Crack growth of through and part-through thickness cracks under cyclic loading

Stress intensity factor expressions corrected for crack front curvature are used to derive the corrosion fatigue growth data for through and part-through thickness cracks subjected to cyclic loading. Results are obtained by application of the boundary element method for solving three-dimensional crack problems. Different radius of curvature is assumed using the open literature cyclic crack growth parameters for air and sea water. As is to be expected, crack growth increased with decreasing crack front curvature and in sea water environment when compared with that in air.     

Crack problem for superconducting strip with finite thickness

The inclined crack problems are considered for a thin strip and a strip with finite thickness in a perpendicular magnetic field. The critical current density is assumed to be a constant. The crack orientation is varied and the effect of crack on the magnetic field distribution is neglected. Based on the analytical results and variational inequality, the field and current distributions are computed for both thin strip and strip with finite thickness cases, respectively. Then, the stress intensity factors at the crack tip are determined using the finite element method for magnetic field loads. The numerical results are presented for different inclined crack angles, magnetization processes and geometry parameters of the strip. The results show that the fracture behavior of the strip with finite thickness is more complicated than that of the thin strip. With the numerical results, we can predict the largest possibility of cracking as the strip is in an external field.     

Crack in functionally graded piezoelectric strip bonded to elastic surface layers under electromechanical loading

Solved is the problem of a crack in a functionally graded piezoelectric material (FGPM) bonded to two elastic surface layers. It is assumed that the elastic stiffness, piezoelectric constant, and dielectric permittivity of the FGPM vary continuously along the thickness of the strip. The outside layers are under antiplane mechanical loading and in-plane electric loading. The solution involves solving singular integral equations by application of the Gauss–Jacobi integration formula. Numerical calculations are carried out to obtain the energy density factors. Their variations with the geometric, loading and material parameters are shown graphically.     

Crack growth under alternating loading

Crack propagation under alternating loading is investigated. Relations between the growth rate of a fatigue defect and loading parameters and the expression for the stress intensity factor are derived for compression of a cracked solid taking into account the possible contact of the crack faces. A model for the deformation of a small region near the crack tip is proposed which allows one to formulate the conditions of residual opening of a growing fatigue crack. The experimental data obtained in tests of steel samples are compared with the results of calculation using the developed procedure. __________ Translated from Prikladnaya Mekhanika i Tekhnicheskaya Fizika, Vol. 49, No. 5, pp. 190–198, September–October, 2008.     

Crack problem under shear loading in cubic quasicrystal

IntroductionQuasicrystalasanewstructureofsolidmatter[1,2 ]bringsprofoundnewideastothetraditionalcondensedmatterphysicsandencouragesconsiderabletheoreticalandexperimentalstudiesonthephysicalandmechanicalpropertiesofthematerial,includingtheelasticitytheoryofthequasicrystal,manyvaluableresultsweregiven[3～ 5 ].Defectsinthematerialwereobservedsoonafterthediscoveryofthequasicrystal[6 ,7].Cracksareonetypeofdefects,theirexistencegreatlyinfluencesthephysicalandmechanicalpropertiesofthequasicrystalinem…     

Crack growth in unidirectional graphite-epoxy under biaxial loading

Center-notched coupons of 16-ply unidirectional AS4/3501-6 graphite-epoxy were loaded in tension to failure in order to determine the direction of initial crack growth, the load required to cause initial crack growth, and the load required to cause failure. Fifteen-degree off-axis tensile coupons provided a far-field biaxial state of stress away from the notch. Specimens of three different length-to-width ratios were tested in order to vary the biaxial stress states. Two notch configurations were used, one perpendicular to the loading direction, the other perpendicular to the material fiber direction. In all of the cases studied experimentally, crack growth was parallel to the fiber direction. An anisotropicelasticity crack-tip stress analysis was subsequently implemented in order to compare experimental crack-growth directions to those predicted by three crack-extension-direction criteria. Of the three criteria studied, (Strain-energy density, the tensor polynomial, and the normal stress ratio), only one, the normal-stress-ratio criterion, provided crack-growth-direction predictions that agreed with the experimental results. Paper was presented at the 1985 SEM Spring Conference on Experimental Mechanics, held in Las Vegas, NV on June 9–14.     

