Review of the strain-based formulation for analysis of plane structures

In this part of the study, several benchmark problems are solved to evalu- ate the performance of the existing strain-based membrane elements, which were reviewed in the first part. this numerical evaluation provides a basis for comparison between these elements. detailed discussions are offered after each benchmark problem. based on the attained results, it is con- cluded that inclusion of drilling degrees of freedom and also utilization of higher-order assumed strain field result in higher accuracy of the elements. moreover, it is evident that imposing the optimal criteria such as equilib- rium and compatibility on the assumed strain field, in addition to reducing the number of degrees of freedom of the element, increases the convergence speed of the resulting strain-based finite elements.