🧊nD
An NDMaterial (n‑dimensional material) describes the full 2D/3D stress–strain relationship at the Gauss point of a continuum element. In Alpaca4d this is used by shell, solid and plate elements to compute stresses and strains through the thickness and in all directions.
The current ND implementations are elastic:
Elastic Isotropic: same stiffness in all directions (e.g. standard steel or isotropic concrete).
Elastic Orthotropic: different stiffness along principal directions (e.g. timber, composite panels, plates with different in‑plane and out‑of‑plane stiffness).
These models are provided via the nD material sub‑components in Grasshopper:
nDElasticIsotropic→Alpaca4d.Material.ElasticIsotropicMaterialnDElasticOrthotropic→Alpaca4d.Material.ElasticOrthotropicMaterial
Typical inputs
For Elastic Isotropic:
E: Young’s modulus ([Force/Length²]).
ν: Poisson’s ratio.
Rho: Density ([Mass/Length³]).
For Elastic Orthotropic (conceptually):
E1, E2, E3: Young’s moduli along three orthogonal directions.
ν12, ν23, ν31: Poisson’s ratios.
G12, G23, G31: Shear moduli.
Rho: Density.
Usage notes
ND materials are assigned to shells, solids and plate elements, not to 1D beams.
For simple isotropic behavior, use the Material Database component to quickly obtain an elastic isotropic ND material from standard grades (steel, concrete, timber, plastic).
For advanced orthotropic behavior (e.g. timber panels or composite laminates) use the orthotropic ND sub‑component and carefully define local axes and stiffness values.
Last updated