A yield criterion for isotropic and cross‐anisotropic cohesive‐frictional materials

Abstract This paper proposes a yield and failure criterion for cohesive and frictional materials. The function is given by the combination of a Lode dependence for the behaviour in the deviatoric plane and a meridian function for the pressure‐dependent behaviour. A variety of shapes can be achieved with the proposed criterion including Lode dependences which are able to reproduce the behaviour of isotropic and cross‐anisotropic materials in the deviatoric plane. The criterion is validated through the comparison with experimental data based on multiaxial experimental tests on clays, sands, rocks and concrete. Finally, the convexity of the criterion is analysed and discussed. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.