Geometrically non-linear analysis of adhesively bonded double containment cantilever joints

Under an increasing load, the adhesively bonded joints may undergo large rotations and displacements while strains are still small and even all joint members are elastic. In this case, the linear elasticity theory cannot predict correctly the nature of stress and deformation in the adhesive joints. In this study, an attempt was made to develop an analysis method considering the large displacements and rotations in the adhesive joints, assuming all joint members to be still elastic. An incremental finite element method was used in the application of the small strain-large displacement theory to the adhesively bonded joints. An adhesively bonded double containment cantilever (DCC) joint was analysed using this incremental finite element method under two different loadings: a tensile loading at the horizontal plate free end, P-x and one normal to the horizontal plate plane, P-y. The adhesive and plates were assumed to have elastic properties, and some amount of adhesive, called spew fillet, that accumulated at the adhesive free ends was also taken into account. The analysis showed that the geometrical non-linear behaviour of adhesively bonded joints was strictly dependent on the loading and boundary conditions. Thus, a DCC joint exhibits a high non-linearity in the displacements, stresses, and strains in the critical sections of the adhesive and horizontal plate under a tensile loading at the free end of the horizontal plate, P-x, while a similar behaviour in these regions was not observed for a loading normal to the horizontal plate plane, P-y. However, an increasing non-linear variation in the stresses and deformations of the horizontal plate appeared from the free ends of the adhesive-horizontal plate interfaces to the free end of the horizontal plate for both loading conditions. Consequently, joint regions with a low stiffness always undergo high rotations and displacements, and if these regions include any adhesive layer, the non-linear effects will play an important role in predicting correctly the stresses and deformations in the joint members, especially at the adhesive free ends at which high stress concentrations occurred. In addition, the DCC joint exhibited a higher stiffness and lower stress and strain levels in the joint region in which the support and horizontal plate are bonded than those in the horizontal plate.