Analytical and numerical investigation of the length of the cohesive zone in delaminated composite materials

• Type: Chapter or Part of a Book
• Date: 2008

Authors

Albert Turon (Author) Other; Josep Costa (Author) FEUP; Pedro P. Camanho (Author) FEUP; Pere Maimí (Author) Other

Book

Title: Mechanical Response of Composites

1º Edition

Pages: 77-97

ISBN: 978-1-4020-8583-3

Electronic ISBN: 978-1-4020-8584-0

Publisher: Springer

Indexing

ISI Web of Science

Scopus

Scientific classification

FOS: Engineering and technology > Mechanical engineering

CORDIS: Technological sciences > Engineering

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-00R-ZRZ

DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4020-8584-0_4

Abstract (EN): An accurate prediction of the length of the cohesive zone ahead of a crack tip is fundamental for the correct simulation of delamination in composite materials under both quasi-static and fatigue loading. To ensure a correct dissipation of energy during delamination propagation, several cohesive finite elements have to span the cohesive zone. The length of the cohesive zone depends on the material properties, the geometry/size of the structure, and on the loading mode. This chapter presents new expressions to estimate the length of the cohesive zone under general mixed-mode loading conditions and for finite-sized geometries. The analytical model is validated by comparing its predictions with numerical results based on cohesive-zone models. The relevance of the proposed analytical solutions to the effective simulation of delamination is demonstrated by simulating delamination growth under mixed-mode loading using meshes with the length of the elements greater than the cohesive zone length.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific