A discrete model of springs with bond-bending forces is proposed to simulate the fracture process in a composite of short stiff fibers in a softer matrix. Both components are assumed to be elastic up to failure. We find that the critical fiber length of a single fiber composite increases roughly linearly with the ratio of the fiber elastic modulus to matrix modulus. The finite size of the lattice in the ...
this paper presents statistical data on the strength of kevlar/epoxy strands. the authors conclude that at low volume fractions any effects of filament diameter variability are not readily observable in epoxy-impregnated strands. this indicates that the matrix plays a dominant smoothing role. also, for low-volume-fraction kevlar/epoxy strands weibull shape parameters for strength in the 30 to 40 range are reasonable, compared with shape parameters of 10 to 12 for single ...
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