The standard “EN ISO 14130 Fiber-reinforced plastic composites - Determination of apparent interlayer shear strength by short beam method”, developed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and later published as a European standard within the scope of harmonization efforts, describes a procedure for determining the apparent interlayer shear strength of fiber-reinforced plastic composites by the short beam method. This method is suitable for use in fiber-reinforced plastic composites with thermoset or thermoplastic matrices, as long as interlayer shear fracture is achieved.
When using materials other than asymmetrical and unbalanced laminated materials, the results can be affected by various factors such as elongation/bending and twisting. This method is not suitable for determining design parameters, but it can be used for screening materials or as a quality control test.
In principle, a rectangular cross-section bar is subjected to bending like a simple beam, resulting in interlayer shear fracture. The bar rests on two supports, and the load is applied via a loading element located midway between the supports.
This test is similar in nature to the three-point loading method (ISO 14125 standard) used to determine the bending properties of plastics. However, a smaller test span/sample thickness ratio is adopted to increase the shear stress level relative to the bending stress in the test specimen in order to promote interlayer shear fracture.
It is emphasized that the obtained result is not an absolute value. Therefore, the term "apparent interlayer shear strength" is used to describe the measured quantity. Test results obtained from samples of different sizes or samples tested under different conditions are not directly comparable.
EN ISO 14130 standard belongs to a series of test methods for fiber-reinforced plastic composites widely used in industries such as aerospace, automotive, marine, wind energy, and sports equipment.
This standard defines a standardized procedure for determining the apparent interlayer shear strength (interlayer shear strength) of fiber-reinforced plastic composites using short beam shear testing (also known as short beam method or short span three-point bending test).
This test creates shear stresses by applying a load in a three-point bending configuration with a deliberately short support gap between the layers (laminates) of the composite material. This configuration promotes fracture through interlayer shear rather than bending (twisting) or compression of the outer fibers.
The main characteristics of this method are as follows:
The test setup is as follows:
Standards closely related to this standard include:
This test remains one of the most common and cost-effective ways to evaluate the interlayer (across the thickness) performance of laminated composites, particularly for quality assurance purposes.
In short, EN ISO 14130 is an international standard that specifies a method for determining the apparent interlayer shear strength of fiber-reinforced plastic composites using short beam shear testing. This standard is widely used in the aerospace, automotive, marine, and structural composite industries to evaluate the bond quality between laminate layers.
The primary purpose of the EN ISO 14130 standard is to measure the resistance of laminated composite materials to interlayer shear failure. In fiber-reinforced composites, failure usually occurs between layers (delamination), not in the fibers themselves. This test provides a rapid method for evaluating:
Because the test sample is relatively small, the method is useful for quality control and material comparison.
This standard utilizes a three-point bending configuration with a very short span length. When the beam is loaded, the stress distribution causes high shear stress between the laminate layers, leading to interlayer shear fracture before normal bending fracture.
The EN ISO 14130 standard is widely used in the evaluation of the following:
Common application sectors:
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