A continuum and computational framework for viscoelastodynamics: finite deformation linear models

Abstract: This work concerns the continuum basis and numerical formulation for deformable materials with viscous dissipative mechanisms. We derive a viscohyperelastic modeling framework based on fundamental thermomechanical principles. Since most large deformation problems exhibit the isochoric property, our modeling work is constructed based on the Gibbs free energy in order to develop a continuum theory using the pressure-primitive variables, which is known to be well-behaved in the incompressible limit. With a general theory presented, we focus on a family of free energies that leads to the so-called finite deformation linear model. Our derivation elucidates the origin of the evolution equations of that model, which was originally proposed heuristically. In our derivation, the thermodynamic inconsistency is clarified and rectified. We then discuss the relaxation property of the non-equilibrium stress in the thermodynamic equilibrium limit and its implication on the form of free energy. A modified version of the identical polymer chain model is then proposed, with a special case being the model proposed by G. Holzapfel and J. Simo. Based on the consistent modeling framework, a provably energy stable numerical scheme is constructed for incompressible viscohyperelasticity using inf-sup stable elements. In particular, we adopt a suite of smooth generalization of the Taylor-Hood element based on Non-Uniform Rational B-Splines (NURBS) for spatial discretization. The temporal discretization is performed via the generalized-alpha scheme. We present a suite of numerical results to corroborate the proposed numerical properties, including the nonlinear stability, robustness under large deformation, and the stress accuracy resolved by the higher-order elements.