Stress-Intensity Factors for a Surface Crack in a Finite Solid

1972 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 195-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. W. Thresher ◽  
F. W. Smith

A solution to the problem of a circular crack partially embedded in a solid of finite thickness is presented. A superposition and iteration technique is used to determine the stress-intensity factor numerically. The stress-intensity factor is determined as a function of position around the crack front for a variety of crack depths. The results of this study are compared with experimental data for a semielliptical surface flaw in a brittle material.

1986 ◽  
Vol 108 (4) ◽  
pp. 474-478 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. W. Wilkening

A 3-D linear elastic analysis has been performed for a circular crack located in the nozzle corner region of a nuclear pressure vessel. The stress intensity factor, K, was found to be virtually constant along the crack front for this particular nozzle corner flaw, which extends one quarter of the distance through the nozzle corner diagonal. The magnitude of K is discussed in relation to the stress intensity factor for the ASME Maximum Postulated Flaw, and is compared to the results of a number of other analyses reported in the literature.


2007 ◽  
Vol 353-358 ◽  
pp. 19-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhi Xue Wu

There is an inherent relationship between the shape and the corresponding stress intensity factor (SIF) distribution of a crack. A typical inverse problem of linear elastic fracture mechanics about a crack, i.e. to predict the shape of a crack assuming that some information of SIF distribution is known, is presented. A finite-element based numerical procedure is used to determine the shape, correspondingly the SIF, of a mode-I planar crack based on a specified SIF distribution. The crack front is modeled using cubic splines, which are determined by a number of control-points. The crack front shape is achieved iteratively by moving control-points based on a gradientless algorithm. Numerical examples for planar cracks in through-cracked and surface-cracked plates with finite thickness and width are presented to show the validity and practicability of the proposed method. The SIFs obtained by present method are compared with the known solutions for cracks with same dimensions. The presented method is considered to be a promising alternative to the evaluation of SIFs and the prediction of shape evolution for fatigue cracks.


Author(s):  
D. J. Shim ◽  
S. Tang ◽  
T. J. Kim ◽  
N. S. Huh

Stress intensity factor solutions are readily available for flaws found in pipe to pipe welds or shell to shell welds (i.e., circumferential/axial crack in cylinder). In some situations, flaws can be detected in locations where an appropriate crack model is not readily available. For instance, there are no practical stress intensity factor solutions for circular-arc cracks which can form in circular welds (e.g., nozzle to vessel shell welds and storage cask closure welds). In this paper, stress intensity factors for circular-arc cracks in finite plates were calculated using finite element analysis. As a first step, stress intensity factors for circular-arc through-wall crack under uniform tension and crack face pressure were calculated. These results were compared with the analytical solutions which showed reasonable agreement. Then, stress intensity factors were calculated for circular-arc semi-elliptical surface cracks under the lateral and crack face pressure loading conditions. Lastly, to investigate the applicability of straight crack solutions for circular-arc cracks, stress intensity factors for circular-arc and straight cracks (both through-wall and surface cracks) were compared.


Author(s):  
Kisaburo Azuma ◽  
Yinsheng Li ◽  
Kunio Hasegawa

The interaction of multiple flaws in close proximity to one another may increase the stress intensity factor of the flaw in structures and components. This interaction effect is not distributed uniformly along the crack front. For instance, the strongest interaction is generally observed at the point closest to a neighboring flaw. For this reason, the closest point could show a higher value of the stress intensity factor than all other points in some cases, even if the original value at the point of the single flaw is relatively low. To clarify the condition when the closest point shows the maximum stress intensity factor, we investigated the interaction of two similar elliptical flaws in an infinite model subjected to remote tension loading. The stress intensity factor of the elliptical flaws was obtained by performing finite element analysis of a linear elastic solid. The results indicated that the interaction factors along the crack front can be expressed by a simple empirical formula. Finally, we show the relationship between geometrical features of the flaw and the stress intensity factor at the closest point to a neighboring flaw.


1979 ◽  
Vol 101 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-183 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. S. Kobayashi ◽  
A. F. Emery ◽  
W. J. Love ◽  
A. Antipas

A flattened surface crack at a nozzle corner is modeled by a segment of a semi-elliptical crack in a finite thickness plate with matching crack contour and crack pressure corresponding to the normal stresses in the uncracked nozzle corner. Lacking other solutions for comparison, a qualitative comparison was made between nondimensionalized stress intensity factors at the deepest crack penetration with those obtained experimentally for similar corner cracks in epoxy models.


