MIXED MODE CRACK PROPAGATION SIMULATION USING MATERIAL FORCES AND THE EXTENDED FINITE ELEMENT METHOD

摘要

A new approach to simulate crack growth within an extended finite element framework is presented which incorporates the material force concept and enables a single step evaluation of crack state and crack growth direction based on a continuum mechanics approach. This represents an alternative to the common two step procedure that first evaluates the stress intensity factors followed by a determination of the crack growth direction using empirical criteria based on maximum tangential stress or maximum energy release rate. The proposed approach is presented and used for investigations of different crack and crack growth configurations which include mixed mode loading and crack interaction with other discontinuities. Empirical, experimental and additional numerical results, based on stress intensity factors, are compared, which confirm the applicability of the proposed approach and its capability to simulate crack growth.