This book offers a comprehensive and timely review of the fracture behavior of bimaterial composites consisting of periodically connected components, i.e. of bimaterial composites possessing periodical cracks along the interface. It first presents an overview of the literature, and then analyzes the isotropic, anisotropic and piezoelectric/dielectric properties of bimaterial components, gradually increasing the difficulty of the solutions discussed up to the coupled electromechanical problems. While in the case of isotropic and anisotropic materials it covers the problems generated by an arbitrary set of cracks, for the piezoelectric materials it focuses on studying the influence of the electric permittivity of the crack’s filler, using not only a simple, fully electrically permeable model, but also a physically realistic, semi-permeable model. Throughout the analyses, the effects of the contact of the crack faces are taken into account so as to exclude the physically unrealistic interpenetration of the composite components that are typical of the classical open model. Further, the book derives and examines the mechanical and electromechanical fields, stress and electric intensity factors in detail. Providing extensive information on the fracture processes taking place in composite materials, the book helps readers become familiar with mathematical methods of complex function theory for obtaining exact analytical solutions.

Part I of this SpringerBrief presents the problem of a crack between two dissimilar isotropic materials and describes the mathematical background. A fracture criterion is discussed and Methods for calculating fracture parameters such as stress intensity factors using the finite element method and three post-processors are considered. Actual test data and both deterministic and statistical failure curves are presented.In Part II of the book, similar descriptions are given for delaminations in composite laminates. The mathematical treatment of this type of damage including the first term of the asymptotic expansion of the stress and displacement fields is considered. Numerical post-processors for determining stress intensity factors for these cases are reviewed. Two examples of specific laminates are presented: one with a failure curve and the other with a failure surface. Finally, beam specimens used for testing such failures are discussed.

Fracture: An Advanced Treatise, Volume VII: Fracture of Nonmetals and Composites examines the fracture of nonmetals and composites. The text of this treatise has been designed so that the reader may acquire pertinent information by self-study. Most chapters have been written in detail and, insofar as possible, have been made to fill a significant gap by also providing, when appropriate, the details of complicated and involved mathematical derivations in appendixes. Whenever possible, only a level of college calculus on the part of the reader has been assumed. Numerical examples showing the engineering applications have been included; also, photographs and drawings have been greatly utilized. The book opens with a review of the fracture behavior of glass. This is followed by separate chapters on the fracture of polymeric glasses; mechanics of the fracture process in rock, with emphasis on the engineering viewpoint; the fracture behavior of simple, single-phase ceramics; and empirical information about, and our level of understanding of, fracture in polycrystalline ceramics. Subsequent chapters deal with the fracture of elastomers; molecular mechanical aspects of the isothermal rupture of elastomers; failure mechanics of fibrous composites; fracture mechanics of composites; fracture and healing of compact bones; and fracture of two-phase alloys; and fracture of lake ice and sea ice.

Fracture Mechanics of Piezoelectric and Ferroelectric Solids presents a systematic and comprehensive coverage of the fracture mechanics of piezoelectric/ferroelectric materials, which includes the theoretical analysis, numerical computations and experimental observations. The main emphasis is placed on the mechanics description of various crack problems such static, dynamic and interface fractures as well as the physical explanations for the mechanism of electrically induced fracture. The book is intended for postgraduate students, researchers and engineers in the fields of solid mechanics, applied physics, material science and mechanical engineering. Dr. Daining Fang is a professor at the School of Aerospace, Tsinghua University, China; Dr. Jinxi Liu is a professor at the Department of Engineering Mechanics, Shijiazhuang Railway Institute, China.

Covering various aspects of dynamic fractures this book contains state-of-the-art contributions from leading scientists in the field of crack dynamics.