An Analysis of Impact Structural Damages of Ceramic Blades
A series of finite element analyses with elastic assumption were made to predict the plausible damage behavior of axial and radial type ceramic blades. Present analysis showed that the stress peaking process was strongly influenced by the interaction of various stress waves. Peaks of the maximum principal tensile (PMPT) stress are considered to lead to the structural damages. In the axial blade, locations of the PMPT stress qualitatively corresponded well with the damaged parts of the blade observed in the experiment. The maximum PMPT stress appeared on the suction (impact) surface and the averaged PMPT stress value on this surface was roughly twice as large as that in the pressure surface. On the radial blade, the maximum PMPT stress occurred in the pressure surface, contrary to the axial blade. Its value was remarkably larger than the initial impact stress due to the complex wave interactions. In spite of the elastic assumption, the present finite element analysis is useful in understanding structural fracture behavior.