L. P.

Pook, Frattura ed Integrità Strutturale, 1 (2007) 12-18

Some practical crack path examples

( da ESIS Newsletter 2006)

Les P. Pook
Department of Mechanical Engineering, University College London, Torrington Place, London WC1E 7JE,
UK

ABSTRACT. It is well known that many engineering structures and components, as well as consumer items,
contain cracks or crack-like flaws. It is widely recognised that crack growth must be considered both in de-
sign and in the analysis of failures. The complete solution of a crack growth problem includes determination
of the crack path. Macroscopic aspects of crack paths have been of industrial interest for a very long time.
At the present state of the art the factors controlling the path taken by a crack are not completely understood.
Eight brief case studies are presented. These are taken from the author’s professional and personal experi-
ence of macroscopic crack paths over many years. They have been chosen to illustrate various aspects of
crack paths. One example is in a component from a major structure, three examples are in laboratory speci-
mens, and four are in nuisance failures. Such nuisance failures cause, in total, a great deal of inconvenience
and expensive, but do not normally receive much publicity.

KEYWORDS: Crack growth, crack path

1 INTRODUZIONE controlling the path taken by a crack are not completely

understood [1]. Eight brief case studies involving crack
It is well-known that engineering structures and compo- paths are presented. These are taken from the author’s
nents, as well as consumer items, contain cracks or flaws professional and personal experience over many years.
and, therefore, crack growth must be considered both in They have been chosen to illustrate various aspects of
design and in the analysis of failures. The path taken by a crack paths. One example is in a component from a major
crack in a critical component or structure can determine structure, three examples are in laboratory specimens,
whether fatigue failure is catastrophic or not. Knowledge and four are in nuisance failures. Such nuisance failures
of potential crack paths is also needed for the selection of cause, in total, a great deal of inconvenience and expen-
appropriate non-destructive testing procedures. Much sive, but do not normally receive much publicity.
current work is concerned with crack growth viewed on
macroscopic scale. The forthcoming ESIS International
Conference on Crack Paths (CP 2006) will be devoted to 2 AIRCRAFT UNDERCARRIAGE BAY
consideration of crack paths at various scales. From a BRACKET
theoretical viewpoint the complete solution of a crack
growth problem includes determination of the crack path. The relationship between mode of fatigue loading and
paths taken by fatigue cracks has been of interest for a
long time [2, 3]. This information can be useful in failure
analysis and Figure 1 shows an example from 1961. It is
a bracket from an aircraft undercarriage bay which
showed unexpected cracking at rivet holes. The bracket
was a formed 18 swg (1.2 mm thick) aluminium alloy
angle, 10 in × 0.8 in × 0.8 in (254 mm × 20.3 mm × 20. 3
mm). The figure shows a general view of typical cracks
observed after the bracket was removed from the bay.
Examination of the fracture surfaces of the cracks showed
that fatigue cracks had originated at both surfaces of the
Figure 1: Cracks in undercarriage bay bracket. bracket at the rivet hole corner and then propagated in-
wards on elliptical crack fronts, with the two cracks inter-
It is often assumed that the crack path is known, either secting at or near the centre line of the sheet. Figure 2
from theoretical considerations, or from the results of shows the fracture surface of a typical crack. This indi-
laboratory tests. At the present state of the art, the factors cates that failure was caused by out of plane alternating

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 L. P. Pook, Frattura ed Integrità Strutturale, 1 (2007) 12-18

bending fatigue loads, which were not anticipated by the as a twist crack [1] containing individual Mode I facets
designer. Examination of the fracture surfaces at high connected by cliffs. The Mode I facets gradually merge
magnification showed the presence of striations and as, viewed on the 1 mm scale, the crack growth surface
hence confirmed that cracking was due to fatigue. This is becomes perpendicular to the specimen surfaces. Merg-
an example of the useful crack path information which ing of Mode I facets shows up more clearly under fatigue
can be obtained from simple examination of a failed loading.
component with the naked eye. Some fatigue tests were carried out in 1989 on 20 mm
thick medium strength structural steel angle notch speci-
mens [7] with initial β values of 75°, 60° and 45°. Figure
5 shows the fracture surface of one of the specimens, ini-
tial β = 60°. The light area at the top is where the speci-
men was broken open in liquid nitrogen. These examples
illustrate the strong tendency to Mode I crack growth in
isotropic materials under essentially elastic conditions.

