Boundary element analysis of singular hygrothermal stresses in a bonded viscoelastic thin film

This paper deals with the stress singularity induced at the interface corner between the viscoelastic thin ®lm and the rigid substrate subjected to the combined in¯uence of temperature change and moisture absorption. A boundary element analysis is employed to investigate the behavior of interface stresses. The ®lm is assumed to be thermorheologically simple. It is further assumed that moisture e€ects are analogous to thermal e€ects. Numerical results are presented for a given viscoelastic model, indicating the singular residual stresses induced during cooling down from the curing temperature, and how they can be altered by subsequent moisture absorption at room temperature