Adhesive thickness effects on the mixed-mode fracture toughness of bonded joints

Aiming to predict the strength of bonded joints by techniques such as cohesive zone models (CZM), it is highly relevant to estimate the adhesive strength and fracture toughness (GC). Here, the tensile and shear fracture toughness (GIC and GIIC, respectively) and the corresponding mixed-mode behaviour acquire special relevancy. However, it is known that these parameters are highly dependent on the adhesive thickness (tA). The present work...