A continuum damage-based three-dimensional fracture simulation method for brittle-like materials

Current numerical methods cannot simulate well three-dimensional (3D) fracture process of solids. In order to study 3D fracture process of brittle-like materials and improve crack growth path prediction accuracy, a method is developed based on continuum damage mechanics and finite element method. In the developed method, damage is computed by homogenizing stress or strain in the preset characteristic field for reducing the spurious mesh sensitivity. Meanwhile, an additional procedure is used to consider the unstable and competing fracture process, which can be used to consider stress redistribution due to local damage evolution during the fracture process simulation. In addition, a damage model of concrete is also developed and used to describe material damage. Finally, 3D fracture process of two numerical examples, were simulated and compared with the experimental results by using the developed method. The 3D crack growth path and macroscopic mechanical behaviors can be predicted by the developed method coupled with a damage model. From the comparison, the effectiveness and modeling capability of the developed method are verified, which can be used to study 3D fracture mechanisms of concrete-like materials.

Research on the Behavior and Mechanism of Three-Dimensional Crack Growth under Uniaxial Loading

Most of the cracks in the rock masses are in a three-dimensional (3D) state, and it is always a hot topic to reveal the mechanical mechanism of 3D crack growth. In this paper, the research on the growth behavior of 3D crack is performed through laboratory experiments and numerical simulations. Cement samples with different angles of 3D crack are prepared, and the uniaxial compression experiment is carried out. The results indicate that initiation of preexisting crack with an angle of 45° is easier and shear failure characteristics of corresponding samples are obvious. Through theoretical analysis, the preexisting crack starts to grow at the end of the short axis, along the short axis end to the long axis end of the preexisting crack, the shear effect decreases gradually, and the tearing effect increases gradually. Combined with numerical simulation, the experimental and analysis results are verified, and the preexisting crack growth process is presented. The growth direction of the preexisting crack changes from perpendicular to the crack surface to parallel principal stress direction, and the maximum growth length can reach 1.2 times the minor axis radius of the preexisting crack. The research results can provide an important theoretical basis for revealing the evolution process of the cracks in rock masses.

Application of 3D Fracture Mechanics for Improved Crack Growth Predictions of Gas Turbine Components

Fracture mechanics analysis is essential for demonstrating structural integrity of gas turbine components. Usually, analyses based on simpler 2D stress intensity solutions provide reasonable approximations of crack growth. However, in some cases, simpler 2D solutions are too-conservative and does not provide realistic crack growth predictions; often due to its inability to account for actual 3D geometry, and complex thermal-mechanical stress fields. In such cases, 3D fracture mechanics analysis provides extra fidelity to crack growth predictions due to increased accuracy of the stress intensity factor calculations. Improved fidelity often leads to benefits for gas turbine components by reducing design margins, improving engine efficiency, and decreasing life cycle costs. In this paper, the application of 3D fracture mechanics analysis on a gas turbine blade for predicting crack arrest is presented. A comparison of stress intensity factor values from 3D and 2D analysis is also shown. The 3D crack growth analysis was performed by using FRANC3D in conjunction with ANSYS.

Basic Research on Simulation for 3D Crack Growth by Mesh Free BFM

A new methodology that enables us to compute the arbitrary shaped 3D crack problems is studied. In the present method, it is possible to analyze the 3D crack problems without preparing mesh data as in ordinary boundary elements but with defining a sequence of nodal points representing the crack front and the internal nodal points that define a crack surface as well as a shape function used for determining unknown variables. The present method has special potential for analyzing a complicated 3D crack geometry which is generally difficult to treat in usual element based methods. In the present research, we apply mesh-free body force method to analyze the growth of 3D planar cracks. In concrete, a crack growth analysis for initially rectangular or elliptical crack existing in an infinite solid under uniform tensile stress perpendicular to the crack surface at infinity is demonstrated

3D Analysis of Crack Behavior Using XFEM

It is important to evaluate the 3D crack behavior in the structures. In this study, a Crack-growth test and two simulations namely, Real-model simulation and Ideal-model simulation were performed using eXtended Finite Element Method (XFEM) to evaluate crack behavior three-dimensionally. In the Crack-growth test, crack behavior was observed for a notched metal specimen. In the Real-model simulation, the FE model was constructed using a 3D reconstruction model of the specimen, and crack growth was simulated. In the Ideal-model simulation, the simulation was performed using the FE model that involved ideal notch. The obtained crack growth simulation results were compared with tension test result. Crack growth in the specimen was evaluated three-dimensionally. It was shown that modeling the real shape of a structure with a crack may be essential for accurately evaluating 3D crack growth.

Mechanical Behavior of 3D Crack Growth in Transparent Rock-Like Material Containing Preexisting Flaws under Compression

Mechanical behavior of 3D crack propagation and coalescence is investigated in rock-like material under uniaxial compression. A new transparent rock-like material is developed and a series of uniaxial compressive tests on low temperature transparent resin materials with preexisting 3D flaws are performed in laboratory, with changing values of bridge angleβ(inclination between the inner tips of the two preexisting flaws) of preexisting flaws in specimens. Furthermore, a theoretical peak strength prediction of 3D cracks coalescence is given. The results show that the coalescence modes of the specimens are varying according to different bridge angles. And the theoretical peak strength prediction agrees well with the experimental observation.