Abstract
The stress distributions around hydrostatically loaded circular holes in the neighborhood of corners was determined by using photoelasticity and brittle coatings. Photoelasticity (by means of a diffused-light polariscope) was used to determine the maximum shear lines (isochromatics), and brittle coatings were used to determine the directions of the principal stresses (isostatics). Tests were conducted for six plates with different ratios of hole radius to hole distance to the exterior boundary of plate (R/L). The results of these tests are presented in the form of curves. These curves show the distribution of the maximum shear stress along the diagonal of the plate, the maximum principal stress along the edges of the plate and of the hole, and the maximum shear stress along a perpendicular line to the exterior boundary drawn from the center of the hole. All these values are given as a function of R/L. Curves also are presented which compare the stresses on the diagonal of the plate at the boundary of the hole with the stresses computed using Lamé’s equation for a thick-walled cylinder. Comparisons also are made with the results obtained by Jeffery for a semi-infinite plate with a circular hole subjected to a hydrostatic pressure. All results are given in dimensionless form with the applied pressure as reference. The results published in this paper are new, but the techniques used have been described previously in papers by researchers from the Armour Research Foundation.
