Finite Element Analysis of Repeated Indentation of an Elastic-Plastic Layered Medium by a Rigid Sphere, Part II: Subsurface Results

Abstract

Finite element solutions are presented for the subsurface stress and deformation fields in a layered elastic-plastic half-space subjected to repeated frictionless indentation by a rigid sphere. A perfectly adhering layer is modeled using two different thicknesses and elastic modulus and yield stress two and four times greater than those of the substrate. The significance of strain hardening during plastic deformation is investigated by assuming elastic-perfectly plastic and isotropically strain-hardening constitutive laws for both the layer and substrate materials. At least three load-unload cycles are applied to a peak load of 300 times the load necessary to initiate yielding in a homogeneous half-space with substrate properties. The effects of the layer thickness and material properties of the layer and substrate on the loaded and residual stresses are interpreted, and the consequences for subsurface crack initiation are discussed. The maximum principal and interfacial shear stresses are given as a function of a nondimensional strain parameter. The effect of subsequent load cycles on the loaded, residual, and maximum tensile and interfacial shear stresses and the protection provided by the harder and stiffer layer are analyzed. Reyielding during unloading and the possibility of elastic shakedown are discussed, and the accumulation of plastic strain in the yielding regions is tracked through subsequent load cycles.