A UNIFIED NUMERICAL FRAMEWORK FOR MODELING INTERACTIVE FAILURE MODES IN A SINGLE EDGE NOTCHED LAMINATED COMPOSITE UNDER TENSION

摘要

Interiaminar fracture in polymer matrix composite (PMC) laminates, often called delamination, is defined as an out-of-plane discontinuity between two adjacent plies of a laminate. Intralaminar cracks are defined as in-plane discontinuities that advance through the entire laminate thickness in the direction parallel to the fiber direction. These failure modes are competing with each other and one failure mode often initiates other failure mode, resulting in very complicated interactive failure mechanisms.