A beam element is characterized by its cross section. If the cross section is rectangular (including square) or elliptical (including circular) the *BEAM SECTION card can be used. For all other section types the *BEAM GENERAL SECTION card has to be used. In that case, the beam element is internally expanded into a rectangular cross section (C3D20R-type element) and the actual section of the beam is simulated by an appropriate integration point scheme. A section type is characterized by a finite number of parameters, which must be entered immediately underneath the *BEAM GENERAL SECTION card. A new section type can be added by changing the following routines:
Right now, the following section types are available: