Reference

Manual

Version 7.4

Fracture Analysis Consultants, Inc

www.fracanalysis.com

Revised: Nov 2019

Table of Contents:

Table of Contents: ........................................................................................................................... 1

1. Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 7
2. General and 3D View Manipulation .......................................................................................... 7
2.1 View Controls .................................................................................................................... 10
3. Menus ....................................................................................................................................... 15
3.1 Help .................................................................................................................................... 15
3.1.1 License Status ............................................................................................................. 16
3.1.2 About Dialog ............................................................................................................... 17
3.2 File ..................................................................................................................................... 18
3.3 Edit ..................................................................................................................................... 19
3.4 Cracks ................................................................................................................................ 19
3.5 Loads .................................................................................................................................. 20
3.6 Analysis.............................................................................................................................. 20
3.7 Fatigue................................................................................................................................ 21
3.8 Fretting ............................................................................................................................... 21
3.9 Display ............................................................................................................................... 22
3.10 Advanced ......................................................................................................................... 22
4. File Menu Wizards and Dialog Boxes ..................................................................................... 23
4.1 Open…Ctrl-O .................................................................................................................... 23
4.1.1 FRANC3D Restart (.fdb) Files ................................................................................... 24
4.2 Set Work Directory ............................................................................................................ 26
4.3 Close .................................................................................................................................. 27
4.4 Save As… .......................................................................................................................... 27
4.5 Import… ............................................................................................................................. 28
4.5.1 Import a Complete Model ........................................................................................... 28
4.5.2 Import and Divide Model............................................................................................ 30
4.5.2.1 Cropping Selection Options ................................................................................. 31
4.5.2.2 Relative to a principal plane ................................................................................ 32
4.5.2.3 Plane normal and offset ....................................................................................... 33
4.5.2.4 Plane from three points ........................................................................................ 34
4.5.2.5 Rubberband box ................................................................................................... 34
4.5.2.6 Element by element.............................................................................................. 35
4.5.2.7 By material ........................................................................................................... 36
4.5.2.8 By element group ................................................................................................. 36
4.5.2.9 Retained from file ................................................................................................ 37
4.5.2.10 Crop, Undo and Redo ........................................................................................ 38
4.5.2.11 Reference Point .................................................................................................. 38
4.5.2.12 Show elems and Show outline ........................................................................... 39
4.5.2.13 Show beam and shell elements for reference ..................................................... 40
4.5.3 Import Already Divided Model .................................................................................. 40
4.6 Export…............................................................................................................................. 40
4.7 Read Results....................................................................................................................... 41
4.8 Playback…. ........................................................................................................................ 42

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 4.9 Quit - Ctrl-Q....................................................................................................................... 43
5. Edit Menu Wizards and Dialog Boxes..................................................................................... 43
5.1 Undo - Ctrl-Z ..................................................................................................................... 44
5.2 Redo ................................................................................................................................... 44
5.3 Set Units… ......................................................................................................................... 44
5.4 Preferences… ..................................................................................................................... 45
5.4.1 General Tab ................................................................................................................. 45
5.4.2 Window Tab................................................................................................................ 46
5.4.3 3D View Tab ............................................................................................................... 47
5.4.4 Display Tab ................................................................................................................. 48
5.4.5 ANSYS Tab ................................................................................................................ 48
5.4.6 ABAQUS Tab ............................................................................................................. 50
5.4.7 NASTRAN Tab .......................................................................................................... 51
5.4.8 Meshing Tab ............................................................................................................... 52
5.4.9 Advanced Meshing Tab .............................................................................................. 53
6. Cracks Menu Wizards and Dialog Boxes ................................................................................ 54
6.1 New Flaw Wizard .............................................................................................................. 54
6.1.1 Flaw type panel ........................................................................................................... 55
6.1.2 Crack type panel ......................................................................................................... 56
6.1.3 Elliptical crack panel................................................................................................... 57
6.1.4 Single-front Through-the-thickness crack panel ......................................................... 57
6.1.5 Two-front Through-the-thickness crack panel............................................................ 58
6.1.6 Long shallow surface crack panel ............................................................................... 59
6.1.7 Two-front Elliptical crack panel ................................................................................. 59
6.1.8 Long shallow interior crack panel............................................................................... 60
6.1.9 Curvilinear elliptical crack panel ................................................................................ 61
6.1.10 User-defined crack panel .......................................................................................... 61
6.1.11 User-mesh crack panel .............................................................................................. 63
6.1.12 Advanced Geometry button ...................................................................................... 65
6.1.12.1 Refine ................................................................................................................. 65
6.1.12.2 Reset ................................................................................................................... 66
6.1.12.3 Edit ..................................................................................................................... 66
6.1.13 Ellipsoidal void panel ............................................................................................... 67
6.1.14 Flaw translation and rotation panel ........................................................................... 68
6.1.14.1 Define Local Axes ............................................................................................. 69
6.1.15 Crack Front Mesh Template Panel ........................................................................... 70
6.1.15.1 Meshing Parameters Dialog ............................................................................... 73
6.1.15.2 Advanced Template Options Dialog .................................................................. 75
6.1.16 Flaw Insertion ............................................................................................................ 76
6.2 Flaw from Files ................................................................................................................. 77
6.3 Multiple Flaw Insert ........................................................................................................... 79
6.4 Compute SIFs..................................................................................................................... 80
6.4.1 M-integral, Displacement Correlation or Virtual Crack Closure Panel ...................... 80
6.4.1.1 SIF Plot Panel ...................................................................................................... 82
6.4.1.1.1 SIF Plot menu bar .......................................................................................... 84
6.5 Grow Crack ........................................................................................................................ 86

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6.5.1 Subcritical crack growth .............................................................................................. 87
6.5.1.1 Units used in FE model ........................................................................................ 92
6.5.1.2 Crack Growth Load Schedule .............................................................................. 92
6.5.1.2.1 New Schedule ............................................................................................... 92
6.5.1.2.1.1 Simple Cyclic Event ................................................................................ 101
6.5.1.2.1.2 Non-Proportional Cyclic Event................................................................ 101
6.5.1.2.1.3 Transient Event ........................................................................................ 102
6.5.1.2.1.4 Spectrum Event ........................................................................................ 102
6.5.1.2.1.5 Hold Event ............................................................................................... 106
6.5.1.2.1.6 Schedule Event......................................................................................... 107
6.5.1.2.2 Crack Growth Load Schedule Read From File ........................................... 108
6.5.1.2.3 Crack Growth Load Schedule Wizard ........................................................ 108
6.5.1.2.4 Crack Growth Load Schedule View/Edit ................................................... 108
6.5.1.2.5 Crack Growth Load Schedule Save To File ............................................... 108
6.5.1.3 Crack Growth Rate Model ................................................................................. 108
6.5.1.3.1 Cyclic loading growth model ...................................................................... 108
6.5.1.3.1.1 Paris model........................................................................................... 110
6.5.1.3.1.2 Bilinear Paris model ............................................................................. 111
6.5.1.3.1.3 Sigmoidal cyclic loading growth model .............................................. 111
6.5.1.3.1.4 Hyperbolic Sine model ........................................................................ 112
6.5.1.3.1.5 Table Lookup growth model ................................................................ 113
6.5.1.3.1.6 No Stress Ratio model ......................................................................... 115
6.5.1.3.1.7 Walker Stress Ratio model................................................................... 115
6.5.1.3.1.8 Newman Closure Stress Ratio model .................................................. 118
6.5.1.3.1.9 Table Lookup Stress Ratio model ........................................................ 121
6.5.1.3.1.10 NASGRO Version 4 equation ............................................................ 126
6.5.1.3.1.11 NASGRO Version 3 equation ............................................................ 128
6.5.1.3.1.12 Temperature dependent growth rate .................................................. 131
6.5.1.3.2 Time dependent growth model ................................................................... 134
6.5.1.3.2.1 Time Dependent Power Law ............................................................... 135
6.5.1.3.2.2 Time Dependent Terachi SCC ............................................................. 135
6.5.1.3.2.3 Time Dependent Table Lookup ........................................................... 136
6.5.1.3.2.1 Temperature dependent time dependent growth .................................. 137
6.5.1.3.3 Crack Growth Rate Model Read From File ................................................ 139
6.5.1.3.4 Crack Growth Rate Model View/Edit da/dN .............................................. 139
6.5.1.3.5 Crack Growth Rate Model View/Edit da/dt................................................ 139
6.5.1.3.6 Crack Growth Rate Model Save To File..................................................... 139
6.5.1.4 Mixed-mode equivalent K ................................................................................. 139
6.5.1.5 Effective dK ....................................................................................................... 140
6.5.1.6 Integration Options ............................................................................................ 141
6.5.2 Quasi-static crack growth ......................................................................................... 142
6.5.3 User-Defined crack growth ....................................................................................... 144
6.5.4 Read growth parameters from a file.......................................................................... 144
6.5.5 Crack growth front fitting ......................................................................................... 144
6.5.5.1 Multiple crack front fitting................................................................................. 147
6.5.5.2 Front fitting options ........................................................................................... 147

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 6.5.5.2.1 Kink Angle/Extension Poly Fit .................................................................... 148
6.5.5.2.2 Fixed order poly through points ................................................................... 149
6.5.5.2.3 Multiple poly through points ....................................................................... 149
6.5.5.2.4 Hermitian closed poly .................................................................................. 149
6.5.5.2.5 Cubic spline ................................................................................................. 150
6.5.5.2.6 Moving polynomial...................................................................................... 150
6.5.5.2.7 No smoothing ............................................................................................... 151
6.5.6 Crack growth front template mesh ............................................................................ 151
6.6 Read Crack Growth Wizard ............................................................................................. 152
6.7 Grow/Merge Cracks Wizard ............................................................................................ 153
6.8 SIFs Along a Path ............................................................................................................ 155
6.8.1 Define Path Tab ........................................................................................................ 156
6.8.1.1 Constant Normalized Distance .......................................................................... 157
6.8.1.2 Nearest Point on Next Front .............................................................................. 158
6.8.1.3 Intersection of Fronts with a Plane .................................................................... 158
6.8.1.3.1 Start: Step and Final: Step........................................................................... 159
6.8.1.3.2 Search from final front ................................................................................ 160
6.8.1.4 Path Constraints ................................................................................................. 160
6.8.1.5 Path Curve Fitting .............................................................................................. 160
6.8.1.6 Crack Starting Information ................................................................................ 160
6.8.2 Export Tab ................................................................................................................ 160
6.9 SIFs For All Fronts .......................................................................................................... 161
7. Wizards and Dialog Boxes for Loads Menu .......................................................................... 163
7.1 Map Current State ............................................................................................................ 163
7.2 Crack Face Pressure/Traction .......................................................................................... 163
7.2.1 Advanced button ....................................................................................................... 164
7.2.2 Constant Crack Face Pressure Panel ......................................................................... 165
7.2.3 1-D Radial Residual Stress Distribution Panel ......................................................... 166
7.2.4 2-D Radial Residual Stress Distribution Panel ......................................................... 168
7.2.5 Surface Treatment Residual Stress Distribution Panel ............................................. 169
7.2.6 Mesh-Based Stress Distribution Panel ...................................................................... 171
8. Wizards and Dialog Boxes for Analysis Menu...................................................................... 172
8.1 Static Crack Analysis ....................................................................................................... 172
8.1.1 Fdb File Name Panel ................................................................................................. 172
8.1.2 Analysis Code Panel ................................................................................................. 173
8.1.3 ANSYS Options Panel .............................................................................................. 174
8.1.3.1 ANSYS Edit Defaults ........................................................................................ 175
8.1.3.2 ANSYS Crack Face Contact .............................................................................. 175
8.1.4 ANSYS local/global model connection Panel .......................................................... 176
8.1.4.1 ANSYS Constraint ............................................................................................. 177
8.1.4.2 ANSYS Contact ................................................................................................. 178
8.1.5 ANSYS Command Line Panel.................................................................................. 178
8.1.5.1 ANSYS Write Files but DO NOT run analysis ................................................. 179
8.1.6 ABAQUS Options Panel........................................................................................... 179
8.1.6.1 ABAQUS Edit Defaults ..................................................................................... 180
8.1.6.2 ABAQUS Crack Face Contact........................................................................... 182

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 8.1.7 ABAQUS local/global model connection Panel ....................................................... 182
8.1.7.1 ABAQUS Constraint ......................................................................................... 183
8.1.7.2 ABAQUS Contact .............................................................................................. 184
8.1.8 ABAQUS Command Line Panel .............................................................................. 184
8.1.8.1 ABAQUS Write Files but DO NOT run analysis .............................................. 185
8.1.9 NASTRAN Options Panel ........................................................................................ 185
8.1.9.1 NASTRAN Edit Defaults .................................................................................. 186
8.1.9.2 NASTRAN Crack Face Contact ........................................................................ 187
8.1.10 NASTRAN local/global model connection Panel .................................................. 188
8.1.11 NASTRAN Command Line Panel .......................................................................... 189
8.1.11.1 NASTRAN Write Files but DO NOT run analysis ......................................... 189
8.2 Crack Growth Analysis .................................................................................................... 189
8.2.1 Crack Front Smoothing Panel ................................................................................... 190
8.2.2 Crack Growth Increments Panel ............................................................................... 190
8.2.3 Analysis Code Panel ................................................................................................. 191
8.2.4 ANSYS Analysis ...................................................................................................... 192
8.2.5 ABAQUS Analysis ................................................................................................... 192
8.2.6 NASTRAN Analysis................................................................................................. 192
9. Fatigue Menu Wizards and Dialog Boxes ............................................................................. 192
9.0 Fatigue Cycle Computation .............................................................................................. 192
9.1 Fatigue Life Predictions ................................................................................................... 196
9.1.1 Read SIF Data ........................................................................................................... 197
9.1.2 Set Parameters ........................................................................................................... 198
9.1.3 Read Parameters........................................................................................................ 198
9.1.4 Save Parameters ........................................................................................................ 198
9.1.5 Plot Cycles – Plot Time ............................................................................................ 199
9.1.5.1 Plot options ............................................................................................................ 199
9.1.6 Data Table ................................................................................................................. 200
9.1.7 Crack Front Plots ...................................................................................................... 201
9.2 View/Edit Growth Parameters ......................................................................................... 202
9.3 Crack Front Fatigue Values ............................................................................................. 202
10. Fretting Menu Wizards and Dialog Boxes........................................................................... 202
10.1 Read Model and Results ............................................................................................. 202
10.2 Import Nucleation Data............................................................................................... 206
10.3 Fretting Crack Nucleation ........................................................................................... 209
10.3.1 Surface treatment residual........................................................................................ 217
10.4 Region Color ............................................................................................................... 217
11. Display Menu Wizards and Dialog Boxes ........................................................................... 218
11.1 View Response Dialog ................................................................................................... 218
11.2 Create Animation Wizard .............................................................................................. 219
12. Advanced Menu Wizards and Dialog Boxes ....................................................................... 222
12.1 Edges Wizard ................................................................................................................. 222
12.2 No Crack Regions .......................................................................................................... 223
12.3 Display COD Data ......................................................................................................... 225
12.4 Write Template Data ...................................................................................................... 226
12.5 Create Growth History ................................................................................................... 227

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 12.6 Export Crack Data.......................................................................................................... 229
12.7 Read User Extensions .................................................................................................... 229
12.8 Initial Stress File ............................................................................................................ 230
12.9 Initial Strain File ............................................................................................................ 230
12.10 Plot CFT Stress File ..................................................................................................... 231
Appendix A: XY Plot Label Syntax .......................................................................................... 232

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1. Introduction
FRANC3D is a program that inserts and extends cracks and/or voids in pre-existing finite
element (FE) meshes. This manual describes the components of the graphical user interface of
the program, specifically for Version 7.4. It also includes some underlying concepts and theory
where appropriate, but the User’s Guide provides more details on concepts, and the (future)
Theory Reference will provide more details on theory. A separate FRANC3D Command
Language & Python Extensions reference provides a listing of all the commands to run in batch-
mode along with the corresponding Python functions and a description of the Python-user-crack-
growth capabilities.

There are four FRANC3D Tutorial documents that describe the program usage when combined
with the three supported commercial FE codes: ANSYS, ABAQUS and NASTRAN. There are
preliminary Tutorials for each of the three analysis codes to describe the basic interface between
FRANC3D and each of the codes. A more generic Tutorial document describes additional
examples, and where there are differences for the three analysis codes, separate sub-sections are
added.

In addition, there is a FRANC3D Benchmark document that describes a number of crack

configurations for which there are analytical or handbook solutions for stress intensity factors
(SIFs), and the FRANC3D SIFs are compared to these values.

To get started using FRANC3D, one can choose one of the preliminary Tutorials and follow the
steps. You can consult this Reference document for more details at any of the steps in the
tutorial. You should also try to reproduce some of the Benchmark examples, or choose your own
models for validation.

In this document, menu buttons, dialog or wizard panel titles, and buttons on these panels are
indicated by bold text. Fields, labels and selectable options inside the dialog or wizard panels
are indicated by underlined text. Model and file names will be indicated by italic text.

2. General and 3D View Manipulation

An image of the main FRANC3D window is shown in Figure 2.0.1. Most of the screen consists
of a 3D graphics window that displays the current model.

When a model is first displayed, the 3D view is set such that the viewer is looking toward the
center of the model from a position in the positive z direction. The distance from the viewer to
the model is set so that the full model is visible.

For most operations, one will likely want to change the view to see a different side of the model
and/or to view details more closely. As with many other programs, the view is changed by
moving the mouse in the 3D graphics window with the appropriate combination of mouse
buttons and keyboard keys depressed. There are five basic functions for view manipulation. A

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unique combination of mouse buttons and keyboard keys is defined for each of the functions.
The button and key assignments can be changed using the 3D View tab in the Preferences
dialog box (described in Section 5.4).

Menu Bar

3D Model Camera
View Window Positions
and
View
Controls

Orientation
Axes

Status Bar

Figure 2.0.1 FRANC3D main window.

The view functions are (using FRANC3D default mouse and keyboard key assignments):

Rotate (left mouse button, no keyboard keys): Mouse motion rotates the model on the screen.
The mouse can be moved in any direction. The axis of rotation is defined to be perpendicular to
the mouse motion and passes through the current center of rotation. The center of rotation is
defined as the horizontal and vertical center of the graphics window at a location midway
between the front and back clipping planes (described below). The center of rotation can be
changed, Figure 2.0.2, using the Ctrl key and left mouse button.

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Pan (center mouse button or wheel, no keyboard keys): Mouse motion pans or drags the model
around the screen. The mouse can be moved in any direction, and the model moves in such a
way as if it were following the mouse.

Zoom/Spin (right mouse button, no keyboard keys): These are actually two different types of
updates activated by the same mouse key. If the mouse is moved up or down it will appear as if
the viewer is getting closer or farther, respectively, from the model. If the mouse is moved left
or right, the model rotates about an axis that is perpendicular to the plane of the screen and
passes through the horizontal and vertical centers of the window.

Recenter
Point

Figure 2.0.2 Recenter.

Front Clip (center mouse button or wheel plus shift key): A cutting or clipping plane can be
moved parallel to the screen from the viewer toward the model. This can be used, for example,
to clip away the front of a model to see internal features such as cracks. Moving the mouse
upward "pushes" the clipping plane away from the viewer toward the model, cutting away the
portion of the model closest to the viewer. Moving the mouse downward "pulls" the plane away
from the model and toward the viewer.

Back Clip (right mouse button or wheel plus shift key): A cutting or clipping plane can be
moved parallel to the screen from behind the model toward the viewer. This can be used, for
example, to clip away parts of the model that may be making the view confusing (this is
especially useful when the model is displayed in "wireframe" mode without polygons). Moving

9
the mouse upward "pushes" the clipping plane away from the viewer. Moving the mouse
downward "pulls" the clipping plane toward the viewer, which will cut away the back portion of
the model.

2.1 View Controls

The View Controls box, along the right hand side of the FRANC3D main window, provides
additional options for manipulating the view of the model, Figure 2.1.1.

Graphical Element Toggles

Named Camera Positions

Preset Camera Positions

View Options

Figure 2.1.1 View controls side panel.

Graphical Element Toggles: Graphics in 3D display windows consist of a combination of

markers, vectors, polygons, and text. The toggles in this box will turn these items on or off
independently. The surface mesh can be turned on or off as well.

Named camera positions: The list of named camera positions is displayed in the list box. There
should always be a reset view provided as the default (d) view. A crack view will be saved

10
automatically after a crack is inserted. User-named camera positions can be Saved to a file or
Read from a file.

Preset Controls: These icons provide quick access to preset views that place the viewer along
one of the Cartesian axes. The two icons on the right switch the view from perspective (the
default) to orthographic.

View Options: This button displays the dialog in Figure 2.1.2. In this dialog, the Show Axes
turns the Cartesian axes display on or off. The Different Front/Back Colors turns the front/back
coloring on or off. By default, the front and back side of a surface are shaded differently. This
toggle is useful when looking at the crack surface, where the two surfaces are coincident. The Set
Speed sliders allow one to control the rotation, translation, zoom and spin speeds independently.
The Cutting Planes option allows one to define cutting planes normal to the global Cartesian
axes. These will cut away a portion of the model. These are independent from the front and
back clipping planes.

Figure 2.1.2 View Options dialog.

Recenter: This button displays the Set Rotation Center dialog, Figure 2.1.3. One can specify
the center of rotation interactively, using the dialog in Figure 2.1.4. A node id or Cartesian
coordinates can be specified also. In the Setcenter View dialog, Figure 2.1.4. The center of
rotation can be set by dragging the red boxes left or right and up or down. The new center of
rotation is the intersection of the 3 lines that have the red-box-handles.

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 Figure 2.1.3 Set Rotation Center dialog.

Figure 2.1.4 Setcenter View dialog.

Capture: This button displays the Save File As dialog, Figure 2.1.5. The current model view is
captured and saved to a file. Either a .png or .jpg file can be saved.

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 Figure 2.1.5 Save File As dialog.

The bottom of row of icons, Figure 2.1.6, allow one to do a box-zoom, to take measurements on
the model surface, and to define front and back clipping planes.

Figure 2.1.6 Bottom row of icons: box-zoom, measurements and clipping planes.

Box Zoom: This allows one to zoom-in on a portion of the model by dragging a box, Figure
2.1.7. Press the Box Zoom button and then, using the left mouse button, click and hold, then
drag the mouse to create the box, and then release the mouse button.

13
 Zoom box

Figure 2.1.7 Box zoom used to zoom-in on a portion of the model.

Measurements: This allows one to find the Cartesian coordinates of a point on the model
surface, or to find the distance between two points on the model surface, Figure 2.1.8. Using the
left mouse button, click on the model surface to view the coordinates; click and hold and then
drag the mouse to obtain the distance between two points on the model surface.

Clipping: This icon displays the Clipping View dialog, Figure 2.1.9. The front and back
clipping planes can be moved by dragging the red boxes left or right. This is an alternative to the
mouse-keyboard combinations described previously.

Figure 2.1.8 Surface measurement.

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 Figure 2.1.9 Clipping view dialog.

3. Menus
A brief summary of the menus, from the menu bar shown in Figure 2.0.1, is provided here. In
general, selecting a menu item leads to a wizard or dialog. The Help menu is described here,
while all other menu options are described in more detail in Sections 4 through 12.

3.1 Help
The Help menu, Figure 3.1.1, is on the far-right side of the menu bar and has options for
accessing the FRANC3D documentation either locally, if installed, or on-line from FAC’s web
site (http:\\www.fracanalysis.com/software.html). If the user selects the Reference, Tutorial
for…, or Benchmark menu options, the appropriate documentation will be displayed in a web
browser if the files have been installed locally and the file paths set. If the file paths have not
been set, the user is presented with the dialog box, Figure 3.1.2, and can select the appropriate
.pdf file. Alternatively, if the Online Documentation menu option is selected, FAC’s web site is
accessed and the appropriate documentation can be selected there.

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 Figure 3.1.1 Help Menu.

Figure 3.1.2 FRANC3D documentation file location dialog.

3.1.1 License Status

The second last menu item displays the License Status dialog, Figure 3.1.3, which shows the
current license expiration.

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 Figure 3.1.3 License status dialog box.

3.1.2 About Dialog

The last menu item displays the About dialog, which contains the version number, the build
number and date, acknowledgements, and a list of supporting agencies, Figure 3.1.4. We also
appreciate the help and support of our many users and their contributions.

Figure 3.1.4 FRANC3D About dialog box.

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3.2 File
The File menu is shown in Figure 3.2.1. Each of the menu items is listed below.

Figure 3.2.1 File Menu.

Open ... - Displays an Open File dialog box that allows a user to read a FRANC3D restart file;
see Section 4.1.

Set Work Directory ... - Displays a dialog box that allows a user to set the working directory; see
Section 4.2.

Close - Closes the current model so that a new model can be read or imported; see Section 4.3.

SaveAs ... - Displays a Save File As dialog box, which allows a user to save the current model to
a FRANC3D restart file; see Section 4.4.

Import ... – Allows a user to import an uncracked FE model file. A number of different types of
files can be read, including: .cdb, .inp, .bdf. The .cdb files are ANSYS database files in ASCII
format. The .inp files are ABAQUS input files. The .bdf (or .nas) files are NASTRAN database
files; see Section 4.5.

Export ... – Allows a user to export a FE model file. ANSYS .cdb, ABAQUS .inp and
NASTRAN .bdf file formats can be written; see Section 4.6.

Read Results ... - Invokes the Read Results File dialog; see Section 4.7.

