The reduction of stress concentration in a uni-axially loaded infinite width rectangular isotropic/orthotropic plate with central circular hole by coaxial auxiliary holes

A comprehensive plane stress finite element study is made for reduction of stress concentration factor (SCF) in a uni-axially loaded infinite width rectangular isotropic/orthotropic plate with central circular hole. The finite element formulation is carried out by the ANSYS package. With the help of present work, stress concentration can be reduced up to 24.4 % in an isotropic and 31 % in an orthotropic plate by introducing four coaxial auxiliary holes on either side of main hole. The study reveals that the introduction of these holes helps to smooth flow of the tensile stresses passes through the main hole and results, a reduction in stress concentration factor. With such reduction in maximum stress levels, the improvement in fatigue life of a component can be significant