• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.23-32
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• 2001

Rock masses are usually discontinuous in nature, as a result of various geological processes they have underdone and they contain rock joints and bridges. Crack propagation and coalescence processes mainly cause rock failures in tunnels. In this study, we focused on the crack initiation, propagation and coalescence process of rock materials containing two pre-existing open cracks arranged in different geometries. During uniaxial compression, wing crack initiation stress, wing crack propagation angle, and crack coalescence stress of Diastone gypsum and Yeosan Marble specimens were examined. And crack initiation, propagation, and coalescence processes were observed. Shear, tensile and mixed (shear+tensile) types of crack coalescence occurred. To compare the experimental results with Ashby & Hallam model, crack coalescence stress was normalized and it generally agreed with the experimental results.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.307-319
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• 2011

Cyclic loading due to traffic, excavation and blasting causes microcrack growth in rocks over long period of time, and this type of loading often causes rock to fail at a lower stress than its monotonically determined strength. Thus, the crack growth and coalescence under cyclic loading are important for the long-term stability problems. In this research, experiments using gypsum as a model material for rock are carried out to investigate crack propagation and coalescence under monotonic and cyclic loading. Both monotonic and cyclic tests have a similar wing crack initiation position, wing crack initiation angle, cracking sequence and coalescence type. Three types of crack coalescence were observed; Type I, II and III. Type I coalescence occurs due to a shear crack and Type II coalescence occurs through one wing or tension crack. For Type III, coalescence occurs through two wing or tension cracks. Fatigue cracks appear in cyclic tests. Two types of fatigue crack initiation directions, coplanar and horizontal directions, are observed.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.217-224
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• 2001

Rock masses are usually discontinuous in nature due to various geological processes and contain rock joints and bridges. Crack propagation and coalescence processes in rock bridge mainly cause rock failures in slopes, foundations, and tunnels. In this study, we focused on the crack initiation, propagation and coalescence process of rock materials containing two pre-existing open cracks arranged in different geometries. Specimens of 120${\times}$60${\times}$25 mm in size, which were made of Yeoman Marble, were prepared. In the specimens, two artificial cracks were cut with pre-existing crack angle ${\alpha}$, bridge angle ${\beta}$, pre-existing crack length 2c and bridge length 2b. Wing crack initiation stress, wing crack propagation angle, and crack coalescence stress were measured and crack initiation, propagation and coalescence processes were observed during uniaxial compression. Crack coalescence types were classified and analytical study using Ashby and Hallam model (1986) was performed to be compared with the experimental results.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
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• v.24 no.5 s.176
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• pp.1281-1287
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• 2000

The studies of probability distribution of the fatigue crack growth life have been somewhat reported. But the study on the probability distribution of the fatigue crack growth life considering the crack coalescence for three dimensional surface fatigue crack has apparently not been reported to date. In this study, the computer program has been developed to predict the probability distribution of the fatigue crack growth life considering the crack coalescence. The effects of parameters for the distribution of the fatigue crack propagation life were evaluated by using the program.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
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• v.30 no.10 s.253
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• pp.1255-1260
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• 2006

To maintain the structural integrity of steam generator tubes, 40% of wall thickness plugging criterion has been developed. The approach is for the steam generator tube with single crack, so that the interaction effect of multiple cracks can not be considered. Although, recently, several approaches have been proposed to assess the integrity of steam generator tube with two identical cracks whilst actual multiple cracks reveal more complex shape. In this paper, the coalescence pressure of steam generator tube containing multiple cracks of different length is evaluated based on the detailed 3-dimensional (3-D) elastic-plastic finite element (FE) analyses. In terms of the crack shape, two collinear axial through-wall cracks with different length were considered. Furthermore, the resulting FE coalescence pressures are compared with FE coalescence pressures and experimental results for two identical collinear axial through-wall cracks to quantify the effect of crack length ratio on failure behavior of steam generator tube with multiple cracks. Finally, based on 3-D FE results, the coalescence evaluation diagrams were proposed.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.1047-1059
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• 2018

