Proposal: Integration of Ratel for High-Order Finite Element Analysis in FreeCAD FEM

[aakritisi]

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Problem description

While FreeCAD's FEM module provides robust capabilities for finite element analysis, including support for various solvers and element types, there remains a gap in its ability to efficiently handle high-order elements. Existing implementations primarily rely on low-order elements, which may not fully leverage the benefits of high-order formulations.

High-order finite elements have emerged as a promising solution to address the limitations of low-order elements in solid mechanics simulations. By leveraging matrix-free finite element formulations and advanced preconditioning strategies, high-order elements can achieve higher accuracy per degree of freedom (DoF) and reduce computational and memory costs, enabling more accurate and scalable simulations across a wide range of engineering applications.

Ratel is a powerful solid mechanics library and application built on libCEED and PETSc, designed to support efficient high-order finite element simulations with GPU acceleration. High-order finite elements offer significant advantages over traditional low-order elements, including improved accuracy and efficiency, making them essential for modern engineering simulations.

This issue proposes integrating Ratel into FreeCAD's FEM workflow as a solver to leverage its support for high-order finite elements.

For more information about Ratel follow here.

Full version info

[code]
OS: macOS 10.15
Word size of FreeCAD: 64-bit
Version: 0.21.2.33771 (Git)
Build type: Release
Branch: (HEAD detached at 0.21.2)
Hash: b9bfa5c5507506e4515816414cd27f4851d00489
Python 3.10.13, Qt 5.15.8, Coin 4.0.0, Vtk 9.2.6, OCC 7.6.3
Locale: C/Default (C)
[/code]

Subproject(s) affected?

FEM

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