Mixed-mode crack initiation at a v-notch in presence of an adhesive joint

The failure criterion for v-notched specimens developed for mixed-mode loadings by Yosibash et al. [Yosibash, Z., Priel, E., Leguillon, D., 2006. A failure criterion for brittle elastic materials under mixed mode loading. Int. J. Fract. 141(1), 289–310.] is generalised in order to consider the influence of the shear stresses and the mode-dependence of the toughness. This is demonstrated to be important in some cases with adhesive joints under complex loadings for instance. The original criterion assumes that an abrupt onset of a crack with a finite extension occurs when two conditions are fulfilled simultaneously: first the normal traction all along the presupposed crack path reaches a critical value, and second the onset is energetically allowed. The influence of the shear stresses is now considered through a mixed law involving critical shear and tensile stresses as well as the mode-dependent toughness introducing a new equivalent SIF. This extended criterion is applied to the simulation of an Arcan test on v-notched compact tension shear (CTS) specimens made of two parts bonded together along the geometric plane of symmetry of the specimen. The competition between two modes of failure is studied: crack initiation along the weak joint which may constitute a privileged fracture surface and initiation in the homogeneous material at an optimum angle that minimizes the critical load to failure.