CG 03

CONCEPTS OF PLASTICITY
MOHR COULOMB MODEL

Helmut F. Schweiger
Computational Geotechnics Group
Institute for Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering
Graz University of Technology

Acknowledgement for providing some of the material: Gioacchino (Cino) Viggiani, Ronald Brinkgreve

COMPUTATIONAL GEOTECHNICS, Gold Coast, 4-8 February 2008

 CONCEPTS OF PLASTICITY / MOHR COULOMB MODEL
LINEAR ELASTIC - PERFECTLY PLASTIC

One-dimensional
Y0 = yield stress

IMPORTANT: yield stress = failure stress for perfect plasticity

  e p
General three-dimensional stress state     e   p
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 CONCEPTS OF PLASTICITY / MOHR COULOMB MODEL
LINEAR ELASTIC - PLASTIC

One-dimensional

Y0 = yield stress
YF = failure stress

IMPORTANT: yield stress  failure stress

  e p
General three-dimensional stress state     e   p
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 CONCEPTS OF PLASTICITY / MOHR COULOMB MODEL
LINEAR ELASTIC - PLASTIC WITH SOFTENING

One-dimensional

Y0 = yield stress
YF = failure stress

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 CONCEPTS OF PLASTICITY / MOHR COULOMB MODEL
THEORY OF PLASTICITY

For describing linear elastic - plastic material behaviour we need

(for general stress states):

1. Stress-strain behaviour in elastic range

2. Yield function or failure function

(defines onset of plastic deformation)

3. Flow rule
(defines direction of plastic strain increment)

4. Definition of strain hardening (softening)

(defines change of yield function with stress and/or strain)

For standard MC-model:

 Linear elasticity in elastic range
 No strain hardening/softening > perfect plasticity

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 CONCEPTS OF PLASTICITY / MOHR COULOMB MODEL
YIELD / FAILURE FUNCTION

F = 0 represents surface in stress space

f   f 1 , 2 , 3  f   0 stress state is elastic

f   0 stress state is plastic

f   0 stress state not admissible

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 CONCEPTS OF PLASTICITY / MOHR COULOMB MODEL
MOHR COULOMB CRITERION

   n ' tan  'c'

f  1
2
 '1  '3   12  '1  '3 sin ' c ' cos  '
1’ and 3’ : major and minor principal stresses

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 CONCEPTS OF PLASTICITY / MOHR COULOMB MODEL
MOHR COULOMB IN 3D STRESS SPACE

f  1
2
 '1  '3   12  '1  '3 sin ' c ' cos  '
-1

f>0 Not acceptable

f=0 Plasticity

f<0 Elasticity

-3
-2

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 CONCEPTS OF PLASTICITY / MOHR COULOMB MODEL
MOHR COULOMB IN DEVIATORIC PLANE

Compression point -1

Extension point

a1

a1 3  sin  '

a3 3  sin  '
a3
-2 -3

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 CONCEPTS OF PLASTICITY / MOHR COULOMB MODEL
FLOW RULE

Check of yield / failure function tells us whether we have plastic strains

but not direction and magnitude of plastic strain increment > another
function required > plastic potential

Plastic strain increments

 g 
d  P
 d  
  { } 

g ……. plastic potential

d …… constant factor, NOT a material parameter

g  g  

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 CONCEPTS OF PLASTICITY / MOHR COULOMB MODEL
FLOW RULE

 g   F 
d  P
 d   d  P
 d  
  { }    

g  f > non associated flow rule g = f > associated flow rule

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 CONCEPTS OF PLASTICITY / MOHR COULOMB MODEL
MOHR COULOMB MODEL - PLASTIC POTENTIAL

f  1
2
 '1  '3   12  '1  '3 sin ' c ' cos  ' dilatancy angle

g 1
2
 '1  '3   12  '1  '3 sin '  const.
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 CONCEPTS OF PLASTICITY / MOHR COULOMB MODEL
DILATANCY

Model Mechanism


loose soils are
non-dilatant or loose
contractant

=0


dense soils are dense
dilatant

  0, but < ‘

strength = friction + dilatancy

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 CONCEPTS OF PLASTICITY / MOHR COULOMB MODEL
DILATANCY

 yy
tan  
 xy

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 CONCEPTS OF PLASTICITY / MOHR COULOMB MODEL
DILATANCY

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 CONCEPTS OF PLASTICITY / MOHR COULOMB MODEL
MOHR COULOMB MODEL - PARAMETERS

E Young’s modulus [kN/m2]

 Poisson’s ratio [-]
c’ (effective) cohesion [kN/m2]
’ (effective) friction angle [º]
 Dilatancy angle [º]

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 CONCEPTS OF PLASTICITY / MOHR COULOMB MODEL
TRESCA FAILURE CRITERION

Tresca = Mohr-Coulomb with  = 0 and c  0 = cu

-1

-3

-2
 = 0 > no plastic volumetric strains
 = 0.495 > negligible elastic volumetric strains

> can be used for undrained analysis in terms of total stresses

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 CONCEPTS OF PLASTICITY / MOHR COULOMB MODEL
MOHR COULOMB MODEL - POSSIBILITIES AND LIMITATIONS

 Simple elastic perfectly-plastic model

 First order approach of soil behaviour in general
 Suitable for some practical applications (not for
deep excavations and tunnels)
 Limited number and clear parameters
 Good representation of failure behaviour (drained)
 Dilatancy can be included

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 CONCEPTS OF PLASTICITY / MOHR COULOMB MODEL
MOHR COULOMB MODEL - POSSIBILITIES AND LIMITATIONS

 Isotropic and homogeneous behaviour

 Linear elastic behaviour until failure
 No stress-dependent stiffness
 No distinction between primary loading and
unloading or reloading
 No dilatancy cut off
(for associated flow dilatancy is significantly overpredicted)

 Undrained behaviour not always realistic

 No anisotropy, no time-dependency (creep)

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