Effect of shear lap joint combined parameters on adhesion strength of epoxy bonded Glass Fibre Reinforced Plastics composite

Abstract The present work investigates the shear strength of adhesive-bonded lap joints of glass fibre-reinforced plastics (GFRP) composite plates. The epoxy-based structural adhesive is used to join the two composite plates. The combined effect of adhesive thickness and plate surface preparation method is studied. The complete experiment setup and the selected range of parameters are given in detail. Results have shown that the enhancement of surface preparation combined with the decrease of adhesive thickness can increase the joint strength significantly for the studied case. These results are consistent with prior shear lap joint studies on different materials or adhesives.