Micromechanical modeling of stress-induced phase transformations. Part 2. Computational algorithms and examples

Based on the theory developed in Part 1 of this paper [Levitas, V.I., Ozsoy, I.B., 2008. Micromechanical modeling of stress-induced phase transformations. Part 1. Thermodynamics and kinetics of coupled interface propagation and reorientation. Int. J. Plasticity. doi:10.1016/j.ijplas.2008.02.004], various non-trivial examples of microstructure evolution under complex multiaxial loading are presented. For the case without interface rotation, the effect of the athermal thresholds for austenite (A)–martensite (M) and martensitic variant M_I–variant M_II interfaces and loading paths on stress–strain curves and phase transformations was studied. For coupled interface propagation and rotation, two types of numerical simulations were carried out. The tetragonal–orthorhombic transformation has been studied under general three-dimensional interface orientation and zero athermal threshold. The cubic–tetragonal transformation was treated with allowing for an athermal threshold and interface reorientation within a plane. The effect of the athermal threshold, the number of martensitic variants and an interface orientation in the embryo was studied in detail. It was found that an instability in the interface normal leads to a jump-like interface reorientation that has the following features of the energetics of a first-order transformation: there are multiple energy minima versus interface orientation that are separated by an energy barrier; positions of minima do not change during loading but their depth varies; when the barrier disappears (i.e. one of the minima transforms to the local saddle or maximum points), the system rapidly evolves toward another stable orientation. Depending on the loading and material parameters, we observed a large continuous change in interface orientation, a jump in interface reorientation, a jump in volume fractions and stresses, an expected stress relaxation during the phase transition and unexpected stress growth during the transition because of large change in elastic moduli.     

Micromechanical modeling of stress-induced phase transformations. Part 1. Thermodynamics and kinetics of coupled interface propagation and reorientation

The universal (i.e. independent of the constitutive equations) thermodynamic driving force for coherent interface reorientation during first-order phase transformations in solids is derived for small and finite strains. The derivation is performed for a representative volume with plane interfaces, homogeneous stresses and strains in phases and macroscopically homogeneous boundary conditions. Dissipation function for coupled interface (or multiple parallel interfaces) reorientation and propagation is derived for combined athermal and drag interface friction. The relation between the rates of single and multiple interface reorientation and propagation and the corresponding driving forces are derived using extremum principles of irreversible thermodynamics. They are used to derive complete system of equations for evolution of martensitic microstructure (consisting of austenite and a fine mixture of two martensitic variants) in a representative volume under complex thermomechanical loading. Viscous dissipation at the interface level introduces size dependence in the kinetic equation for the rate of volume fraction. General relationships for a representative volume with moving interfaces under piece-wise homogeneous boundary conditions are derived. It was found that the driving force for interface reorientation appears when macroscopically homogeneous stress or strain are prescribed, which corresponds to experiments. Boundary conditions are satisfied in an averaged way. In Part 2 of the paper [Levitas, V.I., Ozsoy, I.B., 2008. Micromechanical modeling of stress-induced phase transformations. Part 2. Computational algorithms and examples. Int. J. Plasticity (2008)], the developed theory is applied to the numerical modeling of the evolution of martensitic microstructure under three-dimensional thermomechanical loading during cubic-tetragonal and tetragonal-orthorhombic phase transformations.     

A phase field model for failure in interconnect lines due to coupled diffusion mechanisms

We describe a diffuse interface, or phase field model for simulating electromigration and stress-induced void evolution and growth in interconnect lines. Microstructural evolution is tracked by defining an order parameter, which takes on distinct uniform values within solid material and voids, and varying rapidly from one to the other over narrow interfacial layers associated with the void surfaces. The order parameter is governed by a form of the Cahn-Hilliard equation. An asymptotic analysis demonstrates that the zero contour of order parameter tracks the motion of a void evolving by coupled surface and lattice diffusion, driven by stress, electron wind and vacancy concentration gradients. Efficient finite element schemes are described to solve the modified Cahn-Hilliard equation, as well as the equations associated with the accompanying mechanical, electrical and bulk diffusion problems. The accuracy and convergence of the numerical scheme is investigated by comparing results to known analytical solutions. The method is applied to solve various problems involving void growth and evolution in representative interconnect geometries.     

Evolution of a long-wave train in loss of stability of a phase interface in geothermal systems

The transition to instability of phase interfaces in geothermal systems when a water stratum overlies a steam stratum and the most unstable mode corresponds to zero wavenumber is considered. The nonlinear Kolmogorov-Petrovskii-Piskunov equation describing the evolution of a narrow strip of weakly unstable modes is obtained. This equation is an analog of the well-known Ginzburg-Landau equation corresponding to the case of destabilization of modes with finite wavenumbers. It is shown that in the neighborhood of the critical points there exist two locations of the plane phase interface which coincide at the instant at which the instability threshold is reached and then disappear.     

