Abstract
Whether or not the fractured surfaces of epoxy adhesives have fractal characteristics was investigated using the box counting method. Experiments confirmed that surfaces under both static and fatigue (cyclic) loadings have fractal characteristics. Fractals are shown to be useful in the quantitative characterization of the fractured surfaces of adhesives. The fractal dimension of fractured surfaces can be related to the fracture toughness and the fatigue crack growth rate. The fractal dimension was also examined from the physical point of view using a linear finite element analysis. The energy release rates were calculated for different model surfaces having the same nominal roughness (evaluated by the maximum depth) but different geometry. It was found that the energy release rate increased more for a surface having more complex geometry, i.e. a larger fractal dimension. The fractal dimension shows the complexity of fractured surfaces. There exists a certain relationship between the fractal dimension and the energy to create a new surface.
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