Cohesive zone modeling of crack propagation influenced by martensitic phase transformation

A numerical model that can predict the influence of martensitic phase transformation on crack propagation is proposed. The model is comprised of a large strain plasticity model that accounts for martensitic phase transformation and a cohesive zone model to simulate the interface behavior. Different dependencies of the traction-separation law on the local volume fraction of martensite are investigated. Furthermore, as martensitic phase transformation is strongly temperature dependent, different isothermal settings are considered. It is, for example, verified that at lower temperatures, martensitic phase transformation retards crack propagation to a greater extent. It is also shown that the retarding effect depends on how the martensite dependent cohesive zone model is formulated.