A multi-perspective exploration of contact behavior in orthotropic layer resting on isotropic half-plane

Abstract

Contact problems which concern the stress distribution resulting from the interaction between two elastic bodies have long been a focus of research. In the field of solid mechanics, they hold particular importance because loads are generally transmitted to deformable bodies through their points of contact. This study investigates the contact problem of a layered medium containing a homogeneous orthotropic layer and an isotropic half-plane using a multi-method approach. A rigid flat indenter is applied to the orthotropic layer with frictional effects neglected, while the influence of body forces in the orthotropic layer is taken into account. Key contact parameters such as the contact stress under the indenter, the initial separation load, and the point of initial separation are determined as part of the analysis. The study is structured into three main sections. In the first section, the problem is analytically examined based on classical elasticity theory. Within this framework, a singular integral equation governing the contact problem is derived and solved numerically. The second section presents a finite element analysis using ANSYS software to simulate the contact interaction and evaluate the stress distribution. In the third and final section, the problem is addressed through artificial neural network (ANN) techniques, offering a data-driven perspective. Ultimately, the results obtained from the analytical, numerical (FEM), and ANN-based methods are compared, showing excellent agreement across all approaches.