Engineering Fracture Mechanics Vol. 50, No. 1, pp.

61-64, 1995
Elsevier ScienceLtd
Pergamon 0013-7944(94)00142-1 Printed in Great Britain
0013-7944/95 $9.50+ 0.00

F U N D A M E N T A L FORMULAS OF DYNAMIC STRESS

INTENSITY FACTORS OF MODE III FOR A
PROPAGATING CRACK IN A STRIP
H U A N G BO
Department of Applied Mechanics, Beijing Institute of Technology, P.O. Box 327, Beijing, China

Abstract--Using a new single complex function, this paper gives a general solution for a semi-infinite
moving crack in a strip, supposing that the surfaces of the crack are subjected to an arbitrary
self-equilibrium distributed anti-plane shear stress and other boundaries are clamped. This solution can
reduce to a static solution.

1. INTRODUCTION
USING the Riemann-Hilbert formulation together with Schwartz-Christoffel transformation, Sih
and Chen [1] have obtained one of general solutions for a semi-infinite moving crack in a strip,
supposing that the surfaces of the crack are subjected to concentrated anti-plane shear forces and
other boundaries are free surfaces. In this paper, we have another general solution for a
semi-infinite moving crack in a strip, suppose that the surfaces of the crack are subjected to an
arbitrary self-equilibrium distributed shear stress and other boundaries are clamping surfaces. The
solution in integral form is expressed in terms of a new single complex function ~, ((). In the case
crack velocity V = 0, the solution reduces to the static solution.

2. FORMULATION
If the dynamic disturbances are such that the motion of material around the crack can be
described by the displacement fluid

Ux=Vy=O, Wz=Wz(x,y,t) (1)

then only two stress components are nonzero:

Owz OWz
T,~ = U -O--fix' *yz = I~ Oy " (2)

In the absence of body forces, the govering equation of motion is

O2w~ O2wz 1 O2w,
Ox 2 l- ~ = c--~2-----T
Ot (3)

where c2 = (l~/p) 1/2 is the shear velocity in an infinite solid,/~ is the shear modulus and p is the mass
density of the material.
Suppose that the elastic medium is stretched in such a way that the crack moves with a constant
velocity V along the x-axis as shown in Fig. 1. The position of the crack at a given time t is referred
to the stationary coordinates, x, y, which are related to the moving axes attached to the crack as

Xl=X-Vt, YI=Y. (4)

In the moving coordinate system, the wave equation (3) become independent of time and may be
written as
02Wz 02Wz
+ = o, (5)

61
62 H U A N G 130

in which
Yp = fl2Y, f12 = [1 -- (V/c2)2] n/2. (6)
The solution to eq. (5) can be expressed in terms of a single complex function ~(z~) of the variable
z~ = x~ + iy~ defined as

wz = (l//~)Im[~(z~)]. (7)
The complex stress representation in the moving coordinate system becomes
Zyz/fl2 + iZx~= ~'(z~). (8)

3. M O V I N G CRACK
The boundary condition of moving crack are as follows:
ya = -+ fl2h, -~<xl<~: wz = O
ya=0, --OO < X l < --a: %'yz ~---0

y~=0, --a<xn<0: Zxy= - z 0 ( x , ) , (9)

where a stands for any positive constant with the dimension of length, h the half width of the strip,
T0(x~) an arbitrary distributed anti-plane shear stress.
The problem of moving crack can be solved by application of the mapping function [2]

Z D = CO(~) = fl2h ln[l + (--i() 2] (10)

7[

which transforms the cracked strip in the z~-plane onto the upper half of the plane ( = ¢ + iT/. The
upper and lower crack edges are unfolded and represented by the line L which extends in the
-plane from ~ = - 1 to ~ = 1. The remaining portion of the real axis is denoted by L'. From
eqs (7) and (8), the boundary condition may be stated in terms of 4h (() as follows:
~-(¢)- ~i-(~) = 0 on L'

• ~-(¢) + ~ ; ( ~ ) = 2fo/f12 on L (ll)

where ~, (~) = ¢'(z,)

f0 = - 2ds

t ~ AOB
= fof,, ) ds t ~ AOB.

The supescripts + and - refer to the boundary values of the function approached from
the upper and lower half-plane, respectively. Knowing the solution of the Riemann-Hilbert

~y
YI, Yp

/ A
13 O
V
X ' X l 4~

Vt

Fig. 1. A semi-infinite moving crack in a strip.

 Dynamic stress intensity factors of mode lII 63

problem [3], it follows from eq. (11) that

fl24~, (r) = (1 -- (2)1/: f 2f0d~
2r¢i on/._ (~ - 0 ( 1 - ~2)i/2

-de 1,2 (12)

In order to determine the stress intensity factor, it is necessary to have the derivative ~ (0).
From eq. (12) we have

]/2@~ (0) = n--7

-lI_ a %(zp) dz ¢ ~2(1 _ 2)m" (13)

By employment of contour integral technique, the solution of singular integral eq. (13) can be
written as
- 2 (14)

The definition of SIF is

kll I = ~ Re f12~ (0) (15)
,/,o"(o)"
One can find that
kll, = ~ ~o %(x,) dx, (16)

The value of SIF for any self-equilibrating %(xl) can be evaluated.

(1) Concentrated shear forces
Zo(X,)=S6(xl+b), b<a
kill = / . _ _ . S (17)
X/p2h N/Cnb/p2h- 1
(2) Uniform shear stress
't'0(Xl ) = S 0

kill = So2N//~2h , 2 COS-l(e-"a/2hh) (18)

7~
For the case a ~ o o , eq. (18) is reduced to
kIIlla.~ = SoxfiP2h. (19)

4. S T A T I O N A R Y C R A C K
In this case,
V=O,
f12=l, Xl=X. (20)
Substituting eqs (20) into (17), the SIF of stationary crack can be written as

(21)
x/e -~x/h- 1 "
The value of SIF for any self-equilibrating zo(x) can be evaluated.
(1) Concentrated shear forces
to(X) = S 6 ( x + b), b <a
S
kill = /2 @
(22)
~n x/e ~b/h- 1 "
64 HUANG BO

(2) Uniform shear stress

To(X) = So

k,,, = S o , / ~ " 2 COS_,(e_~a/~). (23)

7t
F o r the case a ~ oo, eq. (23) is r e d u c e d to

k,,, Io-~ = s 0 , £ ~ . (24)

REFERENCES
[1] G. C. Sih and E. P. Chen, Moving cracks in a finite strip under tearing action, or. Franklin lnst. 290, 25-35 (1970).
[2] G. C. Sih, Handbook of Stress Intensity Factors, Section 8, 1-14. Institute of Solid and Fracture Mechanics, Lehigh
University, Pennsylvania (1973).
[3] A. C. Eringen and E. S. Suhubi, Elastodynamics, Volume 2, Linear Theory, pp. 593-594. Academic Press, New York
(1975).

(Received 7 August 1993)