Papers presented at the symposium on [title] held in Indianapolis, Indiana, May 1991, provide a framework for quantifying constraint effects in terms of both continuum mechanics and micro-mechanical modeling approaches. Such a framework is useful in establishing accurate predictions of the fracture

Fracture in structural materials remains a vital consideration in engineering systems, affecting the reliability of machines throughout their lives. Impressive advances in both the theoretical understanding of fracture mechanisms and practical developments that offer possibilities of control have re-shaped the subject over the past four decades. The contributors to this volume, including some of the most prominent researchers in the field, give their long-range perspectives of the research on the fracture of solids and its achievements. The subjects covered in this volume include: statistics of brittle fracture, transition of fracture from brittle to ductile, mechanics and mechanisms of ductile separation of heterogenous solids, the crack tip environment in ductile fracture, and mechanisms and mechanics of fatigue. Materials considered range from the usual structural solids to composites. The chapters include both theoretical points of view and discussions of key experiments. Contributors include: from MIT, A.S. Argon, D.M. Parks; from Cambridge, M.F. Ashby; from U.C. Santa Barbara, A.G. Evans, R. McMeeking; from Glasgow, J. Hancock; from Harvard, J.W. Hutchinson, J.R. Rice; from Sheffield, K.J. Miller; from Brown, A. Needleman; from the Ecole des Mines, A. Pineau; from U.C. Berkeley, R. O. Ritchie; and from Copenhagen, V. Tvergaard.

A vast majority of failures emanate from stress concentrators such as geometrical discontinuities. The role of stress concentration was first highlighted by Inglis (1912) who gives a stress concentration factor for an elliptical defect, and later by Neuber (1936). With the progress in computing, it is now possible to compute the real stress distribution at a notch tip. This distribution is not simple, but looks like pseudo-singularity as in principle the power dependence with distance remains. This distribution is governed by the notch stress intensity factor which is the basis of Notch Fracture Mechanics. Notch Fracture Mechanics is associated with the volumetric method which postulates that fracture requires a physical volume. Since fatigue also needs a physical process volume, Notch Fracture Mechanics can easily be extended to fatigue emanating from a stress concentration.

Advanced Fracture Mechanics and Structural Integrity is organized to cover quantitative descriptions of crack growth and fracture phenomena. The mechanics of fracture are explained, emphasizing elastic-plastic and time-dependent fracture mechanics. Applications are presented, using examples from power generation, aerospace, marine, and chemical industries, with focus on predicting the remaining life of structural components and advanced testing metods for structural materials. Numerous examples and end-of-chapter problems are provided, along with references to encourage further study.The book is written for use in an advanced graduate course on fracture mechanics or structural integrity.

Scientific understanding of fluid flow in rock fractures--a process underlying contemporary earth science problems from the search for petroleum to the controversy over nuclear waste storage--has grown significantly in the past 20 years. This volume presents a comprehensive report on the state of the field, with an interdisciplinary viewpoint, case studies of fracture sites, illustrations, conclusions, and research recommendations. The book addresses these questions: How can fractures that are significant hydraulic conductors be identified, located, and characterized? How do flow and transport occur in fracture systems? How can changes in fracture systems be predicted and controlled? Among other topics, the committee provides a geomechanical understanding of fracture formation, reviews methods for detecting subsurface fractures, and looks at the use of hydraulic and tracer tests to investigate fluid flow. The volume examines the state of conceptual and mathematical modeling, and it provides a useful framework for understanding the complexity of fracture changes that occur during fluid pumping and other engineering practices. With a practical and multidisciplinary outlook, this volume will be welcomed by geologists, petroleum geologists, geoengineers, geophysicists, hydrologists, researchers, educators and students in these fields, and public officials involved in geological projects.