Transition to instability of a phase interface in a porous medium in the isothermal approximation

The stability of the phase interface in geothermal systems is considered in the isothermal approximation with allowance for capillary effects. The dispersion relation is obtained and the domains of stability and instability of steady-state vertical flows are found. Possible types of transition to instability, namely, transitions with the most unstable mode corresponding to zero and infinite wavenumbers or to all wavenumbers simultaneously, are described. In the first case the nonlinear Kolmogorov-Petrovskii-Piskunov equation describing the evolution of a narrow strip of weakly unstable modes on the stability threshold is derived. The effect of the parameters of the system on its stability is investigated.     

温度对冲击相变波传播的影响

冲击加载下,相界面的传播是一热力耦合过程。相变波阵面不仅是力学和物质间断面,也是温度界面。为考虑温度对相变波传播的影响,本文首先建立了相界面上的热传导方程和热力耦合的相变本构方程,然后采用一维特征线理论和有限差分数值计算相结合的方法,分析了温度界面和相变波的基本相互作用规律,进而给出了连续温度梯度下和绝热冲击下相变波传播规律。结果表明,温度对相变波传播的作用主要体现在两个方面,一方面是作为温度界面将与各类间断面相互作用,另一方面冲击相变波阵面后区域热力学状态变化影响卸载波结构。其原因在于相变方式（可逆、不可逆）和相变阈值应力具有强烈的温度相关性。     

An analytical study on the instability phenomena during the phase transitions in a thin strip under uniaxial tension

In the experiments on stress-induced phase transitions in SMA strips, several interesting instability phenomena have been observed, including a necking-type instability (associated with the stress drop), a shear-type instability (associated with the inclination of the transformation front) and an orientation instability (associated with the switch of the inclination angle). In order to shed more lights on these phenomena, in this paper we conduct an analytical study. We consider the problem in a three-dimensional setting, which implies that one needs to study the difficult problem of solution bifurcations of high-dimensional nonlinear partial differential equations. By using the smallness of the maximum strain, the thickness and width of the strip, we use a methodology, which combines series expansions and asymptotic expansions, to derive the asymptotic normal form equations, which can yield the leading-order behavior of the original three-dimensional field equations. An important feature of the second normal form equation is that it contains a turning point for the localization (necking) solution of the first equation. It is the presence of such a turning point which causes the inclination of the phase transformation front. The WKB method is used to construct the asymptotic solutions, which can capture the shear instability and the orientation instability successfully. Our analytical results reveal that the inclination of the transformation front is a phenomenon of localization-induced buckling (or phase-transition-induced buckling as the localization is caused by the phase transition). Due to the similarities between the development of the Luders band in a mild steel and the stress-induced transformations in a SMA, the present results give a strong analytical evidence that the former is also caused by macroscopic effects instead of microscopic effects. Our analytical results also reveal more explicitly the important roles played by the geometrical parameters.     

Size effects in martensitic microstructures: Finite-strain phase field model versus sharp-interface approach

A finite-strain phase field model for martensitic phase transformation and twinning in shape memory alloys is developed and confronted with the corresponding sharp-interface approach extended to interfacial energy effects. The model is set in the energy framework so that the kinetic equations and conditions of mechanical equilibrium are fully defined by specifying the free energy and dissipation potentials. The free energy density involves the bulk and interfacial energy contributions, the latter describing the energy of diffuse interfaces in a manner typical for phase-field approaches. To ensure volume preservation during martensite reorientation at finite deformation within a diffuse interface, it is proposed to apply linear mixing of the logarithmic transformation strains. The physically different nature of phase interfaces and twin boundaries in the martensitic phase is reflected by introducing two order-parameters in a hierarchical manner, one as the reference volume fraction of austenite, and thus of the whole martensite, and the second as the volume fraction of one variant of martensite in the martensitic phase only. The microstructure evolution problem is given a variational formulation in terms of incremental fields of displacement and order parameters, with unilateral constraints on volume fractions explicitly enforced by applying the augmented Lagrangian method. As an application, size-dependent microstructures with diffuse interfaces are calculated for the cubic-to-orthorhombic transformation in a CuAlNi shape memory alloy and compared with the sharp-interface microstructures with interfacial energy effects.     

双材料界面裂纹复应力强度因子的正则化边界元法

双材料界面裂纹渐近位移和应力场表现出剧烈的振荡特性, 许多用于表征经典平方根($r^{1/2})$和负平方根($r^{-1/2})$渐近物理场的传统数值方法失效, 给界面裂纹复应力强度因子($K_{1} +{i}K_{2} )$的精确求解增加了难度. 引入一种含有复振荡因子的新型"特殊裂尖单元", 可精确表征裂纹尖端渐近位移和应力场的振荡特性, 在避免裂尖区域高密度网格剖分的情况下, 可实现双材料界面裂纹复应力强度因子的精确求解. 此外, 结合边界元法中计算近奇异积分的正则化算法, 成功求解了大尺寸比(超薄)双材料界面裂纹的断裂力学参数. 数值算例表明, 所提算法稳定, 效率高, 在不增加计算量的前提下, 显著提高了裂尖近场力学参量和断裂力学参数的求解精度和数值稳定性.