Abstract
As a fatigue crack grows, its shape changes. The shape of the growing crack can be affected by the initial crack shape, the load type and the fatigue crack growth rate of the material. Existing methods to predict the shape of the growing crack include finite element simulation techniques, which typically require the computation of several hundred increments to get accurate results. This paper describes a new technique that uses growth circles to model the growing crack. Since the circles are perpendicular to the current crack front as well as to the new crack front, it represents the real path of the fatigue crack well and yields more accurate results. The new technique is to be applied to the case of a surface crack in a thick plate under tension or bending. The effects of the Paris-Erdogan exponent are also investigated.
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Recommended by Associate Editor Youngseog Lee
Cong Hao Liu is currently a Ph.D. candidate in the School of Mechanical Engineering of the University of Ulsan, Korea; he began a combined M.S./Ph.D. program in 2009. His research interests include the fields of fracture and fatigue analysis, and finite element modeling and design, as well as vehicle-related fields.
Seok Jae Chu is a professor in the School of Mechanical Engineering of the University of Ulsan. He earned a bachelor’s degree from the Department of Mechanical Engineering of Seoul National University in 1979. He earned a master’s degree from KAIST in 1981 and a Ph.D. from KAIST in 1990.
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Liu, C.H., Chu, S.J. Prediction of shape change of semi-elliptical surface crack by fatigue crack growth circles parameter. J Mech Sci Technol 28, 4921–4928 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12206-014-1111-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12206-014-1111-5