Damage and fracture mechanisms of textile composites

A simple model for the description of damage and fracture of textile composite monolayers is suggested. The low shear resistance of the composite in off-reinforcement directions is taken into account. The model includes, apart from the main crack, an area of disperse shear damage and cracklike damages similar to shear cracks. It is shown that the model is in qualitative agreement with experimental data and allows one to estimate the parameters characterizing the resistance of textile composites to various types of damage.