NUMERICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL STUDIES ON CLINCH-BONDED HYBRID JOINING OF STEEL SHEET DX53D+Z

The automotive industry is characterized by the fact that it uses an entire range of materials. These are materials with different mechanical properties, thicknesses, and even different combinations. A variety of joining methods, such as clinching, is used to join this range of materials. However, sometimes it is necessary to combine several methods of joining materials. The paper deals with the evaluation of the properties of joints, which are created by a combination of mechanical joining and adhesive bonding. Two types of adhesives were used: adhesive based on epoxy resin and adhesive based on acrylate polymers. Double-sided hot-dip galvanized steel sheets DX53D+Z with a thickness of 0.8 mm were used to join with this combination of joining techniques. Numerical simulation tools were used to assess the joinability of materials. The simulation results were verified by the results from the experiments of real test samples. Samples joined by the clinching method combined with epoxy resin adhesives achieved higher load-bearing values and no cracks or any other type of failures were observed in these joints.