Select Mesh
Edit from the main menu bar to collapse selected edges of a linear, triangular mesh. You can specify the minimum length of the edges of elements that should be collapsed, and ABAQUS/CAE will merge the end nodes of element edges that are shorter than the specified length. However, ABAQUS/CAE will not merge nodes along a free edge. You can collapse the mesh only if the mesh contains only linear elements.
To collapse short edges of a linear, triangular mesh:
Enter the Mesh module and do one of the following:
From the Object field in the context bar, select Assembly.
From the Object field in the context bar, select Part and select an orphan mesh part or a meshed part from the list of parts.
From the main menu bar, select MeshEdit.
ABAQUS/CAE displays the Edit Mesh dialog box.
Tip:
You can also display the Edit Mesh dialog box using the 
tool, located at the bottom of the Mesh module toolbox.
From the Category field, choose Mesh.
From the Method list, select Collapse edges, and click OK.
In the prompt area, enter the Element collapse tolerance to specify the minimum length of the edges of elements that you want to clean. The default value is approximately 10% of the average element size in the part.
ABAQUS/CAE attempts to clean the mesh. If none of the element edges are shorter than the minimum length specified, ABAQUS/CAE displays an error message that indicates the shortest element length.
Tip: If you make a mistake while collapsing short edges in a mesh, click Undo in the Edit Mesh dialog box to undo the change. ABAQUS/CAE restores the original mesh.
