Fracture mechanics of single-fibre pull-out test

Pull-out of an elastic fibre from an elastic matrix was investigated. A simple pull-out mechanics has been developed, based on the fracture energy criterion, to describe the debonding process, including friction. Experiments were carried out using polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) fibres embedded in a polypropylene (PP) matrix. It was found that growth of an interfacial crack was stable after the initiation of a debond at the loaded fibre end. At first, the debonding force increased linearly with the crack length due to friction in the debonded region. However, the crack accelerated after reaching a critical length, dependent on the embedded fibre length. At this point, the force required to propagate the debond levelled off. Thus, further increase in the debonding force was not necessary to further complete the debonding process. The debonding force was found to be in good agreement with that predicted by the present theory. Techniques for determining the interfacial properties, including adhesive fracture energy, compressive residual stress and coefficient of friction, were considered. In addition, a simple criterion has been derived to predict which fibre end, either embedded end or loaded end, will debond first when the specimen is subjected to an axial load.