THREE MODES OF CRACK OPENING,

STRESS INTENSITY FACTOR, SIGNIFICANCE

OF FAILURE MODE IN DESIGN

BATCH I
11M155, 12M111, 12M113, 12M114, 12M130,
12M139, 12M145, 13M407
INTRODUCTION - FRACTURE MECHANICS
Science of predicting the influence of cracks and
crack like defects on the brittle fracture of
components.
Effect is serious in case of brittle materials due to the
inability of plastic deformation.
Examples :
High strength aluminium alloys,
Titanium alloys and some polymers.
 MODES OF CRACK OPENING
Mode I : Opening or tensile mode
Mode II : Sliding or in-plane shearing mode
Mode III : Tearing mode

MODE I MODE II MODE III

 STRESS INTENSITY FACTOR
Stress intensity factor (K) specifies the stress intensity
at the tip of the crack.( N/mm2 m )
Useful for providing a failure criterion
for brittle materials.
The concept can also be applied to materials that
exhibit small-scale yielding at a crack tip.
The magnitude of K depends on sample geometry,
the size and location of the crack, and the
magnitude and the distribution of loads on the
material.
UNIFORM UNIAXIAL STRESS
Crack of length 2a, at right
angles, in an infinite plane, to a
uniform stress field is

If the crack is located centrally in

a finite plate of width 2b and
height 2h ,
EDGE CRACK IN A PLATE UNDER UNIAXIAL
STRESS
For a plate of dimensions
2h x b containing an edge
crack of length a , if the
dimensions of the plate are
such that h/b 1 and
a/b 0.6 ,
EDGE CRACK IN A PLATE UNDER UNIAXIAL
STRESS
For the situation where
h/b 1 and a/b 0.3, the
stress intensity factor can be
approximated by
SLANTED CRACK IN A BIAXIAL STRESS FIELD
For a slanted crack of length 2a in
a biaxial stress field with stress
in the y-direction and in
x-direction, the stress intensity
factors are

= angle made by the crack with

x axis
PENNY SHAPED CRACK IN AN INFINITE
DOMAIN
The stress intensity at the tip of a penny shaped crack
of radius a in an infinite domain under uniaxial
tension is
FAILURE MODE
The way in which the component, subassembly,
product, or process could fail to perform its intended
function
Examples of potential failure modes include
Corrosion
Electrical short or open
Torque fatigue
Deformation
Cracking
A failure mode in one component can serve as the cause
of failure mode in other component.

10
FAILURE EFFECT
A Failure effect is defined as the result of a failure
mode on the function of the product.
Examples of failure effects include
Injury to the user
Inoperability of the product or process
Improper appearance of the product or process
Odours
Degraded performance
Noise
MODES OF FAILURE
Failure by elastic deflection
Failure by general yielding
Failure by fracture
FAILURE BY ELASTIC DEFORMATION
In applications like Transmission shaft supporting
gears, the maximum force acting on the shaft, without
affecting its performance, is limited by permissible
elastic deflection.
Lateral or torsional rigidity is considered as the
criterion of design in such cases.
Sometimes,Elastic deflection may result in buckling
of columns or vibrations.
 FAILURE BY ELASTIC DEFLECTION
The modulus of elasticity and rigidity are the
important properties.
FAILURE BY GENERAL YIELDING
A mechanical component made of ductile material
loses its engineering usefulness due to a large amount
of plastic deformation after the yield point stress
is reached.
A considerable portion of the component is subjected
to plastic deformation, called general yielding.
Important property to be considered : Yield strength
FAILURE BY FRACTURE
Components made of brittle
material cease to function
satisfactorily because of the
sudden fracture without any
plastic deformation.
Failure is sudden and total.
Important property to be
considered :
Ultimate tensile strength
BRITTLE FRACTURE
Occurs with negligible plastic
deformation
Rate of crack propagation is rapid
Formation of sharp planar surface
Occurs at the point where micro
crack is more
Increased by decreasing
temperature, increasing strain rate
and work hardening
Examples: Cast Iron, Glass,
Composite materials, Diamond,..
DUCTILE FRACTURE
Occurs with large plastic
deformation
Rate of crack propagation is slow
Formation of cup and cone
Occurs in some localised region
where the deformation is very large
Increased by dislocations and other
defects in metals.
Examples: Gold, Mild Steel,
Aluminium, Silver
DUCTILE FRACTURE BRITTLE FRACTURE
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