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Application of Simulated Annealing to Mechanical Failure
DENNIS N. COON
The computational method of simulated annealing was applied to the problem of predicting crack paths during mechanical failure of a solid containing a sharp flaw. The simulated annealing algorithm described in the present research compared alternative crack paths using a normalized strain energy density function based on the cumulative strain energy density for all area elements along the crack path. The initial crack path chosen was co-linear with the existing sharp flaw since this crack path would be expected to be the most likely crack path in a homogeneous material of uniform properties. The simulated annealing algorithm was used to examine a minimum of 60 and maximum of 60,000 alternative crack paths in the material. Alternative crack paths were identified with a forward-bias, random walk algorithm. The simulated annealing algorithm proved to be very effective in examining a range of alternative solutions in a window ? 60° angular width from the initial (co-linear) crack path. In addition, the algorithm was likely to identify a more probable crack path as the number of solutions examined increased.
