Numerical analysis of the influence of number of grains, FE mesh density and friction coefficient on representativeness aspects of the polycrystalline digital material representation – Plane strain deformation case study

Abstract

Investigation of the influence of digital material representation model parameters of a single phase polycrystalline unit cell on its behavior under loading conditions is the subject of the present paper. Firstly, investigation of the impact of the finite element mesh density on the quality of obtained results is conducted. However, the particular attention is put on the selection of the minimum amount of grains in the microstructure with periodic boundary conditions that can be considered as the representative volume element of a sample subjected to plastic deformation under plane strain. Finally, the influence of different friction coefficient values between tools and the sample, on deformation behavior of the unit cells is evaluated. Obtained data in the form of equivalent strain distributions and homogenized stress–strain curves for the analyzed case studies are presented and discussed within the paper.