Investigating the Effect of Process Parameters on Reducing the Peeling Stress in Adhesive Joints of Composite Materials

Joints are considered the weakest part of an engineering structure and failure usually occurs in this region, firstly. One of the main factors in the rupture of adhesive joints is the normal stresses between the layers created by the presence of an out-of-center load and bending moment. The present research work has focused on the influence of parameters including the adhesive zone length, adhesive and adherend layer thickness on reducing the amount of normal interlayer stress in a single-lap adhesive joint. Optimization of parameters have been done using BA and PSO optimization algorithm. The distribution of normal and shear stresses are based on two-dimensional elasticity theory that includes the complete stress-strain and strain-displacement relations for the adhesive and adherends. The results obtained from current research revealed that by optimization of mentioned parameters, the value of peeling stress is significantly reduced. Although increasing in Young’s modulus of adhesive layer leads to an increase in normal stress of the joint, it creates a more uniform stress distribution at the edges. The outcomes also revealed that increasing the length of the joint zone and the thickness of adherends can improve the interlayer normal stress in the adhesive joint.