Electric current induced thermal stress around a bi-material interface crack

• Published in: Engineering fracture mechanics 2019-03, Vol.208, p.1-12
• Main Authors: Song, K., Song, H.P., Schiavone, P., Gao, C.F.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Electric current; Electric currents; Interface crack; Interfacial cracks; Parameters; Quadratic equations; Repair & maintenance; Stress concentration; Stress distribution; Stress intensity factors; Thermal stress
• ISSN: 0013-7944; 1873-7315
• DOI: 10.1016/j.engfracmech.2019.01.004

•Thermal stress around an interface crack in electroelastic bi-material.•Complex variable methods used to obtain exact electric and stress fields.•Electric current can be chosen to neutralize or nullify stress intensity.•Numerical examples to illustrate results. In this paper we analyze the thermal stress distribution in the vicinity of an interface crack in a bi-material subjected to a remote electric current. We emphasize in particular, the influence of the electric current on the thermal stress intensity factors. Our results indicate that the electric current may either intensify or in fact neutralize the thermal stress intensity factors depending on the material parameters of the bi-material. Numerical analyses illustrate clearly that when the bi-material is described by particular combinations of material parameters, the electric current can effectively decrease the absolute value of mode I and mode II thermal stress intensity factors to the point where both are simultaneously nullified by the electric current. The fact that the thermal stress is generally a quadratic function of the prescribed electric current precludes the possibility of altering the effects of the electric current on the thermal stress intensity factors by simply adjusting the direction of the electric current itself.