Fracture behaviour of cracked carbon nanotube-based polymer composites: Experiments and finite element simulations

This paper studies the fracture behaviour of cracked carbon nanotube (CNT)-based polymer composites by a combined numerical-experimental approach. Tensile tests were conducted on single-edge cracked plate specimens of CNT/polycarbonate composites at room temperature and liquid nitrogen temperature (77 K), and the critical loads for fracture instabilities were determined. Elastic-plastic finite element simulations of the tests were then performed to evaluate the J-integrals corresponding to the experimentally determined critical loads. Scanning electron microscopy examinations were also made on the specimen fracture surfaces, and the fracture mechanisms of the CNT-based composites were discussed.