Fundamentals of the Phenomenological Theory of Nonlinear Fracture Mechanics

Abstract

An introduction to the theoretical foundations of the phenomenological theory of nonlinear fracture mechanics is given. Following an outline of the full range of objectives of nonlinear fracture mechanics, the paper focuses on the phenomenological, or semiempirical, approach to the initiation of crack growth and the subsequent quasi-static crack growth and loss of stability under monotonic load histories.