We compare the macroscopic and the local plastic behavior of a model amorphous solid based on two radically different numerical descriptions. On the one hand, we simulate glass samples by atomistic simulations. On the other, we implement a mesoscale elasto-plastic model based on a solid-mechanics description. The latter is extended to consider the anisotropy of the yield surface via statistically distributed local and discrete weak planes on which shear transformations can be activated. To make the comparison as quantitative as possible, we consider the simple case of a quasistatically driven two-dimensional system in the stationary flow state and compare mechanical observables measured on both models over the same length scales. We show that the macroscale response, including its fluctuations, can be quantitatively recovered for a range of elasto-plastic mesoscale parameters. Using a newly developed method that makes it possible to probe the local yield stresses in atomistic simulations, we calibrate the local mechanical response of the elasto-plastic model at different coarse-graining scales. In this case, the calibration shows a qualitative agreement only for an optimized subset of mesoscale parameters and for sufficiently coarse probing length scales. This calibration allows us to establish a length scale for the mesoscopic elements that corresponds to an upper bound of the shear transformation size, a key physical parameter in elasto-plastic models. We find that certain properties naturally emerge from the elasto-plastic model. In particular, we show that the elasto-plastic model reproduces the Bauschinger effect, namely the plasticity-induced anisotropy in the stress-strain response. We discuss the successes and failures of our approach, the impact of different model ingredients and propose future research directions for quantitative multi-scale models of amorphous plasticity.
Developing a macroscopic theory of elasto-plasticity in amorphous solids calls for (i) identifying the relevant macro state-variables and (ii) discriminating the different time-scales which characterize these variables. In current theories it is assumed that the stress reaches its elasto-plastic steady state value on the same time-scale as the configurational variables (be they the configurational energy, configurational entropy or the effective temperature). By examining numerical simulations in two and three dimensions we show that this is generally not the case, the configurational degrees …
We analyze in details the atomistic response of a model amorphous material submitted to plastic shear in the athermal, quasistatic limit. After a linear stress-strain behavior, the system undergoes a noisy plastic flow. We show that the plastic flow is spatially heterogeneous. Two kinds of plastic events occur in the system: quadrupolar localized rearrangements, and shear bands. The analysis of the individual motion of a particle shows also two regimes: a hyper-diffusive regime followed by a diffusive regime, even at zero temperature.
In this paper the problem of a plane strain hydraulic fracture propagating in an elasto-plastic material is analyzed. A new stress redistribution model for the proximity of the fracture tip is formulated and a resulting plasticity-dependent crack propagation condition is introduced. A modified variant of the KGD problem that accounts for the plastic deformations in the near-tip zone only is proposed. It is demonstrated that this model can be a credible substitute for the full elasto-plastic hydraulic fracture problem in the case of moderate plastic deformation. The crack-tip shielding effect i…
A number of current theories of plasticity in amorphous solids assume at their basis that plastic deformations are spatially localized. We present in this paper a series of numerical experiments to test the degree of locality of plastic deformation. These experiments increase in terms of the stringency of the removal of elastic contributions to the observed elasto-plastic deformations. It is concluded that for all our simulational protocols the plastic deformations are not localized, and their scaling is sub-extensive. We offer a number of measures of the magnitude of the plastic deformation, …
We consider a thin soft adhesive interphase between dissimilar elastic media. The material of the intermediate layer is modelled by elasto-plastic pressure-sensitive constitutive law. An asymptotic procedure, together with a novel formulation of the deformation theory of plasticity for pressure-sensitive materials, is used in order to derive nonlinear transmission conditions for the corresponding imperfect zero-thickness interface. A FEM analysis of the original three-phase structure is performed to validate the transmission conditions for the simplified bimaterial structure.
