A 3-D Dual BEM formulation for the analysis of crack growth

In this paper, a DBEM formulation for the analysis of crack growth in three dimensions is demonstrated. The technique allows the use of continuous elements in the discretization of the crack surfaces. The method involves defining a new interpolation function for continuous elements which incorporate certain continuity conditions arising from the hypersingular nature of the integrals involved. The crack growth direction is determined using the minimum strain energy criterion and the crack extension is calculated via the Paris equation. Results from the growth of embedded and edge crack examples are shown to validate the technique.