Experimental deformation analysis of an adhesively bonded multi-material joint for marine applications

The strength and deformation of full-scale adhesively bonded multi-material joints is studied in this paper. Four joints with a thick layer of methyl methacrylate adhesive (MMA) have been manufactured in shipyard conditions. In two specimens, cracks have been introduced at steel–adhesive and composite–adhesive interfaces. One cracked and one un-cracked specimen were subjected to quasi-static tensile testing; the two remaining specimens were stepwise loaded/unloaded with increasing load until failure. The strain in the adhesive layers was measured with digital image correlation (DIC). This showed a predominant shear deformation and dissimilar shear strain patterns for different bond lines. Fibre Bragg (FBG) sensors were used to monitor strains at steel and composite constituents and to detect the onset and evolution of damage in the un-cracked specimen. Strains measured by FBG sensors correspond well with DIC results at nearby regions. All specimens failed by delamination of the composite panel near the composite–adhesive interface.