Refined crack propagation methodology and energy balance analysis in the Rubber Cord Adhesion Inflation Test

The Rubber Cord Adhesion Inflation Test (RCAIT) has been recently introduced to characterize the bond quality between coated steel wires and rubber as used in tires applications. In this experiment, a pressurized fluid is used to initiate and propagate a delamination along the reinforcement. A constant pressure is measured during the crack propagation regime so that using adequate energy balance analysis, the critical Strain Energy Release Rate (SERR) can be determined. Due to the axisymmetric nature of the specimen, the crack tip is not visible nor other information which would ease the analysis of the fracture process. Then, new experimental developments and experimental data reduction techniques are introduced to demonstrate the reliability of the RCAIT.