Failure of Composite Joints under Combined Tension and Bolt Loads

Abstract

By observing results of experimental program for testing static strength of composite laminates under combined by-pass tension and bolt load, a tension failure factor is proposed herein to determine the failure modes of the composites. Comparison with experimental results shows that the proposed tension failure factor is a reasonable indicator. Possible application for estimating failure loads by interpolation of available data is illustrated with a numerical example.