Modelling Environmental Degradation in EA9321-Bonded Joints using a Progressive Damage Failure Model

A progressive cohesive failure model has been proposed to predict the residual strength of adhesively bonded joints using a moisture-dependent critical equivalent plastic strain for the adhesive. Joints bonded with a ductile adhesive (EA9321) were studied for a range of environmental degradations. A single, moisture-dependent failure parameter, the critical strain, was calibrated using an aged, mixed-mode flexure (MMF) test. The mesh dependence of this parameter was also investigated. The parameter was then used without further modification to model failure in aluminum and composite single-lap joints (SLJ) bonded with the same adhesive. The FEA package ABAQUS was used to implement the coupled mechanical-diffusion analyses required. The elastic-plastic response of the adhesive and the substrates, both obtained from the bulk tensile tests, were incorporated. Both two-dimensional and three-dimensional modelling was undertaken and the results compared. The predicted joint residual strengths agreed well with the corresponding experimental data, and the damage propagation pattern in the adhesive was also predicted correctly. This cohesive failure model provides a simple but reliable method to model environmental degradation in ductile adhesive bonded joints, where failure is predominantly within the adhesive layer.     

Modelling Environmental Degradation in EA9321-Bonded Joints using a Progressive Damage Failure Model

A progressive cohesive failure model has been proposed to predict the residual strength of adhesively bonded joints using a moisture-dependent critical equivalent plastic strain for the adhesive. Joints bonded with a ductile adhesive (EA9321) were studied for a range of environmental degradations. A single, moisture-dependent failure parameter, the critical strain, was calibrated using an aged, mixed-mode flexure (MMF) test. The mesh dependence of this parameter was also investigated. The parameter was then used without further modification to model failure in aluminum and composite single-lap joints (SLJ) bonded with the same adhesive. The FEA package ABAQUS was used to implement the coupled mechanical-diffusion analyses required. The elastic–plastic response of the adhesive and the substrates, both obtained from the bulk tensile tests, were incorporated. Both two-dimensional and three-dimensional modelling was undertaken and the results compared. The predicted joint residual strengths agreed well with the corresponding experimental data, and the damage propagation pattern in the adhesive was also predicted correctly. This cohesive failure model provides a simple but reliable method to model environmental degradation in ductile adhesive bonded joints, where failure is predominantly within the adhesive layer.     

Experimental and numerical analysis of single lap bonded joints: Epoxy and castor oil PU-glass fibre composites

ABSTRACT

Currently, there is a growing concern for the environment. Several studies of new materials to reduce environmental impact have been carried out by different research groups, and many companies have replaced parts made of fossil sources by renewable materials. The use of polyurethane (PU) derived from castor oil as a matrix for composite materials and adhesives is one example. Hence, the present work aims to compare the numerical and experimental analyses of castor oil PU and epoxy resin not only as a matrix of composite materials, but also as an adhesive of bonded joints. The joint coupons were manufactured by using castor oil PU-glass fibre and epoxy-glass fibre as adherents, which were bonded by epoxy or castor oil PU. Thus, four combinations of adherents and adhesives were investigated. Specimens with identical geometry were used in all tests, which were based on guidelines for single lap bonded joints. Computational simulations via Finite Element Method were performed for predictions of the adhesive layer stresses and strength. In addition, a material model is proposed to predict the failure of the adhesive layer. The experimental and numerical results showed that PU derived from castor oil has good mechanical performance, making this material a feasible alternative for bonded joints, mostly nowadays when environment is a major concern.     

Impedance analysis for condition monitoring of single lap CNT-epoxy adhesive joint

Multi-Walled Carbon NanoTubes (MWCNT) are ideally suited to be used for damage sensing in fiber reinforced composite materials, and are used for structural health monitoring in adhesive joints. In this work, the capability of MWCNTs for condition monitoring of a single lap Al-Al adhesive joints (SLJ) under shear load is studied using impedance measurements. Different weight percent of MWCNT, i.e. 2.5, 6 and 9 wt.% are added to epoxy adhesive. Epoxy adhesive containing 9 wt.% MWCNT is identified during shear loading to have the highest ultimate strength among the considered specimens and provide the best sensory properties. To provide a more concise evaluation of the damage progression in the adhesive layer under shear stress, artificial defects are inserted into the SLJ specimens. The effects of square and circular defects on the damage progression in the adhesive layer are studied. The results show that primary microcracks are initiated at and consequently develop from the defect boundary in the adhesive joints with larger size of defect. It was found that the shape of the defect does not have a significant effect on the impedance response and sharp resistance changes for specimens with circular and square defect areas of 70% overlap area were about 4.55 and 4.2% respectively. Additionally, when the crack grows entirely through the adhesive layer, a nonzero slope of the resistance change resulted even for low levels of shear displacement.     

