NTFA-enabled goal-oriented adaptive space–time finite elements for micro-heterogeneous elastoplasticity problems

In this work, we establish a goal-oriented space–time finite element method for a class of dissipative heterogeneous materials. Those materials are modeled on both micro- and macroscale, with a scale transition of volume averaging type satisfying the Hill–Mandel condition. A nonuniform transformation field analysis is performed on the microscopic inelastic strain fields for a model reduction. Reduced variables are deduced from a space–time decomposition of those inelastic strain fields. Closed-form constitutive relations are derived from some dissipative considerations, thus resulting into a reduced order homogenization problem. The resulting model error is sufficiently small for the considered class of materials, thus leaving the discretization error of the finite element method as a main error source. For ease of error estimate, we rewrite the reduced order problem in a multifield formulation. Based on duality techniques, a backward-in-time dual problem is derived from a Lagrange method, rendering error representations of a user-defined quantity of interest. Combining a patch recovery technique, a computable error estimator is developed to quantify both spatial and temporal discretization errors. By means of a localization technique, local error estimators are used to drive a greedy adaptive refinement algorithm in space and time. The effectiveness of the resulting algorithm is confirmed by several numerical examples w.r.t. a prototype model. •A novel adaptive space–time finite element method for heterogeneous dissipative materials.•A multifield formulation for a class of reduced order twoscale plasticity problems that is convenient for an error estimation.•Goal-oriented error estimation for adaptive control of spatial and temporal discretization errors in combination with the nonuniform transformation field analysis.