  Review of selected fundamental topics on the interaction between phase
transformations, fracture, and other structural changes in inelastic materials
is presented. It mostly focuses on the concepts developed in the author's group
over last three decades and numerous papers that affected us. It includes a
general thermodynamic and kinetic theories with sharp interfaces and within
phase field approach. Numerous analytical (even at large strains) and numerical
solutions illustrate the main features of the developed theories and their
application to the real phenomena. Coherent, semicoherent, and noncoherent
interfaces, as well as interfaces with decohesion and with intermediate liquid
(disordered) phase are discussed. Importance of the surface- and scale-induced
phenomena on interaction between phase transformation with fracture and
dislocations as well as inheritance of dislocations and plastic strains is
demonstrated. Some nontrivial phenomena, like solid-solid phase transformations
via intermediate (virtual) melt, virtual melting as a new mechanism of plastic
deformation and stress relaxation under high strain rate loading, and phase
transformations and chemical reactions induced by plastic shear under high
pressure are discussed and modeled.
