Fibre-reinforced polymer-based composites have widespread uses throughout industry, often in the most hostile and demanding environments. The behaviour of these composites under tensile loading has been investigated in depth, and well reviewed, but their compressive properties have received less attention. However the compressive strength of current composite systems is typically 60-70 of their tensile strength, due to the fibre microbuckling failure mode, and it has become design critical in many instances, especially in notched, impacted and extreme environmental conditions. It is the compressive behaviour of composites, and particularly their failure mechanisms under static and fatigue loading, which are evaluated in this Rapra Review Report.

In this report Dr. Costas Soutis of Imperial College reviews the most important studies undertaken of the compressive failure mechanisms encountered in modern composite materials. He first considers the behaviour of unidirectional laminates, followed by unnotched and notched multidirectional structures. He considers existing theoretical models which predict the compressive strength of unidirectional and multidirectional lay-ups, and fracture models of compressive failure from a circular open hole. Mechanical behaviour under compressive fatigue loading is also covered.

The review is extensively referenced, and supported by an indexed section containing more than 500 abstracts of key papers selected from the Polymer Library, which will provide the reader with much additional detail and experimental data.