Phenomenon of Spall Fracture during Tension

The phenomenon of spall fracture of high-strength steel specimens with the formation of two fracture surfaces during standard tensile tests is discussed. The fracture along two planes is shown to occur not simultaneously: first, fracture induced by a tensile load is observed, and then a second fracture plane forms, presumably, according to the spallation mechanism. The sequence proposed for the two fractures is confirmed by the results of fractographic analysis. The spallation during tension of standard specimens is found to differ from the classical spallation under an intense external action in the scheme of deformation wave formation and the source of spallation energy.