Mesh-independent Fracture Modeling (XFEM)

Lecture 9
L9.2
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Overview
Introduction
Basic XFEM Concepts
Damage Modeling
Creating an XFEM Fracture Model
Example 1 Crack Initiation and Propagation
Example 2 Propagation of an Existing Crack
Example 3 Delamination and Through-thickness Crack Propagation
Modeling Tips
Current Limitations
Workshop 6
References
Introduction
L9.4
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Introduction
The fracture modeling methods discussed so far only permit crack
propagation along predefined element boundaries
This lecture presents a technique for modeling
bulk fracture which permits a crack to be located
in the element interior
The crack location is independent of the mesh
L9.5
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Introduction
This modeling technique
Can be used in conjunction with the cohesive zone model or the virtual
crack closure technique
Delamination can be modeled in conjunction with bulk crack
propagation
Can determine the load carrying capacity of a cracked structure
What is the maximum allowable flaw size for safe operation?
Applications of this technique include the modeling of bulk fracture and
the modeling of failure in composites
Cracks in pressure vessels or engineering structures
Delamination and through-thickness crack modeling in composite plies
L9.6
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Introduction
Some advantages of the method:
Ease of initial crack definition
Mesh is generated independent of crack
Partitioning of geometry not needed as when a crack is represented
explicitly
Nonlinear material and nonlinear geometric analysis
Arbitrary solution-dependent crack initiation and propagation path
Crack path does not have to be specified a priori
Mesh refinement studies are much simpler
Reduced remeshing effort
Improved convergence rate for the finite element solution (stationary
crack)
Due to the use of singular crack tip enrichment
L9.7
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Introduction
Mesh-independent Crack Modeling Basic Ingredients
1. Need a way to incorporate discontinuous geometry the crack and
the discontinuous solution field into the finite element basis functions
eXtended Finite Element Method (XFEM)
2. Need to quantify the magnitude of the discontinuity the displacement
jump across the crack faces
Cohesive zone model (CZM)
3. Need a method to locate the discontinuity
Level set method (LSM)
4. Crack initiation and propagation criteria
At what level of stress or strain does the crack initiate?
What is the direction of propagation?
These topics will be discussed in this lecture
Basic XFEM Concepts
L9.9
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Basic XFEM Concepts
eXtended Finite Element Method (XFEM) Background
XFEM extends the piecewise polynomial function space of conventional finite
element methods with extra functions
The solution space is enriched by the extra enrichment functions
Introduced by Belytschko and Black (1999) based on the partition of unity
method of Babuska and Melenk (1997)
Can be used where conventional FEM fails or is prohibitively expensive
Appropriate enrichment functions are chosen for a class of problems
Inclusion of a priori knowledge of partial differential equation behavior into
finite element space (singularities, discontinuities, ...)
Applications include modeling fracture, void growth, phase change ...