Crack energy density of a piezoelectric material under general electromechanical loading

Crack energy density is considered and used as a possible fracture parameter in piezoelectricity under arbitrary electromechanical remote loads. The closed-form solution of a crack in a piezoelectric infinite plate subjected to general static electromechanical loading is obtained through a method alternative to the more common Stroh’s formalism. This analytical method, which is based on the spectral theorem of linear algebra, involves a transformation of similarity induced by the fundamental matrix in order to express the equations governing the problem in terms of complex potentials. The application of the mechanical boundary condition of stress-free crack and of one of the three considered electric boundary conditions (impermeable, permeable or semipermeable) leads then to the formulation of a Hilbert problem whose solution yields the stress and displacement fields. The crack energy density factors for mixed mode are then calculated under different mechanical and electrical loadings, as well as under different electric boundary conditions. The non-singular terms of the stress expressions are retained as well. The definition of the minimum energy density fracture criterion, as proposed by Sih, is given, and the influence of load biaxiality and positive or negative applied electric field on the criterion results is analyzed. The prediction of the incipient branching angle as from the energy density approach is also compared to that arising from the maximum circumferential stress theory for a mixed mode loading condition. Numerical results and graphs are presented and discussed for a PZT-4 piezoelectric ceramic.     

A finite crack in a semi-infinite strip of a graded piezoelectric material under electric loading

In this paper, the mixed-mode crack problem for a functionally graded piezoelectric material (FGPM) strip is considered. It is assumed that the electroelastic properties of the strip vary continuously along the thickness of the strip, and that the strip is under in-plane electric loading. The problem is formulated in terms of a system of singular integral equations. The stress and electric displacement intensity factors are presented for various values of dimensionless parameters representing the crack size, the crack location, and the material nonhomogeneity.     

Stability analysis of a fractional viscoelastic plate strip in supersonic flow under axial loading

The stability of a viscoelastic plate strip, subjected to an axial load with the Kelvin–Voigt fractional order constitutive relationship is studied. Based on the classical plate theory, the structural formulation of the plate is obtained by using the Newton’s second law and the aerodynamic force due to the fluid flow is evaluated by piston theory. The Galerkin method is employed to discretize the equation of motion into a set of ordinary differential equations. To determine the stability margin of plate the obtained set of ordinary differential equations are solved using the Laplace transform method. The effects of variation of the governing parameters such as axial force, retardation time, fractional order and boundary conditions on the stability margin of fractional viscoelastic panel are investigated and finally some conclusions are outlined.     

Crack instability of ferroelectric solids under alternative electric loading

The low fracture toughness of the widely used piezoelectric and ferroelectric materials in technological applications raises a big concern about their durability and safety. Up to now, the mechanisms of electric-field induced fatigue crack growth in those materials are not fully understood. Here we report experimental observations that alternative electric loading at high frequency or large amplitude gives rise to dramatic temperature rise at the crack tip of a ferroelectric solid. The temperature rise subsequently lowers the energy barrier of materials for domain switch in the vicinity of the crack tip, increases the stress intensity factor and leads to unstable crack propagation finally. In contrast, at low frequency or small amplitude, crack tip temperature increases mildly and saturates quickly, no crack growth is observed. Together with our theoretical analysis on the non-linear heat transfer at the crack tip, we constructed a safe operating area curve with respect to the frequency and amplitude of the electric field, and validated the safety map by experiments. The revealed mechanisms about how electro-thermal-mechanical coupling influences fracture can be directly used to guide the design and safety assessment of piezoelectric and ferroelectric devices.     

Elastic-plastic deformation of a circular ring under loading by a spatial force system

Dnepropetrovsk Metallurgical Institute. Dnepropetrovsk University. Translated from Prikladnaya Mekhanika, Vol. 25, No. 9, pp. 109–114, September, 1989.     

Surface layer stability under force and temperature loading

We study stability of an elastic homogeneous ormultilayer plate with a free surface under the action of force and temperature deformations. We show that possible buckling modes can be of two types. For each of these two types, we study the dependence of the critical strain on the wavelength. It was found that, for a homogeneous layer, a decrease in the wavelength leads to a decrease in the critical strain and, for a multilayer material with alternating hard and soft layers, a strain wave of finite length arises in buckling.     

