Predicting the tensile strength and creep-rupture behaviour of pultruded glass-reinforced polymer rods

In pursuit of an optimization of the mechanical properties of glass-reinforced polymer (GRP) rods, a fracture mechanism is submitted which enables the description of the short-term strength and the creep strength behaviour. By means of short-term tension or relaxation tests on fibres, as well as compound tests for the determination of the interlaminar shear strength, the characteristic values are determined, which allow a prediction of the industrially produced GRP rods. This makes it possible to determine suitable glass and matrix materials in advance to find optimal rod conditions.