Incremental collapse of thick-walled circular cylinders under steady axial tension and torsion loads and cyclic transient heating

The accumulation of plastic strain over a number of cycles of heating and cooling of the outer surface of a loaded thick-walled circular cylinder is computed. Two types of loadings are considered, viz. pure axial torsion and a combination of torsion and tension. The cylinder material is taken to be isotropic and linear strain-hardening; its yield stress reduces with temperature and with the number of thermal cycles completed. This cyclic softening is shown to produce an incremental collapse or ratcheting behaviour in contrast to the alternating plasticity which occurs when the yield stress on first loading is maintained.