Analysis of multiple cracks in laminate composites under anti-plane static loads

This paper investigates multiple cracking of a laminate composite subjected to anti‐plane loads. The laminate composite is made up of a central layer sandwiched between two layers of different properties. There is a periodic array of cracks in the central layer along the central axis of the medium. A singular integral equation is formulated in terms of the crack‐face displacement. The model developed is applied to the analysis of fibre multiple cracking in fibre‐matrix laminate composites. It is also applied to the analysis of matrix cracking in fibre‐matrix laminate composites. Numerical results have been given for the effects of crack spacing and constituent volume fraction on the crack tip field intensity factor and stress.