Through thickness dynamic impact response in textured Ti-6Al-4V plates

The following work is a computationally derived description of through thickness dynamic impact responses in Ti-6Al-4V polycrystalline aggregates nominally textured via routine rolling deformation and thermal processing schedules in the alpha + beta or beta phase fields. Prior work [M.S. Burkins, W.W. Love, J.R. Wood, U.S. Army Research Lab, ARL-MR-359, Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD, 1997] indicates that ballistic response, and the incidence of material plugging, is strongly affected by specific thermal/mechanical processing paths. We attempt to reconcile these response variations within the context of material textures. Thus, realistic processing textures viz. the basal, transverse as well as an idealized random texture are simulated via a 2D constitutive model for slip and twinning (treated here as pseudo-slip) prescribed for the hcp single crystal. The polycrystal is constructed by incorporating the material theory into a finite element model that explicitly represents a spatial distribution of single crystals. The polycrystal mechanical response is examined with respect to macroscopic shear loading as may take place during dynamic punch through processes. A ranking of the material textures is prescribed via numerically derived measures of external work performed. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.