RVE Modeling of Multiple Crazing in High Impact Polystyrene

A micromechanical model based on continuum damage mechanics was established to study the crazing of high impact polystyrene(HIPS) under unidirectional tension by use of representive volume element(RVE) with embedded cohesive surfaces.Quads failure criteria were adopted to identify the failure of cohesive elements.An elastic mechanical properties degradation method using the nonlinear finite element was introduced to simulate the initiation,growth and breakage of crazing.Furthermore,the crazing mechanisms were analyzed in detail.The calculated numerical results by using our model show a good agreement with the experimental phenomena,which verifies the effectiveness of the model.