An exact consistent tangent stiffness matrix for a second-gradient model for porous plastic solids: Derivation and assessment

It is well known that the use of a consistent tangent stiffness matrix is critical to obtain quadratic convergence of the global Newton iterations in the finite-element simulations of problems involving elasto-plastic deformation of metals, especially for large-scale metallic structure problems. In this article, we derive an exact consistent stiffness matrix for a porous material model, the GLPD model developed by Gologanu, Leblond, Perrin, and Devaux for ductile fracture of porous solids based on generalized continuum mechanics assumptions. Full expressions for the derivatives of the Cauchy stress tensor and the generalized moments stress tensor the model involved are provided and implemented into a finite-element code. The effectiveness and robustness of the proposed tangent stiffness moduli are assessed by applying the formulation in the finite-element simulations of typical ductile fracture problems. Comparisons between the performance of our stiffness matrix and the standard ones are also provided.