Modeling of Twinning Based Plasticity Phenomenon in Austenite Dominated Steels Under Combined Loading

Advanced high strength steels cover a vast range of applications more specifically in aerospace and oil industry where large deformation of a material is desired in order to attain a specified shape and geometry of the product. The main reason behind their successful implementation is having an optimum combination of strength and formability. Austenite based twinning induced plasticity steel lies in the second generation and has excellent strength-cum-formability combination among the group of advanced high strength steels. The stress assisted phase transformation from austenite to martensite, which is known as twinning, found to be principal reason behind an enhancement of these properties. This work is aimed to investigate an elastic-plastic behavior of an austenite dominated steel, which undergoes slip and mechanical twinning modes of deformation. Initially, a micromechanical model of twining induced plasticity phenomenon is developed using crystal plasticity theory. Then, the developed model is numerically implemented into finite element software ABAQUS through a user-defined material sub-routine. Finally, finite element simulations are done for single and poly-crystal austenite subjected to combined load. This replicates the complex loading condition which exists in material forming processes like pipe expansion, extrusion, rolling. The variation in stress-strain response, magnitude of shear strain, and volume fraction of twinned martensite are plotted and analyzed.