Application of essential work of fracture methodology to polymer fracture

The applicability and limitation of the essential work of fracture model originally proposed for double-notched polymer and metal specimens with full ligament yielding prior to failure are studied using two sets of ABS polymer results measured with three-point-bend specimens without full ligament yielding. The model is then extended and related to a simple fracture mechanics model on the local fracture energy distribution, which is originally developed for quasi-brittle fracture of concrete-like materials. Both models lead to the conclusion that the height of the crack-tip plastic zone controls the fracture toughness of materials, and the specific fracture energy dissipation along a crack path.