CERAMICS COMPOSITE INTEGRAL T-JOINT: A COMBINED EXPERIMENTAL AND NUMERICAL STUDY

Ming Xie, Som R. Soni, Joseph E. Grady

ABSTRACT

Ceramics composite integral T-joints were tested in a three-point loading fixture, which applied the tensile and bending load to the specimen. A finite element analysis was utilized to model the T-joint under tensile-flexural loading. Some two-dimensional woven fiber reinforced specimens had initial crack at the joint and this initial defect was incorporated into the finite element model. The stress and strain distribution at the joint section were investigated. The analytical predictions were utilized to explain the experimental observations.