This paper focuses on the cracking and fragmentation process in rock materials containing a pair of non-parallel flaws, which are through the specimen thickness, under vertical compression. Several numerical experiments are conducted with varying flaw arrangements that affect the initiation and tensile wing cracks, shear crack growth, and crack coalescing behaviors. To obtain realistic numerical results, a parallelized peridynamics formulation coupled with a finite element method, which is able to capture arbitrarily occurring cracks, is employed. From previous studies, crack initiation and propagation of tensile wing cracks, horsetail cracks, and anti-wing cracks are well understood along with the coalescence between two parallel flaws. In this study, the coalescence behaviors, their fragmentation sequences, and the role of an x-shaped shear band in rock material containing two non-parallel flaws are discussed in detail on the basis of simulation results strongly correlated with previous experimental results. Firstly, crack initiation and propagation of tensile wing cracks and shear cracks between non-parallel flaws are investigated in time-history and then sequential coalescing behavior is analyzed. Secondly, under the effect of varying inclination angles of two non-parallel flaws and overlapping ratios between a pair of non-parallel flaws, the cracking patterns including crack coalescence, fragmentation, and x-shaped shear band are investigated. These numerical results, which are in good agreement with reported physical test results, are expected to provide insightful information of the fracture mechanism of rock with non-parallel flaws.

• Journal of Ocean Engineering and Technology
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.63-72
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• 1995

The crack which is discovered in various structures and machine elements is multi-cracks. Multi-cracks may cause serious problems because they grow individually, and coalesce into one and it leads to fracture. Fatigue tests have been carried out to study the growth and coalescence behavior of multi-surface-cracks initiated at the semicircular surface notch in type 304 stainless steel at elevated temperature. The results are as follows; When multi-surface-cracks are lying on the surface of material, the major surface crack has greater influence on the fatigue life than the subcracks. The aspect ratio of multi-surface-cracks is lower than that of single crack because of the interaction and coalescence of surface cracks. Crack growth shape turns to semiellipse from the semicircle notch. After coalescence, the surface crack length increases rapidly, and it leads to fracture. Further, the slope transition of Paris law was found in the da/dN-$\Delta$K$_1$ plots.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.716-728
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• 1994

In this paper, fatigue tests were carried out to study the behavior of growth and coalescence of multi-surface cracks which were initiated at the semi-circular surface notches, and a simulation program was developed to predict their growth and coalescence behavior. By comparing the experimental result with those of the simulation based on SPC(surface point connection), ASME and BSI(British Standards Institution) conditions, we tried to enhance the reliance and integrity of structures. This shows that the simulation result has utility for fatigue life prediction.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.47-56
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• 2019

Crossing (X-type) flaws are commonly encountered in rock mass. However, the crack coalescence and failure mechanisms of rock mass with X-type flaws remain unclear. In this study, we investigate the compressive failure process of rock-like specimens containing two X-type flaws aligned in the loading direction. For comparison purposes, compressive failure behavior of specimens containing two aligned single flaws is also studied. By examining the crack coalescence behavior, two characteristics for the aligned X-type flaws under uniaxial compression are revealed. The flaws tend to coalesce by cracks emanating from flaw tips along a potential path that is parallel to the maximum compressive stress direction. The flaws are more likely to coalesce along the coalescence path linked by flaw tips with greater maximum circumferential stress if there are several potential coalescence paths almost parallel to the maximum compressive stress direction. In addition, we find that some of the specimens containing two aligned X-type flaws exhibit higher strengths than that of the specimens containing two single parallel flaws. The two underlying reasons that may influence the strengths of specimens containing two aligned X-type flaws are the values of flaw tips maximum circumferential stresses and maximum shear stresses, as well as the shear crack propagation tendencies of some secondary flaws. The research reported here provides increased understanding of the fundamental nature of rock/rock-like material failure in uniaxial compression.

• Journal of Ocean Engineering and Technology
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.142-151
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• 1995

A simulation program concerned with multi-surface fatigue cracks which initiated at the semi-circular surface notches has been developed to predict their growth and coalescence behaviors at the elevated temperature. Three kinds of coalescence models such as SPC(surface point connection), ASME and BSI(British Standards Institution) conditions were applied, and the results of the simulation were compared with those of the experiment. This simulation is able to enhance the reliance and integrity of structures especially under the elevated temperature which have lots of difficulties in experiments and applications. This shows that the simulation result has utility for fatigue life prediction. Even though all the specimens were the same shape, the error rate was increased in accordance with the applied stress to the specimen. Among the material constants C and m in the narrow band, the results applied upper values of the band to the simulation has shown quite small error compared with the experiment results.