COMPLAS 2025

Insights on Chemo-mechanical Coupling in Phase-field Approaches

  • Kannenberg, Thea (Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences)
  • Prahs, Andreas (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT))
  • Nestler, Britta (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT))
  • Schneider, Daniel (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT))

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A variety of disciplines stand to benefit from an understanding of coupled chemo-mechanical phenomena, such as concentration-dependent strains and stress-driven diffusion. These phenomena are particularly pertinent in fields such as battery materials and metals. Complex multiphysics-based modeling of multiphase systems can be efficiently addressed with a multiphase-field approach. The diffuse modeling of interfaces allows to model phase evolution, such as grain boundary migration, without the need for numerically expensive interface tracking. Furthermore, various driving forces, including chemical and mechanical forces, can be combined. Consequently, coupled chemo-mechanical multiphase-field methods [1] are of significant interest. In this work, three coupling approaches are compared - weak, one-sided, and full. On the basis of benchmarks for weakly coupled phase-field models [2], an extended framework is presented which allows the comparison of the impact of coupling approaches on equilibrium states, phase evolution, and diffusion in terms of equilibrium concentrations and phase fractions. In this matter, a chemo-mechanically fully coupled multiphase-field model is derived. This model accounts for balance equations on singular surfaces and the Hadamard jump conditions. The model is then compared with sharp interface equilibrium considerations for different coupling approaches derived on basis of the generalized Gibbs-Thomson-equation. It is demonstrated, that only a model that is chemo-mechanically fully coupled is suitable for capturing stress-driven diffusion. References: [1] Svendsen B., Shanthraj P., Raabe D., Finite-deformation phase-field chemomechanics for multiphase, multicomponent solids. J. Mech. Phys. Solids, Vol. 112, pp. 619-636, 2018. [2] Kannenberg T., Prahs A., Svendsen B., Nestler B., Schneider D., Chemo-mechanical benchmark for phase-field approaches. Modelling Simul. Mater. Sci. Eng., Vol. 33(1), 2025.