A new boundary element approach of modeling singular stress fields of plane V-notch problems

In this paper, a new boundary element (BE) approach is proposed to determine the singular stress field in plane V-notch structures. The method is based on an asymptotic expansion of the stresses in a small region around a notch tip and application of the conventional BE in the remaining region of the structure. The evaluation of stress singularities at a notch tip is transformed into an eigenvalue problem of ordinary differential equations that is solved by the interpolating matrix method in order to obtain singularity orders (degrees) and associated eigen-functions of the V-notch. The combination of the eigen-analysis for the small region and the conventional BE analysis for the remaining part of the structure results in both the singular stress field near the notch tip and the notch stress intensity factors (SIFs).Examples are given for V-notch plates made of isotropic materials. Comparisons and parametric studies on stresses and notch SIFs are carried out for various V-notch plates. The studies show that the new approach is accurate and effective in simulating singular stress fields in V-notch/crack structures.     

A domain-independent integral for computation of stress intensity factors along three-dimensional crack fronts and edges by BEM

The present work deals with an evaluation of stress intensity factors (SIFs) along straight crack fronts and edges in three-dimensional isotropic elastic solids. A new numerical approach is developed for extraction, from a solution obtained by the boundary element method (BEM), of those SIFs, which are relevant for a failure assessment of mechanical components. In particular, the generalized SIFs associated to eigensolutions characterized by unbounded stresses at a neighbourhood of the crack front or a reentrant edge and also that associated to T-stress at the crack front can be extracted. The method introduced is based on a conservation integral, called H-integral, which leads to a new domain-independent integral represented by a scalar product of the SIF times some element shape function defined along the crack front or edge. For sufficiently small element lengths these weighted averages of SIFs give reasonable pointwise estimation of the SIFs. A proof of the domain integral independency, based on the bi-orthogonality of the classical two-dimensional eigensolutions associated to a corner problem, is presented. Numerical solutions of two three-dimensional problems, a crack problem and a reentrant edge problem, are presented, the accuracy and convergence of the new approach for SIF extraction being analysed.     

Stress intensity factor analysis of a three-dimensional interfacial corner between anisotropic bimaterials under thermal stress

A numerical method using a path-independent H-integral based on the conservation integral was developed to analyze the singular stress field of a three-dimensional interfacial corner between anisotropic bimaterials under thermal stress. In the present method, the shape of the corner front is smooth. According to the theory of linear elasticity, asymptotic stress near the tip of a sharp interfacial corner is generally singular as a result of a mismatch of the materials’ elastic constants. The eigenvalues and the eigenfunctions are obtained using the Williams eigenfunction method, which depends on the anisotropic materials’ properties and the geometry of an interfacial corner. The order of the singularity related to the eigenvalue is real, complex or power-logarithmic. The amplitudes of the singular stress terms can be calculated using the H-integral. The stress and displacement around an interfacial corner for the H-integral are obtained using finite element analysis. In this study, a proposed definition of the stress intensity factors of an interfacial corner, which includes those of an interfacial crack and a homogeneous crack, is used to evaluate the singular stress fields. Asymptotic solutions of stress and displacement around an interfacial corner front are uniquely obtained using these stress intensity factors. To prove the accuracy of the present method, several different kinds of examples are shown such as interfacial corners or cracks in three-dimensional structures.     

Calculation of Notch H-Integrals Using Image Correlation Experiments

This study evaluated notch H-integrals as well as stress intensity factors (SIFs) using image-correlation experiments for anisotropic materials. First, complex displacement and stress functions are deduced into an H-integral equation. Displacements and stresses from image-correlation experiments are then substituted into the H-integral equation to evaluate the notch SIFs. Experimental results compared with finite element analyses show that the SIFs evaluated using the current method are acceptably accurate.     

Rectangular tensile sheet with a center notch root crack

This paper deals with the rectangular tensile sheet with a center notch crack. Such a crack problem is called a center notch crack problem for short. By using a hybrid displacement discontinuity method (a boundary element method) proposed recently by Yan, two center notch models are analyzed in detail. By changing the geometrical forms and parameters of the center notch, and by comparing the SIFs of the center notch crack problem with those of the center cracked plate tension specimen (CCT), which is a model frequently used in fracture mechanics, the effect of the geometrical forms and parameters of the center notch on the stress intensity factors (SIFs) of the center cracked plate tension specimen, is revealed. Some geometric characterestic parameters are introduced here, which are used to formulate the notch length and the branch crack length, which are to be determined in mechanical machining of the center cracked plate tension specimen. So we can say that the geometric characterestic parameters and the formulae used to determine the notch length and the branch crack length presented in this paper perhaps have some guidance role for mechanical machining of the center cracked plate tension specimen. In addition, the numerical investigation proves that the conventional angular notched specimen is much less sensitive to the size of notch than is the circular notched specimen.     

