Effects of spatial grain orientation distribution and initial surface topography on sheet metal necking

The finite element method is used to numerically simulate localized necking in AA6111-T4 under stretching. The measured EBSD data (grain orientations and their spatial distributions) are directly incorporated into the finite element model and the constitutive response at an integration point is described by the single crystal plasticity theory. We assume that localized necking is associated with surface instability, the onset of unstable growth in surface roughening. It is demonstrated that such a surface instability/necking is the natural outcome of the present approach, and the artificial initial imperfection necessitated by the macroscopic M–K approach [Marciniak and Kuczynski (1967). Int. J. Mech. Sci. 9, 609–620] is not relevant in the present analysis. The effects of spatial orientation distribution, material strain rate sensitivity, texture evolution, and initial surface topography on necking are discussed. It is found that localized necking depends strongly on both the initial texture and its spatial orientation distribution. It is also demonstrated that the initial surface topography has only a small influence on necking.