Abstract: | This paper sets forth the theoretical background and basic numerical expressions for the incorporation of elastic-plastic constitutive equations for ductile rock into a finite element computer code. The derivation of an expression for the total strain rate is performed both for a total stress formulation and for a formulation that employs the concept of effective stress for inelastic behaviour. Specific expressions for the incremental strain rate are presented for the case of a porous material having a quadratic initial yield surface and observing the associated flow rule with a special hardening law for subsequent plastic deformation. A final section of the paper summarizes the expressions required to insert the quadratic yield surface model into a finite element code. |