Mechanics of Fracture: Introduction and Applications

This lecture delves into the mechanics of fracture, exploring concepts such as fracture mechanics, fatigue testing, and material toughness. The instructor discusses the history of fracture mechanics, its applications in real-world scenarios like ship failures, and the importance of understanding factors influencing material resilience. Through examples and calculations, the lecture demonstrates how to determine the critical stress intensity factor for different types of cracks, emphasizing the significance of material toughness in preventing catastrophic failures. The lecture also covers the leak-before-break principle in pressure vessels, the influence of crack geometry on stress intensity, and the role of energy absorption in material failure.