Prediction of bearing capacities and fracture processes in open-hole plates using a hybrid model of peridynamics and FEM

Abstract

Holes or cutouts are unavoidable during the construction and service of ocean engineering structures. However, open holes in a plate can cause large stress concentrations that can have a great impact on the structural strength and make the structure more prone to brittle failure. Therefore, a new hybrid model that combines peridynamics (PD) and the finite element method (FEM) was proposed to predict the bearing capacity and fracture process in plates with open holes. The surface effect of PD was removed by directly coupling PD grids with FEM meshes without an overlapping zone, and the improved bond-based PD model was utilized for the regions where failure was expected. Additionally, a new fracture criterion was given to evaluate the damage, and the accuracy of the proposed hybrid model was verified through three examples. Ultimately, by calculating and comparing the bearing capacity and fracture process of brittle plates with different open hole arrangements, it was concluded that the number and contribution of open holes had a substantial effect on the bearing capacity and crack propagation path and that reasonable circular hole arrangements could increase the load capacity by more than 50%. Several reliable open hole arrangements were suggested, and they may provide a reference for the future design of structures with good reliability.