Growth of an arc-crack in bonded dissimilar materials

The problem of growth of a crack lying along the interface of a circular inclusion embedded in an infinite plate is studied within the framework of linear elasticity. The plate is subjected to a uniform uniaxial stress at infinity at any angle of inclination relatively to the crack. The critical load for unstable crack growth, the angle of initial crack extension and the subsequent crack path are investigated using the strain energy density fracture criterion. The combined effect of crack length and orientation on the fracture stress is considered for the case of an aluminum-epoxy composite.