An asymptotic analysis of delamination buckling and growth in layered plates (Q1579906)

The authors analyze delamination buckling and delamination growth in compressively loaded layered elastic plates. The delamination growth process starts from an initial interlaminar adhesion defect, and then propagates as induced by buckling. The governing equations for buckling and initial postbuckling are derived by an asymptotic analysis. Then the energy release rate concept is applied to analyze the delamination growth. Two techniques are employed, namely the global energy approach, and the local \(J\)-integral approach. For the two cases, the authors investigate the asymptotic accuracy of the postbuckling calculations. A general model of layered plates is proposed, in which global instability of the whole plate can occur together with local instability of the layers. In addition, the authors examine some simplified models which may be useful in engineering applications, although based on hypotheses about the plane geometry. Numerical results show the effectiveness of the developed models. For vanishing layer thickness, the results obtained by using the general model converge to the results obtained from the thin film approximation.