Micromechanical modelling of a CuAlNi shape memory alloy behaviour

A simple micromechanical model is presented in order to predict the phase transformation between austenite and a twinned martensite (or reorientation process of martensite platelets) for SMA single crystals. The predictions are in good agreement with the experimental tensile curves obtained in three Cu–Al–Ni single crystals with three different orientations [Continuum Mech. Thermodyn. 8 (1996) 309]. Moreover, the initiation curve of phase transformation (or reorientation) can be predicted in the stress space for proportional loading on Cu–Al–Ni polycrystals.