This paper reviews important published literature on composite material failures. The reviewed publications were mainly taken from journals and conference proceedings. The period covered is from 1986 -1996. This literature review concludes that the problem of composite material failures is quite serious and requires a systematic effort. Eventhough, researchers in the area have developed various useful mathematical models and theories, the general approaches are still missing in their strength.
IntroductionComposites are made up of a combination of two or more distinct materials and can provide superior and unique mechanical and physical properties because they combine the most desirable properties of their constituents. These constituents could be organic, inorganic, or metallic in the form of fibers, rods, particles, and so on.The interest in producing composite materials is not new, it can be traced back to ancient times to Egyptians, Chinese, and Israelites [1,2]. They all produced bricks by mixing straw with clay and in particular, the Chinese developed the pattern-welding of sabers that involved f