Brittle crack propagation/arrest behavior in steel plate - Part III: Discussions on arrest design

The brittle crack arrest design of a steel plate is discussed based on systematic model simulations. The simulation results show that an essential crack arrest temperature (ECAT) exists in the temperature dependence curve of arrest toughness. Based on the investigations of the possible factors influencing the temperature dependence of the arrest toughness and the ECAT, an estimation formula is proposed for the required arrest toughness at the design temperature for arbitrary values of the plate strength and thickness. The prediction results obtained using the estimation formula are consistent with the experimental results obtained from past wide duplex crack arrest tests.