Analysis of a shear fracture in unidirectional fiber-reinforced composites. II (For the case that the displacement on boundaries is constrained in the direction normal to the shear fracture)

Abstract

A semi-infinite shear fracture initiated from notch roots or other stress concentrators in undidrectional fiber-reinforced composites is considered on the basis of the two-dimensional theory of orthotropic elasticity. In a previous paper we have dealt with the stress intensity factors at the tip of a semi-infinite shear fracture in an infinite strip with stress-free-boundaries under tensile loading. As a result we have pointer out that the well-known method of energy balance is inappropriate for estimating stress intensity factors. The present paper continues from the previous paper and deals with the stress intensity factors for the case where the displacement on boundaries is constrained in the direction normal to the shear fracture. In contrast to the result of the previous paper, the energy balance method gives a good approximation to the stress intensity factors for both the opening and in-plane-shear modes.