Adhesive bonding of discontinuous carbon fibre composites: an experimental investigation

The excellent specific stiffness and strength of carbon fibre reinforced polymer composites means that the automotive sector has been investigating methods of implementing these materials into structurally demanding applications. The work detailed within this thesis supports ongoing research at the...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Nicholls, Tristan Kit
Format: Thesis (University of Nottingham only)
Language:English
Published: 2013
Subjects:
Online Access:https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/13773/
_version_ 1848791803515371520
author Nicholls, Tristan Kit
author_facet Nicholls, Tristan Kit
author_sort Nicholls, Tristan Kit
building Nottingham Research Data Repository
collection Online Access
description The excellent specific stiffness and strength of carbon fibre reinforced polymer composites means that the automotive sector has been investigating methods of implementing these materials into structurally demanding applications. The work detailed within this thesis supports ongoing research at the University of Nottingham into the automated manufacture of discontinuous carbon fibre reinforced polymer composite materials. Advances in the automation of composites manufacturing has meant that methods to effectively join these materials is required. This work provides a fundamental understanding of the differences that result from the adhesive bonding of a discontinuous fibre composite (DFC) compared to conventional fibre reinforced composite materials. The main objective of the project was to characterise the behaviour of adhesively bonded DFC adherends. Using a single lap shear joint geometry, an optimised fibre architecture and joint geometry was identified with a 2-part low temperature curing epoxy adhesive being characterised for industrial application. To further improve the performance of the DFC substrates, a fibre alignment technique was implemented that achieved properties comparable to those of more traditional non-crimp fabric composites. From the experimental investigations conducted, the use of discontinuous carbon fibre reinforced composites in bonded assemblies shows promise with the potential for use in structural applications.
first_indexed 2025-11-14T18:34:19Z
format Thesis (University of Nottingham only)
id nottingham-13773
institution University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus
institution_category Local University
language English
last_indexed 2025-11-14T18:34:19Z
publishDate 2013
recordtype eprints
repository_type Digital Repository
spelling nottingham-137732025-02-28T11:26:56Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/13773/ Adhesive bonding of discontinuous carbon fibre composites: an experimental investigation Nicholls, Tristan Kit The excellent specific stiffness and strength of carbon fibre reinforced polymer composites means that the automotive sector has been investigating methods of implementing these materials into structurally demanding applications. The work detailed within this thesis supports ongoing research at the University of Nottingham into the automated manufacture of discontinuous carbon fibre reinforced polymer composite materials. Advances in the automation of composites manufacturing has meant that methods to effectively join these materials is required. This work provides a fundamental understanding of the differences that result from the adhesive bonding of a discontinuous fibre composite (DFC) compared to conventional fibre reinforced composite materials. The main objective of the project was to characterise the behaviour of adhesively bonded DFC adherends. Using a single lap shear joint geometry, an optimised fibre architecture and joint geometry was identified with a 2-part low temperature curing epoxy adhesive being characterised for industrial application. To further improve the performance of the DFC substrates, a fibre alignment technique was implemented that achieved properties comparable to those of more traditional non-crimp fabric composites. From the experimental investigations conducted, the use of discontinuous carbon fibre reinforced composites in bonded assemblies shows promise with the potential for use in structural applications. 2013-12-13 Thesis (University of Nottingham only) NonPeerReviewed application/pdf en arr https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/13773/2/Tristan_Nicholls-Optimisation_of_Adhesive_Bonding_For_Discontinuous_Carbon_Fibre_Composites.pdf Nicholls, Tristan Kit (2013) Adhesive bonding of discontinuous carbon fibre composites: an experimental investigation. PhD thesis, University of Nottingham. Adhesive bonding DCFP Discontinuous carbon fibre Composite materials DCF Adhesive joining Stacking sequence Fibre architecture
spellingShingle Adhesive bonding
DCFP
Discontinuous carbon fibre
Composite materials
DCF
Adhesive joining
Stacking sequence
Fibre architecture
Nicholls, Tristan Kit
Adhesive bonding of discontinuous carbon fibre composites: an experimental investigation
title Adhesive bonding of discontinuous carbon fibre composites: an experimental investigation
title_full Adhesive bonding of discontinuous carbon fibre composites: an experimental investigation
title_fullStr Adhesive bonding of discontinuous carbon fibre composites: an experimental investigation
title_full_unstemmed Adhesive bonding of discontinuous carbon fibre composites: an experimental investigation
title_short Adhesive bonding of discontinuous carbon fibre composites: an experimental investigation
title_sort adhesive bonding of discontinuous carbon fibre composites: an experimental investigation
topic Adhesive bonding
DCFP
Discontinuous carbon fibre
Composite materials
DCF
Adhesive joining
Stacking sequence
Fibre architecture
url https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/13773/