THE DEVELOPMENT OF FATIGUE DAMAGE AROUND FASTENER HOLES IN THICK GRAPHITE-EPOXY COMPOSITE LAMINATES

This paper discusses the mechanisms by which damage develops and grows around countersunk fastener holes in composite laminates under fatigue loading conditions. Experiments have shown that the erosion of material between ply layers nucleates delaminations which then grow through the laminate under the action of the fatigue loads. The damage at the hole bore surface produces sites for the nucleation of delaminations. The morphology of the delaminations and ply cracking was mapped extensively and from these maps it was found that the volume of material around the fastener hole, damaged by the fatigue loading, adopted a characteristic shape; the volume of damaged laminate increased towards the faying surface of the laminate and (metal) fixture. This characteristic damage volume was generated by the fastener rocking under the fatigue loads. Growth of the delaminations has been shown to be preceded by intraply cracking and, as fatigue loading proceeded, more delaminations were generated at the hole bore surface. The interfacial region between the composite laminate and the fixture also provided the nucleation site for fatigue cracks in the fasteners. The effects of initial fastener-hole clearances on damage nucleation and growth did not appear to follow any clear pattern. However, coupons with excessive initial hole clearances did appear to exhibit greater than expected damage growth after only one sequence block. Several techniques for the measurement of damage growth (development) were investigated. Stiffness measurements of the test system were found to show only small changes with hole wear and fastener rocking (using shadow moire techniques) also showed only small changes with hole wear. Ultrasonic C-scanning methods were used to map the extent of damage around the fastener holes with fatigue loading. The experimental work has shown that damage development around fastener holes is a complex process, usually producing several delaminations in the region of the fastener hole which grow and may ultimately lead to the failure of the coupon.