Cyclic behavior of extruded magnesium: Experimental, microstructural and numerical approach

The present study aims at determining the influence of cyclic straining on the behavior of pure extruded magnesium. For this purpose, tensile, compressive and cyclic tests are performed (small plastic strains are applied (Δε^p/2 = 0.1% and 0.4%). Deformation mechanisms (slip and twin systems) have been observed by TEM and the different critical resolved shear stress (CRSS) have been determined. Based on microscopic observations, a crystal-plasticity-based constitutive model has been developed. The asymmetry between tensile and compressive loadings mainly results from the activation of hard slip systems in tension (such as 〈a〉 pyramidal and prismatic and 〈c + a〉 pyramidal glides) and twinning in compression. It is shown that basal slip is very easy to activate even for small Schmid factors. Numerical simulations reveal that untwinning in tension subsequent to compression must be considered to correctly fit the experimental S-shaped hysteresis curves. TEM observations indicate also intense secondary slips or twins inside the mother twins under cyclic conditions, so that twinning in compression and dislocation glide in tension are affected by cycling. The polycrystalline model allows to predict slip activities and twin volume fraction evolutions.     

Continuum modeling of the response of a Mg alloy AZ31 rolled sheet during uniaxial deformation

Lightweight magnesium alloys, such as AZ31, constitute alternative materials of interest for many industrial sectors such as the transport industry. For instance, reducing vehicle weight and thus fuel consumption can actively benefit the global efforts of the current environmental industry policies. To this end, several research groups are focusing their experimental efforts on the development of advanced Mg alloys. However, comparatively little computational work has been oriented towards the simulation of the micromechanisms underlying the deformation of these metals. Among them, the model developed by Staroselsky and Anand [Staroselsky, A., Anand, L., 2003. A constitutive model for HCP materials deforming by slip and twinning: application to magnesium alloy AZ31B. International Journal of Plasticity 19 (10), 1843–1864] successfully captured some of the intrinsic features of deformation in Magnesium alloys. Nevertheless, some deformation micromechanisms, such as cross-hardening between slip and twin systems, have been either simplified or disregarded. In this work, we propose the development of a crystal plasticity continuum model aimed at fully describing the intrinsic deformation mechanisms between slip and twin systems. In order to calibrate and validate the proposed model, an experimental campaign consisting of a set of quasi-static compression tests at room temperature along the rolling and normal directions of a polycrystalline AZ31 rolled sheet, as well as an analysis of the crystallographic texture at different stages of deformation, has been carried out. The model is then exploited by investigating stress and strain fields, texture evolution, and slip and twin activities during deformation. The flexibility of the overall model is ultimately demonstrated by casting light on an experimental controversy on the role of the pyramidal slip 〈c + a〉 versus compression twinning in the late stage of polycrystalline deformation, and a failure criterion related to basal slip activity is proposed.     

A dislocation-based constitutive law for pure Zr including temperature effects

In this work, a single crystal constitutive law for multiple slip and twinning modes in single phase hcp materials is developed. For each slip mode, a dislocation population is evolved explicitly as a function of temperature and strain rate through thermally-activated recovery and debris formation and the associated hardening includes stage IV. A stress-based hardening law for twin activation accounts for temperature effects through its interaction with slip dislocations. For model validation against macroscopic measurement, this single crystal law is implemented into a visco-plastic-self-consistent (VPSC) polycrystal model which accounts for texture evolution and contains a subgrain micromechanical model for twin reorientation and morphology. Slip and twinning dislocations interact with the twin boundaries through a directional Hall–Petch mechanism. The model is adjusted to predict the plastic anisotropy of clock-rolled pure Zr for three different deformation paths and at four temperatures ranging from 76 K to 450 K (at a quasi-static rate of 10⁻³ 1/s). The model captures the transition from slip-dominated to twinning-dominated deformation as temperature decreases, and identifies microstructural mechanisms, such as twin nucleation and twin–slip interactions, where future characterization is needed.     

