Dynamic Crack Curving and Branching under Biaxial Loading

摘要

A 16 spark-gap camera was used to record the dynamic photoelastic patterns of ten centrally cracked, Homalite-100 specimens which fractured under ten biaxial stress ratios ranging from 3.7 to 0. The dynamic photoelastic patterns of curved cracks were used to verify the previously developed dynamic crack curving criterion. Cracks, which immediately curved upon propagation in three specimens under high biaxial loadings, were used to verify the static counterpart of the dynamic crack curving criterion. A previously developed dynamic crack branching criterion was verified by the dynamic photoelastic results involving cracks which eventually branched under low biaxial loadings.