Displacements, strains and stresses associated with propagating cracks in materials with continuously varying properties

Summary. Crack tip stress, strain and displacement fields for a propagating crack along the direction of property gradation in functionally graded materials (FGMs) are obtained through an asymptotic analysis coupled with a displacement potential approach. The analysis for the opening mode is performed assuming two types of property variation: (a) linearly varying shear modulus with constant density, and (b) exponentially varying shear modulus and density. The first six terms in the series expansion of the stress, strain and displacement fields for the dynamic crack are derived to explicitly bring out the influence of nonhomogeneity on the structure of the displacement, strain and stress fields. The analysis revealed that crack tip stress fields retain the inverse square root singularity and only the higher order terms in the expansion are influenced by material inhomogeneity. Using these stress, strain and displacement fields, contours of constant maximum shear stress, constant first stress invariant and constant in-plane displacements are generated and the effect of the nonhomogeneity parameter on these contours is discussed.     

Mixed-mode dynamic crack propagation in graded materials under thermo-mechanical loading

Mixed-mode dynamic crack growth behavior in functionally graded materials (FGMs) under thermo-mechanical loading is studied. Asymptotic analysis in conjunction with displacement potentials has been used to develop thermo-mechanical stress fields for a mixed mode propagating crack in a FGM. The shear modulus, mass density, thermal conductivity and coefficient of thermal expansion of the FGM are assumed to vary exponentially along the gradation direction. First, asymptotic temperature fields are derived for an exponential variation of thermal conductivity and later these temperature fields are used in deriving stress fields. Using asymptotic thermo-mechanical stress fields the variation of maximum shear stress, circumferential stress and strain-energy density as a function of temperature around the crack tip are generated. Finally, utilizing the minimum strain-energy density criterion and the maximum circumferential stress criterion, the crack growth direction for various crack-tip speeds, non-homogeneity coefficients and temperature fields are determined.     

K‐dominance of static crack tip in functionally gradient materials

K‐dominance of static crack tip in functionally gradient materials (FGMs) with a crack oriented along the direction of the elastic gradient is studied through coherent gradient sensing (CGS), digital speckle correlation method (DSCM) and finite element method (FEM). In the direction of crack propagation, the shear modulus has a linear variation with constant mass density and Poisson's ratio. First, the CGS and DSCM governing equations related to the measurements and the elastic solutions at mode I crack in FGMs are obtained in terms of the stress intensity factor, material constants and graded index. Secondly, two kinds of FGMs specimens and one homogenous specimen are prepared to observe the influences of the property variation on the K‐dominance. Then, CGS and DSCM experiments using three‐point‐bending of FGMs and homogenous beams are performed. Thirdly, based on the results of the experiments, the stress intensity factors of three kinds of specimens are calculated by CGS and DSCM. Meanwhile, the stress intensity factors are obtained by FEM. Finally, comparing the results from CGS, DSCM and FEM, the K‐dominance of mode‐I static crack tip in FGMs is discussed in detail.     

Quasi-static stress fields for a crack inclined to the property gradation in functionally graded materials

Summary.  Quasi-static stress fields for a crack inclined to the direction of property gradation in functionally graded materials (FGMs) are obtained through an asymptotic analysis coupled with Westergaard's stress function approach. The elastic modulus of the FGM is assumed to vary exponentially along the gradation direction. The mode mixity due to the inclination of the property gradient is accommodated in the analysis through superposition of opening and shear modes. The first four terms in the expansion of the stress field are derived to explicitly bring out the influence of nonhomogeneity on the structure of the stress field. Using these stress field contours of constant maximum shear stress, constant maximum principal stress, constant first stress invariant and constant out of plane displacement are generated, and the effect of inclination of the property gradation direction on these contours is discussed. Received September 22, 2002 Published online: May 20, 2003 The financial support of National Science Foundation (NSF) under grant no. CMS 99000138 is gratefully acknowledged.     

Analysis of a transiently propagating crack in functionally graded materials under mode I and II

Crack tip stress and displacement fields for a transiently propagating crack along gradient in functionally graded materials (FGMs) with a linear variation of shear modulus are developed. The higher order terms of the transient stress and displacement fields at crack tip were obtained by transforming the general partial differential equations of the dynamic equilibrium into Laplace’s equations whose solutions have harmonic functions. Thus, the fields can be expressed very simply. Using these stress components, isochromatics and the first invariant at crack tip are generated.The results show that the isochromatics (constant maximum shear stress) for mode I crack tilt backward around the crack tip with an increase of crack tip acceleration , and tilt forward around the crack tip with an increase of rate of change of dynamic mode I stress intensity factor . The isochromatics for mixed mode crack move to upper direction with an increases of and , and lower direction with an increase of . Contours of the first stress invariant for mode I crack enlarge around the crack tip with an increase of , and decrease around the crack tip with an increase of . As decreases at crack initiation, the predicted kinking angles increase. As increases, the predicted kinking angles also increase.     

