Performance analysis of an asynchronous time integration scheme for split Hopkinson pressure bar simulations

Abstract

We present a performance analysis of an asynchronous explicit time integration framework for partitioned elastodynamic problems with strongly heterogeneous temporal scales, motivated by simulations of Split Hopkinson Pressure Bar (SHPB) experiments. The proposed approach allows individual subdomains to advance with different time increments, enabling the small nonlinear specimen to be integrated using the time step required for accuracy while the long elastic bars are advanced asynchronously with substantially larger time steps. Numerical comparisons with conventional synchronous explicit integration, including LS-DYNA, demonstrate that the proposed method preserves accuracy while significantly reducing computational cost. The study further shows that the performance gains increase with the disparity between the characteristic time scales of the coupled subdomains, making the approach particularly attractive for large-scale SHPB simulations involving long elastic bars. These results demonstrate the potential of asynchronous time integration as an efficient alternative to conventional explicit solvers for computationally demanding impact simulations.