A self-consistent viscoplastic model was applied to polycrystalline material in order to characterize the relationship between texture and instantaneous anisotropic mechanical behavior. It was assumed that the crystals deformed via basal, prismatic and pyramidal slip. The resistance of these slip systems was determined by using an inverse approach which was based upon a comparison of model results and data from mechanical tests. The present model well reproduced the observed macroscopic behavior only if a small, but non-negligible, amount of pyramidal slip was introduced. This was not observed experimentally. The introduction of such unrealistic slip was suggested to have the effect of correcting errors which were linked to the assumptions of the model. The model was then used to describe the behavior of typical polar ices with regard to the symmetries of the texture.

Modelling Viscoplastic Behavior of Anisotropic Polycrystalline Ice with a Self-Consistent Approach. O.Castelnau, G.R.Canova, R.A.Lebensohn, P.Duval: Acta Materialia, 1997, 45[11], 4823-34