FMC NOTES

Syllabus :
CO-1
Significance of fracture mechanics, Griffith energy balance approach, Irwin’s modification to the Griffith theory,
Stress intensity approach, Crack tip plasticity, Fracture toughness, sub-critical crack growth, Influence of material
behaviour, I, II & III modes, Mixed mode problems. 2.Elastic stress field approach, Mode I elastic stress field
equations, Expressions for stresses and strains in the crack tip region, Finite specimen width, Superposition of
stress intensity factors (SIF), SIF solutions for well-known problems such as centre cracked plate, single edge
notched plate and embedded elliptical cracks. 3.Irwin plastic zone size, Dugdale approach, Shape of plastic
zone, State of stress in the crack tip region,
CO-2
Influence of stress state on fracture behaviour. 4.Griffith energy balance approach, Relations for practical use,
Determination of SIF from compliance, Slow stable crack growth and R-curve concept, Description of crack
resistance. LEFM Testing: Plane strain and plane stress fracture toughness testing, Determination of R-curves,
Effects of yield strength and specimen thickness on fracture toughness, Practical use of fracture toughness and
R-curve data.
CO-3
5.Development of EPFM, J-integral, Crack opening displacement (COD) approach, COD design curve, Relation
between J and COD, Tearing modulus concept, Standard JIc test and COD test. 6.
C0-4
Description of fatigue crack growth using stress intensity factor, Effects of stress ratio and crack tip plasticity –
crack closure, Prediction of fatigue crack growth under constant amplitude and variable amplitude loading,
Fatigue crack growth from notches – the short crack problem. 7.Through cracks emanating from holes, Corner
cracks at holes, Cracks approaching holes, fracture toughness of weldments, Service failure analysis,
applications in pressure vessels, pipelines and stiffened sheet structures.

CO-1
1. Significance of fracture mechanics
Define Slit?
Its defined as a long narrow cut or opening
Define Crack ?
to break something so that it does not separate, but very thin lines appear on its surface, or to become broken in
this way:
A stone hit the window and cracked the glass.
I cracked my tooth as I fell.
The walls cracked and the roof collapsed in the earthquake.
Define a fracture ?
Fracture is the separation of an object or material into two or more pieces under the action
of stress. The fracture of a solid usually occurs due to the development of certain displacement
discontinuity surfaces within the solid. If a displacement develops perpendicular to the surface, it
is called a normal tensile crack or simply a crack; if a displacement develops tangentially, it is
called a shear crack, slip band or dislocation.[1]
Brittle fractures occur without any apparent deformation before fracture. Ductile fractures occur
after visible deformation. Fracture strength, or breaking strength, is the stress when a specimen
fails or fractures. The detailed understanding of how a fracture occurs and develops in materials
is the object of fracture mechanics.

Ductile failure of a metallic specimen strained axially

 Mechanical failure modes

 Buckling

 Corrosion

 Corrosion fatigue

 Creep

 Fatigue

 Fouling

 Fracture

 Hydrogen embrittlement

 Impact

 Liquid metal embrittlement

 Mechanical overload

 Metal-induced embrittlement

 Stress corrosion cracking

 Sulfide stress cracking

 Thermal shock

 Wear

 Yielding

Strength[edit]
"Breaking strain" redirects here. For the short story by Arthur C. Clarke, see Breaking Strain. For
the novel by Paul Preuss, see Venus Prime.

Stress vs. strain curve typical of aluminum

1. Ultimate tensile strength

2. Yield strength
 3. Proportional limit stress
4. Fracture
5. Offset strain (typically 0.2%)
Fracture strength, also known as breaking strength, is the stress at which a specimen fails via
fracture.[2] This is usually determined for a given specimen by a tensile test, which charts
the stress–strain curve (see image). The final recorded point is the fracture strength.
Ductile materials have a fracture strength lower than the ultimate tensile strength (UTS), whereas
in brittle materials the fracture strength is equivalent to the UTS. [2] If a ductile material reaches its
ultimate tensile strength in a load-controlled situation, [Note 1] it will continue to deform, with no
additional load application, until it ruptures. However, if the loading is displacement-controlled, [Note
2]
 the deformation of the material may relieve the load, preventing rupture.
The statistics of fracture in random materials have very intriguing behavior, and was noted by the
architects and engineers quite early. Indeed, fracture or breakdown studies might be the oldest
physical science studies, which still remain intriguing and very much alive. Leonardo da Vinci,
more than 500 years ago, observed that the tensile strengths of nominally identical specimens of
iron wire decrease with increasing length of the wires (see e.g., [3] for a recent discussion). Similar
observations were made by Galileo Galilei more than 400 years ago. This is the manifestation of
the extreme statistics of failure (bigger sample volume can have larger defects due to cumulative
fluctuations where failures nucleate and induce lower strength of the sample). [4]

Stress vs. strain curve typical of aluminum

1. Ultimate tensile strength

2. Yield strength
3. Proportional limit stress
4. Fracture
5. Offset strain (typically 0.2%)

Types
There are two types of fractures: brittle and ductile fractures respectively without or with plastic
deformation prior to failure.
Brittle
In brittle fracture, no apparent plastic deformation takes place before fracture. Brittle fracture
typically involves little energy absorption and occurs at high speeds—up to 2,133.6 m/s
(7,000 ft/s) in steel.[5] In most cases brittle fracture will continue even when loading is
discontinued.[6]
In brittle crystalline materials, fracture can occur by cleavage as the result of tensile stress acting
normal to crystallographic planes with low bonding (cleavage planes). In amorphous solids, by
contrast, the lack of a crystalline structure results in a conchoidal fracture, with cracks proceeding
normal to the applied tension.
The fracture strength (or micro-crack nucleation stress) of a material was first theoretically
estimated by Alan Arnold Griffith in 1921: