Mixed mode fracture analysis of adiabatic cracks in homogeneous and non-homogeneous materials in the framework of partition of unity and the path-independent interaction integral

In this paper, the path independent interaction integral has been implemented in the framework of the extended finite element method for mixed mode adiabatic cracks under thermo-mechanical loadings particularly in orthotropic non-homogenous materials. The mesh insensitivity and increased accuracy due to the thermal and displacement asymptotic analytical solutions are discussed and the contour independency of the interaction integral is investigated in different examples. Finally, the problem of crack propagation in orthotropic FGM materials under the thermal loading is investigated to assess the accuracy and robustness of proposed approach. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.