The Effect Of Material Ductility On Notch Fracture Resistance: Numerical Study

In this work, the effect of material ductility on the notch fracture resistance is quantified using FE damage analysis based on a multi-axial fracture strain model. Material properties of SUS316 stainless steel with three different levels of cold work (5%, 20% and 40%) are used to represent materials with different strength and ductility. Using validated FE damage analysis, notch fracture resistance data for these three materials with three different notch radii (0.2 mm, 0.4 mm and 0.8 mm) are generated numerically. Examination of notch fracture resistance data suggests that fracture initiation resistance (corresponding to 0.2 mm crack growth) depends almost linearly on notch radius. A linear dependence of the normalized fracture resistance of a notched specimen (with respect to that of a cracked one) on the material ductility is also found. The results are useful to estimate notch fracture resistance from the material ductility and the J-resistance curve obtained from a cracked specimen.