Topic of Research Seminar: Development and characterisation of surface pretreatments of aluminium alloys for adhesion applications
Abstract: The adhesive bonding of aluminium alloys plays a significant role in light weight constructions for automotive and aerospace industry for environmentally benign and cost effective transportation. Stronger and environmentally stable adhesively bonded joints are essential for safe and reliable use of the adhesive bonding technology for structural applications. Surface pretreatments of aluminium alloys are known to be of paramount importance in this regard. The wet chemical surface pretreatments like anodising are the benchmark techniques for adhesively bonded aluminum structures but are very complex and environmentally hazardous as well as difficult to automate for reliable process control. Therefore relatively new, simple, and environment friendly dry pretreatments like laser processing are
under rigorous scrutiny to replace the state of the art pretreatments.
However, comparatively little is known on how laser generated surface structures and chemistries, which depend on laser-matter interactions, affect the adhesion and durability of adhesively bonded joints. This study investigates in detail the influence of the laser ablation regimes and hence material removal mechanisms on the morphologies, topographies and chemistries of laser formed surface structures and correlates the characteristics of these surface structures to the adhesion and durability of the adhesive bonded joints. The morphologies and topographies of surfaces are studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and confocal laser scanning microscopy (LSM), and X-ray photo spectroscopy (XPS) analysis has been used to examine the surface chemistries of pretreated surfaces.
Subject Field of Topic: Surface and interface engineering
Name of Speaker: Dr.-Ing. Muhammad Irfan
Professorial Rank of Speaker: Assistant Professor
University Email of Speaker: [email protected]
Affiliation of Speaker whether NUST: NUST
Date and Venue: 02 November 2022 at 1200 hrs, Seminar Hall, NUST School of Chemical and Materials Engineering (NUST-SCME)