Abstract In this study, eight techniques including coping saw, metal slitting saw, razor blade, cubic boron nitride (CBN) disc, scoring, die-cutting and guillotining, diamond disc, and laser cutting methods were used to produce pre-cracked fracture toughness (Kc) test specimens made of poly(methyl methacrylate)/graft-acrylonitrile butadiene styrene blends. The influences of notch shape (radial, rectangular, or angular-shaped and variety of thicknesses), pre-cracking method, chip removing or non-chip removing, and the contact or non-contact methods on the results obtained in fracture toughness tests were investigated. The results were analyzed by two methods, quantitatively and qualitatively, by comparing the obtained Kc results and studying the SEM and optical microscopy images, respectively. The results indicated that the different conditions of a produced pre-crack including; geometry of pre-crack due to geometry of tools, residual stress due to pre-crack creation, heat affected zone, damage of crack tip, and producing crazing around the crack tip could affect the fracture toughness. The maximum difference resulted from different pre-cracking methods was equal to 0.24 MPa.m0.5 and the lowest value of fracture toughness Kc, 2.53 MPa.m0.5, belonged to the scoring method but the highest value, 2.77 MPa.m0.5, belonged to the metal slitting saw method. Also, the results indicated that the effects of notching on toughness of RT-PMMA had a low notch sensitivity and the differences between minimum and maximum Kc values was found about 9%.

Abstract In this paper, a new loading device was employed to conduct a mixed-mode fracture test. Therefore, disadvantages detected in the previous mixed-mode fracture toughness test methods can be avoided. The new fixture has perfect symmetry which provides a uniform stress state, creates the pure plane strain conditions and eliminates the unwanted mode-III loading conditions. The values of non-dimensional stress intensity factors for pure mode-I, pure mode-II, and pure mode-III were obtained using 3D models of new loading device and modified Arcan method in order to compare the results and investigate the variation of fracture parameters. Furthermore, the values of correction factors for pure mode-III in various loading angles were studied for both fixtures and it was resulted that in modified Arcan device there was a larger contribution of unwanted third mode loading conditions and therefore the values of mode-I and mode-II non-dimensional stress intensity factors were affected. In the present study, in order to compare the results, the fracture toughness values of ABS (Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene) polymeric material were determined experimentally for both fixtures and a full range of mixed-mode loading conditions including pure mode-I and pure mode-II loading were created and tested. The differences in critical stress intensity factors of the fixtures were found about 7.00% and 42.65% in mode-I and mode-II loading conditions, respectively.