This book addresses the problems of fracture mechanics of materials with cracks under the loading directed along the cracks. It considers two non-classical fracture mechanisms, namely the fracture of bodies compressed along cracks and the fracture of materials with initial (residual) stresses acting in parallel to the surfaces of cracks location, and presents new approaches (also including combined one) developed in the framework of three-dimensional linearized mechanics of deformable bodies. It then discusses the results of studies on two- and three-dimensional problems for various configurations of crack locations in isotropic and anisotropic materials, and based on these results, critically evaluates the accuracy and applicability limits of the ¿beam approximation¿ approach, which is widely used to study various problems of the fracture of bodies under compression along parallel cracks.

Preliminary Consideration: Background, Approaches and their Analysis.- Main Principles of Fracture Mechanics of Materials loaded along Cracks.- Two-Dimensional Problems on Fracture of Bodies under Compression along Cracks.- Three-Dimensional Problems on Loading Bodies along Cracks.- Evaluating the Applicability Limits of the Beam Approximation in Analysis of the Problems on Compression of Bodies along Cracks.

 Alexander N. Guz was born on January 29, 1939, in Ichnia of Chernigov region of Ukraine and graduated from the Faculty of Mechanics and Mathematics of Kyiv State University in 1961. He is working at the S.P. Timoshenko Institute of Mechanics of the NASU (the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine) since 1960, receiving an appointment as Head of the Department of Dynamics and Stability of Continuum Media (1967) and serving as Director of the S.P. Timoshenko Institute of Mechanics of the NASU (from 1976 until present).

He received the Candidate of Sciences degree (Ph.D.) (1962) and the Doctor of Sciences degree (1965). He was named Professor (1969).

He is Academician of the NASU (1978), Member of the Academia Europaea (1992), Fellow of the New York Academy of Sciences (1997), Fellow of the World Innovation Foundation (2001), Member of the European Academy of Sciences (2002).

His principal scientific results have been obtained in mechanics of deformable solids and related problems of continuum mechanics: the three-dimensional theory of stability of deformable bodies, the theory of propagation and diffraction of elastic waves in multi-connected bodies and bodies with initial stresses, stress concentration around holes in shells, mechanics of composites materials and structural members utilizing them, aerohydroelasticity, non-classical problems of fracture mechanics, rock mechanics, dynamics of viscous compressible liquid, contact problems, mechanics of nanocomposites and non-destructive methods of stress determination.

He is the author or co-author of 71 books (including 20 solos) and about 1000 scientific papers (including more than 400 solo).

He has trained 36 Doctors and about 100 Candidates of Sciences.

His awards (prizes) include Medal BLAISE PASCAL of the European Academy of Sciences (2007), Medal LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT of the ICCEF (Int. Conf. on Comput. & Exper. Eng. and Sciences) (2012), DIPLOMA DI MERITO CON MEDALIA D'ORO of the European Scientific - Industrial Chamber (2013), Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award (2017), Order "HONOR" of the Kremlin Fund (Russia) (2007), State Prize of USSR (1985), State Prizes of Ukraine (1979, 1988), V.I.Vernadsky GOLD MEDAL of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (2014), Prize of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (1979, 1983, 2000, 2014, 2016, 2017).

He serves in the editorial boards of several international scientific journals and is the Editor-in-Chief of the international scientific journal Prikladnaya Mekhanika (International Applied Mechanics) (since 1976). He is the Chairman of the National Committee of Ukraine of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics (since 1993).

Multi-volume collective fundamental books: Methods of Shells Theory in five volumes (1980-1982), Mechanics of Composites Materials and Structural Members in three volumes (1982-1983), Three-Dimensional Problems of the Theory of Elasticity and Plasticity in six volumes (1984-1986), Mechanics of Coupled Fields in Constructive Members in five volumes (1987-1989), Non-Classical Problems of Fracture Mechanics in four volumes (1990-1994), Mechanics of Composites in twelve volumes (1993-2003), Advances of Mechanics in six volumes (2005-2012), Modern problems of mechanics in three volumes (2016-2018) were supervised and co-authored by Prof. A.N. Guz.

Some main scientific results of A.N.GUZ were presented (in English) in book "SERIES 'Classics of World Science,'volume 11, Olexander M GUZ" (TIMPANI, Ukraine, 2006, 521p.). This book is volume 11 of series "Classics of World Science" publishing by Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Ukraine. 

Viacheslav L. Bogdanov was born on November 25, 1965, in Kyiv Region of Ukraine and graduated from the Faculty of Mechanics and Mathematics of Kyiv State University in 1989. He is working at the S.P. Timoshenko Institute of Mechanics of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (NASU) since 1989, receiving an appointment as principal researcher (2009). He is serving as Chief Scientific Secretary of the NASU (from 2014 until present).

He received the Candidate of Sciences degree (Ph.D.) (1992) and the Doctor of Sciences degree (2009).

He is Academician of the NASU (2015).

His principal scientific results have been obtained in the mechanics of deformable solids: fracture mechanics, the three-dimensional theory of stability of deformable bodies, mechanics of composite materials. He developed a combined approach to investigating non-classical problems of fracture mechanics (problems of fracture of pre-stressed bodies with cracks and fracture of solids under compressive loading along parallel cracks).

He is co-author of 16 monographs, textbooks, reference publications and more than 120 scientific papers.

His scientific awards include State Prizes of Ukraine (2009), Honored Worker ofScience and Technology of Ukraine (2013), O. M. Dynnik Prize of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (2019).

He serves in the editorial boards of several scientific journals: international scientific journals Prikladnaya Mekhanika (International Applied Mechanics), journals Herald of the National Academy of Science of Ukraine and Reports of National Academy of Science of Ukraine. He is a Member of the National Committee of Ukraine of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics, Committee for Systems Analysis of NASU, Committee of State Prizes of Ukraine in Fields of Science and Technology. 

Vladimir M. Nazarenko was born on March 19, 1956, in city Orel (now Russia) and graduated from the Mechanical-Mathematical Faculty of Kyiv State University in 1978. He is working at the S.P. Timoshenko Institute of Mechanics of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (NASU) since 1978, receiving an appointment as Head of Computational Mechanics and Computing Department (from 2012 until present) and Deputy Director of the S.P. Timoshenko Institute of Mechanics of the NASU (from 2019 until present).

He received the Candidate of Sciences degree (Ph.D.) (1981) and the Doctor of Sciences degree (1988). He has the academic status Professor (1993).

He is a corresponding Member of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (2015).

The area of scientific interests is in deformable solid mechanics (mainly non-classical problems of fracture mechanics of materials for the interacting cracks).

He is the author (co-author) of more than 140 scientific works, including 5 monographs. He supervised 1 Doctor and 6 Candidate of Sciences Theses.

His scientific awards include Laureate of the State Prize of Ukraine in the Field of Science and Technology (2009), O. M. Dynnik Prize of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (2019). He is a Member of the National Committee of Ukraine of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics(1993).