3-D simulation of spatial stress distribution in an AZ31 Mg alloy sheet under in-plane compression

A complete 3-D crystal plasticity finite element method (CPFEM) that considered both crystallographic slip and deformation twinning was applied to simulate the spatial distribution of the relative amount of slip and twin activities in a polycrystalline AZ31 Mg alloy during in-plane compression. A microstructure mapping technique that considered the grain size distribution and microtexture measured by electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) technique was used to create a statistically representative 3-D microstructure for the initial configuration. Using a 3-D Monte Carlo method, a 3-D digital microstructure that matched the experimentally measured grain size distribution was constructed. Crystallographic orientations obtained from the EBSD data were assigned on the 3-D digital microstructure to match the experimentally measured misorientation distribution. CPFEM captured the heterogeneity of the stress concentration as well as the slip and twin activities of a polycrystalline AZ31 Mg alloy during in-plane compression.     

Relations between twin and slip in parent lattice due to kinematic compatibility at interfaces

The relationships between a slip system in the parent lattice and its transform by twinning shear are considered in regards to tangential continuity conditions on the plastic distortion rate at twin/parent interface. These conditions are required at coherent interfaces like twin boundaries, which can be assigned zero surface-dislocation content. For two adjacent crystals undergoing single slip, relations between plastic slip rates, slip directions and glide planes are accordingly deduced. The fulfillment of these conditions is investigated in hexagonal lattices at the onset of twinning in a single slip deforming parent crystal. It is found that combinations of slip system and twin variant verifying the tangential continuity of the plastic distortion rate always exist. In all cases, the Burgers vector belongs to the interface. Certain twin modes are only admissible when slip occurs along an 〈a〉 direction of the hexagonal lattice, and some others only with a 〈c + a〉 slip. These predictions are in agreement with EBSD orientation measurements in commercially pure Ti sheets after plane strain compression.     

镁合金晶体塑性本构模型与非均匀孪生变形分析

微结构演化对镁合金材料力学性能有着显著的影响,为了揭示镁合金宏观塑性各向异性特性与非均匀孪生变形的关系,开展了不同路径下的单轴加载试验以及采用含滑移、孪生机制的晶体塑性本构模型对试验条件下的镁合金变形行为进行数值模拟研究。文中本构模型描述了滑移与孪生变形机制以及晶格转动的机制,同时研究采用三维微结构代表性有限元模型,其包含晶粒尺寸、晶向和晶界倾角等微结构参数。研究结果表明,轧制镁合金具有强烈的宏观塑性各向异性行为,并对这种镁合金塑性各向异性行为的模拟结果以及多晶织构的模拟演化结果与试验测量进行对比,结果都基本吻合。对孪生非均匀变形模拟分析表明,镁合金宏观塑性各向异性行为与滑移、孪生变形机制的不同启动组合紧密相关,同时多晶体内应力的非均匀分布受到孪生变形的严重影响。而不同晶粒尺寸的晶粒所发生的孪生变形有比较大的差异,造成孪晶变体在晶粒内的分布极不均匀。本研究可为通过微结构的合理配置来设计和控制材料的力学性能提供理论依据.     

On the coupling of plastic slip and deformation-induced twinning in magnesium: A variationally consistent approach based on energy minimization

The present paper is concerned with the analysis of the deformation systems in single crystal magnesium at the micro-scale and with the resulting texture evolution in a polycrystal representing the macroscopic mechanical response. For that purpose, a variationally consistent approach based on energy minimization is proposed. It is suitable for the modeling of crystal plasticity at finite strains including the phase transition associated with deformation-induced twinning. The method relies strongly on the variational structure of crystal plasticity theory, i.e., an incremental minimization principle can be derived which allows to determine the unknown slip rates by computing the stationarity conditions of a (pseudo) potential. Phase transition associated with twinning is modeled in a similar fashion. More precisely, a solid-solid phase transition corresponding to twinning is assumed, if this is energetically favorable. Mathematically speaking, the aforementioned transition can be interpreted as a certain rank-one convexification. Since such a scheme is computationally very expensive and thus, it cannot be applied to the analysis of a polycrystal, a computationally more efficient approximation is elaborated. Within this approximation, the deformation induced by twinning is decomposed into the reorientation of the crystal lattice and simple shear. The latter is assumed to be governed by means of a standard Schmid-type plasticity law (pseudo-dislocation), while the reorientation of the crystal lattice is considered, when the respective plastic shear strain reaches a certain threshold value. The underlying idea is in line with experimental observations, where dislocation slip within the twinned domain is most frequently seen, if the twin laminate reaches a critical volume. The resulting model predicts a stress-strain response in good agreement with that of a rank-one convexification method, while showing the same numerical efficiency as a classical Taylor-type approximation. Consequently, it combines the advantages of both limiting cases. The model is calibrated for single crystal magnesium by means of the channel die test and finally applied to the analysis of texture evolution in a polycrystal. Comparisons of the predicted numerical results to their experimental counterparts show that the novel model is able to capture the characteristic mechanical response of magnesium very well.     

