Testing theoretical bases of caustic methods in fracture mechanics and stress analysis

Determination of stress intensity factors using shadow optical method of caustics attracts increasing attention. However, the reliability and ranges of applicability of this method are seldom discussed. This paper presents such an analysis regarding the reliability and predictive power of caustic method in fracture mechanics. This analysis is performed according to the accepted methodology of testing any analytical, numerical, or experimental procedure, namely by testing its theoretical bases. The following four basic assumptions of the shadow optical method of caustics in fracture mechanics, and their consequences, are analyzed: assumption of a generalized plane stress state near crack tip; assumption that the radiant energy used to produce shadow images propagates rectilinearly inside a stressed body; assumption that the light velocity inside a stressed body depends only on stress components in planes normal to wave normals; assumption that there is no alteration in state of polarization of radiation impinging upon a stressed plate at oblique incidence.The first two basic assumptions are tested using results obtained by means of three analytical-experimental procedures, namely isodynes, gradient index method, and classical strain gages. It is known that the inaccuracies of the fourth assumption are within the noise level only when the angles of incidence are small.It is shown that the magnitudes of the effects caused by the geometric lens effect and the gradient index lens effect are comparable, and that the stress states near crack tips and bottoms of notches, which produce the geometric lens effect, are clearly three-dimensional.It is also indicated that the gradient index lens effect is caused jointly by the stress/strain-induced alteration of the optical path and by the bending of the light path caused by strain gradient.Obtained empirical evidence shows the existence of a particular relationship between the observed gradient index lens effect and the order of singularity in a particular singular solution of linear fracture mechanics, with the exception of the vicinity of the crack tip where singularities are inadmissible.     

Stress intensity factor determination error by the method of caustics

The caustics created at a crack tip under biaxial loading are examined using both the closed form and the approximate solution. Particular attention is given to the caustics and their initial curves created by rays reflected from the rear and front surfaces of the specimen in addition to those in the transverse direction of the cracked specimen. These quantities can differ by more than 30% depending on whether the exact or the approximate solution is used for determining the stress intensity factors which can deviate as much as 80%. The crack length also affects the outcome. Larger errors are committed by the approximate solution for caustics that are closer to the crack tip. The advantage of using the normalized distance from the crack tip is discussed in contrast to using the absolute distance. Incorrect experimental measurements are also discussed in relation to the resulting error for evaluating the crack tip stress intensity factor.     

Perfectly plastic caustics for the opening mode of fracture

Exact expressions for the caustics generated by the reflection of light surrounding crack tips in perfectly plastic materials under plane stress loading conditions and tensile tractions at infinity (mode I) are derived. Two individual cases are examined involving two different yield criteria. The first case uses an approximation of the Mises yield condition, where in the principal stress plane two intersecting parabolas replace the standard ellipse. The second case uses the Tresca yield condition where the mode I caustic is obtained as a limit of an elliptical hole in a perfectly plastic material. In both cases, kinematically admissible velocity fields are employed to obtain strain fields from which the theoretical caustics are predicted.     

动态光弹性方法的主应力分离的研究

本文提出了动态光弹性、动态焦散线实验方法同边界元法结合的混合法，并用这种方法解决了动态光弹性主应力分离的问题，首先对现有的多火花高速摄影系统进行了改造，在动态实验过程中，成功地得到了不同瞬时的清晰的动态光弹性的等差线条纹和动态焦散线系列图像，这样，便可提取不同瞬时的边界应力值、全场主应力差值及边界上的外载。继而提出用Ｌａｐｌａｃｅ变换域上的边界元法来求解在冲击载荷作用下二维弹性模型全场的主应力和。最后，以受冲击载荷作用的圆盘为例，进行实验及边界元法计算，得到了分离的主应力场。     

The method of caustics for static plane elasticity problems

By use of the complex stress function analysis of Muskhelishvili-Kolosov and conformal mapping procedures the general governing equations of the method of caustics or shadow spot technique have been developed for optically isotropic and anisotropic materials in static plane elasticity theory. Special cases of caustics formed about cutouts, cracks, and various singular regions in static elastic stress fields are obtained upon specialization.     

The determination of dynamic fracture toughness of AISI 4340 steel by the shadow spot method

Dynamic crack propagation experiments have been performed using wedge loaded double cantilever beam specimens of an austenitized, quenched and tempered 4340 steel. Measurements of the dynamic stress intensity factor have been made by means of the optical method of caustics. The interpretation of experimental data, obtained from the shadow spot patterns photographed with a Cranz-Schardin high speed camera, is based on an elastodynamic analysis. The instantaneous value of the dynamic stress intensity factor K^d_I is obtained as a function of crack tip velocity. Finally, the interaction of reflected shear and Rayleigh waves with the moving crack tip stress field is considered.     

