A novel technique to induce rapid crack propagation in tough polymers

✍ Scribed by R. M. S. Genussov; J. G. Williams

• Book ID: 104615980
• Publisher: Springer Netherlands
• Year: 1988
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 591 KB
• Volume: 38
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1573-2673
• DOI: 10.1007/bf00034278

✦ Synopsis

Pressurized plastic pipes, such as PE used for gas distribution, can be prone to catastrophic failure due to Rapid Crack Propagation (RCP) [i].

Once initiated, a brittle crack may propagate rapidly along the pressurized pipe for a considerable distance, Since initiation of cracks cannot be eliminated (improper installation, "third-party" accidents, etc.), PE pipes should be designed to ensure crack arrest as close as possible to the initiation site.

In order to apply fracture mechanics concepts to this problem, the dynamic crack resistance of the material should be characterized.

The challenges in testing RCP of pipe grades of PE are: a. Reproduce the same kind of brittle fracture as observed in field failure of pipes. b. Measurement of the propagating crack parameters. c. Express the results in valid fracture mechanics terms.