Metals in Good Shape − A New Finite Element Method for Predicting Crystal Plasticity

Scientists from the theory group in the Department for Microstructure Physics and Metal Forming at the Max-Planck-Institut for Iron Research in Düsseldorf have developed a new finite element method for the large scale and small scale prediction of crystalline anisotropy during elastic-plastic mechanical loading of polycrystalline matter. The novelty of the approach consists in merging formerly separated concepts from metal physics, crystallography and variational mathematics. The method is referred to as texture component crystal plasticity finite element method (TCCP-FEM). The new approach is based on the direct integration of a small set of spherical crystallographic orientation components into a non-linear finite element model. It allows for the first time to integrate fundamental theory from the fields of crystallography and crystal plasticity into the theoretical treatment of the microscopic and macroscopic behavior of polycrystals at reasonable computation times. The method is hence particularly suited also in industrial context for instance for predicting the mechanical properties of novel light-weight constructional materials