Influence of frictional anisotropy on contacting surfaces during loading/unloading cycles

This paper presents numerical investigations on the loading and unloading of a three-dimensional body in frictional contact with a rigid foundation. The evolution of the sliding process during loading/unloading cycles is analyzed. The important case of anisotropy is examined along with the effect of the sliding rule. The solution algorithm is based on a variational inequality which combine the contact problem and the frictional problem. The numerical results of the punch problem show the hysteretic and irreversible behavior occurring when friction is anisotropic.