Evaluation of the elastic-plastic mixity parameters on the base of different crack propagation criteria. Part 1. Preliminary analysis

In order to evaluate the mechanical behavior around small-scale yielding crack tip for both plane strain and plane stress, the asymptotic governing equations and their boundary conditions by considering fracture mechanisms are formulated. A total deformation theory of plasticity with a power-law hardening is used. The analysis of the near-tip fields is carried out for both the maximum tensile and shear stress crack growth direction criteria, as well as for the complete range of mixity parameters and various strain-hardening levels. The new scheme of mixed-mode problem solution is proposed. Realationships between elastic and plastic mixity parameters are given as functions of the crack growth direction criterion and the strain-hardening exponent.Translated from Problemy Prochnosti, No. 1, pp. 60–75, January–February, 2005     

功能梯度材料II型动态裂纹尖端的焦散线分析

根据功能梯度材料II型裂纹在定常扩展速度情况下裂纹尖端离面位移场的平面应力级数解,对材料性能沿裂纹扩展方向的两种不同变化规律进行了分析,分别假设:(1)剪切模量线性变化,密度保持常数;(2)剪切模量和密度指数规律变化。在分析中泊松比保持不变。推导两种变化规律材料II型动态裂纹尖端的焦散线方程,对两种材料的焦散线进行数值模拟,并求解应力强度因子与焦散线特征尺寸之间的函数关系,以此为基础分析不同梯度变化规律对材料断裂性能的影响.     

A plastic fracture mechanics model for characterization of multiaxial low-cycle fatigue

The near-tip stress and strain fields of small cracks in power-law hardening materials are investigated under plane-stress, general yielding, and mixed mode I and II conditions by finite element analyses. The characteristics of the near-tip strain fields suggest that the experimental observations of shallow surface cracks (Case A cracks) propagating in the maximum shear strain direction can be explained by a fracture mechanics crack growth criterion based on the maximum effective strain of the near-tip fields for small cracks under general yielding conditions. The constant effective stress contours representing the intense straining zones near the tip are also presented. The results of the J integral from finite element analyses are used to correlate to a fatigue crack growth criterion for Case A cracks. Based on the concept of the characterization of fatigue crack growth by the cyclic J integral, the trend of constant J contours on the Γ-plane for Case A cracks compares well with those of constant fatigue life and constant crack growth rate obtained from experiments.     

Dynamic stress intensity factor due to concentrated loads on a propagating semi-infinite crack in orthotropic materials

The elastodynamic response of an infinite orthotropic material with a semi-infinite crack propagating at constant speed under the action of concentrated loads on the crack faces is examined. Solution for the stress intensity factor history around the crack tip is found for the loading modes I and II. Laplace and Fourier transforms along with the Wiener-Hopf technique are employed to solve the equations of motion. The asymptotic expression for the stress near the crack tip is analyzed which lead to a closed-form solution of the dynamic stress intensity factor. It is found that the stress intensity factor for the propagating crack is proportional to the stress intensity factor for a stationary crack by a factor similar to the universal function k(v) from the isotropic case. Results are presented for orthotropic materials as well as for the isotropic case.     

Transient thermo-mechanical analysis of dynamic curving cracks in functionally graded materials

Mixed-mode dynamic crack growth behavior along an arbitrarily smoothly varying path in functionally graded materials (FGMs) under transient thermo-mechanical loading is studied. An asymptotic analysis in conjunction with displacement potentials is used to develop transient thermo-mechanical stress fields around the propagating crack-tip. Asymptotic temperature field equations are derived for exponentially varying thermal properties, and later, these equations are used to derive transient thermo-mechanical stress fields for a curving crack in FGMs. The effect of the transient parameters (loading rate, crack-tip acceleration, and temperature change) and temperature gradient on the maximum principal stress and circumferential stress associated with the propagating crack-tip is discussed. Finally, using the minimum strain energy density criterion, the effect of temperature gradient, crack-tip speeds, and T-stress on crack growth directions is determined and discussed.     

