On one hand, there are rivets, bolts, and welds—methods that clearly show how they work. These are mechanical fastening technologies that we understand very well and have used for a long time. There's no need for someone to explain how to tighten a bolt or how this mechanism holds two metal pieces together. In fact, we're used to seeing ships, buildings, and even bridges held together by large bolts, and we take for granted that metals are joined through welding. For all these reasons, we naturally tend towards these mechanical fastening solutions, which are known and "simple." Yet, despite this, we know that in many industrial sectors, for various needs, the same rivets, bolts, and welds have often been replaced by structural adhesives. These glues have become the default solution for bonding metals, plastics, and many other materials due to the numerous advantages they offer, such as increased lightness, instant bonding, no pre-drilling required, clean aesthetics, and more. All of these points could also be made about high-performance tapes, not just structural adhesives. And yet, the doubt often remains: do structural adhesives really work? Are they strong enough to replace rivets, bolts, and welds in your company? Let’s find out. We've already touched on what structural adhesives are, so we'll be brief here. In short, they can be described as extremely strong glues. If we want a qualitative definition, we can say that a structural adhesive is a glue that creates a bond at least as strong as the materials it is joining. But when it comes to strength, performance, and safety, qualitative descriptions can sometimes fall short. That's why in the United States, an adhesive is considered structural if its shear strength exceeds 7 megapascals. In Europe, the standard is even higher: an adhesive is only considered structural if its shear strength is above 10 megapascals. The typical structural adhesive is a liquid, thermosetting type, but there are several variations. It's also worth noting that these products are not new. In fact, they are well-established. Think about 3M, which introduced the first neoprene-based contact adhesive in 1942, and in the 1960s launched the first flexible epoxied structural adhesive, as well as the first liquid spray adhesive. So, structural adhesives are a proven and standardized technology. Let's now see just how effective they really are. To understand how and how well structural adhesives work, nothing is more useful than comparing them with the traditional fastening methods they are sometimes called upon to replace. The most important data used to measure the strength of a fastening method is the already-mentioned shear strength. Which of the following options—spot welding, seam welding, rivets, bolts, or structural adhesives—provides the highest resistance? Well, it turns out that rivets come at the bottom of the list, with the worst results. They are cheap, quick to use, but certainly not known for design flexibility or aesthetic appeal. Bolts, like rivets, can certainly provide high strength at the point where they are installed, but they can't work across the entire non-covered surface. Slightly better is spot welding, but it still only works at specific points. The two methods that offer the highest shear strength are seam welding and structural adhesives, often performing up to three times better than rivets. In numbers, structural adhesives work, often better than traditional fastening methods. They can be used in many different situations: to bond metals, plastics, and composites; on stable or flexible surfaces; to withstand extremely high or low temperatures, and much more. We invite you to discover the best structural adhesives available in our online store and find the one that best suits your business operations! Whether you're working in automotive, aerospace, construction, or any other industry, structural adhesives offer a reliable and efficient alternative to traditional fasteners. With their ability to distribute stress evenly across a joint, they can enhance the durability and longevity of your products. Plus, they offer cleaner, more modern designs without compromising strength. So, why not give them a try? You might be surprised at just how effective they can be. Sight Glass,Sight Glass Level Gauge,Level Gauge Glass,Boiler Gauge Glass Hengshui Aohong Technology Co.,Ltd. , https://www.aohong-sealing.comA Quick Overview of Structural Adhesives
Do Structural Adhesives Really Work? Here Are the Test Results
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