Boundary integral equation methods for the solution of crack problems (Q2277299)

We describe, very briefly, the numerical solution of the BIE for linear elasticity and point out how some of the difficulties that arise in developing the corresponding computer program may be overcome. Next, some of the ways in which the method has been used for the solution of crack problems are outlined, together with an estimate of the accuracy of the various approaches. Two methods are described in rather more detail - the use of special elements at the crack tip to model the singularity locally, and the subtraction of singularity (SST) approach which models (and removes) the singularity in a global sense. Both methods are used to solve a nonsymmetric crack problem and give accurate values for the most important parameter - the stress intensity factor. The SST approach is shown to be the most efficient requiring fewer elements to attain a given accuracy. The convergence of both methods with increasing numbers of elements is illustrated by numerical experiments with practical meshes.