宏微观双尺度运动裂纹模型面内拉伸下的解析解*

研究裂纹动态扩展中宏微观因素相互作用机制与微观裂尖区的钝化效应。平面拉伸状态下,宏观主裂纹以恒定速度运动。通过一个介观约束应力过渡区,将宏观主裂纹与微观裂尖区相连接,由此建立了一个宏微观双尺度运动裂纹模型。应用弹性动力学与复变函数理论,分别在宏观与微观尺度下对该模型进行解析求解,获得了解析解。通过裂纹张开位移从宏观到微观的连续性条件与宏微观应力场协调条件,将两个不同尺度下的解相耦合,获得了计算宏微观损伤区特征长度的显式表达式。研究表明,运动裂纹的宏观应力场仍具有通常的r&;#61485;1/2的奇异性。由于微观裂尖的钝化,微观应力场奇异性的阶次有所降低,与宏观应力场相比具有弱奇异性。双尺度运动裂纹模型中,可允许裂纹运动速度达到剪切波速,解除了经典运动裂纹理论中裂纹速度不能超过Rayleigh波速的限制。数值结果表明,介观损伤过渡区与裂尖微观损伤区尺寸,及裂纹张开位移等,与裂纹运动速度、材料性质、约束应力比、裂尖钝化角度等因素有关。     

Analytical modelling of dynamic fracture and crack arrest in DCB specimens under fixed displacement conditions

An analytical solution via the beam theory considering shear deformation effects is developed to solve the static and dynamic fracture problem in a bounded double cantilever beam (DCB) specimen. Fixed displacement condition is prescribed at the pin location under which crack arrest occurs. In the static case, at first, the compliance function of a DCB specimen is obtained and shows good agreement with the experimental results cited in the literature. Afterward, the stress intensity factor is determined at the crack tip via the energy release rate formula. In the dynamic case, the obtained governing equations for the model are solved supposing quasi‐static treatment for unstable crack propagation. Finally, a closed form expression for the crack propagation velocity versus beam parameters and crack growth resistance of the material is found. It is shown that the reacceleration of crack growth appears as the crack tip approaches the finite boundary. Also, the predicted maximum crack propagation velocity is significantly lower than that obtained via the Euler–Bernoulli theory found in the literature.     

Line crack subject to antiplane shear

Field equations of nonlocal elasticity are solved to determine the state of stress in a plate with a line crack subject to a constant anti-plane shear. Contrary to the classical elasticity solution, it is found that no stress singularity is present at the crack tip. By equating the maximum shear stress that occurs at the crack tip to the shear stress that is necessary to break the atomic bonds, the critical value of the applied shear is obtained for the initiation of fracture. If the concept of the surface tension is used, one is able to calculate the cohesive stress for brittle materials.     

Fatigue crack closure study based on whole-field displacements

This study is concerned with crack tip strain field fluctuations at loads below the point of crack closure in fatigue cycling. Moiré interferometry was used to investigate crack tip fields in compact tension specimens, cracked under constant stress intensity range and fixed R-ratio conditions. An elastic-plastic finite element model of simulated closure was developed to provide a theoretical cross-reference for the moiré studies. The ‘stretched zone’, which is believed to be the most significant source of closure effects, was simulated by inserting a constant thickness strip of elements into the crack before unloading from the maximum load point. Analysis of the crack tip fields in the experimental and theoretical cases was made in terms of crack face opening profiles, compliance changes and elastic stress intensity parameters. The latter were inferred through stress and displacement measurements made along circular and radial paths relative to the crack tip. Closure on the stretched zone was found to generate non-proportional loading in the crack tip field, so that the resulting stress changes were not well characterized by the asymptotic elastic equations. It is concluded firstly, that significant strain fluctuations occur below the point of closure load and that these should not be ignored in crack propagation studies. Secondly, the effective stress intensity range in fatigue cycling is not simply related to the open-crack stress intensity range and the need therefore remains for R-ratio and geometry effects to be treated as variables in crack propagation data collection programmes.     

Evaluating crack tip stress field in a thin glass plate under thermal load

The stress field around a propagating crack tip in a quenched thin glass plate is discussed through experimental and theoretical analyses. Instantaneous phase-stepping photoelasticity using a CCD camera equipped with a pixelated micro-retarder array is used for measuring the crack tip stress field. From the successive phase maps of principal direction, the position and the velocity of the crack tip are evaluated. On the other hand, the fracture parameters, that is, the stress intensity factors and the T-stress are determined from the phase maps of the retardation. Experimental results obtained for a straight crack show good agreement with those obtained by theory of elasticity. The results also indicate that the direction of the crack propagation arising in the quenching process is not determined by the direction of the maximum principal stress. Furthermore, the results show that the T-stress criterion is inappropriate to evaluate the crack path instability in a quenched thin glass plate.     

