Ductility of interstitial-free steel under high strain rate tension: Experiments and macroscopic modeling with a physically-based consideration

In this paper, an experimental investigation and a constitutive modeling of the mechanical response of an interstitial-free (IF) steel over a wide range of strain rates (from 0.001/s to 750/s) are presented. Tensile tests at relatively high strain rates, exceeding 100/s, are performed at an initial room temperature, using the so-called one bar technique developed on the basis of the Hopkinson bar method. At a high strain rate, a distinct upper yield limit is observed, and the subsequent flow stress increases remarkably. Furthermore, the ductility is reduced significantly in comparison to the case of low strain rate tension. In order to express such a complicated material response of IF steel, we develop a new constitutive model that takes into account effects of a change in the mobile dislocation density and thermal softening. The model can be easily applicable to large-scale engineering computations, because it is macroscopically formulated. We try to reproduce the tensile response including a diffuse neck formation at high strain rates, using the proposed constitutive model and finite element method. The results indicate that a change in the mobile dislocation density, together with thermal softening, has substantial effects on apparent work hardening behavior at high strain rates, although the change in the mobile dislocation density is transcribed at macroscopic scale in the model. Finally, we discuss characteristics of true stress–true strain curves at various strain rates, and their correlation with the plastic instability behavior.