Repair of Aerospace Composite Structures Using Liquid Thermoplastic Resin
In this study, two types of carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic (CFRP) composite scarf geometries were created using two scarf angles, i.e., 1.43° and 5.71°. The scarf joints were adhesively bonded using a novel liquid thermoplastic resin at two different temperatures. The performance of the repaired la...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-03-01
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| Series: | Polymers |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/15/6/1377 |
| _version_ | 1797609343923781632 |
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| author | Tayyab Khan Farrukh Hafeez Rehan Umer |
| author_facet | Tayyab Khan Farrukh Hafeez Rehan Umer |
| author_sort | Tayyab Khan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In this study, two types of carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic (CFRP) composite scarf geometries were created using two scarf angles, i.e., 1.43° and 5.71°. The scarf joints were adhesively bonded using a novel liquid thermoplastic resin at two different temperatures. The performance of the repaired laminates was compared with pristine samples in terms of residual flexural strength using four-point bending tests. The repair quality of the laminates was examined by optical micrographs, and the failure modes after flexural tests were analyzed using a scanning electron microscope. The thermal stability of the resin was evaluated by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), whereas the stiffness of the pristine samples was determined using dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). The results showed that the laminates were not fully repaired under ambient conditions, and the highest recovery strength at room temperature was only 57% of the total strength exhibited by pristine laminates. Increasing the bonding temperature to an optimal repair temperature of 210 °C resulted in a significant improvement in the recovery strength. The best results were achieved for laminates with a higher scarf angle (5.71°). The highest residual flexural strength was recorded as 97% that of the pristine sample repaired at 210 °C with a scarf angle of 5.71°. The SEM micrographs showed that all the repaired samples exhibited delamination as the dominant failure mode, whereas the pristine samples exhibited dominant fiber fracture and fiber pullout failure modes. The residual strength recovered using liquid thermoplastic resin was found to be much higher than that reported for conventional epoxy adhesives. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T06:00:07Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-52663fbe683240609314eae4836aa422 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4360 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T06:00:07Z |
| publishDate | 2023-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Polymers |
| spelling | doaj.art-52663fbe683240609314eae4836aa4222023-11-17T13:24:44ZengMDPI AGPolymers2073-43602023-03-01156137710.3390/polym15061377Repair of Aerospace Composite Structures Using Liquid Thermoplastic ResinTayyab Khan0Farrukh Hafeez1Rehan Umer2Department of Aerospace Engineering, Khalifa University of Science and Technology, Abu Dhabi P.O. Box 127788, United Arab EmiratesDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, School of Engineering, University of Birmingham, Dubai International Academic City, Dubai P.O. Box 341799, United Arab EmiratesDepartment of Aerospace Engineering, Khalifa University of Science and Technology, Abu Dhabi P.O. Box 127788, United Arab EmiratesIn this study, two types of carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic (CFRP) composite scarf geometries were created using two scarf angles, i.e., 1.43° and 5.71°. The scarf joints were adhesively bonded using a novel liquid thermoplastic resin at two different temperatures. The performance of the repaired laminates was compared with pristine samples in terms of residual flexural strength using four-point bending tests. The repair quality of the laminates was examined by optical micrographs, and the failure modes after flexural tests were analyzed using a scanning electron microscope. The thermal stability of the resin was evaluated by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), whereas the stiffness of the pristine samples was determined using dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). The results showed that the laminates were not fully repaired under ambient conditions, and the highest recovery strength at room temperature was only 57% of the total strength exhibited by pristine laminates. Increasing the bonding temperature to an optimal repair temperature of 210 °C resulted in a significant improvement in the recovery strength. The best results were achieved for laminates with a higher scarf angle (5.71°). The highest residual flexural strength was recorded as 97% that of the pristine sample repaired at 210 °C with a scarf angle of 5.71°. The SEM micrographs showed that all the repaired samples exhibited delamination as the dominant failure mode, whereas the pristine samples exhibited dominant fiber fracture and fiber pullout failure modes. The residual strength recovered using liquid thermoplastic resin was found to be much higher than that reported for conventional epoxy adhesives.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/15/6/1377scarf jointsthermoplasticsresidual strengthcrack healingmicrostructure |
| spellingShingle | Tayyab Khan Farrukh Hafeez Rehan Umer Repair of Aerospace Composite Structures Using Liquid Thermoplastic Resin Polymers scarf joints thermoplastics residual strength crack healing microstructure |
| title | Repair of Aerospace Composite Structures Using Liquid Thermoplastic Resin |
| title_full | Repair of Aerospace Composite Structures Using Liquid Thermoplastic Resin |
| title_fullStr | Repair of Aerospace Composite Structures Using Liquid Thermoplastic Resin |
| title_full_unstemmed | Repair of Aerospace Composite Structures Using Liquid Thermoplastic Resin |
| title_short | Repair of Aerospace Composite Structures Using Liquid Thermoplastic Resin |
| title_sort | repair of aerospace composite structures using liquid thermoplastic resin |
| topic | scarf joints thermoplastics residual strength crack healing microstructure |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/15/6/1377 |
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