Use of numerical methods to calculate the reliability of components fabricated with fragile materials

Some materials are fragile due to the great number of microcraks produced during their conformation processes, for example ceramics. That is the reason why, along these years different design criteria have been proposed to calculate these fragile materials: specially ceramics, based in probabilistic theories. A programme to calculate ceramic components with these criteria has been developed in the I.M.W. (Clausthal, Germany). This program works as a subprocessor of the finite element program MARC, and can analyse the probability of survival of a component with three general criteria and with fracture mechanics criteria (eleven when calculating volume components and six for surface ones). Those criteria have been implemented also to calculate the probability of survival with applied loads during time intervals and to calculate security factors.