460 F R AC T U R E : M AC RO S C O P I C A S P E C T S

We use the term K III to group the constants:

K III θ
σzθ = √ cos ,
2πr 2

∂w A1 G θ
σr θ = G = 1 sin ,
∂r 2r 2 2
or,
K III θ
σr θ = √ sin .
2πr 2
These expressions are equivalent to Equation 7.23 and demonstrate
the square root singularity of the stresses at the tip of the crack.

Suggested Reading
T. L. Anderson. Fracture Mechanics, 2nd ed. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, 1995.
J. M. Barsom and S. T. Roffe. Fracture and Fatigue Control in Structures, 2nd ed.
Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1987.
D. Broek. Elementary Engineering Fracture Mechanics, 3rd ed. The Hague: Sijthoff
and Noordhoff, 1978.
H. L. Ewalds and R. J. H. Wanhill. Fracture Mechanics. London: Arnold, 1984.
M. F. Kanninen and C. H. Popelar. Advanced Fracture Mechanics. New York, NY:
Oxford University Press, 1985.
J. F. Knott. Fundamentals of Fracture Mechanics, 3rd ed. London: Butterworths,
1993.
R. J. Sanford, Principles of Fracture Mechanics. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice
Hall, 2003.
H. Tada, P. C. Paris, and G. R. Irwin, The Stress Analysis of Cracks Handbook, 3rd
ed., New York, NY: ASME, 2000.

Exercises

7.1 In a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plate, there is an elliptical, through-the-

thickness cavity. The dimensions of the cavity are:
major axis = 1 mm,
minor axis = 0.1 mm.
Compute the stress concentration factor Kt at the extremities of the cavity.
7.2 Calculate the maximum tensile stress at the surfaces of a circular hole
(in the case of a thin sheet) and of a spherical hole (in the case of a thick
specimen) subjected to a tensile stress of 200 MPa. The material is Al2 O3 with
ν = 0.2.

7.3 Calculate the maximum tensile stress if the applied stress is compressive
for a circular hole for which σ c = 200 MPa and ν = 0.2.

7.4 The strength of alumina is approximately E/15, where E is the Young’s

modulus of alumina, equal to 380 GPa. Use the Griffith equation in the plane-
strain form to estimate the critical size of defect corresponding to fracture of
alumina.
 EXERCISES 461

σ=0
σ

ΔX

Fig. Ex7.7

7.5 Compute the ratio of stress required to propagate a crack in a brittle

material under plane-stress and plane-strain conditions. Take Poisson’s ratio
ν of the material to be 0.3.

7.6 An Al2 O3 specimen is being pulled in tension. The specimen contains flaws
having a size of 100 μm. If the surface energy of Al2 O3 is 0.8 J/m2 , what is the
fracture stress? Use Griffith’s criterion. E = 380 GPa.

7.7 A thin plate is rigidly fixed at its edges (see Figure Ex7.7). The plate has a
height L and thickness t (normal to the plane of the figure). A crack moves
from left to right through the plate. Every time the crack moves a distance
x, two things happen:
1. Two new surfaces (with specific surface energy) are created.
2. The stress falls to zero behind the advancing crack front in a certain volume
of the material.
Obtain an expression for the critical stress necessary for crack propagation
in this case. Explain the physical significance of this expression. Assume the
stress, σ , ahead of the crack is uniform.

7.8 A central through-the-thickness crack, 50 mm long, propagates in a

thermoset polymer in an unstable manner at an applied stress of 5 MPa.
Find Kc .

7.9 Machining of SiC produced surface flaws of a semielliptical geometry. The

flaws that were generated have dimensions a = 1 mm, width w = 100 mm,
and c = 5 mm, and the thickness of the specimen is B = 20 mm. Calcu-
late the maximum stress that the specimen can withstand in tension. KIc =
4 MPa m1/2 .

7.10 (a) An AISI 4340 steel plate has a width W of 30 cm and has a central
crack 2a of 3 mm. The plate is under a uniform stress σ . This steel has a KIc
value of 50 MPa m1/2 . Find the maximum stress for this crack length. (b) If
the operating stress is 1,500 MPa, compute the maximum crack size that the
steel may have without failure.

7.11 A microalloyed steel, quenched and tempered at 250 ◦ C, has a yield

strength (σ y ) of 1,750 MPa and a plane-strain fracture toughness KIc of 43.50
MPa m1/2 . What is the largest disk-type inclusion, oriented most unfavorably,
that can be tolerated in this steel at an applied stress of 0.5σ y ?
462 F R AC T U R E : M AC RO S C O P I C A S P E C T S

7.12 A 25-mm2 bar of cast iron contains a crack 5 mm long and normal to
one face. What is the load required to break this bar if it is subjected to three-
point bending with the crack toward the tensile side and the supports 250
mm apart?

7.13 Consider a maraging steel plate of thickness (B) 3 mm. Two specimens
of width (W) equal to 50 mm and 5 mm were taken out of this plate.
What is the largest through-the-thickness crack that can be tolerated in
the two cases at an applied stress of σ = 0.6σ y , where σ y (yield stress) =
2.5 GPa? The plane-strain fracture toughness KIc of the steel is 70 MPa
m1/2 . What are the critical dimensions in the case of a single-edge notch
specimen?

