Simulation of progressive failure process in solid rocket propellants using a phase-field model

Abstract

Dense interface cracks and their transformation into matrix cracks of propellants are complicated and pose challenges to existing numerical methods for fracture analysis. However, understanding fracture behavior of solid propellants is a key aspect for the development of high-performance solid rocket motors. We proposed a fracture phase field method in this study accounting for material interfaces to accurately capture the complicated failure processes of solid rocket propellant while a precise computational model is adopted. The widely concerned challenges such as the extremely thin actual interface width, strong material heterogeneity, material viscoelasticity, crack interaction, computational efficiency are all solved or at least eased with the new method. The proposed method has provided a reliable tool for the design and evaluation of propellants which has long been desired in engineering. In addition, we propose an easy implementation way of the proposed method which may be interesting both engineering and academic practices. A few numerical examples with comparison with experimental results are provided for the verification and validation of the proposed method, and the comparison results show excellent agreements.