Experimental determination of stress-intensity factors using caustics and photoelasticity

The optical method of caustics has been used with considerable success in recent years for determining stress-intensity factors in both static and dynamic problems. However the midplane analysis explaining the formation of transmission caustics has certain approximations that need to be examined. In this paper it is demonstrated that the midplane analysis is in good agreement with the numerical solution of the exact geometrical optical equations for mapping the light-ray path in a cracked plate. Since both these analyses are obtained by imposing a two-dimensional crack-tip stress field the sensitivity of the method to the deviations from the imposed stress field is examined next. The implications of this examination on the photoelastic technique are then discussed.     

Analysis of dynamic mixed mode stress fields in bimaterials by the method of caustics

The equations of caustics for dynamically extending curvilinear interface cracks are derived where optical isotropy and anisotropy of the material have been considered, respectively. The equations have been obtained by applying the method of generalized complex potentials. Moreover, an algorithm for the determination of stress intensity factors from experimentally obtained caustics is presented for the case of dynamic crack extension.     

非平行光反射焦散线法测量动态K1的一些理论和技术问题

本文分析了非平行光反射焦散线法测量Ⅰ型裂纹动态应力强度因子的一些理论问题,讨论了焦散面的形成和摄影记录系统的光路布置及参数选择并提出一种采用单透镜的沙丁相机高速摄影技术。该技术可以获得尺寸比通常所得的焦散象大得多的焦散记录。     

Construction of a Slip-line Field in Photoviscoplastic Model Test

Slip-line fields in plastic deformations have been theoretically obtained for contact deformations between rigid and idealized-rigid perfectly plastic media under idealized contact conditions. In these analyses, simple assumptions such as idealized perfect lubrication, Coulomb friction or uniform contact pressure have been made However, the deformation and stress states near the contact surface are seriously affected by the mechanical properties of the contact media used and the lubricant or the contact pressure on the contact surface Hence the theoretical slip-line fields are fairly different from the fields obtained from actual experiments The actual slip-line fields are easily constructed, however, by using the isoclinic- fringe pattern obtained from photoviscoplastic model tests using polymers.     

DYNAMIC FRACTURE ANALYSIS OF AGED GLASSY POLYCARBONATE BY THE METHOD OF CAUSTICS

The purpose of this work is to investigate the dynamic fracture properties of glassy polycarbonate （PC） with different aging times. The optical method of caustics is adopted in which the shadow spot patterns are recorded by a high speed camera during the dynamic fracture process. Then, the dynamic crack propagation, the stress intensity factor （SIF） and the dynamic fracture toughness of aged PC are obtained through an analysis of the characteristic size of caustic pattern. Moreover, by combining with the investigation of the fracture surface and the energy release rate analysis, the influence of aging time on the dynamic fracture behavior is discussed. Results show that the dynamic fracture toughness and critical energy release rate of PC decreases with aging time for short aging times, whereas they have little change or even increase for longer aging times. Therefore, aging modifies the mechanical properties especially the dynamic fracture properties of PC nonlinearly, not linearly as generally thought of.     

The warping functions of regular prismatic bars under torsion evaluated by caustics

Reflection of a bundle of coherent light on the warped cross section of a prismatic bar submitted to torsion forms a caustic on a receiver plane. From the mathematical expression of this curve and the theory of reflected caustics, it is possible to evaluate accurately the warping function of the cross section. Using this idea, it was possible to study the torsion problem in prismatic bars with sections which were equilateral triangles and squares. It was observed that the shape of the caustic is an hypocycloid curve with three or four cusps respectively. By evaluating the warping function by using elements from the respective caustics it was possible to find out that, for the triangular cross section, the expression for the warping function coincided exactly with the expression given by the exact solution of the problem. For the square cross section, a closed-form solution for its warping function was readily derived, to which the series approximation solution differed only by a few percent at maximum for the shear stresses. Since the method can be readily extended to any canonical polygonic cross section, it constitutes a general solution for the torsion of prismatic bars, which approximates their exact deformations better than the solutions based on the Saint-Vénant assumptions.     

