Investigator: Ing. Pavel Hutař, Ph.D.
Number of Project: 101/09/J027
Agency: Czech Science Foundation
Duration: 01. 01. 2009 - 31. 12. 2011

The advanced polymer systems contain welded joints, which can strongly influence its final lifetime. Important topic of the research is than study changes of the crack behaviour due to geometrical and material non-homogenity existing in this type of materials. General goal of the project lies in the development and suggestion of reliable techniques for estimation of a residual life time of welded polymeric structures. Slow crack growth, which can be described by the corresponding fracture mechanics parameters, plays an important part in this estimation. In the case of viscoelastic polymer materials the current methodology will be developed. The correlation between the experimental data and results of relevant numerical model will be presented. Development of procedures for transferability of the data from non-welded structure to welded one can help for more efficient design of polymer welded structures.

Hutař P., Šestáková L., Knésl Z., Nezbedová E., Náhlík L., Special fracture mechanics specimens for multilayer plastic pipes testing, Polymer Testing, Vol.28, pp.785–792, 2009

Ševčík, M., Hutař, P. Náhlík, L., Knésl, Z. Evaluation of the stress intensity factor in functionally graded materials, Applied and Computational Mechanics, Vol. 3, No. 2, pp. 401-410, 2009