Mechanical Characterization of Electro-Bonded Laminates

This work reports on the coupled electro-mechanical simulation and mechanical characterization of electro-bonded laminates (EBL). In light of their conceivable implementation in morphing wings as leading/trailing edge reinforcement plates or as active elements for shear center position adaptation, values of shear strength comparable to those achievable by an epoxy resin, i.e. 10–15 [MPa], are needed. Finite element analysis routines have been implemented to gain insights into the shear behavior of EBL under high electric fields. Further, they allowed for the optimization of EBL in terms of electrode shaping in order to obtain a smooth introduction of axial stresses, avoiding thereby the appearance of shear stress singularities at the edges of the structures. Experimental verification was carried out through single lap shear tests. These experiments quantified the mechanical properties of electro bonded interfaces, assessed the importance of the thickness and alignment of electrodes and the degradation of their constitutive layers due to friction.