Manufacturing and testing of a new CFRP node bonded by adhesives for its use in bus structures

摘要

The current buses present great problems of fatigue in the nodes of their structure. This is due to their high rigidity, caused by the use of welds. A new concept of CFRP node joined by ductile adhesives to the steel bus structure is introduced. Single lap joint, durability, thermal and mechanical fatigue tests are carried out with different adhesives to find the most suitable for the raised problem. Once the adhesive is selected, the full-size node is manufactured and joined by adhesive to the steel beams. Finally, the whole set (node and steel beams) is tested by four points bending test.