Asymmetric Shielding in Interfacial Fracture Under In-Plane Shear

Abstract

The toughness of a glass/epoxy interface was measured over a wide range of mode mixes. A toughening effect was associated with increasing positive and negative inplane shear components. Optical interference measurements of normal crack opening displacements near the crack front and complementary finite element analyses were used to examine near-front behavior during crack initiation. Estimates of the toughening based on plastic dissipation, bulk viscoelastic dissipation, and interface asperity shielding did not fully account for the measured values. The results suggest that the inelastic behavior of the epoxy, frictional, and, perhaps, three-dimensional effects should be considered.