Mechanical Properties and Leak-Tightness of Polymeric Pipe Adhesive Joints

This paper presents issues related to the determination of the selected mechanical properties of adhesive joints made of polymeric pipes and the evaluation of the leak-tightness of the adhesive joints. The article attempts to demonstrate that the type of adhesive may affect the quality of adhesive joints in terms of both tightness and strength of joints. Five types of the polymer pipes differing in a polypropylene and a polyvinyl chloride, diameter and a wall thickness were used in the experiments. Two types of the adhesives were used to make the adhesive joints: Loctite 3430 A&B Hysol, a two-component epoxy adhesive, and Loctite 406, a one-component cyanoacrylate adhesive. Based on the leak-tightness tests results, it was possible to determine the quality of their adhesive joints without damaging the samples, while their tensile strength was determined through the strength tests. The tests performed allowed for the conclusion that the use of the polyvinyl chloride pipes and Loctite 406 one-component adhesive is recommended for this type of adhesive joints.

Effect of the Stress State on the Adhesive Strength of an Epoxy-Bonded Assembly

The paper studies the adhesive strength of aluminum alloy specimens bonded with the use of an epoxy adhesive, under the tensile-shear stress state, depending on the testing temperature. Tension of modified Arcan specimens with load angles of 0, 22.5, 45, 67.5, and 90° with respect to the plane of adhesion is chosen as the experimental method. Experiments were performed at temperatures of −50, +23, and +50 °С. The analysis of the obtained results yields a linear fracture criterion and a fracture locus for the adhesive failure strain energy density, which takes into account the ratio of the elastic properties of the adhesive to those of the substrate. The region bounded by the fracture loci of adhesive strength and ultimate strain energy density determines the conditions for the safe loading of the bonded assembly in terms of the energy and force criteria of adhesive failure. The proposed fracture loci can be used, preferably simultaneously, to estimate the in-service strength and reliability of adhesively bonded assemblies.

A High Precision Fiber Optic Fabry–Perot Pressure Sensor Based on AB Epoxy Adhesive Film

This paper proposes a Fabry–Perot pressure sensor based on AB epoxy adhesive with ultra-high sensitivity under low pressure. Fabry–Perot interference, located between single-mode fiber (SMF) and hollow-core fiber (HCF), is an ultra-thin AB epoxy film formed by capillary action. Then the thick HCF was used to fix the HCF and SMF at both ends with AB epoxy adhesive. Experimental results show that when the thickness of AB epoxy film is 8.74 μm, and the cavity length is 30 μm, the sensor has the highest sensitivity. The sensitivity is 257.79 nm/MPa within the pressure range of 0–70 kPa. It also investigated the influence of the curing time of AB epoxy on the interference spectrum. Experiments showed that the interference spectrum peak is blue-shifted with the increase of curing time. Our study also demonstrated the humidity stability of this pressure sensor. These characteristics mean that our sensor has potential applications in the biomedical field and ocean exploration.

Effect of Low Molecular Weight Oxidized Materials and Nitrogen Groups on Adhesive Joints of Polypropylene Treated by a Cold Atmospheric Plasma Jet

Polypropylene is a typical representative of synthetic polymers that, for many applications including adhesive joints, requires an increase in wettability and chemical surface reactivity. Plasma processing offers efficient methods for such surface modifications. A particular disadvantage of the plasma jets can be the small plasma area. Here, we present a cold atmospheric plasma radio-frequency slit jet developed with a width of 150 mm applied to polypropylene plasma treatment in Ar, Ar/O2 and Ar/N2 We identified two main parameters influencing the tensile strength of adhesive joints mediated by epoxy adhesive DP 190, nitrogen content, and the amount of low molecular weight oxidized materials (LMWOMs). Nitrogen functional groups promoted adhesion between epoxy adhesive DP 190 and the PP by taking part in the curing process. LMWOMs formed a weak boundary layer, inhibiting adhesion by inducing a cohesive failure of the joint. A trade off between these two parameters determined the optimized conditions at which the strength of the adhesive joint increased 4.5 times. Higher adhesion strength was previously observed when using a translational plasma gliding arc plasma jet with higher plasma gas temperatures, resulting in better cross linking of polymer chains caused by local PP melting.

Effect of Holes in Overlap on the Load Capacity of the Single-Lap Adhesive Joints Made of EN AW-2024-T3 Aluminium Alloy

The paper presents the results of experimental research aimed at determining the possibilities of strengthening structural adhesive joints. Techniques to improve the strength of adhesive joints was to make holes in the front part of the adherends in order to make the joint locally more flexible in the area of stress concentration at the joint edges. The tests were carried out for the lap joints of EN AW-2024-T3 aluminum alloy sheets, which were bonded with Loctite EA3430 epoxy adhesive. Static tests were carried out on the basis of the tensile/shear test. It has been shown that the applied structural modifications allow for an increase in the strength of the joint, in the best variant, an increase in strength of 14.5% was obtained. In addition, it has been shown that making holes in the adherends allows to reduce the spread of strength results.