MODIFICATION OF THE ADHESION PROPERTIES OF COMPOSITE MATERIALS SURFACES

N. O. FUENTES, E. A. FAVRET, N. BELINCO, G. A. KOKUBO

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Conferencia; CONMAT 2005. 3rd International Conference on Science and Technology of Composite Materials.; 2005

The extended use of composite materials in naval, aeronautic and space applications, increased the importance of adhesives and the corresponding studies on the surface conditions that are needed to obtain good union between different substrates. It must be taken into account that pieces made of glass fibres or carbon fibres reinforced composites, cannot be chemically or mechanically modified after their polymerisation without introducing permanent damages on the pieces itself. Within this framework, all aspects of fabrication processes that determine the final topography of parts and components made of composite materials, become extremely important for industrial production. In this work, experimental results are presented about the different procedures followed to modify the surface topography of composite materials during the polymerisation process. Different combinations of release films peel plies and bleeders; produce distinctive topographic patterns with different wetting conditions on the surfaces of these materials. In particular, two examples are presented to illustrate the corresponding physical situations.