Abstract
A general finite element formulation using cubic Hermitian interpolation for dynamic analysis of pipes conveying fluid is presented. Both the effects of shearing deformations and rotary inertia are considered. The development retains the use of the classical four degrees-of-freedom for a two-node element. The effect of moving fluid is treated as external distributed forces on the support pipe and the fluid finite element matrices are derived from the virtual work done due to the fluid inertia forces. Finite element matrices for both the support pipe and moving fluid are derived and given explicitly. A numerical example is given to demonstrate the validity of the model.