Tutorial 5
Tutorial 5
Tutorial 5
Plastic Deformation
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Learning Objectives
• Investigate the effects of plasticity
o Include plastic material properties
o Compare an elastic/plastic model to elastic only
• Exploit the symmetry within a model
• Apply a displacement
• Visualise results for more than one model at once
o Stack Viewports
o Link Viewports
Learning Note: This tutorial compares the effects of linear and non-linear
material properties. A fundamental understanding of the two is assumed.
Should this be unclear then either ask the presenter or do some research
online prior to attempting this tutorial.
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Geometry Import
• Import the geometry file – Tutorial 5.stp
• Create a new Static-General step, name it ‘Loading’ and include both the
‘NLgeom’ flag and ‘Automatic Stabilization’, as shown
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It is important to gain an understanding of the automatic stabilisation function
before applying it to your own model as it can seriously affect the accuracy of
your results. However, for the purpose of this tutorial we will assume that it’s
sensible.
• Create a second step with the same properties as the first and name it
‘Unloading’
Interaction Definition
In previous tutorials we have used the ‘General Contact’ tool and the ‘Find
Contact Pairs’ tool. As there are only 2 contact definitions required for this model
we will be creating them manually.
Ensure the ‘slave type’ is specified as a Surface rather than a Node Region in the
prompt area when defining the interaction.
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Check that the interaction has been created in the ‘Loading’ step rather than the
‘Unloading’ step, this can be done using the ‘Interaction Manager’ tool . If
the interaction has been created in the wrong step this can be modified using the
‘Move Left’ and ‘Move Right’ functions.
• In the ‘Edit Interaction’ dialogue box select the recently created Interaction
Properties and leave all remaining options as default
We’ve now been shown 3 methods for defining interactions. Each have their
advantages and disadvantages and some are more appropriate than others in
certain situations. It will be down to the user to decide which is the most
appropriate in future analyses.
If you’re unclear as to what the pros and cons of each method is, discuss what
these may be then consider what situations each may be applicable for.
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Loads and Boundary Conditions
For this tutorial we have taken advantage of the two symmetry planes in the
model and are therefore only analysing a ¼ model. As such we need to specify
boundary conditions that replicate these symmetry planes so that the model
behaves accordingly.
Check that the displacement has been created in the ‘Loading’ step using the
‘Boundary Conditions Manager’ and update if necessary.
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Once loaded, we wish to remove the tool in the ‘Unloading’ step. Rather than
creating a separate boundary condition to do this we can modify the existing one
to reflect the new conditions.
You can check that the boundary condition has changed by going into the
manager. The ‘Disp’ boundary condition should now read ‘Modified’ under the
There are two ways to define symmetry planes, either using the
‘Symmetry/Antisymmetry/Encastre’ type or using the ‘Displacement/Rotation’
type and manually specifying which direction is restricted. Both methods are
equally valid however this tutorial will explain the latter of the two. If you prefer,
you can use the former instead.
As with the previous inputs we need to ensure that the symmetry restraints are
created in the ‘Loading’ step rather than the ‘Unloading’ step.
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• Fix the z-displacement on the right surface of the press and the beam
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Meshing
In the mesh module the components will be shown in green. This indicates that
they will be meshed using structural hexahedral elements.
• Animate the deformation and take note of the behaviour of the beam
This tutorial uses a bi-linear material curve for simplicity, however and number of
points may be defined to increase the accuracy of the curve.
The Elastic properties, as defined above, outlines the elastic portion of the
material curve and is extrapolated indefinitely if no plastic properties have been
defined. This will produce incorrect results if modelling post-yield behaviour,
hence the need for plastic properties.
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The plastic properties define the post-yield behaviour, hence the need to include
the elastic properties also. In this example the material yields at 300 MPa and
follows a linear curve from the yield stress to 310 MPa at 0.1 plastic strain.
• Delete the current section applied to the beam component using the
‘Assign Section Manager’
As we don’t wish for the press or support to deform there’s no need to apply
plastic properties to either of these components. This would unnecessarily add to
the solution time.
We can now re-submit the model. Ensure that a new job is created under a
different name as we wish to compare the results and don’t want the previous
solution to be overwritten.
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Comparing the Results
It’s possible to view two sets of results at the same time, either from the same
results file or separate files. We can even link the two so that the plots, rotation,
cuts and animations are the same for both, allowing for a comprehensive
comparison of results.
First we need to check that the two results files are open
in the results tree. Open *.odb files are shown under the
‘Output Database’ node on the tree. If either are missing,
go back to the job module and open up the results file.
Check which ODB file the viewports are displaying and if they’re the same, load
the other file.
• Double click the opposite ODB file in the results tree – Non-Linear in this
case
We now have two viewports active displaying the two separate ODB files. This
can be checked in the viewport list, as shown above.
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Now we can link all aspects of the two viewports and tile them so both are visible
at the same time.
• Go to Options > Animation > Viewports and check the two viewports
available
Now both results will animate. Try changing the ‘Time History’ animation options
to get the two viewports to animate at the same speed. You can also try
animating with different contour plots applied such as stress of displacement.
What do you notice about the difference between the two animations?
The only difference between the two models is that one includes plastic material
properties, however they give completely different answers. Both contained the
same loads, boundary conditions, interaction etc. and both obtained a converged
solution without a problem. Individually it may look like both are correct but side-
by-side it is clear that one is wrong.
This shows that even a slight difference in inputs can give incorrect results. It is
important to have a clear definition of the input values and an understanding as to
how the model is expected to behave.
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