Springback Behavior of Fiber Metal Laminates with Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Core in V-Bending Process

Fiber metal laminates (FMLs) are a kind of hybrid composite material that consist of metal sheets and fiber-reinforced composite layers. The use of FMLs has been particularly increasing in the production of aircraft bodies. However, the springback behavior that occurs during the formation of FML parts has a negative impact on the form of the final product. In the present study, FMLs were manufactured by combining aluminum 5754-H22 sheets and carbon fiber-reinforced plastic sheets by using adhesive. A set of experiments were performed to determine the effect of bending angle, face sheet thickness and core thickness on the springback behavior of FMLs. The results showed that the amount of springback in the FML specimen increased as the bending angle increased. It was found that when the thickness of the face sheet increased, the amount of springback in FML specimens was higher in all bending angles. In addition, the amount of springback in FML specimens decreased as core thickness increased.