Figure 2. Surface of crack in an undercarriage bay bracket.

3 ANGLE NOTCH FRACTURE TOUGHNESS

AND FATIGUE SPECIMENS

By 1965 plane strain fracture toughness testing using

Mode I specimens, in which crack growth is perpendicu-
lar to the applied load, was well established [4] but little
was known about fracture toughness behaviour under
mixed mode loading, where loads are applied at an angle
to the crack.. Some tests were therefore carried out in
1966 [5, 6] to investigate the mixed mode fracture tough-
ness of DTD 5050, a 5½% Zn aluminium alloy with KIc =
28.8 MPa√m [5]. A 19 mm thick angle notch specimen
was used, with the initial notch inclined at an angle β of
75°, 60° and 45°, as in Figure 3. Specimens were pre-
cracked in fatigue. Figure 4 shows the fracture surface of
one of the specimens with the initial notch inclined at β = Figure 3. Angle notch Charpy specimen, crack initiation along
45°. The fatigue precrack (bright area at the notch root) is notch tip.
of nearly constant depth, and at the end of the precrack β
≈ 48°. A feature of the test is that under the static loading
to determine the fracture toughness the specimen failed
very abruptly, but the macroscopic crack path features
followed on from the fatigue precrack. At the time the
fracture surface appearance was puzzling, but is easily in-
terpreted from a modern viewpoint [1], in that that there
is a tendency to Mode I crack growth on two scales. On a
scale of 1 mm initially crack growth was mixed mode. As
the crack grew the crack front rotated until it was perpen-
dicular to the specimen surfaces, and crack growth was in
Mode I, with the exception of shear lips at specimen sur-
faces. On this scale the crack follows a curved path which
tends towards a plane of symmetry. This is in accordance
with the well known observation [1] that the tendency to
Mode I crack growth means that cracks tend to grow per-
pendicular to the maximum principal tensile stress. On a
smaller scale of 0.1 mm the tendency to Mode I fatigue Figure 4. Fracture surface of DTD 5050 5½ Zn aluminium an-
crack growth results in the production of what is known gle notch fracture toughness test specimen, initial β = 45°.

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 L.P.Pook., Frattura ed Integrità Strutturale, 1 (2007) 12-18

the fatigue load perpendicular to the crack was kept con-

stant. Cracks were first grown from each end of an initial
slit under uniaxial loading An in phase load was then ap-
plied parallel to the crack, and crack path behaviour ob-
served. Figure 6 shows the crack path for a load parallel
to the crack of twice the load perpendicular to the crack.
The crack path became unstable and deviated from its ini-
tial path as soon as the load parallel to the crack was ap-
plied. At the time the tests were carried out it wasn’t pos-
sible to do more than describe the results. However,
reanalysis of these and other results in 1997 [1, 10]
showed it was possible to correlate crack path stability in
terms of a parameter called the T-stress ratio.

5 PLASTIC DOMESTIC TAP

Figure 5. Fracture surface of medium strength structural steel
angle notch fatigue test specimen, initial β = 60°. In 1991 a plastic domestic tap in the author’s utility room
was observed to be leaking where it was screwed into a
fitting on the supply pipe. The tap had a fitting for a hose
pipe, and appeared to be a replacement for the original
brass tap. When an attempt was made to unscrew the tap
it failed completely. The two parts of the broken tap are
shown in Figure 7 and a close up of the fracture surface
in Figure 8. The dark area is fatigue and the light area the
final static failure. The age of the tap at the time of failure
is unknown, but as one fatigue cycle is applied each time
a tap is turned on and off it is likely that thousands of cy-
cles had been applied. Safety critical pressure containing
components are often designed to leak-before-break [11]
in order to avoid catastrophic failure. It is fortunate that
the tap did so otherwise the utility room would probably
have been flooded. The failed tap was replaced with a
brass tap, and it was observed that the detail design in the
vicinity of the threads was exactly the same. The re-
placement tap is still in use. The episode is an example of
the danger of using a different material for a component
without making appropriate changes to detail design.
Figure 6. Crack path in a Waspaloy sheet under biaxial fatigue
load. The grid is 2.54 mm.