We develop an athermal shear-transformation-zone (STZ) theory of plastic deformation in spatially inhomogeneous, amorphous solids. Our ultimate goal is to describe the dynamics of the boundaries of voids or cracks in such systems when they are subjected to remote, time-dependent tractions. The theory is illustrated here for the case of a circular hole in an infinite two-dimensional plate, a highly symmetric situation that allows us to solve much of the problem analytically. In spite of its special symmetry, this example contains many general features of systems in which stress is concentrated …
In this paper the problem of a plane strain hydraulic fracture in elasto-plastic material is analyzed. The analysis is based on Finite Element Method computations of crack propagation and closure to simulate the Mini-Frac calibration test. The basic trends of fracture evolution are identified for both, the propagation and the closure stage in elasto-plastic materials and compared with the results obtained for purely elastic deformation of rock. Pressure decline analysis is conducted to identify the closure stress and leak-off coefficient. The results show that the standard techniques of pressu…
Elastoplastic lattice models for the response of solids to deformation typically incorporate structure only implicitly via a local yield strain that is assigned to each site. However, the local yield strain can change in response to a nearby or even distant plastic event in the system. This interplay is key to understanding phenomena such as avalanches in which one plastic event can trigger another, leading to a cascade of events, but typically is neglected in elastoplastic models. To include the interplay one could calculate the local yield strain for a given particulate system and follow its…
We study the mean-field limit of an elasto-plastic model introduced to describe the yielding transition of athermally and quasi-statically sheared amorphous solids. We focus on the sample-to-sample fluctuations, which we characterize analytically, and investigate in detail the analogy with the athermally driven random-field Ising model. We stress that the random field at the yielding transition is an emerging disorder and we investigate the various factors that determine its strength.
A system of partial differential equations (PDEs) is derived to compute the full-field stress from an observed kinematic field when the flow rule governing the plastic deformation is unknown. These equations generalize previously proposed equations that assume pure plastic behavior without elasticity. A method to numerically solve these equations is also presented. In addition to force balance, the equations are derived from the elastic-plastic decomposition of the deformation gradient, the assumption of isotropy, and the assumption that the function mapping the elastic strain to stress is kno…
This work presents a new modeling approach to macroscopic, polycrystalline elasto-plasticity starting from first principles and a few well-defined structural assumptions, incorporating the mildly rate-dependent (viscous) nature of plastic flow and the microscopic origins of plastic deformations. For the global dynamics, we start from a two-stage time-stepping scheme, expressing the fact that in most real materials plastic flow is much slower than elastic deformations, and then perform a detailed analysis of the slow-loading limit passage. In this limit, a rate-independent evolution can be expe…
The present study evidences the role of ferrite grain size distributions on the occurrence of void initiation in a low carbon steel. Various thermomechanical treatments were done to create ultrafine, bimodal and coarse range of ferrite grain distributions. A two parameter characterization of probable void initiation sites is proposed; elastic modulus difference and difference in Schmid factor of the grains surrounding the void. All microstructures were categorized based on the ability to ease or resist void nucleation. For coarse grains, elastic modulus difference as well as the Schmid factor …
This work introduces a model for large-strain, geometrically nonlinear elasto-plastic dynamics in single crystals. The key feature of our model is that the plastic dynamics are entirely driven by the movement of dislocations, that is, $1$-dimensional topological defects in the crystal lattice. It is well known that glide motion of dislocations is the dominant microscopic mechanism for plastic deformation in many crystalline materials, most notably in metals. We propose a novel geometric language, built on the concepts of space-time "slip trajectories" and the "crystal scaffold" to describe the…
Micro-plasticity theories and models are suitable to explain and predict mechanical response of devices on length scales where the influence of the carrier of plastic deformation - the dislocations - cannot be neglected or completely averaged out. To consider these effects without resolving each single dislocation a large variety of continuum descriptions has been developed, amongst which the higher-dimensional continuum dislocation dynamics (hdCDD) theory by Hochrainer et al. (Phil. Mag. 87, pp. 1261-1282) takes a different, statistical approach and contains information that are usually only …