Hardening evolution of AZ31B Mg sheet

The monotonic and cyclic mechanical behavior of O-temper AZ31B Mg sheet was measured in large-strain tension/compression and simple shear. Metallography, acoustic emission (AE), and texture measurements revealed twinning during in-plane compression and untwinning upon subsequent tension, producing asymmetric yield and hardening evolution. A working model of deformation mechanisms consistent with the results and with the literature was constructed on the basis of predominantly basal slip for initial tension, twinning for initial compression, and untwinning for tension following compression. The activation stress for twinning is larger than that for untwinning, presumably because of the need for nucleation. Increased accumulated hardening increases the twin nucleation stress, but has little effect on the untwinning stress. Multiple-cycle deformation tends to saturate, with larger strain cycles saturating more slowly. A novel analysis based on saturated cycling was used to estimate the relative magnitude of hardening effects related to twinning. For a 4% strain range, the obstacle strength of twins to slip is 3 MPa, approximately 1/3 the magnitude of textural hardening caused by twin formation (10 MPa). The difference in activation stress of twinning versus untwinning (11 MPa) is of the same magnitude as textural hardening.     

Numerical modeling of formability of extruded magnesium alloy tubes

In this paper, a constitutive framework based on a rate-dependent crystal plasticity theory is employed to simulate the large strain deformation phenomena in hexagonal closed-packed (HCP) metals such as magnesium. The new framework is incorporated into in-house codes. Simulations are performed using the new crystal plasticity model in which crystallographic slip and deformation twinning are the principal deformation mechanisms. Simulations of various stress states (uniaxial tension, uniaxial compression and the so-called ring hoop tension test) for the magnesium alloy AM30 are performed and the results are compared with experimental observations of specimens deformed at 200 °C. Numerical simulations of forming limit diagrams (FLDs) are also performed using the Marciniak–Kuczynski (M–K) approach. With this formulation, the effects of crystallographic slip and deformation twinning on the FLD can be assessed.     

A continuum model for initiation and evolution of deformation twinning

Within continuum dislocation theory the plastic deformation of a single crystal with one active slip system under plane-strain constrained shear is investigated. By introducing a twinning shear into the energy of the crystal, we show that in a certain range of straining the formation of deformation twins becomes energetically preferable. An energetic threshold for the onset of twinning is determined. A rough analysis qualitatively describes not only the evolving volume fractions of twins but also their number during straining. Finally, we analyze the evolution of deformation twins and of the dislocation network at non-zero dissipation. We present the corresponding stress-strain hysteresis, the evolution of the plastic distortion, the twin volume fractions and the dislocation densities.     

An efficient constitutive model for room-temperature,low-rate plasticity of annealed Mg AZ31B sheet

Metals and alloys with hexagonal close packed (HCP) crystal structures can undergo twinning in addition to dislocation slip when loaded mechanically. The complexity of the plastic response and the limited extent of twinning are impediments to their room-temperature formability and thus their widespread adoption. In order to exploit the unusual deformation characteristics of twinning sheet materials in designing novel forming operations, a practical plane stress material model for finite element implementation was sought. Such a model, TWINLAW, has been constructed based on three phenomenological deformation modes for Mg AZ31B: S (slip), T (twinning), and U (untwinning). The modes correspond to three testing regimes: initial in-plane tension (from the annealed state), initial in-plane compression, and in-plane tension following compression, respectively. A von Mises yield surface with initial non-zero back stress was employed to account for plastic yielding asymmetry, with evolution according to a novel isotropic and nonlinear kinematic hardening model. Texture and its evolution were represented throughout deformation using a weighted discrete probability density function of c-axis orientations. The orientation of c-axes evolves with twinning or untwinning using explicit rules incorporated in the model.     