Enrichment functions for fracture modeling
Heaviside function to represent displacement jump across crack face
Crack tip asymptotic function to model singularity
L9.10
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Basic XFEM Concepts
XFEM Displacement Interpolation
Heaviside enrichment term
H(x) Heaviside distribution
a
I
Nodal enriched DOF (jump discontinuity)
N
I
Nodes belonging to elements cut by crack
Crack tip enrichment term
F
o
(x) Crack tip asymptotic functions
Nodal DOF (crack tip enrichment)
N
I
Nodes belonging to elements containing crack tip
b
I
o
u
I
Nodal DOF for conventional shape functions N
I
4
1
u (x) (x) u (x (x)b )a
h
I I
I
I I
I
N
N
I
N
F H N
o
o
o
I
A
=
e
e
e
(
(
= + +
(
(
(

L9.11
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Basic XFEM Concepts
The crack tip and Heaviside enrichment functions are multiplied by the
conventional shape functions
Hence enrichment is local around the crack
Sparsity of the resulting matrix equations is preserved
The crack is located using the level set method (discussed shortly)
Heaviside function
Accounts for displacement jump across crack
*
1 if ( ) 0
( )
1 otherwise
H x
>
=
`

)
x x n
s
n
x
x*
Here x is an integration point, x* is the closest point to x on the crack face and n is the unit normal at x*
H(x) = 1 below crack
H(x) = 1 above crack
L9.12
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Basic XFEM Concepts
Crack Tip Enrichment Functions (Stationary Crack Only)
Account for crack tip singularity
Use displacement field basis functions for sharp crack in an isotropic
linear elastic material
]
2
cos sin r ,
2
sin sin r ,
2
cos r ,
2
sin r [ 4] - 1 ), ( [
u
u
u
u
u u
o
o
= = x F
Here (r, u ) denote coordinate values from a polar coordinate system located at the crack tip
L9.13
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Basic XFEM Concepts
Phantom Node Approach (Crack Propagation Implementation)
Implementation of XFEM fitting into the framework of conventional FEM
Discontinuous element with Heaviside enrichment is treated as a
superposition of two continuous elements with phantom nodes
Does not include the asymptotic crack tip enrichment functions
Introduced by Belytschko and coworkers (2006) based on the
superposed element formulation of Hansbo and Hansbo (2004)
L9.14
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Basic XFEM Concepts
Level Set Method for Locating a Crack
A level set (also called level surface or isosurface) of a real-valued function
is the set of all points at which the function attains a specified value
Example: the zero-valued level set of f (x, y) := x
2
+ y
2
r
2
is a circle of
radius r centered at the origin
Popular technique for representing surfaces in interface tracking problems
Two functions u and + are used to completely describe the crack
The level set u = 0 represents the crack face
The intersection of level sets + = 0 and u = 0 denotes the crack
front
Functions are defined by nodal values whose spatial variation is
determined by the usual finite element shape functions (example
follows)
Function values need to be specified only at nodes belonging to
elements cut by the crack
L9.15
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Calculating u and +
The nodal value of the function u is the signed distance of the node from
the crack face
Positive value on one side of the crack face, negative on the other
The nodal value of the function + is the signed distance of the node from
an almost-orthogonal surface passing through the crack front
The function + has zero value on this surface and is negative on the
side towards the crack
Basic XFEM Concepts
+ = 0
u = 0
1
2
3 4
0.5
1.5
Node u +
1 +0.25 1.5
2 +0.25 1.0
3 0.25 1.5
4 0.25 1.0
Damage Modeling
L9.17
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Damage Modeling
Damage modeling is achieved through the use of a traction-separation
law across the fracture surface
It follows the general framework introduced in earlier lectures
Damage initiation
Damage evolution
Traction-free crack faces at failure
Damage properties are specified as part of the bulk material definition
Damage initiation
Failure
L9.18
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Damage Modeling
Damage Initiation
Two criteria available at present
Maximum principal stress criterion (MAXPS)
Initiation occurs when the maximum principal stress reaches
critical value
Maximum principal strain criterion (MAXPE)
Initiation occurs when the maximum principal strain reaches
critical value
Crack plane is perpendicular to the direction of the maximum principal
stress (or strain)
Crack initiation occurs at the center of the element
However, crack propagation is arbitrary through the mesh
The damage initiation criterion is satisfied when 1.0 f 1.0 + f
tol
where f is the selected damage criterion and f
tol
is a user-specified
tolerance value
max
0
max
f
o
o
=
max
0
max
f
c
c
=
L9.19
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Damage Modeling
Damage Evolution
Any of the damage evolution models for traction-separation laws
discussed in the earlier lectures can be used
However, it is not necessary to specify the undamaged traction-
separation response
L9.20
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Damage Modeling
Damage Stabilization
Fracture makes the structural response nonlinear and non-smooth
Numerical methods have difficulty converging to a solution
As discussed in the earlier lectures, using viscous regularization helps
with the convergence of the Newton method
The stabilization value must be chosen so that the problem definition
does not change
A small value regularizes the analysis, helping with convergence
while having a minimal effect on the response
Perform a parametric study to choose appropriate value for a class
of problems
L9.21
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Damage Modeling
Damage stabilization can currently be defined in Abaqus/CAE only
through the keyword editor
Creating an XFEM Fracture Model
L9.23
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Creating an XFEM Fracture Model
Steps
1. Define damage criteria in the material model
2. Define an enrichment region (the associated material model should
include damage)
Crack type stationary or propagation
3. Define an initial crack, if present
4. If needed, set analysis controls to aid convergence
Steps will be illustrated later through examples
Crack initiation and propagation in a plate with a hole
Propagation of an existing crack
Delamination and through-thickness crack propagation in a double
cantilever beam
The next few slides describe step-dependent enrichment activation
and postprocessing
L9.24
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Creating an XFEM Fracture Model
Step-dependent Enrichment Activation
Crack growth can be activated or deactivated in analysis steps
*STEP
.
