Published online by Cambridge University Press: 31 January 2011
A fatigue damage accumulation model based on the Paris law is proposed for strain-rate-sensitive polymer composite materials. A pre-exponent factor c2/f and strain-rate-sensitive exponent n are introduced. Numerical analysis of the model was performed using experimental data obtained in the literature. Both factors were found to enhance fatigue damage accumulation. The analysis also revealed that the extent of damage increases with decreasing frequency and that the damage rate is more sensitive to the applied maximum stress than to the stiffness of the material.