Author(s):  
Mayumi Ochi ◽  
Kiminobu Hojo ◽  
Itaru Muroya ◽  
Kazuo Ogawa

Alloy 600 weld joints have potential for primary water stress corrosion cracks (PWSCC). At the present time it has been understood that PWSCC generates and propagates in the Alloy 600 base metal and the Alloy 600 weld metal and there has been no observation of cracking the stainless and the low alloy steel. For the life time evaluation of the pipes or components the crack extension analysis is required. To perform the axial crack extension analysis the stress intensity database or estimation equation corresponding to the extension crack shape is needed. From the PWSCC extension nature mentioned above, stress intensity factors of the conventional handbooks are not suitable because most of them assume a semi-elliptical crack and the maximum aspect ratio crack depth/crack half length is one (The evaluation in this paper had been performed before API 579-1/ASME FFS was published). Normally, with the advance of crack extension in the thickness direction at the weld joint, the crack aspect ratio exceeds one and the K-value of the conventional handbook can not be applied. Even if those equations are applied, the result would be overestimated. In this paper, considering characteristics of PWSCC’s extension behavior in the welding material, the axial crack was modeled in the FE model as a rectangular shape and the stress intensity factors at the deepest point were calculated with change of crack depth. From the database of the stress intensity factors, the simplified equation of stress intensity factor with parameter of radius/thickness and thickness/weld width was proposed.


Author(s):  
Daniel M. Blanks

An API 579-1/ASME FFS-1 Failure Assessment Diagram based Fitness-for-Service assessment was carried out on an embedded crack-like flaw found in a nozzle to shell weld in a pressure vessel. Stress intensity factors were initially calculated by utilizing stress results from a Finite Element Analysis (FEA) of an uncracked configuration, with the standard embedded crack stress intensity factor solution given in API 579-1/ASME FFS-1. Due to the complex nozzle geometry and flaw size, a second analysis was carried out, incorporating a crack into the FEA model, to calculate the stress intensity factors and evaluate if the standard solution could be applied to this geometry. A large difference in the resulting stress intensity factors was observed, with those calculated by the FEA with the crack incorporated into the model to be twice as high as those calculated by the standard solutions, indicating the standard embedded crack stress intensity factor solution may be non-conservative in this case. An investigation was carried out involving a number of studies to determine the cause of the difference. Beginning with an elliptical shaped embedded crack in a plate, the stress intensity factor calculated with an idealized 3D crack mesh agreed with the API 579-1/ASME FFS-1 solution. Examining other crack locations, and crack shapes, such as a constant depth embedded crack, revealed how the solution began to differ. The greatest difference was found when considering a crack mesh with a small component height (i.e. the distance measured perpendicular from the crack face to the top of the mesh). A close agreement was then found between the stress intensity factors calculated in the nozzle model and an idealized crack mesh with component heights representative of the true geometry. This revealed that reduced structural stiffness is a key factor in the calculation of the stress intensity factors for this geometry, due to the close proximity of the embedded crack to the inner surface of the nozzle. It was found that this reduction is potentially significant even with relatively small crack sizes. This paper details the investigation, and aims to provide the reader with an awareness of situations when the standard stress intensity factor solutions may no longer be valid, and offers general recommendations to consider when calculating stress intensity factors in these situations.


1981 ◽  
Vol 103 (1) ◽  
pp. 66-75 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. F. Rybicki ◽  
R. B. Stonesifer ◽  
R. J. Olson

The effect of a girth-weld-induced residual stress field on the linear elastic fracture mechanics of a thin-walled pipe is examined. The procedure for using the residual stress distribution to compute KI and KII for a circumferential crack which is growing radially is described. In addition to the two-pass girth weld, stress intensity factors are computed for a residual stress distribution in a flat plate and for a hypothetical residual stress state in a second thin-walled pipe. The computed stress intensity factor for the flat plate geometry and its residual stress distribution are compared with a solution from the literature as a check on the computational procedure. The through-the-thickness residual stress distribution due to the two-pass girth weld is similar to a half-cosine wave. For purposes of comparison, the hypothetical through-the-thickness distribution selected for the second pipe is similar to a full cosine wave. The stress intensity factor is presented as a function of crack depth for a crack initiating on the inner surface of the pipe. The redistribution of residual stresses due to crack growth is also shown for selected crack lengths. The study shows that residual stress-induced crack growth in pipes can be significantly different from that in flat plates due to the possibility of locked-in residual bending moments in the pipe. These locked-in moments can have effects similar to externally applied loads and can either promote or restrain crack growth. A residual stress distribution is illustrated in which crack growth, if initiated, would continue through the entire wall. Also, a residual stress distribution is illustrated for which the crack could arrest after a certain amount of growth.


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