The elastic T-stress for slightly curved or kinked cracks

This work presents a solution for the elastic T-stress at the tip of a slightly curved or kinked crack based on a perturbation approach. Compared to other exact or numerical solutions the present solution is accurate for considerable deviations from straightness. The T-stress variation as crack extends along a curved trajectory is subsequently examined. It is predicted that T-stress always keeps negative during crack extension when the crack has an initial negative T-stress. In the case of a positive T-stress and non-zero first and second stress intensity factors initially accompanying the crack, the T-stress is not positive with increasing the extension length until a threshold is exceeded. Based on directional stability criterion with respect to the sign of the T-stress, this result implies that for a straight crack with a positive T-stress, the crack extension path will not turn immediately and instead keep a stable growth until a critical length is reached. This prediction is consistent with experimental observations. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.