Abstract
The fatigue life of cracked steel members can be greatly extended by externally attached carbon fibre reinforced plastics (CFRP), which reduces the stress intensity factors (SIFs) at the crack tip. Access to cracks is sometimes limited and the CFRP has to be attached away from the cracks. There is a lack of knowledge on SIFs for such strengthening scheme. This paper presents the effects of CFRP bond locations on the Mode I SIF of centre-cracked tensile (CCT) steel plate. The Mode I SIF at the crack tip is calculated using the finite element (FE) models. A correction factor is introduced as a function of CFRP bond location and crack length. The FE results are compared and agree well with experimental tests conducted by the authors. By combining with another two factors (one considering CFRP mechanical properties and the other considering CFRP bond width) derived previously by the authors, SIF formulae are proposed for CFRP reinforced CCT steel plates.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 154-167 |
| Number of pages | 14 |
| Journal | Fatigue and Fracture of Engineering Materials and Structures |
| Volume | 36 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Feb 2013 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- composite patch repair
- fatigue crack propagation
- finite element modelling
- fracture mechanics
- steel
- stress intensity factor
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Materials Science
- Mechanics of Materials
- Mechanical Engineering