Void growth in shear

The growth of an isolated void is analysed for a void contained in a block of material undergoing simple shearing combined with superimposed hydrostatic tension. The evolution of the size, shape and orientation of two- and three-dimensional voids in an incompressible, linearly viscous solid is first discussed. The main problem addressed is the behaviour of a two-dimensional cylindrical void in an incompressible, nonlinearly viscous solid for which the strain rate varies as the stress to a power. The growth rate of the void and its shape evolution are strong functions of the degree of material nonlinearity. Relatively simple approximate formulas are obtained for the dilatation rate of a circular void as well as for the void potential. The constitutive relation of a block of material containing a dilute distribution of circular cylindrical voids is obtained directly using the isolated void potential. The paper concludes with a summary of available results for the dilatation rates of voids and cracks under combinations of shear and hydrostatic tension.