考虑晶体滑移面分解正应力的细观损伤模型

材料内部的解理、滑移面剥离等细观损伤是引起宏观失效的根源, 从细观尺度研究损伤的发生和发展有助于深入认识材料的变形和失效过程. 本文基于晶体塑性理论, 从滑移系的受力和变形出发研究材料的细观损伤, 建立了考虑滑移面分解正应力的细观损伤模型, 为晶体材料解理断裂的分析提供了新方法. 首先, 在晶体弹塑性变形构型的基础上引入损伤变形梯度张量的概念, 从变形运动学着手建立了考虑损伤能量耗散的本构方程, 并推导了塑性流动方程与损伤演化方程; 然后, 建立了相应的数值计算方法, 给出了应力与状态变量的更新算法, 推导了Jacobian矩阵的表达式; 接着, 以$[100]$取向的单晶铜材料为例, 通过有限元计算与试验结果的对比, 并采用粒子群优化算法标定了11个材料细观参数; 最后, 将所提细观损伤模型应用于RVE单轴拉伸过程的模拟, 得到了考虑损伤影响的应力应变曲线, 并分析了材料的塑性流动与损伤演化过程. 结果表明, 本文所提模型能够计算材料在受载过程中的损伤累积效应, 合理反映晶体材料的细观损伤机理.      

A crystal plasticity theory for latent hardening by glide twinning through dislocation transmutation and twin accommodation effects

Imagine a residual glide twin interface advancing in a grain under the action of a monotonic stress. Close to the grain boundary, the shape change caused by the twin is partly accommodated by kinks and partly by slip emissions in the parent; the process is known as accommodation effects. When reached by the twin interface, slip dislocations in the parent undergo twinning shear. The twinning shear extracts from the parent dislocation a twinning disconnection, and thereby releases a transmuted dislocation in the twin. Transmutation populates the twin with dislocations of diverse modes. If the twin deforms by double twinning, double-transmutation occurs even if the twin retwins by the same mode or detwins by a stress reversal. If the twin deforms only by slip, transmutation is single. Whether single or double, dislocation transmutation is irreversible. The multiplicity of dislocation modes increases upon strain, since the twin finds more dislocations to transmute upon further slip of the parent and further growth of the twin. Thus, the process induces an increasing latent hardening rate in the twin. Under profuse twinning conditions, typical of double-lattice structures, this rate-increasing latent hardening combined with crystal rotation to hard orientations by twinning is consistent with a regime of increasing hardening rate, known as Regime II or Regime B. In this paper, we formulate governing equation of the above transmutation and accommodation effects in a crystal plasticity framework. We use the dislocation density based model originally proposed by Beyerlein and Tomé (2008) to derive the effect of latent hardening in a transmuting twin. The theory is expected to contribute to surmounting the difficulty that current models have to simultaneously predict under profuse twinning, the stress-strain curves, intermediate deformation textures, and intermediate twin volume fractions.     

A first-principles measure for the twinnability of FCC metals

Twinnability is the property describing the ease with which a metal plastically deforms by twinning relative to deforming by dislocation-mediated slip. In this paper a theoretical measure for twinnability in face-centered-cubic (fcc) metals is obtained through homogenization of a recently introduced criterion for deformation twinning (DT) at a crack tip in a single crystal. The DT criterion quantifies the competition between slip and twinning at the crack tip as a function of crack orientation and applied loading. The twinnability of bulk material is obtained by constructing a representative volume element of the material as a polycrystal containing a distribution of microcracks and integrating the DT criterion over all possible grain and microcrack orientations. The resulting integral expression depends weakly on Poisson's ratio and significantly on three interfacial energies: the stacking-fault energy, the unstable-stacking energy and the unstable-twinning energy. All these four quantities can be computed from first principles. The weak dependence on Poisson's ratio is exploited to derive a simple and accurate closed-form approximation for twinnability which clarifies its dependence on the remaining material parameters. To validate the new measure, the twinnability of eight pure fcc metals is computed using parameters obtained from quantum-mechanical tight-binding calculations. The ranking of these materials according to their theoretical twinnability agrees with the available experimental evidence, including the low incidence of DT in Al, and predicts that Pd should twin as easily as Cu.     

