A scalable and modular Material Point Method for large-scale simulations

Abstract

In this paper, we describe a new scalable and modular material point method (MPM) code developed for solving large-scale problems in continuum mechanics. The MPM is a hybrid Eulerian-Lagrangian approach, which uses both moving material points and computational nodes on a background mesh. The MPM has been successfully applied to solve large-deformation problems such as landslides, failure of slopes, concrete flows, etc. Solving these large-deformation problems result in the material points actively moving through the mesh. Developing an efficient parallelisation scheme for the MPM code requires dynamic load-balancing techniques for both the material points and the background mesh. This paper describes the data structures and algorithms employed to improve the performance and portability of the MPM code.