CTOD WITH SLOW STABLE CRACK GROWTH: ANALYSIS OF THE ELASTIC COMPONENT

Abstract— The errors made during calculations for the "elastic" component of CTOD, δ_e, under slow stable crack growth conditions are analyzed and a model that considers this situation is proposed. Some examples are shown in which important errors occur in the CTOD value as a consequence of not having considered slow stable crack growth. This analysis complements previous work where an adaptation of the Plastic Hinge Model was made in order to consider corrections in the plastic component of CTOD due to rotation and stable crack growth.
The errors in Schwalbe's CTOD term, δ₅, which relate to a lack of alignment to the average crack front are also studied. Since the absolute value of this inexactitude is not known, bounds are set to this error.