Abstract. The current paper presents a comparison of the influence over texture development of different heterogeneity levels of deformation. A viscoplastic self-consistent (VPSC) micromechanical model is coupled with a finite element method (FEM) to simulate wire drawing texture development in a two-phase Cu–Fe material. VPSC models are capable of simulating grain-to-grain heterogeneity, and FEM models can accomplish the task of simulating the macroscopic variation of velocity gradient due to geometrical constraints during wire drawing. Intra-grain heterogeneities are empirically built in the VPSC model by enforcing a common spin between closest neighbour grains. The results are contrasted and validated by neutron diffraction experimental textures. Different levels of heterogeneity are simulated, and the results are assessed and compared against Taylor based simulations. The 'curling' problem is also addressed by allowing the grains to interact through the co-spin model and the ellipsoid axes orientations to evolve independently.

Print publication: Issue 1 (January 2006)
Received 10 March 2005, in final form 7 October 2005
Published 19 December 2005