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Fatigue crack growth modelling with residual stress - Improvement of the Gtheta method


Thesis topic details

General information

Organisation

The French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) is a key player in research, development and innovation in four main areas :
• defence and security,
• nuclear energy (fission and fusion),
• technological research for industry,
• fundamental research in the physical sciences and life sciences.

Drawing on its widely acknowledged expertise, and thanks to its 16000 technicians, engineers, researchers and staff, the CEA actively participates in collaborative projects with a large number of academic and industrial partners.

The CEA is established in ten centers spread throughout France
  

Reference

SL-DES-26-0434  

Thesis topic details

Category

Engineering science

Thesis topics

Fatigue crack growth modelling with residual stress - Improvement of the Gtheta method

Contract

Thèse

Job description

Residual stresses are self-balanced stress fields found in certain mechanical components in the absence of external loading. Caused by welding, for example, these stresses can potentially affect the behaviour of the structure and its resistance to fracture. When demonstrating the integrity of a mechanical component, particularly in the context of nuclear safety, it is crucial to precisely understand the role of these stress fields on the component's resistance. In the case of fatigue crack propagation, to accurately model all the phenomena involved (stress redistribution, evolution of plasticity, closure effect), it will be necessary to improve numerical tools, such as meshing and crack propagation methods (AMR, X-FEM...) and the J-integral interpolation in the case of through-cracks (Gtheta method). The thesis will consist of two complementary parts: (a) numerical development aimed at improving the Gtheta method in Castem FE code, associated with a 3D crack propagation modelling using AMR, and (b) continuation of component scale tests on fatigue crack propagation in different configurations of residual stress fields.

University / doctoral school

Sciences Mécaniques et Energétiques, Matériaux et Géosciences (SMEMaG)
Paris-Saclay

Thesis topic location

Site

Saclay

Requester

Position start date

01/10/2026

Person to be contacted by the applicant

JACQUEMOUD Clémentine clementine.jacquemoud@cea.fr
CEA
DES/DM2S/SEMT/LISN
CEA-Saclay, 91191 Gif-sur-Yvette

Tutor / Responsible thesis director

GOURDIN Cédric cedric.gourdin@cea.fr
CEA
DES/DM2S/SEMT/LISN
DES/DM2S/SEMT/LISN
CEA Saclay - Bât. 607 - Pce 162
91191 Gif-Sur-Yvette cedex
France

+33-169086545

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