Crystal-Plasticity-Based Micro-Mechanical Model for Simulating Plastic Deformation of TC4 Alloy

Ti-6Al-4V (TC4) alloy is widely used in aerospace and biomedical applications due to its excellent strength-to-weight ratio and corrosion resistance. Its plastic deformation behavior is strongly influenced by its microstructural characteristics, particularly grain size. In this study, a crystal plasticity model incorporating a Hall-Petch relationship was developed to simulate the plastic deformation of TC4, with explicit consideration of the effect of grain size on slip resistance. The model employs a thermally activated flow rule to describe the kinetics of slip systems, enabling accurate prediction of flow stress and strain hardening across different microstructural conditions. The model is calibrated and validated using experimental stress-strain data from uniaxial tensile tests on specimens with varying grain sizes. Simulation results demonstrate that the model successfully captures the grain-size-strengthening effect and predicts the corresponding evolution of local strain heterogeneity. Furthermore, a critical local equivalent plastic strain criterion was established, which effectively predicts the dependence of macroscopic failure strain on grain size. This work provides a physically based computational tool for optimizing TC4 processing parameters and predicting deformation under service conditions.