7.14 An infinitely large plate containing a central crack of length 2a = 50/π

mm is subjected to a nominal stress of 300 MPa. The material yields at
500 MPa. Compute:
(a) The stress intensity factor at the crack tip.
(b) The size of the plastic zone at the crack tip.
Comment on the validity of Irwin’s correction for the size of the plastic zone
in this case.

7.15 A steel plate containing a through-the-thickness central crack of length

15 mm is subjected to a stress of 350 MPa normal to the crack plane. The
yield stress of the steel is 1,500 MPa. Compute the size of the plastic zone and
the effective stress intensity factor.

7.16 The size of the plastic zone at the crack tip in the general plane-stress
case is given by
 
K l2 2 θ 2 θ
ry = cos 4 − 3 cos .
2π σ y2 2 2

(a) Determine the radius of the plastic zone in the direction of the crack.
(b) Determine the angle θ at which the plastic zone is the largest.

7.17 For the plane-strain case, the expression for the size of the plastic zone is
K l2 θ θ
ry = cos2 4[1 − ν(1 − ν)] − 3 cos2 .
2π σ y2 2 2

(a) Show that this expression reduces to the one for plane stress.
(b) Make plots of the size of the plastic zone as a function of θ for ν = 0,
ν = 13 , and ν = 12 . Comment on the size and form of the zone in the three
cases.

7.18 A sheet of polystyrene has a thin central crack with 2a = 50 mm. The
crack propagates catastrophically at an applied stress of 10 MPa. The Young’s
modulus polystyrene is 3.8 GPa, and the Poisson’s ratio is 0.4. Find GIc .

7.19 Compute the approximate size of the plastic zone, rν , for an alloy that has
a Young’s modulus E = 70 GPa, yield strength σ ν = 500 MPa, and toughness
Gc = 20 kJ/m2 .

7.20 300-M steel, commonly used for airplane landing gears, has a Gc value of
10 kN/m. A nondestructive examination technique capable of detecting cracks
that are 1 mm long is available. Compute the stress level that the landing gear
can support without failure.
 EXERCISES 463

7.21 A thermoplastic material has a yield stress of 75 MPa and a GIc value
of 300 J/m2 . What would be the corresponding critical crack opening
displacement? Take λ = 1. Also, compute JIc .

7.22 A pipe line with overall diameter of 1 m and 25-mm thickness is con-
structed from a microalloyed steel (KIc = 60 MPa m1/2 ; σ y = 600 MPa). Cal-
culate the maximum pressure for which the leak-before-break criterion will
be obeyed. The leak-before-break criterion states that a through-the-thickness
crack (a = t) will not propagate catastrophically.

7.23 Al2 O3 has a fracture toughness of approximately 3 MPa m1/2 . Suppose you
carried out a characterization of the surface of the specimen and detected
surface flaws with a radius a = 50 μm. Estimate the tensile and compressive
strengths of this specimen; show by sketches, how flaws will be activated in
compression and tension.

7.24 Using the Weibull equation, establish the tensile strength, with a 50%
survival probability, of specimens with a length of 60 mm and a diame-
ter of 5 mm. Uniaxial tensile tests carried out on specimens with a length
of 20 mm and the same diameter yielded the following results in MPa
(10 tests were carried out): 321, 389, 411, 423, 438, 454, 475, 489, 497,
501.

7.25 An engineering ceramic has a flexure strength that obeys Weibull statis-
tics with m = 10. If the flexure strength is equal to 200 MPa at 50% survival
probability, what is the flexure strength level at which the survival probability
is 90%?

7.26 What would be the flexure strength, at 90% survival probability, if the
ceramic in the preceding problem is subjected to a hot isostatic processing
(HIP) treatment that greatly reduces the population of flaws and increases
m to 60. Assume that the flexure strength at 50% survival probability is
unchanged.

7.27 Ten rectangular bars of Al2 O3 (10 mm wide and 5 mm in height) were
tested in three-point bending, the span being 50 mm. The failure loads were
1,040, 1,092, 1,120, 1,210, 1,320, 1,381, 1,410, 1,470, 1,490, and 1,540 N. Deter-
mine the characteristic flexure strength and Weibull’s modulus for the speci-
mens. (See Section 9.6.1 for the flexure formula.)

7.28 Verify the values of m in Figure 7.34, and obtain the characteristic
strengths σ 0 for the three materials. If the fracture toughness of SiC, Si3 N4 ,
and AlN are equal to 5.2, 5.7, and 2.4 MNm3/2 , respectively, what are the largest
flaws that can be tolerated in these specimens?

7.29 Aluminum has a surface energy of 0.5 Jm−2 and a Young’s modulus of
70 GPa. Compute the stress at the crack tip for two different crack lengths:
1 mm and 1 cm.

7.30 Determine the stress required for crack propagation under plane strain
for a crack of length equal to 2 mm in aluminum. Take the surface energy
equal to 0.048 J/m2 , Poisson’s ratio to 0.345, and the modulus of E = 70.3
GPa.