Playback ... - Invokes the Playback Session File dialog, which allows a user to read in a session
log file and reproduce the commands in that file; see Section 4.8.

Quit - Closes the model and exits the program; see Section 4.9.

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3.3 Edit
The Edit menu is shown in Figure 3.3.1. Each of the menu items is listed below.

Figure 3.3.1 Edit Menu.

Undo - Undo the last executed command. This feature is not completed yet.

Redo - Redo the last command that was undone. This feature is not completed yet.

Implementation note: the mechanism is in place to support Undo and Redo, but the details have
not yet been implemented.

Set Units... - Invokes the Model Units dialog box; see Section 5.3.

Preferences... - Invokes the Preferences dialog box; see Section 5.4.

3.4 Cracks
The Cracks menu is shown in Figure 3.4.1. Each of the menu items is listed below.

Figure 3.4.1 Cracks Menu.

New Flaw Wizard ... - Invokes the New Flaw wizard; see Section 6.1.

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Flaw From Files ... - Invokes the Locate Flaw File dialog, described in Section 6.2, followed by
a subset of the New Flaw wizard. This option allows a user to select a flaw description from a
file, or from multiple files, and insert it into the current model. Note that one cannot insert a
crack into an already-cracked model.

Multiple Flaw Insert ... Invokes the Multiple Flaw wizard; see Section 6.3.

Compute SIF's ... - Invokes the Compute SIF's wizard; see Section 6.4. Note that
displacements from a completed analysis must be available for this option to be enabled.

Grow Crack ... - Invokes the Crack Growth wizard; see Section 6.5. Note that displacements
from a completed analysis must be available for this option to be enabled.

Read Crack Growth ... - Invokes the Read Crack Growth wizard; see Section 6.6.

Grow/Merge Cracks ... - Invokes the Crack Growth/Merge wizard; see Section 6.7.

SIFs Along a Path ... - Invokes the SIFs Along a Path dialog; see Section 6.8.

SIFs For All Fronts... - Invokes the SIFs For All Fronts dialog; see Section 6.9.

3.5 Loads
The Loads menu is shown in Figure 3.5.1. Each of the menu items is listed below.

Figure 3.5.1 Loads Menu.

Map Current State ... - Invokes the Map Current State dialog; see Section 7.1. Note that a
previous model and previous results must be available for this option to be enabled. This option
is not completed yet.

Crack Face Pressure/Traction ... - Invokes the Crack-Face Tractions dialog; see Section 7.2.

3.6 Analysis
The Analysis menu is shown in Figure 3.6.1. Each of the menu items is listed below.

20
 Figure 3.6.1 Analysis Menu.

Static Crack Analysis ... - Invokes the Static Crack Analysis wizard; see Section 8.1.

Crack Growth Analysis ... – Invokes the Crack Growth Analysis wizard; see Section 8.2.

3.7 Fatigue
The Fatigue menu is shown in Figure 3.7.1. Each of the menu items is listed below.

Figure 3.7.1 Fatigue Menu.

Fatigue Life Predictions ... - Invokes the Fatigue Life dialog; see Section 9.1.

View/Edit Growth Parameters ... – Allows one to open a growth parameters file and then edit it;
see Section 9.2.

Crack Front Fatigue Values ... – Displays a plot of the crack growth data; see Section 9.3.

3.8 Fretting
The Fretting menu is shown in Figure 3.8.1. Each of the menu items is listed below.

Figure 3.8.1 Fretting Menu.

21
Read Model and Results ... - Invokes the Fretting Model Import wizard; see Section 10.1.

Import Nucleation Data ... - Invokes the Fretting Data Import wizard; see Section 10.2.

Fretting Crack Nucleation ... - Invokes the Fretting Crack Nucleation wizard; see Section
10.3.

Region Color ... - Invokes the Region Color dialog; see Section 10.4.

3.9 Display
The Display menu is shown in Figure 3.9.1. Each of the menu items is listed below.

Figure 3.9.1 Display Menu.

View Response ... - Invokes the View Response dialog; see Section 11.1.

Create Animation ... - Invokes the Animation dialog; see Section 11.2.

3.10 Advanced
The Advanced menu is shown in Figure 3.10.1. Each of the menu items is listed below.

Figure 3.10.1 Advanced Menu.

22
Edges Wizard ... - Invokes the Edge Extraction wizard; see Section 12.1.

No Crack Regions ... - Invokes the No Crack Regions dialog; see Section 12.2.

Display COD Data ... - Invokes the Display COD Data dialog; see Section 12.3.

Write Template Data ... - Invokes the Write Template Data dialog; see Section 12.4.

Create Growth History ... - Invokes the Create Growth History dialog; see Section 12.5.

Export Crack Data ... - Invokes the Export Crack Data dialog; see Section 12.6.

Read User Extensions ... - Invokes the Read User Extensions wizard; see Section 12.7.

Initial Stress File ... - Invokes the Initial Stress File dialog; see Section 12.8.

Initial Strain File ... - Invokes the Initial Strain File dialog; see Section 12.9.

Plot CFT Stress File ... – Displays mesh-based crack face tractions; see Section 12.10.

4. File Menu Wizards and Dialog Boxes

The wizards and dialog boxes for the File menu options are described in this section.

4.1 Open…Ctrl-O
The File Open menu option allows the user to read a FRANC3D restart file, with .fdb extension.
The Restart File dialog allows one to select the .fdb file, Figure 4.1.1.

23
 Figure 4.1.1 Model File dialog box.

4.1.1 FRANC3D Restart (.fdb) Files

FRANC3D reads the contents of the .fdb file along with reading any files that are referenced
inside it. The .fdb file is organized in blocks, with each block having a title and a version
number. The blocks and their content are summarized here:

F3D_V7.1 (
Uncracked finite element file name, type, and retained data.
)
HISTORY_SUMMARY (
Summary of the crack step file names.
)
STATICMETA (
Analysis type, input and results file names.
)
FLAWSURF (
Description of crack geometry: surface patches, crack front vertices, and template parameters.
Note that this block can be extracted and saved to a .crk file.
)
CRACKFRONTIDS (
List of crack front identifiers.
)
TEMPLATENODES {
List of crack front mesh template node ids.

24
 }
TEMPLATENODECOORDS {
List of crack front mesh template node coordinates.
}
SIF_COMP_PARAMS (
Stress intensity factor computation parameters.
)
GROWTH_PARAMS (
Crack growth model parameters.
)
TEMPLATE_PARAMS (
Crack front mesh template parameters.
)
CRACKFACENODES {
List of crack face nodes with the local normal to the crack surface.
}
EDGE_EXTRACT_PARAMS (
Edge extraction parameters.
)
MESH_PARAMS (
Meshing parameters.
)
CRACK_GROWTH_DATA (
Crack growth history data.
)
UNITS (
Model units for length, stress and temperature.
)
SUBMODEL_NODE_MAP (
Node id mapping between .fdb and FE model input.
)
SUBMODEL_ELEM_MAP (
Element id mapping between .fdb and FE model input.
)
SAVED_VIEWS {
List of saved camera positions.
}

FRANC3D attempts to read all the files referenced in the .fdb file. If a file is missing, the user is
prompted to locate that file, Figure 4.1.2. Note that FRANC3D needs to access the original
uncracked finite element model files during restarts.

25
 Figure 4.1.2 Locate File dialog box for finding missing files.

4.2 Set Work Directory

The File Set Work Directory menu item allows the user to set a current working directory to
save subsequent analysis files. The Set Working Directory dialog, Figure 4.2.1, is displayed.
Select the desired folder and then press Accept.

Figure 4.2.1 Set Working Directory dialog box for setting the current directory.

26
4.3 Close
The File Close menu item closes the current model without quitting FRANC3D. If a model is
open and has not been saved, the Save Model Warning dialog, Figure 4.3.1, is displayed. If the
user wishes to save the model, the Cancel button can be selected. Selecting the OK button will
close the model without saving.

Figure 4.3.1 Save Model Warning dialog.

4.4 Save As…

The File Save As menu item can be used to save the FRANC3D restart (fdb) file of a cracked
model if the user does not want to perform an immediate analysis of the model. In addition to
the .fdb file, a FE analysis file will be saved; the FE file type will be the same as the original
input file type. The user is prompted to enter the .fdb file name, Figure 4.4.1, and press Accept.

Figure 4.4.1 Save File As dialog.

27
4.5 Import…
The File Import menu item is used to import initial uncracked FE models into FRANC3D. The
dialog shown in Figure 4.5.1 is presented. The user can choose: 1) import a complete model into
FRANC3D, 2) import and divide so that FRANC3D works on a local submodel, or 3) import an
already divided model. Depending on the radio button that is chosen, different dialogs will be
displayed next.

Figure 4.5.1 Select Model Import Type dialog.

4.5.1 Import a Complete Model

The dialog shown in Figure 4.5.1.1 is displayed. The user chooses the FE model type: ANSYS,
ABAQUS or NASTRAN using the radio button at the top. If ANSYS is chosen, the user can
also check the Extra load files box, if ANSYS load step files (.s##) are to be imported as well.

If the ANSYS Extra load files box is checked, the dialog shown in Figure 4.5.1.2 is displayed.
The user can select one or more .s## files. Use the Shift or Ctrl key to select multiple file names.

28
 Figure 4.5.1.1 Select Model to Import dialog.

Figure 4.5.1.2 Select ANSYS Extra load step files dialog.

29
Once the FE model file has been selected, the Select Retained BC Surfaces dialog is displayed,
Figure 4.5.1.3. Any surface that has boundary conditions will be highlighted in blue. These
surfaces can be selected using the Select All button, and the blue surfaces then will be colored
red. Node sets and surfaces can also be displayed using the Show Node Sets and Show
Surfaces buttons; these buttons allow surfaces without boundary conditons to be retained.

Note that cracks cannot be inserted into or propagated into a surface mesh that has been retained.
If a surface has boundary conditions and a crack must be inserted into this surface, do not retain
the mesh facets on this surface; the boundary conditions will be transferred to the remeshed
surface. If a crack will not be inserted into a surface with boundary conditions, it is more
efficient and accurate to retain the mesh so that boundary conditions are transferred directly.

Figure 4.5.1.3 Select Retained BC Surfaces dialog.

4.5.2 Import and Divide Model

If the user chooses to import and divide, the first dialog that is presented is the same as that
shown in Figure 4.5.1.1. Once the model file has been selected, the Submodel tool is displayed,
Figure 4.5.2.1. There are a number of options for selecting a portion or portions of the model
and these are described in the subsections below. Once a sub-model has defined and cropped,
press Next and this will lead to the Select Retained BC Surfaces dialog (see Figure 4.5.1.3), if
the sub-model has boundary conditions or node sets or surfaces.

30
 Figure 4.5.2.1 Define a Local Submodel dialog.

4.5.2.1 Cropping Selection Options

The first setting in the Cropping Options allows one to specify which ‘side’ of the selection plane
or box is selected. The top row of radio buttons in Figure 4.5.2.2 lets one choose the ‘left’ or
‘right’ side (Figure 4.5.2.3); this is straightforward to describe when using the planar options
below, but it also applies to the other options. For instance, when using the Rubberband Box, the
selection will be either inside or outside of the rubberband box depending on which radio button
is selected.

The second row of radio buttons allows one to select elements with either one or all nodes of the
element collected. Figure 4.5.2.4 shows a case where the cutting plane is half-way through the
elements; choosing the first option includes these cut-elements, while choosing the second option
discards the elements that are cut.

Note that selected elements are colored red.

Figure 4.5.2.2 Cropping Options selection options dialog.

31
 Figure 4.5.2.3 Selection based on ‘left’ and ‘right’ selection.

Figure 4.5.2.4 Selection based on Retain if: ‘one node in’ and ‘all nodes in’ selection.

4.5.2.2 Relative to a principal plane

The first cropping option allows one to choose a plane that is aligned with the Cartesian axes,
Figure 4.5.2.5. The plane can be offset from the origin, and the elements on either the ‘left’ or
‘right’ side of the plane are selected. In this case and in all cases below, the radio buttons at the
top (see Section 4.5.2.1) are set to the defaults, which means left-side selection and one-node-in,
Figure 4.5.2.6.

Figure 4.5.2.5 Relative to principal plane cropping option.

32
 Figure 4.5.2.6 Selection based on offset YZ principal plane and left-side selection.

4.5.2.3 Plane normal and offset

The second cropping option allows one to define a plane that is normal to the unit vector defined
by the x, y and z coordiantes, Figure 4.5.2.7. The plane can be offset from the origin. Figure
4.5.2.8 shows a plane that is normal to the vector (1,0,0), which is the same as the YZ principal
plane in Section 4.5.2.2.

Figure 4.5.2.7 Plane normal and offset cropping option.

Figure 4.5.2.8 Selection based on a plane normal and offset.

33
4.5.2.4 Plane from three points

The third cropping option allows one to define a plane based on the selection of three points,
Figure 4.5.2.9. The user presses the Select button for each point, and then uses the (cross) cursor
to pick the point; three points of a triangle define the plane. Figure 4.5.2.10 shows the second
(blue) point that was selected here. Figure 4.5.2.11 shows the resulting plane that was created by
picking 3 points at x=5 coordinates; this is the same as the YZ principal plane in Section 4.5.2.2.

Figure 4.5.2.9 Plane from three points cropping option.

Figure 4.5.2.10 Second (blue) selected point used to define a plane.

Figure 4.5.2.11 Selection based on a plane from three points.

4.5.2.5 Rubberband box

The fourth cropping option allows one to define a box or cylinder, Figure 4.5.2.12. The user
selects the Rectangular or Circular radio button, presses the Define button, and then uses the left-
mouse button to drag the outline of a box or cylinder on the screen, Figure 4.5.2.13. The right-
side image in Figure 4.5.2.13 is rotated to show the box.

34
 Figure 4.5.2.12 Rubberband box cropping option.

Figure 4.5.2.13 Selection based on a rectangular rubberband box.

4.5.2.6 Element by element

The fifth cropping option allows one to select (or unselect) individual elements, Figure 4.5.2.14.
The user presses the Select button and then uses the left-mouse button to select elements one at a
time, Figure 4.5.2.15. The default is to have all elements pre-selected and the Select button
actually turns off the selection, while the Unselect button re-selects the element.

Figure 4.5.2.14 Element-by-element cropping option.

Figure 4.5.2.15 Selection based on element-by-element picking.

35
4.5.2.7 By material

The sixth cropping option allows one to select elements based on the material id, Figure 4.5.2.16.
The user selects the material id # after pressing the Select button. The model in Figure 4.5.2.17
has two materials and material 1 is selected.

Figure 4.5.2.16 By material id cropping option.

Figure 4.5.2.17 Selection based on material id.

4.5.2.8 By element group

The seventh cropping option allows one to select elements based on an element group name,
Figure 4.5.2.18. The user selects the label after pressing the Select button. The model in Figure
4.5.2.19 has several element groups, one of which has been selected.

For ANSYS, element groups are defined by ‘CMBL’ data in the .cdb file, and for ABAQUS, the
‘ELSET’ data in the .inp file defines the groups.

Figure 4.5.2.18 By element group label cropping option.

36
 Figure 4.5.2.19 Selection based on element group label.

4.5.2.9 Retained from file

The final cropping option allows one to select element id’s from a file, Figure 4.5.2.20. The user
presses the Browse button to display the file selection dialog, Figure 4.5.2.21. This option is
useful for re-selecting elements that were selected during a previous import. The .txt file is
ASCII and contains a list of element ids; a range of ids is specified using a dash. Figure 4.5.2.22
shows the selected elements that were identified in the .txt file.

Figure 4.5.2.20 Retained from file cropping option.

Figure 4.5.2.21 Retained element id file selection dialog.

37
 Figure 4.5.2.22 Selection based on element ids provided in an ASCII .txt file.

4.5.2.10 Crop, Undo and Redo

The three buttons near the bottom on the left side perform the actual cropping operation. Once
the selection has been made using one of the options above, the selected elements are cropped by
pressing the Crop button, Figure 4.5.2.23. The un-selected elements are removed. The user can
Undo or Redo the cropping operation. Multiple selections and crops can be performed in
sequence.

Figure 4.5.2.23 Crop button pressed to remove the un-selected elements.

4.5.2.11 Reference Point

The Reference Point button at the bottom, next to the Crop/Undo/Redo buttons, allows you to
specify a reference point, using either a node id or Cartesian coordinates, for the center of

38
rotation, Figure 4.5.2.24. The reference point is displayed using a red dot. Double-click the
(reset)(d) camera position to reset to the default.

Figure 4.5.2.24 Reference Point dialog to set the rotation center.

4.5.2.12 Show elems and Show outline

The Show elems option at the bottom turns on or off the display of element edges, Figure
4.5.2.25. For some models, with many elements or with very refined meshes, the element edges
can obscure the element selection. Un-checking this box turns off the black element edge
coloring, which should make the red-colored elements more visible. The Show outline option is
useful when selecting interior elements as it shows the exterior outline of the model.

Figure 4.5.2.25 Show elems option.

39
4.5.2.13 Show beam and shell elements for reference

The Show beam and shell elements option at the bottom turns on or off the display of shell or
beam elements, Figure 4.5.2.26. Shell and beam elements cannot be selected; they automatically
are added to the global portion of the model.

Figure 4.5.2.26 Show beam and shell elements option.

4.5.3 Import Already Divided Model

If the user has model files that have already been subdivided, the dialog shown in Figure 4.5.3.1
is displayed, which allows the user to select the global and local model files. These can be files
created by FRANC3D (as in Section 4.5.2), or can be files created by the user using the FE
analysis software.

Figure 4.5.3.1 Select Global and Local files dialog.

4.6 Export…
The File Export menu item can be used to save the FE model data without saving the
FRANC3D .fdb file. The dialog shown in Figure 4.6.1 is presented; the user selects the analysis

40
FE model type and enters the file name. This option can be used to convert FE model files from
one type to another. FRANC3D now passes as much of the original FE data through as possible,
thus it might only be the solid elements and nodes that are converted.

Figure 4.6.1 Export Model File dialog.

4.7 Read Results

The File Read Results menu item invokes the dialog shown in Figure 4.7.1, which allows the
user to choose the analysis results file to be read.

For ANSYS, the results file will either be a .dtp file that is created using the FRANC3D
generated ANSYS macros or a simple ANSYS nodal listing of displacements saved to a .dsp file.
The .dtp file will contain displacements, temperatures if those are not equal to the reference
temperature, and contact pressures on crack surfaces if such exist.

For ABAQUS, the results file will either be a .dtp file, which is created using the FRANC3D
generated ABAQUS Python script, or the ABAQUS generated .fil file. The .dtp file will contain
displacements, temperatures if those are not equal to the reference temperature, and contact
pressures on crack surfaces if such exist.

For NASTRAN, all results will be contained in a NASTRAN generated .pch file, which includes
displacements.

41
The Do Map Results option is on by default. A user can turn it off if they have manually
combined the ANSYS local and global .cdb files in ANSYS WorkBench to run the analysis.

Figure 4.7.1 Read results file dialog.

4.8 Playback….
The File Playback menu item allows playback of recorded session (log) files. Each time the
FRANC3D program is executed, a session##.log file is saved. This file records the commands
that the user executes using the menus and dialogs. A sample .log file might look like this:

OpenMeshModel (
model_type=ANSYS,
file_name='C:\cube\cube.cdb',
retained_nodes_file=`cube_RETAINED.txt'
)

InsertFileFlaw (
file_name='C:\cube\cube_05.crk')

RunAnsysAnalysis (
file_name='C:\cube\cracked_cube',
flags=[QUADRATIC],
executable='C:\ANSYS Inc\v121\ansys\bin\WINX64\ANSYS150.exe',
command='"C:\ANSYS Inc\v121\ansys\bin\WINX64\ANSYS150.exe" -b -p
struct -i "C:\cube\cracked_cube.macro" -o "C:\cube\cracked_cube.out"',
license=struct)

42
 ComputeSif (
do_press_terms=true)

A complete description of the FRANC3D command language is provided in the FRANC3D

Command Language & Python Extensions document.

Selecting the Playback menu item invokes the Playback Session File dialog, Figure 4.8.1. The
user selects the desired session file and then presses Accept. FRANC3D will read and execute
the commands from the session file.

Figure 4.8.1 Playback session file selection dialog.

4.9 Quit - Ctrl-Q

The File Quit menu item exits FRANC3D. The Save Model Warning dialog (see Figure 4.3.1)
will be displayed if the model has not been saved.

5. Edit Menu Wizards and Dialog Boxes

The wizards and dialog boxes for the Edit menu options are described in this section. Note that
the first two options, Undo and Redo, are inactive in Version 7.4.

43
5.1 Undo - Ctrl-Z
The Edit Undo menu item is intended to undo user actions. It is not active in Version 7.4.

5.2 Redo
The Edit Redo menu item is intended to redo actions that have been undone. It is not active in
Version 7.4.

5.3 Set Units…

Selecting the Edit Set Units menu item invokes the Model Units dialog, which allows one to set
the FE model units for length, stress, temperature and time, Figure 5.3.1. The units are used to
label plots, and they are important when defining the crack growth model where additional
material data is entered that is not typically part of the FE model. Units should be self-consistent
from the FE model.

FRANC3D can do some unit conversions when matching the crack growth material data with the
FE model results to compute crack growth or fatigue cycles.

Figure 5.3.1 Model Units dialog.

44
5.4 Preferences…
Selecting the Edit Preferences menu item invokes the Preferences dialog, which allows one to
set program-wide configurations, Figure 5.4.1. These preferences are stored in a database that is
read when FRANC3D is started. Some settings might not take effect until the program is
restarted. The Preferences dialog has nine tabs, described next.

Figure 5.4.1 Preferences dialog with General tab displayed.

5.4.1 General Tab

In the General tab, one can set the default working and help file directories (see Figure 5.4.1).
The working directory is the folder where the model files will be read from and written to by
default; it also can be set under File and Set Work Directory.

The Help File directory is the top level directory for the documentation as described in Section
3.1. Documentation is accessed from the Help menu.

The Available FE Input check box allows one to turn off GUI support for a FE program.

The Default FE Input radio button sets the user’s default FE model type for importing a new
model (see Section 4.5).

The NASGRO user defined XML material library option allows one to specify an .xml file
containing NASGRO material data. The .xml file is exported from NASGRO.

45
5.4.2 Window Tab

In the Window tab, one can set the font and colors used in the graphical user interface windows,
Figure 5.4.2.1. The GUI font Select button will pop up a dialog box that will allow one to select
from the available fonts, Figure 5.4.2.2. Clicking any of the color swatches (colored rectangles)
will pop up a dialog box, Figure 5.4.2.3, which allows one to select a new color.

The Startup Window Size can be set by editing the width and height, or by selecting the Current
button, which will measure the current window and then update the numbers.

The Defaults button restores all values to default settings.

Figure 5.4.2.1 Window tab of Preferences dialog.

Figure 5.4.2.2 Font selection dialog.

46
 Figure 5.4.2.3 Color selection dialog.

5.4.3 3D View Tab

The 3D View tab is used to set the combinations of mouse buttons and keyboard keys that are
used to invoke the view and select functions, Figure 5.4.3.1. One should ensure that each
function has a unique set of buttons and keys. The view manipulations are described in Section 2.

The L, M, R and W correspond to the left, middle, right and wheel buttons of the mouse. Note
that the Ctrl-key plus a left mouse button click provides a quick center of rotation selection.

The Defaults button restores all values to default settings. Rotate, pan, zoom and the front and
back clipping options were described in Section 2.1. The Select option is used by the Flaw
Editor (see Section 6.1.11).

Figure 5.4.3.1 3D View tab of Preferences dialog.

47
5.4.4 Display Tab

The Display tab allows the user to set the colors used for the 3D model view, Figure 5.4.4.1.
Clicking any of the color swatches will pop up a dialog box (see Figure 5.4.2.3), which allows
one to select a new color. The line width can be set also; the default is 1, but this value can be
increased for thicker lines. The program can be restarted or the model reread for this setting to
take effect.

The Defaults button restores all values to default settings.

Figure 5.4.4.1 Display tab of Preferences dialog.

5.4.5 ANSYS Tab

The ANSYS tab allows the user to set default ANSYS analysis parameters, Figure 5.4.5.1.
Configuration details that do not change frequently, such as the path to the ANSYS executable
and the license type can be set here. These values will then appear as default values for every
ANSYS analysis.

Ansys Executable stores the path to the ANSYS executable program. The Browse button will
pop up a file browser that can be used to locate the program.

License Type stores the ANSYS license type. A number of ANSYS license strings have been
encoded here. If you have a license string that is not included, you can add your string to the
FRANC3D resource file. There is a Franc3D.ini file in the user’s home folder, inside the foxrc
(or .foxrc)/FAC folder. This file can be edited. Look for the [f3d_ansys] block and change the
license string:
[f3d_ansys]
executable="C:\\Program Files\\ANSYS Inc\\v172\\ansys\\bin\\winx64\\ANSYS192.exe"
license=ansys

48
Job Name allows one to specify an ANSYS ‘job’ name.

ANSYS Solver allows one to specify the ANSYS equation solver.

Total and Database Memory options allow one to set the amount of memory that will be
requested on the ANSYS command line (see ANSYS documentation for details).

Number of Processors is self-explanatory. The Use mpi option can be turned on for HPC license
installations and analyses.

Add to command allows a user to add extra options to the ANSYS command line.

Include full path in file names adds the path to any file name for the ANSYS analysis files
written by FRANC3D. Note that this option is usually needed if the analysis files are not all in
the same folder.

