Experimental Study of Mode II Fracture of Hybrid Composite and Metal-Wire Joints

In order to join a composite structure to a metallic structure, metal-wire mats were co-cured with composite laminas using the Vacuum Assisted Resin Transfer Molding (VARTM) technique. Then, interface fracture toughness was measured for Mode II fracture for various lay-up and interface conditions. The study included interfaces of metal-wire to composite, composite to composite, and metal-wire to metal-wire. In addition, the lay-up orientations of metal-wire mats were either 0 or 90 degrees. The study also examined the crack propagation from a composite to a metal/composite interface. During the test, the digital image correlation technique was applied to capture the strain field around the crack tip. The results suggested that a hybrid metal-wire/composite laminate would be effective to connect a composite structure to a metallic structure as long as some critical interface conditions were avoided.