4 CRACK PATH STABILITY UNDER BIAXIAL

LOADING

The question of the stability of a crack path had been of

interest for some time [8] but in general it wasn’t possible
to predict crack paths under biaxial fatigue loading.
Therefore, in 1974 some tests [9], were carried out at
room temperature on Waspaloy, a nickel based gas tur-
bine material, in order to determine the conditions under
which a fatigue crack path became unstable under biaxial
loading. The specimens were 254 mm square and 2.6 mm
thick. The material had been cross rolled during produc-
tion to ensure that its properties were reasonably iso-
tropic. Tests were carried out using sinusoidal constant
amplitude loading at a stress ratio (ratio of minimum to
maximum load in fatigue cycle), R, of 0.1. In each test Figure 7. Plastic domestic tap.

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 L. P. Pook, Frattura ed Integrità Strutturale, 1 (2007) 12-18

ple shown in Figure 9 was originally used in a school, but

since 1968 it has been in use in the author’s kitchen. In
1994 the mainspring failed while the clock was being
wound. Examination showed that this was the final fail-
ure following fatigue crack growth. A general view of the
failed mainspring is shown in Figure 10. Fatigue has been
a problem in clock mainsprings for centuries, and tradi-
tionally they are designed using rules of thumb based on
experience [12], rather than by detailed analysis. The to-
tal fatigue life is not known, but the clock is wound
weekly so it must be thousands of cycles.
A clock mainspring is loaded in bending, with loading
and unloading moving along the spring as it is wound and
unwinds. When a mainspring breaks in fatigue the crack
is usually straight across the spring, with crack growth
predominantly through the thickness. However, in this
Figure 8. Crack surface of plastic domestic tap. particular mainspring crack path behaviour is unusually
complicated, and details are shown in Figure 11. A fa-
tigue crack initiated at a corner at one edge of the 27 mm
wide mainspring. Initially, crack growth was across the
spring (downwards in the picture) but after about 9 mm
of growth the crack turned sharply towards the outer end
of the spring (right in the picture), and then grew in a spi-
ral fashion towards the other edge of the spring until the
final failure took place. During this crack growth two
secondary cracks initiated, and then joined so that a small
triangular piece of spring became detached. The joined
secondary crack then grew in a spiral fashion towards the
centre of the spring, but did not contribute to the final
failure. This is an example of a nuisance fatigue failure
which did not have serious consequences. Such failures
are not normally investigated at all. The offending com-
ponent is simply replaced. In this particular case the re-
placement mainspring is still intact after 12 years.

Figure 9. Wall clock by John Davidson, Coatbridge.

Figure 10. Failed wall clock mainspring.

6 WALL CLOCK MAINSPRING

Before the days of quartz clocks, spring driven wall

clocks were widely used in public buildings. The exam- Figure 11. Centre portion of failed wall clock mainspring.

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 L.P.Pook., Frattura ed Integrità Strutturale, 1 (2007) 12-18

