The Estimation of Fracture Toughness of Torsion Shafts of a Tracked Vehicle under Operational Loads

Abstract

The analysis is carried out under an operating load level for a crack located on the cylindrical part of the torsion shaft, the plane of which is at an angle to the torsion shaft axis and coincides with the position of the main areas of the stress state. The calculation of fracture toughness is based on Irwin fracture criterion. The calculations of the maximum stress intensity factor along the crack front are performed using the finite element method in the ANSYS software package. The results of the analysis of fracture toughness are presented in the form of dependences of the critical depth of the crack on the ratio of the fracture half-length to its depth. The data obtained can be used to determine the residual life of torsion shafts of the tracked vehicles based on the chassis under consideration.