Discontinuous-Fibre Reinforced Composites Fundamentals of Stress Transfer and Fracture Mechanics

This book provides a simple and unified approach to the mechanics of discontinuous-fibre reinforced composites, and introduces readers as generally as possible to the key concepts regarding the mechanics of elastic stress transfer, intermediate modes of stress transfer, plastic stress transfer, fibre pull-out, fibre fragmentation and matrix rupture. These concepts are subsequently applied to progressive stages of the loading process, through to the composite fractures. 

The book offers a valuable guide for advanced undergraduate and graduate students attending lecture courses on fibre composites. It is also intended for beginning researchers who wish to develop deeper insights into how discontinuous fibre provides reinforcement to composites, and for engineers, particularly those who wish to apply the concepts presented here to design and develop discontinuous-fibre reinforced composites.

Reinforcing by fibres.- Physical properties of fibres and matrix.- Mechanics of elastic stress transfer.- Fibre debonding, matrix yielding and cracks.- Mechanics of plastic stress transfer.- Composite fracture.- Composite design.- Appendix A Convergence to continuous-fibre composites.- Appendix B Mechanical properties of materials.

Kheng Lim Goh's main interests concern the mechanisms of fibre reinforced composites and their applications in composite materials design. He was an assistant professor of Bioengineering at the Nanyang Technological University from 2005 to 2008 and a senior lecturer in Mechanical Engineering at Monash University from 2009 to 2011. He is currently a senior lecturer in Mechanical Engineering (Design and Manufacturing) at Newcastle University in Newcastle Upon Tyne (based in Singapore). At Newcastle University, he was the first Director of Operations (2011–2016) for the Singapore-run Mechanical Design and Manufacturing Engineering degree programme. He is a member of the Institute of Physics (MInstP) and the Institute of Mechanical Engineers (MIMechE) and a chartered engineer (CEng), registered with the Engineering Council in UK, as well as a chartered physicist (CPhys). He is the lead author and co-author of more than 50 journal papers and book chapters, mostly in the area of fibre composites.