Fracture mechanics of a new blister test with stable crack growth

A new blister test is proposed to measure the specific work of adhesion W between a thin flexible film on a rigid substrate. In contrast to the conventional blister loaded by constant fluid pressure which leads to catastrophic crack propagation, the new test is driven by an internal expansion of a fixed mass of working gas which leads tostable crack growth. The new technique is demonstrated by measuring W of an interface with a commercial sticky tape serving as the thin film and aluminium as the rigid substrate.