Delete unnecessary analysis files allows FRANC3D to delete ANSYS analysis files that are not
needed by FRANC3D. The ANSYS .db and .rst file are not deleted so that one can use ANSYS
to visualize the model and results. Note that these two files can be regenerated from the files that
FRANC3D creates.

Output results allows one to limit the amount of output that is written to the .dtp file from
ANSYS. The default is to save results for all nodes of the local cracked submodel portion.

Figure 5.4.5.1 ANSYS tab of Preferences dialog.

49
5.4.6 ABAQUS Tab

The ABAQUS tab allows the user to set default ABAQUS analysis parameters, Figure 5.4.6.1.

Abaqus Executable stores the path to the ABAQUS executable program. The Browse button
will pop up a file browser that can be used to locate the program. For MSWindows, choose the
abaqus.bat file from the ABAQUS Commands folder.

Number of Processors is self-explanatory.

Include full path in file names adds the path to any file name for the ABAQUS files written by
FRANC3D. Note that this option is usually needed if the analysis files are not all in the same
folder.

Delete unnecessary analysis files allows FRANC3D to delete ABAQUS analysis files that are
not needed by FRANC3D. The ABAQUS .odb file is not deleted so that a user can use
ABAQUS CAE to visualize the model and results. Note that this file can be regenerated by re-
running the analysis.

Ask: ‘Old job files exist. Overwrite? (y/n)’ disables the ABAQUS prompt.

Output results allows one to limit the amount of output that is written to the .dtp file from
ABAQUS. The default is to save results for all nodes of the local cracked submodel portion.

Figure 5.4.6.1 ABAQUS tab of Preferences dialog.

50
5.4.7 NASTRAN Tab

The NASTRAN tab allows the user to set default NASTRAN analysis parameters, Figure 5.4.7.1.

NASTRAN Executable stores the path to the NASTRAN executable program. The Browse
button will pop up a file browser that can be used to locate the program.

Pyramid elements allows one to use pyramid elements or splits them into two tetrahedra. MSC
NASTRAN does not support pyramid elements, so all pyramid elements in FRANC3D must be
split into two tetrahedral elements. NX NASTRAN supports pyramid elements, and these are
preferred.

Split-pyramid added node tells NASTRAN to retain or omit the extra mid-side node of a split-
pyramid element.

Crack front elements allows one to choose quarter-point or mid-side node locations for the crack
front wedge elements. Mid-side nodes might be required for NX NASTRAN.

Include full path in file names adds the path to any file name for the NASTRAN files written by
FRANC3D. Note that this option is usually needed if the analysis files are not all in the same
folder.

Delete unnecessary analysis files allows FRANC3D to delete NASTRAN analysis files that are
not needed by FRANC3D.

Figure 5.4.7.1 NASTRAN tab of Preferences dialog.

51
5.4.8 Meshing Tab

The Meshing tab allows the user to set default meshing parameters, Figure 5.4.8.1. The options
are listed here.

Max volume elements sets a limit on the number of volume elements FRANC3D can generate.

Max backtrack restarts sets a limit on the number of FRANC3D volume meshing attempts. If
the volume meshing gets stuck, the program will backtrack and restarts.

Coarsen crack mouth turns on/off the mesh coarsening along the crack mouth. For shallow
cracks or for cases where the user wishes to have a higher mesh density, this box can be
unchecked. The higher surface mesh density will result in a higher volume mesh density.

Local surface refinement turns on/off the local surface mesh refinement. If a crack front is close
to a model surface that is not retained and not intersected by the crack, that model surface mesh
will be refined if this box is checked.

Do not coarsen more than uncracked mesh turns on/off the option to define the new surface mesh
density based on the original surface mesh. In some cases, the default meshing algorithm creates
a surface mesh that is too coarse to capture curved geometry features. Turning this option on
produces a surface mesh that is more similar to the original uncracked surface mesh density.
Further details can be found in Section 6.1.15.

Volume mesh using allows the user to choose between FRANC3D, ANSYS and ABAQUS
volume meshing. Note that the Max volume elements and Max backtrack restarts only applies to
FRANC3D volume meshing.

ANSYS or ABAQUS volume meshing: write files only allows the user to write the surface mesh
and the commands to generate the volume mesh from the surface mesh to files without actually
running ANSYS or ABAQUS. This gives the user the option of sending the files to a different
computer or modifying the commands. During the meshing phase of crack insertion, FRANC3D
will prompt the user to save the surface mesh files, and then will wait for the volume mesh file to
be selected.

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 Figure 5.4.8.1 Meshing tab of Preferences dialog.

5.4.9 Advanced Meshing Tab

The Advanced Meshing tab allows the user to set default advanced meshing parameters, Figure
5.4.9.1. The options are listed here. The advanced meshing options are described more fully in
the FRANC3D Theory reference. In general, a smaller number will lead to a more refined mesh.

The volume meshing algorithm is described in journal articles; for example:

An Algorithm for Three-Dimensional Mesh Generation for Arbitrary Regions with Cracks,
Cavalcante et al., Engineering with Computers (2001) 17: 75–91.

Surface Refinement Factor controls how quickly the surface mesh transitions.

Surface Boundary Factor controls how quickly the surface mesh transitions.

Volume Optimal Sphere Factor controls how quickly the volume mesh transitions.

Volume Optimal Size Factor controls how quickly the volume mesh transitions.

Volume Octree Refinement Factor controls how quickly the volume mesh transitions.

53
 Figure 5.4.9.1 Advanced Meshing tab of Preferences dialog.

6. Cracks Menu Wizards and Dialog Boxes

The wizards and dialog boxes for the Cracks menu options are described in this section.

The process of crack insertion (either the initial crack or subsequent steps of crack growth)
requires geometric intersection of the crack surface with the model surface. The geometry, for
both, is defined using triangular Bezier patches; this is briefly described in Appendix A along
with a summary of the geometric approach to crack extension. Surface and volume meshing is
constrained by this underlying geometry; this includes the crack front template mesh described in
Section 6.1.14.

6.1 New Flaw Wizard

The New Flaw wizard leads the user through the process of creating and orienting a
parametrically defined flaw. This wizard contains a number of different panels; however,
normally one will not see all panels. Choices in some of the panels determine which panels are
shown next. The overall flow is illustrated in Figure 6.1.1. Note that the elliptical and through
crack boxes house a couple of crack shapes.

The individual wizard panels are described below.

54
 Figure 6.1.1 New Flaw wizard flow diagram.

6.1.1 Flaw type panel

The first panel determines the flaw type, Figure 6.1.1.1, which allows one to specify that either a
crack (zero volume flaw) or a void (finite volume flaw) should be inserted.

It also allows one to save the flaw description to a file. The default is to add the flaw to the
model without saving to a (.crk) file. The second radio button (Save to file and add flaw) allows
the user to save the flaw to a file and add it to the model. The third option (Save to file only)
saves the flaw to a file without adding it to the model.

Note that you cannot add a flaw to a model that already has a flaw. You can save individual
flaws to files and add one or more to the uncracked model.

Figure 6.1.1.1 New Flaw wizard first panel selects flaw type.

55
6.1.2 Crack type panel

The current crack types include:

1) elliptical crack with one crack front – top left icon in Figure 6.1.2.1,
2) through-the-thickness crack with one front – bottom left icon,
3) through-the-thickness crack with two fronts – top second from the left,
4) long-shallow surface crack shape – bottom second from the left,
5) elliptical crack shape with two fronts – top third from the left,
6) long-shallow interior crack shape – bottom third from the left,
7) curvilinear elliptical crack – top fourth from the left,
8) user-defined crack – bottom fourth from the left, or
9) user-defined-surface mesh crack – top right.

The long shallow crack shapes can be used instead of long thin ellipses; they will produce better
template elements at the ends of the major axis.

The crack fronts are indicated by the thicker lines.

Selecting the crack shape icon specifies the crack type that will be shown in the next panel.

Figure 6.1.2.1 New Flaw Wizard crack (zero volume flaw) types.

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6.1.3 Elliptical crack panel

Single front elliptical cracks are defined by entering the semi-axes lengths (a and b), Figure
6.1.3.1. Once values have been specified for the length of the axes, the ellipse is displayed in the
3D view window. The ellipse is displayed in its local orientation, which is in the x-y plane and
centered at the global Cartesian origin. The Advanced Geometry button allows one to add more
boundary points, which might be needed for high aspect ratio ellipses.

Figure 6.1.3.1 New Flaw Wizard elliptical crack parameters panel.

6.1.4 Single-front Through-the-thickness crack panel

Single-front through-the-thickness cracks are specified using three lengths (a – c) and the width
(d), Figure 6.1.4.1. If set appropriately, the three lengths can be used to define a straight or a
quadratic shape crack front. The crack is displayed in its local orientation, which is in the x-y
plane with one corner at the global Cartesian origin.

The Advanced Geometry button is described in Section 6.1.12.

57
 Figure 6.1.4.1 New Flaw Wizard single-front through-crack parameters panel.

6.1.5 Two-front Through-the-thickness crack panel

Two-front through-the-thickness center cracks are specified using six crack lengths (a – f) and
the crack width (g), Figure 6.1.5.1. If set appropriately, the six lengths can be used to define
either straight or a quadratic shape crack fronts. The crack is displayed in its local orientation,
which is in the x-y plane with one mid-side at the global Cartesian origin.

Figure 6.1.5.1 New Flaw Wizard two-front through-crack parameters panel.

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6.1.6 Long shallow surface crack panel

Long-shallow-surface cracks are specified using the crack length (a), the crack width (b), and a
corner radius (r), Figure 6.1.6.1. This crack shape can be used in place of high-aspect ratio
elliptical surface cracks. The crack is displayed in its local orientation, which is in the x-y plane
with the global Cartesian origin as shown in Figure 6.1.6.1.

Figure 6.1.6.1 New Flaw Wizard long shallow surface crack parameters panel.

6.1.7 Two-front Elliptical crack panel

Two-front elliptical (ring) cracks are defined by entering the outer semi-axes lengths (a and b)
and the inner semi-axes lengths (c and d). The user also has the option of turning off the crack
front for either the outer or inner front; this allows one to define a circumferential crack in the
outer or inner wall of a pipe.

Once values have been specified for the length of the axes, the ellipses are displayed in the 3D
view window, Figure 6.1.7.1. The ellipses are displayed in the local orientation, which is in the
x-y plane and centered at the Cartesian origin. Both outer axes must be larger than the inner axes
to create a valid crack.

59
 Figure 6.1.7.1 New Flaw Wizard two-front elliptical crack parameters panel.

6.1.8 Long shallow interior crack panel

Long-shallow-interior cracks are specified using the crack length (a), the crack corner radius (r),
Figure 6.1.8.1. This crack shape can be used in place of high-aspect ratio elliptical interior
cracks. The crack is displayed in its local orientation, which is in the x-y plane with the global
Cartesian origin as shown in Figure 6.1.8.1.

Figure 6.1.8.1 New Flaw Wizard long shallow interior crack parameters panel.

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6.1.9 Curvilinear elliptical crack panel

Curvilinear elliptical cracks are specified by entering the semi-axes lengths (a and b) and the
‘surface’ radius (r), Figure 6.1.9.1. Once values have been specified for the length of the axes,
the ellipse is displayed in the 3D view window. The crack is displayed in its local orientation,
which is in the x-y plane with the global Cartesian origin as shown in Figure 6.1.9.1. The
Advanced Geometry button allows one to add more boundary points, which might be needed
for high aspect ratio ellipses.

Figure 6.1.9.1 New Flaw Wizard long shallow interior crack parameters panel.

6.1.10 User-defined crack panel

The user-defined crack requires a set of points that defines the crack boundary. Click on
View/Edit Points, Figure 6.1.10.1, to display a dialog that allows one to enter the geometry
points, Figure 6.1.10.2. The front column in Figure 6.1.10.2 allows one to define points as crack
front points using a value of 1; non-front points be set to 0. Note that unless one is defining an
interior crack, there should be at least one point on the crack boundary that is not a crack front
point. The front points are displayed in blue and numbered corresponding to the listing shown in
Figure 6.1.10.2. Points must be consecutive around the boundary.

One can read the points from a file using the Read From File button. The file should be a
simple ASCII .txt file with the format:
x y z flag
x y z flag
x y z flag

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The Smooth Front Points option in Figure 6.1.10.1 allows the user to smooth and re-parameterize
the crack front points. This allows for more uniform crack surface geometry.

The boundary points are used with a surface triangulation algorithm to produce the interior crack
surface geometry. A sufficient number of non-front points should be defined to produce a
reasonable triangulation of the interior region. Some non-planarity is possible; however crack-
surface-interior points are not defined by the user, therefore, this crack type works best for planar
or near-planar cracks. Note that the first and last point should not be repeated.

Figure 6.1.10.1 New Flaw Wizard user-defined crack panel.

Figure 6.1.10.2 User-defined crack points dialog.

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6.1.11 User-mesh crack panel

The user-mesh crack allows one to convert a surface mesh into a crack. Click on Read mesh
File, Figure 6.1.11.1, to display the file selector dialog, Figure 6.1.11.2. FRANC3D can read
ABAQUS (.inp), ANSYS (.cdb) and NASTRAN (.bdf) files containing planar or shell elements.
The file should contain a node “set” that defines the nodes that form the crack front, Figure
6.1.11.3. After selecting the front node set, select Accept, and the surface mesh will be
displayed, Figure 6.1.11.4.

Figure 6.1.11.1 New Flaw Wizard user-mesh crack panel.

Figure 6.1.11.2 User-mesh crack mesh file dialog

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 Figure 6.1.11.3 User-mesh crack front component (or node set)

In addition to the surface mesh files, FRANC3D can also import STL files. If the File type in
Figure 6.1.11.2 is set to .stl, then the Extra front file check box is activated. STL files contain a
collection of triangles. The extra front file allows the user to specify the vertex coordinates for
the crack front edge. The extra file is a simple ASCII txt file with lines of: x y z. FRANC3D
will compare the data in the front file with the STL file to obtain the crack front vertices and
edges.

The scale factor field, in Figure 6.1.11.4, allows one to scale the user-mesh crack. This can be
especially useful for STL files that are saved using units of meters when the model is in
millimeters.

Figure 6.1.11.4 User-mesh crack panel.

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6.1.12 Advanced Geometry button

Selecting the Advanced Geometry button on the predefined crack shapes (where it exists) leads
to the dialog shown in Figure 6.1.12.1. The crack shape shown here corresponds to an ellipse
with equal major and minor axes. Note that the triangular facets represent the geometry, not a
finite element surface mesh.

There are three buttons on the top menu bar: Refine, Reset and Edit. The crack geometry is
shown in the window. The menu options are described below.

Figure 6.1.12.1 Crack Advanced Geometry dialog.

6.1.12.1 Refine

The Refine button alters the discretization of the crack surface geometry. Although cracks
notionally have an analytical geometry (e.g. elliptical or quadratic), they are actually defined
geometrically by triangular cubic-Bezier patches. These patches only approximate the analytical
form. As the number of geometry patches is increased, the approximation improves, but at the
cost of additional processing time required to insert the crack. The Refine button performs a
uniform refinement of the patches, where each patch is divided into four smaller patches. This is
illustrated in the images in Figure 6.1.12.2. The Refine process can be repeated any number of
times.

Refinement might be required for high-aspect ratio elliptical cracks, specifically for the ends of
the major axis.

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6.1.12.2 Reset

The Reset button sets the crack geometry back to the original default configuration.

Figure 6.1.12.2 Example of a Refined crack geometry. The left panel shows one level of
refinement from Figure 6.1.12.1, and the right panel shows a second level of refinement.

6.1.12.3 Edit

The Edit button invokes the Flaw Editor, Figure 6.1.12.3. This dialog allows the user to redefine
the default shape of the flaw. The vertices (black circles in Figure 6.1.12.3) can be selected by
holding down the Shift-key and selecting the black circle with the left-mouse button. The
vertices turn red when they are selected (see right panel of Figure 6.1.12.3). The red circle can
be moved by holding down the Shift-key and dragging the item to the new location using the left
mouse button. The x and y coordinates of the vertex are shown in the fields near the top of the
dialog.

Unselect the vertex by holding the Shift-key down and picking a point that is not close to any
vertex. The undo and redo icons (to the left of the coordinate fields) allow the user to undo (or
redo) any movement of the vertices that is not desired.

Select Accept and the revised flaw shape will be shown in the initial Advanced Geometry
window (see Figure 6.1.12.1).

66
Select Accept in the Advanced Geometry window (see Figure 6.1.12.1) to return to the regular
flaw insertion wizard panel. The user can then proceed to locate and orient the edited flaw in the
model.

Note that the flaw editor must be used before rotating and translating the flaw.

Figure 6.1.12.3 Flaw Editor dialog. Left panel shows the initial geometry and right panel shows
edited geometry.

6.1.13 Ellipsoidal void panel

Ellipsoidal voids are the only void shapes currently available. They are defined by entering the
three semi-axes lengths (a, b and c), Figure 6.1.13.1. The void is displayed in the local
orientation and centered at the Cartesian origin.

67
 Figure 6.1.13.1 New Flaw Wizard ellipsoidal void parameters panel.

6.1.14 Flaw translation and rotation panel

Once a flaw (crack or void) is defined, it must be inserted (translated and rotated) into the proper
location relative to the unflawed body. The flaw orientation panel displays the flaw and the
model in a 3D graphics window, along with controls to translate and rotate the flaw, Figure
6.1.14.1. Translations and rotations can be specified in the global or a local coordinate system.

The translations move the origin of the flaw. It is usually simpler to specify translations and then
"zoom in" on the display of the flaw before specifying the rotations.

Up to three rotations about the (rotated) Cartesian axes can be specified. These are essentially
Euler angles, but the order of the rotation axes can be specified. The rotations follow a "right-
hand-rule" where the thumb points in the positive direction along the axis and the fingers curl in
the positive rotation direction.

The Define Local Axes button allows the user to specify a local Cartesian system to aid in
placing the flaw; this is described in the next sub-section. The adjacent Reset button clears any
local coordinate system and resets the original default crack translation and rotation.

The Display panel on the right side has two additional options to display the local axes and the
crack axes.

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 Figure 6.1.14.1 New Flaw Wizard orientation panel.

6.1.14.1 Define Local Axes

The Define Local Axes button displays a dialog, Figure 6.1.14.2, that allows one to specify a
local Cartesian coordinate system. See Appendix E for additional details on flaw placement and
local axes.

The Anchor at node normal to surface option allows one to specify a node ID, which will define
the crack local origin. The model surface normal defines the crack plane.

The Anchor at point normal to surface is similar to the previous option, but the user must specify
the global Cartesian coordinates of the point on the surface.

The Define by three nodes option allows one to specify three node IDs to define the origin and
crack plane.

The Define by three points option is similar to the previous option, but the user must specify the
global Cartesian coordinates of the three points.

The Define by angles option is allows the user to specify the global Cartesian origin and three
rotations.

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 Figure 6.1.14.2 New Flaw Wizard orientation vectors dialog.

6.1.15 Crack Front Mesh Template Panel

For accurate stress-intensity factor computations, a pattern or "template" of elements with

controlled sizes and shapes is placed about all crack fronts. The template takes the form of
generalized cylindrical tubes of elements with the crack fronts serving as the axes of the
cylinders. Wedge shaped elements are placed immediately adjacent to the crack fronts. These
are surrounded by rings of brick elements, Figure 6.1.15.1.

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 quarter-point singular wedge
crack-front elements

tetrahedral elements used

for most of volume mesh

two or more “rings” of

brick elements
pyramids provide compatibility
between bricks and tetrahedra

Figure 6.1.15.1 Crack front mesh element types.

Figure 6.1.15.2 shows the Crack Front Mesh Template wizard panel with an elliptical surface
crack being inserted into a cube. The user can turn off the crack front template elements with the
use crack-front template toggle. In some cases, a crack front template mesh cannot be added to
the model; a crack front that touches or crosses a material boundary currently is one such case.

The overall radius of the template can be adjusted with the Template Radius field. The default
value of the radius is based on a notion of the crack size, but it can be inappropriate in some
cases. In addition, the template radius can be decreased if a user wishes to do a mesh
refinement/convergence study.

The template elements are displayed in the 3D graphics window superimposed on the flaw and
model geometry. By default only one half of the template elements are shown. This allows one
to view the progression of element sizes as the elements transition from the crack front to the
outer boundary of the template. One can view the full template by turning on the Display Full
Template toggle.

The Simple Template Intersections Only toggle allows the user to terminate the template inside
the model surfaces. For cases where the template will intersect the model surface at shallow
angles or at corners, Figure 6.1.15.3, this option allows a crack to be inserted with template
elements along the bulk of the crack front, Figure 6.1.15.4. FRANC3D attempts to recognize
instances where the template will intersect model surfaces at poor angles and automatically
triggers this option as needed.

The Meshing Parameters button at the bottom left is used to specify surface and volume
meshing parameters as well as choosing the volume mesher; this is described in Section 6.1.15.1.

71
The Advanced Options button allows the user to adjust the template elements and is described
in Section 6.1.15.2.

Figure 6.1.15.2 Crack front mesh template panel.

Note that this panel is displayed even if the flaw does not have any crack fronts (e.g. an elliptical
void). In this case, simply ignore this panel and select finish.

Figure 6.1.15.3 Crack front mesh template intersecting model surface at an angle.

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 Figure 6.1.15.4 Crack front mesh template pulled back from the model surface.

6.1.15.1 Meshing Parameters Dialog

The Meshing Parameters dialog, Figure 6.1.15.5, is similar to the Preferences meshing tab
described in Section 5.4.8. The user can control some aspects of the surface and volume
meshing.

The first parameter, Maximum Generated Elements, limits the total number of volume elements
that FRANC3D will create during volume meshing. The second parameter, Maximum Volume
Mesh Restarts, limits the number of volume meshing restarts. These two options only work
when FRANC3D is used for volume mesh. FRANC3D uses an advancing front volume meshing
algorithm; this algorithm can get stuck sometimes and the algorithm is designed to backtrack
(i.e., remove elements) and restart the meshing. If the program fails to create a volume mesh
after several restarts, then one can try volume meshing with ANSYS or ABAQUS.

The next two options allow the user to control surface mesh refinement: on the crack surface,
using the Do Coarsen Crack Mouth Mesh option, and on the model surface in areas where
adjacent region boundaries are near, using Do Local Surface Refinement. The effect of the Do
Coarsen Crack Mouth Mesh option is shown in Figure 6.1.15.6.

The Do Not Coarsen More Than Uncracked Mesh option modifies the surface meshing
algorithm to respect the original surface mesh density. Figure 6.1.15.7 shows an example where
the option is turned off (left panel) and then turned on (right panel).

FRANC3D, by default, is used to mesh the volume, but ANSYS and ABAQUS can also be used
by selecting the appropriate radio button for Volume mesh using. Note that the user must have a
licensed working copy of these programs to use their meshing algorithms. The user can select
the ANSYS and ABAQUS executables, using the Browse button, if not already set in the
Preferences (see Section 5.4).

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For ANSYS or ABAQUS: write files only allows the user to write the surface mesh and the
commands to generate the volume mesh from the surface mesh to files, without actually running
ANSYS or ABAQUS. This gives the user the option of sending the files to a different computer
or modifying the commands.

Figure 6.1.15.5 Meshing parameters dialog.

Figure 6.1.15.6 Effects of Do Coarsen Crack Mouth Mesh option: on – left panel and off – right
panel.

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Figure 6.1.15.7 Effects of Do Not Coarsen More Than Uncracked Mesh option: off – left panel
and on – right panel.

6.1.15.2 Advanced Template Options Dialog

The Advanced Template Options dialog allows the user to adjust some of the default crack
front mesh template parameters, Figure 6.1.15.8. The parameters are described below and
illustrated in Figure 6.1.15.9, which shows a typical cross-section of a crack-front template.

Progression Ratio sets the relative width of the element (in the direction perpendicular to the
crack front) going from the crack front to the outer surface of the template. For example, a ratio
of 1 means that all the rings of elements will have the same width. For a ratio of 1.5, the width
of the elements in a ring will be 50% greater than the width of the elements in the next ring as we
approach the crack front.

Num Rings sets the number of rings of elements in the template.

Num Circumferential Elem sets the number of elements in the circumferential direction around
the crack front.

Max Aspect Ratio controls the aspect ratio of the quadrilateral faces on the outer surface of the
template that will trigger 1:2 or 1:3 transitions in the outer ring of elements.

75
 Figure 6.1.15.8 Advanced template options dialog.

template radius
num rings = 3
num circumferential elems = 8
progression ration = a/b = 0.667
a b

first ring
second ring
third ring

Figure 6.1.15.9 Crack front template cross-section.

6.1.16 Flaw Insertion

After one selects Finish on the crack front mesh template panel (see Figure 6.1.15.2), the flaw is
inserted into the body and the model is remeshed. An information box is displayed to give the
current status of these operations, Figure 6.1.16.1. The crack geometry is inserted into the model
geometry first, represented by the Doing geometric intersections... status. Once the crack
geometry has been inserted, trimmed, and tied to the model geometry, surface and then volume
meshing occurs. If using the FRANC3D volume meshing, the final volume mesh is smoothed to
improve the element quality.

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 Figure 6.1.16.1 Flaw Insertion Status dialog.

