Model I Interlaminar Fracture Toughness of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer Matrix Composites

Abstract

Carbon fiber reinforced polymer matrix composites have been widely used in many fields. It is necessary to test the performance of interlaminar fracture toughness of composites and provide useful information for product development and material selection. In this paper polymer matrix films embedding with carbon fiber reinforced composite laminates curing at high temperature were used to study the performance of model I inter-laminar fracture toughness. Mode I interlaminar fracture toughness of composites reinforced by carbon fiber was measured according to ASTM D5528 standard. Three groups of samples cut into double cantilever beam (DCB) specimens were measured to compare their performance. The results showed that there was no fiber-bridging in multidirectional composite laminations. The delamination for all specimens extended slowly and stably. All of three groups of carbon fiber composites had strong model I interlaminar fracture toughness and high delamination tolerances. The sensitive to delamination is different because of different composition of these three carbon fiber reinforced composites.