Development of a Three-Dimensional Semi-Analytical Elastic-Plastic Contact Code

A three-dimensional elastic-plastic contact code based on semi-analytical method is presented and validated. The contact is solved within a Hertz framework. The reciprocal theorem with initial strains is then introduced, to express the surface geometry as a function of contact pressure and plastic strains. The irreversible nature of plasticity leads to an incremental formulation of the elastic-plastic contact problem, and an algorithm to solve this problem is set up. Closed form expression, which give residual stresses and surface displacements from plastic strains, are obtained by integration of the reciprocal theorem. The resolution of the elastic-plastic contact using the finite element (FE) method is discussed, and the semi-analytical code presented in this paper is validated by comparing results with experimental data from the nano-indentation test. Finally, the resolution of the rolling elastic-plastic contact is presented for smooth and dented surfaces and for a vertical or rolling loading. The main advantage of this code over classical FE codes is that the calculation time makes the transient analysis of three-dimensional contact problems affordable, including when a fine mesh is required.