Finite element solution of crack-tip fields for an elastic porous solid with density-dependent material moduli and preferential stiffness

In this paper, the finite element solutions of crack-tip fields for an elastic porous solid with density-dependent material moduli are presented. Unlike the classical linearized case in which material parameters are globally constant under a small strain regime, the stiffness of the model presented in this paper can depend upon the density with a modeling parameter. The proposed constitutive relationship appears linear in the Cauchy stress and linearized strain independently. From a subclass of the implicit constitutive relation, the governing equation is bestowed via the balance of linear momentum, resulting in a quasi-linear partial differential equation (PDE) system. Using the classical damped Newton's method, the sequence of linear problems is then obtained, and the linear PDEs are discretized through a bilinear continuous Galerkin-type finite element method. We perform a series of numerical simulations for material bodies with a single edge-crack subject to a variety of loading types (i.e. the pure mode-I, II, and mixed-mode). Numerical solutions demonstrate that the modeling parameter in our proposed model can control preferential mechanical stiffness with its sign and magnitude along with the change of volumetric strain. This study can provide a mathematical and computational foundation to further model the quasi-static and dynamic evolution of cracks, utilizing the density-dependent moduli model and its modeling framework.