Fatigue Analysis of Adhesive Joints Under Vibration Loading

Adhesively bonded joints have been used extensively for many structural applications. However, one disadvantage usually limiting the service life of adhesive joints is the relatively low strength for peel loading, especially under dynamic cyclic loading such as impulsive or vibrational forces. Moreover, accurately predicting the fatigue life of bonded joints is still quite challenging. In this study, a combined experimental–numerical approach was developed to characterize the effect of the cyclic-vibration-peel (CVP) loading on adhesively bonded joints. A damage factor is introduced into the traction-separation response of the cohesive zone model (CZM) and a finite element damage model is developed to evaluate the degradation process in the adhesive layer. With this model, the adhesive layer stress states before and after being exposed to various CVP loading cycles are investigated, which reveals that the fatigue effect of the CVP loading starts first in the regions close to the edges of the adhesive layer. A good correlation is achieved when comparing the simulation results to the experimental data, which verifies the feasibility of using the proposed model to predict the fatigue life of adhesively bonded joints under the CVP type of loading.     

Failure behavior of adhesively bonded joints with a rubber modified epoxy adhesive under tensile-shear combined cyclic loading

Rubber-modified epoxy adhesives are used widely as structural adhesive owing to their properties of high fracture toughness. In many cases, these adhesively bonded joints are exposed to cyclic loading. Generally, the rubber modification decreases the static and fatigue strength of bulk adhesive without flaw. Hence, it is necessary to investigate the effect of rubber-modification on the fatigue strength of adhesively bonded joints, where industrial adhesively bonded joints usually have combined stress condition of normal and shear stresses in the adhesive layer. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate the effect of rubber-modification on the fatigue strength under combined cyclic stress conditions. Adhesively bonded butt and scarf joints provide considerably uniform normal and shear stresses in the adhesive layer except in the vicinity of the free end, where normal to shear stress ratio of these joints can cover the stress combination ratio in the adhesive layers of most adhesively bonded joints in industrial applications.

In this study, to investigate the effect of rubber modification on fatigue strength with various combined stress conditions in the adhesive layers, fatigue tests were conducted for adhesively bonded butt and scarf joints bonded with rubber modified and unmodified epoxy adhesives, wherein damage evolution in the adhesive layer was evaluated by monitoring strain the adhesive layer and the stress triaxiality parameter was used for evaluating combined stress conditions in the adhesive layer. The main experimental results are as follows: S–N characteristics of these joints showed that the maximum principal stress at the endurance limit indicated nearly constant values independent of combined stress conditions, furthermore the maximum principal stress at the endurance limit for the unmodified adhesive were nearly equal to that for the rubber modified adhesive. From the damage evolution behavior, it was observed that the initiation of the damage evolution shifted to early stage of the fatigue life with decreasing stress triaxiality in the adhesive layer, and the rubber modification accelerated the damage evolution under low stress triaxiality conditions in the adhesive layer.     

Numerical study of the effect of carbon fiber/epoxy resin adhesive thickness on the creep behaviour of carbon steel plate joints

Nowadays, the use of adhesive and adhesively bonded joints have been considerably appreciated in the industry due to the dramatic reduction in bonding strength, reduced stress concentration, rust prevention, uniform bonding of the bonding surface and a significant reduction in costs compared to other types of permanent joints such as welding. In this study, the effect of adhesive thickness on creep behaviour of a single lap adhesive joint with the aid of Abaqus FEM software is investigated. It should be noted that the two-layer and two-dimensional models are considered, in which their adhesive layer is made of a reinforced epoxy resin with 0.5% carbon fiber and the adherend layers are made of carbon steel plates, which is affected by tensile forces. Since the main purpose of this paper is to study the effect of adhesive thickness on the adhesive joints behaviour, the effects of the distribution of shear stress, effective stress and creep strain were studied in different thicknesses of the adhesive layer. The results show that by increasing the thickness, the stress and the creep strain decrease, and over time, the stress decreases and the creep behaviour of adhesives increases.     

