Characterization of mechanical properties by indentation tests and FE analysis - validation by application to a weld zone of DP590 steel

In this work, the mechanical properties of the metal active gas (MAC) weld zone and heat affected zone (HAZ) were characterized utilizing the continuous indentation method together with its finite element (FEM) analysis. To verify the measured properties, uni-axial tension and three point bending tests were performed for DP590 welded specimens. For numerical simulations, the isotropic hardening law was assumed along with the non-quadratic anisotropic yield function, Yld2000-2d. As for the failure criterion of the base material and weld zones particularly for the failure evaluation in the uni-axial tension test, Hill's bifurcation theory and the M-K theory were applied to calculate the forming limit diagrams considering all measured properties including strain-rate sensitivity. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.