The use of engineering polymers for mechanical applications has seen increasing uptake due to properties such as low density, flexibility, ease of manufacturing and cost effectiveness. Despite these advantages, joining and assembly methods for these types of materials is still an open issue. Traditional assembly processes such as screw fastening and riveting are increasingly being replaced by new processes such as adhesive bonding. Engineering polymers, however, are difficult to bond using adhesives due to their low surface energy and low wettability. For this reason, surface chemical activation techniques with primers are often used. The utilization of various chemicals associated with such pre-treatments has a significant environmental impact. Within this context, the present paper aims to compare the environmental performance of four adhesive bonding pre-treatments: (i) mechanical (i.e., abrasion), (ii) chemical (i.e., primer), (iii) plasma and (iv) laser activation. The work was performed in three phases: (i) setup of the surface activation processes, (ii) mechanical characterization of bonded joints (static tests) and (iii) LCA analysis to evaluate and compare the different pre-treatments. The outcome of this study provides important insight into the development of laser and plasma technologies as sustainable surface activation methods for polymers through the creation of models correlating process parameters to the type of surface and joint strength.

LCA of laser surface activation and traditional pre-treatments for adhesive bonding of engineering polymers / Favi, C.; Moroni, F.; Lutey, A. H. A.; Rodriguez, N. B.. - ELETTRONICO. - 98:(2021), pp. 541-546. (Intervento presentato al convegno 28th CIRP Conference on Life Cycle Engineering, LCE 2021 tenutosi a ind nel 2021) [10.1016/j.procir.2021.01.148].

LCA of laser surface activation and traditional pre-treatments for adhesive bonding of engineering polymers

Favi C.;Moroni F.;Lutey A. H. A.;Rodriguez N. B.
2021-01-01

Abstract

The use of engineering polymers for mechanical applications has seen increasing uptake due to properties such as low density, flexibility, ease of manufacturing and cost effectiveness. Despite these advantages, joining and assembly methods for these types of materials is still an open issue. Traditional assembly processes such as screw fastening and riveting are increasingly being replaced by new processes such as adhesive bonding. Engineering polymers, however, are difficult to bond using adhesives due to their low surface energy and low wettability. For this reason, surface chemical activation techniques with primers are often used. The utilization of various chemicals associated with such pre-treatments has a significant environmental impact. Within this context, the present paper aims to compare the environmental performance of four adhesive bonding pre-treatments: (i) mechanical (i.e., abrasion), (ii) chemical (i.e., primer), (iii) plasma and (iv) laser activation. The work was performed in three phases: (i) setup of the surface activation processes, (ii) mechanical characterization of bonded joints (static tests) and (iii) LCA analysis to evaluate and compare the different pre-treatments. The outcome of this study provides important insight into the development of laser and plasma technologies as sustainable surface activation methods for polymers through the creation of models correlating process parameters to the type of surface and joint strength.
2021
LCA of laser surface activation and traditional pre-treatments for adhesive bonding of engineering polymers / Favi, C.; Moroni, F.; Lutey, A. H. A.; Rodriguez, N. B.. - ELETTRONICO. - 98:(2021), pp. 541-546. (Intervento presentato al convegno 28th CIRP Conference on Life Cycle Engineering, LCE 2021 tenutosi a ind nel 2021) [10.1016/j.procir.2021.01.148].
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11381/2890650
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