A Novel Fracture Mechanics Specimen to Investigate the Effect of Residual Stress and Crack-Tip Constraint on Fracture

A novel fracture toughness specimen design is presented for investigating the effects of residual stress and crack tip constraint on fracture. The specimen design, denoted here as an SC(T) specimen, is a hybrid of a blunt-notched C(T) specimen and an SEN(T) specimen. The SC(T) specimen is mechanically pre-compressed on the C(T) load line to introduce a residual stress in the ligament ahead of a blunt notch. Following pre-compression, a crack is introduced into the tensile residual stress field. The SC(T) specimen can then be loaded either on the C(T) or SEN(T) load line to examine the effects of residual stress under high constraint or low constraint conditions respectively. Finite element analysis is performed to examine the sensitivity of the specimen dimensions on crack tip constraint and to demonstrate the introduction of residual stress into the specimen.