based contact element for the solution of two and three-dimensional frictional contact problems, considering small and large deformations. The Neo-Hookean isotropic compressible hyperelastic material model is considered. The mapping of curved surfaces of elements is performed with Non-Uniform Rational B-Splines. The behavior of the element in small and large deformations is verified by comparing it with solutions available in the literature, presenting studies of accuracy and processing time exhibited by the contact elements considering the h - and p -refinements. The comparative results show that the high-order interpolation is a strategy which has a better performance for the contact problems analysed, while improving solution accuracy of the contact stresses and forces with a lower processing time.