Multi-scale defect interactions in high-rate failure of brittle materials,Part II: Application to design of protection materials

Micromechanics based damage models, such as the model presented in Part I of this 2 part series (Tonge and Ramesh, 2015), have the potential to suggest promising directions for materials design. However, to reach their full potential these models must demonstrate that they capture the relevant physical processes. In this work, we apply the multiscale material model described in Tonge and Ramesh (2015) to ballistic impacts on the advanced ceramic boron carbide and suggest possible directions for improving the performance of boron carbide under impact conditions. We simulate both dynamic uniaxial compression and simplified ballistic loading geometries to demonstrate that the material model captures the relevant physics in these problems and to interrogate the sensitivity of the simulation results to some of the model input parameters. Under dynamic compression, we show that the simulated peak strength is sensitive to the maximum crack growth velocity and the flaw distribution, while the stress collapse portion of the test is partially influenced by the granular flow behavior of the fully damaged material. From simulations of simplified ballistic impact, we suggest that the total amount of granular flow (a possible performance metric) can be reduced by either a larger granular flow slope (more angular fragments) or a larger granular flow timescale (larger fragments). We then discuss the implications for materials design.     

Predicting variability in the dynamic failure strength of brittle materials considering pre-existing flaws

We perform two-dimensional dynamic fracture simulations of a specimen in biaxial tension, incorporating various distributions of pre-existing microcracks. The simulations consider the spatial distribution of flaws while modeling the discrete failure processes of crack interactions and coalescence, and predict the macroscopic variability in failure strength. The model quantitatively predicts the effect (on the dynamic failure strength) of different shapes of the flaw size distribution function, the random spatial distribution of flaws, and the random local resistance to crack growth (i.e. strength) associated with each flaw. The effect of changing material volumes on the variability in failure strengths is also examined in relation to the flaw size distribution. The effect of loading rate on the variability in failure strengths is presented in a form that will enable improved constitutive modeling using non-local formulations at the continuum scale.     

Search for conditions of compressive fracture of hard brittle ceramics at impact loading

In this paper we discuss three different experimental configurations to diagnosing the modes of inelastic deformation and to evaluating the failure thresholds at shock compression of hard brittle solids. One of the manifestations of brittle material response is the failure wave phenomenon, which has been previously observed in shock-compressed glasses. However, based on the measurements from our “theory critical” experiments, both alumina and boron carbide did not exhibit this phenomenon. In experiments with free and pre-stressed ceramics, while the Hugoniot elastic limit (HEL) in high-density B₄C ceramic was found to be very sensitive to the transverse stress, it was found relatively less sensitive in Al₂O₃, implying brittle response of the boron carbide and ductile behavior of alumina. To further investigate the effects of stress states on the shock response of brittle materials, a “divergent flow or spherical shock wave” based plate impact experimental technique was employed to vary the ratio of longitudinal and transversal stresses and to probe conditions for compressive fracture thresholds. Two different experimental approaches were considered to generate both longitudinal and shear waves in the target through the impact of convex flyer plates. In the ceramic target plates, the shear wave separates a region of highly divergent flow behind the decaying spherical longitudinal shock wave and a region of low-divergent flow. Experiments with divergent shock loading of alumina and boron carbide ceramic plates coupled with computer simulations demonstrated the validity of these experimental approaches to develop a better understanding of fracture phenomena.     

A new 2D discrete model applied to dynamic crack propagation in brittle materials

In this work, a 2D discrete model (DM) applied to the dynamic crack propagation in brittle materials is developed and implemented. The proposed model is based on a particular discretization of Navier’s equations, presenting similarities to the Born model, with the advantage that the constants appearing in it are explicitly related to the elastic properties. This model overcomes the limitations in the choice of Poisson’s ratio present in other discrete models. Three numerical examples are presented to show the capability of this method in modelling wave propagation and dynamic fracture problems. The obtained results are in agreement with experimental and numerical results reported by other researchers.     

A crack-mechanics based model for damage and plasticity of brittle materials under dynamic loading

A rate-dependent model for damage and plastic deformation of brittle materials under dynamic loading is presented. The model improves upon a recently developed micromechanical damage model (Zuo et al., 2006) by incorporating plastic deformation of the material. The distribution of the microcracks in the material is assumed to remain isotropic, and the damage evolution is through the growth of the average crack size. Plasticity is considered through an additive decomposition of the total strain rate, and a rate-independent, von Mises model is used. The model was applied to simulate the response of a model material (SiC) under uniaxial strain loading. To further examine the behavior of the model, cyclic loading and large-strain compressive loading were considered. Numerical results of the model predictions are presented, and comparisons with those from a previous model are provided.     

