Direct identification of the damage behaviour of composite materials using the virtual fields method

Regularized virtual fields method for mechanical properties identification of composite materials

Finite element (FE) simulations are very important in the field of automotive, aerospace and defense to evaluate crashworthiness of high strength reinforcing parts. Reliable material properties at high strain rates should be used for the FE simulation to acquire accurate simulation results. However, at high strain rates, it is difficult to obtain accurate stress-strain data because reasonable load data is not easily achieved from the experiments due to ringing problem caused by inertia effect. In this study, the virtual fields method (VFM) which is one of the inverse methods suggests another possibility of identifying hardening properties by utilizing acceleration data from the experiments without using load data. In the current study, a methodology is introduced for this purpose. The minimum magnitude of acceleration necessary to retrieve the hardening properties at high strain rate testing is investigated numerically and experimentally. In addition, a new type of high strain rate testing equipment, impact frame high speed tester (IFHS) is described. Various aspects allowing an increase of the acceleration magnitude in the IFHS are discussed for an optimum application of the methodology. Lastly derived hardening properties with the acceleration by the VFM are discussed.

The aim of this work is to identify parameters driving constitutive equations of materials with displacement field measurements carried out by image stereo-correlation during an unidirectional tensile test. We evaluate two identification techniques. The first one is the virtual fields method which consists in writing the principle of virtual work with particular virtual fields. It is generally used in the case of linear elasticity and it requires a perfect knowledge of the model in terms of boundary condition since the virtual fields used must be kinematically admissible. This method allows to determine parameters by a direct and fast calculation, without iterations. The second method is the finite element model updating method. It consists in finding constitutive parameters that achieve the best match between finite element analysis quantities and their experimental counterparts. This method is more adaptable than the virtual field method but it needs to spend more calculation time.

A nonlinear finite element (FE) model based on domain switching was proposed to study the electromechanical behavior of ferroelectric ceramics. The incremental FE formulation was improved to avoid any calculation instability. The problems of mesh sensitivity and convergence, and the efficiency of the proposed nonlinear FE technique have been assessed to illustrate the versatility and potential accuracy of the said technique. The nonlinear electromechanical behavior, such as the hysteresis loops and butterfly curves, of ferroelectric ceramics subjected to both a uniform electric field and a point electric potential has been studied numerically. The results obtained are in good agreement with those of the corresponding theoretical and experimental analyses. Furthermore, the electromechanical coupling fields near (a) the boundary of a circular hole, (b) the boundary of an elliptic hole and (c) the tip of a crack, have been analyzed using the proposed nonlinear finite element method (FEM). The proposed nonlinear electromechanically coupled FEM is useful for the analysis of domain switching, deformation and fracture of ferroelectric ceramics.

Applying the virtual fields method to determine the through-thickness moduli of thick composites with a nonlinear shear response

The paper is focused on the process of identifying stress fields from strain fields in the specimen with a hole. The experiment was realized on the specimen with a hole made from anisotropic material. The main attention is paid to the analysis of deformation in the areas of stress (near the hole). That geometry generates a heterogeneous strain field which has been measured during the test using a digital image correlation system. The advantage of using heterogeneous strain fields in the identification procedure is that a complex state of stress-strain can be analyzed at the same time. On the other hand the stress field cannot be directly computed from the test and a suitable identification procedure has to be developed. Here, the virtual fields method (VFM) adapted for plastic strain has been used to identify the hardening behaviour and the anisotropy of the material. The values obtained by the VFM have been compared with the results coming from a standard identification made with uniaxial tensile tests.

