New large-strain FFT-based formulation and its application to model strain localization in nano-metallic laminates and other strongly anisotropic crystalline materials

This paper presents a new robust large-strain (LS) elasto-viscoplastic (EVP) formulation based on Fast Fourier Transforms (FFTs) for the prediction of the micro-mechanical response and microstructure evolution of polycrystalline and multiphase materials, with emphasis on the effect of strong crystallographic and/or morphologic anisotropy on localization of plastic deformation. The novel LS-EVPFFT formulation allows treatment of complex initial geometries and large deformations considering three grids of material points: a regular grid in the reference configuration, where FFTs can be performed; an irregular grid in the initial configuration, created by applying a stress-free displacement field to the reference regular grid; and an irregular grid in the current configuration, undergoing large strains and rotations as the material is loaded. Further numerical stability of the new formulation also required the use of a novel expression for the discrete modified Green's operator, which reduces spurious field oscillations. After presenting and validating the new formulation by comparison with preexisting implementations and analytical solutions, LS-EVPFFT is applied to the prediction of slip and kink bands formation in polycrystalline columnar ice, and kink bands in single crystal zinc wires, showing good agreement with classic experiments. Finally, the model is used to study kink band formation during compression of Cu-Nb nano-metallic laminates (NMLs), in which accurate treatment of the complex geometry associated with the tortuosity of interfaces and large deformations become critical, showing consistency with corresponding micropillar experiments.

Automated summary

This paper presents a new robust formulation based on Fast Fourier Transforms for the prediction of the micro-mechanical response and microstructure evolution of polycrystalline and multiphase materials. It takes into account the effect of anisotropy on plastic deformation localization and allows treatment of complex initial geometries and large deformations. The formulation is validated and applied to various materials, showing good agreement with experimental results.