Fracture Toughness Theories

The term fracture toughness or toughness with a symbol, R or Gc, used throughout this chapter refers to the work dissipated in creating new fracture surfaces of a unit nominal cross-sectional area, or the critical potential energy release rate, of a composite specimen with a unit kJ/m. Fracture toughness is also often measured in terms of the critical stress intensity factor, with a unit MPay/m, based on linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM) principle. The various micro-failure mechanisms that make up the total specific work of fracture or fracture toughness are discussed in this section. [Pg.239]

Summary of the failure mechanisms in fiber reinforced composites [Pg.241]