Analysis of micro fracture in human Haversian cortical bone under transverse tension using extended physical imaging

We propose a procedure to investigate local stress intensity factors at the scale of the osteons in human Haversian cortical bone. The method combines a specific experimental setting for a three‐point bending millimetric specimen and a numerical method using the eXtended Finite Element Method (X‐FEM). The interface between the experimental setting and the numerical method is ensured through an imaging technique that analyses the light microscopy observations to import the geometrical heterogeneity of the Haversian microstructures, the boundary conditions and appearing crack discontinuities into the numerical model. The local mechanical elastic Young's moduli are measured by nano‐indentation, and the Poisson ratios are determined by an imaging technique of the stress–strain fields. The model is able to access three scales of measurement: the macro scale of the material level (mm), the micro scale inside the Haversian material for stress–strain fields (10–100µm), and the sub‐micro scale for the crack opening profiles (1–10µm ) and fracture parameters (stress intensity factors). The model is applied to several patients at different aging stages. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.