Experimental Analysis of the Bondline Stress Concentrations to Characterize the Influence of Adhesive Ductility on the Composite Single Lap Joint Strength

Adhesively bonded composite single lap joints were experimentally investigated to analyze the bondline stress concentrations and characterize the influence of adhesive ductility on the joint strength. Two epoxy paste adhesives—one with high tensile strength and low ductility, and the other with relatively low tensile strength and high ductility—were used to manufacture composite single lap joints. Quasi-static tensile tests were conducted on the single lap joints to failure at room temperature. High magnification two-dimensional digital image correlation was used to analyze strain distributions near the adhesive fillet regions. The failure mechanisms were examined using scanning electron microscopy to understand the effect of adhesive ductility on the joint strength. For a given surface treatment and laminate type, the results show that adhesive ductility significantly increases the joint strength by positively influencing stress distribution and failure mechanism near the overlap edges. Moreover, it is shown that high magnification two-dimensional digital image correlation can successfully be used to study the damage initiation phase in composite bonded joints.     

Comparison of fracture behavior between acrylic and epoxy adhesives

An experimental study was conducted on the strength of adhesively bonded steel joints, prepared epoxy and acrylic adhesives. At first, to obtain strength characteristics of these adhesives under uniform stress distributions in the adhesive layer, tensile tests for butt, scarf and torsional test for butt joints with thin-wall tube were conducted. Based on the above strength data, the fracture envelope in the normal stress-shear stress plane for the acrylic adhesive was compared with that for the epoxy adhesive. Furthermore, for the epoxy and acrylic adhesives, the effect of stress triaxiality parameter on the failure stress was also investigated. From those comparison, it was found that the effect of stress tri-axiality in the adhesive layer on the joint strength with the epoxy adhesive differed from that with the acrylic adhesive. Fracture toughness tests were then conducted under mode l loading using double cantilever beam (DCB) specimens with the epoxy and acrylic adhesives. The results of the fracture toughness tests revealed continuous crack propagation for the acrylic adhesive, whereas stick-slip type propagation for the epoxy one. Finally, lap shear tests were conducted using lap joints bonded by the epoxy and acrylic adhesives with several lap lengths. The results of the lap shear tests indicated that the shear strength with the epoxy adhesive rapidly decreases with increasing lap length, whereas the shear strength with the acrylic adhesive decreases gently with increasing the lap length.     

Numerical analysis and experimental tests for long-term strength of adhesive bonds

This paper presents selected numerical analysis results on static strength of adhesive layers which were subjected to long-term loads. The numerical calculations involved modelling the properties of the adhesive layer using the Burger's model. The coefficients of the Burger's model components were determined on the basis of the creep curves of the adhesive. Some results were verified experimentally. It was ascertained that it is possible to examine the problems of long-term strength of adhesive bonds using numerical analysis under certain limitations. Numerical tests should reduce the need for time-consuming experiments. The investigations pointed out adhesive joints long-term strength dependence on creep curves of adhesives. The long-term strength of adhesive joints increased by reinforcement of the adhesive layer with glass fabric.     

Two-Dimensional Transient Thermal Stress Analysis of Adhesive Butt Joints

Transient thermal stress distribution in an adhesive butt joint is considered. It is assumed that both the upper and lower end surfaces of the joint are maintained at different temperatures at a certain instant in time and that no heat transfers between the side surfaces of the joint and ambient air. In the analysis, two adherends were replaced with finite strips and unsteady temperature distribution in the joint was obtained theoretically. Then the transient thermal stress distribution in the joint was analyzed using a two-dimensional theory of elasticity. The effects of the ratios of the coefficient of thermal expansion and Young's modulus of the adherend to those of the adhesive on the thermal stress distribution were clarified from numerical calculations. Furthermore, the transient stress distribution in the adhesive was measured by a photoelastic experiment on a joint where the adhesive was modelled by an epoxy plate. The experimental results were consistent with the analytical results.     

