Ultrasonic Welding of Advanced Thermoplastic Composites: An Investigation on Energy-Directing Surfaces

Ultrasonic welding is considered as one of the most promising welding techniques for continuous fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites. Intermolecular friction within the bulk, resulting from the application of ultrasonic waves applied on the surfaces, generates the heat required for welding to take place at the interface of the joining members via the so-called energy directors (EDs). Energy directors consist of resin protrusions or artificially produced asperities on the composite surfaces and play an important role both in the welding process and in the quality of the resulting welds. This paper presents the results of a study on the effects of configuration of different EDs on the ultrasonic welding of carbon fiber/polyetherimide advanced thermoplastic composites in a near-field setup. Triangular EDs were molded on the surface of consolidated composite laminates with a hot platen press. Single lap-shear-welded samples were produced to investigate the influence of the orientation of the EDs with respect to the load direction, as well as the configuration of multiple EDs. The results indicate that the configuration of multiple transverse EDs was more effective in covering the overlap area, once the resin has melted, causing only a minimum fiber disruption at the welding interface. (C) 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Adv Polym Techn 29: 112-121, 2010; Published online in Wiley Inter Science (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/adv.20178