Hybrid elements that enable coupling effects between SPH particles and FEM solid are disclosed. According to one aspect of the present invention, hybrid elements are configured to facilitate coupling effect of solid element based on finite element method (FEM) and one or more corresponding particles based on smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH). Hybrid elements are defined in a computer aided engineering (CAE) grid model as a buffer or interface between the SPH particles and FEM solids. For example, a portion of the grid model comprises SPH particles because the likelihood of enduring large deformation, while the rest of the model comprises FEM solid elements. Hybrid elements are placed between the solids and the particles. Each hybrid element comprises two layers: solid layer and particle layer.