Coupled Meso-Macro Simulations of Plasticity: Validation Tests

Abstract

AbstractA new numerical model has been developed in order to study the plastic deformation of mesoscopic crystalline samples under complex boundary conditions. The model is based on the coupling of two types of simulations, a dislocation dynamics and a finite element code. The former accounts for the dislocation-based plastic properties of the material, thus replacing the usual constitutive form, while the latter treats the boundary value problem and cares of the mechanical equilibrium. In order to test the hybrid simulation and examine its accuracy, the self-stress fields of straight dislocations have been computed in a single crystal of finite size and compared with the predictions of the isotropic elasticity theory. The excellent agreement obtained emphasizes the enormous potential of such hybrid methods for a rigorous treatment of meso-macro problems in plasticity.