Arbitrarily oriented crack near interface in piezoelectric bimaterials

Arbitrarily oriented crack near interface in piezoelectric bimaterials is considered. After deriving the fundamental solution for an edge dislocation near the interface, the present problem can be expressed as a system of singular integral equations by modeling the crack as continuously distributed edge dislocations. In the paper, the dislocations are described by a density function defined on the crack line. By solving the singular integral equations numerically, the dislocation density function is determined. Then, the stress intensity factors (SIFs) and the electric displacement intensity factor (EDIF) at the crack tips are evaluated. Subsequently, the influences of the interface on crack tip SIFs, EDIF, and the mechanical strain energy release rate (MSERR) are investigated. The J-integral analysis in piezoelectric bimaterals is also performed. It is found that the path-independent of J₁-integral and the path-dependent of J₂-integral found in no-piezoelectric bimaterials are still valid in piezoelectric bimaterials.     

Fracture investigation at V-notch tip using coherent gradient sensing (CGS)

Local deformation field and fracture characterization of mode I V-notch tip are studied using coherent gradient sensing (CGS). First, the governing equations that relate to the CGS measurements and the elastic solution at mode I V-notch tip are derived in terms of the stress intensity factor, material constant, notch angle and fringe order. Then, a series of CGS fringe patterns of mode I V-notch are simulated, and the effects of the notch angle on the shape and size of CGS fringe pattern are analyzed. Finally, the local deformation field and fracture characterization of mode I V-notch tip with different V-notch angles are experimentally investigated using three-point-bending specimen via CGS method. The CGS interference fringe patterns obtained from experiments and simulations show a good agreement. The stress intensity factor obtained from CGS measurements shows a good agreement with finite element results under K-dominant assumption.     

A hybrid analytical–numerical solution for 3D notched plates

This study used a hybrid analytical and numerical method to analyze three-dimensional (3D) elastic bodies with sharp-V notches. The proposed method separates the 3D equilibrium equation into primary and shadow parts, where the solution of the primary part is the analytical solution under the generalized plane-strain theory, and the shadow part is solved numerically using a weak form based on the finite element theory. A least-squares method is then used to find the multiplication factors of these primary and shadow modes using 3D finite element results. Numerical simulations indicate that the proposed method can accurately simulate the singularities near a sharp V-notch. The major advantage of this method is that a 3D whole displacement field with the singular effect based on the theoretical solution near the notch can be obtained for anisotropic materials under arbitrary loads.     

A general framework for identification of hyper-elastic membranes with moiré techniques and multi-point simulated annealing

This paper presents a hybrid procedure for mechanical characterization of hyper-elastic materials based on moiré, finite element analysis and global optimization. The characterization process is absolutely general because does not require any assumption on specimen geometry, loading or/and boundary conditions.The novel experimental approach followed in this research relies on a proper combination of intrinsic moiré and projection moiré which allows 3D displacement components to be measured simultaneously and independently using always the same experimental setup and just one single camera. In order to properly compare experimental data and finite element predictions, 3D displacement information encoded in moiré patterns which are relative to the deformed configuration taken by the specimen are expressed in the reference system of the unloaded state.A global optimization algorithm based on multi-level and multi-point simulated annealing which keeps memory of all best records generated in the optimization is used in order to find the unknown material properties through the minimization of the Ω functional built by summing over the differences between displacements measured experimentally and those predicted numerically.Feasibility, efficiency and robustness of the proposed methodology are demonstrated for both isotropic and anisotropic specimens subject to increasing pressure loads: a natural rubber membrane and a glutaraldehyde treated bovine pericardium patch, respectively. Remarkably, the results of the characterization process are in very good agreement with target data independently determined. For the isotropic specimen, the maximum error on hyper-elastic constants is less than 1% and the residual error on displacements is less than 3.5%. For the anisotropic specimen, the maximum error on material properties is about 3.5% while the residual error on displacements is less than 3%. The identification process fails or becomes less reliable if “local” displacement values are considered.     