Incorporation of twinning into a crystal plasticity finite element model: Evolution of lattice strains and texture in Zircaloy-2

A crystal plasticity finite element code is developed to model lattice strains and texture evolution of HCP crystals. The code is implemented to model elastic and plastic deformation considering slip and twinning based plastic deformation. The model accounts for twinning reorientation and growth. Twinning, as well as slip, is considered to follow a rate dependent formulation. The results of the simulations are compared to previously published in situ neutron diffraction data. Experimental results of the evolution of the texture and lattice strains under uniaxial tension/compression loading along the rolling, transverse, and normal direction of a piece of rolled Zircaloy-2 are compared with model predictions. The rate dependent formulation introduced is capable of correctly capturing the influence of slip and twinning deformation on lattice strains as well as texture evolution.     

Characterization of yielding behavior of polycrystalline metals with single crystal plasticity based on representative characteristic length

Single crystal plasticity based on a representative characteristic length is proposed and introduced into a homogenization approach based on finite element analyses, which are applied to characterization of distinctive yielding behaviors of polycrystalline metals, yield-point elongation, and grain size strengthening. The computational manner for an implicit stress update is derived with the framework of a standard multi-surface plasticity at finite strain, where the evolution of the characteristic lengths are numerically converted from the accumulated slips of all of slip systems by exploiting the mathematical feature of the characteristic length as the intermediate function of the plastic internal variables. Furthermore, a constitutive model for a single crystal reproduces the stress–strain curve divided into three parts. Using two-scale finite element analysis, the macroscopic stress–strain response with yield-point elongation under a situation of low dislocation density is reproduced. Finally, the grain size effect on the yield strength is analyzed with modeling of the grain boundary in the context of the proposed constitutive model and is discussed from both macroscopic and microscopic views.     

Crystal plasticity analysis of texture development in magnesium alloy during extrusion

The texture development mechanism during the extrusion of magnesium alloy is investigated by experimental observation and numerical analysis. First, we perform a finite element analysis of a full extrusion process using a phenomenological constitutive equation, and it is confirmed that the loading condition of the extrusion process near the central axis of the billet is approximated by an equi-biaxial compression mode. Then, the equi-biaxial compression problem is adopted as a simplified boundary value problem to be solved using a crystal plasticity model to clarify the detailed texture development mechanism during the extrusion process. The crystal plasticity analysis of equi-biaxial compression successfully reproduces the texture development from an initial random texture to the final experimentally observed texture. The effects of the deformation modes (i.e. slip and twinning systems) implemented in the calculation and the reference stress ratio of basal to nonbasal slip systems on texture development are studied in detail. Finally, the mechanism of texture development during the extrusion process is discussed in terms of the lattice rotation caused by the activated slip systems.     

Strain gradient plasticity by internal-variable approach with normality structure

This paper presents a constitutive formulation for materials with strain gradient effects by internal-variable approach with normality structure. Specific micro-structural rearrangements are assumed to account for the inelasticity deformations for this class of materials, and enter the constitutive formulations in form of internal variables. It is further assumed that the kinetic evolution of any specific micro-structural rearrangement may be fully determined by the thermodynamic forces associated with that micro-structural rearrangement, by normality relations via a flow potential. Macroscopic gradient-enhanced inelastic behaviours may then be predicted in terms of the microscopic internal variables and their conjugate forces, and thus a micro–macro bridging formulation is available for strain-gradient-characterised materials. The obtained formulations are first applied to crystallographic materials, and a crystal gradient plasticity model is developed to account for the influence of microscopic slip rearrangements on the macroscopic gradient-dependent mechanical behaviour for this class of materials. Micro-cracked geomaterials are also treated with these formulations and a gradient-enhanced damage constitutive model is developed to address the impacts of the evolutions of micro-cracks on the macroscopic inelastic deformations with strain gradient effects for these materials. The available formulations are further compared with other thermodynamic approaches of constitutive developing.