The study of relations between loading history and yield surfaces in powder materials using discrete finite element simulations

Only a few studies in the literature have applied the finite-element method to analyse assemblies of meshed particles. These studies illustrated the relevance of this method for granular materials. Here, the compaction of ductile metal powders was studied through a numerical assembly of elastic–plastic and rate-independent spherical particles. The aim of this paper was to understand the evolution of yield surfaces with complex loading paths up to high relative density at the macroscopic scale and at the granular scale. Simulation results revealed that yield surfaces evolved with both isotropic and kinematic hardening mechanisms, depending on the compaction stage. An analysis of the sample microstructure was proposed, and a detailed study of contacts between particles revealed some of the mechanisms that led to the observed evolution of yield surfaces.