Fatigue Analysis of Carbon, Glass and Other Fibres

The fatigue behaviour of fibres is an important knowledge fibres being the main load bearing elements in fibre reinforced composites. The fatigue strength of composites largely depends on the fatigue behaviour of fibres. While the static strength of reinforcing fibres has been extensively investigated, there are very few data available on their fatigue properties. The main reason is the difficulty of conducting fatigue tests on un-impregnated fibres. Scope of this chapter is to provide insight on the fatigue properties of different types of reinforcing fibres, with a focus on the high performance glass and carbon fibres. Moreover, some data on the fatigue behaviour of natural fibres, aramid fibres, optical fibres and steel fibres is mentioned. Experimental characterization methods, as well as modelling approaches for the fatigue strength of single fibres and fibre bundles are addressed.