Mechanically homogenized material model for a pack of sheets

In the present contribution we discuss the modeling of a large number of plane metal sheets under compressive forces. The direct approach to this contact problem is based on a finite element (FE) discretization of each sheet and a contact formulation between each adjacent sheet. The numerical problem is highly non-linear and of very large dimension. Therefore it is difficult to be solved by conventional FE-software. We propose to replace the contact model by a homogenized constitutive law, which behaves as a pack of infinitely thin sheets. A coarser discretization as for the contact model can be used. A pack of sheets under pressure normal to the sheet plane serves as a benchmark example. The model is verified and implemented for the 2D case and numerical results of the test case are shown. (© 2009 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)