SOLUTION METHOD FOR BEAMS ON NONUNIFORM ELASTIC FOUNDATIONS

This technical note presents an analytical method, accompanied by a numerical scheme, to evaluate the response of beams on nonuniform elastic foundations, namely, when the foundation modulus is \Ik=k(x)\N. The method employs a Green’s function formulation, which results in a system of nonsingular integral equations for the distributed reaction \Iq(x)\N. These equations can be discretized in a straightforward manner to yield a system of linear algebraic equations that can be solved by elementary numerical techniques.