7 ANGLE NOTCH CHARPY SPECIMENS The fracture surface appearance of the angle notch speci-
mens is controlled by a tendency towards square (Mode
Some preliminary tests [13] were carried out in 1971 on I) crack growth, but modified by plasticity and by crack
angle notch Charpy specimens, but crack paths were not path constraint due to the initial notch. The value of β has
investigated in detail. Specimen design was based on the little effect on either the 50 per cent crystalline transition
standard Charpy V-notch specimen with β values (Figure temperature, or on the temperature below which fractures
3) of 90° (standard specimen), 75°, 60°, and 45°. The true are crystalline. Shear lips for β = 75° and 60° are similar
notch tip radius was reduced so that the notch tip radius to those on standard Charpy specimens, but could not be
measured in a plane parallel to the specimen sides was distinguished for β = 45°. In the transition region fracture
the same as in the standard Charpy specimen (0.25 mm). surfaces are initially ductile. The amount of initial ductile
Figure 12 shows the appearance of specimens tested at 10 crack growth increases with increasing temperature.
C. More detailed tests were carried out in 1997 using Crack initiation is along the notch tip, and in the notch
EN6a mild steel (0.36% C) specimens [14]. All speci- plane, so the initial crack growth is mixed mode. For β =
mens were tested in the normalised condition (tensile 75° and 60° a crack twists as it grows, becoming Mode I
strength 550 MPa, yield stress 280 MPa). Tests were car- as it approaches the striker position (Figure 3). For β =
ried out in a 300 J Charpy machine equipped with a 2 45° there is an abrupt transition to Mode I crack growth
mm radius striker. They are an example of the complexity (Figure 13).
often observed in crack path behaviour under dynamic
loading. The fracture surface appearance of the standard
Charpy specimens (β = 90°) is typical of mild steel. In
the lower shelf region, that is at below about -15°C, frac-
ture surfaces are crystalline, and in the upper shelf region,
above about 30°C, they are ductile. In the transition re-
gion fracture surfaces are initially ductile, and the amount
of crystalline crack growth decreases with increasing
temperature. Shear lips appear at above about -15°C, and
increase in size with increasing temperature. The fracture
appearance transition temperature (50 per cent crystal-
line) is about 25°C. In the upper shelf region fracture sur-
faces are ductile.

Figure 13. Angle notch Charpy specimen, abrupt transition to

crystalline crack growth.

This Mode I growth is at least initially crystalline. At be-

low about -15°C fracture surfaces of the angle notch
specimens are fully crystalline. Crack origins are Mode I.
For β = 75° and 60° there are a number of individual
Mode I crack origins along a notch tip, linked by vertical
cliffs (apparently Mode III). The initial Mode I cracks
link up as a crack grows, and overall a crack twists as it
approaches the striker position. For β = 45° the tendency
to Mode I crack growth is so marked that the crack path
Figure 12. Fracture appearance of mild steel Charpy specimens is not constrained by the notch. At intermediate absorbed
tested at 10 C. Top, standard specimen, β = 90°. Bottom, angle energy levels there is one crack origin at the centre of a
notch specimen, β = 45°. notch, and crack growth is Mode I throughout (Figure

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 L. P. Pook, Frattura ed Integrità Strutturale, 1 (2007) 12-18

14). At high absorbed energy levels there are crack ori- 8 CENTRAL HEATING BOILER BURNER
gins at both notch corners. The cracks follow curved, ap-
parently Mode I paths, as shown schematically for a sin- During routine maintenance in 2002 one of the two burn-
gle crack in Figure 15. The two paths merge as they ers in the gas fired domestic central heating boiler in-
approach the striker position. stalled in the author’s house was found to be cracked due
to thermal fatigue. A general view of the burner is shown
in Figure 16, and the crack is shown in Figure 17. The
boiler was about 12 years old so, assuming it fired about
10 times per day, about 44,000 thermal fatigue cycles had
been applied. The burner consists of a steel box with a se-
ries of small and large holes on top to distribute the gas to
the flame above the box. The larger holes have reinforced
perimeters. An internal wire mesh, just visible in Figure
17, helps to distribute the gas evenly. Cracking appears to
have initiated at three places on the perimeter of a smaller
hole, grown into two larger holes with a small triangular
piece becoming detached, and then two cracks grew
across most of the width of the box, resulting in improper
combustion. The designer did not appear to have appreci-
ated the point that stress concentration factors are largely
independent of hole size. The reinforcement had pre-
vented crack initiation at the large holes but its absence
had allowed cracking at a small hole. This is another ex-
ample of a nuisance fatigue failure. Annual inspection
was recommended by the boiler manufacturer. This en-
sured that the cracking was detected before it became
dangerous, and the burner was replaced.

Figure 14. Angle notch Charpy specimen, crack origin at cen-

tre of notch.

Figure 16. Burner from domestic central heating boiler.

Figure 15. Angle notch Charpy specimen, crack origin at Figure 17. Crack in burner from domestic central heating
notch corner. boiler.

