Thermoelastic behaviour of masonry-like solids with temperature-dependent Young's modulus

In this paper, by limiting the treatment to thermomechanical uncoupling, we study the behaviour of masonry-like materials and analyse the influence of the temperature dependence of the Young's modulus on the stress field and crack distribution in a spherical container subjected to internal and external uniform radial pressures and steady temperature distributions. If the Young's modulus E does not depend on temperature, the solution to the equilibrium problem can be calculated explicitly. Instead, when E depends on temperature, the solution is calculated numerically via the finite element code NOSA. The solutions corresponding to constant and temperature-dependent Young's moduli are compared, and the influence of the temperature dependence of E on the specific heat is assessed.