Volumetric or membrane-type formulation
Numerical simulation of blow-molding processes

Thermoformed or blown products are usually thin bodies. This raises the question of whether it is necessary to consider them as completely three-dimensional objects when studying their shaping. Couldn't we do away with the need for a third dimension, by taking advantage of the fact that these products are thin?

Below, we present the two types of approach, fully three-dimensional volumetric and thin shell — or rather membrane in the context of this presentation —, and then give arguments for choosing between the two.