A large deformation hybrid isogeometric-finite element method applied to cohesive interface contact/debonding

A hybrid NURBS-based isogeometric-finite element discretization technique is presented to take advantages of IGA for problems with regions demanding higher geometric accuracy or interpolation order. The validity of this coupled discretization is tested through standard patch test. Also, for demonstrative purposes, the proposed methodology is then applied to 2D interface contact/debonding of fiber–matrix as well as a 2D double cantilever beam peeling problem. Adopting a novel approach, the mortar method is used to account for both cohesive behavior and non-penetration constraint in the interface. Non-penetration constraint is enforced via Lagrange multiplier technique along with a mixed-mode cohesive law. The validity of the proposed unified contact/debonding formulation is tested against a contact/tension patch test. The stress contours after simulations show a smooth variation across IG and FE domains further demonstrating the coupling’s eligibility. Moreover, smooth contact pressure distributions are obtained along the interfaces resulting from higher-order NURBS basis functions. Having significantly less DOFs, the hybrid IG–FE discretization also behaved more robustly compared with linear FEs. •Existing concept of IG–FE coupling is applied to large deformation of 2D solids.•It is shown that the coupling elements pass standard patch tests.•A novel mortar-based unified contact/debonding formulation is proposed.•The hybrid discretization is applied to model several interface contact/debonding problems.•Stress contours exhibit a smooth variation across IG and FE domains.