Experimental and Numerical Studies on Mixed Mode Fracture and Fatigue Using a New Specimen

Abstract

Mixed mode fracture and fatigue failures are one of the most significant causes of failure in materials and structural components. In the present investigation, a simple and efficient specimen geometry and out-of-plane loading fixture that can be used with conventional uniaxial universal testing machines for conducting any combination of mixed mode (I/II/III) fracture and fatigue crack growth studies have been proposed. The proposed specimen is a single edge cracked circular (SECC) specimen which can be employed on both metallic and non-metallic materials under static and fatigue loads.