Periodic crack system in a layered elastic wedge

ABSTRACT

Three-dimensional periodic mode I crack problems for an elastic layered wedge are reduced to an integro-differential equation principal part of which is the same as in the classical Griffith problem for one crack in an elastic full space. The infinite system of elliptic cracks, with equal spaces between neighbouring cracks, is situated in the middle of the wedge parallel to its edge. The faces of the wedge with cracks are layered, with sliding support, by identical elastic incompressible wedge-shaped layers so that the system of three wedges have the same edge (for example, rubber–metal–rubber system). Three types of boundary conditions on the outer layered wedge faces are considered (sliding or rigid support, stress-free state). The regular asymptotic method is used to solve the problems effective for fairly big spaces between the cracks as well as for big distances between the cracks and the edge of the wedge. The stress intensity factor (SIF) is calculated for different geometric parameters. It is shown that the solution, including the SIF, for close cracks does not practically depend on the type of the outer boundary conditions.