Tensile crack tip fields in elastic-ideally plastic crystals

Crack tip stress and deformation fields are analyzed for tensile-loaded ideally plastic crystals. The specific cases of (0 1 0) cracks growing in the [1 0 1] direction, and (1 0 1) cracks in the [0, 1, 0] direction, are considered for both fcc and bcc crystals which flow according to the critical resolved shear stress criterion. Stationary and quasistatically growing crack fields are considered. The analysis is asymptotic in character; complete elastic-plastic solutions have not been determined. The near-tip stress state is shown to be locally constant within angular sectors that are stressed to yield levels at a stationary crack tip, and to change discontinuously from sector to sector. Near tip deformations are not uniquely determined but fields involving shear displacement discontinuities at sector boundaries are required by the derived stress state. For the growing crack both stress and displacement must be fully continuous near the tip. An asymptotic solution is given that involves angular sectors at the tip that elastically unload from, and then reload to, a plastic state. The associated near-tip velocity field then has discontinuities of slip type at borders of the elastic sectors. The rays, emanating from the crack tip, on which discontinuities occur in the two types of solutions are found to lie either parallel or perpendicular to the family of slip plane traces that are stressed to yield levels by the local stresses. In the latter case the mode of concentrated shear along a ray of discontinuity is of kink type. Some consequences of this are discussed in terms of the dislocation generation and motion necessary to allow the flow predicted macroscopically.     

Shear mode threshold for a small fatigue crack in a bearing steel

The fatigue behaviour of small, semi‐elliptical surface cracks in a bearing steel was investigated under cyclic shear‐mode loading in ambient air. Fully reversed torsion was combined with a static axial compressive stress to obtain a stable shear‐mode crack growth in the longitudinal direction of cylindrical specimens. Non‐propagating cracks less than 1 mm in size were obtained (i) by decreasing the stress amplitude in tests using notched specimens and (ii) by using smooth specimens in constant stress amplitude tests. The threshold stress intensity factor ranges, ΔK_IIth and ΔK_IIIth, were estimated from the shape and dimensions of non‐propagating cracks. Wear on the crack faces was inferred by debris and also by changes in microstructure in the wake of crack tip. These effects resulted in a significant increase in the threshold value. The threshold value decreased with a decrease in crack size. No significant difference was observed between the values of ΔK_IIth and ΔK_IIIth.     

Dynamic crack growth along an elastoplastic bimaterial interface

Summary The near-tip stress and deformation rate fields of a crack dynamically propagating along an interface between dissimilar elastic-plastic bimaterials are presented in this paper. The elastic-plastic materials are characterised by theJ ₂-flow theory with linear plastic hardening. The solutions are assumed to be of variable-separable form with a power-law singularity in the radial direction. Two distinct solutions corresponding to the tensile and shear solutions exist with slightly different singularity strengths and very different mixities at the crack tip. The phenomenon of discrete and determinate mixities at the interfacial crack tip is confirmed in dynamic crack growth. This is not an artifact of the variable-separable solution assumption, arising from the linear-hardening material model. The dynamic crack analysis shows that the mixity of the near-tip field is mainly determined by the given material parameters and affected slightly by the crack propagation velocity. A significant variation of the mixity is observed near to the coalescing point of the tensile and shear solutions. The strength of the singularity is almost determined by the smaller strain-hardening alone, and dynamic inertia decreases the stress intensity. The asymptotic solutions reveal that the crack propagation velocity changes only the stress field of the tensile mode significantly. With increasing the crack propagation velocity, the stress singularity of the tensile solutions decreases obviously and the stress triaxiality at the tip (=0) falls considerably at the unity effective stress. These observations imply that the fracture toughness of the interface crack under tensile mode may be significantly higher than that under quasi-static conditions.     

A crack in a linear-elastic material under mode II loading, revisited

A sharp crack in a two-dimensional infinite linear-elastic material, under pure shear (mode II) loading is re-examined. Several criteria have been proposed for the prediction of the onset and direction of crack extension along a path emanating from the tip of the initial crack. These criteria date back some three decades and are well documented in the literature. All the predictions from the different criteria are close and indicate that the crack extension takes a direction at an angle of ≈ −70° measured counterclockwise from the positive x -axis, in the case of a remotely applied positive shear stress. However, the possibility seems to have been overlooked that the crack extension may initiate not from the crack tip itself, but instead may initiate on the free surface at an infinitesimal distance behind the crack tip. The effect of crack tip plasticity on the relevant stresses in the region of the crack tip is investigated by the application of an elastic–plastic finite element program.     

紧凑四点剪切砼Ⅱ型断裂实验研究与数值分析

有关Iosipescu四点剪切实验的争论很多,国内外的研究者提出了各种各样的结果.本文对紧凑四点剪切加载下砼Ⅱ型断裂破坏机理进行了大量的实验研究和数值分析.通过对实验中试件裂纹的扩展过程及开裂角θc等的分析,结合有限元法对裂尖应力场进行了研究.分析了加载点与裂纹面的距离对Ⅱ型断裂性能的影响.可以看出,虽然随着加载点与裂纹面距离的缩短,K_Ⅱc在逐渐增大,但纯剪加载下裂纹扩展并不是沿剪应力所在方向,即破坏并不是剪切破坏.