6.2 Flaw from Files

The user has the option of saving the flaw to a .crk file when defining a new flaw (see Figure
6.1.1.1). The Flaw from Files menu option allows the user to read one or more .crk files and
insert these crack(s) into the model. The Locate .crk flaw file dialog, Figure 6.2.1, is displayed,
which allows the user to select one or more .crk files. Use the Ctrl or Shift-key to select multiple
files. After selecting Accept, the flaw is displayed within the model, Figure 6.2.2. A flaw can be
translated, but rotation is not allowed.

Select Next to define the crack front template mesh; this was described in Section 6.1.14.

The .crk file contains the triangular Bezier patches that defined the surface and a description of
the crack front vertices. It also contains crack front template meshing parameters. This data is
also stored in the FRANC3D restart .fdb file. As the crack grows, new geometry is added and
this information is saved in the .fdb file. If needed, the FLAWSURF block of the .fdb file can be
extracted and saved as a .crk file (see Section 4.1.1).

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 Figure 6.2.1 Locate flaw file dialog.

Figure 6.2.2 Orient a flaw-from-file dialog; only translation is allowed.

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6.3 Multiple Flaw Insert
The Multiple Flaw Insertion wizard, Figure 6.3.1, allows one to add multiple cracks to a model.
The user defines each crack using the Flaw Insertion wizard panels described in Section 6.1.
When all cracks have been defined, they can be added to the model and/or saved to a file.

The user starts by selecting the Add button in the dialog shown in Figure 6.3.1. This leads to the
flaw insertion wizard panels described in Section 6.1. Either cracks or voids can be added.

Once a flaw has been added to the list, it can be edited or deleted by selecting the flaw name and
then selecting the Edit or Delete button. All of the added flaws can be displayed in the model,
Figure 6.3.2, to ensure that they do not overlap or intersect; select the Display button to show
this dialog, and select the Finish button to return to the Multiple Crack Definition dialog.

The set of radio buttons at the bottom of the dialog in Figure 6.3.1 allows one to: 1) add the flaws
to the model without saving to a file, 2) add the flaws to the model after prompting for a file
name to save a .crk file, or 3) save the flaws to a file without adding them to the model.

If the flaws are just being added, select Accept to close the dialog and begin the process of crack
insertion and re-meshing. The flaw insertion status window as described in Section 6.1.15 is
displayed. If the flaws will be saved to a file, the Save File dialog is presented before the crack
insertion process starts.

Figure 6.3.1 Multiple flaw insertion - top level dialog.

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 Figure 6.3.2 Multiple flaw insertion – flaw display window.

6.4 Compute SIFs

The user can compute and plot the stress intensity factors (SIFs) after performing an analysis of
the cracked model; the Analysis menu is described in Section 8.

SIFs are computed at mid-side nodes along the crack front.

6.4.1 M-integral, Displacement Correlation or Virtual Crack Closure Panel

The Compute SIFs menu option brings up the Compute SIFs dialog box, Figure 6.4.1. Either
the M-integral, Displacement Correlation (DC) or Virtual Crack Closure method can be chosen
to compute the SIFs. The M-integral method is the most accurate. The displacement correlation
option generally is used only for checking the M-integral values. For models where a crack front
template cannot be added, displacement correlation currently is the only option. The VCCT
method was implemented for cracks in material interfaces.

Note that if you switch SIF computation method, that method will continue to be used until you
switch back. So if you use the DC method to check the SIFs, you should recompute SIFs with the
M-integral before growing the crack – assuming that want to use the M-integral.

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The Plot Stress Intensity Factors option turns on/off the display of the SIF plot dialog, which is
described in Section 6.4.1.1.

Figure 6.4.1 Compute SIFs panel allows one to choose either M-integral, displacement
correlation or VCCT.

The (M-integral) Advanced button displays the dialog in Figure 6.4.2. The fields in the dialog
are described below.

Figure 6.4.2 Compute SIFs Advanced Parameters dialog

Include Thermal Terms: Thermal terms can be included in the M-integral computation. The
nodal temperatures should exist in the results database and the user should supply the reference
temperature if not already given with the initial FE input file. This option should be checked
automatically if there are temperatures.

Include Applied Crack Traction: Any applied crack face traction/pressure terms should be
included in the M-integral. This should be checked automatically if crack face traction exists.

81
Include Contact Crack Pressure: Any induced crack face contact pressure should be included in
the M-integral. The contact pressure results should exist in the results file. This option should be
checked automatically if there are contact pressure results.

Curvature Correction: The computation can account for the difference in element volume ahead
of and behind the crack front for curved crack fronts. This can improve the SIFs for cases of
curved crack fronts with crack face tractions. This should be checked automatically if there are
crack face tractions.

Large Rotations: The local crack front coordinate system is defined based on the deformed
configuration if this option is checked; this is required if there are large rigid body rotations.
This option is not set automatically.

Note that it is possible to have both applied pressure and contact pressure on a crack surface and
these terms will be summed.

6.4.1.1 SIF Plot Panel

Stress-intensity factor distributions are displayed in this dialog, Figure 6.4.1.1. The left side of
the dialog is a 3D graphics window that displays the crack in model. The right side of the dialog
is a tab box that shows graphs of the computed stress-intensity factor (SIF) distributions along
the crack front. The mode I, II, and III SIFs are represented by the KI, KII and KIII tabs,
respectively.

Figure 6.4.1.1 SIF plot panel.

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The J-integral tab displays a plot of the total (elastic) J-integral distribution (total energy release
rate not segregated into modal components). J-integral values from M-integral and
Displacement Correlation will be slightly different as the computations are done differently. The
T-Str tab displays a plot of the T-stress. The Table tab shows a table of the SIF values along
with the parametric location along the crack front (N Coord); the crack front length is normalized
from 0 to 1, going from A to B (shown in the window on the left).

The Export tab allows one to export the SIF data to a file, Figure 6.4.1.2. The user can specify
the type of delimiters to use, the grouping of the data, and order of the data. The program
initially assigns one end of the crack front as A and the other end as B. The data is plotted along
the crack front, normalized by the crack front length, starting from point A. Use the Create File
button to select the file name and save the data.

Figure 6.4.1.2 SIF table tab (left panel) and export tab (right panel).

The dialog shown in Figure 6.4.1.1 includes options to display SIF data for a model with
multiple load steps (and substeps), multiple crack fronts, and multiple crack growth steps. The
drop-down boxes above the tabs provide these options, Figure 6.4.1.3.

Figure 6.4.1.3 SIF display drop-down selections for load step, crack front and crack growth step.

83
6.4.1.1.1 SIF Plot menu bar

The menu bar at the top left contains three entries: File, Data and Axes. These are described
here. The same menu appears in other dialog panels with XY plots.

The File menu is shown in Figure 6.4.1.4. The Export as .png… and Export as .jpg… options
both present the standard FRANC3D File Save As dialog (see Section 4.4). One can save either
.png or .jpg images of the XY plot. The Close option closes the SIF display.

Figure 6.4.1.4 SIF display panel File menu.

The Data menu is shown in Figure 6.4.1.5. The Swap A-B option swaps the X-axis and data in
the XY plot, Figure 6.4.1.6. The Information box… option displays the dialog shown in Figure
6.4.1.7.

Figure 6.4.1.5 SIF display panel Data menu.

Figure 6.4.1.6 Effect of the Swap A-B menu option.

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 Figure 6.4.1.7 Information box dialog.

Turning on the Display Information box adds a box of text to the XY plot, Figure 6.4.1.8, which
describes the options used to compute SIFs.

Figure 6.4.1.8 Information box added to XY plot.

The Axes menu is shown in Figure 6.4.1.9. The Format X Axis option displays the dialog
shown in Figure 6.4.1.10. One can define the axis limits and grid spacing. The Format Y Axis
displays the same dialog with the label changed to Y Axis. The Labels… option displays the
dialog in Figure 6.4.1.11. One can change the plot title and axis labels; the syntax for defining
the labels is described in Appendix A.

85
 Figure 6.4.1.9 SIF display panel Axes menu.

Figure 6.4.1.10 Format X Axis dialog.

Figure 6.4.1.11 XY plot Labels dialog.

6.5 Grow Crack

When the Grow Crack menu option is selected, the Compute SIF's wizard is presented (see
Section 6.4), if the SIFs have not already been computed.

The Crack Growth wizard allows the user to specify algorithms and parameters to determine
the local direction and relative extension of crack growth. The first panel in the wizard, Figure
6.5.1, allows one to specify the growth model type. Subcritical crack growth includes fatigue,
stress corrosion, and creep models. Quasi-static crack growth is a simplified model that uses a

86
simple power-law to advance the crack front. User-defined crack growth is active if the user has
pre-defined Python extensions; Python extensions are described under the Advanced menu (see
section 12.7). Growth parameters can also be read from a file using the Browse button.

Depending on the chosen growth type, different wizard panels will be displayed, which allow the
user to choose the rules, models, and parameters for the crack extension and kink angle
computations.

Figure 6.5.1. Growth parameters panel.

6.5.1 Subcritical crack growth

The first panel of Subcritical crack growth is shown in Figure 6.5.1.1. This dialog allows one to
specify the method for computing kink angle. The default uses the maximum tensile stress
(MTS) theory; the crack kinks in the direction where tensile stress ahead of the crack front point
is maximized, Figure 6.5.1.2.

The Max Shear Stress (MSS), Generalized Stress, and Strain Energy Release Rate (SERR)
theories are described more fully in the Theory reference. They can be used in cases where there
is high shear and the material allows shear-dominated crack growth. The Planar option sets the
kink angle to zero. The Mixed Mode Eta Factors fields apply to the MSS, Generalized and
SERR theories.

87
 Figure 6.5.1.1. Kink angle model panel.

y
1   3 
s = cos  K I cos2  K II sin  
2r 2 2 2 

s max
 1  1  8( K K ) 2 
c = 2 tan 1 II I 
s max  4( K II K I ) 
 
c

Figure 6.5.1.2. MTS kink angle theory.

Crack growth resistance can be either isotropic or anisotropic. If the Anisotropic Toughness box
is checked, the Set Toughness Parameters button is activated, Figure 6.5.1.3. The fields
correspond to the material toughness values.

88
 Figure 6.5.1.3. Anisotropic toughness parameters dialog.

Currently, FRANC3D supports one anisotropic crack growth resistance model. It is an

orthotropic model based on six principal material toughnesses. These toughnesses are illustrated
in Figure 6.5.1.4. In the figure, the e's are the material property axes, which, in general, will not
be aligned with the global Cartesian or the crack front coordinate systems. The first toughness
subscript identifies the material axis perpendicular to the crack plane and second subscript gives
the direction of propagation.

Figure 6.5.1.4. Orientations for the six principal material toughnesses.

89
 Figure 6.5.1.5 shows the crack-front orientation and defines the a and n vectors. x, y, and z are
local crack-front coordinate axes that, in general, are not aligned with the global Cartesian
coordinate axes.  is the local kink angle.

Figure 6.5.1.5 Definition of the crack-front a and n vectors.

The crack orientation and kink angle sensitive local resistance to crack growth K p ( ) is given
by

 2  l 1 2l
n  n 2 l  n 2 l  
K p (n,a) =  12    22    32  
 K   K2   K 3  
 1
 2  n 1 2n
 2  n
 aj a 
Ki (a) = 1  ai2  2    k2  
K 
  ij   Kik  

where K ij and Kik are the principal toughnesses (no summation on repeated indices), ai and ni
are the Cartesian
 components of the a and n vectors, and l and n (no subscript) are shape
parameters. The n shape parameters control the shape of the toughness envelope in the principal
 planes. For example, Figure 6.5.1.6 shows the variation in K3 as function of  assuming that
  
crack front coordinates are aligned with the Cartesian coordinates. The l shape parameter has a
similar effect on the variation of the toughness between the principal planes.




90
 Figure 6.5.1.6. The variation in K3 as function of  assuming that crack front coordinates are
aligned with the Cartesian coordinates.

 shown in Figure 6.5.1.1 leads to the Subcritical Growth Parameters

Selecting Next in the dialog

dialog, Figure 6.5.1.7. The yellow (warning) triangles indicate that parameters need to be set
before you can continue. The six sections of the dialog are described in the following
subsections.

Figure 6.5.1.7. The Subcritical Growth Parameters dialog.

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6.5.1.1 Units used in FE model

Select the Change button on the right side of the Units used in the FE model to display the Units
dialog box, Fig 6.5.1.1.1. Either SI or US units can be chosen; if the FE units do not correspond
to the units shown, choose other. Units of time are independent.

Note that FRANC3D needs to match the FE units with crack growth rate units, which can be
different. By explicitly specifying the units used for the FE model and for the growth model,
FRANC3D can perform unit conversions automatically.

If other units are used, it is up to the user to make the units consistent between the FE model and
the crack growth rate data.

Figure 6.5.1.1.1. The Units dialog.

6.5.1.2 Crack Growth Load Schedule

A Crack Growth Load Schedule does two main things. First, it defines a mapping from the load
steps defined in the FE model to stress intensity factors used to predict crack growth rates.
Second, it defines the sequence with which these loads will be applied to the model.

6.5.1.2.1 New Schedule

Select the New Schedule button, in Figure 6.5.1.7, to display the Load Schedule dialog, Figure
6.5.1.2.1. A load schedule is comprised of a collection of load events. Load events are

92
organized in a tree-like structure. The root of the tree is a Schedule event. Initially, the upper
part of the dialog (Figure 6.5.1.2.1) shows one Schedule event, which is the tree root. Left-
clicking on the root event does two things: 1) it makes the Add button active, and 2) it brings the
Repeat tab to the front in the lower part of the dialog (see right side image).

Figure 6.5.1.2.1. The Load Schedule dialog.

Select the Add button to display the Event Type dialog, Fig 6.5.1.2.2. There are six different
event types:
 Simple Cyclic – a simple K = Kmax – Kmin cycle, where the Kmax and Kmin loadings are
proportional, so Kmin = R*Kmax, and R is given by the analyst.
 Non-Proportional Cyclic – a K = Kmax – Kmin cycle, where the Kmax and Kmin loadings
are not proportional (they come from different load steps), and R = Kmin/ Kmax is
computed.
 Transient – For a transient event, a list of analysis load steps, sub-steps (frames), or a
combination are specified. FRANC3D will examine all of the associated K’s, and select
Kmax and Kmin from among these to define K = Kmax – Kmin.
 Spectrum – For a spectrum event, one or more load spectra are specified. A load
spectrum is a list of load multipliers used to define a sequence of Kmax and Kmin values,
which are used to define a sequence of K’s. If multiple spectra are specified, they are
superimposed.

93
  Hold Event – The four load events defined above can include a hold (dwell) time. A hold
event allows one to define a hold time without any companion load cycling.
 Schedule – A schedule event can contain children events and allow a tree-like structure to
be constructed.

Figure 6.5.1.2.2. The event type dialog.

Note that some event types will not be active if there is only one load step. Non-Proportional
Cyclic and Transient types require at least two load steps.

If the Non-Proportional Cyclic event type is selected, the Load Schedule dialog is updated,
Figure 6.5.1.2.3; and the Load Steps tab is automatically selected. The yellow triangles indicate
that the load steps associated with Kmax and Kmin must be specified. The Select a load step
buttons bring up the dialog shown to the right in Figure 6.5.1.2.3. The load step is selected from
the “pull-down” list of load steps for each load step.

If there is only one substep (frame) for this load step, the Load Sub-Step option is unavailable. If
there are multiple substeps, the user can choose the substep as well.

Load and temperature scaling factors can be defined. Note that the temperature multiplier does
not account for coupling between the temperature and the stress intensity factors, so it should be
used with care.

The Temperature Offset can be used if the analysis was done using relative temperatures while
the crack growth rate models assume thermometer temperatures.

Note that in the Select Load Step dialog, the Sum Multiple Steps button allows Kmax and Kmin to
be defined as the sum of the K’s associated with two or more load steps (each with its own load
multiplier).

94
 Figure 6.5.1.2.3 The Load Schedule dialog with a non-proportional cyclic load event added.
The Select a load step button displays the dialog on the right.

Once the load steps for Kmax and Kmin have been selected, the Load Schedule dialog is updated
as shown in Figure 6.5.1.2.4.

The Load Schedule dialog with the Temperature tab selected is shown in Fig 6.5.1.2.5, with
Temperature dependent crack growth checked.

95
Figure 6.1.5.2.4. The Load Schedule dialog after load steps are selected for Kmax and Kmin.

Figure 6.5.1.2.5. The Temperature tab of the load schedule dialog.

96
Because predicting crack growth might involve a number of different finite element load steps,
each of which can have associated temperatures, it is not obvious what temperature to use when
evaluating a temperature dependent growth model. FRANC3D provides the following options:

 Constant – a constant temperature, provided by the user, is assumed for all crack front
nodes and is used for evaluating temperature dependent growth models.
 Kmin – the crack-front temperatures associated with the load step used for determining
Kmin is used when evaluating growth models.
 Kmax – the crack-front temperatures associated with the load step used for determining
Kmax is used when evaluating growth models.
 Khold – the crack-front temperatures associated with the load step used for determining
Khold is used when evaluating growth models.
 External – the crack-front temperatures are read from an independent set of analysis
results. This will be a mesh file (e.g. .inp file) and the associated results file (e.g. .odb or
.dtp file).
 Interpolate – the crack front temperatures will be linearly interpolated between the Kmin
and Kmax temperatures using a user provided parameter that can vary between zero and
one, where zero is the Kmin temperature and one is the Kmax temperature.

Note that if Kmin, Kmax, or Khold are specified to be computed from the sum of multiple load steps,
only temperatures from the first load step specified in the list of steps will be used to determine
crack-front temperatures.

The Load Schedule dialog with the Time tab selected is shown in Fig 6.5.1.2.6, with Time
dependent crack growth checked.

Simple Cyclic, Non-Proportional Cyclic, Transient, and Spectrum Load event types all allow a
hold time. A hold time can also be specified as an independent Hold event.

Note that one might consider separate cyclic and hold events if, for example, the cyclic growth
rate and hold growth rates were to be computed for different temperatures. FRANC3D will
compute the crack extension for all the cyclic loading in an event before computing the extension
due to a hold time. If it is desired to have the time dependent growth computed first, that should
be done with a hold event that appears before the cyclic event in the load schedule.

Figure 6.5.1.2.6 shows the hold time added as part of the Non-Proportional Cyclic event. The
hold time can be entered, and this can be associated with a load step.

The Hold FOREVER option makes the hold time infinitely long. This could be used, for
example, if one wanted to simulate time dependent crack growth (e.g., stress corrosion cracking)
and keep the crack growth simulation going until a critical stress intensity factor was reached.

97
 Figure 6.5.1.2.6. The load schedule dialog with the Time tab selected.

The Static tab is shown in Figure 6.5.1.2.7. It allows the analyst to specify that the K from a load
step (or sum of load steps) is to be added to both Kmax and Kmin. This will not change the K, but
it will change the stress ratio, R, for crack growth models sensitive to R. This could be, for
example, in situations where there is a steady “fixed” load, and an alternating cyclic load.

The static load can be defined as a crack face traction, with stresses read from external analyses
results (e.g., .inp and .odb files).

The Other tab is shown in Figure 6.5.1.2.8. It allows one to define how K is treated if the Kmin
becomes greater than Kmax.

98
Figure 6.5.1.2.7. The load schedule dialog with the Static tab selected.

Figure 6.5.1.2.8. The load schedule dialog with the Other tab selected.

99
By default, a load event (load cycle, hold time, or combination) will be applied once. The
Repeat tab allows the analyst to specify that the load event should be applied some finite number
of times. It also allows one to specify that the event will be repeated FOREVER.

All load events must be the “child” of a Schedule event. When the repeat count is set for a
Schedule event, all the child events are repeated for the specified number of times. By
organizing the events into a tree like structure and setting repeat counts for the Schedule and
loading events, arbitrarily complex load sequences can be defined.

These options, along with options set for the crack growth rate model, will determine when
FRANC3D will stop a crack growth simulation. Crack growth will always stop if the Kmax at any
point on a crack front reaches a critical value. It will also stop if the K for all points on the
crack front fall below a threshold K. In addition, if none of the load event events in the load
schedule is set to repeat FOREVER, FRANC3D will make one complete pass through the load
schedule and then stop the crack growth. If a FOREVER repeat is specified, FRANC3D will
continue to apply the corresponding load event (sequence of children events in the case of a
Schedule event) until one of the stopping criteria from the crack growth rate model is reached.

If the load sequence is to be applied FOREVER, this could be specified either in the Non-
Proportional Cyclic event or in the root Schedule event, Figure 6.5.1.2.9. It is preferential to
specify repeat FOREVER for the root schedule event. This allows FRANC3D to more easily
determine if an accelerated cycle counting algorithm can be used when computing a fatigue life.

Figure 6.5.1.2.9. Load schedule dialog with Repeat FOREVER selected for the schedule.

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6.5.1.2.1.1 Simple Cyclic Event

If the user chooses a Simple Cyclic load type (see Figure 6.5.1.2.2), the lower portion of the
Load Schedule dialog appears as in Figure 6.5.1.2.10. The user can specify a given Stress ratio
(R), and then specify the load step (and substep if there is more than one) along with load and
temperature multipliers and temperature offset. The Stress ratio will be used to compute the
Kmin and thus the K values.

Figure 6.5.1.2.10. Simple cyclic load event options.

6.5.1.2.1.2 Non-Proportional Cyclic Event

If the user chooses a Non-Proportional Cyclic load type (see Figure 6.5.1.2.2), the lower portion
of the Load Schedule dialog appears as in Figure 6.5.1.2.11. The user must specify the load step
(and substep if there is more than one) along with load and temperature multipliers and
temperature offset for Kmax and Kmin; the stress ratio and K values are computed from these.

Figure 6.5.1.2.11. Non-proportional cyclic load event options.

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6.5.1.2.1.3 Transient Event

If the user chooses a Transient load type (see Figure 6.5.1.2.2), the lower portion of the Load
Schedule dialog appears as in Figure 6.5.1.2.12. The user must specify the load steps (and
substeps if more than one) along with load and temperature multipliers and temperature offset,
Figure 6.5.1.2.13 – left side. If multiple load steps are to be analyzed, use the Multiple Steps
button to select the load steps, Figure 6.5.1.2.13 – right side. FRANC3D computes the Kmax
and Kmin values from all of the selected load steps.

Figure 6.5.1.2.12. Transient load event options.

Figure 6.5.1.2.13. Transient load event load step selection.

6.5.1.2.1.4 Spectrum Event

If the user chooses a Spectrum load type (see Figure 6.5.1.2.2), the lower portion of the Load
Schedule dialog appears as in Figure 6.5.1.2.14. The user must specify the load steps (and
substeps if more than one) along with a load spectrum; multiple spectra can be used.

102
 Figure 6.5.1.2.14. Spectrum load event options.

This option allows one to specify a load spectrum (variable amplitude load schedule) to be used
when computing crack growth rates. A spectrum is defined as a series of load ranges.
Associated with each load range is an optional repeat count (the default value is one). One can
also specify a multiplier and offset that will be applied to all values in the spectrum (e.g., to
support the use of a normalized spectrum).
raw raw
If only one load case is used in the analysis, and load range i has specified values Smax, i and Smin,i
the expressions used for computing the stress intensity factor ranges and R ratio crack for range i
are

Smax, i = sSmax,  
i  t , Smin,i = sSmin,i  t
raw raw

K max, i = Smax, i K comp , K min,i = Smin,i K comp

 
K i = K max, i  K min,i and Ri = K min,i K max, i
 
where s is the spectrum multiplier and t is the spectrum offset. The K i and Ri are used to
compute the crack growth rate for stress range i. If multiple load cases are being used there are
 
additional options for setting these values.

For variable amplitude loading, the crack growth rates used for computing
 the relative amounts
of crack growth for crack front points are the average crack growth rates computed for one pass
through the spectrum. That is
n
da
da
 dN i
(K i ,Ri ,...)
= i=1
dN n

where da dN is the crack growth rate computed for any given crack front point n is the number
of load ranges in the spectrum.


 103
 The corresponding predicted kink angle is weighted average kink angle computed as
n
da
 dN i
(K i ,Ri ,...)   kink,i (K I ,i ,K II ,i ,K III ,i ,...)
 kink = i=1
n
da
 dN i
(K i ,Ri ,...)
i=1

where  kink,i is the kink angle determined (implicitly) for range i using one of the criteria
described in section 12.2.

The Select a load step button (in Figure 6.5.1.2.14) displays the dialog for selecting the load step
 (see Figure 6.5.1.2.13). The Select a load spectrum button first displays a dialog for selecting the
spectrum file, Figure 6.5.2.1.15. FRANC3D reads the data and displays it in a dialog, Figure
6.5.1.2.16 – left side, which allows one to specify the delimiter and to ignore the first line, if
labels were present. The next dialog, Figure 6.5.1.2.16 – right side, allows one to specify the
Min, Max and Count columns.

Figure 6.5.1.2.15. Select load spectrum file dialog.

104
 Figure 6.5.1.2.16. Select load spectrum file dialog.

Once the spectrum has been read, the Load schedule dialog appears as in Figure 6.5.1.2.17. The
Display button beside the Spectrum label can be used to view the spectrum, Figure 6.5.1.2.18.

Figure 6.5.1.2.17. Spectrum load event with load step and spectrum defined.

105
 Figure 6.5.1.2.18. Spectrum display dialog.

The magnifying glass icons allow one to view a smaller or greater segment of the spectrum and
the arrow icons allow one move forward and backward through the spectrum. A cycle range can
be specified as well, which can be faster than multiple levels of zooming.

