An Analysis of Mode-I Fracture in Carbon-Epoxy Laminate for the Prediction of Critical Loads and Crack Lengths

Present work deals with the analysis of a four layered symmetric angle-ply CFRP laminate for the prediction of critical load for an existing crack and critical crack length at an existing load that causes mode-I fracture in laminate. The problem is simulated in finite element software ANSYS. Virtual crack closure technique (VCCT) is used to estimate the strain energy release rate (SERR). The effect of fiber orientation and crack length on SERR and condition of the laminate are studied.