Investigation of the double shear creep specimens to study the creep behaviour of short fibre metal matrix composites

Abstract Double shear creep specimens have been investigated by the transverse anisotropic finite element method, in order to be applied to study the multiaxial creep behaviour of short fibre-reinforced metal matrix composites (MMCs). The creep behaviour was dependent on orientations of the specimens and the transverse anisotropic parameters. The detailed evolution of the stress and strain in the double shear creep specimens shows that there is a steady stress state in the shear zone. The shear stress is near to the applied average shear stress, and independent of orientations of the specimens and the transverse anisotropicic parameters. The double shear specimen can provide a simple multiaxial stress state for MMCs. A procedure has been presented to evolve the parameters for the transversely anisotropic MMC materials, so that the double shear specimens can be tested to obtain the transversely anisotropic material properties, some of which are difficult to get by the usual tensile specimens.