Constraint effects on the elastic–plastic fracture behaviour in strain gradient solids

ABSTRACT Crack‐tip constraint effects (or T‐stress effects) on the elastic–plastic fracture behaviour in strain gradient materials are analysed in the present study. The T‐stress effects on the stress distributions along the plane ahead of the stationary and growing crack tip, respectively, are analysed by using the Fleck and Hutchinson strain gradient plasticity formation. For a steadily growing crack, the T‐stress effects on the steady‐state fracture toughness are analysed by adopting the embedded fracture process zone model. In addition, the analysis for the growing crack is applied to an interfacial cracking experiment for a metal/ceramic system, and the material length‐scale parameter appearing in the strain gradient plasticity theory is predicted. In the present analyses, a new finite element method specially designed for strain gradient problems by Wei and Hutchinson is adopted.