Fracture analysis of notched composites

In this study the problem of part-through cracks emanating from a central notch in a composite laminate is considered. The composite laminate is modeled as an orthotropic plate and along the branches, it is assumed that the stresses are carried by the fibers only. The stresses along the uncracked portions are assumed to be proportional to the crack opening displacement at that point. After formulating the branched crack problem, the model is applied to a (4 + or - 45 deg) 2s composite laminate. The stress concentration factors for the fibers are computed for various values of the spring constant K.