Computational mechanics of three-dimensional fracture

Since Griffith conducted the study of brittle fracture of glass in 1921, the theory of fracture mechanics has experienced progress from linear elastic solids to elastic-plastic materials and creep theory, from single parameter to multi parameter systems and from the ideal two-dimensional plane theory to the theory of practical structures containing three dimensional (3D) cracks. Calculation methods aiming at stress intensity factor K, J-integral and C(t) integral have evolved from the theoretical calculation of idealized models to series of commercial software platforms of solving crack-calculation problems of actual complex engineering structures and professional platforms of fracture theory analysis. Especially with the development of computer technology, the calculations and simulations of the static and expanding crack of the 3D crack structures are integrated into the computer aided design. In this paper, with our experience in developing the 3D fatigue fracture theory and application in the past thirty years, we briefly describe the development of 3D computational fracture mechanics from the stress and strain analysis of the crack body, the calculation of fracture parameters to the simulation of 3D creep fracture and fatigue crack growth in both China and abroad. Finally, a brief introduction and analysis of the computational methods involved, including atomic scale and multi-scale computational simulations, along with some personal perspectives on the challenges and future research directions, are presented.