Experimental study of plane elastic contact problems by the pseudocaustics method

Abstract

T he optical method of pseudocaustics can be used for the experimental solution of plane elasticity, smooth contact problems for finite or infinite media in contact of arbitrary shape. This technique constitutes an alternative to the various numerical and experimental techniques for the approximate solution of plane elasticity contact problems. The success in the application of the method of pseudocaustics to plane elasticity contact problems is due to the possibility inherent in this method of the direct determination of the derivative Φ'( z) of the complex potential Φ( z) of N.I. Muskhelishvili along the boundaries of the media in contact. Then, the Muskhelishvili complex potentials, Φ( z) and Ψ( z), completely characterizing the state of stress and strain in a plane elastic medium, can easily be determined at any point of the media in contact after simple algebraic calculations. Two applications of the proposed method to contact problems of practical interest are also made.