Cumulative-strain-damage model of ductile fracture: simulation and prediction of engineering fracture tests

A cumulative-strain-damage criterion is used to predict the initiation and propagation of fracture in ductile materials. The model is consistent with a model of ductile rupture that involves void growth and coalescence. Two- and three-dimensional finite difference computer codes, which use incremental-plasticity theory to describe large strains with rotation, are used to trace the history of damage in a material due to external forces. Fracture begins when the damage exceeds a critical value over a critical distance and proceeds as the critical-damage state is reached elsewhere. This unified approach to failure prediction can be applied to an arbitrary geometry if the material behavior has been adequately characterized. The damage function must be calibrated for a particular material using various material property tests. The fracture toughness of 6061-T651 aluminum is predicted.