6.5.1.2.1.5 Hold Event

If the user chooses a Hold load type (see Figure 6.5.1.2.2), the lower portion of the Load
Schedule dialog appears as in Figure 6.5.1.2.19. The user must specify the hold time and the
load step. The hold time was described previously as part of the root schedule.

106
 Figure 6.5.1.2.19. Hold load event options.

6.5.1.2.1.6 Schedule Event

If the user chooses a Schedule load type (see Figure 6.5.1.2.2), the Load Schedule dialog appears
as in Figure 6.5.1.2.20. This allows one to build up a sub-schedule with any of the load types
just described.

Figure 6.5.1.2.20. Schedule load event added to the root schedule.

107
6.5.1.2.2 Crack Growth Load Schedule Read From File

The Crack Growth Load Schedule Read From File button (see Figure 6.5.1.7) allows one to
read a load schedule that was previously defined and saved to a file.

6.5.1.2.3 Crack Growth Load Schedule Wizard

The Crack Growth Load Schedule Wizard button (see Figure 6.5.1.7) presents a series of dialog
boxes that leads you through the step-by-step process of creating the load schedule.

6.5.1.2.4 Crack Growth Load Schedule View/Edit

The Crack Growth Load Schedule View/Edit button (see Figure 6.5.1.7) displays the previously
defined load schedule in the dialog.

6.5.1.2.5 Crack Growth Load Schedule Save To File

The Crack Growth Load Schedule Save To File button (see Figure 6.5.1.7) allows the user to
save the load schedule to a file.

6.5.1.3 Crack Growth Rate Model

The Subcritical Growth Parameters dialog (see Fig 6.5.1.7) requires that you set a Crack Growth
Rate Model. Select the Crack Growth Rate Model New Model button to display the dialog
shown in Fig 6.5.1.3.1. Cyclic loading and time dependent growth rate models can be defined.

Figure 6.5.1.3.1. The crack growth rate model types dialog.

6.5.1.3.1 Cyclic loading growth model

The Cyclic Loading Growth Model dialog, Fig 6.5.1.3.2, supports two general types of cyclic
growth models, “paired” and “inclusive” models. The difference between them is based on how
the stress ratio effects are incorporated. For a paired model, the “shape” of the crack growth rate
curve (Paris, Sigmoidal, etc.) is selected independently from the stress ratio algorithm (Walker,

108
Newman Closure, etc.). The inclusive models (two different versions of the NASGRO equation)
have stress ratio effects built-in.

Figure 6.5.1.3.2. The cyclic loading growth model.

For the Paris crack growth rate model, for example, with no stress ratio effects, the next dialog
allows you specify either a temperature dependent or independent model, Fig 6.5.1.3.3. If the
growth rate model is temperature independent, this means that only one set of growth rate
parameters (C and m for the Paris model) are required.

For temperature dependent models, different sets of growth model parameters are specified for
different temperatures, and FRANC3D interpolates among these values to find the appropriate
growth rate for the crack-front temperature.

Figure 6.5.1.3.3. The temperature independent model selected.

109
 For a temperature independent Paris model, the dialog shown in Fig 6.5.1.3.4 is displayed. The
Model Label, and Description fields are optional. These might be useful if the model parameters
are stored in a file for later reuse.

The units must be specified. The units need not be the same units use in the FE analysis. If the
units are different, FRANC3D will automatically perform the necessary unit conversions.
However, FRANC3D assumes that the units used within the growth model description (or within
the FE analysis) are self-consistent.

Figure 6.5.1.3.4. Dialog for entering temperature independent Paris growth model parameters.

Each of the growth rate and stress ratio models are described in the following subsections. The
dialogs for entering the growth rate model parameters are similar to that shown in Figure
6.5.1.3.4; differences will be noted in each subsection.

6.5.1.3.1.1 Paris model

The Paris growth rate model (see Figure 6.5.1.3.4) is a power law model expressed as

da dN = C(Keff )n

The parameters and n must be specified along with values for Kthreshold and Kcritical. If
C
Keff  Kthreshold, da dN is set to zero. If Keff  (1 R)Kcritical, unstable crack growth is

assumed

and da dN is infinite.

 
  

110
 Note that FRANC3D labels the exponent for the Paris model as “n”. In addition to C and n,
FRANC3D requires that values be entered for Kthreshold and Kc. Specifying a very small value
for Kthreshold or a very large value for Kc will effectively turn off the possibility that the crack
growth simulation will be stopped due to a below-threshold or above-critical condition.

6.5.1.3.1.2 Bilinear Paris model

The Bilinear Paris model, Figure 6.5.1.3.5, is an extension of the Paris model; it has two linear
portions when plotted on a log/log graph. The equation is:

 n
K eff  K *
da  C1 (K eff ) 1
=
dN C2 (K eff )n2 K eff  K *

The parameters C1, C2 , n1 , and n2 must be specified along with values for Kthreshold and
Kcritical. If Keff  Kthreshold, da dN is set to zero. If Keff  (1 R)Kcritical, unstable

crack growth is assumed and da dN is infinite.
   
 
 


Figure 6.5.1.3.5. Dialog for entering temperature independent Bilinear Paris growth model
parameters.

6.5.1.3.1.3 Sigmoidal cyclic loading growth model

The expression for the sigmoidal model, Figure 6.5.1.3.6, is:

111
 D
da B
 K eff P   K eff Q   K 
  ln  
critical
=e   ln 
dN  K threshold    Kthreshold   K eff 

The parameters B, P, Q, D, Kthreshold, and Kc must be specified.



 

Figure 6.5.1.3.6. Dialog for entering temperature independent Sigmoidal growth model
parameters.

6.5.1.3.1.4 Hyperbolic Sine model

The expression for the hyperbolic sine model, Figure 6.5.1.3.7, is:

log( da dN) = C1 sinh( C2 [log( K)C3 ])C4

The parameters C1, C2 , C3 , C4 , Kthreshold, and Kc must be specified. If Keff  Kthreshold,

da dN is set to zero. If Keff  (1 R)Kcritical, unstable crack growth is assumed and da dN

is infinite.

     

 

112
 Figure 6.5.1.3.7. Dialog for entering temperature independent Hyperbolic sine growth model
parameters.

6.5.1.3.1.5 Table Lookup growth model

For a table lookup model, Figure 6.5.1.3.8, a list of Keff and corresponding da dN values are
specified. Linear interpolation is performed among logs of the specified values. The following
equation is used to interpolate between values i and i+1:

log( K eff Ki )  dadN 
log( da dN) = log( da dN i )  log  i1 
log( Ki1 Ki ) da dN 
 i 

In addition to the (Keff ,da dN) values, a value must be specified for Kcritical. The smallest

specified K eff is assumed to be Kthreshold. For K eff greater than the largest value specified
and Keff  (1 R)Kcritical, the slope of the curve between the two highest specified points is

extrapolated. This is unrealistic for many cases so it is best 
to provide (Keff ,da dN) data that
 
extend past the critical 
values.

One can use the File button (in Figure 6.5.1.3.8) to import data  from an ASCII txt file. The data
is displayed in a dialog, Figure 6.5.1.3.9 – left side, which allows one to specify the delimiter.
The next dialog, Figure 6.5.1.3.9 – right side, allows one to identify the columns for K and
da/dN. Once data has been read or entered, the Plot button (in Figure 6.5.1.3.8) can be used to
display the data, Figure 6.5.1.3.10.

113
Figure 6.5.1.3.8. Dialog for entering temperature independent Table lookup growth model.

Figure 6.5.1.3.9. Dialog for importing Table lookup growth model data.

114
 Figure 6.5.1.3.10. Plot of Table lookup growth model data.

6.5.1.3.1.6 No Stress Ratio model

This option turns off stress ratio effects. That is

Keff = K

All of the above growth rate model dialogs were shown with the stress ratio option set to None.


6.5.1.3.1.7 Walker Stress Ratio model

The expression for the Walker equation is

K eff = (1 R)m1 K

m  R  0
m=
m  R  0

115

The parameters m  and m  must be specified.
NOTE: the Walker equation is defined relative to R = 0. That is, the parameters used for the
paired growth rate model (e.g. Paris parameters) should be those appropriate for R = 0.

For each of the growth models paired with the Walker model, the dialogs are shown in Figures
6.5.1.3.11 - 15.

Figure 6.5.1.3.11. Dialog for entering temperature independent Paris growth and Walker stress
ratio model parameters.

Figure 6.5.1.3.12. Dialog for entering temperature independent Bilinear Paris growth and
Walker stress ratio model parameters.

116
Figure 6.5.1.3.13. Dialog for entering temperature independent Sigmoidal growth and Walker
stress ratio model parameters.

Figure 6.5.1.3.14. Dialog for entering temperature independent Hyperbolic sine growth and
Walker stress ratio model parameters.

117
Figure 6.5.1.3.15. Dialog for entering temperature independent Table lookup growth and Walker
stress ratio model parameters.

6.5.1.3.1.8 Newman Closure Stress Ratio model

The expression for Newman Closure is

(1 f )
K eff = K
(1 R)

where f is a function that accounts for the crack front being open for only a portion of the load
cycle due to plasticity induced crack front closure. It is defined as

K open max( R, A0  A1R  A2 R2  A3R 3 ) R0
f= =
K max  A0  A1R 2  R  0

where the coefficients are given by:



118
 1a
   S max 
A0 = (0.825  0.34a  0.05a ) cos
2 
  2 s 0 
 S
(0.415  0.071a ) max R  0
A1 =  s0
 0.415  0.071a R0
A2 = 1  A0  A1  A3
A3 = 2 A0  A1  1

The values of a and Smax s 0 must be specified, where a is a plane stress/strain constraint
factor and Smax s 0 is the ratio of the maximum applied stress to the flow stress.

NOTE: the Newman

 relative to R = Rclosure. That is, the parameters
Closure equation is defined 

used for the paired growth rate model (e.g. Paris parameters) should be those appropriate for the
case of R = Rclosure, where Rclosure is the stress ratio where crack closure effects are no longer
significant. This value is typically about 0.7 for most materials.

For each of the growth models paired with the Newman Closure model, the dialogs are shown in
Figures 6.5.1.3.16 - 20.

Figure 6.5.1.3.16. Dialog for entering temperature independent Paris growth and Newman
Closure stress ratio model parameters.

119
 Figure 6.5.1.3.17. Dialog for entering temperature independent Bilinear Paris growth and
Newman Closure stress ratio model parameters.

Figure 6.5.1.3.18. Dialog for entering temperature independent Sigmoidal growth and Newman
Closure stress ratio model parameters.

120
 Figure 6.5.1.3.19. Dialog for entering temperature independent Hyperbolic sine growth and
Newman Closure stress ratio model parameters.

Figure 6.5.1.3.20. Dialog for entering temperature independent Table lookup growth and
Newman Closure stress ratio model parameters.

6.5.1.3.1.9 Table Lookup Stress Ratio model

For a tabular stress ratio model, parameters for the associated growth rate model are specified for
various R values. For example, the specified values for a Paris model with tabular stress ratio
model would be

121
 R1, (C , n, Kthreshold, K critical)1
R2 , (C , n, Kthreshold, K critical) 2
R3 , (C , n, Kthreshold, K critical)3


Linear interpolation is performed to find the crack growth rate for any R value between two
specified values Ri and Ri 1 . That is

da da R  Ri  da da 
=    
dN dN i Ri 1  Ri  dN i 1 dN i 

If R is smaller than the smallest R specified, the growth rate corresponding to the smallest
specified R is used. Likewise, if R is greater than the greatest R specified, the growth rate
corresponding to the largest specified R is used.

For Table lookup growth rate and Table lookup stress ratio, FRANC3D interpolates using both
tables to find a crack growth rate for a given K and R.

Given query values K query and Rquery , crack growth rates are extracted from the table using the
following algorithm:

1. Rl and Ru values are found that bracket the query value, Rl  Rquery  Ru .
 

2. Kll , K lu, K ul , and Kuu are found where K ll  K query  K lu and

  K ul  K query  K uu , with Kll and K lu values  associated with Rl and K ul and Kuu
values associated with Ru .
    
 3. Linear interpolation in log/log space is used to find intermediate growth rate data,
    
  da 
 da 
log 
 da
 = log 
 
(K ll ,Rl )  log  dN
(K lu ,Rl )  
 log K query K ll

(K ll ,Rl )  log K lu /K ll 
 dN l   dN  da

 dN 

and
  da 
 da 
log 
 da
 = log 

(K ul ,Ru )  log 

 dN (K uu,Ru )  log K query K ul 

(K ul ,Ru )  log K uu /K ul 
 dN u   dN  da

 dN 


122
 4. Finally, normal linear interpolation is used to find the final growth rate

da da  da da  (Rqueary  Rl )
=   
dN dN l  dN u dN l  (Ru  Rl )

If during the interpolation process a query value ( Rquery or K query) is found to be larger or
smaller than the largest or smallest corresponding value in the table, the query value is replaced

with the largest or smallest, respectively, available value.
 
Not that, as with all interpolation procedures, the accuracy of the results is dependent on the
density of the data available for interpolation. Very sparse tables can lead to inaccurate and in
some cases unrealistic crack growth predictions.

For each of the growth models paired with Table lookup stress ratio selected, the dialogs are
shown in Figures 6.5.1.3.21 - 25.

Figure 6.5.1.3.21. Dialog for entering temperature independent Paris growth and Table lookup
stress ratio model parameters.

123
Figure 6.5.1.3.22. Dialog for entering temperature independent Bilinear Paris growth and Table
lookup stress ratio model parameters.

Figure 6.5.1.3.23. Dialog for entering temperature independent Sigmoidal growth and Table
lookup stress ratio model parameters.

124
 Figure 6.5.1.3.24. Dialog for entering temperature independent Hyperbolic sine growth and
Table lookup stress ratio model parameters.

Figure 6.5.1.3.25. Dialog for entering temperature independent Table lookup growth and Table
lookup stress ratio model parameters.

For the Table lookup dialog, Figure 6.5.1.3.25, double-click on the “table data” beside the given
R value to enter the da/dN versus K data, using the dialog shown in Figure 6.5.1.3.26.

125
Figure 6.5.1.3.26. Dialog for entering temperature independent Table lookup growth and Table
lookup stress ratio model da/dN vs K data.

6.5.1.3.1.10 NASGRO Version 4 equation

NASGRO is a fatigue life prediction program initially developed at the NASA Johnson Space
Flight Center and now supported and maintained by Southwest Research Institute. Built into the
NASGRO program is an analytical crack growth rate equation that incorporates a number of
features observed in real materials such as sensitivity to near-threshold and near-critical growth,
sensitivity to the R-ratio, and some small crack sensitivity. The cost for the flexibility in the
growth model is that there are sixteen fitting parameters. Some are common material properties
(e.g., yield stress), but most must be determined by performing regression on empirical data.

The NASGRO package includes a database of pre-computed parameters for a wide range of
materials and product forms. However, as of NASGRO version 4, this database is only
accessible to members of the NASGRO consortium. As a practical matter, this means that this
model will be most useful to users who have access to the NASGRO program and can access the
parameters for a material of interest (see NASGRO version 3 below).

The NASGRO version 4 crack growth rate equation, Figure 6.5.1.3.27, is:

 K th  p
da 1  f  n 1  K 
= C   (12.5.13)
 1  R   K max 
q
dN
1  
 Kc 

where C, n, p and q are empirical constants. C and n are similar to the constants in the Paris and
Walker equations. However, while C in the Paris model should be selected to correspond to the
R of interest, and Cin the Walker equation should be for R = 0, in the NASGRO equation the C
should correspond to a high R where closure effects are no longer significant (usually an R of
about 0.7)

126
 Figure 6.5.1.3.27. NASGRO version 4 growth rate model dialog.

f is the function associated with Newman closure. K th is the threshold stress intensity factor
range below which there is no crack growth. It is approximated by the following empirical
equations:

  p
1  R (1RCth )
 K *

p
(1  A0 )(1R )C th R 0
 1
1  f 
K th =  (1RCthm )
 * 1  R  p m

 K1 1  f  (1  A0 )(C th RCth ) R 0

  

where

 a 1 2
K = K1 
*

 a  a0 
1

and Cth is an empirical constant, K1 is the observed threshold for a high R-ratio, and a0 is a
small crack parameter (usually 0.0015in, 0.0381 mm).


  

127
 K c is the fracture toughness. In FRANC3D, one has the choice to use the plane strain fracture
toughness, K Ic , the part-through toughness, K Ie , or compute it from:

t 0 )2
 K c = K Ic (1 Bke (Ak t )
 
where

 
2
t0 = 2.5 KIc sys

Ak and Bk are empirical constants, and t, the "thickness", is specified by the user (in many 3D
applications the notion of thickness is not well defined and engineering judgment must be used
to set this value). 

  More details about this model can be found in the NASGRO theory manual.

The Write button allow one to save the parameters in this dialog to a file. The Browse button
allows one to read this saved data from a file.

6.5.1.3.1.11 NASGRO Version 3 equation

NASGRO version 3 is an earlier version of the NASGRO crack growth rate equation. The
current version of the equation (version 4) does a better job of modeling observed crack growth
rates for some conditions. This earlier version is included in FRANC3D because version 3 of
NASGRO, the last public domain version, included a database of equation parameters for a wide
variety of materials and product forms. That database is accessible from within FRANC3D.

The NASGROv3 crack growth rate equation is similar to version 4 equation. The base equation
is the same:

 K th  p
da 1  f  n 1  K 
= C  
 1  R   K max 
q
dN
1  
 Kc 

The difference has to do with how threshold values are computed. In version 3, the expression is
 1 Cth R
a  1 f 
K th = K 0  
a  a0  (1  A0 )(1  R) 

where a is the crack length and a0 has a fixed value of 0.0015 in (0.0381 mm).

128
Figure 6.5.1.3.28 shows the dialog for entering the NASGRO model parameters. The NASGRO
version 3 material database contains data for a wide variety of materials, and this data is included
in FRANC3D and accessible by selecting the Material Properties Database button.

Figure 6.5.1.3.28. NASGRO version 3 growth rate model.

The dialog boxes shown in Figure 6.5.1.3.29, allow the analyst to automatically fill in the
required NASGRO v3 parameter fields from this database. Different materials can have slightly
different dialogs.

129
130
 Figure 6.5.1.3.29. NASGRO version 3 material database dialog boxes

6.5.1.3.1.12 Temperature dependent growth rate

Temperature dependent growth rate models are implemented in a tabular manner. Growth model
parameters are specified for a number of different temperatures and interpolation is performed
among the computed da dN values. For example, the specified data for a temperature
dependent paired Paris/Walker growth model would be

Temperature1, (C , n, Kthreshold, K critical, m, m)1

Temperature2 , (C , n, Kthreshold, K critical, m, m) 2
Temperature3 , (C , n, Kthreshold, K critical, m, m)3


Three different interpolation options are available: closest, next highest, and linear interpolation.
For closest interpolation, da dN is determined for the tabular temperature closest to the input
value. For next highest interpolation, da dN is determined for the next tabular temperature
higher than the input value. The expression for linear interpolation between two tabular values i
and i+1 is

da da Temperature  Temperaturei  da da 
=    
dN dN i Temperaturei 1  Temperaturei  dN i 1 dN i 

If the input temperature is smaller than the smallest temperature specified, the growth rate
corresponding to the smallest specified temperature is used. Likewise, if the input temperature is

131
greater than the greatest temperature specified, the growth rate corresponding to the largest
specified temperature is used.

If temperature data is not available in the data for the current FEM model, room temperature
(70˚F, 20˚C) is assumed.

The dialogs for the Paris growth model, for no stress ratio, Walker stress ratio and Table lookup
stress ratio are shown in Figures 6.5.1.3.30 – 32. For the Table lookup model, double-click on
the “table data” to enter the Paris data for the specified temperature, Figure 6.5.1.3.33.

The dialogs for the other “paired” growth models are similar.

Note that for Table lookup growth rate with Table lookup stress ratio and temperature
dependence, there are multiple levels of tables for entering the data.

Figure 6.5.1.3.30. Paris temperature dependent model with no stress ratio model.

132
 Figure 6.5.1.3.31. Paris temperature dependent model with Walker stress ratio model.

Figure 6.5.1.3.32. Paris temperature dependent model with Table lookup stress ratio model.

133
 Figure 6.5.1.3.33. Paris temperature dependent model with Table lookup stress ratio model
dialog for entering Paris data.

6.5.1.3.2 Time dependent growth model

There are three time dependent growth models, Figure 6.5.1.3.34; these are described in the
subsections below. Each of the models can be temperature dependent or independent, Figure
6.5.1.3.35, similar to the cyclic growth rate models.

Figure 6.5.1.3.34. Dialog to select a time dependent growth model type.

134
 Figure 6.5.1.3.35 Dialog to specify temperature dependent or independent for time dependent
growth model.

6.5.1.3.2.1 Time Dependent Power Law

The dialog to specify the power law time dependent growth and temperature independent model
parameters is shown in Figure 6.5.1.3.36. Again, as for cyclic loading, Units must be specified.
For time dependent rates, the threshold (Kth) is an actual K value rather than a K value. If Khold
is below this value for any crack front point, there will be no time dependent crack extension for
that point.

Figure 6.5.1.3.36. Dialog box for entering time dependent power law growth model parameters.

6.5.1.3.2.2 Time Dependent Terachi SCC

The dialog to specify the Terachi stress corrosion crack (SCC) time dependent growth and
temperature independent model parameters is shown in Figure 6.5.1.3.37. The dialog is similar
to that of the Power law model. However, the equation is a function of the material yield stress.

135
 Figure 6.5.1.3.37. Dialog box for entering time dependent Terachi SCC growth model
parameters.

Yield Stress can be specified as constant or can be given in a table. For the Table option, pairs of
numbers are given that specify a depth from the nearest surface and a corresponding yield stress.
Linear interpolation is performed within the given values, with the minimum and maximum
values assigned to crack front points whose depths fall below or above the given depths,
respectively.

6.5.1.3.2.3 Time Dependent Table Lookup

Time dependent growth can be entered using a Table lookup model, Figure 6.5.1.3.38.
Interpolation is done based on the K values to obtain the da/dt.

136
 Figure 6.5.1.3.38. Dialog box for entering time dependent Table lookup data.

6.5.1.3.2.1 Temperature dependent time dependent growth

As with the cyclic growth rate models, time dependent growth models can also be temperature
dependent. The dialogs are shown in Figures 6.5.1.3.39 – 41 for the three time dependent
models. For the Table lookup model, there is a lower level table that is accessed by double-
clicking the “table data” field, Figure 6.5.1.3.42.

Figure 6.5.1.3.39. Dialog for entering temperature dependent time dependent Power law data.

137
Figure 6.5.1.3.40. Dialog for entering temperature dependent time dependent Terachi SCC data.

Figure 6.5.1.3.41. Dialog for entering temperature dependent time dependent Table lookup data.

138
 Figure 6.5.1.3.42. Dialog box for entering Table lookup K vs da/dt data.

6.5.1.3.3 Crack Growth Rate Model Read From File

The Crack Growth Rate Model Read From File button (see Figure 6.5.1.7) allows one to read a
crack growth model that was previously defined and saved to a file.

6.5.1.3.4 Crack Growth Rate Model View/Edit da/dN

The Crack Growth Load Schedule View/Edit da/dN button (see Figure 6.5.1.7) displays the
previously defined cyclic loading growth rate model in the dialog.

6.5.1.3.5 Crack Growth Rate Model View/Edit da/dt

The Crack Growth Rate Model View/Edit da/dt button (see Figure 6.5.1.7) displays the
previously defined time dependent growth rate model in the dialog.

6.5.1.3.6 Crack Growth Rate Model Save To File

The Crack Growth Rate Model Save To File button (see Figure 6.5.1.7) allows the user to save
the growth model to a file.

6.5.1.4 Mixed-mode equivalent K

The equivalent K or K can be defined using only Mode I (KI) or using all three Modes, Figure
6.5.1.4.1. The sign for Kequiv can be set based on the sign of KI, KII or KIII or can be set as always
positive or always negative.

139
 Figure 6.5.1.4.1. Equivalent K options

6.5.1.5 Effective dK

There are two options for how K is computed. The default behavior is to simply compute K =
Kmax – Kmin. In cases where minimum loading at the crack front is actually compressive (and
contact elements are not explicitly inserted into the crack faces to prevent crack overlap) the
computed Kmin, and corresponding stress ratio (R) will be negative. Such crack face overlap is
physically unrealistic, but it is common practice to accept the negative values, and meaningful
engineering predictions can be performed with these values provided the appropriate parameters
are used with the growth rate and/or stress ratio models.

Optionally, FRANC3D can be instructed to compute a more physically realistic K that only
considers portions of a load cycle where the K’s are positive. That is:

K  K min if K min  0
K =  max
 K max if K min  0

Effective values of the stress intensity factor range and R account for the situation where the
crack is actually closed during a portion of or all of a load cycle. The default behavior in
FRANC3D is to check for a closed crack for the complete cycle and to set the stress intensity
factor range and R to zero:

 0 equivalent
K max 0
equivalent
Keffective = equivalent equivalent
(12.3.7)
K K max 0

and

 0 equivalent
K max 0
equivalent
Reffective =  equivalent equivalent
. (12.3.8)
R K max 0

This default behavior allows for negative R values.



