The Bearing strength of e-glass/vinyl-ester composites fabricated by vartm

This paper investigates the bearing properties of mechanically fastened glass-fiber/vinyl-ester composite joints. Two glass composites of different fabrics and lay-ups were fabricated by vacuum-assisted resin-transfer molding (VARTM) and tested by using a double-lap joint configuration. The results of this study are presented as experimental characterization and analytical prediction. The major focus of the experimental part of the paper was to characterize the bearing failure behavior of these composites. The effects of geometric parameters were evaluated and correlated with the resulting bearing strength and failure modes by the statistical method of analysis of variance. From the experimental results obtained, it is concluded that the edge-distance ratio (e/d) and thickness of the specimen strongly affect the bearing strength of the composites. On the other hand, the failure mode is determined by the width ratio (w/d). In the analytical part of the study, Chang’s strength-prediction model, which is based on a two-dimensional finite-element analysis, was utilized to predict the bearing strength of these composite joints. The predicted values were compared with the experimental data obtained from this study and the results suggest that this model can be used to give accurate predictions of the bearing strength of these composites.