Computing lower and upper bounds on stress intensity factors in bimaterials

This paper presents a finite element approach for finding complementary bounds of stress intensity factors (SIFs) in bimaterials. The SIF is formulated as an explicit computable linear function of displacements by means of the two-point extrapolation method. An appropriate and computable form of the SIF plays a crucial role in the dual problem involved in the computing procedure of both lower and upper bounds. In our discussions, computable forms of stress intensity factors, K₀ and K_r, are derived, which are related to the energy release rate, and the ratio of the open mode and shear mode SIFs, respectively. Based on a posteriori finite element error estimation, a bounding procedure is used to compute the bounds on the two stress intensity factors. Finally, bounds on the SIFs in a bimaterial interface crack problem are provided to verify the procedure.     

截面含切口圆柱体自由扭转的弹塑性分析

对于截面含切口圆柱体的弹塑性自由扭转问题的分析,可按受力特点分为三个阶段:全弹性阶段、全塑性阶段和弹塑性阶段.每一阶段对应的分析方法不同,其中,在全弹性阶段可以采用有限差分法分析;在全塑性阶段可以按沙堆比拟的方法采用等倾曲面模拟;弹塑性阶段可以结合上述两种方法的结果和思路进行分析.利用差分法可以求出自由扭转截面内各离散点应力函数φ的数值解.本文推导了自由扭转的应力函数φ与J积分之间的关系,得出了自由扭转的应力函数与Ⅲ型裂纹的J积分之间的关系式.数值计算结果验证了本文方法的有效性和精确性.     

A unified definition for stress intensity factors of interface corners and cracks

Based upon linear fracture mechanics, it is well known that the singular order of stresses near the crack tip in homogeneous materials is a constant value −1/2, which is nothing to do with the material properties. For the interface cracks between two dissimilar materials, the near tip stresses are oscillatory due to the order of singularity being −1/2 ± iε and −1/2. The oscillation index ε is a constant related to the elastic properties of both materials. While for the general interface corners, their singular orders depend on the corner angle as well as the elastic properties of the materials. Owing to the difference of the singular orders of homogeneous cracks, interface cracks and interface corners, their associated stress intensity factors are usually defined separately and even not compatibly. Since homogenous cracks and interface cracks are just special cases of interface corners, in order to build a direct connection among them a unified definition for their stress intensity factors is proposed in this paper. Based upon the analytical solutions obtained previously for the multibonded anisotropic wedges, the near tip solutions for the general interface corners have been divided into five different categories depending on whether the singular order is distinct or repeated, real or complex. To provide a stable and efficient computing approach for the general mixed-mode stress intensity factors, the path-independent H-integral based on reciprocal theorem of Betti and Rayleigh is established in this paper. The complementary solutions needed for calculation of H-integral are also provided in this paper. To illustrate our results, several different kinds of examples are shown such as cracks in homogenous isotropic or anisotropic materials, central or edge notches in isotropic materials, interface cracks and interface corners between two dissimilar materials.     

压电切口张开角和深度对其尖端力电损伤场的影响

基于三维各向异性压电损伤本构理论,导出了广义平面应力问题的损伤本构方程,并据此分析了压电薄板板边V形切口尖端附近的力电损伤,研究了切口张开角和深度对切口尖端力电损伤的影响规律．结果发现：和张开角对切口尖端损伤的影响相比,深度的影响更为明显;在张开角对切口尖端力损伤的影响规律方面,压电材料与一般弹塑性材料存在明显差异,原因在于压电切口尖端力电载荷比会随着深度的改变发生很大变化;不同深度下张开角与切口尖端力、电损伤关系曲线随着张开角的增大由发散逐渐会聚,不同张开角下深度与切口尖端力、电损伤关系曲线随着切口加深由会聚逐渐发散,并且电损伤曲线表现得更为明显．     

Evaluation of stress intensity factors for bi-material interface cracks using displacement jump methods

The aim of the present work is to investigate the numerical modeling of interfacial cracks that may appear at the interface between two isotropic elastic materials. The extended finite element method is employed to analyze brittle and bi-material interfacial fatigue crack growth by computing the mixed mode stress intensity factors (SIF). Three different approaches are introduced to compute the SIFs. In the first one, mixed mode SIF is deduced from the computation of the contour integral as per the classical J-integral method, whereas a displacement method is used to evaluate the SIF by using either one or two displacement jumps located along the crack path in the second and third approaches. The displacement jump method is rather classical for mono-materials, but has to our knowledge not been used up to now for a bi-material. Hence, use of displacement jump for characterizing bi-material cracks constitutes the main contribution of the present study. Several benchmark tests including parametric studies are performed to show the effectiveness of these computational methodologies for SIF considering static and fatigue problems of bi-material structures. It is found that results based on the displacement jump methods are in a very good agreement with those of exact solutions, such as for the J-integral method, but with a larger domain of applicability and a better numerical efficiency (less time consuming and less spurious boundary effect).     