140
FRANC3D allows the option to truncate the stress intensity factor range to eliminate the negative
(closed) portion of the cycle. In this case, the expressions are:

 0 equivalent
K max 0
equivalent
 equivalent equivalent
Keffective =  K K min 0 (12.3.9)
 equivalent equivalent
 K max K min 0

 0 equivalent
K max 0
 
equivalent equivalent equivalent
Reffective =  R K min 0 (12.3.10)
 equivalent
 0 K min 0

Note that there are a number of mechanisms that have been identified as being able to keep the
crack closed even when the current "remote" loading is positive. The most significant is

plasticity-induced crack closure. This is one proposed explanation for the observed dependency
of crack growth rates on the R. The effective values computed here do not explicitly take this
into account (plasticity-induced closure is handled implicitly by some of the available crack
growth rate models), they only consider "global" closure where the currently applied "remote"
load is negative.

6.5.1.6 Integration Options

There are two options that affect how the crack growth integrations are performed when
computing total life (see Figure 6.5.1.7). If the Accelerated counting option is selected (the
default), FRANC3D will try to use an accelerated cycle counting algorithm based on Runga-
Kutta integration. If this option is turned off, FRANC3D will perform cycle-by-cycle counting.
The accelerated counting might be slightly less accurate than cycle-by-cycle counting, but
usually the difference in the computed fatigue lives for the two methods is less than 1-2% of the
total cycle count. On the other hand, for analyses where the per cycle crack extension is small,
for some models the accelerated counting has been shown to give greater than 1000x reductions
in the time required to compute total fatigue lives.

The Constant K for time integration option can be set to speed-up the integration of time
dependent growth. In general, the stress intensity factor will be function of time, so FRANC3D
evaluates the integral:


t
a = A  K hold ( ) m d
0
where t is the hold time. The integral is evaluated using Runge-Kutta integration.

If, however, the crack growth over a hold interval is small, K can be assumed to be constant
during the interval leading to the (much faster to evaluate) expression:

141
 m
a = A  Khold t
If this option is selected, FRANC3D will assume that K is constant over all time intervals.

The user can choose between Runge-Kutta (RK) and Cycle-by-cycle (CxC) integration to
compute life or cycles. A 2nd order RK approach is implemented, Figure 6.5.1.6.1.

Figure 6.5.1.6.1. Second order Runge-Kutta integration.

6.5.2 Quasi-static crack growth

The first dialog of quasi-static crack growth, Figure 6.5.2.1, is the same as for subcritical crack
growth. The method for computing the kink angle must be specified (see Section 6.5.1).

142
 Figure 6.5.2.1. Kink angle model panel.

The next dialog, Figure 6.5.2.2, allows the user to specify the power for the growth model, as
well as specifiying the Kequiv and the load step(s) to be used. The extension at all crack front
points are computed based on the simple power law, Figure 6.5.2.3. The sign for Kequiv can be set
as in Section 6.5.1.4.

Figure 6.5.2.2. Quasi-static growth parameters panel.

143
 predicted new
crack front

point i ai computed

point with the extension
median K value
am specified
current extension
crack front

Figure 6.5.2.3. Quasi-static crack growth.

6.5.3 User-Defined crack growth

User-defined crack growth is activated if the user has pre-defined Python extensions; this is
described under the Advanced menu.

6.5.4 Read growth parameters from a file

The user can save the crack growth model data to a file after defining it, and this file can be read
back into FRANC3D. This is especially useful for the subcritical crack growth described in
Section 6.5.1.

6.5.5 Crack growth front fitting

Once the crack growth model has been defined, FRANC3D will display the computed crack
growth, Figure 6.5.5.1. The crack extension can be adjusted in this dialog if needed. The
computed new crack front points are smoothed and extrapolated (for surface flaws); there are a
number of options for this.

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 Figure 6.5.5.1. Crack growth display dialog.

Specified median extension or number of applied cycles or elapsed time can be chosen to adjust
the amount of crack extension. The cycles and time options are available if the crack growth
model includes such.

For specified median extension, the crack extension at crack front point i is computed from the
expression

 da 
 (K i ,Ri ,...) 
ai = amedian dN i

da
 (K median,Rmedian,...) 
 dN median 

where amedian is the crack extension specified for the point with the median stress intensity
factor range (Figure 6.5.5.2), da dN i is the crack growth rate computed at point i using the



 145
specified growth rate model, and da dN median is the crack growth rate computed at the crack
front point with the median stress intensity value. The crack growth rates at crack front points
will be functions of the corresponding K , R, and other model dependent parameters.

predicted new
crack front


point i ai computed

point with the extension
median K value
am specified
current extension
crack front

Figure 6.5.5.2. Computed extension based on specified median extension.

Note that the selection of the reference K value is somewhat arbitrary. The maximum,
minimum, and average K are reasonable values to consider. The median value is used in
FRANC3D because experience shows that the maximum and minimum values frequently occur
where a crack front meets a free surface where the accuracy of the computed stress intensity

factors are known to be least accurate. In some cases, the inaccuracy of these maximum and
minimum values can lead to a very unintuitive relationship between the reference specified
amount of crack extension and the actual predicted crack front. In extreme cases, inaccurate
maximum and minimum values can have a significant impact on the average value leading to an
unintuitive behavior for this measure also.

The expression for crack extension at crack front point i using the specified cycles option is

da
ai = N  (K i ,Ri ,...)
dN i

where N is the specified number of cycles and da dN i is the crack growth rate computed at point
i using the specified growth rate model.

The specified number of applied cycles approach seems more intuitive than the specified median
 analysts. However, the fatigue crack growth models are
crack front extension approach for many
highly nonlinear functions so trial-and-error might be required when using the specified cycles
approach to find a number of cycles that will not give exceedingly large or exceedingly small
predicted crack extensions. Exceedingly large values might give inaccurate results, while
exceedingly small crack extensions might require many crack growth steps or, in some cases,
might cause meshing problems.

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6.5.5.1 Multiple crack front fitting

For a model with multiple crack fronts, there is an extra panel on the left side at the bottom,
Figure 6.5.5.1.1. The Grow crack fronts pane allows one to turn off crack growth or to scale the
extension for a particular crack front. The growth of multiple crack fronts is treated in the same
manner as a single crack front – all the SIFs for all the fronts are examined to find the median
value and then all crack front extension is computed as described above.

Figure 6.5.5.1.1 Crack growth extension and fitting options for multiple crack fronts.

6.5.5.2 Front fitting options

The Front fitting options pane (see Figure 6.5.5.1) includes options for curve fitting, fields for
extrapolating the ends of the fitted curves, and the option to discard crack front points at either
end. The curve-fit options are: 1) kink angle/extension poly, 2) fixed order poly, 3) multiple
poly, 4) Hermitian, 5) cubic spline, 6) moving poly, and 7) no smoothing. These are described in
the following sub-sections.

The polynomial order for any of the poly-fitting options can be set in the fixed poly order field.
The default order is 3.

The ends of the fitted curves can be extrapolated to ensure that the curves intersect the model
surface. It is required that the crack surface geometry intersect the model surface. New crack
surface geometry is created between the current and new crack fronts. FRANC3D tries to ensure

147
that the curves are extrapolated far enough, but the user also can visually determine whether the
extrapolation is sufficient (or too much).

A set of points at either end of the crack front can be ignored. If the end points cause problems
in fitting or extrapolating, the user can ignore some of these end points.

The Save .frt and .crk files option allows the user to save the new front points and the new crack
geometry to a file before inserting it into the model. The .frt file can be read using the Read
Crack Growth wizard, which is described in Section 6.6. The .crk file can be read using the
Flaw From Files option, see Section 6.2.

The Kink Angles and Extension buttons bring up plots of the computed kink angle, Figure
6.5.5.2.1 – left panel, and crack front extension, Figure 6.5.5.2.1 – right panel, along the crack
front, respectively.

Figure 6.5.5.2.1 Plots of kink angle and crack front extension along the crack front.

6.5.5.2.1 Kink Angle/Extension Poly Fit

Using the kink angle and extension data, a best fit polynomial is fit through the kink-angle and
extension data (see Figure 6.5.5.2.1), using polynomial order entered in the fixed poly order
field. The curve-fits can be extrapolated and then new extrapolated crack front points are
defined based on these and also on the existing crack front geometry.

As an example, consider a penny-surface crack with the kink angle and extension shown in
Figure 6.5.5.2.1. Figure 6.5.5.2.1 shows the initial crack boundary edges, the actual crack
surface, which is shaded grey, the new front points as green dots, and the curve fit shown as a
blue line. The black dots on the original crack front correspond to the fitted front points, where
the extension and kink angle are applied to produce the new fitted points. The kink angle and
extension curves are extrapolated to compute these new end points that fall outside the model.

148
 Figure 6.5.5.2.2 New front fit based on kink angle and extension curve-fits.

6.5.5.2.2 Fixed order poly through points

The fixed order polynomial option is the simplest and most commonly used fitting option. A
polynomial is fit through the new front points in Cartesian space based on a least-squares fit.
The order of the polynomial is provided in the fixed poly order field. This polynomial can be
extrapolated a small distance to make sure the new front intersects the model surface. Best
results are obtained with low order polynomials and limited extrapolation; if the crack front does
not suit a simple polynomial, one of the other fitting options should be chosen.

6.5.5.2.3 Multiple poly through points

For long shallow crack shapes, the multiple polynomial fit might be the best option. This option
uses 3 polynomials. The number of points in the two end polynomials versus the middle
polynomial can be adjusted using the multiple poly ratio. The ends of the polynomials are
blended together, but kinks can be created; this option should be used with care.

6.5.5.2.4 Hermitian closed poly

The Hermitian polynomial is used for fitting closed crack fronts such as interior cracks. It is not
active if all of the cracks are open-ended surface cracks. The Hermitian fit is performed using
four equal segments, thus it works best for circular shapes.

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6.5.5.2.5 Cubic spline

A cubic spline fit can be used for crack fronts that do not allow for a simple low order
polynomial fit. A cubic spline will follow arbitrary curves. The ends of the crack front are
extrapolated using a linear segment through the end points for open-ended surface cracks. This
option is comparable to the moving polynomial described next.

6.5.5.2.6 Moving polynomial

A moving polynomial fit uses the polynomial order given in the fixed poly order field. A subset
of the crack front points is used for successive curve fits, moving along the full crack front in
increments from one end to the other. Like the cubic spline fit, this option is good for arbitrary
curves. The ends of the crack front are extrapolated using a linear segment through the end
points for open-ended surface cracks.

As an example of crack fronts that do not work well with a simple polynomial fit, consider the
crack fronts in Figure 6.5.5.2.3. Figure 6.5.5.2.4 shows these same crack fronts using a moving
polynomial fit; similar results can obtained for cubic spline fits. In the first example in Figure
6.5.5.2.3, an 8th order polynomial fits the data, but extrapolating a high order polynomial does
not work well; in this case the extrapolated curve does not intersect the model surface. A low
order polynomial does not provide a good fit through the data. In the second example, a 12th
order polynomial cannot capture the curve. As shown in Figure 6.5.5.2.4, a moving polynomial
(or spline fit) follows the data and provides good extrapolated end points.

For crack fronts with concave segments, new crack front points can overlap depending on the
amount of extension. The moving polynomial (and cubic spline) fits look for reversals in the
crack front points, and points are discarded if this happens.

Figure 6.5.5.2.3 New front fit based on a simple polynomial fit.

150
 Figure 6.5.5.2.4 New front fit based on a moving polynomial fit.

6.5.5.2.7 No smoothing

The final option removes all smoothing, but the ends still can be extrapolated.

6.5.6 Crack growth front template mesh

The second crack growth display wizard panel, Figure 6.5.6.1 allows one to set the crack front
mesh template parameters. The model is displayed in the upper 3D model view window and the
user can select a camera position that shows the template. The lower third of the window
contains one pane for the template parameters. The template parameters and buttons are
identical to those for inserting a new crack, see Section 6.1.14.

151
 Figure 6.5.6.1 Crack growth - front mesh template.

6.6 Read Crack Growth Wizard

The Read Crack Growth wizard consists of two panels. The first, Figure 6.6.1, allows the user to
specify the file name containing the new crack front points.

Figure 6.6.1 Read new crack front - file import dialog.

152
The format for this file is simply: "x y z" ; one set of coordinates per line.

The second panel, Figure 6.6.2, displays the new front points within the model and allows the
user to specify the fitting, extrapolation and template parameters. The front fitting options and
flaw template panes are similar to those described in Section 6.5.4. The template is turned off in
the left panel of Figure 6.6.2 so that the front points that were read from the file are visible; the
template is turned on in the right panel.

Figure 6.6.2 Read crack growth - display panel.

6.7 Grow/Merge Cracks Wizard

The Grow/Merge Cracks function is not fully completed yet. The current implementation
allows semi-co-planar cracks, whose advancing crack fronts intersect, to be merged to create a
single crack. The initial dialogs for computing SIFs and setting crack growth parameters are as
described in Sections 6.4 and 6.5. The difference is seen when the crack growth is displayed,
Figure 6.7.1.

The Growth and Merge dialog allows the user to adjust the extension (or cycles) to ensure the
fronts intersect at a reasonable location for creating a merged front. The fitting options are
limited to cubic spline and moving polynomials. The ends of the curve must still intersect the
model surface, so the user can adjust the amount of extrapolation. Select Next to define the
template mesh for the merged front, Figure 6.7.2.

153
 Figure 6.7.1 Grow/Merge Cracks – two co-planar cracks whose advancing fronts intersect.

The template mesh radius might need to be adjusted to obtain a reasonable mesh at the point
where the fronts merge. Select Next to complete the process of merging and subsequent
insertion and remeshing of the model. The result should be a merged crack as shown in Figure
6.7.3.

154
 Figure 6.7.2 Grow/Merge Cracks – two co-planar crack fronts merged with template mesh.

Figure 6.7.3 Two co-planar cracks merged.

6.8 SIFs Along a Path

The SIFs along a Path dialog, Figure 6.8.1, allows the user to display SIF history data. The crack
surface and crack fronts are displayed on the left-side, and the SIF history and path options are

155
displayed on the right-side of the dialog. The tabs along the top of the XY plot allow one to
display the three SIF modes (KI, KII and KIII) as well as the J-integral and T-stress values. The
Define Path and Export tabs are described in the following sub-sections.

Above the tabs is a drop-down menus that allow the user to specify the load step for which SIF
history is plotted. If there is only one load step, the drop-down menu is inactive. This is similar
to the drop-down menus in the SIF plot dialog (see Section 6.4). The substeps dropdown is not
provided here; results for the last substep for each load step are displayed. The crack front is
specified under the Path tab.

Figure 6.8.1 SIFs along a path dialog.

6.8.1 Define Path Tab

Traditional fatigue lifing methodologies require a SIF history that consists of a single valued
stress intensity factor (K) and a single valued crack size (a) for each crack increment.
Developing such a "K-history" is straightforward for a 2-D analysis, but is more complicated for
3D analyses. In 3D, one has a distribution of K values along a crack front, and there might not
be an obvious crack dimension that uniquely characterizes the crack “length”.

Three different Path Type algorithms are available in the Define Path tab, Figure 6.8.2. The
results for the three algorithms are illustrated below using three different crack growth
simulations. It should be noted that while the crack growth might appear planar in these three
examples, the algorithms work for non-planar growth.

156
 Figure 6.8.2 Define path tab.

6.8.1.1 Constant Normalized Distance

The first algorithm uses a constant, user-specified, normalized distance along the crack fronts.
Figure 6.8.1.1 shows the computed paths for 50% normalized distance. The figure shows that
this approach works very well for the first crack and reasonably well for the third crack. For the
middle crack, however, the path is somewhat sinuous; this can be even more pronounced for
crack fronts that transition from corner- to through-cracks.

Figure 6.8.1.1 Computed K paths for a constant normalized distance of 50%.

157
6.8.1.2 Nearest Point on Next Front

The second algorithm is a modification of the first approach. The analyst selects a point on the
initial crack front. The algorithm then searches for the nearest point on the next crack front and
makes this the next point in the history. The process is repeated for all remaining crack fronts.
The K's in the history are the interpolated values at the "nearest points", and the crack length is
the distance from the crack "origin" to the initial crack front point plus the (straight line)
distances between successive "nearest points".

This algorithm is illustrated in Figure 6.8.1.2. For all three cracks, the path was started at
locations of 10%, 20%, ... 90% along the initial crack front. The algorithm performs very well
for the first crack. For the middle crack, some of the paths converge into one path at 10% of the
distance along the crack front. This is because of the path constraints, which are described in
Section 6.8.1.2. For the third crack, most of the paths merge together due to these path
constraints.

Figure 6.8.1.2 Computed K paths using nearest next point. Paths are at 10% increments with a
10% and 90% minimum and maximum threshold.

6.8.1.3 Intersection of Fronts with a Plane

The third algorithm defines a plane nominally perpendicular to the crack surface and gives the
path as the points where the crack fronts intersect the plane. This algorithm is illustrated for the
first of the three cracks above in Figure 6.8.1.3. It is not clear how one would apply this
algorithm to the third crack in Figure 6.8.1.2.

158
 Figure 6.8.1.3 Computed plane intersection points for a crack.

6.8.1.3.1 Start: Step and Final: Step

For crack fronts that might split, merge or disappear, there is the option to specify both the
starting and ending crack step number and the crack front number - if there is more than one
front, Figure 6.8.1.4.

Figure 6.8.1.4 SIF path starting at step 9 for front 2.

159
6.8.1.3.2 Search from final front

The Search from final front option is active for the Nearest Point on Next Front. The algorithm
starts at the last front and searches ‘backwards’ for the nearest point on the previous front.

6.8.1.4 Path Constraints

There is a user-settable threshold that prevents the computed paths from getting too close to the
free surfaces where the accuracy of the computed stress intensity factors is questionable. The
user can set both the minimum and maximum thresholds in the dialog.

6.8.1.5 Path Curve Fitting

Path curve fitting provides a best fit, in a least-squares sense, through the path computed by one
of the three algorithms. Figure 6.8.1.5 shows the least-squares fit to the paths shown in Figure
6.8.1.1. A quadratic curve was used for the first crack, and as expected, there is little
improvement in the path for this case. A cubic curve was used for middle crack, which yields a
path that is aesthetically more pleasing. A fifth order curve was used for the third crack and
gives some improvement over the initial computed path by smoothing the kinks.

Figure 6.8.1.5 Computed least-squares fits to the paths of Figure 6.8.1.1.

6.8.1.6 Crack Starting Information

The crack starting information has two options: crack start point and initial crack length. Setting
either of these provides a starting point for computing the total crack path length.

6.8.2 Export Tab

The Export tab, Figure 6.8.3, allows one to save the SIF data to a file. This includes an option to
save the DARWIN format .kva file. The normalized coordinates seen in the XY plot can be
exported to regenerate the XY plots. The Cartesian coordinates of the mid-side nodes along the

160
crack front along with the crack front local basis can also be exported. One could use this
information to compute crack growth or to plot crack front geometry outside of FRANC3D.

Figure 6.8.3 SIF history dialog – Export tab.

6.9 SIFs For All Fronts

The SIFs for all Fronts dialog, Figure 6.9.1, allows the user to display SIF history data. The
crack front lines are displayed in the left-side model window, and the SIFs for all crack fronts are
displayed on the right-side of the dialog. The tabs along the top of the XY plot are the same as
the tabs for SIFs Along a Path (see Section 6.8).

There are two drop-down menus that allow the user to specify the load step and crack front for
which SIF data is plotted. The substeps dropdown is not provided here; results for the last
substep for each load step are displayed.

161
 Figure 6.9.1 SIFs for all fronts dialog.

The Export tab displays the dialog in Figure 6.9.2; this is only slightly different from that in
Figure 6.8.3. There is an option to reverse the order of the points, so that data is exported going
from point B to A.

Figure 6.9.2 Export tab for SIFs for All Fronts dialog.

162
7. Wizards and Dialog Boxes for Loads Menu
The wizards and dialog boxes for the Loads menu options are described in this section.

7.1 Map Current State

The Loads Map Current State option is intended to allow one to map initial conditions or
current state information, such as stress or strain, from the current model to the model after crack
insertion or growth. Mapping is done by interpolating data from the current mesh, based on
element shape functions, to points (nodes or gauss points) of the new mesh.

This menu item is currently disabled.

Mapping of temperature and boundary condition data that must be transferred from one model to
the next occurs automatically.

7.2 Crack Face Pressure/Traction

The Loads Crack Face Pressure/Traction (CFT) option allows one to define crack face
pressures or tractions. This capability is often used to simulate residual stresses. It can also be
used in a sub- modeling approach where the sub-model containing the crack is analyzed using
crack face tractions based on the stresses from an uncracked “global” model.

The first panel of the wizard is shown in Figure 7.2.1. The user selects Add to create a new
entry in the list. Once an entry has been added, it can be edited or deleted by selecting the name
and then the Edit or Delete button.

The Crack Face Traction/Residual Stress Type panel is displayed next, Figure 7.2.2; it allows
one to choose the type of crack face loading. The choices are: 1) Constant crack face pressure,
2) 1-D Radial residual stress distribution, 3) 2-D Radial residual stress distribution, 4) Surface
treatment residual stress distribution, and 5) Residual stress defined on a mesh. These types will
be described in more detail below.

The Advanced button at the bottom allows one to specify whether the CFT is applied in a new
load step after all the original FE load steps are applied or added to one of the FE load steps. The
dialog is slightly different for ABAQUS compared with ANSYS and NASTRAN; the dialog
display is based on the input FE model that is being cracked/analyzed.

163
 Figure 7.2.1 Crack Face Tractions – top level dialog.

Figure 7.2.2 Crack Face Tractions – type dialog.

7.2.1 Advanced button

The Advanced options dialog is shown in Figure 7.2.3. The left image is for ABAQUS models
and the right image is for ANSYS and NASTRAN models. The default is to create a new load
step for the CFT. However, one can change this so that the CFT is added to an existing load
step. If the Add to existing load step is chosen, the user can then select the load step that will be
used. For ABAQUS, the CFT can be applied using an amplitude function so that the CFT is
applied the same as the existing loads.

164
 Figure 7.2.3 Advanced options dialog to set the analysis load step.

7.2.2 Constant Crack Face Pressure Panel

The constant crack face pressure panel allows one to specify a uniform pressure on the crack
face, Figure 7.2.4. A positive pressure value will tend to open the crack. If there are no nodal
temperatures, the Next button will return the display to the top level panel (see Figure 7.2.1). If
there are nodal temperatures, the Next button will display the Set Temperature dialog, Figure
7.2.5.

The temperature for the crack face traction load step can be set to a Constant value, such as the
reference temperature, or it can be set based on the last load step, or it can be set from an external
source. The External data option allows one to specify an ABAQUS .inp, ANSYS .cdb or
NASTRAN .bdf (or .nas or .dat) file depending on the original model type; we have limited the
options for this version.

The Set Temperature panel is the same for all crack face traction types. The CFT and effects of
temperature are described in more detail in the Users Guide.

Figure 7.2.4 Constant Crack Face Pressure panel.

165
 Figure 7.2.5 Set Temperature dialog.

7.2.3 1-D Radial Residual Stress Distribution Panel

The 1-D radial residual stress distribution panel allows one to specify a radial distribution of
stress that can be applied to the crack face, Figure 7.2.6. The stress varies along a radius from
some origin. The user can specify the distribution axis as well as the axis offset. The user can
select the Define Distribution button to interactively define the distribution, Figure 7.2.7.

Figure 7.2.6 1-D radial residual stress distribution panel.

166
 Figure 7.2.7 User defined 1-D radial residual stress distribution plot.

As an example, consider a corner crack in a brick, Figure 7.2.8 – left panel. The crack has a
radius of 2.0 and the corner is located at x=0, y=5, and z=5. A 1-D radial distribution is defined,
Figure 7.2.9 – right panel, with the distribution axis set to y and the axis offset defined as x=0
and z=5. The crack face traction distribution is shown in Figure 7.2.9 – left panel. To visualize
the pressure that is applied to the crack, the ANSYS color contours for the pressure values are
shown in Figure 7.2.9 – right panel. This image shows how the radial pattern of the pressures
with the origin at the crack corner.

Figure 7.2.8 A corner crack in a brick (left panel) with a 1-D radial residual stress (right panel).

167
Figure 7.2.9 A 1-D radial residual stress distribution (left panel) applied to the corner crack and
shown as color contours in ANSYS (right panel).

7.2.4 2-D Radial Residual Stress Distribution Panel

The 2-D radial residual stress distribution panel allows one to specify a stress distribution that
varies in 2 directions (axial and radial) that can be applied to the crack face, Figure 7.2.10. The
stress varies with radius from some origin. The user can select the Define Distribution button to
interactively define the distribution, Figure 7.2.11.

Figure 7.2.10 2-D radial residual stress distribution panel.

168
 Figure 7.2.11 User defined 2-D radial residual stress distribution plot.

7.2.5 Surface Treatment Residual Stress Distribution Panel

The surface treatment residual stress distribution panel, Figure 7.2.12, allows one to specify a
stress distribution that varies in a direction that is normal to a surface that has been retained as a
“residual stress surface” when reading the finite element file. The stress varies with distance
from the surface. After entering the stress versus distance, the user presses Next to select the
treated surface, Figure 7.2.13.

Figure 7.2.12 User defined surface treatment residual stress panel.

169
 Figure 7.2.13 User defined surface treatment – select surface dialog.

As an example, a brick model is defined with the top surface (positive y-axis) defined as a
“treated_surface”, Figure 7.2.14 – left panel. The stress distribution shown in Figure 7.2.12 is
applied as the surface treatment crack face traction. The distribution acts normal to the
“treated_surface”, and distance will be measured in the -y direction. The resulting crack face
traction distribution on the crack shown in Figure 7.2.14 (left panel) can be visualized using
ANSYS, Figure 7.2.14 – right panel.

