Application of the V-Notch Shear Test as Applied to Unidirectional Hybrid Composites

Published

January 1, 2003

Author(s)

H Jianmei, Martin Chiang, Donald L. Hunston

Abstract

The modified Wyoming test fixture (ASTM D5379-93) with doubly v-notched specimens was investigated as a mean for determining the in-plane shear modulus and strength of unidirectional hybrid composites. Two types of hybrid systems having different fiber-tow volume fractions composed of carbon and glass fiber tows with epoxy matrix are employed in this study. A fiber-tow based finite element analysis was also used to simulate the v-notch shear test for characterizing stress/strain distributions of the specimen. The good agreement found between experiments and analysis suggests that the v-notch shear test is a viable mean for determining the elastic shear modulus of unidirectional hybrid composites. On the other hand, the use of this specimen for shear determination is questionable as no failure in the test region occurred in the specimens. Therefore, at this stage, we conclude that the v-notch shear test is only useful for the evaluation of the shear modulus, but not the shear strength, of the unidirectional hybrid composites. This study suggests that more detailed shear strength measurements of hybrid composites are needed.

Citation

Society for Experimental Mechanics

Volume

36

Issue

Iss. 23

Pub Type

Journals

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Keywords

carbon/glass tows, finite element modeling, hybrid composites, iosipescu shear test, shear properties, V-notch specimen

Citation

Jianmei, H. , Chiang, M. and Hunston, D. (2003), Application of the V-Notch Shear Test as Applied to Unidirectional Hybrid Composites, Society for Experimental Mechanics, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=852000 (Accessed October 16, 2025)