On the prediction of ductile fracture in ship structures with shell elements at low temperatures

Abstract This paper proposes a practical method for addressing the effects of low temperatures on the ductile fracture behavior of high tensile strength steel plates and modeling using large shell finite elements. The test data of marine high-tensile strength steel grades, DH32, DH36, and EH36, at sub-zero temperatures were utilized. The tensile tests at sub-zero temperatures were simulated using fine solid elements to identify hardening law parameters. Simple localized necking loci were derived using the hardening curves of the steel grades considered. By defining the onset of localized necking as a failure condition, a simple fracture model for large shell finite elements that consider the low temperature effect was proposed. Several case studies were included to demonstrate the application and limitations of the proposed model.