A numerical model for the nonlinear interaction of elastic waves with cracks

Microstructures such as cracks and microfractures play a significant role in the nonlinear interactions of elastic waves, but the precise mechanism of why and how this works is less clear. Here we simulate wave propagation to understand these mechanisms, complementing existing theoretical and experimental works.We implement two models, one of homogeneous nonlinear elasticity and one of perturbations to cracks, and then use these models to improve our understanding of the relative importance of cracks and intrinsic nonlinearity. We find, by modeling the perturbations in the speed of a low-amplitude P-wave caused by the propagation of a large-amplitude S-wave that the nonlinear interactions of P- and S-waves with cracks are significant when the particle motion is aligned with the normal to the crack face, resulting in a larger magnitude crack dilation. This improves our understanding of the relationship between microstructure orientations and nonlinear wave interactions to allow for better characterization of fractures for analyzing processes including earthquake response, reservoir properties, and non-destructive testing.