Interlaminar tensile and shear behavior of a unidirectional C-C composite

The interlaminar shear and tensile strengths of a unidirectional carbon-carbon composite were determined in air at room temperature and in argon at 1000 °C. It was found that the room temperature interlaminar tensile strength was 2.53±0.23 MPa, whereas the interlaminar shear strength was found to be 11.35±2.03 MPa at room temperature and 9.32±2.59 MPa at 1000 °C. Novel experimental procedures are described for the determination of the interlaminar shear strength of 1-D and 2-D composites by the compression of double-notched specimens both at room and elevated temperatures. Attempts to determine the interlaminar shear strength of this material by the Iosipescu test were unsuccessful.