Numerical and Experimental Analyses on the Influence of Array Patterns in Hybrid Metal-FRP Materials Interlocked by Mechanical Undercuts

This paper aims at investigating the effect of array patterns of mechanically undercut structures on metal surfaces, thus creating a load-bearing joint in combination with fiber-reinforced plastics (FRP). Thereby, geometrical structure parameters (e.g. shape and density) can be altered by variation of process parameters. In order to achieve fundamental understanding of the impact of structure shape and density, numerical and experimental analyses as well as optical measurements are performed. It is found that the overall joint strength is significantly affected by the structure array pattern. Moreover, optimal array patterns vary and correlate with the respective structure geometry.