APPLICATION OF THE BEAM THEORY TO MODEL THE PSEUDOELASTIC AND FERROELASTIC BENDING OF SMA BEAMS

The study of simple beams made of shape memory alloys (SMA) is very in teresting for industrial and experimental reasons. In this paper, it i s realised using strength of materials' approach: different kinematica l and behavioural assumptions are successively used to solve circular and three supports bendings' problems. The kinematical ones consist in taking into account small or large displacements, the friction being or not neglected, whereas the behavioural ones consider different cons titutive equations ie, the elastic-perfectly plastic model and the asy mmetric elastohysteretic model. The influences of all these hypothesis are finally illustrated in three supports bending simulations.