This book is an overview of ESIS Technical Committee 4's activities since the mid-1980s. A wide range of tests is described and the numerous authors is a reflection of the wide and enthusiastic support we have had. With the establishment of the Technical Committee 4, two major areas were identified as appropriate for the activity. Firstly there was an urgent need for standard, fracture mechanics based, test methods to be designed for polymers and composites. A good deal of academic work had been done, but the usefulness to industry was limited by the lack of agreed standards. Secondly there was a perceived need to explore the use of such data in the design of plastic parts. Some modest efforts were made in early meetings to explore this, but little progress was made. In contrast things moved along briskly in the standards work and this has dominated the activity for the last fourteen years. The design issue remains a future goal.

This book contains a selection of fully peer-reviewed papers which were presented at the 2nd ESIS TC4 Conference, held in Les Diablerets, Switzerland 13 - 15 September 1999. The meeting was designed to reflect the activities of the Committee over the last 15 years, and to plan future activities. The papers have been divided into four chapters under the headings of Composites, Elastic-Plastic Fracture, Adhesion, and Impact and General Fracture. These are convenient groupings, but there are many interactions between the areas, with the common theme of Fracture Mechanics underlying it all.

Application of Fracture Mechanics to Polymers, Adhesives and Composites

Fracture of Polymers, Composites and Adhesives II

Fracture Mechanics: Fundamentals and Applications, Fourth Edition is the most useful and comprehensive guide to fracture mechanics available. It has been adopted by more than 150 universities worldwide and used by thousands of engineers and researchers. This new edition reflects the latest research, industry practices, applications, and computational analysis and modeling. It encompasses theory and applications, linear and nonlinear fracture mechanics, solid mechanics, and materials science with a unified, balanced, and in-depth approach. Numerous chapter problems have been added or revised, and additional resources are available for those teaching college courses or training sessions. Dr. Anderson’s own website can be accessed at www.FractureMechanics.com.

Adhesive Bonding: Science, Technology and Applications, Second Edition guides the reader through the fundamentals, mechanical properties and applications of adhesive bonding. This thoroughly revised and expanded new edition reflects the many advances that have occurred in recent years. Sections cover the fundamentals of adhesive bonding, explaining how adhesives and sealants work, and how to assess and treat surfaces, how adhesives perform under stress and the factors affecting fatigue and failure, stress analysis, environmental durability, non-destructive testing, impact behavior, fracture mechanics, fatigue, vibration damping, and applications in construction, automotive, marine, footwear, electrical engineering, aerospace, repair, electronics, biomedicine, and bonding of composites. With its distinguished editor and international team of contributors, this book is an essential resource for industrial engineers, R&D, and scientists working with adhesives and their industrial applications, as well as researchers and advanced students in adhesion, joining, polymer science, materials science and mechanical engineering. - Offers detailed, methodical coverage of the fundamentals, mechanical properties and industrial applications of adhesive bonding - Enables the successful preparation of adhesives for a broad range of important load-bearing applications in areas such as automotive and aerospace, construction, electronics and biomedicine - Covers the latest advances in adhesive bonding, including improved repair techniques for metallic and composite structures, cohesive zone modeling, and disassembly and recycling