In Plane Displacement Formulation for Finite Cracked Plates Under Mode I Using Grid Method and Finite Element Analysis

A grid method is used to experimentally determine the in-plane displacement fields around a crack tip in a Single-Edge-Notch (SEN) tensile polyurethane specimen. Horizontal displacement u _x-exp and vertical displacement u _y-exp are expressed as functions of circular coordinates centred on the crack tip. These are compared with the approximate solutions of linear elastic fracture mechanics with a view to studying the applicability to polymers. The results show that this solution is not in agreement with the experiments at the focused on the vicinity of a crack tip. Taking this into account, an FEA program is developed with CAST3M for the purpose of comparing the experimental displacements and the numerical data. New formulations of displacements u _x and u _y are then developed. These formulations are derived from the principle of superposition and based on Arakawa’s formulation. With the displacement gradients obtained from the FEA and the new formulations, the determination of J-integrals is found to be in very good agreement with those derived from numerical calculation. Consequently, the proposed formulations can give displacement fields compatible with the J-integral calculation for the region near the crack tip. An application based on an experimental test is proposed to evaluate the performances of the proposed formulations.     

Extraction of cohesive-zone laws from elastic far-fields of a cohesive crack tip: a field projection method

A solution method of an inverse problem is developed to extract cohesive-zone laws from elastic far-fields surrounding a crack-tip cohesive zone. The solution method is named the “field projection method (FPM).” In the process of developing the method a general form of cohesive-crack-tip fields is obtained and used for eigenfunction expansions of the plane elastic field in a complex variable representation. The closing tractions and the separation-gradients at the cohesive zone are expressed in terms of orthogonal polynomial series expansions of the general-form complex functions. The series expansion forms a set of cohesive-crack-tip eigenfunctions, which is complete and orthogonal in the sense of the interaction J-integral in the far field as well as at the cohesive-zone faces. The coefficients of the eigenfunctions in the J-orthogonal representation are extracted directly, using interaction J-integrals in the far field between the physical field of interest and auxiliary probing fields. The path-independence of the interaction J-integral enables us to identify the cohesive-zone variables, i.e. tractions and separations, and thus the cohesive-zone constitutive laws uniquely from the far-field data. A set of numerical algorithms is developed for the inversion method and the results from numerical experiments suggest that the proposed algorithms are well suited for extracting cohesive-zone laws from the far-field data. The set includes methods to find the position and size of a cohesive zone. Further included are discussions on error analysis and stability of the inversion scheme.     

COMPUTATION OF STRESS INTENSITY FACTORS BY THE SUB-REGION MIXED FINITE ELEMENT METHOD OF LINES

Based on the sub-region generalized variational principle,a sub-region mixed ver- sion of the newly-developed semi-analytical‘finite element method of lines’(FEMOL)is pro- posed in this paper for accurate and efficient computation of stress intensity factors(SIFs)of two-dimensional notches/cracks.The circular regions surrounding notch/crack tips are taken as the complementary energy region in which a number of leading terms of singular solutions for stresses are used,with the sought SIFs being among the unknown coefficients.The rest of the arbitrary domain is taken as the potential energy region in which FEMOL is applied to obtain approximate displacements.A mixed system of ordinary differential equations(ODEs) and al- gebraic equations is derived via the sub-region generalized variational principle.A singularity removal technique that eliminates the stress parameters from the mixed equation system even- tually yields a standard FEMOL ODE system,the solution of which is no longer singular and is simply and efficiently obtained using a standard general-purpose ODE solver.A number of numerical examples,including bi-material notches/cracks in anti-plane and plane elasticity,are given to show the generally excellent performance of the proposed method.     

Influence of nonlinearities on the accuracy of the analytical solution for the shaft loaded blister test

Finite element analysis (FEA) is employed to study the effects of nonlinearities on the accuracy of the analytical solution for the shaft loaded blister test. The FEA model was validated using constrained blister test measurements showing a good correlation between the experimental and the FEA data. The analytical solution is then compared with the energy release rate obtained from J-integral evaluation in the FEA. For small and large shaft displacements deviations larger than 20% are encountered which is explained with the violation of the membrane limit condition and the onset of plasticity for larger displacements, respectively. Simplifications of the analytical solution are discussed using a random sampling method and it is shown that the thickness ratio between film and substrate can be neglected for thin films on rigid substrates. Further, values for the angular quantity, ω, which is required to calculate the mode mix phase angle are tabulated for the case of thin, elastic films on stiff substrates using a crack surface opening displacement extrapolation method.