Plasticity-triggered architectural effects in periodic multilayers with wavy microstructures

Despite considerable presence of periodic multilayers with wavy architectures in nature and technology, little simulation data is available on their response. A recent investigation of wavy multilayers comprised of alternating elastic and elastic-perfectly plastic plies has revealed the important role that plasticity plays on their post-yield response relative to the corresponding flat configurations [Khatam, H., Pindera, M.-J., 2009b. Parametric finite-volume micromechanics of periodic materials with elastoplastic phases. Int. J. Plasticity 25 (7), 1386–1411]. Herein, we extend this investigation by considering the effect of elastic layer thickness on the post-yield response at several fixed elastic phase volume fractions using the parametric finite-volume direct averaging micromechanics (FVDAM) theory. The layer thickness is shown to have a substantial impact on the post-yield response whose extent depends on the loading mode and waviness amplitude, in contrast with the minimal impact on the homogenized elastic moduli. Decreasing the layer thickness at sufficiently high fixed volume fractions decreases the extent of strain hardening under transverse normal loading, as well as the maximum normal and shear stresses in the stiff layers, reducing the possibility of failure and thus potentially enhancing durability. The opposite holds under transverse shear loading for low waviness amplitudes. The presented results provide a framework for tailoring the elastoplastic response of multilayers with sinusoidally varying plies under different loading modes.