On the Stress Distribution in Laminae

Abstract

An elastic analysis of fiber-reinforced composites subjected to normal or/and shear stress in planes normal to the fiber direction is presented. The effect of material properties on the stress distribution is studied and a stress concentration factor valid for all the laminae presently used in industry is obtained. It is found that this factor is essentially unaffected by the substantial variation of the ratio of the elastic moduli of the fiber and the epoxy of the various laminae considered herein. This result is of theoretical interest and also useful in composites design.