Multiple fracture of fiber-reinforced brittle matrix composites based on micromechanics

This paper presents a study of a crack in a semi-infinite brittle matrix reinforced with continuous fiber by incorporating a micromechanical model. In general, fibers sustain the extension of a crack in three different phenomena: bridging, debonding, and sliding along the fiber-matrix interface. The spacings between successively developed cracks are derived by the maximum stress criterion in the matrix; in the meantime, the bridging stress and the factor of sliding are determined by using the inclusion method. The stability and growth of matrix cracking in a semi-infinite, fiber-reinforced composite are described by means of the energy approach. The responses of multiple fracture corresponding to stress-strain curves have also been presented. Finally, the external stress at the theoretical ending point, beyond which multiple matrix cracking ceases to develop, can be predicted from the theoretical model.