Fractographic study of macrocrack propagation in oriented Kapron

The fracture surface of an oriented Kapron monofilament has been studied at electron-microscope and optical magnifications with the object of establishing the details of the micromechanism of crack propagation associated with the fracture of polymeric materials. Microparabolic figures can be observed in the specular zone of the fracture surface. This relief may be assumed to originate in the interaction of the main crack and the submicroscopic cracks present in loaded polymers. In the region of high main-crack velocities it is possible to observe a self-oscillatory motion of the tip of the main crack leading to the formation on the fracture surface of a system of bands parallel to the main crack front.Ioffe Physicotechnical Institute, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Leningrad. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 4, pp. 645–648, July–August, 1971.     

Micromechanics of polymer fracture

Small-angle x-ray scattering has been used to investigate the formation of embryonic submicroscopic cracks in polymers under a load. The main characteristics of crack formation in various loading regimes are analyzed. It is shown that there is a relation between the submicrocrack concentration and the deformation of the loaded polymer. The principal parameters of crack formation determining the strength properties of the polymer are found to be the transverse dimension of the initial submicrocracks relative to the loading axis, which is determined by the structural heterogeneity of the material, and the submicrocrack concentration in the prefracture state. The principles of the micromechanics of polymer fracture are formulated on the basis of the results of an analysis of the quantitative relationship between these parameters. The dominant role of the surface in the fracture process is demonstrated by comparing the parameters of crack formation in the interior and at the surface of the loaded polymer.A. F. Ioffe Physicotechnical Institute, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Leningrad. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 5, pp. 792–801, September–October, 1974.     

Experimental study of fracture toughness and energy in composite materials

The paper presents an experimental investigation of fracture characteristics of composite materials. The post-peak response of the load-crack opening displacement of notched specimens is used to evaluate the fracture energy associated with progressive matrix damage and crack growth. Effects of fiber orientation and other geometric characteristics on fracture parameters are studied. The load versus crack opening displacement as well as crack length, fracture toughness, and energy versus the number of loading cycles are obtained for different specimens. Based on the experimental results of this study, concepts of the fracture mechanics are applied to evaluate the evolution of fracture toughness and energy.Presented at the 10th International Conference on the Mechanics of Composite Materials (Riga, April 20–23, 1998).Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, R3T 2N2. Published in Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 34, No. 3, pp. 323–332, May–June, 1998.     

Supersonic crack propagation in blocks of polymethyl methacrylate

It is shown that a giant laser pulse can cause supersonic crack propagation in PMMA. The results of the experiments and a microstructural analysis of the fracture surface are presented. A study of the microstructure shows that supersonic crack propagation is associated with the propagation of a shock wave in the focal region.Institute of Problems of Mechanics, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Moscow. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 6, pp. 1027–1029, November–December, 1971.     

Conditions of the ductile-brittle transition in failure of polymer materials

Conclusions The polymer materials are characterized by the transition from ductile to brittle fracture with increasing loading rate and decreasing temperature. The brittle fracture susceptibility of the material can be determined on the basis of the critical size of the defect/ crack. The measure of the cracking resistance of plastics can often be represented by the material scale of the crack length. The quality of the critical size of the defect/crack to the material scale of the crack length can be used as a criterion determining the conditions of transition from ductile to brittle fracture.Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, No. 5, pp. 779–785, September–October, 1988.     

Fracture toughness characteristics of laminated composites

Parameters characterizing the resistance of laminated composites to interlaminar fracture are discussed. The properties of the specific interlaminar fracture work, i.e., the amount of work spent on the formation of a unit of new surface of interlaminar crack, were examined. Taking account of the anisotropy of the material, this work may be characterized using a matrix. Upon change in the direction of crack growth, the matrix elements are transformed similarly to the components of a symmetrical second rank tensor. An interpretation is offered for the matrix elements. The proposed theoretical model was in accord with our experimental results.Moscow Engineering Institute. Technical University, Russia. Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, No. 1, pp. 21–31, January–February, 1996.     

Effect of temperature on the fracture surfaces of filled systems based on SKS-85 butadiene-styrene copolymer

The tear fracture surfaces of mixtures of SKS-85 butadiene — styrene copolymer (85% styrene) with ordinary (carbon black, chalk) and polymeric (Kapron and cellophane powder) fillers have been investigated on the interval from –60 to +40°C. As the temperature varies within the limits of the glassy state (T_g SKS-85=+24°C) of the filled polymer, the nature of the fracture surface of specimens of filled mixtures, like that of the unfilled polymer, changes; in the region of the temperature transition of the copolymer associated with the mobility of the phenyl groups (–10±5°C) there is a slowing of the fracture process. At temperatures below the T_g of the copolymer the tear fracture surfaces of specimens of mixtures containing ordinary and polymeric fillers differ sharply. The introduction of fillers (20 vol. %) with a coefficient of thermal expansion different from that of the filled polymer considerably reduces the resistance of the material to fracture and leads to a sharp increase in the rate of crack propagation; the introduction of polymeric fillers with coefficients of thermal expansion similar to that of the filled polymer leads to an increase in the resistance of the material to fracture and to a decrease in the rate of crack propagation.Moscow Technological Institute of the Meat and Dairy Industry; State Institute of Polymer Adhesives, Kirovakan. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 5, pp. 819–826, September–October, 1969.     

