An Object-oriented Framework for Mesoscopic Modeling of Microstructure Evolution in Materials Processing
Yu, Q. & Esche, S. K.
Proceedings of the ASME International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition IMECE'03, Washington, DC, USA, November 15 - 21, 2003.
Abstract
This paper reports on a research project supported by NSF, which aims at developing a multi-scale methodology for systematic microstructure prediction in thermo-mechanical processing of metals.
This methodology is based on combining mesoscopic microstructure models with macroscopic process formulations.
It is expected to overcome the disadvantages of the empirical modeling techniques predominantly employed in today’s industrial practice and to eventually provide universally applicable and accurate microstructure prediction capabilities.
A critical task of the project is to develop an object-oriented framework for the convenient and efficient integration of various mesoscopic microstructure models into a simulation-based process design system.
A general-purpose simulation framework will greatly facilitate the scientific exploration of the entire microstructure evolution process that occurs during materials processing by linking various microstructural models.
It has been recognized in a number of different fields that object-oriented programming, in general, and software frameworks, in particular, provide a means for the efficient construction and maintenance of large-scale software systems, and therefore it is appropriate to adopt these approaches for the development of the simulation module in this research project.
In the context of microstructure modeling, object-oriented programming is particularly suitable since varying physical material systems share the same objects but with different values of properties at the mesoscale level.
A very large number of models are required to address the different microstructural phenomena of high complexity. Furthermore, there are various methods to model even one single microstructural event.
This paper discusses the overall design of the object-oriented framework and provides some new results using a grain growth model that was incorporated into this framework.