29th International Conference on Boundary Elements and Other Mesh reduction Methods

4 - 6 June 2007
The New Forest, UK

 Overview

The 29th International Conference on Boundary Elements and other Mesh Reduction Methods (BEM/MRM) took place recently at the Ashurst Lodge Campus of the Wessex Institute of Technology.  

The Conference was sponsored by the International Journal of Engineering Analysis with Boundary Elements (EABE).  

The Meeting is renown as an international forum for the dissemination of the latest advances in Mesh Reduction Techniques and their application in Science and Engineering.  These BEM meetings are characterized by their friendly atmosphere and openness, and continue to appeal to young researchers as well as the most renowned scientists working in the field.  

Since its origin, the meeting has attracted papers on all major developments of Boundary Elements, including the most recent Mesh Reduction Methods (MRM).  BEM continues to be a very active area of research with many of the resulting techniques being successfully applied to solve increasingly complex problems.

 Opening Address

The Meeting was opened by Professor Carlos Brebbia, Director of WIT, and originator of BEM, who described the most recent work at the Institute as well as the BEM developments taking place there.  

Professor Brebbia concentrated on some of the research projects being undertaken at WIT in which BEM are used.  The main characteristic of all of them is the integration of modelling work within projects dealing with a series of social, political and economic aspects.  Professor Brebbia referred to the importance for physical sciences to interact with the rest of society which are now being required more and more to solve a myriad of problems threatening the future of our civilization.  

The BEM method at Ashurst Lodge is applied to solve problems as diverse as diffusion of pharmaceutical compounds, chemical and radioactive dispersion in fractured rocks, food processing, aquifer movements, forest fires, electromagnetic effects on the human body and many others.  Professor Brebbia described some of their projects currently being investigated at WIT and encouraged the delegates to discuss them with the relevant researchers.  

Another important development of interest to the Conference participants, Professor Brebbia explained, is the extraordinary success of the Transactions of Wessex Institute, the series in which all WIT conference papers are published. The Transactions are permanently archived in the eLibrary of WIT Press (http://library.witpress.com/) where they are easily accessible to the international scientific community.  

Professor Brebbia also referred to other efforts made by WIT to help bridge the gap between physical sciences and humanities.  This has resulted in the establishment of the Prigogine Medal in conjunction with the University of Siena, in honour of the Nobel Prize Winner whose ecological work has been of such importance and relevance to modern society. The Medal, established in 2004, is now in its fourth year with the latest award having been presented at the University of Coimbra (2007).  

Another important initiative has been the launch of the Patagonia Declaration following a successful meeting in Patagonia co-organised with the University of Rome ‘La Sapienza’.  The declaration stresses the commitment of the scientific community to solving the ecological and environmental problems affecting our Planet.  It also set up a special group dedicated to helping communities and organisations in need of scientific advice.  Professor Brebbia invited the participants to join the Group now in formation.

 Conference Sessions

The Conference was characterized by the quality of the presentations and the lively discussions that took place.  The papers were divided into the following sessions:  

• Advanced formulations
• Meshless techniques
• Dual reciprocity method
• Computational issues
• Fluid mechanics applications
• Electrical engineering and electromagnetics
• Heat and mass transfer
• Plates and shells
• Wave propagation
• Damage mechanics and fracture

 Invited Presentations

There was also a series of invited presentations:  

• “New boundary element analysis of acoustic problems with the fictitious eigenvalue issue”, by M Tanaka, Shinshu University, Japan
• “A BEM formulation of free hexagons based on dynamic equilibrium”, by P. Prochazka, Czech Technical University, Czech Republic
• “Non-overlapping domain decomposition scheme for the symmetric radial basis function meshless approach with double collocation at the sub-domain interfaces”, by H Power, University of Nottingham, UK
• “Initial stress formulation for three-dimensional elastoplastic analysis by the triple-reciprocity boundary element method”, by Y Ochiai, Kinki University, Japan
• “DRM-MD approach for bound electron states in semiconductor nano-wires”, by V Popov, Wessex Institute of Technology, UK
• “Inmost singularities and appropriate quadrature rules in the boundary element method”, by E E Theotokoglou, National Technical University of Athens, Greece
• “Flow over a square cylinder by BEM”, by L Skerget, University of Maribor, Slovenia
• “Time and space derivatives in a BEM formulation based on the CQM with initial conditions contribution”, by W J Mansur, COPPE, University of Rio de Janeiro
• “Meshless analysis of flow and concentration in a water reservoir”, by M Kanoh, Kyushu Sangyo University, Japan
• “Electromagnetic modelling of a lightning rod”, by D Poljak, University of Split, Croatia
• “Multiscale simulation coupled DRBEM with FVM for the two-phase flow with phase change process of micrometer scale particles”, by W-Q Lu, GSCAS, China
•  “Analysis of von Karman plates using a BEM formulation”, by W S Venturini, University of Sao Paulo at Sao Carlos, Brazil
• “Two-parameter concept for anisotropic cracked structures”, by P Broz, Czech Technical University, Czech Republic

