Damage Mechanics Analysis of Transverse Cracking Behavior in Composite Laminates

A damage mechanics analysis is applied to predict transverse cracking in a laminated composite. Two criteria based on the energy release rate and the average ply stress are used to predict transverse cracking. The analytical prediction of transverse crack density as a function of applied laminate strain is favorably compared with the experimental results. An advantage of the present predictive method is that it can be applied to laminates with arbitrary stacking sequences.