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Updated: Aug 19, 2026

A Method for Studying the Temperature Dependence of Dynamic Fracture and Fragmentation
Published on: June 28, 2015
Onset of void coalescence during dynamic fracture of ductile metals
E T Seppälä1, J Belak, R E Rudd
1Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Condensed Matter Physics Division, L-415, Livermore, CA 94551, USA.
Abstract:
Molecular dynamics simulations in three-dimensional copper are performed to quantify the void coalescence process leading to fracture. The correlated growth of the voids during their linking is investigated both in terms of the onset of coalescence and the ensuing dynamical interactions through the rate of reduction of the distance between the voids and the directional growth of the voids. The critical intervoid ligament distance marking the onset of coalescence is shown to be approximately one void radius in both measures.
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