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Tips and Tricks

This section contains Tips and Tricks for PLAXIS 2D and PLAXIS 3D, and answers to Frequently Asked Questions.

In this article, you will understand the options available and the recommended action once an error occurs in the PLAXIS application.
With the PLAXIS Calculation Log Collector, you can now inspect the convergence process in great detail, helping you to understand what is happening
After running one or more PLAXIS calculations, the PLAXIS input program will stay open. Using these tips you can automatically close PLAXIS Input.
In PLAXIS 2D it is possible to simulate a double lining (segmental or shotcrete primary and concrete secondary lining) in one of the following ways.
In this article, you can read about the considerations when modelling a thick slab as a plate.
In this article you can find information about the conversion procedure with regards to your PLAXIS 2D projects.
It is possible for projects to have various loads being deactivated in a calculation phase. When checking PLAXIS Output results, it can happen that the visualization of the load is still visible even though the value of the load is set to zero. The load arrows may still be visible as the load is not yet fully deactivated, as ΣΜstage is not yet equal to one (1) and not all out-of-balance is solved for this calculation phase.
Occasionally, PLAXIS can report lower settlements in the case of a drained analysis compared to a consolidation analysis, with the same load. Why?
When you need to apply a time-dependent radial load in a Dynamics calculation, you need to set the same Dynamic Load Multiplier for the directions.
Plaxis remote scripting is built using the HTTP protocol. With correct firewall settings and password renewals, attacks can be prevented.
To save energy, Plaxis allows for an environmentally friendly (green) option to shut down your computer once all Plaxis calculations are finished: an option called gogreen. Read this article for the details.
PLAXIS Output offers the possibility using the command line to configure the plot settings in order to export a plot to a file for post-processing.
With PLAXIS 3D CONNECT Edition V20 Update 2 it is possible to generate the mesh via the command line using a series of property - value pairs.
The mechanisms and the general aspects developed in pseudo-static analysis are explained in this article, along with simple examples.
When modeling a geotechnical problem with PLAXIS a generalized approach can be followed to help avoid potential issues and maximize time efficiency.
Brief overview of the concepts of the groundwater flow analysis in PLAXIS covering cases such as dewatering, flow via an embankment, and more.
In PLAXIS 2D and 3D, providing that the dynamic module is available, a dynamic (i.e., time-dependent) load can be defined by assigning a dynamic multiplier to the dynamic component of a load. As detailed later, the dynamic component of a given load is independent of its static component.
In this video, you can see how you can easily convert your previous material databases to the new PLAXIS V22 database format.
In this article you can find information about defining and editing a material data set via the PLAXIS command line.
With PLAXIS Output program a load-displacement curve can be generated. However, this is also possible with the help of the ΣMstage - displacement curve.
In PLAXIS 2D and 3D, a dynamic displacement can be assigned to any cartesian component of a given prescribed displacement to define its evolution with time. As detailed below, the dynamic displacement is only prescribed to the model when both static and dynamic components of displacement are activated.
In PLAXIS Input, the default behaviour is to store only the last calculation step of each phase. The option to set the Max number of steps stored can be found in Phases window, under the Numerical control parameters.
For a dynamics analysis, the user can choose several boundary conditions: Viscous, Free field, tied degrees of freedom and no specific boundary (None). With the option Tied degrees of freedom, the calculation will connect the nodes at the left and right model boundaries such that the corresponding nodes will undergo exactly the same displacements. This option may be chosen to model e.g. a one-dimensional shear column in order to perform a site response analysis.
When creating material datasets, PLAXIS offers ways to check the validity of this material dataset for soil, rock, and structures.
This article explains how to convert the degree of saturation to volumetric water content (or vice versa) for its use in PLAXIS or SEEP/W or PLAXIS LE
Author: Faseel Khan - Technical Support Group
When you open a PLAXIS model and the program tells you you do not have the proper entitlements, you can fix this!
In this article, we will focus on the InputSettings object that contains the information about the settings defined in Input program stored per phase.
Sometimes you want to see not only the final results of a single phase in a PLAXIS calculation, but you are also interested in the intermediate steps. Here you can see how.
In PLAXIS Input, the Model explorer displays information about all objects in the model. Now it also contains information about the materials used.
A comparison between the newly introduced discrete discontinuity element and the Jointed Rock continuum model in PLAXIS 2D is made.
Author: D. Waterman
Two methods for simulating an NATM tunnel excavation are presented for PLAXIS 2D. Incomplete Staged construction (SC) method vs. Deconfinement method.
This article explains how to use the tabulate command to query material properties in a tabulated form with PLAXIS 2D/3D CONNECT Edition V22 or later.
The tabulate command allows showing tabulated lists of data, and the results are presented in the Command line Session window.
Set the flow and numerical control parameters for time-dependent groundwater flow analysis results within a certain time interval (Flow only mode).
Properly initialize temperatures of solid elements in Initial Phase, even if a thermal flow analysis is performed in the last phase of the project.
All PLAXIS applications support backwards compatibility. When opening an older PLAXIS project, Input program may provide some feedback to the user.
With fully permeable interfaces, the cross flow results are not shown. In the article, a workaround is shown to get these discharge values.
This page lists the changes in the commands for PLAXIS 2D and its parameters per version.
This page lists the changes in the commands for PLAXIS 3D and its parameters per version.
Information about the supported CodeMeter drivers when using PLAXIS Legacy versions. A link to the CodeMeter drivers 6.60b is available.
In PLAXIS 2D 2017 and 3D 2017, an improvement was made in structuring the properties for Phase/Step objects in PLAXIS Output program, e.g. for Python.
For PLAXIS 2D or 3D you can define a soil/rock material with a specific soil model directly via the command line or via remote scripting.
Permeability in interfaces and the explanation of hydraulic properties of interfaces. New since 2D and 3D 2017.
This article shows situations and considerations when modelling semi-permeable structures like retaining walls or tunnels using semi-permeable interfaces
In PLAXIS 2D and PLAXIS 3D a pseudo-static acceleration can be defined per phase. You can define the value per phase via the Model Conditions > PseudoStatic option in the Model Explorer.
In this article the process of re-using materials from other projects via a global material database is explained.
When using the combination of a Safety analysis and updated mesh, the node locations will no longer be updated during this calculation. Why is this important? Read more for some examples.
Using the built-in command line options, we can create groups based on filtering criteria that enable us to see more details of our PLAXIS model. Some examples are given for 3D embedded beams.
The soil test facility can be used to optimise model parameters such that the best fit is obtained between the model and the real soil lab tests.
Here we show a workaround for dealing with creep or external effect leading to overall stiffness reduction in structural elements in PLAXIS models
The difference between viewing tabulated results and curve data for structural elements is explained in this article.
With the release of PLAXIS 3D CONNECT Edition V20 Update 2, the meshing procedure is enhanced with the new Swept meshing feature!
With the release of PLAXIS V22.02, PLAXIS offers the option to directly control the tensile strength of the Hoek-Brown model
When running a PLAXIS 3D model, the most interesting behaviour and results are usually all inside the 3D soil model. In this article, we will show you ways how to see inside the soil and understand the results better.
New features in PLAXIS 2D and PLAXIS 3D Hydrodynamic pressure in dynamic analysis: Westergaard's added mass is now available!
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