Crack nucleation due to bending of a variable-thickness band

A mathematical model of crack nucleation in a band (beam) bent in its plane by a given system of external loads (constant bending moments, uniformly distributed pressure, etc.) is constructed. Pre-fracture zones modeled as zones of attenuated interparticle bonds of the material are assumed to appear in the variable-thickness band in the course of its loading. The solution of the problem of equilibrium of an isotropic band of variable thickness with a nucleating crack is reduced to the solution of a nonlinear singular integrodifferential equation with a kernel of the Cauchy kernel type, which yields the forces in the zone of crack nucleation. The condition of crack nucleation in the variable-thickness band is formulated with allowance for the criterion of critical tension of the material bonds.     

Finite strip buckling analysis of curved plate assemblies under biaxial loading

A finite strip method is presented for calculating the linear buckling stresses of structural assemblies of long, thin plate components which, in general, are curved and which are rigidly joined together at their longitudinal edges. It is assumed that on buckling under the action of a biaxial direct stress field the perturbation forces and displacements all vary sinusoidally in the longitudinal direction. A stiffness matrix relating the amplitudes of the perturbation forces and displacements is developed for the curved strip on the further assumption of relatively high-order polynomial variations of the displacement components around the plate width. Numerical results are presented of the application of the curved strip in calculating the buckling stresses of plates, cylinders, panels and formed sections.     

Crack spacing effect for a piezoelectric cylinder under electro-mechanical loading or transient heating

This paper investigates the fracture problem of a piezoelectric cylinder with a periodic array of embedded circular cracks. An electro-mechanical fracture mechanics model is established first. The model is further used to the thermal fracture analysis of a piezoelectric cylinder subjected to a sudden heating on its outer surface. The temperature field and the associated thermal stresses and electric displacements are obtained and are added to the crack surface to form a mixed-mode boundary value problem for the electro-mechanical coupling fracture. The stress and stress intensities are investigated for the effect of crack spacing. Strength evaluation of piezoelectric materials under the transient thermal environment is made and thermal shock resistance of the medium is given.     

Viscoplastic deformation of reinforced plates with varying thickness under explosive loads

The problem of viscoplastic bending of reinforced plates with varying thickness is formulated. An original method for the integration of this initial-boundary-value problem is developed. The numerical solution is compared with an analytical solution obtained with a rigid-plastic model of an isotropic circular plate. The efficiency of the method is demonstrated by analyzing the inelastic dynamics of reinforced plates with constant and varying thickness. It is shown that the maximum residual deflections of plates can be reduced severalfold by means of rational profiling and reinforcement __________ Translated from Prikladnaya Mekhanika, Vol. 44, No. 2, pp. 85–98, February 2008.     

Influence of single crystal orientation on homogeneous dislocation nucleation under uniaxial loading

Atomistic simulations are used to investigate how the stress required for homogeneous nucleation of partial dislocations in single crystal copper under uniaxial loading changes as a function of crystallographic orientation. Molecular dynamics is employed based on an embedded-atom method potential for Cu at 10 and 300 K. Results indicate that non-Schmid parameters are important for describing the calculated dislocation nucleation behavior for single crystal orientations under tension and compression. A continuum relationship is presented that incorporates Schmid and non-Schmid terms to correlate the nucleation stress over all tensile axis orientations within the stereographic triangle. Simulations investigating the temperature dependence of homogeneous dislocation nucleation yield activation volumes of ≈0.5- and activation energies of . For uniaxial compression, full dislocation loop nucleation is observed, in contrast to uniaxial tension. One of the main differences between uniaxial tension and compression is how the applied stress is resolved normal to the slip plane on which dislocations nucleate—in tension, this normal stress is tensile, and in compression, it is compressive. Last, the tension-compression asymmetry is examined as a function of loading axis orientation. Orientations with a high resolved stress normal to the slip plane on which dislocations nucleate have a larger tension-compression asymmetry with respect to dislocation nucleation than those orientations with a low resolved normal stress. The significance of this research is that the resolved stress normal to the slip plane on which dislocations nucleate plays an important role in partial (and full) dislocation loop nucleation in FCC Cu single crystals.