Figure 7.2.14 Example of a surface treatment residual stress crack face traction.

There are a number of things that will be noted here. Consider the crack shown in the left panel
of Figure 7.2.15 and the residual stress distributions shown in the right panel of Figure 7.2.13.

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First, if the nodes on the crack surface are at a depth that is greater than the residual stress, no
crack face tractions are computed. Using the ‘a’ distribution, the lower third of the crack will not
have crack face tractions. Second, if the mesh on the crack surface is coarse compared to the
residual stress distribution, the computed crack face traction will not adequately capture the
residual stress distribution. Based on the coarse mesh shown in the left panel of Figure 7.2.16,
the computed traction value at the node indicated by the red circle, using the ‘a’ distribution from
Figure 7.2.15, would be close to zero. If a pseudo-refined mesh is defined, as in the middle and
right panels of Figure 7.2.16, then the ‘a’ distribution can be captured and appropriately
distributed onto the nodes of the actual coarse mesh. Ideally, one would use a suitably refined
mesh in the model to avoid this problem.

Figure 7.2.15 Surface treatment residual stress applied as crack face traction up to the defined
depth of the distribution.

Figure 7.2.16 Surface treatment residual stress applied as crack face traction with automatic
pseudo-mesh refinement to capture the distribution.

7.2.6 Mesh-Based Stress Distribution Panel

The mesh-based stress distribution panel allows one to specify a stress distribution based on a
finite element mesh and stress file, Figure 7.2.17. The user chooses the mesh and associated
stress file; normally, this is an uncracked model. FRANC3D queries this data to compute
tractions on the crack face.

The mesh and associated stress results do not have to correspond exactly with the model used for
crack insertion, however, the mesh and stress must occupy the same physical space as the crack.
At each node on the crack surface mesh, FRANC3D queries the stress-mesh to find the element
and associated nodes that contains the point, and then retrieves the stress for these nodes. The
element shape functions are used to interpolate the stress to the crack surface node location.

For mesh-based CFT, one can apply the results for any of the three analysis codes to the current
model. For example, one can apply ANSYS stress to an ABAQUS crack growth simulation.

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 Figure 7.2.17 Mesh based stress distribution panel.

8. Wizards and Dialog Boxes for Analysis Menu

The wizards and dialog boxes for the Analysis menu options are described in this section.

8.1 Static Crack Analysis

The Analysis Static Crack Analysis menu item allows one to set up and run a static (current
crack configuration with no crack growth) deformation analysis. One would use this, for
example, if one had inserted a crack into a body and wanted to compute stress-intensity factors
for this crack without performing any crack growth. The ANSYS, ABAQUS and NASTRAN
wizard panels are discussed below; the wizard panels are similar for all of the analysis codes, but
there are some differences as will be noted below.

8.1.1 Fdb File Name Panel

The first panel, Figure 8.1.1, allows one to specify the name of the .fdb file, which stores the
mesh and flaw information for this model. This file name will be used for all the files created for
this static analysis, with different file extensions applied. The .fdb extension will be added if the
user does not type it into the File Name field.

Note that the uncracked file name must not be re-used here; the uncracked model is needed for
each step of crack growth and should not be overwritten.

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 Figure 8.1.1 Fdb file name dialog.

8.1.2 Analysis Code Panel

The user next must choose the analysis code, Figure 8.1.2. ANSYS, ABAQUS or NASTRAN
can be chosen; subsequent panels will differ slightly.

Figure 8.1.2 Analysis code panel.

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8.1.3 ANSYS Options Panel

If the user chooses ANSYS in Figure 8.1.2, the next wizard panel, Figure 8.1.3, allows one to set
options and analysis parameters for ANSYS.

The top section contains the ANSYS executable file name and license string. These values
should be set in the Preferences (see Section 5.3.5) but can be modified or set here. A Python
script can be executed on the .cdb file prior to running ABAQUS.

The second section allows one to edit some default settings. Select the Edit Defaults button to
display the dialog in Figure 8.1.3.1 (see Section 8.1.3.1).

The third section allows the user to select the global model to connect to the local cracked model.
If there is no global model, this option should be unchecked. The global model file name should
be filled automatically based on the File Import options.

The fourth section allows the user to specify whether crack face tractions and crack face contact
conditions are applied. If crack face tractions are defined (see Section 7.2), the Apply crack face
tractions should be checked automatically. Crack face contact conditions can be applied also if
the crack will be subjected to compressive loads. If the Define crack face contact option is
checked, the Contact button is activated (see Section 8.1.3.2).

Figure 8.1.3 ANSYS options and analysis parameters.

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The final section contains the View/Edit Command button, which will be described in Section
8.1.5.

The user also can choose to write files only, without running ANSYS. This can be used to verify
the files before running, or if the files will be transferred to a different computer before running.

8.1.3.1 ANSYS Edit Defaults

The ANSYS Edit Defaults dialog, Figure 8.1.3.1, allows the user to adjust some of the default
settings. The Extract results option limits the amount of data that is extracted and saved to the
.dtp file. Results for the crack front mesh template nodes are required for computing SIFs. To
display the deformed shape in FRANC3D (see Section 11.1), the results for the local model
should be extracted, and this is the default. The Element series setting will be based on the
original input mesh. Crack front elements typically will be singular quarter-point wedge
elements, but these can be converted to regular wedge elements with mid-side nodes if needed.

By default, all boundary condition data is transferred from the original model to the cracked and
remeshed model. By default, nodal temperatures will be extracted and saved to the .dtp file if the
temperatures are different from the reference temperature. Commands to tell ANSYS to
compute the contour (J) integral can be included in the files that FRANC3D writes. FRANC3D
does not import these results.

Figure 8.1.3.1 ANSYS edit defaults dialog.

8.1.3.2 ANSYS Crack Face Contact

The ANSYS Crack Face Contact dialog, Figure 8.1.3.2, allows the user to set crack face contact
options. The material and real constant ids should not conflict with any of the data that exists in
the original model. The parameters in the dialog are described in the ANSYS documentation.

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 Figure 8.1.3.2 ANSYS crack face contact dialog.

8.1.4 ANSYS local/global model connection Panel

If the user checked Connect to global model in Figure 8.1.3, the global model file must be
selected, Figure 8.1.4. The Browse button can be used to find the file. Note that the check box
and the global model filename are filled automatically, based on the initial File Import options.

Figure 8.1.4 ANSYS connect to global model box.

If the user connects to a global model file, the Finish button in Figure 8.1.3, switches to a Next
button. The Local/global model connection panel, Figure 8.1.5, defines how the local and global
models will be combined. Note that the user cannot proceed to this panel if the Connect to
global box is checked and the Global model filename has not been entered.

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 Figure 8.1.5 ANSYS local/global model connection panel.

The simplest method to connect a local crack model to a global model is through node-merging.
If the user retained surface mesh facets on the cut-surfaces for the local model, then these
surfaces can easily be glued together by merging nodes. Alternatively, constraint equations or
contact conditions can be defined between the cut-surfaces of the local and global models.
FRANC3D will generate the necessary commands to join the local and global model portions
together. Selecting the Constraint equations option activates the Constraint button; selecting the
Constraint button displays the dialog shown in Figure 8.1.4.1. Selecting the Contact conditions
option activates the Contact button; selecting the Contact button displays the dialog shown in
Figure 8.1.4.2.

Extra local/global contact/constraint can be defined, lower section of Figure 8.1.5, for surfaces
other than the crack faces and cut-surfaces. The user chooses the master and slave surfaces from
the list of components. The material id, real properties id, and element type id can be set.

8.1.4.1 ANSYS Constraint

The ANSYS Constraint dialog, Figure 8.1.4.1, allows the user to set the constraint connection
options between the local and global model portions.

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 Figure 8.1.4.1 ANSYS constraint connection dialog.

8.1.4.2 ANSYS Contact

The ANSYS Contact dialog, Figure 8.1.4.2, allows the user to set contact connection options
between the local and global model portions. This dialog is only slightly different from the crack
face contact dialog; there is no option to include the crack front nodes.

Figure 8.1.4.2 ANSYS contact connection dialog.

8.1.5 ANSYS Command Line Panel

If the user selects the View/Edit Command button in Figure 8.1.5, the ANSYS command is
displayed in a separate dialog, Figure 8.1.6. The command line can be edited if desired.

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Typically users will set the ANSYS executable and parameters in the Preferences rather than
editing this command.

Figure 8.1.6 ANSYS Command Line panel.

8.1.5.1 ANSYS Write Files but DO NOT run analysis

In some cases, the user might want to write the analysis files from FRANC3D without actually
running ANSYS. Checking this box (see Figure 8.1.5) will cause FRANC3D to just write all the
ANSYS files. A .txt file is written along with the .cdb and .fdb files; the ANSYS command is
written to this .txt file for reference. The .fdb is the FRANC3D restart file. The .cdb file
contains all the ANSYS data and commands. Note that if one sends this file to a different
computer for analysis, the .dtp file that is extracted must be retrieved so that FRANC3D can
compute SIFs (see Section 4.7).

8.1.6 ABAQUS Options Panel

If the user chooses ABAQUS in Figure 8.1.2, the next wizard panel, Figure 8.1.7, allows the user
to set options and analysis parameters for ABAQUS.

The first pane contains the ABAQUS executable file name. This should be set in the Preferences
(see Section 5.4.6) but can be modified or set here. A Python script can be executed on the .inp
file prior to running ABAQUS.

The second section allows one to edit some default settings. Select the Edit Defaults button to
display the dialog in Figure 8.1.6.1.

The third pane allows the user to select the global model to connect to the local cracked model.
If there is no global model, this option should be unchecked.

The fourth section allows the user to specify whether crack face tractions and crack face contact
conditions are applied. If crack face tractions are defined (see Section 7.2), the Apply crack face
tractions should be checked automatically. Crack face contact conditions can be applied also if
the crack will be subjected to compressive loads. If the Define crack face contact option is
checked, the Contact button is activated (see Section 8.1.6.2).

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The final pane contains the button View/Edit Command, which will be described in Sections
8.1.8. The user also can choose to write the files only, without running ABAQUS. This can be
used to verify the files before running, or if the files will be transferred to a different computer
before running.

Figure 8.1.7 ABAQUS options panel.

8.1.6.1 ABAQUS Edit Defaults

The ABAQUS Edit Defaults dialog, Figure 8.1.6.1, allows the user to adjust some of the default
settings. The results for the last frame of the load step are extracted by default, but the user can
choose to extract results for every frame. The Extract results option limits the amount of data
that is extracted and saved to the .dtp file. Results for the crack front mesh template nodes are
required for computing SIFs. To display the deformed shape in FRANC3D (see Section 11.1),
the results for the local model should be extracted, and this is the default. The Element series
setting will be based on the original input mesh. Crack front elements typically will be singular
quarter-point wedge elements, but these can be converted to regular wedge elements with mid-
side nodes if needed. In some cases, when using crack face contact, quarter-point nodes will
cause ABAQUS errors; near-quarter point nodes can be used instead in this case – the error that
is introduced by this change on node position should be relatively small.

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A separate solid section can be defined for the crack front template elements. The user must
supply the template_material in an .inp file that will be included in the full .inp file that
FRANC3D writes.

By default, all boundary condition data is transferred from the original model to the cracked and
remeshed model.

By default, nodal temperatures will be extracted and saved to the .dtp file if the temperatures are
different from the reference temperature.

A perturbation step can be specified. Typically FRANC3D will output the same *STEP
information that exists in the original input mesh. This option will override that.

Commands to tell ABAQUS to compute the contour (J) integral can be included in the files that
FRANC3D writes. FRANC3D does not import the ABAQUS J results from the ABAQUS .dat
file. Note that ABAQUS uses collapsed bricks rather than singular wedge elements for the
contour integral.

FRANC3D is now capable of computing J-integral for elasto-plastic models; this is described in
Appendix B.

Figure 8.1.6.1 ABAQUS edit defaults dialog.

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8.1.6.2 ABAQUS Crack Face Contact

The ABAQUS Crack Face Contact dialog, Figure 8.1.6.2, allows the user to set crack face
contact options. The Surface interaction name should not conflict with any of the data that exists
in the original model; the Accept button will be activated once a surface interaction name is
added. Parameters in this dialog are described in the ABAQUS documentation.

Figure 8.1.6.2 ABAQUS crack face contact dialog.

8.1.7 ABAQUS local/global model connection Panel

If the user checked Connect to global model in Figure 8.1.7, the global model file must be
selected, Figure 8.1.8. The Browse button can be used to find the file.

Figure 8.1.8 ABAQUS connect to global model box.

If the user connects to a global model file, the Finish button in Figure 8.1.7, switches to a Next
button. The Local/global model connection panel, Figure 8.1.9, defines how the local and global
models will be combined. Note that the user cannot proceed to this panel if the Connect to
global box is checked and the Global model filename has not been entered.

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 Figure 8.1.9 ABAQUS local/global model connection panel.

The simplest method to connect a local crack model to a global model is through node-merging.
If the user retained surface mesh facets on the cut-surfaces for the local model, then these
surfaces can easily be glued together by merging nodes. Alternatively, constraint equations or
contact conditions can be defined between the cut-surfaces of the local and global models.
Selecting the Constraint equations option activates the Constraint button; selecting the
Constraint button displays the dialog shown in Figure 8.1.7.1. Selecting the Contact conditions
option activates the Contact button (see Section 8.1.7.2). An extra check box (not shown)
allows the user to switch the master and slave pairing; the default is to use the Global as master.

8.1.7.1 ABAQUS Constraint

The ABAQUS Constraint dialog, Figure 8.1.7.1, allows the user to set constraint connection
options for the local and global model portions.

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 Figure 8.1.7.1 ABAQUS constraint connection dialog.

8.1.7.2 ABAQUS Contact

The ABAQUS Contact dialog, Figure 8.1.7.2, allows the user to set contact connection options
for the local and global model portions.

Figure 8.1.7.2 ABAQUS contact connection dialog.

8.1.8 ABAQUS Command Line Panel

If the user selects the View/Edit Command button in Figure 8.1.9, the ABAQUS command is
displayed in a separate panel, Figure 8.1.10. The command line can be edited if desired.
Typically users will set the ABAQUS executable and parameters in the Preferences rather than
editing this command.

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 Figure 8.1.10 ABAQUS Command Line panel.

8.1.8.1 ABAQUS Write Files but DO NOT run analysis

In some cases, the user might want to write the analysis files from FRANC3D without actually
running ABAQUS. Checking this box (see Figure 8.1.9) will cause FRANC3D to just write all
the ABAQUS files. A .txt file is written along with the .inp and .fdb files; the ABAQUS
command is written to this .txt file for reference. The .fdb is the FRANC3D restart file. The .cdb
file contains all the ABAQUS data and commands. Note that if one sends this file to a different
computer for analysis, the .dtp file that is extracted must be retrieved so that FRANC3D can
compute SIFs (see Section 4.7). The .dtp file is extracted from the ABAQUS .odb file by
running the command: abaqus python writeDtpFile.py

8.1.9 NASTRAN Options Panel

If the user chooses NASTRAN in Figure 8.1.2, the next wizard panel, Figure 8.1.11, allows the
user to set options and analysis parameters for ABAQUS.

The first pane contains the NASTRAN executable file name. This should be set in the
Preferences (see Section 5.3.7) but can be modified or set here.

The second section allows one to edit some default settings. Select the Edit Defaults button to
display the dialog in Figure 8.1.9.1.

The third pane allows the user to select the global model to connect to the local cracked model.
If there is no global model, this option should be unchecked.

The fourth section allows the user to specify whether crack face tractions and crack face contact
conditions are applied. If crack face tractions are defined (see Section 7.2), the Apply crack face
tractions should be checked automatically. Crack face contact conditions can be applied also if
the crack will be subjected to compressive loads. If the Define crack face contact option is
checked, the Contact button is activated. Select the Contact button to display the dialog in
Figure 8.1.9.2.

The final pane contains the button View/Edit Command, which will be described in Section
8.1.11. The user also can choose to write the files only, without running NASTRAN. This can
be used to verify the files before running, or if the files will be transferred to a different computer
before running.

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 Figure 8.1.11 NASTRAN options panel.

8.1.9.1 NASTRAN Edit Defaults

The NASTRAN Edit Defaults dialog, Figure 8.1.96.1, allows the user to adjust some of the
default settings. NX NASTRAN has pyramid elements whereas MSC and NEi NASTRAN do
not support pyramid elements; the pyramids must be split into two tetrahedral elements instead.
If a pyramid is split, there is an extra midside node on the diagonal of the original quadrilateral
facet of the pyramid; this can be omitted.

Crack front elements typically will be singular quarter-point wedge elements, but these can be
converted to regular wedge elements with mid-side nodes if needed. NX NASTRAN might
generate an error when using quarter point elements; elements with mid-side nodes can be used
instead, but there will be some small (a couple of %) loss of accuracy in the computed SIFs.

By default, all boundary condition data is transferred from the original model to the cracked and
remeshed model.

By default, nodal temperatures will be extracted and saved to the .dtp file if the temperatures are
different from the reference temperature.

186
 Figure 8.1.9.1 NASTRAN edit defaults dialog.

8.1.9.2 NASTRAN Crack Face Contact

The NASTRAN Crack Face Contact dialog, Figure 8.1.9.2, allows the user to set crack face
contact options. The parameters in the dialog are described in the NASTRAN documentation,
and will be different depending on the flavor of NASTRAN that is used.

Figure 8.1.9.2 NASTRAN contact dialog.

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8.1.10 NASTRAN local/global model connection Panel

If the user checked Connect to global model in Figure 8.1.11, the global model file must be
selected, Figure 8.1.12. The Browse button can be used to find the file.

Figure 8.1.12 NASTRAN connect to global model box.

If the user connects to a global model file, the Finish button in Figure 8.1.11, switches to a Next
button. The Local/global model connection panel, Figure 8.1.13, defines how the local and
global models will be combined. Note that the user cannot proceed to this panel if the Connect
to global box is checked and the Global model filename has not been entered.

Figure 8.1.13 NASTRAN local/global model connection panel – with a .dat file.

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The simplest method to connect a local crack model to a global model is through node-merging.
If the user retained surface mesh facets on the cut-surfaces for the local model, then these
surfaces can easily be glued together by merging nodes. Alternatively, constraint equations can
be defined between the cut-surfaces of the local and global models by selecting the Generate
constraint equations option.

8.1.11 NASTRAN Command Line Panel

If the user selects the View/Edit Command button in Figure 8.1.13, the NASTRAN command is
displayed in a separate panel, Figure 8.1.14. The command line can be edited if desired.
Typically users will set the ABAQUS executable and parameters in the Preferences rather than
editing this command.

Figure 8.1.14 NASTRAN Command Line panel.

8.1.11.1 NASTRAN Write Files but DO NOT run analysis

In some cases, the user might want to write the analysis files from FRANC3D without actually
running NASTRAN. Checking this box (see Figure 8.1.13) will cause FRANC3D to just write
all the NASTRAN files. A .txt file is written along with the .bdf and .fdb files; the NASTRAN
command is written to this .txt file for reference. The .fdb is the FRANC3D restart file. The .bdf
file contains all the NASTRAN data and commands. Note that if one sends this file to a different
computer for analysis, the .pch file that is written by NASTRAN must be retrieved so that
FRANC3D can compute SIFs (see Section 4.7).

8.2 Crack Growth Analysis

This wizard allows one to set up and run a series of crack growth analyses. The first set of
wizard panels are the same as for the Grow Crack wizard described in Section 6.5. The SIF
computation method along with the crack growth extension and kink angle models must be
defined.

The wizard panels that are displayed after defining the crack growth model are described next.
The analysis code panels are the same as those described in Section 8.1.

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8.2.1 Crack Front Smoothing Panel

The crack front smoothing panel, Figure 8.2.1, provides crack front fitting and template options.
The options here are the same as the front fitting options described in Section 6.5.5, although
they are arranged differently. One should normally do one step of crack growth as described in
Section 6.5 before attempting automatic growth to determine the appropriate (best) fitting and
extension for the model. The fitting options might need to be changed as the crack grows.

Figure 8.2.1 Crack growth analysis wizard panel for fitting and template parameters.

8.2.2 Crack Growth Increments Panel

The next panel, Figure 8.2.2, allows the user to specify the number of crack growth steps and the
median crack growth increment per step or the number of cycles per step depending on the
choice for extension type made in the previous panel. There are three possible choices for
entering the data per step: a constant value for all steps, a linear variation, and a user-defined set
of values. The user-defined set of values can be read from a .txt file; the data simply consists of
extension length or number of cycles for each step.

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 Figure 8.2.2 Crack growth analysis wizard panel for median crack growth increments.

8.2.3 Analysis Code Panel

The next panel, Figure 8.2.3, allows one to specify the analysis code: ANSYS, ABAQUS or
NASTRAN. The user should also enter the base file name. All crack growth steps will use this
as the base for the file name; a crack step number will be appended. Finally, the current crack
growth step number can be set; this number is used to create the file name (e.g.
base_name_STEP_002).

Figure 8.2.3 Crack growth analysis wizard panel for analysis code and base file name.

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8.2.4 ANSYS Analysis

If the user chose ANSYS in the previous panel, then the ANSYS analysis panels are displayed;
these are identical to those described for static crack analysis (see Sections 8.1.3 - 8.1.5).

8.2.5 ABAQUS Analysis

If the user chose ABAQUS in the previous panel, then the ABAQUS analysis panels are
displayed; these are identical to those described for static crack analysis (see Sections 8.1.6 -
8.1.8).

8.2.6 NASTRAN Analysis

If the user chose NASTRAN in the previous panel, then the NASTRAN analysis panels are
displayed; these are identical to those described for static crack analysis (see Sections 8.1.9 -
8.1.11).

9. Fatigue Menu Wizards and Dialog Boxes

The wizards and dialog boxes for the Fatigue menu option are described in this section.

9.0 Fatigue Cycle Computation

Earlier versions of FRANC3D, relied on a “K vs a” type of SIF history to compute fatigue
cycles. A path through the crack fronts is defined, Figure 9.0.1, and the SIFs are computed at
each point where the path crosses a crack front; this gives a SIF versus path length plot, Figure
9.0.2. There are some drawbacks to this approach: 1) a single path can be difficult to define for
many cracks, and 2) different paths tend to give different numbers of cycles.

path

Figure 9.0.1 A path through a series of crack fronts.

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 K along path

Figure 9.0.2 SIF (range) versus path length.

?? ??
Figure 9.0.3 Ambiguous path selection.

Figure 9.0.4 Different paths give different numbers of cycles.

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In Version 7, cycle counting uses a “multiple variable degree of freedom” approach. For each
node j on crack front i, Figure 9.0.5:
a) project from node j, perpendicular to the crack-front i, to find the intersection with the
next crack front i+1,
b) interpolate (if needed) to find K at the intersection point with crack-front i+1
c) assume a linear variation in the K’s going from step i to step i+1 and integrate to find
the cycles (Ni,j)
d) average the computed cycles for all crack front nodes to obtain one value for cycles
required to grow from crack front i to crack front i+1.
This process is repeated for each step of crack growth, Figure 9.0.6, which produces cycles
versus crack-growth-step, Figure 9.0.7.

nodei 1,k 1
Ki 1,k 1

Ki 1, j

z y nodei 1,k
x Ki 1,k
Ki , j
nodei, j

step i 1

step i
Figure 9.0.5 Cycles computed for each node along the crack front.

node j

crack front i+1 crack front i

Figure 9.0.6 Cycles computed for each node along each crack front.

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 Figure 9.0.7 Cycles versus crack step.

There are several benefits of this approach. The most significant is that all paths give the same
number of cycles. Paths along the model surface, where SIFs are least accurate, can be plotted
and the cycles will be consistent with a path through the mid-points of the fronts, Figure 9.0.8.

Figure 9.0.8 Different paths give the same number of cycles.

For cracks such as that shown in Figures 9.0.3 and 9.09, path selection might be ambiguous, but
all paths will give a consistent number of cycles, assuming the paths go through the same
number of crack steps.

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 Figure 9.0.9 Different paths give the same number of cycles.

9.1 Fatigue Life Predictions

The Fatigue Life wizard, Figure 9.1.1, allows the user to compute fatigue cycles. The dialog
shows the cracked model on the left. The right side will display plots of cycles, SIFs and other
data. The buttons and options in the middle pane are described here.

Note that the Set Parameters button leads to the crack growth model selection described in
Section 6.5.1. The crack growth model that was used to grow the crack can be re-used here, or
one can choose a different model to compute the life.

If the user grew the crack with a quasi-static growth model, the right-side pane in Figure 9.1.1
will indicate that no lifing parameters have been defined. If crack growth was done using a
subcritical growth model, the parameters are already defined and the right-side pane will show a
plot of cycles versus crack step, Figure 9.1.2.

Figure 9.1.1 Fatigue life dialog.

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 Figure 9.1.2 Fatigue life plot.

9.1.1 Read SIF Data

The Read Sif Data button (Figure 9.1.1) allows one to read the .fcg file. The .fcg file is
FRANC3D’s file format for storing fatigue crack growth data, which includes all the SIF history
data. The .fcg file can be created using the Advanced menu option: Create Growth History,
Section 12.5. The file selector dialog, Figure 9.1.1.1, is displayed.

Figure 9.1.1.1 File selector dialog for .fcg files.

