ABSTRACT
An interlaminar failure criterion based on a modification of the Tsai-Wu theory is presented. The proposed criterion was correlated first with inplane matrix/interface controlled failures under combined normal and shear stress states. Based on the good correlation for inplane matrix dominated failures, the proposed criterion was then used for interlaminar failures under combined interlaminar tension and shear and interlaminar compression and shear stress states. In all cases, other commonly used criteria were also evaluated for multiaxial matrix dominated failures. The proposed modified Tsai-Wu criterion appeared to fit the available data well for both inplane and interlaminar matrix dominated failures.
