Damage mechanics

The objective of the present study is to summarize and recapitulate some of the methods of analyses of brittle response of solids. In general, the discussion is limited to the analyses of influence that the crack-like microdefects have on the compliance and failure of some engineering materials. The attention was focused on the perfectly brittle and semi-brittle response of materials such as concrete, rocks, ceramics and certain brittle solids. Both phenomenological and micromechanical models were discussed at some length emphasizing their relative advantages and drawbacks. A section dealing with simple, one-dimensional damage models is added to help the reader not familiar with this new branch of continuum mechanics.