ABSTRACT
The numerical representation of strain-induced crystallization (SIC) in strain-crystallizing rubber components is a key topic to correctly model their mechanical behavior, crack propagation characteristics and, in consequence, their lifetime. In this contribution, a constitutive model for the representation of time- and temperature-dependent SIC phenomena in strain-crystallizing rubber is presented. The model is formulated within a thermo-mechanical framework of the finite element method (FEM). Model parameters are identified based on experiments published in the literature. The constitutive model is then used for the analysis of a steady state rolling tire to represent SIC in the vicinity of meso-defects of the tire. Via a micro-meso-macro transition, SIC phenomena are computed on the microscale, on the mesoscale and on the macroscale, i.e. the structural scale, of the steady state rolling tire. The steady state rolling tire is investigated within a thermo-mechanical framework of the FEM by using an Arbitrary Lagrangian Eulerian (ALE) formulation to efficiently represent the rolling operation (translation and rotation) of the tire.