On the fracture mechanism in filled rubbers

Possible fracture mechanisms in filled rubbers are examined in the light of the adhesion theory of elastomer reinforcement. The cases of rubbers containing inactive fillers, when the crack grows along the elastomer-filler boundary, and rubbers containing active fillers, when the crack propagates through the polymer, are considered. The effect of the presence of chains of filler particles on the fracture mechanism is examined.Lomonosov Moscow Institute of Fine Chemical Technology. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, Vol. 5, No. 1, pp. 127–133, January–February, 1969.     

Effect of temperature on the nature of the tear surface of styrene polymers

The tear surfaces of polystyrene and SKS-85 butadiene-styrene copolymer (85% styrene) have been investigated at temperatures from –45 to +100°C and from –60 to +40°C, respectively. The fracture surface of these polymers changes not only on transition from the glassy to the high-elastic state, but also within the glassy state itself, changes being observed both in the relative extent of the individual zones contributing to the fracture surface and in the nature of those zones. Changes in the nature of the fracture surface associated with a slowing of the fracture process occur at 0 and 40°C in the case of polystyrene and at –10°C in the case of copolymer SKS-85 and are attributable to secondary transitions in the polymers.Moscow Technological Institute of the Meat and Dairy Industry. State Institute of Polymer Adhesives, Kirovakan. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, Vol. 5, No. 2, pp. 257–264, March–April, 1969.     

Investigation of the fatigue properties and susceptibility to damage of thin-walled polymer shells

The results of a study of the damage suffered by thin-walled polymer shells are evaluated on the basis of an analysis of the process of crack formation and the variation of the modulus of elasticity under cyclic deformation. The process of fatigue failure has been studied in relation to shells made of three groups of polymeric materials. It is shown that for the polymers investigated there are at least two different fatigue fracture mechanisms. Data on the crack growth kinetics are presented.Plastopolimer Research and Production Association, Leningrad; Lensovet Leningrad Technological Institute. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 6, pp. 1019–1026, November–December, 1971.     

Origin and spectral composition of the luminescence associated with the fatigure fracture of polymers

The nature of the luminescence associated with the fatigue fracture of polymers, accompanied by intense cracking, and with the growth of an artificial crack has been subjected to analysis. As a result of a comparison of the spectral composition of the luminescence associated with fracture with that of the luminescence produced by other modes of excitation it is concluded that the emission is chiefly attributable to gas-discharge phenomena.Institute of Chemical Physics, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Moscow. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 3, pp. 515–518, May–June, 1972.     

Molecular destruction of polymers at the apex of a major crack

We employed infrared spectroscopy and infrared spectroscopy of deflected total internal reflection to study the rupture of polymer macromolecular chains (polyethylene and polypropylene) at the apex of a growing crack. It was shown that the break concentration at the crack surface is of the same order of magnitude as the total concentration of chemical bonds in the polymer; molecular rupture occurs not only at the apex itself but also at some distance from it. The dependence of the break concentration on the distance from the crack apex was measured. The observed patterns were related to the experimentally determined external-load distribution function for individual chemical bonds near the crack apex.I. F. Ioffe Physicotechnical Institute, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Leningrad. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 4, pp. 621–625, July–August, 1972.     

Analysis of fracture surfaces in polymethyl methacrylate tested in bending with rotation

Typical fracture surfaces are examined for polymethyl methacrylate specimens subjected to multicycle fatigue testing in circular cantilever bending at T=20, 40, and 60°C. It is established that the fatigue life of smooth specimens is very closely correlated with the size of the diffuse fracture zone. The kinetics of damage accumulation with increase in the number of cycles are investigated by rapidly fracturing prefatigued specimens. The decisive role of diffuse fracture in the fatigue-fracture process is demonstrated. A method of estimating the mean main crack propagation velocity in circular bending is described.Institute of Polymer Mechanics, Academy of Sciences of the Latvian SSR, Riga. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 6, pp. 984–990, November–December, 1973.     

