Paper number 992

ASSESSMENT OF ELECTRON BEAM AND X-RAY CURE ADHESIVES FOR COMPOSITE REPAIR

Tamunoiyala S. Koko, Mirko Zgela, and Kenneth D. MacKay

Martec Limited, 1888 Brunswick Street, Suite 400, Halifax, NS, Canada, B3J 3J8

Summary

This paper presents a study to evaluate electron beam (EB) and X-ray curable adhesives that could be used for composite repair of aircraft structures. A review of EB/X-ray technology as it relates to composite structural applications was first performed to assess potential adhesive systems for the application. Two candidate adhesive systems were tested in single lap shear configuration and their mechanical properties were compared to thermally cured adhesives currently being used for composite repair of aircraft structures. The shear strengths of the EB adhesives ranged from 14 to 21 MPa compared to 32 to 35 MPa for the thermally adhesives, and the EB adhesives exhibited more brittle behavior.

Keywords

electron beam, X-ray, adhesives, composites repair, aircraft structures, graphite epoxy, single lap shear tests.