Experimental and theoretical formability analysis using strain and stress based forming limit diagram for advanced high strength steels

In this study, experimental and numerical analyses of Forming Limit Diagram (FLD) and Forming Limit Stress Diagram (FLSD) for two Advanced High Strength Steel (AHSS) sheets grade DP780 and TRIP780 were performed. Initially, the forming limit curves were experimentally determined by means of the Nakazima forming test. Subsequently, analytical calculations of both FLD and FLSD were carried out based on the Marciniak–Kuczinsky (M–K) model. Additionally, the FLSDs were calculated using the experimental FLD data for both investigated steels. Different yield criteria, namely, von Mises, Hill’s 48, and Barlat2000 (Yld2000-2d) were applied for describing plastic flow behavior of the AHS steels. Both Swift and modified Voce strain hardening laws were taken into account. Hereby, influences of the constitutive yield models on the numerically determined FLDs and FLSDs were studied regarding to those resulted from the experimental data. The obtained stress based forming limits were significantly affected by the yield criterion and hardening model. It was found that the forming limit curves calculated by the combination of the Yld2000-2d yield criterion and Swift hardening law were in better agreement with the experimental curves. Finally, hole expansion tests were conducted in order to verify the different failure criteria. It was shown that the stress based forming limit curves could more precisely describe the formability behavior of both high strength steel sheets than the strain based forming limit curves.