Estimation of stress intensity factors for semi-elliptical surface cracks

The procedure described in this paper enables the determination of local stress intensity factors on the basis of the well-known limit case considerations. An arbitrary stress distribution is separated into a constant and a linear stress contribution, for which stress intensity factor solutions are known. The remaining stress contribution is treated with the weight function method for two-dimensional cracks. The procedure is illustrated by applying it to exponentially distributed stresses in a half-space. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.