Interlaminar damage behavior of CFRP composite laminates under cyclic shear loading conditions

Abstract

This paper provides quantitative description of interlaminar damage process in CFRP composite laminates under cyclic shear loading. Quasi-static end-notched flexural (ENF) test on 16-ply CFRP composite laminate beam, [0]16 and its complementary validated FE model provide the reference “no-interlaminar damage” condition. Two identical ENF samples were fatigue to 50000 cycles, but at different load amplitude of 90 and 180 N, respectively (Load ratio, R = 0.1) to induce selectively property degradation at the interface crack front region. Subsequent quasi-static ENF tests establish the characteristic of the interlaminar damage degradation. The residual peak load for the fatigued ENF samples is measured at 1048 and 914 N for the load amplitude of 90 and 180 N, respectively. Cyclic interlaminar shear damage is represented by a linear degradation of the residual critical energy release rate, GIIC with the accumulated damage. Reasonably close comparisons of the predicted residual load-displacement responses with measured curves serve to verify the suitability of the assumed bilinear traction-separation law for the cyclic cohesive zone model (CCZM) used.