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A central crack element in fracture mechanics

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Abstract

Crack tip elements integrated with finite element methods are commonly used to determine the two-dimensional crack tip stress fields in fracture mechanics. In this paper a new element is presented which leads to highly accurate and economical solutions. This central crack element is arbitrary in shape, contains the entire crack and treats mixed mode fields. Numerical examples are presented where this element was used in conjunction with the global-local finite element method to illustrate the accuracy and efficiency of the central crack element.

Résumé

Un réseau d'éléments situés à la pointe d'une fissure est souvent utilisé dans les méthodes par élément fini pour déterminer les champs de contraintes à deux dimensions à la pointe d'une fissure et leur influence sur la mécanique de la rupture. Dans ce mémoire, on présente une configuration nouvelle qui conduit à des solutions de haute précision et dont le traitement est très économique. L'élément central par rapport à la fissure présente une forme arbitraire, contient l'ensemble de la fissure et est relatif à des champs de mode mixte. On présente des exemples numériques où cet élément est utilisé en association avec une méthode par éléments finis globale-locale en vue d'illustrer la précision et l'efficacité de l'élément central présenté.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Mechanics and Structures Department, School of Engineering and Applied Science, University of California, 90024, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    L. G. Bradford, S. B. Dong, D. A. C. Nicol & R. A. Westmann

Authors
  1. L. G. Bradford
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  2. S. B. Dong
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  3. D. A. C. Nicol
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  4. R. A. Westmann
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Bradford, L.G., Dong, S.B., Nicol, D.A.C. et al. A central crack element in fracture mechanics. Int J Fract 24, 197–207 (1984). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00032683

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00032683

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