On the description of anisotropic plastic flow by the scale invariance approach

A recently proposed framework for deriving macroscopic equations of plasticity from the configuration of single slip is extended to describe anisotropic yield conditions and the corresponding flow rules. The method is centered about a proper maximization procedure for the plastic work rate at the microscale. This procedure, along with a scale invariance argument, results in various classes of flow rules including isotropic/kinematic hardening, frictional, vertex type, and transversely isotropic behavior. In particular, a failure condition for fiber reinforced composites is derived and compared with available experimental data. © 1995