Effect of biaxial orientation on the fracture kinetics of polymethyl methacrylate

Biaxially oriented PMM is shown to have important advantages as a structural material over unoriented PMM owing to a difference in fracture kinetics. Under identical conditions primary cracks appear later in the oriented PMM, their growth is impeded, and the rate of crack propagation in the avalanche stage of failure is much lower. This accounts for the greater resistance of biaxially oriented PMM to stress raisers and its higher fracture energy under biaxial loading.All-Union Scientific-Research Institute of Aviation Materials, Moscow. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, Vol. 5, No. 2, pp. 274–281, March–April, 1969.     

Dynamic loading of layered composite beams with damage of delamination type

Failure of composite beams containing initial delamination is investigated under low-speed impact by a dropping weight. Bolotin's theory of dynamic failure (1992) is used. The start and stop time of growth of a nonsymmetric delamination crack is studied. It is found that the initial extension starts and subsequently continues at the crack tip, which is located closer to the impact point. Then extension is observed on the second crack tip, and finally a synchronous growth of delamination occurs at both crack tips. With constant impact energy, the final size of delamination does not depend on its initial size. The start and stop time of delamination growth increases as the initial defect approaches the beam surface.Presented at the 10th International Conference on the Mechanics of Composite Materials (Riga, April 20–23, 1998).Moscow Power Engineering Institute, Technical University, Russia. Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 34, No. 6, pp. 787–794, November–December, 1998.     

Electron-fractographic investigation of the brittle fracture of polyethylene

The results are presented of an electron-microscope investigation of the brittle fracture of linear polyethylene at the temperature of liquid nitrogen. It is shown that the physical nature of the structural details of the microrelief of the fracture surface is conditioned by local plastic deformation of the stratified lamellar structures in a thin layer adjacent to the fracture surface preceding and accompanying fracture. The possibility of local self-heating is discussed and a possible mechanism of plastic deformation of the crystal platelets at low temperatures is proposed.Mekhanika Polimerov, Vol. 3, No. 2, pp. 286–290, 1967     

Electron diffraction investigation of the fracture surfaces of filled mixtures of SKS-85 butadiene-styrene copolymer

As the result of an electron microscope study of replicas from the fracture surface during the disintegration of samples of mixtures of SKS-85 butadiene-styrene copolymer with 20 vol.% DG-100 carbon black and chalk, in the temperature range from +60 to –60°C, it is shown that, in the region of vitrification of the copolymer and of the loss of the reinforcing effect of the carbon black, there is a sharp change in the character of the fracture micro-surface, and the particles of carbon black become the sites of additional fracture. In the region of the temperature transition of the copolymer, connected with the mobility of the phenyl groups in the same way as in the vitrification region, there is a sharp decrease in the number of particles of carbon black at the fracture surface, while the fracture surface of a mixture with chalk passes selectively along the contact boundary of a polymer with larger particles. The microstructure of the Wallner lines on the surface of a mixture with carbon black, at Tst, is made up of traces of secondary fracture, arising around the particles of carbon black.Moscow Institute of Technology for the Meat and Dairy Industry. M. V. Lomonosov Institute for the Technology of Fine Chemicals, Moscow. É. L. Ter-Gazaryan State Scientific-Research and Design Institute, Kirovakan. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 3, pp. 437–444, May–June, 1970.     

Concerning the mechanism of fracture of oriented glass-reinforced plastics in uniaxial compression

The mechanism of fracture of an oriented glass-reinforced plastic in uniaxial compression in various directions in the plane of the sheet is considered on the basis of experimental observations of the microstructure and data on the variation of the linear and volume strains with increasing load. It is shown that increases in load are accompanied by a steady increase in crack development and damage accumulation.Leningrad Structural Engineering Institute. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 2, pp. 238–242, March–April, 1971.     

Evolution of the Stress–Strain State of a Three-Dimensional Plate Weakened by a Central Crack under Impulsive Tension

A method is developed to describe the formation of the stress–strain state in the vicinity of the tip of a stationary crack in a three-dimensional plate under dynamic loading. The energy model used to describe the formation of the stress concentration zone around the crack tip is modified to take into account the transient character of the loading process and the influence of the free surfaces of the plate on the stress–strain state of the central part of the sample. The method is useful for describing static and dynamic brittle fracture from a unified point of view.     

Relaxation effects and the nature of damage accumulation in polymethyl methacrylate under static loads

The relation between the size of the specular zone on the fracture surfaces of PMMA specimens and the loading rate is investigated at various temperatures. It is shown that the rate and time dependences of the size of the specular zone have certain common characteristics determined by the kinetic nature of damage accumulation in the material. It is proposed to employ the Robertson method [8] for studying the crack growth kinetics in polymers. This makes it unnecessary to observe the growth of cracks in the specimen during testing.All-Union Correspondence Structural Engineering Institute, Moscow. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 4, pp. 663–669, July–August, 1971.