Tensile strength of two-part epoxy paste adhesives: Influence of mixing technique and micro-void formation

Two-part epoxy paste adhesives are frequently used to bond metals and composite materials in many structural applications. After mixing two reactive parts (by weight or volume ratio), adhesive paste is applied to the substrate surfaces and cured at elevated temperatures. Air-entrapment during mixing and/or application process often produces micro-voids in the adhesive bondlines and influences the strength of the bonded joints. In this work, void formation was investigated using two adhesive mixing techniques: (a) dual-cartridge and static-mixer with a dispenser and (b) hand-mix. Flat adhesive sheets were cured by mixing a two-part epoxy adhesive, and bulk specimens with notches were cut using CNC-machining. Using X-ray microtomography scans, the micro-voids were detected and material porosity was evaluated. Furthermore, tensile tests were performed on the specimens and two-dimensional digital image correlation (2D DIC) was employed to analyse the surface strain concentrations near the notches. The fracture surfaces were examined using optical and scanning electron microscopy. The results indicated that mixing technique influences the formation of micro-voids and thus the tensile strength of two-part epoxy paste adhesives.     

An improved four-parameter model on stress analysis of adhesive layer in plated beam

The prediction of stresses in an adhesive layer is helpful in revealing the mechanism of debonding failure in plated beams. This study proposes an improved analytical model for the stress analysis of an adhesive layer in a plated beam. The beam and the soffit plate are individually modelled as a single Timoshenko sub-beam with separate rotations, while the adhesive layer is modelled as a two-dimensional elastic continuum in plane stress, which considers different adherend-adhesive interface stresses. The internal forces of the adhesive layer are assumed to satisfy the Timoshenko beam theory, and the shear deformation and bending moment of the adhesive layer can be considered. The internal forces and displacements of the adhesive layer are fully considered in the displacement compatibility equations, and deformable interfaces are assembled so that the effect of interface stresses on local deformation is captured. Based on equilibrium equations and displacement continuity, the governing differential equations of beam forces are derived, and then the analytical solutions of interface stresses and stresses along the thickness of the adhesive layer are obtained. Comparisons of the results of the finite-element analysis and the existing four-parameter model solutions show that the present model is reasonable. The influence of adhesive thickness on stress distributions in adhesive layers is also investigated.     

Comparison of the Degradation Mechanisms of Zinc-Coated Steel, Cold-Rolled Steel, and Aluminium/Epoxy Bonded Joints

The durability properties of bonded lap shear joints made from an epoxy/dicyandiamide adhesive and zinc, zinc-coated steel, two different aluminium alloys or cold-rolled steel metal coupons have been investigated. The influence of the dicyandiamide content of the adhesive on the durability properties-has been assessed by salt spray testing or by storing the joints in water at 70°C or 90°C for periods of time up to five weeks. The degradation products formed during ageing of the epoxy adhesive in water have been investigated using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFT). The degradation mechanisms of aluminium/epoxy bonded joints have been thoroughly studied using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy.

The performances of the bonded joints under a pure corrosive environment have been found to be little influenced by the quantity of dicyandiamide in the adhesive. When the bonded joints were aged in hot water, the stability of the interface toward an excess of dicyandiamide directly followed the sensitivity of the oxide layer at high pH values. Optimal durability properties without peel strength losses of the adhesive were aehieved both with zinc and aluminium-coated substrates by reducing the quantity of dicyandiamide in the epoxy adhesive by 20% (the initial dicyandiamide content in the commercial adhesive being ca. 9%, with respect to the epoxy resin).     

Effects of applied pressure and temperature during curing operation on the strength of tubular single-lap adhesive joints

Adhesive joints have been widely used for fastening thin adherends because they can distribute the load over a larger area than the mechanical joint, require no holes, add very little weight to the structure and have superior fatigue resistance. However, the load capabilities of adhesive joints are affected by both applied pressure and temperature during cure, as well as by service environments because the adhesion characteristics of adhesives are very sensitive to manufacturing and environmental conditions. In this study, the tensile load capabilities of tubular single-lap adhesive joints with an epoxy adhesive were experimentally investigated with respect to service temperature and the applied pressure and temperature during curing operation. The effects of the applied pressure on the tensile load capabilities of tubular single-lap adhesive joints were studied by measuring the actual cure finish temperature using thermocouples and dielectrometry. From the experiments, it was found that the actual cure finish temperature of tubular single-lap adhesive joints increased as applied pressure increased, which increased residual thermal stress in the adhesive layer to decrease the load capabilities of adhesive joints. From finite element analysis and experimental results of tubular singlelap adhesive joints, the optimal geometry condition for adhesive joints was also investigated.     

