Investigation of mechanical properties of aluminum-glass fiber-reinforced polyester composite joints bonded with structural epoxy adhesives reinforced with silicon dioxide and graphene oxide particles

Abstract

In this work, to investigate the mechanical properties of aluminum-glass fiber-reinforced polyester composite joints bonded with structural epoxy adhesives reinforced with silicon dioxide (SD) and graphene oxide (GO) particles, firstly, SD and GO particles were added to epoxy adhesive in varied weight percentages. After the surface treatment made by sanding aluminum and composite sheets with abrasive sandpaper, aluminum sheets and glass fiber-reinforced polyester composite sheets were bonded. Adhesives containing 0.2% SD and 0.25% GO had tensile strengths that were approximately 15.89% and 14.03% greater than neat epoxy, respectively. The lap shear strength of neat epoxy was improved with the addition of filler in all samples, and 0.2% SD and 0.25% GO -reinforced adhesives increased the shear strength of the neat epoxy by 66.57% and 125%, respectively. The adhesion, thin-layer cohesive and light-fiber tear were noted, as well as cohesive and fiber-tear failures based on the damaged surfaces of the samples.