Effect of adherend's rigidity on the shear strength of single lap adhesive joints

The present paper compares the tensile shear strength of single-lap joints with different adherends. Three materials were combined in the single lap joints: a carbon/epoxy laminated composite, a high elastic limit steel and the 6082-T6 aluminium alloy. The shear strength of joints was influenced by the adherend stiffness and the highest shear strengths were obtained using high stiffness adherend materials. The overlap length influenced the shear strength in different ways depending on the adherend materials. Numerical analysis concluded that the increase in the rigidity of the adherends decreases the rotation of the specimen and promotes a more uniform distribution of stresses in the glue. In joints with distinct materials, the less stiff material was found to determine the strength of the appropriate joint.