SUMMARY
In this paper, the stability of rectangular cracked plates with nonlinearly variable thickness resting on the elastic foundations is studied. The thickness of the plate varies exponentially along the x-axis. Meanwhile, the elastic foundation is modeled by a two-parameter Pasternak elastic foundation type. The crack is assumed at the center of the plate with variable length and angle of inclination. The establishment of the stability equations of the cracked plate is based on the Higher Order Shear Deformation Theory (HSDT) combined with the phase field theory. Next, using the finite element method to solve the equations to find the minimum force that causes plate instability. To test the reliability of the computational theory, the results are compared with several reputable published papers. Then, the article will investigate the influence of elastic foundation, crack location, crack length and crack inclination on the stability of plate. The results show that the elastic foundation has a great influence on the plate stability, while the crack inclination angle has less influence. Finally, there are some images of the destabilization patterns of cracked plates placed on an elastic foundation.