.
.
*ENRICHMENT, NAME=Crack-1, ACTIVATE=[ON|OFF]
1
2
L9.25
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Creating an XFEM Fracture Model
Output Quantities
Two output variables are especially useful
PHILSM
The signed distance function u used to represent the crack
surface
Needed for visualizing the crack
STATUSXFEM
Indicates the status of the element with a value between 0.0
and 1.0
A value of 1.0 indicates that the element is completely cracked,
with no traction across the crack faces
Any other output variable available in the static stress analysis
procedure
L9.26
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Creating an XFEM Fracture Model
Postprocessing
The crack location is specified by the zero-valued level set of the signed
distance function u
Abaqus/CAE automatically creates an isosurface view cut named
Crack_PHILSM if an enrichment is used in the analysis
The crack isosurface is displayed by default
Contour plots of field quantities should be done with the crack isosurface
displayed
Ensures that the solution is plotted from the active parts of the
overlaid elements according to the phantom nodes approach
If the crack isosurface is turned off, only values from the lower
element are plotted (corresponding to negative values of u)
Probing field quantities on an element currently returns values only from
the lower element (on the side with negative values of u)
Example 1 Crack Initiation and
Propagation
L9.28
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Example 1 Crack Initiation and Propagation
Model crack initiation and propagation in a plate with a hole
Crack initiates at the location of maximum stress concentration
Half model is used taking advantage of symmetry
L9.29
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Example 1 Crack Initiation and Propagation
Define the damage criteria
Damage initiation
1
Damage initiation tolerance (default 0.05)
*MATERIAL
.
.
.
*DAMAGE INITIATION, CRITERION=MAXPS, TOL=0.05
L9.30
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Example 1 Crack Initiation and Propagation
Define the damage criteria (contd)
Damage evolution
*DAMAGE INITIATION, CRITERION=MAXPS, TOL=0.05
*DAMAGE EVOLUTION, TYPE=ENERGY, MIXED MODE BEHAVIOR=POWER LAW, POWER=1.0
2870.0, 2870.0, 2870.0
1
L9.31
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Example 1 Crack Initiation and Propagation
Define the damage criteria (contd)
Damage stabilization
Keyword interface
*DAMAGE STABILIZATION
1.e-5
Coefficient of viscosity
Abaqus/CAE interface currently not available
The keyword editor may be used to add stabilization through
Abaqus/CAE.
1
L9.32
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Example 1 Crack Initiation and Propagation
Define the enriched region
Pick enriched region
Specify contact interaction
(frictionless small-sliding contact only)
Propagating crack
2
L9.33
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Example 1 Crack Initiation and Propagation
Define the enriched region (contd)
Keyword interface
No initial crack definition is needed
Crack will initiate based on specified damage criteria
3
*ENRICHMENT, TYPE=PROPAGATION CRACK, NAME=CRACK-1,
ELSET=SELECTED_ELEMENTS, INTERACTION=CONTACT-1
Frictionless small-sliding contact interaction
2
L9.34
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Example 1 Crack Initiation and Propagation
Set analysis controls to improve convergence behavior
Set reasonable minimum and maximum increment sizes for step
Increase the number of increments for step from the default value of
100
*STEP
*STATIC, inc=10000
0.01, 1.0, 1.0e-09, 0.01
.