7.31 Calculate the maximum load that a 2024-T851 aluminum alloy (10 cm ×
2 cm) with a central through-the-thickness crack (length 0.1 mm) can with-
stand without yielding. Given: σ y = 500 MPa and KIc = 30 MPa m1/2 .
464 F R AC T U R E : M AC RO S C O P I C A S P E C T S

40

With confinement
30

Stress, MPa
20

Without confinement
10

0
0 2 4 6 8
Displacement, mm

Fig. Ex7.34

7.32 An infinitely large sheet is subjected to a far-field stress of 300 MPa. The
material has a yield strength of 600 MPa, and there is a central crack 7/π cm
long.
(a) Calculate the stress intensity factor at the tip of the crack.
(b) Estimate the size of the plastic zone size at the tip of the crack.

7.33 What is the maximum allowable crack size for a material that has
KIc = 55 MPa m1/2 and σ y = 1,380 MPa? Assume a plane-strain condition
and a central crack.

7.34 Two specimens of concrete were tested in compression. One was wrapped
with a very strong composite tape. They exhibited substantial differences in
strength, shown in Figure Ex7.34. Explain, in terms of microstructural behav-
ior, the reason for the difference in response. Use sketches.

7.35 An Al2 O3 specimen is being pulled in tension. The specimen contains

flaws having a size of 100 μm.
(a) If the surface energy of Al2 O3 is 0.8 J/m2 , what is the fracture stress? Use
the Griffith criterion. E = 380 GPa.
(b) Using your vast fracture mechanics knowledge and advanced equations,
estimate the fracture stress if the fracture toughness is 4 MPa m1/2 . Assume
two positions for flaw: in the center of an infinite body and at the edge.

7.36 A structural steel component has a surface crack of 2 mm. This steel has
a fracture toughness of 75 MPa m1/2 . By how much can this crack grow before
catastrophic failure?

7.37 A titanium alloy (Ti-6Al-4V) has a yield strength of 1280 MPa and a frac-
ture toughness of 77 MPa m1/2 . If we apply a stress of 0.3σ y , what will be the
size of the surface crack that will lead to catastrophic failure?

7.38 An AISI steel plate has a crack with the size of 2 mm in the center. If the
plate is under a uniform stress, and the width of the plate is 24 cm:
 EXERCISES 465

(a) Find the maximum value of the stress if KIc = 45 MPa m1/2 .
(b) Find the maximum crack size that the plate can have, if it has to operate
at a stress of 1,250 MPa.

7.39 In an Al alloy 7178-T651 (thick plate), find the critical crack length if it
is under a stress of 500 MPa. Given: KIc = 28 MPa m1/2 .

7.40 What is the largest flaw size of a ceramic material that can support a
strength of 280 MPa and KIc = 2.2 MPa m1/2 , assuming Y = 1?

7.41 Determine the tensile strength of an alumina specimen having a grain

size of 1 μm, if the tensile strength of the same material with a grain size of
50 μm is 1 GPa. Assume that the flaw size is equal to one half the grain size.

7.42 A brittle material (Sialon) is used as a support plate. Sialon has a fracture
toughness of 9 MPa m1/2 . The plate has to withstand a tensile load of 200kN.
We have three non-destructive inspection techniques at our disposal: X-ray
radiography (can detect flaws greater than 0.5 mm); gamma-ray radiography
(flaws greater than 0.20 mm) and ultrasonic inspection (flaws greater than
0.125 mm). Calculate the cross-sectional area of the plate for the different
NDE testing methods.

7.43
(a) An AISI steel plate has width W = 30 cm and a central crack with size of
3 mm. The plate is under a uniform stress. Find the maximum value of
the stress is KIc = 50 MPa m1/2 .
(b) If the part has to operate at a stress of 1,500 MPa, compute the maximum
crack size that the plate can have.

7.44 A polymer contains internal flaws (penny shaped) with a diameter of

2 mm and fails, in tension, at an applied stress of 30 MPa. What is the fracture
toughness of this polymer?

7.45 Rank the estimated strength of three ceramic parts, made of Al2 O3 , with
three different volumes: V = 10 cm3 ; V = 100 cm3 ; V = 1 m3 .

7.46 Establish the maximum tensile load that a block with a cross-section of
10 × 10 cm can take, if its fracture toughness is equal to 90 MPa m1/2 and its
yield stress is 1,000 MPa. This part contains an embedded crack with a radius
of 10 mm.

7.47 Engineers are designing a ceramic component for a jet engine. The
ceramic has a fracture toughness of 8 MPa m1/2 . The ceramic is subjected to a
maximum tensile stress of 500 MPa. Calculate the maximum size of surface
flaws that the part can have.

7.48 A cylindrical pressure vessel (length of 10 m; diameter of 1 m) is made

from a high strength steel with KIc = 100 MPA m1/2 and a yield strength of
1,600 MPa. The thickness of the vessel is 25 mm. NDE has revealed a longitu-
dinal crack penetrating 7 mm into the cylinder wall.
(a) What maximum pressure can the cylinder be loaded to?
(b) What is the percentage reduction in maximum pressure due to the pres-
ence of flaw?