A complete perfectly plastic solution for the mode I crack problem under plane stress loading conditions

A continuous stress field for the mode I crack problem for a perfectly plastic material under plane stress loading conditions has been obtained recently. Here, a kinematically admissible velocity field is introduced, which is compatible with the continuous stress field obtained earlier. By associating these two fields together it is shown that they constitute a complete solution for the uncontained plastic flow problem around a finite length internal crack, having a positive rate of plastic work. The yield condition employed is an alternative criterion first proposed by Richard von Mises in order to approximate the plane stress Huber-Mises yield condition, which is elliptical in shape, to one that is composed of two intersecting parabolas in the principal stress plane.