Approximation results and subspace correction algorithms for implicit variational inequalities

International audience; This paper deals with the mathematical analysis and the subspace approximation of a system of variational inequalities representing a unified approach to several quasistatic contact problems in elasticity. Using an implicit time discretization scheme and some estimates, convergence properties of the incremental solutions and existence results are presented for a class of abstract implicit evolution variational inequalities involving a nonlinear operator. To solve the corresponding semi-discrete and the fully discrete problems, some general subspace correction algorithms are proposed, for which global convergence is analyzed and error estimates are established.