Critical Load Prediction in Notched E/Glass–Epoxy-Laminated Composites Using the Virtual Isotropic Material Concept Combined with the Average Strain Energy Density Criterion

• Main Authors: Marcos Sánchez, Sergio Cicero, Ali Reza Torabi, Majid Reza Ayatollahi
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-03-01
• Series: Polymers
• Subjects: fracture; Virtual Isotropic Material Concept (VIMC); Average Strain Energy Density criterion (ASED); notch; laminated composite
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/13/7/1057
• ISSN: 2073-4360

This paper attempts to validate the application of the Virtual Isotropic Material Concept (VIMC) in combination with the average strain energy density (ASED) criterion to predict the critical load in notched laminated composites. This methodology was applied to E/glass–epoxy-laminated composites containing U-notches. For this purpose, a series of fracture test data recently published in the literature on specimens with different notch tip radii, lay-up configurations, and a number of plies were employed. It was shown that the VIMC–ASED combined approach provided satisfactory predictions of the last-ply failure (LPF) loads (i.e., critical loads).