title: Damage accumulation in quasibrittle fracture.
abstract: The strength of quasibrittle materials depends on the ensemble of defects inside the sample and on the way damage accumulates before failure. Using large-scale numerical simulations of the random fuse model, we investigate the evolution of the microcrack distribution as the applied load approaches the fracture point. We find that the distribution broadens mostly due to a tendency of cracks to coalesce in a way that increases with system size. We study how the observed behavior depends on the disorder present in the sample and relate the results with fracture size effects.
authors.affiliation: Centre of Excellence in Computational Nanoscience, Department of Applied Physics, Aalto University, P.O. Box 14100, FIN-00076 Aalto, Espoo, Finland.
authors.forename: Claudio
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Manzato
authors.forename: Mikko J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Alava
authors.affiliation: Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, IENI, Via R. Cozzi 53, 20125, Milano, Italy and ISI Foundation, Via Alassio 11/c, 10126 Torino, Italy.
authors.forename: Stefano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zapperi
mesh_terms: D055595:Mechanical Phenomena; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D013997:Time Factors