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Abstract: A discussion on the conventional creep crack growth parameters, e.g. the experimental C*-integral, C*exp, or the experimental Ct-integral, Ct,ssc, shows that the physical meaning of these parameters for growing cracks in elastic–plastic, creeping materials is not fully clear. Therefore, a comparison is presented in this paper between the conventional creep crack growth parameters, several J-integral related parameters and the crack driving force (CDF), which has been used in linear elastic and elastic–plastic fracture mechanics. The CDF for elastic–plastic, creeping materials is derived from basic thermodynamic principles and by applying the concept of configurational forces (CFs). A comprehensive numerical study is performed where crack propagation is modelled by alternating creep and crack extension steps at constant loads in a compact tension specimen made of the nickel-base superalloy Waspaloy at a temperature of 700 °C. The CDF is evaluated by a CF-based post-processing procedure after a conventional finite element computation. This procedure is applicable for small-scale creep (ssc-), transition creep (tc-) and “moderate” extensive creep (ec-) conditions. For more pronounced ec-conditions, the procedure might have to be adapted. It is shown that C*exp and Ct,ssc reflect the time derivative of the CDF during the creep stages. In contrast, the variations of the CDF coincide well with that of J-values estimated from the crack-tip opening displacement.
Keywords: fracture mechanics, creep crack growth, crack driving force, C*-integral, J-integral, configurational force concept, finite element method
Published in DKUM: 20.03.2025; Views: 0; Downloads: 5
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Abstract: This paper presents a case study, examining the influence of a sharp bimaterial interface on the effective crack driving force in a fracture mechanics specimen. The inhomogeneity of the elastic modulus in linear elasticand non-hardening and hardening elastic-plastic bimaterials is considered. The interface is perpendicular to the crack plane. The material properties and the distance between the crack tip and the interface are systematically varied. The effect of the material inhomogeneity is captured in form of a quantity called "material inhomogeneity term",▫$C_inh$▫. This term can be evaluated either by a simple post-processing procedure, following a conventional finite element stress analysis, or by computing the J-integral along a contour around the interface, ▫$J_int$▫. The effective crack driving force,▫$J_tip$▫, can be determined as the sum of ▫$C_inh$▫ and the nominally applied far-field crack driving force, ▫$J_far$▫. The results show that ▫$C_inh$▫ can be accurately determined by both methods even in cases where ▫$J_tip$▫-values are inaccurate. When a crack approaches a stiff/compliant interface,▫$C_inh$▫ is positive and ▫$J_tip$▫ becomes larger than ▫$J-far$▫. A compliant/stiff transition leads to a negative ▫$C_inh$▫, and ▫J_tip$▫ becomes smaller than ▫$J_far$▫. The material inhomogeneity term, ▫$C_inh$▫, can have the same order of magnitude as ▫$J_far$▫. Based on the numerical results, the dependencies of ▫$C_inh$▫ on the material parameters and the geometry are derived. Simple expressions are obtained to estimate ▫$C_inh$▫.
Keywords: mechanics of structures, fracture toughness, inhomogeneous materials, J-integral, crack driving force, interface, material force
Published in DKUM: 01.06.2012; Views: 1720; Downloads: 35
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