A Novel Hexahedral Interface Element for Nonlinear Crack Analysis

Existence of a crack in structures would lead to a sudden failure and damage. Establishing a precise analytical model for the cracked element would be a powerful tool to achieve the right answers in the analysis of the structure. The main aim of this article is to formulate a hexahedral interface element for use in nonlinear crack analysis. In this investigation, the kinematics of the discontinuous displacement field along with the virtual work principle, for a body with an internal discontinuity, is utilized. Based on the suggested interpolation functions for the discrete segments, and also the element displacement field, the element stiffness matrix is calculated. The proposed element can be used for modeling of the discrete cracks in three-dimensional problems, such as a concrete dam. Several numerical examples are analyzed for the accuracy test and a few of them are presented here. The results indicated that utilizing sufficient elements yields suitable answers.