A uniaxial tension experiment was performed for the thermoplastic AS4/PEEK composite laminate with a circular hole. Ultimately the specimen fractured in the vicinity of the minimum cross section of the laminate. Through micro-observation with the OLYMPUS micro-system, the fracture characters and sub-critical damages were captured. It can be concluded that delamination and matrix cracks occurred prior to final failure of the laminate. Furthermore, a numerical simulation for the notched laminacte under uniaxial tension was implemented with a 3D elastoplasticity model to interpret the damage mechanism of the notched laminate.
Kawai, M., Masuko, Y., Kawase, Y. and Negishi, R. ( 2001). Micromechanical Analysis of the Off-axis Rate-dependent Inelastic Behavior of Unidirectional AS4/PEEK at High Temperature, International Journal of Mechanical Sciences, 43: 2069-2090.
2.
Touchard-Lagattu, F. and Lafarie-Frenot , M.C. (1996). Damage and Inelastic Deformation Mechanisms in Notched Thermoset and Thermoplastic Laminates, Composites Science and Technology, 56: 557-568.
3.
Wang, J., Callus, P.J. and Bannister, M.K. ( 2004). Experimental and Numerical Investigation of the Tension and Compression Strength of Un-notched and Notched Quasi-isotropic Laminates , Composite Structures, 64: 297-306.
4.
Green, B.G., Wisnom, M.R. and Hallett, S.R. ( 2007). An Experimental Investigation into the Tensile Strength Scaling of Notched Composites, Composites: Part A, 38: 867-878.
5.
Zhao, J.H., Wang, X.F., Dharani, L.R. and Wei, J. ( 2000). Notch Stress Concentrations and Failure Characteristics in Laminates with Triple Parallel Notches, Composites Science and Technology, 60: 2865-2872.
6.
Toubal, L., Karama, M. and Lorrain, B. ( 2005). Stress Concentration in a Circular Hole in Composite Plate, Composite Structures, 68: 31-36.
7.
Li, F., He, Y., Fan, C., Li, H. and Zhang, H. ( 2008). Investigation on Three-dimensional Stress Concentration of LY12-CZ Plate with Two Equal Circular Holes Under Tension, Materials Science and Engineering A, 483-484: 474-476.
8.
Vautey, P. and Favre, J.P. ( 1990). Fibre/Matrix Load Transfer in Thermoset and Thermoplastic Composites - Single Fibre Models and Hole Sensitivity of Laminates, Composites Science and Technology, 38: 271-288.
9.
Lagace, P.A. , Bhat, N.V. and Gundogdu, A. (1993). Response of Notched Graphite/Epoxy and Graphite/PEEK Systems, In: Stinchcomb, W.W. and Ashbaugh, N.E. (eds), Composite Materials: Fatigue and Fracture, Vol. 4, pp. 55-71, ASTM STP1156, American Society for Testing and Materials, Philadelphia, PA.
10.
Ding, S.R., Tong, J.W. and Shen, M. ( 2005). The Three-dimensional Elastic-plastic Analysis of Interlaminar Stresses in Notched Thermoplastic Composites, Journal of Reinforced Plastics and Composites, 24(11): 1151-1158.
11.
Ding, S.R., Tong, J.W. and Shen, M. ( 2005). Numerical Simulation of Elastic-plastic Behavior of Thermoplastic Composites, Journal of Reinforced Plastics and Composites , 24(6): 649-655.
12.
Sun, C.T. and Chen, J.L. (1989). A Simple Flow Rule For Characterizing Nonlinear Behaviour of Fiber Composites, Journal of Composites Materials, 23: 1009-1020.
13.
Weeks, C.A. and Sun, C.T. (1998). Modeling Non-linear Rate-dependent Behaviour in Fiber-reinforced Composites, Composites Science and Technology, 58: 603-611.
