Crack Growth Behavior in a Highly Filled Elastomer

An important engineering problem in structural design is evaluating its integrity and reliability. It is well known that structural strength may be degraded during its design life due to mechanical or chemical aging, or a combination of these two aging mechanisms. Depending on the structural design, material type, service loading, and environmental condition, the cause and degree of strength degradation due to the different aging mechanisms differs. One of the common causes of strength degradation is the result of damage and crack development in the structure. Therefore, to effectively use the material in structural applications one needs to understand the damage initiation and evolution processes, the effects of damage and crack development on the material's response, and the remaining strength and life of the structures.