Characteristic Fracture Assessment of a Rivet Joint for Hybrid Composite Laminates under Static and Fatigue Shear Loads

Fatigue fracture behavior of a hybrid composite joint with riveting was evaluated in comparison to the case of static fracture. Hybrid composite joint specimens for shear test were made with layers of carbon fiber/epoxy composite and stainless steel. Characteristic fracture behaviors of those specimens were obviously different under static and cyclic loads. Static shear loading showed the fracture of a pure shear mode, whereas cyclic fatigue-shear loading caused the local stress concentration of a tensile mode and thus brought about the tensile fracture at that site. Experimental results obtained by static and fatigue tests were considered in modifications of design parameters of the hybrid joint.