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FAQ: WHAT IS CRACK ARREST?

  

What is crack arrest?

Frequently Asked Questions

The crack arrest approach can be adopted for determining the tness for service of a structure. Many structural

integrity assessment procedures are aimed at preventing the initiation of fracture. An alternative approach is to

assume that unstable crack extension may start in a region of high stress and/or localised embrittlement, but

that the surrounding material will have su cient resistance to crack extension to arrest the running crack.
The crack initiation approach relies on close attention to the workmanship and quality control during welding.

However, it can be di cult to guarantee that no areas of local brittle zones exist. It is also di cult to know the

exact stress distribution around a crack tip that experiences contributions from residual stresses and local

stress concentration. For these reasons the crack arrest approach may be considered a viable alternative. The

crack arrest concept is simple in principle, if not always in application: arrest of fast running brittle cracks, that

have initiated in a region of low toughness, will occur if the applied crack driving force is smaller than the

resistance to crack propagation. By looking at conditions of crack arrest, the focus can be taken away from

localised stress concentration or brittle zones and back to the bulk properties of the parent plate, weld metal or

heat a ected zone and the nominal applied stress.

The conditions for crack arrest to occur can be expressed using one of the following approaches [1] :

Fracture mechanics comparison, where the applied stress intensity factor (KI) is less than the crack
arrest fracture toughness (KIa).

Ensuring that the temperature at the crack tip is above the crack arrest temperature (CAT)

An energy balance so that the available energy for crack propagation is less than the energy absorbed
by the material during crack propagation.

Local approach, such that the crack driving force (cdf) is less than the local arrest property. The cdf is
determined from mechanical models, and the local arrest is determined from mechanistic models of
the crack arrest processes.

The main applications of the crack arrest approach are for ductile fracture propagation control in gas pipelines,
[2,3] and fracture control in pressure vessels [4] and LPG storage tanks. [5]

References
1. Wiesner, C. S. 'Crack arrest - when brittle fracture stops'. In The life of a Crack: Initiation - Growth -
Fracture, 2000. Edited by M Koçak.

2. Rothwell, A. B. 'Fracture propagation control for gas pipelines-past, present and future'. Pipeline
Technology vol. 1, 2000, pages 387-405.

3. Horsley, D. J. 'Background to the use of CTOA for prediction of dynamic ductile fracture arrest in
pipelines'. Engineering Fracture Mechanics Vol. 70, 2003, 547-552.

4. Wiesner, C. S and Hayes, B. 'A review of crack arrest tests, models and applications'. TWI Members
Report, 1995. Available on this website to TWI Industrial Members, PDF le, 10581 kBytes: 
 5. 'Crack arrest checks for new LPG storage tank steels'. TWI's news magazine Connect No. 95, July-
August 1998. Available on this website: 

Further information

FAQ: What are local brittle zones?

FAQ: What is signi cance of local brittle zones?
Characterising crack arrest behaviour in steel (Knowledge summary).

The next item (PDF le, 2198 kBytes) is only available to TWI Industrial Members:

An introduction to K, CTOD and J fracture mechanics analyses and toughness, and the application of these to

metal structures.

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