Related Concept Videos
Fatigue
Fatigue Strength of Concrete
Residual Stresses in Bending
Microcracking in Concrete
Internal Loadings in Structural Members: Problem Solving
To illustrate this, let's consider a beam OC of 5 kN, inclined at an angle of 53.13° with the horizontal and supported at both ends. Determine the internal...
Types of Non-structural Cracks in Concrete
Plastic shrinkage cracks typically form within hours after the concrete is poured. The concrete's surface dries faster than the bottom, creating tensile stress that the still-plastic concrete cannot withstand, leading to diagonal or randomly patterned cracks on the concrete surface.
You might also read
Related Articles
Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.
Integrated Design and Fabrication of Pneumatic Soft Robot Actuators in a Single Casting Step.
Integrated Design Fabrication and Control of a Bioinspired Multimaterial Soft Robotic Hand.
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Nov 26, 2025

Full-field Strain Measurements for Microstructurally Small Fatigue Crack Propagation Using Digital Image Correlation Method
Published on: January 16, 2019
Revisiting Classical Issues of Fatigue Crack Growth Using a Non-Linear Approach.
Micael F Borges1, Diogo M Neto1, Fernando V Antunes1
1Department of Mechanical Engineering, Centre for Mechanical Engineering, Materials and Processes (CEMMPRE), University of Coimbra, 3030-788 Coimbra, Portugal.
Fatigue crack growth is driven by crack tip deformation, with the load range (ΔK) controlling plastic strain. Crack closure effects and crack ligament influence fatigue crack growth, challenging existing models.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Mechanical Engineering
- Fracture Mechanics
Background:
- Fatigue crack growth (FCG) is a critical area in material science.
- Existing models for FCG, based on stress intensity factors, face ongoing debate.
- Understanding crack tip behavior is crucial for accurate FCG prediction.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate fatigue crack growth (FCG) mechanisms.
- To analyze the role of crack tip plastic strain in FCG.
- To re-evaluate established FCG models using a numerical approach.
Main Methods:
- Numerical analysis based on crack tip plastic strain.
- Investigation of the influence of load range (ΔK) and maximum stress intensity factor (Kmax).
- Examination of crack closure phenomena and crack ligament effects.
Main Results:
- Cyclic plastic deformation at the crack tip is controlled by ΔK, not Kmax.
- Crack tip damage occurs below crack closure, invalidating the effective load range definition (ΔKeff).
- Crack ligament size significantly affects crack closure.
Conclusions:
- FCG is fundamentally driven by crack tip deformation.
- Current models relying solely on ΔK and Kmax require revision.
- Crack closure and ligament effects are critical factors in FCG that need further consideration.

