Rupture propagation with finite stress in antiplane strain

Abstract

Rupture propagation in antiplane strain is investigated by using both analytic and numerical methods. Under the assumption that a solid will absorb energy irreversibly when it is strained at a sufficiently large shear stress it is found that energy must be absorbed at the rupture front in addition to the work done against the sliding friction stress. The energy absorbed increases with propagation distance, so it is not negligible at any length scale and is much larger than the ideal surface energy of molecular cohesion. The concept of a critical crack length carries over to the case of a finite stress-slip law on a fault plane but does not carry over to a homogeneous inelastic medium. In a dynamic slip event, while a typical value of particle velocity is proportional to stress drop, the peak value near the fault is proportional to material strength.