Page "Adhesive" Paragraph 60

* Double cantilever beam tests ( DCB ) measure the mode I fracture resistance of adhesives in a fracture mechanics framework.

These tests consist in opening an assembly of two beams by applying a force at the ends of the two beams.

The test is unstable ( i. e. the crack propagates along the entire specimen once a critical load is attained ) and a modified version of this test characterised by a non constant inertia was proposed called the tapered double cantilever beam ( TDCB ) specimen.