High Temperature Graphene-Peek Adhesive

Compounding graphene into polymers has the potential to improve various material properties, even at very low concentrations.

Armament Research, Development and Engineering Center, Watervliet, New York

Joining of composites can be a challenging issue. If adhesives are used, the joints are permanent and cannot be undone. If they need to be undone, inserts are often used and these inserts increase cost and weight. Additionally, fibers can be cut in the process leading to a part with weakened mechanical properties.

Even with these drawbacks, most components that need to be joined are threaded together, allowing for removal of the parts at a later time. However, threaded connections are costly to design and manufacture, and are often the location of fatigue failures due to their inherent stress concentrations. From an environmental and cost standpoint, there is a large waste associated with the removal of material to form the threads, even more so in sectored threads, where up to half of the machined thread is then cut away. Additionally, threaded joints often require grease to seal out environmental contamination and ensure that they can later be disassembled. This effort is aimed at replacing seldom-used threaded connections with a reusable thermoplastic adhesive.