The Effect of Adhesive Thickness on the Mechanical Behavior of a Structural Polyurethane Adhesive

One parameter that influences the adhesively bonded joints performance is the adhesive layer thickness. Hence, its effect has to be investigated experimentally and should be taken into consideration in the design of adhesive joints. Most of the results from literature are for typical structural epoxy adhesives which are generally formulated to perform in thin sections. However, polyurethane adhesives are designed to perform in thicker sections and might have a different behavior as a function of adhesive thickness. In this study, the effect of adhesive thickness on the mechanical behavior of a structural polyurethane adhesive was investigated. The mode I fracture toughness of the adhesive was measured using double-cantilever beam (DCB) tests with various thicknesses of the adhesive layer ranging from 0.2 to 2 mm. In addition, single lap joints (SLJs) were fabricated and tested to assess the influence of adhesive thickness on the lap-shear strength of the adhesive. An increasing fracture toughness with increasing adhesive thickness was found. The lap-shear strength decreases as the adhesive layer gets thicker, but in contrast to joints with brittle adhesives the decrease trend was less pronounced.     

Strain rate dependence of adhesive joints for the automotive industry at low and high temperatures

In this study the impact and quasi-static mechanical behaviour of single lap joints (SLJ) using a new crash resistant epoxy adhesive has been characterized as a function of temperature. Single lap adhesive joints were tested using a drop weight impact machine (impact tests) and using a universal test machine. Induction heating and nitrogen gas cooling was used in order to achieve a homogeneous distribution of temperature along the overlap of + 80 °C and ?20 °C, respectively. Adherends made of mild steel, similar to the steel used in automobile construction, were chosen in order to study the yielding effect on the strength of the SLJ. Results showed that at room temperature (RT) and low temperature (LT), failure was dictated by the adherends due to the high strength of the adhesive. At high temperature (HT), a decrease was found in the maximum load and energy absorbed by the joint due to the reduced strength of the adhesive at this temperature. The results were successfully modelled using the commercially available finite element software Abaqus^®. Good correlation was found between experimental and numerical results, which allows the reduction of experimental testing.     

基于ANSYS的两种胶黏剂劈裂接头数值模拟

采用有限元分析软件ANSYS,对钢制劈裂接头上胶层中部的正应力和剪切应力的分布进行了弹塑性有限元数值模拟与分析。分别考察了由弹性模量相差较大的丙烯酸酯胶和环氧树脂胶黏剂时制备的单一胶或处于不同部位的两种胶黏剂所得到的混合胶层与45钢形成的劈裂接头中的应力分布情况。结果表明,对于由单一胶形成的劈裂接头来说,采用弹性模量较低的丙烯酸酯胶黏剂所形成的接头中的正应力分布更为均匀;而混合胶所形成的劈裂接头的应力集中程度通常高于单一胶。     

Fracture analysis in adhesive composite material/aluminum joints under mode-I loading; experimental and numerical approaches

Assessment and evaluation of fracture characteristics are very important in adhesive joint for achieving a safety mode. In this paper, fracture was investigated in mode-I in adhesive composite material/aluminum alloy joints. To achieve this aim, Double Cantilever Beam (DCB) was used to evaluate fracture in mode-I loading (opening). Bonding was realized by epoxy adhesive as one of the most important and widely used adhesives in aerospace and automotive industries. Modified Beam Theory (MBT) and Compliance Calibration Method (CCM) were formulated to calculate Strain Energy Release Rate (SERR). The obtained experimental results were verified by comparison with Finite Element (FE) analysis. FE results were derived from using Virtual Crack Closure Technique (VCCT) and J-integral approaches in two and three dimension (2-D & 3-D) simulation. Experiment tests and numerical analyses showed good agreement and demonstrated the effectiveness of the proposed experiment and numerical methods.     

Extension of a one-dimensional finite element model program for analysing elastic-plastic stresses and progressive failure of adhesive bonded joints

A program for stress analysis of adhesive bonded joints within an elastic range was extended to consider the elastic-plastic stress state in an adhesive layer and its progressive failure. The program is based on the one dimensional finite element method. The von Mises yield criterion and the Mohr-Coulomb failure criterion are used in the program. Numerical analysis of a single lap joint subjected to four-point bending load was conducted and its result was compared with the experimental result. Good agreements were obtained between both results except for the final failure load. The present extension has some advantages. The stress singularity in the adhesive layer at the lap end or crack tip can be avoided due to the simple assumption for adhesive strains. Shorter computing time by the present method than by other general two- or three-dimensional finite element model programs should be much emphasized as one of the advantages.