Data underlying the research of: Thin-plies in adhesively bonded carbon fiber reinforced polymers

Single lap bonded joints with three different ply thicknesses of 200 micron, 100 micron and 50 micron were tested under quasi-static tensile loading. Acoustic Emission and Digital Image Correlation were used to monitor the damage and strain evolution of the overlap area during testing. 3D post-mortem failure analysis of the fracture surfaces were performed using a 3D profiling microscope. A non-linear finite element analysis up to damage initiation of the single lap joint under static loading indicates no noticeable difference in maximum shear or peel stress inside the adhesive, for all three configurations. Ply failure criteria indicate that with decreasing ply thickness, the damage onset inside the composite is postponed to higher loads and moves away from the adhesive interface towards the mid-thickness of the adherend. It is found that, decreasing the single ply thickness of laminated composite adherends in a single overlap bonded joint increases the maximum load and delays damage initiation of the joint, however the damage progression till final failure is more sudden.