Effect of saline environment on mechanical properties of adhesive joints

Literature reports very few works about the effect of corrosive environments on the mechanical properties of adhesive joints. Therefore, the present study intends to contribute for a better understanding of the effect of saline solution on the mechanical properties of single-lap adhesive joints. The specimens were manufactured using Docol 1000 high strength steel plates with 1 mm of thickness and Araldite® 420 A/B epoxy adhesive. The static shear strength of the joints was influenced by the exposure time in saline solutions only up to 120 h, and remained, after this period, nearly constant. In terms of fatigue strength, for 105 cycles, a decrease about 25% and 39% occurred in specimens immersed during 120 h in deionised water and saline solution, respectively, comparatively to the control samples.