Stress singularities at concentrated loads

The stress singularity created by a concentrated load applied at the boundary of a half-plane was studied by transforming it into an optical singularity by the optical method of caustics. The half-plane was considered to be elastic, isotropic and under generalized plane-stress conditions. According to the method of caustics, the light rays impinging normally at the thin plate are partly reflected from either the front or the rear faces of the plate. The reflected rays are deviated because of the important constraint of the plate at the vicinity of the applied load and the significant variation of the refractive index there. The deviated light rays, when projected on a reference screen, are concentrated along a singular curve which is, therefore, strongly illuminated and forms a caustic. It is shown that the shape and size of the caustic depends on the stress singularity at the point of application of the load. Thus, by measuring the dimensions of this singular curve, one can evaluate the state of stress at the singularity. The characteristic properties of the caustic created by such a singularity were studied in relation with the loading mode of the plate.     

The effects of surface topography on the method of caustics

An investigation was performed to establish the effects of surface topography on the determination of stress intensity factors of opaque components using the method of caustics. Theoretical predictions of caustics produced by curved surfaces were generated and validated by experiment. The errors introduced for stress intensity factors determined at various radii of curvature were assessed. It was found that relatively small surface curvatures caused significant errors in the stress intensity factor. These errors were affected by the initial radius, load and material properties.     

轴对称一维六方准晶圆柱的精化理论

将轴对称圆柱的精化分析推广到一维六方准晶中轴对称圆柱的研究当中。利用准调和函数的Bessel算子函数表示以及一维六方准晶中的通解,在不做任何预先假设的情况下,给出了一维六方准晶中轴对称圆柱的精化理论。首先,根据准调和函数的Bessel算子函数表示,利用三个一维待定函数,表示出声子场和相位子场的位移场和应力分量。再根据非齐次边界条件,推导出柱面受径向外载时的精化方程。通过舍弃高阶项,推导出了在径向方向受到柱面载荷的近似解。     

Generalized stress/strain rate relations for creep of thin shells; a comparison of “exact” and approximate relations

A set of approximate generalized stress/strain rate relations which has been used for the stationary creep analysis of thin shells is compared with the corresponding ‘exact’ relations. The comparison is made by computing the functions from which the relations are derived and plotting the corresponding surfaces. Results are included for a limiting condition in which the stress/strain rate relations become those for a rigid-plastic material obeying the von Mises yield condition and associated flow rule. Although the comparison is made only for conditions valid in a cylindrical shell under rotationally symmetric loading, it indicates the errors which are likely to occur when the approximate relations are used in stationary creep analysis.     

Caustics of nonlinear waves

The behavior at caustics is analyzed for weakly nonlinear wave solutions of hyperbolic equations. It is shown that short waves, weak enough to be governed by linear or weakly nonlinear geometrical optics away from caustics, are governed by linear theory at and near caustics. For somewhat stronger waves, for which linear theory does not suffice at caustics, a weakly nonlinear caustic theory is developed. It leads to an equation derived by Guiraud, Hayes, and Seebass for gas dynamics.     

Compression analysis of rectangular elastic layers bonded between rigid plates

An elastic layer bonded between two rigid plates has higher compression stiffness than the elastic layer without bonding. While the finite element method can be applied to calculate the stiffness, the compression stiffness of bonded rectangular layers derived through a theoretical approach in this paper provides a convenient way for parametric study. Based on two kinematics assumptions, the governing equation for the mean pressure is derived from the equilibrium equations. Using the approximate shear boundary condition, the mean pressure is solved and the compression stiffness of the bonded rectangular layer is then established in an explicit single-series form. Through the solved pressure, the horizontal displacements are derived from the corresponding equilibrium equations, from which the shear stress on the bonding surface can be found. It is found that the effect of the rectangular aspect on the compression stiffness is significant only when Poisson’s ratio is near 0.5. For the smaller Poisson’s ratio, the compression stiffness of the rectangular layer can be approximated by the formula for the infinite-strip layer of the same shape factor.     

Compressibility effects on waves in stratified two-phase flow

Ardron (1980) presented both one-dimensional and two-dimensional analyses of wave propagation in horizontal stratified two-phase flow. He compared the two approaches and concluded that the comparison helped to improve confidence in the use of one-dimensional approximations for the analysis of complex systems such as nuclear reactors.There are several assumptions in Ardron's developments. When alternative assumptions are made the results change. By examining the consequences of several possible assumptions we have learned from this example that considerable care may be necessary in the reduction of a multi-dimensional two-phase flow problem to a simpler form.This paper presents a more complete two-dimensional solution of this problem and discusses the limitations of the approximate solutions.