.
.
4
L9.35
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Example 1 Crack Initiation and Propagation
Set analysis controls to improve convergence behavior (contd)
Use numerical scheme applicable to discontinuous analysis
*STEP
*STATIC, inc=10000
0.01, 1.0, 1.0e-09, 0.01
.
.
.
*CONTROLS, ANALYSIS=DISCONTINUOUS
4
L9.36
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Example 1 Crack Initiation and Propagation
Set analysis controls to improve convergence behavior (contd)
Increase value of maximum number of attempts before abandoning
increment (increased to 20 from the default value of 5)
*STEP
*STATIC, inc=10000
0.01, 1.0, 1.0e-09, 0.01
.
.
.
*CONTROLS, ANALYSIS=DISCONTINUOUS
*CONTROLS, PARAMETER=TIME INCREMENTATION
, , , , , , , 20
8
th
field
4
L9.37
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Example 1 Crack Initiation and Propagation
Output Requests
Request PHILSM and STATUSXFEM in addition to the usual output for
static analysis
L9.38
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Example 1 Crack Initiation and Propagation
Postprocessing
Crack isosurface (Crack_PHILSM) created and displayed automatically
Field and history quantities of interest can be plotted and animated as
usual
Example 2 Propagation of an Existing
Crack
L9.40
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Example 2 Propagation of an Existing Crack
Model with crack subjected to mixed mode loading
Initial crack needs to be defined
Crack propagates at an angle dictated by mode mix ratio at crack tip
L9.41
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Example 2 Propagation of an Existing Crack
Define damage criteria in the material model as described in Example 1
Specify the enriched region as in Example 1
Define the initial crack
Two methods are available to define initial crack in Abaqus/CAE
1. Create a separate part representing the crack surface or line and
assemble it along with the part representing the structure to be
analyzed
2. Create an internal face or edge representing the crack in the part
Method 1 is preferred as it takes full advantage of the mesh-
independent crack representation possible using XFEM
Meshing is easier using this method
Method 2 will create nodes on the internal crack face
Element faces/edges are forced to align with the crack
1
2
3
L9.42
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Example 2 Propagation of an Existing Crack
Define the initial crack (contd) 3
The crack location can be an edge or a
surface belonging to the same
instance as the enriched region or to a
different instance (preferred)
** Model data
*INITIAL CONDITIONS, TYPE=ENRICHMENT
901, 1, Crack-1, -1.0, -1.5
901, 2, Crack-1, -1.0, -1.4
901, 3, Crack-1, 1.0, -1.4
901, 4, Crack-1, 1.0, -1.5
Element Number
Relative Node Order in Connectivity
Enrichment Name
u +
L9.43
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Example 2 Propagation of an Existing Crack
The other steps are as described in Example 1 and are in line with
those necessary for the usual static analysis procedure
Example 3 Delamination and
Through-thickness Crack Propagation
L9.45
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Example 3 Delamination and Through-thickness Crack
Model through-thickness crack propagation using XFEM and
delamination using surface-based cohesive behavior in a double
cantilever beam specimen
Interlaminar crack grows initially
Through-thickness crack forms once interlaminar crack becomes long
enough and the longitudinal stress value builds up due to bending
The point at which the through-thickness crack forms depends upon the
relative failure stress values of the bulk material and the interface
L9.46
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Example 3 Delamination and Through-thickness Crack
This model is the same as the double cantilever beam model presented
in the surface-based cohesive behavior lecture except:
Enrichment has been added to the top and bottom beams to allow
XFEM crack initiation and propagation
Modeling Tips
L9.48
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Modeling Tips
General Information
Averaged quantities are used in an element for determining crack
initiation and the propagation direction
The integration point principal stress or strain values are averaged
A new crack always initiates at the center of the element
