In this paper we present the numerical analysis of the quasi-static behavior of an unbalance cracked shaft with straight and elliptical cracks considering an eccentric mass. The rotation of the shaft has been simulated by considering different angular positions to complete one rotation. The influence of the mass eccentricity in the opening of the crack has been studied considering different angles of eccentricity. The study of the partially opening/closing of the crack in the rotation of the shaft under the influence of the eccentric mass is analyzed. The work allows us to know the influence of the unbalance in the crack breathing mechanism and will help to predict the influence of this behavior on the values of the Stress Intensity Factor and on the propagation of cracks.

In this study, two closed-form solutions for determining the first two natural frequencies of the flapwise bending vibration of a cracked Euler–Bernoulli beam at low rotational speed have been developed. To solve the governing differential equations of motion, the Frobenius method of solution in power series has been used. The crack has been modeled using two undamaged parts of the beam connected by a rotational spring. From the previous results, two novel polynomial expressions have been developed to obtain the first two natural frequencies as a function of angular velocity, slenderness ratio, cube radius and crack characteristics (depth and location). These expressions have been formulated using multiple regression techniques. To the knowledge of the authors, there is no similar expressions in the literature, which calculate, in a simple way, the first two natural frequencies based on beam features and crack parameters, without the need to know or solve the differential equations of motion governing the beam. In summary, the derived natural frequency expressions provide an extremely simple, practical, and accurate instrument for studying the dynamic behavior of rotating cracked Euler–Bernoulli beams at low angular speed, especially useful, in the future, to establish small-scale wind turbines’ maintenance planes.

In this work, a procedure to obtain an accurate value of the critical speed of a cracked shaft is presented. The method is based on the transversal displacements of the cracked section when the shaft is rotating at submultiples of the critical speed. The SERR (Strain Energy Ralease Rate) theory and the CCL (Crack Closure Line) approach are used to analyse the proposed methodology for considering the behaviour of the crack. In order to obtain the best information and to define the procedure, the orbits and the frequency spectra at different subcritical rotational speed intervals are analyzed by means of the Fast Fourier Transform. The comparison of the maximum values of the FFT peaks within the intervals allows the subcritical speed to be determined, along with the value of the critical speed. When verified, the proposed procedure is applied to shafts with the same geometry and material and with cracks of increasing depth. The results show that the critical speed diminishes with the severity of the crack, as expected. A comparison is made between the critical speed obtained using the vertical and the horizontal displacements, finding no remarkable differences, meaning that in practical applications only one sensor for one of the displacements (in the vertical or horizontal direction) is needed to determine the critical speed. This is one of the main contributions of the paper, as it means that the orbits of the shaft are not needed. Finally, after this study we can conclude that the best results are achieved when the critical speed is obtained using data displacement in only one direction within the intervals around $\frac{1}{2}$ or $\frac{1}{3}$ of the critical speed.