Fractograph-fatigue crack growth kinetics relationship for a fiber reinforced composite

Fatigue fractograph crack growth kinetics relationship of a fiber filled polymeric composite was analyzed. The crack length at different intervals measured during fatigue tests and various fracture regions were identified according to the morphological features. Static tensile test were conducted on both unnotched and notched specimens for the evaluation of stress strain relationship and residual tensile strength with a pre-crack. The stress was calculated based on the original cross-sectional area before testing and the crack length at various intervals of number of cycles was recorded during the tests. An optical magnifier with a zoom lens was used to monitor the crack growth and to record the crack length. Fatigue crack propagation kinetics analysis was based on the data of crack length and number of cycles. The fracture surface features revealed a high energy consumption process associated with the stable crack propagation.