Tensile Tests of Ceramic‐Matrix Composites: Theory and Experiment

A model describing the salient features of tensile stress‐strain curves of ceramic–fiber composites has been developed. The model incorporates statistics of fiber failure. Furthermore, the compliance of the testing machine is included so that the onset of instability can be predicted. An experiment conducted on a composite consisting of a glass‐ceramic matrix reinforced with SiC fibers exhibits excellent agreement with the predicted behavior. Copyright © 1990, Wiley Blackwell. All rights reserved