Project title: Theory and simulation of elastoplasticity at very high strain rates

Supervisors: Dr Daniel Balint, Dr Daniele Dini, Prof Adrian Sutton and Dr Daniel Eakins

Project description:

This project aims to understand and model plasticity under shock loading, in particular the elastic precursor decay that is observed in some metals under certain conditions. Initially, fully macroscopic continuum models based on the Orowan equation will be used, then to apply using a modification of an existing quasi-static 2D formulation for initial investigations. Ultimately a new dynamic method for simulating the generation of the plastic wave front will be studied, focusing on the separation of the elastic and plastic waves, etc., with many possible avenues of exploration such as the role of anisotropy, interactions of waves in multiple shock experiments (e.g. what happens when a second elastic wave encounters the first plastic wave), and thermal effects. There will be a two-way correlation and interpretation happening between the modelling and the experiments carried out in the Institute of Shock Physics at Imperial College London.