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Ductile cracked structures yield locally under load to form a plastic zone (pz) around their crack
tips. As the crack behavior strongly depends on this pz size, and as most cracked structures design routines
depend on it, its precise estimation is a problem of major practical importance. The first classical pz estimates
are based only on the stress intensity factor (SIF), but their precision is limited to very low nominal stresses.
Improved estimates have been proposed considering the T-stress, obtained from the Williams series zero order
term. However, neither SIF, nor SIF+T-stress based estimates can reproduce linear elastic (LE) stress fields that
satisfy all boundary conditions in cracked components. In particular, the nominal stresses far from the crack tip,
which have a major influence on the predicted pz size and shape. To prove this point, this paper first presents
the complete LE stress field solution for the Griffith plate, using three different methods to arrive in the same
analytical solution: the first is based on its Westergaard stress function, the second starts from the equivalent
Inglis plate (considering its elliptical notch root as equal to about half the crack tip opening displacement), and
the third is based on the complete Williams series. Next it introduces the equilibrium corrections necessary to
compensate for the stress limitation inside the plastic zone. Then it compares pz estimates generated from this
complete solution with classical SIF and SIF+T-stress pz estimates for various nominal stress to yield strength
ratios, demonstrating the importance of using correct stress fields to evaluate such pz, particularly for the
relatively high ratios used in high-performance structures. Finally, it speculates that for more complex
structures, where the component geometry and type of loading may also significantly influence pz sizes and
shapes, the plastic zones can be better estimated by a similar approach.