Probabilistic fracture mechanics. Technical report

This report develops the methodology for probabilistic fracture mechanics analysis (PFM) of structural components with crack-like imperfections. Details are given for the development and application of both a simple nomographic method and a basic numerical tool for PFM applications. Two illustrative applications based on linear elastic fracture mechanics are included to demonstrate the utility of PFM to problems of interest to the nuclear power generation industry. The first example selects the mean yield strength of an alloy in order to minimize the probability of failure for a hypothetical component with two failure modes, yielding and brittle fracture. The second example points out the need for and current unavailability of required input data. It is recommended that data collection efforts be increased to quantify the variational characteristics of the required input parameters, as well as mean, typical, or worst-case values