A non-associated flow rule for sheet metal forming

An improved model of material behavior is proposed that shows good agreement with experimental data for both yield and plastic strain ratios in uniaxial, equi-biaxial., and plane-strain tension under proportional loading for steel, aluminum and possibly other alloys. This model is based on a non-associated flow rule in which the plastic potential and yield surface functions are defined by quadratic functions of the stress tensor. The plastic potential aspect of the model is identical to that proposed by Hill for a quadratic anisotropic plastic potential defined in terms of measured r values. The new model differs in that the yield surface, although also defined by a quadratic function of the stress tensor, is defined independently of the plastic potential in terms of measured yield stresses. The model is developed and implemented in an FEM code that is based on a convected coordinate system. Since the associated flow rule, which assumes equivalency between the plastic potential and yield functions, is commonly accepted as a valid law in the theory of plastic deformation of most metals, the arguments for the associated flow rule are also discussed. (C) 2002 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.