An experimental study on the fatigue of cracked aluminum plate with composite patches under varied temperatures

Abstract

In this article, fatigue of cracked 2024-T3 aluminum plate repaired with composite patches has been experimentally investigated. In the study, different aluminum thicknesses, numbers of patch layers, and temperatures have been taken into account. The problem has been considered under plain stress and Mode I conditions. First, mechanical properties of the samples used in the experiments have been determined. Then, cracked samples were bonded with composite patches and crack propagation and fatigue experiments have been conducted. From the experimental results, it has been shown that varied temperatures play an effective role on the fatigue life. © The Author(s), 2010.