Heating at a propagating crack tip in a viscoplastic material

The crack tip temperature due to near-tip dissipation of mechanical energy has been calculated for a crack propagating in a viscoplastic material. The mechanical behavior of the material was represented by a model proposed by Bodner and Partom. On the basis of the adiabatic approximation the maximum temperature has been investigated as a function of the crack-tip speed and the material parameters. For a specific crack-tip speed, T_max is displayed as a function of the material constant, D₀, which defines the asymptotic limit of the inelastic strain rate as the stress level increases. The maximum temperature increases with increasing values of D₀.