Within an enrichment region, a new crack initiation check is performed
only after all existing cracks have completely separated
This may result in the abrupt appearance of multiple cracks
Complete separation is indicated by STATUSXFEM=1
Cracks cannot initiate in neighboring elements
Crack propagates completely through an element in one increment
Only the initial crack tip can lie within an element
L9.49
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Modeling Tips
The enrichment region must not include hotspots due to boundary
conditions or other modeling artifacts
Otherwise, unintended cracks may initiate at such locations
Damage initiation tolerance
A larger value may result in multiple cracks initiating in a region
Small value results in small increment size and convergence difficulty
Damage stabilization
As mentioned earlier, judicious use of viscous regularization can aid in
convergence
Initial crack should bisect elements if possible
Convergence is more difficult if crack is tangential to element boundaries
Use displacement control rather than load control
Crack propagation may be unstable under load control
L9.50
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Modeling Tips
Limit maximum increment size and start with a good guess for initial
increment size
In general, this is a good approach for any non-smooth nonlinearity
Analysis controls
Can help obtain a converged solution and speed up convergence
Contour plots of field quantities should be done with the crack
isosurface displayed
Ensures that the solution is plotted from the active parts of the overlaid
elements according to the phantom nodes approach
If the crack isosurface is turned off, only values from the lower element
are plotted (on the side with negative values of u)
L9.51
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Modeling Tips
When defining the crack using Abaqus/CAE, extend the external crack
edges beyond base geometry
This helps avoid incorrect identification of external edges as internal due
to geometric tolerance issues
Defining a through-thickness crack in a cylindrical vessel
Top View
Current Limitations
L9.53
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Current Limitations
Implemented only for the static stress analysis procedure
Can use only linear continuum elements
CPE4, CPS4, C3D4, C3D8 and their reduced integration/incompatible
counterparts
Element processing is not done in parallel
On SMP machines, only the solver runs in parallel
Cannot run in parallel on DMP machines
Contour integrals for stationary cracks not currently supported
Cannot model fatigue crack growth
Intended for single or a few non-interacting cracks in the structure
Shattering cannot be modeled
An element cannot be cut by more than one crack
Crack cannot turn more than 90 degrees in one increment
Crack cannot branch
L9.54
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Current Limitations
The first signed distance function u must be non-zero
If the crack lies along an element boundary, a small positive or negative
value should be used
This slightly offsets the crack from the element boundary
Only frictionless small-sliding contact is considered
The small-sliding assumption will result in nonphysical contact behavior
if the relative sliding between the contacting surfaces is indeed large
Only enriched regions can have a material model with damage
If only a portion of the model needs to be enriched define an extra
material model with no damage for the regions not enriched
Probing field quantities on an element currently returns values only
from the lower element (corresponding to negative values of u)
Workshop 6
L9.56
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
Workshop 6
In this workshop, you will
continue with the analysis of a
cracked beam subjected to pure
bending using XFEM
This workshop demonstrates:
The ease of meshing and initial
crack definition compared to the
techniques presented in earlier
lectures
The use of analysis controls
References
L9.58
Modeling Fracture and Failure with Abaqus
References
1. I. Babuska and J. Melenk, Int. J. Numer. Meth. Engng (1997), 40:727-758
2. T. Belytschko and T. Black, Int. J. Numer. Meth. Engng (1999), 45:601-620
3. A. Hansbo and P. Hansbo, Comp. Meth. Appl. Mech. Engng (2004),
193:3523-3540
4. J. H. Song, P. M. A. Areias and T. Belytschko, Int. J. Numer. Meth. Engng
(2006), 67:868-893