Edit Material Database

Create and edit material property definitions.

The default database location is C:\users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\Simsolid\SIMSOLID-Material-DB.ssm. You can edit this to any writable directory path. Do not place the material file within the SimSolid application directory as this is typically read-only.

  1. In the menu bar, click Settings ➔ Material database.
  2. Set view materials from to the Material database.
  3. Use the following to create materials/groups:
    Process
    Add a group of materials.
    1. Click the Add group button.
    2. Right-click on the new group in the material tree.
    3. Add a material, rename the group, or delete from the context menu.
    Add individual materials.
    1. Click on a group in the material tree.
    2. Click the Add material button.
    3. Enter the specifications for the new material.
    4. Click Apply.
    Import material property definitions from CSV.
    1. Click the Import CSV button.
    2. Browse to the desired CSV file.
    3. Click Open.
  4. Many material properties may be bulk loaded from an external CSV file using the Import CSV button. More information on how to properly format this file is found in the CSV Format for Bulk Loading Material Properties topic.
  5. Click Save.

Notes

Units
When adding material data, pay special attention to the units labels and enter values in the proper scale. Units can be either SI or IPS but to avoid confusion, it is recommended that you enter values in SI.
Elasticity Modulus
If a stress-strain curve is defined for the material, elasticity modulus is automatically calculated from the curve using its first two points.
Estimate SN/EN Curve from UTS Equations
When using Estimate from UTS to define an SN curve, the following equations and default values are used:
  • S1 = 2.1315*UTS
  • B1 = -0.125
  • NC1 = 1.0E+6
  • SE = 0
When using Estimate from UTS to define an EN curve, the following equations and default values are used:
  • Sf = 1.5*UTS
  • b = -0.087
  • c = -0.58
  • Ef = 1.357 - 125*UTS/E
  • Np = 0.15
  • Kp = 1.65*UTS
  • Nc = 2.0E+8
  • SEp = 0
  • SEe = 0
You can use the Review button in the View materials dialog to view stress-strain, stress-life, or strain-life curves in an XY plot.
Analysis Results
SimSolid's smart material database invalidates the results of analyses when you change material properties that affect that simulation. For example, if you add or edit fatigue properties, all fatigue analyses using that material will be invalid but structural analyses will remain valid.