Mechanical behavior of butt curved adhesive joints subjected to bending

Abstract Factors such as the surface geometry of a joint, the direction of the applied load, and the type of adhesive used have a great influence on the strength of a joint in adhesive bonding. In adhesively bonded joints (ABJ), it is possible to improve surface geometry by forming various geometric surfaces. ABJs are not very resistant to peeling stress, thus requiring that a bonding model be analyzed according to the direction of the applied load to prevent peeling stress. In this study, a butt curved joint was prepared from aluminum plates (A2024-T3) to improve the surface geometry of the joint. The mechanical behavior of the joints in three-dimensions and subjected to bending were investigated depending on an increase in the curvature radius. The adhesive DP810 was used for bonding. The finite element analysis was performed in ANSYS and cohesive zone modeling was used for a simulation of the damage growth in the adhesive layer. The results of bilinear and exponential models were found to be more appropriate to the experimental results. When the radius of curvature increases, the damage load carried decreases in the butt curved lap joints. It was seen that decreases in the curvature radius significantly decrease normal stress.