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Joining Technologies for Composites and Dissimilar Materials, Volume 10 pp 49–58Cite as

Fabrication of 3D Thermoplastic Sandwich Structures Utilizing Ultrasonic Spot Welding

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Abstract

The ultimate goal of this work was to create 3D polycarbonate sandwich structures fabricated utilizing ultrasonic spot welding (USSW). First, a study of weld strength vs. weld time, frequency, amplitude of vibration and depth of penetration was carried out. Lap shear and peel tests were used to quantitatively characterize weld strength, and from these results, a set of parameters for USSW of polycarbonate was determined. To create the sandwich structures, three layers of 1.59 mm polycarbonate sheet were stacked together, and using an alternating pattern of USSW, the middle layer was joined to each of the outer layers. Post-weld processing of the stacked layers involving heat and pressurization of the structure with air generated a 3D open cell geometry sandwich structure of polycarbonate. 3-point bend and drop impact tests were conducted to study the stiffness and the impact properties of the sandwich structures, and the results suggest that the fabricated polycarbonate sandwich structures might be suitable for applications requiring high strength and energy absorption while maintaining low weight. Additionally, the ability to easily incorporate different geometries in the structure allows the possibility to design structures with tailored mechanical properties.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, 501 E. Saint Joseph St., Rapid City, SD, 57701, USA

    Cassandra M. Degen & Navaraj Gurung

Authors
  1. Cassandra M. Degen
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  2. Navaraj Gurung
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Correspondence to Cassandra M. Degen .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Composite Vehicle Research Center, Michigan State University, Lansing, Michigan, USA

    Gary L. Cloud

  2. University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom

    Eann Patterson

  3. National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, Canada

    David Backman

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© 2017 The Society for Experimental Mechanics, Inc

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Degen, C.M., Gurung, N. (2017). Fabrication of 3D Thermoplastic Sandwich Structures Utilizing Ultrasonic Spot Welding. In: Cloud, G., Patterson, E., Backman, D. (eds) Joining Technologies for Composites and Dissimilar Materials, Volume 10. Conference Proceedings of the Society for Experimental Mechanics Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-42426-2_6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-42426-2_6

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-42425-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-42426-2

  • eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)

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