Evaluation of Adhesion Improvement of a GFRP Treated with Atmospheric Plasma Torch

The applications (and repair) of glass fiber reinforced epoxy composites are increasing in different industries (wind turbines, boats, chassis of buses, etc.) due to specific strength and low cost. Their major disadvantage is the difficulty to shape complex components. This problem can be solved man...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inThe Journal of adhesion Vol. 91; no. 12; pp. 937 - 949
Main Authors Martinez, M. A., Velasco, F., Abenojar, J., Chiminelli, A., Breto, R.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Taylor & Francis 02.12.2015
Subjects
Adhesion pull-off test
Atmospheric plasma treatment
Composites
DCB test
Surface treatment by exited gases
Wetting
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Summary:The applications (and repair) of glass fiber reinforced epoxy composites are increasing in different industries (wind turbines, boats, chassis of buses, etc.) due to specific strength and low cost. Their major disadvantage is the difficulty to shape complex components. This problem can be solved manufacturing different parts, being adhesively bonded afterwards. This work studies the effect of atmospheric pressure plasma torch compared to grit-blasting to improve adhesion. After surface treating different parts, the changes of wettability and surface energy were measured. Treated samples were bonded with polyurethane and epoxy adhesives, and the quality of the bond was evaluated using pull-off adhesion tests and fracture strength test under cleavage loads. Obtained results allow to select the most adequate treatment in terms of mechanical requirements.
ISSN:0021-8464
1563-518X
1545-5823
DOI:10.1080/00218464.2014.976789