Theoretical and Applied Fracture Mechanics

Theoretical and Applied Fracture Mechanics is published by Elsevier and is in Zone 2 of Engineering in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Fatigue and fracture mechanics, Numerical methods in engineering and Rock Mechanics and Modeling, together about 44% of its articles. Its main subfields are Mechanics of Materials. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)

Theoretical and Applied Fracture Mechanics covers both the theoretical, applied, and numerical aspects associated with cracking related phenomena taking place, at a micro-, meso-, and macroscopic level, in materials/components/structures of any kind.The Journal aims to cover the cracking/mechanical behaviour of materials/components/structures in those situations involving both time-independent and time-dependent systems of external forces/moments (such as, for instance, quasi-static, impulsive, impact, blasting, creep, contact, and fatigue loading). Since, under the above circumstances, the mechanical behaviour of cracked materials/components/structures is also affected by the environmental conditions, the Journal considers also those theoretical/experimental research works investigating the effect of external variables such as, for instance, the effect of corrosive environments as well as of high/low-temperature. The Journal also considers technical articles assessing the cracking behaviour of new materials used in modern and alternative applications, i.e., not only strictly related to engineering. Further, the most advanced technological findings in the surface engineering field are seen to strongly influence the cracking/mechanical behaviour of materials. Accordingly, technical articles investigating, both from a theoretical and an experimental point of view, the existing interactions between the above aspects and the material cracking behaviour are considered for publication.The modelling of the phenomena of interest for the Journal can be based on the conventional linear-elastic/elasto-plastic fracture mechanics concepts as well as on novel (or emerging) theories. The Journal is keen to publish new/alternative modelling/design approaches, provided that such innovative theories are soundly based on the state-of-the-art knowledge and, when possible, validated through appropriate experimental results. In more general terms, cracks act as stress/strain concentrators. Accordingly, the Journal is very keen to consider for publication also those studies investigating the effect on the mechanical behaviour of materials/components/structures of different kinds of stress/strain concentrators such as defects, microstructural in-homogeneities, and, above all, notches of any kind. In more detail, one of the new features of Theoretical and Applied Fracture Mechanics is releasing regular issues addressing, in a systematic way, the notch mechanics problem.The increasing computational power of modern computers is strongly encouraging the scientific community to develop novel methodologies suitable for modelling the mechanical behaviour of materials/components/structures containing any kind of stress/strain concentrators (i.e., not only cracks and notches, but also defects and microstructural in-homogeneities). Accordingly, Theoretical and Applied Fracture Mechanics aims to publish, through regular issues fully focussed on computational mechanics, also those technical articles addressing the theoretical/computational aspects leading to an efficient and accurate modelling of the behaviour, at a micro-, meso-, and macroscopic level, of materials and structures containing stress/strain raisers of any kind.Theoretical and Applied Fracture Mechanics is organised according to the following topical issues:1. Miscellany of technical articles fully meeting this aims and scope; 2. Technical articles investigating the notch mechanics field; 3. Technical articles devoted to the computational mechanics aspects; 4. Themed threads, guest-edited by experts, where the themes of interest could not necessarily be addressed in a single issue: this would create a string of issues showing, over years, the progresses made in a specific area of the fracture/notch/computational mechanics discipline.

From the journal's Aims & Scope

Research area (LetPub): Engineering, Mechanical

Editor-in-chief L. SusmelPublisher website

Editorial board by country: 7 in mainland China (about 14%); most named Mainland China 7, United States 7, Italy 7, United Kingdom 4, Germany 4 (50 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website · 2026-10-01

CAS Journal Ranking

Database indexing

SCIEScopusLetPub

International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub

Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.

Impact

Impact factor

6LetPub · 2026-09-13

Impact factor (publisher)

6Publisher website · 2026-10-01

CiteScore 2026-06

10.4LetPub · 2026-09-13

CiteScore (publisher)

10.4Publisher website · 2026-10-01

SJR 2026-06

1.32LetPub · 2026-09-13

SNIP 2026-06

1.46LetPub · 2026-09-13

h-index

51LetPub · 2026-09-13

h-index

106OpenAlex · 2026-10-01

i10-index

2,990OpenAlex · 2026-10-01

2-year mean citedness

6.64OpenAlex · 2026-10-01

Self-citation rate

16.7%LetPub · 2026-09-13

Share of gold OA articles

12.53%LetPub · 2026-09-13

Volume

Articles per year

497LetPub · 2026-09-13

Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.

Figures by source

Average review time (community reports)

over 12 weeksLetPub · 2026-09-13

Average acceptance (community reports)

EasyLetPub · 2026-09-13

Submission to first decision

1 daysPublisher website · 2026-10-01

First decision after review

23 daysPublisher website · 2026-10-01

Submission to acceptance

71 daysPublisher website · 2026-10-01

Acceptance to publication

3 daysPublisher website · 2026-10-01

Peer review

Single anonymous peer reviewPublisher website

Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.

A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.

The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.

Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.

Publisher

Elsevier

Country or region

NETHERLANDS

Language

English

Frequency

Bimonthly

ISSN

0167-8442

Electronic ISSN

1872-7638

Official links

• Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
• Submission system ↗Publisher website
• Special issues ↗Publisher website