Centrifugal Adhesion Testing Technology (CATT)- A Valuable Tool for Strength Determination

Abstract

A new technology for strength determination of adhesive-bonded joints based on analytical centrifu- gation is introduced. Tensile as well as shear strength can be measured for multiple test specimens simultaneously within a very short time. The experimental procedure is described from sample prepa- ration, application of adhesives, sample mounting within the centrifuge to testing parameters and sequences. All requirements of DIN EN 15870 1) are fulfilled and, in addition, a higher throughput and a better reproducibility can be obtained. The experimental results are discussed regarding bonding strength development over time, comparison of tensile and shear strength and various testing condi- tions. Furthermore, an additional application field of centrifuge technology is described with respect to the determination of the adhesive strength of coatings. The novel centrifuge based technology pro- vides the determination of bonding, adhesive and shear strength on a statistical basis under identical testing conditions for up to eight samples. Moreover, sophisticated two-sided sample clamping, neces- sary for a tensile testing machine, is replaced by a simple plug-in procedure. Key