Conventional and micro scale finite element modeling for metal cutting process: A review

Performance comparison of Kalman−based filters for nonlinear structural finite element model updating

Nonlinear finite element modelling and parametric study of CFRP shear-strengthened prestressed concrete girders

This paper deals with the direct identification of parameters governing anisotropic elastic constitutive equations. These parameters are identified from heterogeneous strain fields with the virtual fields method. This method is based on a relevant use of the principle of virtual work. Different numerical aspects of the implementation of the method are discussed in the paper, mainly in terms of stability of the identified parameters when noisy data are processed. It is shown that the sensitivity of the method to noisy data is compatible with a practical use during experiments. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Characterization of the post-necking strain hardening behavior using the virtual fields method

Some comments on “The determination of best fit linear failure envelopes to Mohr circles” by J. V. Stafford, E. Audsley and J. R. Sharp

Biphasic hyperelastic models have become popular for soft hydrated tissues, and there is a pressing need for appropriate identification methods using full‐field measurement techniques such as digital volume correlation. This paper proposes to address this need with the virtual fields method (VFM). The main asset of the proposed approach is that it avoids the repeated resolution of complex nonlinear finite element models. By choosing special virtual fields, the VFM approach can extract hyperelastic parameters of the solid part of the biphasic medium without resorting to identifying the model parameters driving the osmotic effects in the interstitial fluid. The proposed approach is verified and validated through three different examples: the first and second using simulated data and then the third using experimental data obtained from porcine descending thoracic aortas samples in osmotically active solution.

Normally, FTire model parameters are determined by experimental tests. However, because of the high cost of experiment equipment and limitations in rig design and operating conditions, it is hard to obtain all the required data by experimental tests, especially for some large tires, such as the running wheel tires of straddle-type monorail vehicles. To solve this problem, a method based on finite element (FE) simulations is put forward. To achieve the goal, a three-dimensional FE model of a 345/85R16 radial tire is developed using ABAQUS software. In addition, a modified exponential decay friction model, derived from tire tread rubber friction tests, is put forward and applied in the following FE simulations using the ABAQUS user subroutine FRIC. To verify the accuracy of the present model, tire vertical stiffness test, lateral stiffness test, and tire contour geometry measurement are designed. Through the comparison of measurements and FE simulations, it turns out that the model is capable of predicting tire properties accurately. Tire static, steady-state, modal, and dynamic cleat tests are modeled. Finally, data such as vertical stiffness, cornering stiffness, and natural frequencies are derived from FE simulations. Based on the data derived from FE simulations, the FTire model parameters are identified and then validated by comparing the force responses of the FTire simulation in the ADAMS/Tire test rig and FE simulations. The results show that there is an acceptable agreement between them, reflecting that the method is feasible.

Purpose Reinforcement of reinforced concrete (RC) beams in-service have always been an important research field, anchoring steel plate in the bottom of the beams is a kind of common reinforcement methods. In actual engineering, the contribution of pavement layer to the bearing capacity of RC beams is often ignored, which underestimates the bearing capacity and stiffness of RC beams to a certain extent. The purpose of this paper is to study the effect of pavement layer on the RC beams before and after reinforcement. Design/methodology/approach First, static load experiments are carried out on three in-service RC hollow slab beams, meanwhile, nonlinear finite element models are built to study the bearing capacity of them. The nonlinear material and shear slip effect of studs are considered in the models. Second, the finite element models are verified, and the numerical simulation results are in good agreement with the experimental results. Last, the finite element models are adopted to carry out the research on the influence of different steel plate thicknesses on the flexural bearing capacity and ductility. Findings The experimental results showed that pavement layers increase the flexural capacity of hollow slab beams by 16.7%, and contribute to increasing stiffness. Ductility ratio of SPRCB3 and PRCB2 was 30% and 24% lower than that of RCB1, respectively. The results showed that when the steel plate thickness was 1 mm–6 mm, the bearing capacity of the hollow slab beam increased gradually from 2158.0 kN.m to 2656.6 kN.m. As the steel plate thickness continuously increased to 8 mm, the ultimate bearing capacity increased to 2681.0 kN.m. The increased thickness did not cause difference to the bearing capacity, because of concrete crushing at the upper edge. Originality/value In this paper, based on the experimental study, the bearing capacity of hollow beam strengthened by steel plate with different thickness is extrapolated by finite element simulation, and its influence on ductility is discussed. This method not only guarantees the accuracy of the bearing capacity evaluation, but also does not require a large number of samples, and has certain economy. The research results provide a basis for the reinforcement design of similar bridges.