Fracture and fracture mechanics
4 points * two lectures per week plus tutorials * Second semester * Clayton * Prerequisites: CIV2230 or CIV2221
Miromechanisms of brittle fracture and ductile fracture. Void Nucleation, crack nucleation. Fatigue crack initiation and growth. The stress intensity factor, thermodynamic approach to facture and strain energy release rate. Crack tip plasticity and the plastic zone. Plane stress/plane strain. Fracture toughness testing in practice - the compliance method and KIC. Thickness effect, test piece geometries, testing procedures. Statistical fracture mechanics. Weak link theory and the effect of test volume. Ductile-brittle transition and impact testing. Notch strengthening. Stress intensity approach to crack extension under static and cyclic loads. Design of structures using fracture toughness. Fractography. Energy absorption processes in materials - plasticity, phase transformation, crack deflection at weak interfaces, crack bridging and pullout. Design of materials for high fracture toughness. Micromechanisms of creep deformation, deformation mechanism maps, diffusion creep, dislocation creep. Creep fracture by intergranular void nucleation and growth. Monkman Grant relationship.
Assessment
Examination: 65% * Tutorials and assignments: 30% * Practical work: 5%
Recommended texts
Atkins A G and Mai Y W Elastic and plastic fracture Ellis Harwood, 1985
Broek D Elementary engineering fracture mechanics 3rd edn, Nijhoff, 1982
Broek D The practical use of fracture mechanics Kluwer, 1988
Gdoutos E E Fracture mechanics Kluwer, 1993
Jones D R H Engineering materials vol. 3, Pergamon, 1993
Kelly A G and Macmillan N H Strong solids OUP, 1986
Knott J F Fundamentals of fracture mechanics Butterworths, 1973
Lawn B R Fracture of brittle solids 2nd edn, CUP, 1993