Elastic-Plastic FEM Analysis of Deformations of a Cylinder Subjected to Severe Uniaxial and Bilateral Compression by Flat Plates
Abstract Uni-lateral and bi-lateral elastic-plastic compressions of a circular cylinder with three different wall thicknesses by flat plates are numerically analysed by the Finite Element Method (FEM). J2-flow theory (J2F), and J2-Gotoh’s corner theory (J2G) which was previously proposed by one of the authors are used as the constitutive equations. In the case of uni-lateral compression, the cylinder is compressed up to a completely flattened shape, which is considered a kind of plastic forming processes. The deformed shapes and the compressive force are predicted better by J2G than by J2F. The spring-back behaviours are also analysed by imposing unloading process during deformation. The deformation process in the compression of a ring (plane stress state) and a spherical shell (axi-symmetric state) is also analysed. In the case of bi-lateral compression, the process is considered a kind of square-tube forming. In its final stage, the cylinder deforms into a completely unexpected shape which could be thought of as a square tube reinforced with ribs. The J2G allows the process to proceed at a lower compressive force than that for J2F. The effect of n-value (the strain-hardedning exponent) on the deformation pattern is also discussed.