Bonding of FRP Structures with Room Temperature Curing Acrylic Adhesives

Modified acrylic resin adhesives bond well to a wide variety of metallic and nonmetallic substrates. They may also be used to bond dissimilar materials such as aluminum to glass fiber reinforced polyester (FRP). These room temperature curing structural adhesives equal or exceed the inherent strengths of many engineering thermoplastics. When properly prepared, these adhesives give bonds of outstanding durability to heat, moisture, and outdoor exposure. Both static and dynamic adhesive durability studies have been carried out on several systems which are representative of this type of acrylic resin adhesive.

Bonding of FRP structures requires some surface preparation prior to application of the adhesive. With proper application, modified acrylic adhesive bond strengths are superior to either room temperature (RT) epoxy or urethane adhesive bond strengths. The RT cures can be thermally accelerated to give even more durable bonds. Some durability data for the acrylic, an RT epoxy, and a urethane will be compared.