Viscoplastic deformation of an epoxy resin at elevated temperatures

The tensile behavior under monotonic loading and stress-relaxation testing of an epoxy resin has been studied. Experimental data at various strain rates and three temperatures from ambient up to just below T. were performed, to study the transition from the brittle behavior to a ductile and therefore viscoplastic one. Dynamic mechanical analysis was applied to study the glass transition region of the material. Furthermore, a three-dimensional viscoplastic model was used to simulate the experimental results. This model incorporates all features of yield, strain softening, strain hardening, and rate/temperature dependence. The multiplicative decomposition of the deformation tensor into an elastic and viscoplastic part has also been applied, following the element arrangement in the mechanical model. A stress-dependent viscosity was controlling the stress-strain material behavior, involving model parameters, calculated from the Eyring plots. A new equation for the evolution of the activation volume with deformation was proposed, based on a probability density function. The model capability was further verified by applying the same set of parameters to predict with a good accuracy the stress-relaxation data as well. (c) 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.