Wicke et al. present a novel finite element approach for elastoplastic deformations. The authors introduce a dynamic local tetrahedral mesh, in both current state and rest shape, that

attempts to replace as few tetrahedra as possible, and thereby limits the visual artifacts and artificial diffusion that would otherwise be introduced by repeatedly remeshing the domain from scratch.

This dynamic approach is a substantial improvement, compared to the traditional Lagrangian elastic simulations. In particular, extreme deformations can make the fixed mesh elements of the Lagrangian simulations “skinny or degenerate in world space.” In addition, sufficient plastic flows can degrade the material-space elements until their accuracy is ruined, and reshape an object completely. These issues are resolved by the introduced dynamic local remeshing.

Two major features of this method--mitigating artificial plasticity and maintaining high element quality--are successfully illustrated “with animations of elastic and plastic behavior, extreme deformations, and fracture.” The method is extremely valuable for computations in materials science.

Based on the considerable advantages of the presented method for elastoplastic deformations, I strongly recommend this paper to those in the materials science field.