Investigation on Ultrasonic Welding Attributes of Novel Carbon/Elium® Composites

Abstract

Joining large and complex polymer-matrix composite structures is becoming increasingly important in industries such as automobiles, aerospace, sports, wind turbines, and others. Ultrasonic welding is an ultra-fast joining process and also provides excellent joint quality as a cost-effective alternative to other joining processes. This research aims at investigating the welding characteristics of novel methyl methacrylate Elium ® , a liquid thermoplastic resin. Elium ® is the first of its kind of thermoplastic resin, which is curable at room temperature and is suitable for mass production processes. The welding characteristics of Elium ® composites were investigated by optimizing the welding parameters with specially designed integrated energy directors (ED) and manufactured using the Resin transfer molding process. The results showed a 23% higher lap shear strength for ultrasonically welded composite joints when compared to the adhesively bonded joints. The optimized welding time for the ultrasonic welded joint was found to be 1.5 s whereas it was 10 min for the adhesively bonded joint. Fractographic analysis showed the significant plastic deformation and shear cusps formation on the fractured surface, which are typical characteristics for strong interfacial bonding.

Disassembly Study of Ultrasonically Welded Thermoplastic Composite Joints via Resistance Heating

“…Fusion bonding is categorized into thermal, electromagnetic and friction welding [ 3 ]. Ultrasonic welding (USW) is a technique that has gained momentum in the past few years for TPCs, as it is fast, energy-efficient, and suitable for spot and continuous joining configurations [ 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 ].…”

“…Triangular protrusions are typically employed in the plastics industry, but for continuous fiber-reinforced thermoplastics, thin films are also suitable and lead to high strength welds [ 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 ]. Many studies in the literature experimentally investigated the effect of process parameters (amplitude, force and control mode) and ED geometry on bond quality [ 10 , 14 , 15 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 ] and heat generation [ 18 , 27 , 28 ]. For instance, it was reported that using the vertical displacement of the sonotrode could lead to consistent weld quality using power and displacement curves from the welder.…”

Ultrasonic Welding of PBT-GF30 (70% Polybutylene Terephthalate + 30% Fiber Glass) and Expanded Polytetrafluoroethylene (e-PTFE)

“…Currently, for an increasing number of parts made of composite materials and used in various industries, attempts are being made to eliminate the classic ways of joining them (mechanical joints and the use of adhesives) [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]. The best known welding techniques available for composite bonding are resistance [ 4 ], induction [ 5 ], and ultrasonic welding [ 6 ].…”

Ultrasonic Welding of Novel Carbon/Elium® Thermoplastic Composites with Flat and Integrated Energy Directors: Lap Shear Characterisation and Fractographic Investigation

“…Recently, a study was carried out by the Bhudolia, S.K. et al [60] on ultrasonic welding of the carbon/Elium ® composite using one configuration of integrated ED and its comparison with the conventional adhesive joint. The results showed a 23% higher lap shear for an ultrasonically welded specimen as compared to the adhesively bonded joints.…”