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Abstract

Abstract. This paper is devoted to the construction of nonconforming finite elements for the discretization of fourth order elliptic partial differential operators in three spatial dimensions. The newly constructed elements include two nonconforming tetrahedral finite elements and one quasi-conforming tetrahedral element. These elements are proved to be convergent for a model biharmonic equation in three dimensions. In particular, the quasi-conforming tetrahedron element is a modified Zienkiewicz element, while the nonmodified Zienkiewicz element (a tetrahedral element of Hermite type) is proved to be divergent on a special grid.