Macroscopic variables governing the microscopic fracture of pearlitic steels

The main macroscopic variables (in the continuum mechanics sense) which govern the microscopic fracture of notched samples of high strength steel are studied. The investigation, performed in inert and aggressive environments, offers therefore a quantitative relationship between the macroscopic and microscopic approaches to fracture, and allows a prediction of the size of the critical microstructural zone by numerical computation. The...