A 3D mechanistic model for brittle materials containing evolving flaw distributions under dynamic multiaxial loading

We present a validated fully 3D mechanism-based micromechanical constitutive model for brittle solids under dynamic multiaxial loading conditions. Flaw statistics are explicitly incorporated through a defect density, and evolving flaw distributions in both orientation and size. Interactions among cracks are modeled by means of a crack-matrix-effective-medium approach. A tensorial damage parameter is defined based upon the crack length and orientation development under local effective stress fields. At low confining stresses, the wing-cracking mechanism dominates, leading to the degradation of the modulus and peak strength of the material, whereas at high enough confining stresses, the cracking mechanism is completely shut-down and dislocation mechanisms become dominant. The model handles general multiaxial stress states, accounts for evolving internal variables in the form of evolving flaw size and orientation distributions, includes evolving anisotropic damage and irreversible damage strains in a thermodynamically consistent fashion, incorporates rate-dependence through the micromechanics, and includes dynamic bulking based on independent experimental data. Simulation results are discussed and compared with experimental results on one specific structural ceramic, aluminum nitride. We demonstrate that this 3D constitutive model is capable of capturing the general constitutive response of structural ceramics.     

Multi-scale defect interactions in high-rate brittle material failure. Part I: Model formulation and application to ALON

Within this two part series we develop a new material model for ceramic protection materials to provide an interface between microstructural parameters and bulk continuum behavior to provide guidance for materials design activities. Part I of this series focuses on the model formulation that captures the strength variability and strain rate sensitivity of brittle materials and presents a statistical approach to assigning the local flaw distribution within a specimen. The material model incorporates a Mie–Grüneisen equation of state, micromechanics based damage growth, granular flow and dilatation of the highly damaged material, and pore compaction for the porosity introduced by granular flow. To provide initial qualitative validation and illustrate the usefulness of the model, we use the model to investigate Edge on Impact experiments (Strassburger, 2004) on Aluminum Oxynitride (AlON), and discuss the interactions of multiple mechanisms during such an impact event. Part II of this series is focused on additional qualitative validation and using the model to suggest material design directions for boron carbide.     

A fractional differential constitutive model for dynamic stress intensity factors of an anti-plane crack in viscoelastic materials

Fractional differential constitutive relationships are introduced to depict the history of dynamic stress inten- sity factors （DSIFs） for a semi-infinite crack in infinite viscoelastic material subjected to anti-plane shear impact load. The basic equations which govern the anti-plane deformation behavior are converted to a fractional wave-like equation. By utilizing Laplace and Fourier integral transforms, the fractional wave-like equation is cast into an ordinary differential equation （ODE）. The unknown function in the solution of ODE is obtained by applying Fourier transform directly to the boundary conditions of fractional wave-like equation in Laplace domain instead of solving dual integral equations. Analytical solutions of DSIFs in Laplace domain are derived by Wiener-Hopf technique and the numerical solutions of DSIFs in time domain are obtained by Talbot algorithm. The effects of four parameters α, β, b1, b2 of the fractional dif- ferential constitutive model on DSIFs are discussed. The numerical results show that the present fractional differential constitutive model can well describe the behavior of DSIFs of anti-plane fracture in viscoelastic materials, and the model is also compatible with solutions of DSIFs of anti-plane fracture in elastic materials.     

Deformation model for brittle materials and the structure of failure waves

Constitutive equations that describe the experimentally observed failure waves are proposed to model inelastic strains of brittle materials. The complete system of equations is hyperbolic, each equation of this system has divergent form. The model is based on the assumption that continual failure is the process of transition from an intact state to a “fully damaged” state described by the kinetics of the order parameter. The structure of stationary traveling compressive waves is analyzed using a simplified model. It is shown that in a certain range of amplitudes, the wave splits into an elastic precursor and a failure wave. __________ Translated from Prikladnaya Mekhanika i Tekhnicheskaya Fizika, Vol. 48, No. 3, pp. 164–172, May–June, 2007.     

A recursive-faulting model of distributed damage in confined brittle materials

We develop a model of distributed damage in brittle materials deforming in triaxial compression based on the explicit construction of special microstructures obtained by recursive faulting. The model aims to predict the effective or macroscopic behavior of the material from its elastic and fracture properties; and to predict the microstructures underlying the microscopic behavior. The model accounts for the elasticity of the matrix, fault nucleation and the cohesive and frictional behavior of the faults. We analyze the resulting quasistatic boundary value problem and determine the relaxation of the potential energy, which describes the macroscopic material behavior averaged over all possible fine-scale structures. Finally, we present numerical calculations of the dynamic multi-axial compression experiments on sintered aluminum nitride of Chen and Ravichandran [1994. Dynamic compressive behavior of ceramics under lateral confinement. J. Phys. IV 4, 177-182; 1996a. Static and dynamic compressive behavior of aluminum nitride under moderate confinement. J. Am. Soc. Ceramics 79(3), 579-584; 1996b. An experimental technique for imposing dynamic multiaxial compression with mechanical confinement. Exp. Mech. 36(2), 155-158; 2000. Failure mode transition in ceramics under dynamic multiaxial compression. Int. J. Fracture 101, 141-159]. The model correctly predicts the general trends regarding the observed damage patterns; and the brittle-to-ductile transition resulting under increasing confinement.     