The deformation and flow of disordered solids, such as metallic glasses and concentrated emulsions, involves swift localized rearrangements of particles that induce a long-range deformation field. To describe these heterogeneous processes, elastoplastic models handle the material as a collection of 'mesoscopic' blocks alternating between an elastic behavior and plastic relaxation, when they are too loaded. Plastic relaxation events redistribute stresses in the system in a very anisotropic way. We review not only the physical insight provided by these models into practical issues such as strain…
Manufactured materials usually contain random imperfections due to the fabrication process, e.g., the 3D-printing, casting, etc. These imperfections affect significantly the effective material properties and result in uncertainties in the mechanical response. Numerical analysis of the effects of the imperfections and the uncertainty quantification (UQ) can be often done by use of digital stochastic surrogate material models. In this work, we present a new flexible class of surrogate models depending on a small number of parameters with special focus on two-phase materials. The surrogate models…
In this work we analyze the relation between the multiplicative decomposition $\mathbf F=\mathbf F^{e}\mathbf F^{p}$ of the deformation gradient as a product of the elastic and plastic factors and the theory of uniform materials. We prove that postulating such a decomposition is equivalent to having a uniform material model with two configurations - total $ϕ$ and the inelastic $ϕ_{1}$. We introduce strain tensors characterizing different types of evolutions of the material and discuss the form of the internal energy and that of the dissipative potential. The evolution equations are obtained fo…
We present generalized loading-unloading contact laws for elasto-plastic spheres with bonding strength. The proposed mechanistic contact laws are continuous at the onset of unloading by means of a regularization term, in the spirit of a cohesive zone model, that introduces a small and controllable error in the conditions for interparticle breakage. This continuity property is in sharp contrast with the behavior of standard mechanistic loading and unloading contact theories, which exhibit a discontinuity at the onset of unloading when particles form solid bridges during plastic deformation. The…
The phenomenon of crumpling is common in our daily life and nature. It exhibits many interesting properties, such as ultra-tough resistance to pressure with less than 30$\%$ of volume density, power-law relation for pressure vs density, and crackling noises with occurrence frequency vs intensity mimicking that of earthquakes. These results are mainly obtained by using flat thin sheets. But, in reality the majority of crumpled objects exhibit nonzero intrinsic curvatures. Notable examples are crushed aluminum cans, car wreckage, and cells move in and out of blood vessels. In this work we concen…
Fatigue crack advance induced by the application of cyclic quasistatic loads is investigated both numerically and analytically using a lattice spring model. The system has a quasi-one-dimensional geometry, and consists in two symmetrical chains that are pulled apart, thus breaking springs which connect them, and producing the advance of a crack. Quasistatic crack advance occurs as a consequence of the plasticity included in the springs which form the chains, and that implies a history dependent stress-strain curve for each spring. The continuous limit of the model allows a detailed analytical …
We develop a numerical methodology for the calculation of mode-I R-curves of brittle and elastoplastic lattice materials, and unveil the impact of lattice topology, relative density and constituent material behavior on the toughening response of 2D isotropic lattices. The approach is based on finite element calculations of the J-integral on a single-edge-notch-bend (SENB) specimen, with individual bars modeled as beams having a linear elastic or a power-law elasto-plastic constitutive behavior and a maximum strain-based damage model. Results for three 2D isotropic lattice topologies (triangula…
Amorphous solids that underwent a strain in one direction such that they responded in a plastic manner `remember' that direction also when relaxed back to a state with zero mean stress. We address the question `what is the order parameter that is responsible for this memory?' and is therefore the reason for the different subsequent responses of the material to strains in different directions. We identify such an order parameter which is readily measurable, we discuss its trajectory along the stress-strain curve, and propose that it and its probability distribution function must form a necessar…
We study the scaling properties of forced folding of thin materials of different geometry. The scaling relations implying the topological crossovers from the folding of threedimensional plates to the folding of two-dimensional sheets, and further to the packing of one-dimensional strings, are derived for elastic and plastic manifolds. These topological crossovers in the folding of plastic manifolds were observed in experiments with predominantly plastic aluminum strips of different geometry. Elasto-plastic materials, such as paper sheets during the (fast) folding under increasing confinement f…
