A fracture mechanics analysis of bonded repaired skin/stiffener structures with inclined central crack

Composite patch repair of cracked aircraft structures has been accepted as one of improving fatigue life and attaining better structural integrity. Analysis for the stress intensity factor at the skin/stiffener structure with inclined central crack repaired by composite stiffened panels are developed. A numerical investigation was conducted to characterize the fracture behavior and crack growth behavior. In order to investigate the crack growth direction, Maximum Tangential Stress(MTS) criteria is used. The main objective of this research is the validation of the inclined crack patching design. In this paper, the reduction of stresses intensity factors at the crack-tip and prediction of crack growth direction are determined to evaluate the effects of various non-dimensional design parameter including; composite patch thickness and stiffener distance. The research on cracked structure subjected to mixed mode loading is accomplished and it is evident that more work using different approaches is necessary