Constitutive model for the finite deformation stress-strain behavior of poly(ethylene terephthalate) above the glass transition

A constitutive model for the finite deformation stress-strain behavior of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) at temperatures above the glass transition temperature is presented. In this temperature regime, the behavior of PET is strongly dependent on strain rate and temperature; PET also experiences strain-induced crystallization at these temperatures. The constitutive model accounts for the rate and temperature dependence of the stress-strain behavior by modeling the competition between molecular orientation processes and molecular relaxation processes. The model is fully three-dimensional and is shown to be in good agreement with experimental data over a wide range in strain rates and temperatures as well as under both uniaxial compression and plane strain compression loading conditions. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. ALI rights reserved.