Sliding fracture response of adhesive joints subjected to mode-II quasi-static and impact loadings

Abstract

This research paper intends to analyse the behaviour of adhesively bonded joints (ABJs) under mode-II quasi-static and impact loads. The study involved the use of tensile and drop-weight tests on end-notched flexure specimens (ENF) to determine the ABJs mode-II quasi-static and impact fracture responses at varying impact energies. To obtain the quasi-static and impact mode-II fracture energies, the compliance-based beam method (CBBM) was used. The results revealed that changing the loading condition from quasi-static to impact led to significant decreases in the maximum load and fracture energy of ABJs by 17.4% and 17.8% respectively. Furthermore, increases in impact energy resulted in decreases of 7.6% and 6.8% in maximum load and fracture energy within the impact test conditions. To model the quasi-static and impact fracture responses of adhesive joints, the cohesive zone model (CZM) was employed using a bi-linear traction-separation law obtained from a semi-direct method. A subroutine was also utilized to obtain more precise damage behaviour under impact loading, accounting for the rate-dependent behaviour of adhesives under different strain rates. The experimental and numerical results were in reasonable agreement.