Influence of thermal residual stresses on the elastic phase-strain

The development of elastic lattice phase strains in a 15 vol. pct TiC particulate reinforced 2219-T6 Al composite was modeled as a function of tensile uniaxial loading by finite element method (FEM). In the relationship of applied stress vs. elastic lattice phase strain, the slopes vary with the applied load even before the macroscopic yielding. The slopes for the phase-strain perpendicular to loading follow nonmonotonic changes with loading, while, in the direction parallel to loading, the slopes change monotonically with the applied load. In this investigation, we have demonstrated via FEM that thermal residual stresses from thermal expansion mismatch between phases affect initiation of matrix plasticity. And the differences in the matrix plasticity initiation influence the internal stress distribution. The changes in the slope are dictated by the internal stress transfer between phases. FEM models with and without thermal history show significant differences in the response of elastic strain component, a mechanics equivalent of the lattice elastic strain. Agreement with experiment can only be obtained by including the thermal history. From a simple elasto-plastic spring model we are able to demonstrate that, with matrix plasticity propagating as predicted by FEM, the elastic strain component responds similarly to the more rigorous numerical predictions, suggesting that the morphology of elastic strain evolution is dictated by the development of matrix plasticity