Peridynamic modeling of delamination growth in composite laminates

Delamination growth predictions in previous peridynamic models were based on the assumption of constant critical stretch for each interlayer bond interaction. This study presents a new approach to terminate the interlayer peridynamic bonds. The critical stretch of a bond is implicitly determined by using the measured critical energy release rate values for different modes of deformation, and can vary depending on the degree of deformation. The bond failure occurs when the amount of energy required to remove the bonds across a unit surface equals the critical energy release rate of the interface between the two layers. This approach is applied to model delamination growth in double cantilever beam (DCB) (Mode I) and transverse crack tension (TCT) (Mode II dominated) specimens. The peridynamic predictions correlate well with the numerical and experimental results available in the literature.