Probability distributions for the strength of composite materials I: two-level bounds

Abstract

An upper bound is obtained on the probability distribution for the strength of composite materials. The analysis is based on the chain-of-bundles probability model, and local load sharing is assumed for the nonfailed fiber elements in each bundle. The bound is based on the occurence of two or more adjacent broken fibers in a bundle. This event is necessary but not sufficient for the failure of the material. Two distributions are assumed for fiber strength: the usual Weibull distribution and a more realistic double version which has much the effect of putting a ceiling on fiber strength. For large composite materials, the upper bound becomes a Weibull distribution but with a shape parameter which is twice that for the individual fibers. The bound is always conservative, but it is extremely tight when the variability in fiber strength is low. In typical cases, the use of the double Weibull distribution for fiber strength is shown not to affect the behavior of the bound significantly. In view of the additional experimental and computational labor involved, its use in practice may not be justified in such cases. However, its use does shed light on fracture processes in composite materials.