A micromechanics based damage model for composite materials

The predictive capacity of ductile fracture models when applied to composite and multiphase materials is related to the accuracy of the estimated stress/strain level in the second phases or reinforcements, which defines the condition for damage nucleation. Second phase particles contribute to the overall hardening of the composite before void nucleation, as well as to its softening after their fracture or decohesion. If the volume fraction of reinforcement is larger than a couple of percents, this softening can significantly affect the resistance to plastic localization and cannot be neglected. In order to explicitly account for the effect of second phase particles on the ductile fracture process, this study integrates a damage model based on the Gologanu–Leblond–Devaux constitutive behavior with a mean-field homogenization scheme. Even though the model is more general, the present study focuses on elastic particles dispersed in an elasto-plastic matrix. After assessing the mean-field homogenization scheme through comparison with two-dimensional axisymmetric finite element calculations, an extensive parametric study is performed using the integrated homogenization-damage model. The predictions of the integrated homogenization-damage model are also compared with experimental results on cast aluminum alloys, in terms of both the fracture strain and overall stress–strain curves. The study demonstrates the complex couplings among the load transfer to second phase particles, their resistance to fracture, the void nucleation mode, and the overall ductility.     

Interaction-based non-local damage model for failure in quasi-brittle materials

The purpose of this paper is to present a new macroscopic approach to describe the evolving non-local interactions which are produced at the mesoscale during damage and failure in quasi-brittle materials. A new-integral type non-local model is provided where the weight function is directly built from these interactions, and therefore takes into account their evolution during the material failure intrinsically.     

A dynamic damage constitutive model for a rock mass with non-persistent joints under uniaxial compression

Most problems faced by the practicing rock mass engineering involve the evaluation of rock mass dynamic strength and deformability. As part of a rock mass, the mesoscopic flaws such as the microcracks and the macroscopic ones such as the joints both inherently affect the rock mass dynamic strength and deformational behavior. Nearly none of the existing models can handle the co-effect of these two kinds of flaws on the rock mass dynamic mechanical behavior. This study focusses on the rock mass with multi-sets of non-persistent joints and establishes a mathematical model accounting for the anisotropy in dynamic strength and deformability induced by the joints. Accordingly, an approach incorporating the existing models or methods to enable perfect simulation of the dynamic stress-strain relationship of a rock mass is proposed, in which the joint geometrical parameters such as the joint length and dip angle, the strength ones such as the joint internal friction and the deformational ones such as the joint normal and shear stiffness can all be taken into account. In order to investigate the validity of the proposed model, a series of calculation examples have been made and the results fits very well with the theoretical ones.     

Influence of lateral confinement on dynamic damage evolution during uniaxial compressive response of brittle solids

A dynamic damage growth model applicable to brittle solids subjected to biaxial compressive loading is developed. The model incorporates a dynamic fracture criterion based on wing-crack growth model with a damage evolution theory based on a distribution of pre-existing microcracks in a solid. Influences of lateral confinement pressure (dynamic or static) as well as frictional coefficient on the rate dependence of fracture strength of basalt-rock are investigated systematically. It is found that the failure strength, damage accumulation and wing-crack growth rate are strongly influenced by the nature and the magnitude of confinement pressure. It is also verified that the effect of strain rate on fracture strength of brittle solids is independent of confinement pressure in a certain range of strain rate.     

A micromechanical basis for partitioning the evolution of grain bridging in brittle materials

A micromechanical model is developed for grain bridging in monolithic ceramics. Specifically, bridge formation of a single, non-equiaxed grain spanning adjacent grains is addressed. A cohesive zone framework enables crack initiation and propagation along grain boundaries. The evolution of the bridge is investigated through a variance in both grain angle and aspect ratio. We propose that the bridging process can be partitioned into five distinct regimes of resistance: propagate, kink, arrest, stall, and bridge. Although crack propagation and kinking are well understood, crack arrest and subsequent “stall” have been largely overlooked. Resistance during the stall regime exposes large volumes of microstructure to stresses well in excess of the grain boundary strength. Bridging can occur through continued propagation or reinitiation ahead of the stalled crack tip. The driving force required to reinitiate is substantially greater than the driving force required to kink. In addition, the critical driving force to reinitiate is sensitive to grain aspect ratio but relatively insensitive to grain angle. The marked increase in crack resistance occurs prior to bridge formation and provides an interpretation for the rapidly rising resistance curves which govern the strength of many brittle materials at realistically small flaw sizes.     

