Experimental Research on Shearing Strength of Adhesively Bonded Composite Joints

An experimental study on static shear failure behaviors of pi-shaped composite adhesively bonded joints designed for integrating composite structures was performed. During the tests, the initial damage, failure loads and ultimate failure patterns have been recorded. It is found that the damage mainly occurred at the basal L laminates and clamping area at high shear load levels. Since the failure at clamping area was mainly caused by the special fixture or local structural weakening resulted from the prefabricated holes, it follows the composite pi joints has strong capability under the shear load and the weakness is at the basal part, where the joint was bonded with the skin.