Stress intensity factors for corner cracks at a hole under remote tension

The three-dimensional weight function method recently developed by the authors is used to determine stress intensity factors for two symmetric quarter-elliptical corner cracks at a hole in a wide finite-thickness plate subjected to remote tensile loading. The geometry parameters considered arer/t=0.5, 1, 2;a/c=0.2, 0.5, 1, 2;a/t=0.2, 0.5 withinc/r=2. The results are compared, where possible, with other solutions available in the literature. Generally good agreement is observed. The effect of an approximation of the two-dimensional unflawed stress distribution on the accuracy of stress intensity factors by the weight function method is discussed.