A Shear Deformation Model for Transverse Cracking in Composite Laminates

Transverse cracking is often the earliest failure mode of composite lami- nates with off axis plies. These cracks usually cause stiffness reductions and thus adversely affect performance. In this article, a shear deformation model for the stress analysis of symmetric laminates with centrally located 90° plies subjected to transverse cracking is presented. Axial stiffness reduction predictions are compared with test data and results from other models for (0 type cross-ply laminates. The shear deformation analysis is not limited to such laminates as demonstrated by predictions for (± 25/90 type lami- nates.