Determination of Young's Modulus by Finite Element Model Updating

In this paper, a new method for determining the Young's modulus of structural elements, using the finite element model updating approach, is presented. The model updating is the correction of the numerical model of a structure based on measured data from the real structure. Therefore, after introducing a case study of an aluminum alloy (7075-T651) beam, the frequency of bending vibrations of the case study was measured, using frequency response functions derived from the modal test. Then, Young's modulus for the case study was calculated, using the relationships in the ASTM E 1876-01standard and also the analytical relations governing Euler–Bernoulli beam behavior. The results of the model updating method indicate that there is a very good adaptation with the results of the two recent approaches, the Standard and Euler–Bernoulli beam relations. As a result, this method can be developed with good precision to identify the Young’s modulus in structural elements with more complex shapes, where the relations derived from the aforementioned standard and analytical relations are not efficient due to geometric constraints.