Orthotropic elastic–plastic–damage model of beech wood based on split Hopkinson pressure and tensile bar experiments

Abstract The hardwood is a natural composite, which finds applications in many fields such as an important building material. Attention was paid to the accurate description of the European beech wood under high strain rates in order to constitute a reliable input for the finite element method. It was done on the basis of split Hopkinson tensile bar tests, taking also into consideration the previously reported pressure bar tests to capture the tensile–compressive failure asymmetry, which was incorporated through the stress triaxiality. Strains measured on the steel bars for specimens oriented in all principal loading directions were used to calibrate the fully orthotropic behaviour of elasticity, plasticity and fracture. The concept of continuum damage mechanics was applied to the damage accumulation in order to simulate the crack propagation within explicit finite elements realistically.