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The present work investigates the rate-dependent failure behaviour of structural adhesive joints loaded in mode I. Butt joint and tapered double cantilever beam (TDCB) specimens were tested at velocities ranging over more than six orders of magnitude. A rate-dependent extension of the bi-linear cohesive zone model is proposed and implemented into the finite element code LS-DYNA via an user-defined subroutine. The parameters for the implemented cohesive zone model are found directly by evaluation of experimental data. The comparison of simulations with experimental results for different specimen types and test velocities validates the proposed model. The critical energy release rate of adhesively bonded joints is usually measured in (tapered) double cantilever beam tests, and evaluated using the Irwin–Kies equation. In this paper a different evaluation method is proposed, which provides additional information on the energy dissipated during crack initiation. The results of this method agree with the results obtained using the Irwin–Kies equation. The investigations have focussed on thin adhesive layers. Parameter identification and validation have been performed using the crash-optimized adhesive Terokal 5077 from Henkel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]