A finite-deformation constitutive model for bulk metallic glass composites

The focus of this study is the development of an elastic-viscoplastic, three-dimensional, finite-deformation constitutive model to describe the large deformation behavior of bulk metallic glass (BMG) composite. A macroscopic theoretical formulation is proposed based on thermodynamic considerations to describe the response at ambient temperature and pressure, as well as at different strain rates. A constitutive equation is derived using the principle of thermodynamics and the augmenting of free energy. This is done by assuming that deformation within the constituent phases of the composite is affine; kinetic equations defining plastic shear and evolution of free volume concentration are then derived. The constitutive model is subsequently implemented in a finite-element program (Abaqus/Explicit) via a user-defined material subroutine. Numerical predictions are compared with experimental results from tests on La-based in situ BMG composite (La–Al–Cu–Ni) specimens cast in-house; this demonstrates that the model is able to describe the material behavior observed.