Numerical simulation of impact process between spherical ice and a rigid plate based on the ordinary state-based peridynamics

Ice sphere impacts are an important issue in the study of composite materials, polar engineering, and aerospace engineering. The traditional mechanics numerical methods, rooted in classical continuum mechanics, like the Finite Element Method (FEM), grapples with the challenge of spatial derivatives not existing at the crack tip or crack surfaces, rendering it unsuitable for addressing discontinuity-related problems such as fracture and failure. Developed particle method peridynamics shows great ability in handling such discontinuous problems. This paper establishes an ice sphere impact model using the peridynamics method. To verify the accuracy of our model, we compared the simulated results with the tested results of the high-speed impacting ice sphere and obtained that the predicted impact load and crack propagation of ice spheres are consistent well with the experiment results. An isolated damage zone was found to appear at the top region when the surface crack just extends across the hemispherical plane. This phenomenon happens due to that the impact wave propagating along the sphere center axis reaches the top end faster than the surface wave, making spalling damage occurred at the top region, and the encounter between the reflected wave and the surface wave would make the spalling damage more severe.