Extensive lecture notes are provided. The purchase of text-books is not necessary for the successful completion of this course though it is encouraged for extra learning.

Electronic copies of the lecture notes as well as any additional material provided in-class will be available through the online myuni system.

Many suitable text-books are available for further reading through the University of Adelaide Library, and are available for purchase from text-book suppliers.

Recommended reading:

• Anderson, T.L. Fracture Mechanics – Fundamentals and Applications. CRC Press.
• Janssen, M., Zuidema, J., Wanhill, R. Fracture Mechanics. Spon Press.

Electronic copies of the lecture notes as well as any additional material provided in-class will be available through the online myuni system. Extended study material will also be provided through the online system for students keen to gain further knowledge and application.

Course material is delivered through lectures, which are supported each week by problem-solving tutorials and lab classes. The regular lab classes provide hands on experience with the material learnt in the lectures. The problem-solving tutorials give students a chance to try and solve mathematical fracture mechanics problems from each topic.

Fracture Mechanics is a challenging subject containing a series of new concepts, theories and solution methods, which are linked like a chain. Since the subject is concept and theory intensive, the most effective way to understand the new concepts and theories is to attend the lectures and tutorials. During a lecture you can have instant interactions with the lecturer, by asking questions and thinking about questions raised by others. It is always a good idea to read the lecture notes before attending a lecture, for just a few minutes, to make sure that you know roughly the material to be covered in the lecture.

Lectures, tutorials, and lab classes comprise of 4 hours contact time per week. The total amount of time needed each week by the student to revise lecture notes and complete the assignments/reports will vary greatly from student to student. As a rough guide, the average standard undergraduate course weekly workload for a 3 unit course is 12 hours, including contact time.

The course structure is as follows:

There are no course specific requirements

The assessment tasks listed above, with the exception of the final exam, are not compulsory and have no minimum grade requirements. However, all assessment tasks are included in the calculation of the final course grade. It should be noted that students choosing not to complete an assessment task will receive no feedback on that task or stage of the course and will severely hinder their learning.

Assignments and in-class tutorials are provided as part of the learning experience. Students are expected to enhance their knowledge, problem solving skills and understanding of the subject matter through completing the assignments and quizzes. The assignments and tutorials are marked, with the mark contributing to the final grade for the subject.

The case study, fracture prediction project and lab classes allow students to consolidate and apply all of the material they have covered in the course. These assessments focus on the ability of the students to analyse a practical problem based on what they have learned in the course.

The examination is a summative assessment and is intended to assess the students’ knowledge and understanding of the course material and how it fits into the global engineering context. The exam is open-book.

Submission of assignments and reports is through hardcopies via the submission boxes located on level 2 of Engineering South Building Assignment submission area. Please ensure a cover sheet is attached to all submissions.