1 The Fracture Behaviour of Adhesively-Bonded Composite Joints: Effects of Rate of Test and Mode of Loading

The present paper discusses the results of an investigation into the effects of test rate and the mode of loading on the fracture energy, Gc, of adhesively-bonded fibre-composite joints. Various carbon-fibre reinforced-polymer (CFRP) matrix composite substrates have been bonded using two different types of automotive structural epoxy-adhesives. They have been tested via loading the bonded joints in mode I (tensile), mode II (in-plane shear) and mixed-mode I/II from slow rates (i.e. of about 10-5 m/s) up to relatively high rates of test of about 15 m/s. The high-rate tests were photographed using a high-speed digital video camera to record the deformation of the joint and the fracture behaviour. An analysis strategy has been developed for the various modes of loading (i) to account for the observed fracture behaviour, (ii) to circumvent the problems posed by oscillations in the load traces due to the presence of dynamic effects in the faster tests, and (iii) to account for the kinetic energy associated with the moving specimen arms in the faster tests. Based on the analysis strategy developed, the effect of the test rate on the fracture energy, Gc, for the different loading modes for the joints has been ascertained. Furthermore, various different fracture paths were observed in the tests