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Creep ruptures in heterogeneous materials

Phys Rev Lett. 2005 Feb 4;94(4):045501. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.94.045501. Epub 2005 Jan 31.

Abstract

We present creep experiments on fiber composite materials with different controlled heterogeneity. All samples exhibit a power-law relaxation of the strain rate in the primary creep regime (Andrade's law) followed by a power-law acceleration up to rupture. We discover that the rupture time is proportional to the duration of the primary creep regime, showing the interplay between the two regimes and offering a method of rupture prediction. These experimental results are rationalized by a mean-field model of representative elements with nonlinear viscoelastic rheology and with a large heterogeneity of strengths.