Investigation of the Effects of Different Edge Crack Orientation Angles on Composite Plates Under Hygrothermal Influence

Investigating edge cracks in composite materials is critical for evaluating parameters such as fracture toughness and energy release rate in anisotropic structures, determining stress concentrations and examining crack failure propagation behavior. Although studies investigating the effects of edge cracks on composite materials are found in the literature, no studies have been found on the investigation of edge cracks in composite materials under hygrothermal influence. Therefore, in this study, material data were taken from the literature, and modeling was performed according to the linear elastic fracture theorem using the finite element method (FEM) for a constant edge length of 5 mm and different crack orientation angles (0°, +15°, -15°, +30°, -30°, +45° and -45°). In the models, in addition to the geometric parameters of the crack, the hygrothermal influence of the composite material was also taken into consideration. The specified models were repeated for each hygrothermal influence (temperature and humidity). As a result of the models, the stress intensity factor (SIF), stress T, energy release rate (J) values and stress concentrations at the crack tip were evaluated. The study results showed an increase in SIF and J parameters due to hygrothermal effects, while T stress decreased. Furthermore, it was determined that SIF, J and T stresses decreased as the crack orientation angle increased.