Perpustakaan Digital ITB

Composite materials are widely used for their low density, high specific strength, and better resistance against adverse environments, making them strong alternatives for metals. Among them, Fiber-Reinforced Polymers (FRPs) consist of two different phases, which are the polymer matrix phase, strengthening fiber phase and an interphase region with distinct properties. Distinct properties of each phase make it more complicated to understand and analyze. Through different conditions and factors, fiber within the FRC will break. Composite may break due to stiffness mismatch and also applied loading, leading to crack propagation. Crack propagation will take place when excess energy released during fiber breakage causes the crack to propagate to the matrix phase. While several numerical models have been developed to study this process, they show notable limitations in capturing the full complexity of fracture mechanisms. Phase field fracture modelling (PFFM) has emerged as a robust approach to predict complex cracking phenomena with mesh objectivity and computational efficiency. In this study, an ABAQUS User-Material (UMAT) implementation of PFFM will be applied and evaluated against finite element models and experimental results.