Direct Adhesion of Warm Roll-Bonded Al1100/Polyurethane/Al1100 Sandwich Composite

Metal/polymer sandwich composites combine high stiffness, lightweight characteristics and favorable forming behavior due to the strong metal skin and soft polymer core. Among various techniques available for the manufacturing of metal/polymer sandwich composites, roll bonding can provide advantages over other techniques due to its mass production capability. Roll bonding of multilayer composites, however, is challenging due to significant differences in the mechanical properties and adhesion characteristics of polymeric and metallic materials. In this study, warm roll bonding (WRB) has been applied to fabricate a sandwich composite consisting of commercially pure aluminum (AL1100) and polyurethane (PU) sheets. The effects of WRB process parameters, which include surface roughness, preheat temperature, and rolling speed, on the adhesion strength have been investigated by the peel test. The failure mode changed from adhesive to cohesive as surface roughness increased. The optimal temperature and rolling speed were identified for WRB of the three-layer AL1100/PU/AL1100 sandwich composite.