REDUCTION OF STRESS INTENSTITY FACTOR FOR A CENTRAL CRACKED PLATE
Keywords:
stress intensity factor; finite element method; fracture mechanics; linear elastic fracture mechanics; crack propagationAbstract
Stress intensity factor is used in fracture mechanics to predict the stress state or stress intensity near the tip of
a crack caused by a remote load or residual stresses. The stress intensity factor is a single-parameter characterization of
the crack tip stress field. For a body with a crack and known boundary conditions, once the stress intensity factor is
determined one can predict whether the a crack in the component is likely to grow or not. Reduction of stress intensity
factor can prevent crack from propagation. The paper presents the method of reducing stress intensity factor for a finite
length plates by introducing auxiliary holes, the analysis is done by using the finite element method. The finite element
analysis program used is the ABAQUS®
6.13. It has been found out that the stress intensity factor is reduced by
introducing an auxiliary hole in the plate. The result shows that the stress intensity factor is significantly reduced when
the auxiliary holes are nearer to the crack. The variation of the stress intensity factor with diameter of the hole is also
studied. The result shows that the stress intensity factor is significantly reduced when the diameter of the holes reduces.
