BIAXIAL CREEP STRAINS AT NOTCH ROOTS - MEASUREMENT AND MODELING

Biaxial strains were measured at the roots of single notches in zircon ium alloy specimens under loading and creep conditions (up to 1200 hou rs) at 250 degrees C. A laser-based interferometric technique was used ; details of the measurement procedures are given in another paper. He re, the Bodner model is incorporated into the ABAQUS finite element co de and used to predict the biaxial strains at the notch root during lo ading and for a creep duration of 100 hours. The strains during lendin g agree quite well with the measured ones while the predicted creep st rains are smaller. This discrepancy is attributed to the lack of preci sion in determining the constants for the Bodner model from smooth-spe cimen tests. Both the measurement technique and the Bodner model are w ell-suited for studies of notch response.