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9.1.2 Set Parameters

The Set Parameters button leads to the definition of the crack growth rate model, which was
described in Section 6.5.1.

9.1.3 Read Parameters

The Read Parameters button allows one to read a previously saved crack growth rate model
from a file. The file selector dialog, Figure 9.1.3.1, is displayed with the available .cgp files.

Figure 9.1.3.1 File selector dialog for .cgp files.

9.1.4 Save Parameters

The Save Parameters button allows one to save the current crack growth model data to a file.
The file selector, Figure 9.1.4.1, is displayed; the user can enter a .cgp file name. This file can be
re-used as in Section 9.1.3.

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 Figure 9.1.4.1 File selector dialog for .cgp files.

9.1.5 Plot Cycles – Plot Time

The right-side pane can be used to plot either cycles or time.

9.1.5.1 Plot options

There are three plot options: Growth Step, Relative Variance, and Path.

Growth Step corresponds to the discrete steps of crack growth that the user defines for analysis.
The plot on the right shows computed cycles versus crack step #. The cycle count at each step is
the average cycle count computed for all mid-side nodes when growing the crack from one step
to the next.

The second option, Relative Variance, displays the standard deviation in the computed data.

The third option, Path (Figure 9.1.5.1), allows the user to define a path. Pressing the Define
button, invokes the dialog shown in Figure 9.1.5.2. This dialog is the same as for the Path tab
described in Section 6.8.1.

199
 Figure 9.1.5.1 Surface length versus cycles.

Figure 9.1.5.2 Define Path dialog for plotting fatigue cycles vs path.

9.1.6 Data Table

The Data Table option displays whatever data is currently active in tabular form, Figure 9.1.6.1.
The dialog has an Export button that allows one to save this data to a file. Press the Export
button to invoke the file export dialog to save the data to a .txt file.

200
 Figure 9.1.6.1 Data table dialog.

9.1.7 Crack Front Plots

The Crack Front Plots option displays the SIF and other data, Figure 9.1.7.1. There are tabs
along the top right that allow one to display Kmax, Kmin, Delta K, Keq, Kstatic, Khold, R, and
Temp. The data can be displayed in a table or exported to a file using the Table and Export tabs.
Data can be displayed for each crack front and for each crack growth step.

Figure 9.1.7.1 Crack Front Plots dialog.

201
9.2 View/Edit Growth Parameters
The View/Edit Growth Parameters menu option allows the user to view and edit all the current
crack growth parameters. The dialogs described in Section 6.5 are presented with the current
settings and values; these can be edited here.

9.3 Crack Front Fatigue Values

The Crack Front Fatigue Values menu option displays the dialog shown in Figure 9.1.7.1.

10. Fretting Menu Wizards and Dialog Boxes

The wizards and dialog boxes for the Fatigue menu option are described in this section.

10.1 Read Model and Results

FRANC3D is able to read ANSYS, ABAQUS and NASTRAN files for fretting analysis. The
finite element (FE) information is contained in .cdb, .inp and .bdf files, respectively, Figure
10.1.1. The FE information consists of nodes, elements and usually a definition of the contact
surfaces. Once the FE model is imported, analysis results must be imported. A typical fretting
test is conducted by applying a normal load (P) and then applying a maximum and minimum
tangential (shear) load (Qmax and Qmin). Simulating this can produce a pair of results files for the
Qmax and Qmin conditions. In most cases, the Q load is applied in smaller increments, which
provides results at multiple intermediate as well as the Qmax and Qmin load steps.

Select the Fretting Read model and results menu item, to display the dialog in Figure 10.1.1,
and choose the fretting model. The File type can be changed to Abaqus or Nastran to display
.inp or .bdf files. Select Accept to continue; the next step is to specify the results file, Figure
10.1.2. One can choose to read a pair of analysis results, corresponding to the Qmax and Qmin
load steps, or read a .dtp file with multiple load step results.

202
 Figure 10.1.1 Fretting dialog for importing FE model data.

Figure 10.1.2 Fretting Read Results dialog.

For the Analysis results files option, select the Browse button for the Qmax or Qmin to
display the dialog shown in Figure 10.1.3. If an ANSYS .cdb file was imported, ANSYS
results files are expected. The ANSYS .str files are simply the nodal stress listings saved to a

203
 file. Corresponding strain (.stn), displacement (.dsp) and contact status (.con) listings should
also exist with the same name prefix. ABAQUS results are read from .fil files. NASTRAN
results are read from .pch files.

Figure 10.1.3: Fretting dialog for locating results files.

Selecting the .dtp results file option activates the lower half of the dialog, Figure 10.1.4, and
allows one to Browse for the appropriate .dtp file. The .dtp files can be created from ANSYS
using APDL commands and from ABAQUS using Python commands. Select the Finish button
after selecting the file.

Figure 10.1.4: Fretting dialog for locating results files.

204
FRANC3D reads the mesh information and results and determines the contact pair surfaces. The
user can choose the contact pair to be analyzed using the dialog shown in Figure 10.1.5. The
contact pairs are listed on the left side and also colored blue in the model. Select the contact-pair
by checking the box; this will turn the blue surface to red and highlight the nodes.

Note that currently only one contact pair is analyzed at a time.

Select the Finish button to finish importing the model; it will be displayed in the main modeling
window, Figure 10.1.6, with the material regions colored. The coloring can be turned off – see
Section 10.4.

Figure 10.1.5 Select contact-pair surfaces dialog.

Figure 10.1.6 Fretting model.

205
10.2 Import Nucleation Data
FRANC3D is able to import experimental fretting fatigue test data and perform curve fit
operations on this data. Select the Import Nucleation Data menu item to display the dialog
shown in Figure 10.2.1. The user should select the file containing the raw experimental data.
The format for this text file is:

sigma_axial cycles
---------------------------
675.3 2.23e4
655.7 2.63e4
533.8 4.45e4

Figure 10.2.1 Fretting dialog for importing experimental fretting nucleation data.

Select the Browse for File button, Figure 10.2.1, to display the File open dialog, Figure 10.2.2.,
and select the appropriate .txt file.

The fretting data is shown in tabular form, Figure 10.2.3. Select the Plot/Edit button to display
the dialog shown in Figure 10.2.4. The fretting nucleation data is shown in tabular and graph
form. The user can edit the data in the table by selecting the Edit menu item and switching from
the default Read Only mode. The user can also perform curve fitting operations on the data
using the Fit menu. The Fit menu provides 7 different equations for comparison, but the
standard fretting model corresponds to the Power Law2 equation.

206
Figure 10.2.2 Fretting dialog for selecting the fretting nucleation data file.

Figure 10.2.3 Fretting dialog shows fretting nucleation data in tabular form.

207
 Figure 10.2.4 Fretting dialog for plotting fretting nucleation data.

The usual fretting nucleation model uses a power law relationship with four coefficients to relate
the fretting nucleation cycles on the horizontal axis with the fretting parameter on the vertical
axis. This power law is highlighted in Figure 10.2.5, which also shows the fit through the data.
The goodness-of-fit is displayed on the top of the plot with the equation. The equation
coefficients are shown in the top level dialog, Figure 10.2.6.

Figure 10.2.5 Fretting dialog for plotting fretting nucleation data with power law curve fit
through the data.

208
 Figure 10.2.6 Fretting dialog shows fitted equation and coefficients.

10.3 Fretting Crack Nucleation

FRANC3D computes fretting fatigue crack nucleation cycles and initial crack location (and
possibly orientation) based on one or more of the fretting nucleation models that have been
implemented. These include: the equivalent stress, the critical plane shear stress amplitude, the
critical plane Smith-Watson-Topper, the Ruiz-Chen model, and a modified Smith-Watson-
Topper model. The model equations and parameters are briefly summarized here.

For more details, refer to: Three-dimensional Simulation of Fretting Crack Nucleation and
Growth, B.J. Carter, E.C. Schenck, P.A. Wawrzynek, A.R. Ingraffea, and K.W. Barlow, EFM, 96
(2012), p.447-460.

The equivalent stress model is defined by:

seq = 0.5 (spsu)w (smax)1-w (1)

where spsu and smax are functions of the nodal stress components and w is a material dependent
fitting parameter. Based on curve fitting of experimental data, the equation in the form of the
power law:

seq = aNib + cNid (2)

relates seq to Ni, where coefficients a – d are material dependent fitting parameters. For
example, for Ti-6Al-4V, a = 52476, b = -0.6471, c = 450.85 and d = -0.03582.

The critical plane shear stress amplitude model is defined by:

209
 crit = max/G (1-R)m (3)

where max is the maximum shear stress on the critical plane, R is the shear stress ratio, G is the
shear modulus and m is a material dependent fitting parameter. Substituting crit for seq in
equation (3), one can compute Ni given the appropriate values for the coefficients a – d. For Ti-
6Al-4V, a = 6.46, b = -0.686, c = 4.65x10-3 and d = 1.22x10-2.

The critical plane Smith-Watson-Topper model is defined by:

crit = smax ( = sf2 / E) (2Ni)2b + s f f 2Ni)b+c (4)

where smax is the maximum principal stress and  represents the normal strain amplitude on the
critical plane; this equation is already in the form of equation (3). E is the elastic modulus, sf
and f are material strength parameters, and b and c are fitting parameters. For Ti-6Al-4V, sf =
376.6 MPa, b = 1.78x10-4, c = -0.767 and f = 32.4.

The Ruiz-Chen model fretting parameter, F2, is equal to the product of the shear stress (),
relative slip (), and bulk normal stress (s):

F2 = s   (8)

The number of cycles is computed by replacing seq in equation (2) with F2. The parameters a, b,
c and d will be material dependent.

Recent work by Hirsch1 (2013) following work by Ding et al2 (2007) indicate that a fretting
model that combines the Ruiz-Chen and SWT (or Fatemi-Socie) models is able to more
effectively predict fretting crack nucleation location and cycles, in addition to accounting for the
transition from fretting to wear. Hirsch (2013) used the Fatemi-Socie model for his material and
test specimens and proposed the following:

FS ·D = f (Nf) (9)
where

1
Hirsch, M. (2013) Temperature Dependent Fretting Damage Modeling of AISI 301 Stainless Steel. PhD Thesis,
Georgia Institute of Technology.
2
Ding, J. et al., (2007) Fretting fatigue predictions in a complex coupling. International Journal of Fatigue, 29,
1229-44.

210
and a, b, c, and d are constants, FS is the Fatemi-Socie parameter, R is the wear rate, Weff is the
effective work, kdam is the fraction of the total frictional energy that goes toward fatigue damage,
acp is the ratio of the frictional energy, and () is the frictional work.

The first dialog box that is displayed after selecting the Fretting Crack Nucleation menu item,
if there are more than two load steps, is shown in Figure 10.3.1. The user can specify the pair of
load steps of interest or have FRANC3D process all load step pairs to find the pair that
maximizes the fretting parameter.

Figure 10.3.1 FRANC3D Fretting dialog to select load step results.

The next dialog box, Figure 10.3.2, allows the user to select one of the fretting nucleation
models. Selecting Next leads to the dialog shown in Figure 10.3.3, which lets the user define the
fretting model parameters. Note that the user can select the fitting coefficients based on a curve
fit through the experimental data (see previous section). If these coefficients are not available,
the option for curve fit values is disabled. All fretting models have similar dialogs, Figures
10.3.4 - 10.3.7.

211
 Figure 10.3.2 Dialog to select fretting nucleation model.

Figure 10.3.3 Fretting dialog to set equivalent stress fretting model parameters.

212
 Figure 10.3.4 Fretting dialog to set critical shear stress model parameters.

Figure 10.3.5 Fretting dialog to set Smith-Watson-Topper (SWT) model parameters.

213
 Figure 10.3.6 Fretting dialog to set Ruiz-Chen model parameters.

Figure 10.3.7 Fretting dialog to set modified SWT (FS) model parameters.

The dialog boxes shown in Figures 10.3.3 - 10.3.7 have an option for averaging stress and strain.
Rather than computing the fretting parameters based on surface node values, the user can choose
the element centroid or an averaged value. If the averaged at node option is chosen, the next

214
dialog box is shown in Figure 10.3.8. The user can adjust the size of the displayed sphere by
changing the Averaging length value. Note that stress values are not averaged across material
region boundaries. Typical length values used in the literature are based on material grain size.

Figure 10.3.8 Fretting dialog for volume averaging of stress (and strain).

Selecting Next on the dialog shown in Figure 10.3.8 leads to the dialog shown in Figure 10.3.9.
This dialog shows the model and allows the user to view the contact surfaces, the edge of
contact, the fretting nucleation cycles and the fretting parameter values. The latter two items can
be displayed as text or using color contours.

Selecting the Save to File button on the dialog shown in Figure 10.3.9 leads to the file save
dialog shown in Figure 10.3.10. The fretting nucleation data is saved to a text file with the
following format:

master surface
node x y z parameter cycles
19222 0.49648972 0.91291108 0.15 25 19283
20917 0.52414545 0.94056681 0.12 29 18453
20881 0.51283174 0.92925310 0.12 24 19898

215
 Figure 10.3.9 Fretting dialog for displaying fretting nucleation cycles and parameter values
and contours.

Figure 10.3.10 Fretting dialog for selecting file to save fretting nucleation predictions.

The user can go Back and choose a different fretting nucleation model to compare predictions.

216
10.3.1 Surface treatment residual

An additional option for each of the fretting models (except for the Ruiz-Chen model) is the
ability to add a surface treatment residual stress. Checking the Add residual stress box, leads to
the dialog in Figure 10.3.11. The residual stress treatment is the same as described in Section
7.2.4. The stress versus distance from the surface is specified or read from a file, and then the
treated surface is identified. The residual stress is added (or subtracted) from the bulk stress
when computing the fretting parameters.

Figure 10.3.10 Fretting dialog for selecting file to save fretting nucleation predictions.

10.4 Region Color

FRANC3D will display material regions with different colors. The Region Color menu item
allows the user to turn on or off the region coloring, Figure 10.4.1. This option is purely for
display purposes so that regions can be differentiated in complex multi-region models.

Figure 10.4.1 Fretting dialog for turning off/on region coloring.

217
11. Display Menu Wizards and Dialog Boxes
The wizards and dialog boxes for the Display menu options are described in this section.

11.1 View Response Dialog

The View Response menu item allows one to view the deformed shape of the current model.
Analysis results are required to activate this menu item. The dialog shown in Figure 11.1.1 is
displayed. The Display Mesh Overlay can be turned off to remove the surface mesh facets from
the model view. The deformed shape can be displayed by turning the Display on Deformed
Geometry option and entering a non-zero magnification factor, Figure 11.1.2.

Figure 11.1.1 View Response dialog showing undeformed mesh.

218
 Figure 11.1.2 View Response dialog showing the deformed shaded solid and the original
wireframe outline.

11.2 Create Animation Wizard

The Create Animation menu item allows one to create and save crack growth animation files.
The dialog, Figure 11.2.1, allows one to select a set of FRANC3D restart (.fdb) files to create an
animation of the crack growth.

219
 Figure 11.2.1 Create Animation dialog.

The File – Read Files menu option displays the file selector dialog, Figure 11.2.2. One can
select the set of .fdb files for the crack growth animation. Use the Shift or Ctrl key to select
multiple files. Select Accept when ready; FRANC3D reads each of the files and the associated
mesh files. This process can take some time depending on the number of files and the size of the
model; a status bar is displayed as the files are processed.

The first crack configuration is displayed in the Animation dialog, Figure 11.2.3. The Last and
Next buttons at the bottom are activated; the First and Prev buttons will be activated if one steps
to the next or last frame (crack configuration).

The avi file button is also activated. This allows one to save an .avi file of each step of crack
growth. The file will contain a series of images based on the current model view (camera
position).

220
 Figure 11.2.2 Create Animation select .fdb files.

Figure 11.2.3 Create Animation dialog with cracked model imported.

221
The Settings menu has two options: 1) Frame Rate and 2) Angle Threshold. The frame rate of
the .avi file can be adjusted to speed up or slow down the animation. The angle threshold
controls the display of the geometric lines and surfaces (see Section 12.1).

12. Advanced Menu Wizards and Dialog Boxes

The wizards and dialog boxes for the Advanced menu options are described in this section.

12.1 Edges Wizard

The Edge Extraction dialog, Figure 12.1.1, allows the user to control the geometry that is
extracted from the finite element facets. The Angle Threshold can be adjusted to increase or
decrease the number of surfaces by blending facets together. The left side image in Figure 12.1.1
shows a curved surface that is treated as a single surface based on the default angle threshold. If
the angle is increased from 151 to 166, the surface appears as shown on the right. In most cases,
the default angle is good. However, for coarse meshes and doubly-curved surfaces, it is
sometimes helpful to break the surface into more patches.

Figure 12.1.1 Edge extraction dialog; angle threshold increased.

The Planar Seed Fill option uses a different algorithm to break the surface patches, Figure 12.1.2.
The Planar Threshold and Minimum Facets can be used to adjust the algorithm results. The
results will vary depending on the underlying model mesh.

222
 Figure 12.1.2 Edge extraction dialog with do planar seed.

For cylindrical surfaces such as a hole in a plate, the user should add edges to break the surface
into at least two surfaces. By selecting the Add button for Edge Lines in Figure 12.1.1, the
dialog in Figure 12.1.3 is displayed to allow the user to define edges. These added edges will be
used to divide a surface, similar to what is shown in Figures 12.1.1 and 12.1.2.

Figure 12.1.2 Add edge dialog.

12.2 No Crack Regions

The no crack regions dialog box, Figure 12.2.1, allows the user to insert a crack into a single
region in a multi-region model. Each of the regions can be displayed using the Displayed
Region selection; the selected region is colored while the other regions are shown as wireframes.
The user selects the region that will not be cracked by checking the appropriate region id in the
No Crack Regions pane.

223
When a crack is inserted that crosses the material boundary, Figure 12.2.2, the crack geometry is
trimmed so that the final meshed crack model does not have any crack surface in the selected
region, Figure 12.2.3.

Figure 12.2.1 No crack regions dialog.

Figure 12.2.2 Inserting a crack into a two-region model where the second region is designated as
a no-crack region.

224
 Figure 12.2.3 Crack inserted into one region of a two-region model.

12.3 Display COD Data

The Display COD Data menu item allows the user to save crack displacement data to a file.
The first dialog that is displayed, Figure 12.3.1, prompts the user to enter a distance back from
the crack front where crack displacements will be computed. The default is to compute the
values at the entered distance from crack front nodes. If the user turns this option off, values are
computed at geometric points along the crack front.

Figure 12.3.1 Write crack front data - Save File As dialog.

Select Accept on the dialog in Figure 12.3.1, and the dialog shown in Figure 12.3.2 is displayed.
This dialog displays the crack opening (COD), sliding (CSD) and tearing (CTD) displacements
along with the corresponding SIFs. Similar to the SIF Plot Display dialog, the data can be
exported to a file (see Section 6.4.1).

225
 Figure 12.3.2 Write COD data – create file dialog.

12.4 Write Template Data

The Save File As dialog, Figure 12.4.1, is presented so that template data can be saved to a file.
The data is saved to an ASCII text file with .std extension.

Figure 12.4.1 Write template data - Save File As dialog.

The file format for this file is briefly described here.

STD_TEMPLATE_DATA
{
VERSION: 1
NUM_FRONTS: 1

226
CRACK_FRONT: 0 49 25 OPEN
CORNER_SET: 0 # corner node ids of template element ring
11978 12907 11421 12440 11888 6756 7686 7222 8147 5762
6227 10350 10816 973 1436 4673 5142 8373 8835
….
SIDE_SET: 0 # side node ids
6938 3386 6470 14975 6003 2013 616 1081 3384
2479 2916 6383 2450 7784 6385 6854 9277 8246
8815 4877 8353 3061 1198 1662 7643 3527 7180
13551 6713 14015 14362 6338 13898 4288
…..
NODE_COORDS: 1781 # list of all node ids and coordinates
7321 -0.52397588 -0.01178516 9.9308077
11252 -0.47625961 1.0479856e-014 9.7249057
….
NODE_DISP: 1781 # list of all node ids and displacements
7321 2.34113830186791e-005 0.000939063262674639 -0.000290174323814175
11252 2.24602369565477e-005 0.000940419013229567 -0.0002799458448084
….
}

12.5 Create Growth History

The Create Growth History dialog, Figure 12.5.1, allows a user to create and edit the SIF
history data. A list of the crack growth steps is provided, and then for each step the crack front
data for each crack front is given. The dialog has three menu items: File, Edit and Plot. The
File menu has three options, Figure 12.5.2. The Read History menu item invokes the usual File
Open dialog with the .fcg file filter. The Append History menu item invokes the usual File
Open dialog with the .fcg file filter. The last menu item, Save History invokes the usual File
Save As dialog for saving the data to a new .fcg file.

227
 Figure 12.5.1 Create Growth History dialog.

Figure 12.5.2 File menu for Create Growth History dialog.

The Edit menu option has one item: Set Start Condition, which invokes the File Open dialog
with the .fcg filter. The .fcg file should containt the start condition for the SIF history.

The Plot menu option has one item: Plot Crack Fronts, which invokes the dialog shown in
Figure 12.5.3. This dialog allows the user to view the crack front boundaries for all of the crack
fronts for all of the crack growth steps.

228
 Figure 12.5.3 Plot crack fronts dialog from Growth History dialog.

12.6 Export Crack Data

The Export Crack Data menu item invokes the File Save As dialog; it allows one
to directly save the current data to a .fcg file.

12.7 Read User Extensions

The Read User Extensions menu item allows one to import Python functions into FRANC3D for
use during crack growth. A user can define their own rules for growing a crack as Python
functions. This is more fully described in the Command Language & Python Extensions
reference. Note that the PATH and PYTHONPATH environment variables will likely need to be
set to have all of the Python capabilities.

A dialog is displayed allowing one to choose the Python (.py) file containing the functions,
Figure 12.7.1. After selecting the file and clicking Accept, FRANC3D reads the .py file and then
displays a list of the known functions that were read, Figure 12.7.2.

229
 Figure 12.7.1 User extensions open file dialog.

Figure 12.7.2 User Python extension functions.

12.8 Initial Stress File

The Initial Stress File menu item is temporary; it allows one to define initial stress conditions
with ABAQUS. See Section 7.2.6 for a description of the dialog that is displayed.

12.9 Initial Strain File

The Initial Strain File menu item is temporary; it allows one to define initial strain conditions
with ABAQUS. See Section 7.2.6 for a description of the dialog that is displayed.

230
12.10 Plot CFT Stress File
The Plot CFT Stress File menu item is temporary; it allows one to contour crack face traction
values based on mesh-based stress input. See Section 7.2.6 for a description of the dialog for
setting the mesh based stress input.

Once the data is imported, the dialog shown in Figure 12.10.1 is displayed.

Figure 12.10.1 Plot CFT stress dialog.

231
Appendix A: XY Plot Label Syntax

// Layout a label like an equation

//
// Items:
// |Seq(<item1>,<item2>, ... ,<itemn>) - sequence of items
// |Sub(<base>,<subscript>) - item with a subscript
// |Sup(<base>,<superscript>) - item with a superscript
// |Ss(<base>,<superscript>,<subscript>) - item with a both sub and superscript
// |Sqrt(<item>) - square root
//
// Symbols and Operators:
// $Eq - equals
// $Gt - greater than
// $Lt - less than
// $Ge - equal or greater than
// $Le - equal or less then
// $Plus - plus sign
// $Minus - minus sign
// $Mult - multiplication sign (cross)
// $Div - division sign (bar and two dots)
// $Del - partial derivative
// $About - two wavy lines
// $alpha - lower case alpha
// $Alpha - upper case Alpha
// $beta - lower case beta
// $Beta - upper case beta
// $delta - lower case delta
// $Delta - upper case delta
// $( - left paren
// $) - right paren

//
// Render a math equation using a subset of the Latex equation grammer
//
// Native symbols
// + - = ! / ( ) [ ] < > | ' :
//
// Escaped symbols
// \Alpha \alpha
// \Beta \beta
// \Delta \delta
// \Eta \eta
// \Gamma \gamma

232
// \Sigma \sigma
// \Theta \theta
// \geq
// \leq
// \times
// \div
// \partial
// \sim
//
// Items:
// \sum{}
// \sqrt{}
// \frac{}{}
// \lines{{}{}}
//
// Other:
// "_" denotes subscript
// "^" denotes superscript
//
// Approximate Grammer:
//
// <equation> := <sequence>
//
// <sequence> := <seq_item> | <sequence> <seq_item>
//
// <seq_item> := <atom> | <group> | <sub_item>
// <sup_item> | <both_item> | <sum_item>
// <sqrt_item> | <frac_item> | <lines_item>
//
// <atom> ::= <character> | <symbol> | <digit>
//
// <group> ::= {<sequence>}
//
// <modifier> ::= <atom> | <group>
//
// <sub_part> ::= _<modifier>
// <sup_part> ::= ^<modifier>
// <both_part> ::= _<modifier>^<modifier>
//
// <sub_item> ::= <eqn_item><sub_part>
// <sup_item> ::= <eqn_item><sup_part>
// <both_item> ::= <eqn_item><both_part>
//
// <sum_item> ::= \sum <eqn_item> |
// \sum<sub_part> <eqn_item> |
// \sum<sup_part> <eqn_item> |

233
// \sum<both_part> <eqn_item>
//
// <sqrt_item> ::= \sqrt<eqn_item>
//
// <frac_item> ::= \frac<group><group>
//
// <lines_item> ::= \lines {<group> <group> ... }

234