Linear Elastic Fracture Mechanics (linear + elastic_fracture_mechanic)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Transient solution for a plane-strain fracture driven by a shear-thinning, power-law fluid

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FOR NUMERICAL AND ANALYTICAL METHODS IN GEOMECHANICS, Issue 14 2006
D. I. Garagash
Abstract This paper analyses the problem of a fluid-driven fracture propagating in an impermeable, linear elastic rock with finite toughness. The fracture is driven by injection of an incompressible viscous fluid with power-law rheology. The relation between the fracture opening and the internal fluid pressure and the fracture propagation in mobile equilibrium are described by equations of linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM), and the flow of fluid inside the fracture is governed by the lubrication theory. It is shown that for shear-thinning fracturing fluids, the fracture propagation regime evolves in time from the toughness- to the viscosity-dominated regime. In the former, dissipation in the viscous fluid flow is negligible compared to the dissipation in extending the fracture in the rock, and in the later, the opposite holds. Corresponding self-similar asymptotic solutions are given by the zero-viscosity and zero-toughness (J. Numer. Anal. Meth. Geomech. 2002; 26:579,604) solutions, respectively. A transient solution in terms of the crack length, the fracture opening, and the net fluid pressure, which describes the fracture evolution from the early-time (toughness-dominated) to the large-time (viscosity-dominated) asymptote is presented and some of the implications for the practical range of parameters are discussed. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Robust and direct evaluation of J2 in linear elastic fracture mechanics with the X-FEM

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FOR NUMERICAL METHODS IN ENGINEERING, Issue 10 2008
G. Legrain
Abstract The aim of the present paper is to study the accuracy and the robustness of the evaluation of Jk -integrals in linear elastic fracture mechanics using the extended finite element method (X-FEM) approach. X-FEM is a numerical method based on the partition of unity framework that allows the representation of discontinuity surfaces such as cracks, material inclusions or holes without meshing them explicitly. The main focus in this contribution is to compare various approaches for the numerical evaluation of the J2 -integral. These approaches have been proposed in the context of both classical and enriched finite elements. However, their convergence and the robustness have not yet been studied, which are the goals of this contribution. It is shown that the approaches that were used previously within the enriched finite element context do not converge numerically and that this convergence can be recovered with an improved strategy that is proposed in this paper. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Influence of processing conditions and physicochemical interactions on morphology and fracture behavior of a clay/thermoplastic/thermosetting ternary blend

JOURNAL OF APPLIED POLYMER SCIENCE, Issue 6 2010
M. Hernandez
Abstract This study provides information on the mechanical behavior of epoxy-poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA)-clay ternary composites, which have been prepared using the phase separation phenomenon of PMMA and the introduction of organophilic-modified montmorillonites (MMTs), the continuous matrix being the epoxy network. Two dispersion processing methods are used: a melt processing without any solvent and an ultrasonic technique with solvent and a high-speed stirrer. TEM analysis shows that phase separation between PMMA and the epoxy network was obtained in the shape of spherical nodules in the presence of the clay in both process methods used. Nanoclay particles were finely dispersed inside thermosetting matrix predominantly delaminated when ultrasonic blending was used; whereas micrometer-sized aggregates were formed when melt blending was used. The mechanical behavior of the ternary nanocomposites was characterized using three-point bending test, dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), and linear elastic fracture mechanics. The corresponding fracture surfaces were examined by scanning electron microscopy to identify the relevant fracture mechanisms involved. It was evidenced that the better dispersion does not give the highest toughness because ternary nanocomposites obtained by melt blending present the highest fracture parameters (KIc). Some remaining disordered clay tactoids seem necessary to promote some specific toughening mechanisms. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2010 [source]


Fracture and failure behavior of fabric-reinforced all-poly(propylene) composite (Curv®),

POLYMERS FOR ADVANCED TECHNOLOGIES, Issue 2 2007
Gábor Romhány
Abstract The in-plane static fracture of a fabric reinforced all-poly(propylene) (all-PP, Curv®) composite was studied at ambient temperature using the concept of the linear elastic fracture mechanics. The apparent fracture toughness was determined on single-edge notched tensile specimens (SEN-T) considering the maximum load. The related values did not differ much from those determined by the resistance curve (KR) method. The crack growth, requested to construct the KR curves, was traced by the movement in the center of gravity of the cumulative amplitude of the located acoustic emission (AE) events. The quality of consolidation of the all-PP composite was reflected by the force-displacement curve (appearance of pop-in), course of the cumulative AE events during loading, extension and change of the estimated damage zone during fracture. The failure behavior was studied also by fractography and is discussed. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]