Comparison of Peel Tests for Metal–Polymer Laminates for Aerospace Applications

Abstract

ABSTRACT Standard peel tests for aerospace laminates based on metal–polymer systems, namely floating-roller and climbing-drum peel methods, have been accommodated in a unified theory of peeling. This theory also accommodates more basic peel tests such as T-peel and fixed-arm peel and also newer methods such as mandrel peel. These five methods have been applied to two aerospace laminate systems to critically examine their use in the determination of adhesive strength. The theory has been used to unify the outputs from the tests in terms of adhesive fracture toughness. In this way, the comparative merits of the methods can be commented on. The validity of the standard methods has been put in doubt because of the absence of a correction for plastic bending energy and also because of the poor conformance of the peel arm to the roller system used in these methods. The unified theory and some measurements of peel-arm curvature help but not completely overcome some of these difficulties. A further complication that arises in peel is a change in the plane of fracture. This reflects a transition from cohesive fracture in the adhesive to an adhesive fracture at the interfaces among adhesive, primer, and substrate. It is likely that such plane-of-fracture phenomena are intrinsic to evaluation of the laminate and that contemplation of cohesive fracture toughness for the adhesive cannot accommodate such events.