Exact closed-form solutions for the static analysis of multi-cracked gradient-elastic beams in bending

Cracks and other forms of concentrated damage can significantly affect the performance of slender beams under static and dynamic loads. The computational model for such defects often consists of a localised reduction in the flexural stiffness, which is macroscopically equivalent to a beam where the undamaged parts are hinged at the position of the crack, with a rotational spring taking into account the residual stiffness (“discrete spring” model). It has been recently demonstrated that this model is equivalent to an inhomogeneous Euler–Bernoulli beam in which a Dirac’s delta is added to the bending flexibility at the position of each damage (“flexibility crack” model). Since these models concentrate the increased curvature at a single abscissa, a jump discontinuity appears in the field of rotations. This study presents an improved representation of cracked slender beams, based on a general class of gradient elasticity with both stress and strain gradient, which allows smoothing the singularities in the flexibility crack model. Exact closed-form solutions are derived for the static response of slender gradient-elastic beams in flexure with multiple cracks, and the numerical examples demonstrate the effects of the nonlocal mechanical parameters (i.e. length scales of the gradient elasticity) in this context.