A micromechanical damage model for rocks and concretes under triaxial compression

Based on analysis of deformation in an infinite isotropic elastic matrix containing an embedded elliptic crack, subject to far field triaxial compressive stress, the energy release rate and a mixed fracture criterion are obtained by using an energy balance approach. The additional compliance tensor induced by a single closed elliptic microcrack in a representative volume element and its in-plane growth is derived. The additional compliance tensor induced by the kinked growth of the elliptic microcrack is also obtained. The effect of the microcracks, randomly distributed both in geometric characteristics and orientations, is analyzed with the Taylor＇s scheme by introducing an appropriate probability density function. A micromechanical damage model for rocks and concretes under triaxial compression is obtained and experimentally verified.     

Homogenization-based continuum plasticity-damage model for ductile failure of materials containing heterogeneities

This paper develops an accurate and computationally efficient homogenization-based continuum plasticity-damage (HCPD) model for macroscopic analysis of ductile failure in porous ductile materials containing brittle inclusions. Example of these materials are cast alloys such as aluminum and metal matrix composites. The overall framework of the HCPD model follows the structure of the anisotropic Gurson-Tvergaard-Needleman (GTN) type elasto-plasticity model for porous ductile materials. The HCPD model is assumed to be orthotropic in an evolving material principal coordinate system throughout the deformation history. The GTN model parameters are calibrated from homogenization of evolving variables in representative volume elements (RVE) of the microstructure containing inclusions and voids. Micromechanical analyses for this purpose are conducted by the locally enriched Voronoi cell finite element model (LE-VCFEM) [Hu, C., Ghosh, S., 2008. Locally enhanced Voronoi cell finite element model (LE-VCFEM) for simulating evolving fracture in ductile microstructures containing inclusions. Int. J. Numer. Methods Eng. 76(12), 1955-1992]. The model also introduces a novel void nucleation criterion from micromechanical damage evolution due to combined inclusion and matrix cracking. The paper discusses methods for estimating RVE length scales in microstructures with non-uniform dispersions, as well as macroscopic characteristic length scales for non-local constitutive models. Comparison of results from the anisotropic HCPD model with homogenized micromechanics shows excellent agreement. The HCPD model has a huge efficiency advantage over micromechanics models. Hence, it is a very effective tool in predicting macroscopic damage in structures with direct reference to microstructural composition.     

Mechanical behaviors and damage constitutive model of ceramics under shock compression

One-stage light gas gun was utilized to study the dynamic mechanical properties of AD90 alumina subjected to the shock loading. Manganin gauges were adopted to obtain the stress-time histories. The velocity interferometer system for any reflector （VISAR） was used to obtain the free surface velocity profile and determine the Hugoniot elastic limit. The Hugoniot curves were fitted with the experimental data. From Hugoniot curves the compressive behaviors of AD90 alumina were found to change typically from elastic to ＂plastic＂. The dynamic mechanical behaviors for alumina under impact loadings were analyzed by using the path line principle of Lagrange analysis, including the nonlinear characteristics, the strain rate dependence, the dispersion and declination of shock wave in the material. A damage model applicable to ceramics subjected to dynamic compressive loading has been developed. The model was based on the damage micromechanics and wing crack nucleation and growth. The effects of parameters of both the micro-cracks nucleation and the initial crack size on the dynamic fracture strength were discussed. The results of the dynamic damage evolution model were compared with the experimental results and a good agreement was found.     

Simulation of damage evolution in ductile metals undergoing dynamic loading conditions

A set of constitutive equations for large rate-dependent elastic-plastic-damage materials at elevated temperatures is presented to be able to analyze adiabatic high strain rate deformation processes for a wide range of stress triaxialities. The model is based on the concepts of continuum damage mechanics. Since the material macroscopic thermo-mechanical response under large strain and high strain rate deformation loading is governed by different physical mechanisms, a multi-dissipative approach is proposed. It incorporates thermo-mechanical coupling effects as well as internal dissipative mechanisms through rate-dependent constitutive relations with a set of internal variables. In addition, the effect of stress triaxiality on the onset and evolution of plastic flow, damage and failure is discussed.Furthermore, the algorithm for numerical integration of the coupled constitutive rate equations is presented. It relies on operator split methodology resulting in an inelastic predictor-elastic corrector technique. The explicit finite element program LS-DYNA augmented by an user-defined material subroutine is used to approximate boundary-value problems under dynamic loading conditions. Numerical simulations of dynamic experiments with different specimens are performed and good correlation of numerical results and published experimental data is achieved. Based on numerical studies modified specimens geometries are proposed to be able to detect complex damage and failure mechanisms in Hopkinson-Bar experiments.