Implementation of an elastic–viscoplastic ductile model for the numerical simulation of the ductile crack growth in notched tensile and Charpy impact tests

Abstract

A mathematical algorithm which integrates the constitutive equations for the ductile fracture process in viscoplastic materials is described. The algorithm has been implemented in the finite-element commercial code ABAQUS by means of a constitutive USER subroutine. Based on the computational cell methodology proposed by Xia and Shih, the R-curves for pre-cracked Charpy specimens under different dynamic load conditions are obtained. In all cases it is observed that the mathematical algorithm is able to reproduce the increase in the material resistance to ductile tearing as the impact speed increases.

Keywords:

• Elasto-viscoplasticity
• Ductile model
• Charpy
• Implicit method
• Finite-element method

Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the financial support of the Spanish Ministry of Science and Technology (project MAT-2000–0602) and the access to ABAQUS under academic licence from Hibbitt, Karlsson and Sorensen Inc.