ANALYSIS OF SHEAR BANDING IN 12 MATERIALS

The problem of the initiation and growth of shear bands in 12 different materials, namely, OFHC copper, Cartridge brass, Nickel 200, Armco IF (interstitial free) iron, Carpenter electric iron, 1006 steel, 2024-T351 aluminum, 7039 aluminum, low alloy steel, S-7 tool steel, Tungsten alloy, and Depleted Uranium (DU -0.75 Ti) is studied with the objectives of finding out when a shear band initiates, and upon what parameters does the band width depend. The nonlinear coupled partial differential equations governing the overall simple shearing deformations of a thermally softening viscoplastic block are analyzed. It is assumed that the thermomechanical response of these materials can be adequately represented by the Johnson-Cook law, and the only inhomogeneity present in the block is the variation in its thickness. The effect of the defect size on the initiation and subsequent growth of the band is also studied. It is found that, for each one of these 12 materials, the deformation has become nonhomogeneous by the time the maximum shear stress occurs. Also the band width, computed when the shear stress has dropped to 85% of its peak value, does not correlate well with the thermal conductivity of the material. The band begins to grow rapidly when the shear stress has dropped to 90% of its maximum value.