A damage-based model for mixed-mode crack propagation in composite laminates

A model for the off-axis crack propagation in laminated fibre reinforced polymer composites subjected to multiaxial fatigue loadings is presented. On the basis of several observations reported in the literature, the crack propagation phenomenon can be seen as the result of a series of micro-scale events occurring ahead of the crack tip within a process zone. The mixed mode loading condition defines the type of the micro-scale events which occur in the process zone and lead to fatigue crack propagation. Based on this evidence and by using a multi-scale approach to determine the micro-scale stress fields in the matrix, two simple parameters are defined for predicting the crack growth rate through a Paris-like law. By extracting the proposed parameters from experimental data obtained from the literature, it is demonstrated that the crack propagation data are all included into two Paris-like scatter bands covering the whole mode-mixity range.