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 L.P.Pook., Frattura ed Integrità Strutturale, 1 (2007) 12-18

9 WALKING SHOE [3] J. Longson, A photographic study of the origin and

development of fatigue fractures in aircraft structures.
In 2005 the author found that the plastic soles of pair of RAE Report No. Struct 267. Royal Aircraft Establish-
walking shoes had become badly cracked and one no ment, Farnborough (1961).
longer fitted properly. This more severely damaged shoe [4] J. E Srawley, W. F. Brown, Fracture toughness test-
is shown in Figure 18. The sole of a shoe is subjected to ing methods. In Fracture toughness testing and its appli-
repeated bending. Going uphill a sole is also subjected to cations. ASTM STP 381. American Society for Testing
repeated tension as the rearward force applied by the and Materials, Philadelphia, PA, (1965) 133.
wearer’s heel is transferred to the ground. This particular [5] L. P. Pook, Brittle Fracture of Structural Materials
pair of shoes had covered several hundred kilometres, Having a High Strength Weight Ratio. PhD thesis, Uni-
which is equivalent to around 3 × 105 cycles. In the shoe versity of Strathclyde, Glasgow (1968).
shown two separate cracks had initiated in grooves near [6] L. P. Pook, Eng. fract. Mech., 3 (1971) 205.
the toe, grown past each other and then curved together, [7] L. P. Pook, D. G. Crawford, The fatigue crack direc-
in a well known crack path behaviour [15], so that a piece tion and threshold behaviour of a medium strength struc-
of sole became detached. The heel had also cracked and, tural steel under mixed Mode I and III loading. In: Kuss-
in what appears to have been the final event that reduced maul, K., McDiarmid, D. L. and Socie, D. F. (Ed).
the stiffness of the shoe so much that it became unusable, Fatigue Under Biaxial and Multiaxial Loading. ESIS 10.
the sole separated from the upper at the end of this crack. (1991) 199. Mechanical Engineering Publications, Lon-
The use of a plastic, instead of rubber, for the soles has don.
reduced the rate of wear but led to fatigue failure. This is [8] B. Cotterell, Int. J. fract. Mech., 2 (1966) 526.
another example where a change of material has resulted [9] L. P. Pook, R.Holmes, In: Proc. Fatigue Testing and
in fatigue cracking. Design Conf., Society of Environmental Engineers Fa-
tigue Group, Buntingford, Herts, 2 (1976) 36.1
[10] L. P. Pook, An alternative crack path stability pa-
rameter. In: Brown, M. W., de los Rios, E. R. and Miller,
K. J. (Eds). Fracture from Defects. ECF 12. EMAS Pub-
lishing, Cradley Heath, West Midlands. I (1998) 187.
[11] L. P. Pook Linear Elastic Fracture Mechanics for
Engineers. Theory and Applications. WIT Press, South-
ampton (2000).
[12] F. J. Britten, The watch & clock makers' handbook,
dictionary and guide. 16th Edition. Revised by Good, R.
Arco Publishing Company Inc, New York (1978)
[13] L. P. Pook, Eng. fract. Mech., (1972) 483.
Figure 18. Cracks in sole of walking shoe. [14] L. P. Pook, M. J. Podbury, Int. J. Fract., 90, (1998)
L3-L8.
[15] S.Melin, Int. J. Fract., 23(1) (1983) 37.
10 CONCLUDING REMARKS [16] L.P. Pook, Keyword Scheme for a Computer Based
Bibliography of Stress Intensity Factor Solutions. NEL
Paths taken by cracks have been of interest for a very Report 704. National Engineering Laboratory, East Kil-
long time. A large amount of empirical knowledge has bride, Glasgow (1986).
been accumulated, but at the present state of the art the
factors controlling the path taken by a crack are not com-
pletely understood. The numerous possible crack con-
figurations [7] mean that a systematic approach to the de-
termination of crack paths isn't feasible, so particular
practical problems need to be tackled on an ad hoc basis.
The examples given have been chosen from the author’s
experience to illustrate the variety of crack paths which
occur in practice.

11 REFERENCES

[1] L. P. Pook, Crack Paths, WIT Press, Southampton

(2002).
[2] R. Cazaud, Fatigue of metals, Chapman & Hall Ltd,
London (1953).

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