STRESS ANALYSIS OF A MICROVOID AHEAD OF A CRACK.

Slow crack growth at both high and low temperatures is usually connected with the growth of microvoids ahead of a main crack. Theoretical analyses of these processes require a knowledge of the stress field of a system consisting of a crack with a microvoid lying ahead of it. An analytical solution of this problem for the case of plane strain and uniaxial loading has been derived using a dislocation model to describe the microvoid. The application of the solution to the study of creep crack growth is discussed.