Calculation of NSIFs and Shape Factors of Four-Point Bend Specimens Containing Sharp V-Notches

Abstract

Notch stress intensity factors (NSIFs) play a critical role in the brittle fracture assessment of structures and components containing sharp V-notched. On the other hand, four-point bend (FPB) specimens with sharp V-notches are widely used experimental specimens to study the fracture of brittle materials. In the past, the accurate estimation of the mixed mode (I/II) NSIFs attained great importance for the failure analysis of the FPB specimens. In this paper, a recently developed collocation technique is used to determine the mixed mode (I/II) NSIFs of the verity of the FPB specimens. In this technique, the notch flank finite element displacements are utilized to obtain the mode I and mode II NSIFs. The NSIFs calculated using the present technique are then converted to dimensionless parameters called notch shape factors. The mixity ratio from pure mode I to pure mode II is also provided in the present analysis. The results obtained in the present investigation are compared with the results available in the literature. A good agreement has been observed between the present and the published results. Some new results have also been reported in the present work.