Kevin Ayrton Pendl

The lack of a precise understanding of void nucleation, growth, and shape change of point defects due to plastic deformation inhibits the deployment of a comprehensive model for ductile fracture. Therefore, identification, classification, and modelling of microstructural mechanisms leading to ductile failure is necessary to develop practical approaches to control and predict failure characteristics. One possible approach for predicting microstructural evolution in materials is the phase field method.
The goal of my research is to describe and analyze mechanisms of ductile fracture using phase field models based on void concentration fields in combination with finite deformation theory. The results of my work should help to better understand ductile fracture and the associated nucleation and development of crystallographic defects.