A PROBABILISTIC MODEL FOR LOWER‐SHELF FRACTURE TOUGHNESS—THEORY AND APPLICATION

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Abstract
When fitting parametric distributions to fracture toughness data, one will often encounter the situation where there are few data available. In such a situation, additional information obtained from a theoretical model can prove to be of value. A theoretical model is described here, which predicts that lower‐shelf fracture toughness follows a 2‐parameter Weibull distribution with a shape parameter equal to 2 or 4 (depending on the units used for fracture toughness), the scale parameter being determined by the crack front length and a material constant. A rule‐of‐thumb is given for determining when it is an advantage to use this theoretical information, and when it is best to fit a parametric distribution on the basis of the available data alone.