Abstract:
In this study the general elastostatic problem for an orthotropic strip containing cracks perpendicular to its boundaries is considered. Appropriate superposition of stress field solutions of edge dislocations together with the Fourier integral transform technique made it possible to solve the field equations in terms of new material parameters for an elastic homogenous, orthotropic strip. Two specific problems of interest are then studied in detail. First problem involves the investigation of a single transverse crack in an orthotropic strip-subjected to uniform tension or uniform shear, the latter being unavailablein literature. The second problem of interest is a rectangular orthotropic plate containing an edge crack and subjected to uniform tension by the help of which it is possible to simulate the Standard Compact Tension Specimen for an orthotropic material;which is not available in literature either. The singular integral equations of these problems are derived then they are solved numerically and the stress intensity factors are obtained. Numerical results are presented for isotropic and orthotropic materials with various crack geometries.