 Special Excursion

A special excursion was organised for the participants during the first day’s lunch break.  This consisted of a trip to Buckler’s Hard, a most picturesque place in the New Forest of historical interest.  

It is now a small village with an interesting Museum.  Originally it was dedicated to ship building using timber from the New Forest.  Many fine wooden ships were built there, including the famous Agamemnon commanded by Nelson during the siege of Calvi.  This ship, together with Swiftsure and Euryalus, all built at Buckler’s Hard, took place in the Battle of Trafalgar.  

In 1818, the construction of ships ceased, mainly as a consequence of the enterprise having over-extended itself.  The Museum at Buckler’s Hard provides an interesting display of the activities that took place there.  

During the second day the participants were offered a guided tour of the Institute which gave them the opportunity of meeting the different researchers and see the facilities at Ashurst Lodge.

 EABE Journal

The members of the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Engineering Analysis with Boundary Elements and other Mesh Reduction Methods took place at the end of the first day of the Conference.  The meeting was attended by Elsevier representatives who also sponsored a dinner afterwards.  

Keith Lambert, Senior Editor from Elsevier, welcomed the Board members and presented a short report discussing the increase in electronic access to EABE.  The impact factor continues to be high, as well as the position of the Journal in the category of “Multidisciplinary Engineering”. Professor Brebbia stressed the commitment of the Journal to high quality and the excellent job carried out by the members of the Board, including those who recently prepared special issues. The major changed was introduced three years ago, to incorporate mesh reduction methods within the aims and scope of the Journal, is now paying off.  Professor Brebbia felt that we can now handle a series of new challenges, including the expansion of the Journal’s coverage into new fields and applications.  The coverage of EABE, Keith Lambert said, is truly international, with increasing numbers of sales in Asia, Europe and the Americas.

 Conference Dinner

The Conference dinner took place in the New Park, now an excellent hotel.  It has many associations with the Forest, being now an equestrian centre as well as the place where the yearly regional show is held.  The New Park is forever associated with Charles II, the King following the Restoration of the monarchy after the rather gloomy experience of Oliver Cromwell and his puritanical army.  Charles II was a very popular King and one that gave great impulse to the Arts and Sciences.  He is credited with the foundation of the Royal Society among other important initiatives and lived during a period of guest scientific awareness.  His love of the New Forest led him to renovate an old hunting lodge, giving rise to the present-day New Park.  

The delegates enjoyed excellent foods and good wines, followed by a short address by Professor Brebbia, who gave them a copy of his latest book on Patagonia, as well as a ceramic bowl specially commissioned from a Forest artist.  The Potter, Jonathan Garratt, still works in the traditional way, preparing his own clay and pigments as well as using a wood fire kiln.  

The next Conference will take place in Maribor, Slovenia, from 7 to 9 July 2008. It will be co-chaired by Professor Brebbia and Leopold Skerget, now Dean of Engineering at that important University and who was the first graduate student in the Lodge!

 Publication of Papers

The Proceedings of Boundary Elements and Other Mesh Reduction Methods XXIX, 352pp (ISBN: 1-84564-076-7) are available in hard back from WIT Press priced at £115/US$225/€172.50. Orders can be placed by telephone: +44 (0) 238 029 3223, fax: +44 (0) 238 029 2853, e-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or via the WIT Press web site at www.witpress.com.  

Papers from the conference will also be hosted online at the WIT eLibrary as Volume 44 of WIT Transactions on Modelling and Simulation (ISSN: 1743-355X). For more details visit the WITeLibrary at www.witpress.com.  

Patagonia a forgotten land – from Magellan to Peron, by C.A. Brebbia,  384 pp (ISBN 978-1-84564-061-3) is available in hard back from WIT Press, priced at £33/US$59/€49.50.  Orders can be placed as above.