Finite element analysis of ratcheting on beam under bending-bending loading conditions

Ratcheting is the cyclic buildup of inelastic strain on a structure resulting from a combination of primary and secondary cyclic stress. It can lead to excessive plastic deformation, incremental collapse, or fatigue. Ratcheting has been numerically investigated on a cantilever beam, considering the current study's primary and secondary bending loads. In addition, the effect of input frequency on the onset of ratcheting has been investigated. The non-linear dynamic elastic-plastic approach has been utilized. Analogous to Yamashita's bending-bending ratchet diagram, a non-dimensional ratchet diagram with a frequency effect is proposed. The result presents that the secondary stress values fall sequentially with the increase of primary stress values. Moreover, a displacement amplification factor graph is also established to explain the effect of frequency on ratchet occurrence conditions. In terms of frequency effect, it has been observed that the lower frequency (0.25 times the natural frequency) was more detrimental for ratchet occurrence conditions than the higher frequency (2 times the natural frequency) due to the effect of dynamic displacement. Finally, the effect of material modeling of ratcheting behavior on a beam is shown using different hardening coefficients of kinematic hardening material modeling.