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Phase field modeling of dynamic brittle fracture at finite strains
Fracture is the total or partial separation of an initially intact body through the propagation of one or several cracks. Computational methods for fracture mechanics are becoming increasingly important in dealing with the nucleation and propagation of these cracks. One method is the phase field app...
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
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Department of Civil Engineering
2019
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| _version_ | 1867613166067777536 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Omatuku, Emmanuel Ngongo |
| author2 | Skatulla, Sebastian |
| author_browse | Omatuku, Emmanuel Ngongo Skatulla, Sebastian |
| author_facet | Skatulla, Sebastian Omatuku, Emmanuel Ngongo |
| author_sort | Omatuku, Emmanuel Ngongo |
| collection | Thesis |
| description | Fracture is the total or partial separation of an initially intact body through the propagation of one or several cracks. Computational methods for fracture mechanics are becoming increasingly important in dealing with the nucleation and propagation of these cracks. One method is the phase field approach, which approximates sharp crack discontinuities with a continuous scalar field, the so-called phase field. The latter represents the smooth transition between the intact and broken material phases. The evolution of the phase field due to external loads describes the fracture process. An original length scale is used to govern the diffusive approximation of sharp cracks. This method further employs a degradation function to account for the loss of the material stiffness during fracture by linking the phase field to the body’s bulk energy. To prevent the development of unrealistic crack patterns and interpenetration of crack faces under compression, this study uses the anisotropic split of the bulk energy, as proposed by Amor et al. [5], to model the different fracture behavior in tension, shear and compression. This research is part of a larger project aimed at the modeling of Antarctic sea ice dynamics. One aspect of this project is the modeling of the gradual break-up of the consolidated ice during spring. As a first step, this study reviews a phase field model used for dynamic brittle fracture at finite strains. Subsequently, this model is implemented into the in-house finite element software SESKA to solve the benchmark tension and shear tests on a single-edge notched block. The implementation adopts the so-called monolithic scheme, which computes the displacement and phase field solutions simultaneously, with a Newmark time integration scheme. The results of the solved problems demonstrate the capabilities of the implemented dynamic phase field model to capture the nucleation and propagation of cracks. They further confirm that the choice of length-scale and mesh size influences the solutions. In this regard, a small value of the length-scale converges to the sharp crack topology and yields a larger stress value. On the other hand, a large length-scale parameter combined with a too coarse mesh size can yield unrealistic results. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/30172 |
| institution | University of Cape Town (South Africa) |
| language | eng |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:31:48.735Z |
| license_str | Not specified — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| publishDate | 2019 |
| publishDateRange | 2019 |
| publishDateSort | 2019 |
| publisher | Department of Civil Engineering |
| publisherStr | Department of Civil Engineering |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| spelling | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/30172 Phase field modeling of dynamic brittle fracture at finite strains Omatuku, Emmanuel Ngongo Skatulla, Sebastian Engineering Fracture is the total or partial separation of an initially intact body through the propagation of one or several cracks. Computational methods for fracture mechanics are becoming increasingly important in dealing with the nucleation and propagation of these cracks. One method is the phase field approach, which approximates sharp crack discontinuities with a continuous scalar field, the so-called phase field. The latter represents the smooth transition between the intact and broken material phases. The evolution of the phase field due to external loads describes the fracture process. An original length scale is used to govern the diffusive approximation of sharp cracks. This method further employs a degradation function to account for the loss of the material stiffness during fracture by linking the phase field to the body’s bulk energy. To prevent the development of unrealistic crack patterns and interpenetration of crack faces under compression, this study uses the anisotropic split of the bulk energy, as proposed by Amor et al. [5], to model the different fracture behavior in tension, shear and compression. This research is part of a larger project aimed at the modeling of Antarctic sea ice dynamics. One aspect of this project is the modeling of the gradual break-up of the consolidated ice during spring. As a first step, this study reviews a phase field model used for dynamic brittle fracture at finite strains. Subsequently, this model is implemented into the in-house finite element software SESKA to solve the benchmark tension and shear tests on a single-edge notched block. The implementation adopts the so-called monolithic scheme, which computes the displacement and phase field solutions simultaneously, with a Newmark time integration scheme. The results of the solved problems demonstrate the capabilities of the implemented dynamic phase field model to capture the nucleation and propagation of cracks. They further confirm that the choice of length-scale and mesh size influences the solutions. In this regard, a small value of the length-scale converges to the sharp crack topology and yields a larger stress value. On the other hand, a large length-scale parameter combined with a too coarse mesh size can yield unrealistic results. 2019-05-17T10:53:02Z 2019-05-17T10:53:02Z 2019 2019-05-17T09:44:03Z Master Thesis Masters MSc http://hdl.handle.net/11427/30172 eng application/pdf Department of Civil Engineering Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment |
| spellingShingle | Engineering Omatuku, Emmanuel Ngongo Phase field modeling of dynamic brittle fracture at finite strains |
| thesis_degree_str | Master's |
| title | Phase field modeling of dynamic brittle fracture at finite strains |
| title_full | Phase field modeling of dynamic brittle fracture at finite strains |
| title_fullStr | Phase field modeling of dynamic brittle fracture at finite strains |
| title_full_unstemmed | Phase field modeling of dynamic brittle fracture at finite strains |
| title_short | Phase field modeling of dynamic brittle fracture at finite strains |
| title_sort | phase field modeling of dynamic brittle fracture at finite strains |
| topic | Engineering |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/11427/30172 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT omatukuemmanuelngongo phasefieldmodelingofdynamicbrittlefractureatfinitestrains |